We recently connected with Danielle Taylor and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Danielle, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
Oh man, that’s a great question.
To be plain about it… I think optimism is probably 20% cerebral and about 80% experiential. Meaning, you’re kinda born with it, but it’s continually reinforced experiences that solidify you as an optimist.
I think almost everyone on earth has experienced moments of difficulty… periods of time where they felt challenged, hopeless, unworthy, broken… or like they weren’t good enough. In my opinion, those are the moments we observe and recognize, but also push through and rise above.. through not only resilience, but with optimism as well.
I’ve had so many different challenging and heartbreaking experiences in life — things like being homeless, being in an abusive relationship, being economically destitute, loved ones passing — and I believe it’s my optimism that ultimately pulled me through it. I didn’t just ‘hope’ that things would be ok .. I knew with every fiber of my being, .. that they would be. This goes back to my experiential theory… throughout my life, at then end of strife, things always were ok. So why wouldn’t they be again?
Even bigger than experiences “turning out ok” … is the way we look at those experiences. When something bad happens, are we the kind of people that gripe, sulk, worry? Or do we look for learning opportunities; silver linings?
Ever since I was little, my main goal in life was to be happy. I know that sounds campy, but it’s 100% true. So in every situation, I looked for a way to win.. to be happy. Which inevitably meant that, in my eyes at least, I ended up winning… even when I initially felt like I was losing.
I believe we train our brains to shape our world — which basically means life is literally what we make it.
Life is made up of experiences… that’s it. We experience tough stuff like homelessness, poverty, abuse, loss … but those are literally experiences. If we train our brains to find the silver lining, those experiences aren’t so devastating … and eventually, our lives become lighter — the weight of the world doesn’t feel so heavy — we become happier.
Once we train ourselves to seek out happiness, we kind of operate on autopilot and find it everywhere.
Seeing life through happy eyes breeds optimism.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Sure! Well, my name is Danielle (hi everyone) and I’m an entrepreneur, producer, and artist.
I own and operate a three pronged business called Kimble & Taylor Productions, which focuses primarily on the arts — mainly the music business. I run a talent/booking agency, music library, and music production house. In addition, I’m also a musical artist myself. I sing, write songs, play the piano, and perform.
Right now, I’m really focused on helping musicians find a path toward economic independence. I know firsthand how difficult it can be to earn a living in the music world and my mission is to help talented artists be financially secure through their art.
We identify goals, create music together, I share information and connections with them, … and ultimately, help find their individual path toward musical success — through passive sources of income, like radio play, .. as well as earned sources like, live performance… and of course, portfolio income, like recurring royalties like sync from film and tv.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
If I had to rank them, … I’d say communication skills, a gregarious nature, and a strong self starting work ethic have been the most integral part of my journey as a businesswoman.
Being able to communicate ideas and being equally adept at listening has led to so many wonderful collaborations — I have to rank that number one in my success book. Coupled with my generally gregarious nature, I’ve often found myself in social settings where I could really thrive and network. It’s cliche to say, but your network is often directly correlated to your net worth. These two mixed in with an unstoppable desire to get things done is the basic recipe for my personal journey.
If you’re assessing your own superpowers and thinking these particular ones could use a little developing, I’d say that starting with communication is probably the way to go. There are a million books on being a good communicator, but my two cents on it, is to be in the moment, truly listen, and then respond by saying the kindest version of what you actually mean. Take your time if need be, but remember that to really respond with any kind of authenticity requires active and deliberate listening.
Being sociable is kind of a preference thing, but if you’re looking to develop your networking skills — I’d say to remember your self worth. I think a lot of awkward social stuff happens because we second guess ourselves. If you’re at an event that people you want to network with are also at — you are in the room for a reason. You deserve to be there, you have something to offer. Also, extra little tip — do a little research on the people you want to network with and maybe break the ice with a compliment on their work/contributions. Then, actively listen and respond… now you’re networking in a meaningful way!
The work ethic is third on my list and pretty much completes the circle — communicating ideas and listening helps you network more, being confident and remembering your self worth while communicating also helps you network, and then having a solid plan of action for followthrough rounds out the success model.
Once you successfully communicate and network, you need to follow up with action — that’s where a strong, self starting work ethic comes in. Stick to a daily routine, have a to-do list or calendar, and follow up on all connections you make. On days when it’s hard to stay motivated, allow yourself two hours of fluff time — do whatever you want — but then get back to it. We aren’t robots, we’re people and sometimes we need to eat cereal in our pjs and watch cartoons .. but set limits on that and remember that your goals will only go as far as you take them.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I am always looking for new musicians to work with!
I work with composers, engineers, performers, songwriters, … you name it!
Whether you’re just starting out and want assistance from the ground up, or if you’ve got a handle on things and just need representation — I am always on the hunt for new people to assist.
People can reach out to me the following ways:
Email for talent representation: dt@kimble-and-taylor.com
Email for assistance/music production/library representation: contact@chancerecordings.com
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kimble-and-taylor.com
- Other: Second website: https://chancerecordings.com
