Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tara Moore. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Tara, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
My very first job was working at a horse farm and that job taught me so much about accountability, consistency, and resilience. When you’re working with animals, you can’t just call out of work, show up late, or slack off if you’re feeling tired. Quite simply, the horses’ livelihood depends on you consistently showing up and performing your job the best you can every day no matter the weather or circumstance.
Although it was a very demanding job, it gave me the opportunity to learn from a very early point in my career that it’s so important to be passionate about what you do. As a passion-driven person, I learned quickly that my work ethic was strongest when I was working in an industry I was passionate about.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I spent nearly my entire career working at different horse farms in New Jersey, from local barns that taught horseback riding lessons, to therapeutic riding centers for riders with disabilities, and even high-end private equestrian estates. Although I was deeply passionate about working horses, I always worried in the back of my mind that it wouldn’t be a long-term sustainable career as it is a very physically demanding job.
In 2020 I was about five years into managing a private horse farm and was living on the property. I always had a creative eye, but never pursued a creative career out of the limiting belief that I needed to have a degree in design or classic training in design. While working with a local barn who was in desperate need for more students and exposure, I experimented with taking the program through a rebrand – taking new photos of the property, designing a new logo, and building a new website. After that first project, I was hooked.
Shortly thereafter, I decided to ditch the limiting beliefs that were holding me back and started Farm & Fir with my friend and fellow creative horse girl, Ashley. We were two self-taught designers who became fully immersed in learning everything we could about logo design, brand strategy, website design, and brand photography from YouTube, podcasts, and practice.
Within three years, we grew Farm & Fir Co. into a 6-figure side hustle and now work full time in the business, serving clients in and out of the equestrian industry all over the world.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1. Resilience This quality is invaluable when you start a business or are looking to grow in your career. As someone who learned how to design websites from the school of YouTube and good ole’ trial and error, I learned how important it is to learn from your mistakes early on. Rather than letting those mistakes be something that holds you back or forces you to quit, you have to view them as opportunities to learn, adjust, and grow.
2. Understand what you’re great at and lean on those who have skills different from your own.
I learned this very early on, from the moment I partnered with Ashley when starting Farm & Fir Co. Where I excel in leading the client experience and setting the brand strategy, my partner Ashley is infinitely more talented than I when it comes to graphic design. From the very beginning, we established our roles in the business to play to both of our strengths.
3. Adaptability
Very often, people create a business that solves a problem they personally have. I see this constantly with the founders we work with. While it is important to believe in what you’re creating, I find that founders sometimes get too deep in weeds and forget to listen to customer feedback and take a step back to look at the bigger picture. As a business owner or CEO, there is a fine line between maintaining focus and knowing how to adapt to the needs of your customers/clients.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?
Anytime I feel overwhelmed or feel as though I’m on the verge of burnout, I go back to a consistent morning and afternoon routine. My ideal morning routine is a full two hours and includes a long morning walk outside (yes, even in the winter!), 30 minutes dedicated to planning and goal setting (this could be as simple as setting up my to-do list for the day, planning out my projects for the month, checking in on quarterly goals I set, etc.), going to the gym, and coming home with enough time to take a shower and tidy up my office before starting work. I find that when my home office is messy from the day before, I feel as though I’m starting the day in a chaotic space.
When it comes to my afternoon routine, I always try to finish work about an hour before the sun goes down so that I can go for another long walk outside to reflect on the day and start to wind down.
In total, I spend about 3 hours every day just on my morning and afternoon routine. This gives me space to recharge and find clarity so that I constantly feel recharged and refreshed every time I sit down at my desk.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://farmandfirco.com/
- Instagram: @farmandfirco.com
- Linkedin: Tara Moore
Image Credits
Shanyn Fiske, Clementine Cottage Photography, Gold Horse Media
