Meet Julie Ostmeyer

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Julie Ostmeyer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Julie with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

I get my work ethic from my parents. My father farmed and raised cattle. In the 80’s, the interest rates went through the roof making it difficult to make ends meet. At that time, my mother took a job in town to help support our family. Over the summer months when I was out of school, it became my job to cook meals for my Dad and brother and do basic household chores while my Mom was working in town. I’ve never asked my Mom how hard it was to transition from being a stay at home Mom to a Mom working outside of the home. She had to miss out on family events because of it, and I know how hard it was for me when my kids were still at home. Who knows, maybe she needed a break from my brother and me! All joking aside, they instilled in me that you do whatever it takes to support your family. I’m proud to say that this has been passed down through the generations as all 3 of my kids aren’t afraid of hard work. Now it’s my job to show them how to take that and learn how to work smarter, not harder.

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 am a part-time dental assistant and a home-based business owner. Helping others has always been something that’s deeply rooted in who I am. I light up around people. My husband calls me a “social butterfly” and I would have to say that he’s right, but don’t tell him I said that! (wink)

My husband and I are incredibly passionate about giving back to others. Every year, we host hunts for pediatric cancer patients and their families, along with a soldier appreciation hunt for active duty soldiers. It’s one of the most meaningful things we do and has become a tradition that we truly cherish. There’s something really special about walking alongside families during stressful times and letting them know that they’re not alone.

As much as I love being involved, there never seemed to be enough time and money to give me the flexibility to do more of these things that matter. I am also an empty-nest mom, and while I’ll always be “Mom”, my kids are off building their own lives. I am so proud of these 3 humans that I’ve raised, but it means that our time together looks different now and I don’t want to just wait around for holidays or family events to see them. I want to be present in their lives with the flexibility to meet them where they’re at.

This is what led me to start building a leveraged business that works for my life, not against it. I wanted a business where I didn’t have to trade my time for money, without sacrificing my income. This is when I started my home-based business and it’s what I’ve been doing for a couple of years now. But my journey getting to this point was long and full of twists and turns. Because I was working a 9-5 job outside of the home, the mom guilt that I felt was overwhelming. There were never enough PTO hours to allow me time off to be fully present for my family. Because of this experience, I’ve made it my mission to help others achieve more time and financial freedom to be fully present with their families if they so choose. I rely heavily on the Pinterest platform for my own business to accomplish this, and now I share my journey with others by presenting free monthly webinars to show them how they can make additional money on the Pinterest platform as well. When my eyes were opened to how powerful this platform is, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops for others to hear. It just feels good to share my experience with others and it’s so rewarding when you can help others through difficult times. I love to celebrate their successes which is why I am so passionate about what I do.

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?

Wow, what a great question…

I would have to say one of the hardest things to overcome for myself was that my journey wasn’t going to be perfect or easy. I am a perfectionist on many things and I thought if I just checked off all of the boxes I would be successful. Boy, I was rudely awakened! So my advice for others is know that it’s okay to pivot when you find what is and isn’t working and give yourself some grace along your journey.

I would also have to say to never stop learning. Just because you have a high school diploma or a college degree doesn’t mean that your learning process stops. One thing that I hear most from others when they ask me what I’m doing in business is “I could never do that.” It’s not that you can’t. Starting something new can be scary. But if you have the right tools in your toolbox and realize that it’s only learning a new skill, it’s totally doable. This has helped me tremendously along my journey.

Lastly, I would have to say is to never look at something as a failure. One of my favorite quotes is from Thomas Edison that says, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” For me the word FAIL stands for “First Attempt In Learning”. I would also recommend that when you find something that you’re passionate about, surround yourself with people and mentors who are already doing it. Open your mind and let your brain act as a sponge soaking in their wisdom and experiences. The fastest way to get from point A to B is by learning from other’s journeys to what worked and what didn’t.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

Hands down, Kim Ward. I was at a breaking point in my business journey when she came across my Facebook feed. She introduced me to Pinterest and how she leveraged the platform to give her back her time and financial freedom passively. She speaks my language and her ‘why’ aligns with mine. We are both family-focused and she showed me how to mold my business around my family lifestyle. Her mentorship has turned my life around. I’ll be forever indebted to her because she’s given me back the one thing that’s the most important to me: my family.

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Image Credits

Images are credited to Amber Larkins Empowerography

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