We were lucky to catch up with Alex Grand recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alex, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?
I have a bit of a compulsion for seeing the silver lining. I hope for the best. I believe people can change and anything is possible. Faith is a core value of mine. There’s a big part of me that believes that’s the only real way to unlock some of the possibilities that seem unlikely. So part of it is practical, but another part is selfish. I’m fully aware of all the harsh realities of the world. I probably spend an above average amount of time every day consuming news. I just don’t want to stay there. It’s just easier to move on with my day or fall asleep at night if I tell myself there’s reason to have hope.
Unsurprisingly, my optimistic outlooks are proven wrong plenty of the time. And there are moments when I feel straight up foolish for believing things could have turned out differently. Recently I found myself wondering whether this was a weakness of mine… Does my optimism also make me gullible or naive? And truthfully, I think the answer to that is yes sometimes.
But I also believe that the same trait that can show up as a weakness can also be a strength. There are shades to every quality.
You can be a really responsible person who forgets to make room for fun.
Someone with a great sense of humor might occasionally use humor to avoid being sincere.
Or you might be a hyper-rational person who makes really sensible purchases but avoids anything remotely risky to the detriment of their personal life or personal fulfillment.
So yes, I choose to stay sanguine, to find reasons to be optimistic, to keep the faith against all odds. Because it feels better and because it is more motivating to me than despair. Faith keeps me going and willing to do my part while hopelessness makes it feel like there’s no point.
There’s a lot of fight left to fight and work left to be done, y’all. I believe it can be more productive for us to believe in a better day and a better world than to assume it’s not possible, and I think by embodying that possibility, we’re helping to create it.
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?
I’m Co-founder of Way of Being, a low waste shop offering sustainable alternatives to everyday essentials. My co-founder Lindsay and I started our business as a way to give agency back to individuals who are tired of waiting around for someone else to solve of the big problems looming over us like the climate crisis, income inequality, and racial wealth gaps.
We think of Way of Being as a shop, a teacher, and a friend offering supplies, education, and encouragement to support a sustainable, intentional lifestyle where small, everyday actions create a better world.
We know that most people care about the environment and want to do their parts to make the world align more closely with their values, but they often feel limited in time and capacity to do so.
We make it easier for individuals who care to adopt small lifestyle changes that add up to meaningful impact. We offer plastic-free, reusable, sustainable, and nontoxic alternatives to the personal care and home essentials we all use every day so living in alignment with your values takes little to no extra effort.
There are a few things that set us apart:
1. Our unique, elevated curation – sustainable products that are actually sustainable and not greenwashed, that actually work well and don’t feel like a compromise, and that you actually enjoy having in your home because they are beautifully and delightfully designed
2. Our focus on promoting the small, local, diverse makers that we are in this business to help thrive
3. Our distinct brand – encouraging and not judgy, warm and inviting instead of intimidating because we’ve learned that making people feel bad isn’t persuasive and that the lifestyle we’re promoting is good for the body, mind, and soul.
In 2024, we opened a brick-and-mortar location in Portland, Oregon on Hawthorne Blvd, and you can always learn more and shop with us at wayofbeing.co.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three skills that have been the most impactful on my journey have been 1. Willingness to learn, ask for help, and lean on my community. 2. Optimism. 3. The ability to refuel and nurture my energy.
I think that in entrepreneurship, there are so many hurdles and hard days to overcome, that in order for you to survive and your business to thrive, it helps to have a consistent practice of grounding yourself. Yes, it requires hustle, but you can only grind for so long before burnout hits. We’re only human. So treat yourself accordingly. If you’re the captain of the ship, you have to stay connected to what drives you, and you have to make sure you’re clear on your direction. It’s hard to do that when you’re constantly scrambling and running on fumes. I like taking a full day or even weekend to myself at least once a quarter to rest, reflect, and re-center. And in between, I stay energized by taking good care of my body and mental health and also surrounding myself with things that inspire me — film, art, people, books, music. It can look different for everyone, but pay attention to what makes you feel grounded and energized, and feed yourself with those things consistently. That’s what keeps me going after over 5 years.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
Oh boy, this has been a huge year of growth. I think the biggest thing has been reprogramming myself to not people-please as much.
I’ve become a lot more aware of how anxious it makes me when the people around me are uncomfortable, and my natural impulse is to do everything I can to make everyone else happy. What I’ve learned is that it’s not my responsibility to fix other people’s problems, and it’s often not even what they want. Not only do I deserve to have my needs met too, but it’s actually more helpful to everyone if I center my own needs because if I don’t, I’m not able to show up as my best.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wayofbeing.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wayofbeing.co/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wayofbeing.co
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wayofbeing/
Image Credits
Lindsay Janssen Smith
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
