We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Elizabeth Cassidy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Elizabeth, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I was lucky because I entered the world as a little creative soul. I drew when I could and scribbled on anything. When school started, I handed in drawings instead of written reports. That went over big, and the principal’s office felt like a second home. I had a learning disability (which I now look at as another ability: ADHD) that was not diagnosed until I was in my fifties. That made for a lonely childhood because I was all over the place and parents thought I might be contagious. I wasn’t. So, I kept drawing and creating my own little world with my art. All this made me very aware of how cruel people can be if they do not take the time to understand someone who is different from them.
During my teens and early twenties, women were raising their voices about equality as well as in the Black and LGBTQ+ communities. We all were in this struggle together and I wanted to fight for not just my rights, but the rights of friends, family members and total strangers. I started to see that if you take the time to understand the lives and the struggles of others that we could all live together in peaceful harmony. We are not there yet.
I attended F.I.T. in Manhattan, and I received a degree in advertising design and fashion illustration. My biggest triumph there was creating a campaign for Planned Parenthood. One of my instructors nearly fainted when he heard what I wanted to do, but the teachers realized that I had a mission. That my purpose in my life is to try to make things better for people. And not just for myself.
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Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
After college and exploring the west coast, I came back to New York City and ended up spending over thirty years in the advertising field. It was a wonderful time to be young and curious and I even tried being a stand-up comic for a few years. That was terrifying because there were only a few of us brave women performing in clubs and trying to be heard. When it came time to update my resume, I added that experience. Turns out it was always the first thing HR would ask me about. Getting up in front of a crowd and trying to hold the audience’s attention (and make them laugh) said that I was willing to take chances and maybe come up with a new way to do things. Being different and thinking differently does have its advantages.
I cannot talk about this time in my life without bringing up the AIDS epidemic. I can sum up that horrific time in the words my mother said to me, “You are too young to be losing so many friends.” And this was another life lesson for me. As my dear friends were losing their voices, mine had to get louder. I became involved in several AIDS organizations that worked on educating people about AIDS and the innocent people suffering and dying from it. It was no small feat. Imagine going to a memorial service once, twice, three times a month for months on end?
I decided to leave the advertising field, and I studied to become a certified creativity coach. I wanted to help people learn to embrace their greatness and learn how to really talk to themselves: I want to vs. I have to… Big difference. And then the economy tanked. I studied to become a Reiki Practitioner. I was grateful to be a national blogger for several women sites, but something was missing.
I wanted to be that little girl creating art again. So, I took the steps to do just that.
I jumped back into my art and played around with several different mediums. I became an award-winning artist, and my art was featured in shows all over Long Island, NY. At that time, I did creativity coaching with writers and artists and interviewed them for one of the national blogs I wrote for. I started to study with amazing art teachers whose courses were all on Zoom because of the Covid pandemic. I met a lot of supportive artists who I consider good friends to this day. We support each other’s wins because it inspires us to do better.
One of my favorite stories is about contacting the Nassau County Museum of Art about creating greeting cards for their exhibits. It was one of those “cold calls out of the blue.” The manager had me come in and after he reviewed my line of “A Peaceful Revolution” greeting cards, I aced the job. The manager gave me total creative freedom and the cards sold well. In fact, one woman had fifty of one of my “The 80s Show” cards printed for her bridal shower. It pays to ask.
But in 2016, right after the Pulse Nightclub massacre in Fl., I knew I had to create something to help people being more kindness and acceptance into this broken world. I used my talents in art and writing, and I unveiled, “little Love Letters: A Peaceful Revolution.” I created art and wrote positive affirmations, and I also leaned on a few famous voices to help inspire people. They are the size of business cards. I looked for volunteers to leave these cards in public places like grocery stores, libraries, in a card to someone who could need some cheering up. Your imagination can guide you to where to put a card with the message,” Someone left this card for you to keep or pass on to someone else.” My wonderful volunteers had disturbed over 70,000 cards worldwide before the world shut down in March 2020. But Little Love Letters: A Peaceful Revolution is up and running again. I reached out to an art magazine and one of the main newspapers here in The Berkshires, and they helped me get the word out. And it is working. I cannot speak for the entire world, but people here in this country need to stop fighting and start to accept and respect each other.
I crowned myself the Queen of the One Liners. I have created several hundred one-line faces that I hope will turn into a book. I am proud of my The Odd Sisters illustrations. Their tag line is: “Even if you are a little odd, you’ll always be a sister.” They are about girl and women empowerment.
I believe in learning something new every day. Even if it is not related to my art. Keep the brain busy and your life will follow.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
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?
Be kind. I worked with some of the best and the worse people in my industry. Do you know who we remember and talk about? The ones who gave us a chance and helped us as we grew in our careers. The cruel people are just an annoying memory. We are in this together and do not take people down because you think it will make you look better. You will end up alone even if you have a corner office.
Teach. As you grow your career, remember that someone helped you get there, and you should feel honored to help the next person grow in their position. Get them ready to take over your job so you can move up in your career.
Educate yourself. You do not have to go back to school, but there are so many excellent workshops and courses online that can help you in your career. Don’t get stale. I look at how much I have learned and how it has helped my career. Good luck.
What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?
My parents taught us from an incredibly young age to accept people and stand up with them. It is not our job to hide on the sidelines and expect someone else to do the hard work. Challenging work can turn into the most rewarding work because you did your best and you cared about others.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.elizabethcassidystudioworks.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethcassidystudioworks
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.cassidy.98/
Image Credits
elizabeth cassidy
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