Meet Kristiann Colasacco

We were lucky to catch up with Kristiann Colasacco recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kristiann, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

My resilience has developed over time as I have grown into a truly Independent Solopreneur. When you do not have access to certain resources and have to figure out how to survive and thrive you are planting your feet firmly into the ground to focus and make it happen no matter what challenges or adversity you face. I had to learn this a very hard way when I grew impatient and wanted to fast track success! I trusted a stranger I had met on a dating app (ironically) to guide me financially to grow my funds through an app designed to mimic the New York State Stock Exchange. Me being a creative and not a financial professional did the best research I could in that moment and had to learn to trust my spiritual discernment. I knew once I reached a certain point in my financial growth of over $100k after investing $65k in this ‘fake’ app that something was wrong. By the time I realized it I had Invested all of my money from my business savings leaving myself with only $5k and needed to cash out quick! It was then I learned that my refusal to oblige to the apps request to add more funds would lock me out and steal everything! I had to act fast. I called the actual NYSE and told them something was wrong with their app and what had happened and they said “Ma’am, we do not have an app, please send us what your are talking about”. I did and they told me to immediately call the police! What makes it even worse is 95% of the police force in my town I went to high school with (as if this was not bad enough)! After a lot of processing with them they turned the case to the FBI (still unresolved ). Around four days later I was essentially evicted from my long time living situation in the most abrasive way possible and had to move into a place that was three times the amount of my current rent and had just lost ALL of my funds! I pulled all of my work contacts and resources to bid on projects and jobs whilst dealing with what felt like my entire business and personal world were left in ashes on the floor. It was that moment that I realized that if I were going to survive this I would need to really armor up. Get creative with all of my design resources and talents and resources I had acquired over the last decade. A miracle came through, a call I had not expected for the biggest project in my actual career to date referred by a friend. As much as it terrified me as it had been much larger than I thought I could handle (imposter syndrome) especially being so mentally fragile at the time, I knew how strong I was! I faced this entirely alone, and built my business back up in a three month time frame with a lot of sleepless nights and faith! I could not tell anyone other than the FBI who was investigating the matter and did not have anyone to lean on due to complete and utter embarrassment that I could allow this to happen and even worse that I felt I had failed myself as if my spiritual antennas (and common sense) were bent and broken that I could not pick up on this from the very start! While there are many layers to the evolution of this story I am living proof that you can absolutely lose it all and gain it back and beyond if you set your eye on a ‘failure is NOT an option’ mindset, really honing in on getting where you need to be and becoming your own savior! Every single day since then I continue to self motivate myself through the practice of Gratitude! I know if I could surpass that I can truly get through anything!

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am a solopreneur that wears many creative hats! I am primarily a self employed Interior Designer, a Travel Advisor and a Model. I need to stay creatively stimulated and I love to continue to grow and learn! I wrote and published a cookbook available on Amazon Kindle and Etsy ( Self Served Rezzie’s for One) for people with severe food allergies and intolerances after I myself acquired them late in life (in my mid twenties). My passion is to help others whether it be through creating a place they can unpack their day at the door and indulge in solace or if they embody a hunger to see the beauty of the world! I began Traveling solo in 2022 and I truly loved it as much as it terrified me. It was after I had lost everything and gained most of it back through a full year of sleepless night and determination. I got very lost in Italy with no cellphone service and could barely navigate or speak the language and it was the start of my beautiful travel journey! I quickly became comfortable dining alone, speaking with strangers and being so present in the moment ( because I had to for my safety being a female solo traveler) that I learned how solo travel is very empowering. This is what prompted me to become a Travel advisor! Many had asked me how I do it , how I felt safe etc. and I realized I wanted to help others feel confident enough to book that trip and start seeing the world. Too often we wait on others to ‘be ready’ and miss out on the one thing you cannot buy back… Time! Also in the midst of my travels all over the world following I made it a priority to hit every spa I can and that is where my ‘Spa reviews’ were birthed! Everyone loves a good spa and they all offer similar services but deliver them quite differently and some even unique! I want to highlight these variations for fellow travelers and create a strong niche for self care!

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

My journey has and will always consist of Self Motivation, resilience and self navigation/awareness in order to keep me growing and going! Without these key qualities you can get very complacent in life and miss out on things that can introduce us to new opportunities and new seeds to grow! Unfortunately some people really only develop or hone in on these qualities after something tragic has occurred, I hope that is not the case for others and my advice would be to really do your best to remain humble, self aware and never let anyone dictate what your goals should be! You are in control of your life and if you can master tuning out the noise and take serious inventory of your ‘life algorithm’ (aka your habits) you can decipher what needs work and where the fine tuning will lead to success!

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?

When I am feeling overwhelmed (which is often) I make lists of highest priority to lowest for the DAY. If we try to fit all of our ‘Big’ goals into a single day that will take years realistically you will spin into over drive. Setting small attainable goals daily has helped me organize myself better and enjoy the moment upon achieving them! If you are in a creative rut put it on a shelf and get fresh air. Go to a museum or watch a movie, go out in nature, wherever you find inspiration and then when its quiet at night try to revisit whatever it is you are working on! This has helped me over the course of my career and my personal goals as well!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://k-annkreationsdesignltd.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristiannityc/
• Other: https://thetravelchick.org/

Image Credits

Ed Correa Photography