Meet Katherine Costanzo

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Katherine Costanzo. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Katherine 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?

When I was a little girl, I used to go to my grandparents a lot. They owned a LOT of chickens. Barns full. My grandfather was a Vet and also showed chickens. They lived on a farm. When I wanted something, I would get it but I had to work for it. So, I would plan a weekend where I would go to their home and for $10/hour I would clean the chicken coops and also weed the gardens. They would wake me up at 6:00am, eat a bowl of fruit and some toast and get to work. I was taught at a young age that you can achieve the things you desire if you work for them. The first thing I ever wanted to buy was a tiny blow up pool, and so I got it but I worked for it. Since I was 6 years old, I have had motivation because I saw the results and from then on, I haven’t stopped. I am forever grateful for that. My family as a whole, on both sides, work hard. We don’t believe in laziness.

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 believer in positivity. I despise hate. I am an active member in my sobriety community which leads to my next statement. I am just over 6 years sober. These past 6 years I have had the ability to learn about myself in this chapter of life. The amount of growth and patience I have come to understand has been life changing.

I have always been an artist. I have for many years, always kept it to myself as it was a form of therapy just for me. Along with playing instruments. I play guitar, piano, flute and a bit of drums. (My neighbors love me 😉) My Dad has been a carpenter his whole life and growing up, I would go to some of his jobs with him. He would teach me how to use certain tools and how to build things. Thats when my love of woodworking was born. Whether it be painting, drawing, building things or playing instruments, art is everything to me.

My other love is animals. I have been working with animals for the past 9 years and am currently in the process of owning my own doggy day care. Which I woke up one Sunday morning and decided, “okay that’s next on the list- I will start it tomorrow, Monday”. And a dog daycare was born the next day.

When I moved out to California from Michigan at 18, I got involved in the film world. Not as an actor but as a location manager and film scout. I wanted to learn everything I could about how it all works. And mostly because, the location department and film scouting allows you to travel and interact with other communities and people. Which I love to do. I have also worked in this industry off and on since I was 18. And I’m 38 now…. (Yes I just gave my age away but age is nothing but a number).

During a break from film and television, I decided to go into Hospitality. I worked at Hotel Bel Air for 5 years and then went on to manage the restaurants and bars at the Roosevelt Hotel for a couple of years. During that time, I learned how much I love to be hospitable to others. At that time though, was when I learned I wasn’t taking care of myself and that’s where the drinking started to take over. I am an open book about my sobriety so I am happy to discuss and dive into any of that at any time because my story could help someone else.

About 12 years ago, I started something silly on social media. I took a picture of myself with my thumbs up on a Friday and posted it saying “Happy thumbs up Friday. If you put your thumbs up today then you can’t have a bad day”. In all of 13 years, I have never missed a Friday EXCEPT for when I went to rehab. Thumbs up Friday is something that anyone can expect to see and know that it’s simply just a positive space. No politics involved, no judgement, just positivity. I have since then actually licensed Thumbs up Friday as my own business. I own the rights to it. The website is there but not active because I have yet to figure out exactly how I want it to go. (Enter the procrastinating artists brain)

At this current moment, I am working on finishing a few rather large art pieces I have started while starting my dog day care business.

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

Have a goal in mind and then write down the first step to achieving it. Start with the first step only and then you can focus on the second.

Write EVERY idea you have down. Because there are no bad ideas. They may just need to be edited.

Do not be afraid to ask for help or advice. Instead of put on the “I don’t need help I can do it on my own” attitude, understand that there are others out there who have further experience and knowledge and don’t mind helping.

What would you advise – going all in on your strengths or investing on areas where you aren’t as strong to be more well-rounded?

As I have learned, that not all strengths are helpful all at once. Break your strengths down and build off of them. Similar to a family tree. It’s a marathon not a sprint. That’s where the learning of patience comes in. Learn to be patient with yourself and you can start to see the road clear up ahead of you if you take it one step at a time. As my mentor taught me along time ago, the journey IS the destination.