Meet Heather Cook

We recently connected with Heather Cook and have shared our conversation below.

Heather, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

Purpose defined: the reason for which something is done or created, or for which something exists. In my younger years, I was hypersensitive to my choices because I knew that like developing a character, a person builds upon their choices and their choices define them. Everyone is born with a special talent, and that talent is discovered by trying and doing different things. For me, I always wanted to create my own world, one that I wanted to be a part of, and I always really cared what things looked like aesthetically. It was also important to create/validate my existence in an honest way. Even though I didn’t know what I really wanted to do in college, I knew was that I had to complete college because it would open doors and I found purpose there with everyone in college because they too where striving to become better. A real community. When I entered corporate America, unfortunately that was the point when my purpose completely and utterly clashed with my purpose because they were not aligned. I was successful in corporate America and I earned a stellar salary but the means in which everyone was treated/rewarded and the lack of ethical standards held absolutely zero appeal. This was part of the process of finding my purpose, as a woman you are always conflicted with career/womanhood/children…., but that is a whole other conversation. Finding my purpose came with a lot of highs and lows, but what I have found is that there wasn’t a carefully weighed risk I wasn’t happy I took. There is also something to be said about not chasing money because that will never provide a purpose. Finding your delights and nurturing your God given talents is when you find your path and purpose. Taking a hold of your talents and moving past the people that just want to use you for ideas, skills etc. isn’t an easy pill to swallow, the world can be a very shallow place but only you can find your happiness and the means in which you allow it to control how you grow and thrive in life. I’ve been a visual artist my entire life and everything I have done up to this point has built on each other and I’m thrilled with my choices and thrilled to have found my purpose.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Living in Hawaii affords a perfect setting to living in a painting, that said it is also one of the most difficult places to survive monetarily. So, it is good that I’m not doing it for the money. The flowers are spectacular in Hawaii and I specialize in creating custom flower arrangements, gift baskets and also provide decorating services for the holidays and other design services for special events and parties. I deliver locally, but I also ship to the mainland.

I’m currently working on an ocean themed event for next year. I’m creating a whole underwater world for my clients. My favorite part of this project is that most of the project is completely hand made with concepts I have created and the whole project incorporates flowers.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The three most important qualities I find to make a positive impact in my professional journey include: listen more than you speak, and as simple as it sounds treating others as you would like to be treated. That doesn’t mean being a doormat, it means customer service is really important, people want to be heard and their expectations need to be expressed in order to do a job well. Always be honest with people and make sure they understand what is needed in order to complete(excel) their expectations, and express that you understand their wants etc..
And, the third most important area worth cultivating includes with whom you align yourself.
Find people who have similar goals and characteristics, also learn when to move on from a relationship if someone isn’t aligning with your standards or principles it is a fruitless and worthless to hope that they will change. That doesn’t mean that they are horrible people it just means they need to be kept at arms length especially if it is a close business partner that could be detrimental to your evolution as a business person. The old adage “the company you keep”.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

Hard work, I found myself watching them work themselves into the ground so they missed opportunities. I wanted more of a choice on how I worked, when I worked and to whom I worked. If I failed in something, it was all my fault and so the responsibility always had to be mine, I owned that and I believe that is a very helpful trait if you are going to be a business owner. Own your success and failures, no one else is to blame. I learn by example, I have watched many of my very successful friends grow their businesses to the point of exhaustion, and then they give up all control only to work harder become more detached and then just seem to glide in a haze. Keep it simple and don’t think you can hire someone to worry/direct for you, it sounds like a great idea but you will pay for that if you don’t align/hire the right people. I believe my work capacity is limitless, but I also know I have limits and only take on jobs that create – not drain that’s something that is hard to teach depending on your line of work. I have chosen a profession I completely enjoy so it never feels like work, but I’m also not looking to create a giant company just to maintain a small business. I hope everyone can choose that same joy in a job well done because you really can’t describe how much fulfillment can be found in your own accomplishments when aligned with your purpose. Focus on you, not what others are doing, be authentic, no one can match your gifts because they have their own to fulfill.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sendingyoualoha.com/collections/order-flowers
• Instagram: @sendingyoualoha