Meet Vittoria Di Cesare

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

Vittoria, thrilled to have you on the platform as I think our readers can really benefit from your insights and experiences. In particular, we’d love to hear about how you think about burnout, avoiding or overcoming burnout, etc.

I am busy. Super busy. I am a mom of two young kids, a full time school teacher, I have two small businesses on the side, and I am a part of a big, Italian family that constantly has occasions and events to be attended. So there’s lots of room for burnout.
But what I think keeps me from it, is that what I do brings me such joy that I get a burst of energy when completing a task, rather than feel wiped from it.
Don’t get me wrong, a hot bubble bath is taking place at least a few times a week and I make sure I get 8 hours of sleep per night. So there’s that too. I also make sure to continue playing competitive soccer once a week which brings me joy and fuels me.
But I have to say, my two side businesses on top of being a full time teacher are what could potentially burn me out and yet don’t. I’m an ambassador with Shaklee where I help my friends and family to be healthier by sharing clean skincare and makeup and vitamins and supplements with them. So even when I’m exhausted from teaching and “momming,” getting some clean and effective products into people’s hands fills my heart so much that it doesn’t feel like work.
And with my healthy muffin business which is physically tiring (on my feet and stirring and mixing and such), knowing that I am helping to get clean and natural and veggie packed goodness into my community’s children, brings me so much joy. It’s so hard to buy things off the shelf these days that you don’t need a science degree to adequately read the labels on, so to give that to my community at an affordable price point feels awesome.
So, all this to say, that I truly feel that when what you’re doing is filled with passion and genuine care, it ends up fueling you rather than draining you; with the proper boundaries and self care practices in place.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

What excites me about both of my businesses is that I’m not asking my network to sacrifice anything in order to shop consciously, responsibly, and clean. In the past, using clean products often meant lack lustre results. But today, amidst shelves full of toxic ingredients from companies harming our health and that of the environment, are companies like Shaklee who are making “knock your socks off” products while also being clean and environmentally friendly too; all without the astronomical price tag to match. So it feels great. And when I receive messages upon messages of thanks for the way their skin looks, or the way their body is feeling, I beam with pride that I am helping my family, helping my friends, and helping this environment that my kids and grand kids are going to grow up in.
Same goes with my muffins. I use organic ingredients which is better for people and planet and I don’t use any refined sugars that we all know are terrible, especially for kids. Not to mention they are packed with veggies that my kids don’t normally enjoy like zucchini, beets, and spinach, and they are sooooooooooo good!
So while I am making an extra income for my family, it is something I feel great about because I am providing products that are clean and healthy and that everyone loves!
For my recipes and more health and skincare and supplement info, follow me on Insta @vittoriascleancounter

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?

Determination
Optimism
Confidence

Determination: I was determined to find quality products that would work for me and my family without the toxic ingredients in them. I had to be the guinea pig for many months but I was determined to not cave. It wasn’t an option. Even while my mascara was making me look like a raccoon and my concealer was caking. But I have now found a company that is beyond clean, rigorously tests for contaminants, and has results that are clinically proven. Plus, Shaklee offers a huge variety of products so that my friends and family can have more of a one stop shop where they can rest assured they and their families are safe and will love the results they see and feel.

Optimism: I had to have faith that if people could finally see that “clean” could also mean high performing, that they too would leave the toxic crap behind and maybe even spread the word. We vote with our dollars and the more people who stop funding these toxic companies, the more they may be forced to change their ways and we can all have a cleaner future. Maybe one day we can even trust that what is sold on our shelves won’t cause us cancer or fertility issues. A girl can dream. And I do. I keep optimistic that we can “be the change.” If I can get my friends to swap out one harmful product at a time, eventually they may be a whole lot safer due to my help! And that feels great! It’s work I’m compensated for, but it’s work that also feels great because I KNOW they will be happy and healthier as a result. So that makes sharing these products easier.
Check out my website to see for yourself and contact me on Insta (@vittoriascleancounter) for promos: https://ca.shaklee.com/site/vittoriadicesare

Confidence: this is a tricky one. Because I’m not overly confident. In some areas I am, but when it comes to selling something? Nuh-uh. BUT I am confident that I offer a superior product that WILL make people happy so that makes it easier. But it’s still awkward to get on your phone and talk to it like it’s a real person. Or to record yourself washing your face or applying makeup or making yourself a protein shake. A big voice inside of me says, “What are you doing? No one cares about this. Who do you think you are?” But then actual voices from other real humans who message me, “Thank you” and who ask me for a safer swap for a product etc. give me that confidence I need to keep going. Because people ARE watching and people ARE benefiting. So while I may not always have the confidence bubbling up within me, the results I KNOW I can give my friends and followers and the messages they send me, give me that confidence to know that what I am doing is meaningful and valued.

My advice is to keep the faith. Some businesses may boom from the get-go. But most grow slowly. Through word of mouth. And that takes time. But it’s authentic and will create life-long customers. If you believe in what you’re doing and you’re working hard at getting it out there, it will come. And when you have one happy customer they will tell 2-3 friends. And so on. People need about 7 touch points before they take the plunge to try something. So don’t give up. Show up. Give real testimonials. And eventually people will come around and say, “Ok, I need to try this.” And if it’s a good as you said it was, they’ll be back for more…with a few friends to boot.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

I know people hate the idea of direct sales. They are often called MLM’s. And maybe some are. But there are some who are different. Some who do not require you to spend your own money nor require you to recruit people. Some companies just recognize the power of voice and connection, rather than a product sitting on a shelf. And many of those companies, like Shaklee, do not require you to shop or recruit at all. They simply compensate you for sharing their products. End of story.
Now what ends up happening, is that their products are good, they deliver results, so ambassadors WANT to buy them. They are clean and they work. And what do we do with things we find that are awesome? We naturally talk about them and share them with our friends. So while Shaklee doesn’t require me to spend money or build a team, it happens naturally because I only use clean products and am not going to vote with my dollar with a company that isn’t impressing me with their results. . So I tell my friends about it. And also, my friends see how happy I am and how I am making a supplemental income for my family by simply sharing what I love on Instagram, so they sometimes inquire about how they can do it too. Or I share with them that if they are going to talk about their favorite things on Instagram already, might as well get paid for it!
And since my dream is to have this world be a cleaner place with items that we can trust for safety that actually work accessible to all, I am always sharing the business side of this to grow this mission and spread the word and inform more and more people about what we as a collective can accomplish.
So yeah, if you like good skincare, or want good makeup, or recognize that we need supplements that are regulated for toxins (the supplement industry is hugely unregulated) then maybe trying Shaklee and sharing it with your network is a side-gig that may work for you. I share my protein shake on Insta and tell how it has NO heavy metals like most do and that it has 24 vitamins and minerals and can replace a whole meal because I have seen and felt the benefits myself and want my network to experience it too, And that is the job. And it pays well. And I’m helping people. Sound like something you want more info on? Ask me anything @vittoriascleancounter
Lastly, one of my favorite aspects of this business is that not only am I getting clean and clinically proven products into peoples’ hands, I can do it from anywhere. I’ve been living in Costa Rica for the last 2.5 years and so while I am serving my friends and family back home in Canada, I am also able to serve those in Costa Rica who can’t easily get their hands on good quality and clean products. Let alone the people all over the world who see my Instagram. It’s so flexible that way so that while our main income streams may become unreliable or decreased for whatever reason, this is something I can work on from wherever I am in what ever time I can find. Do you poop? Then don’t tell me you don’t have time for this! Haha!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ca.shaklee.com/site/vittoriadicesare
• Instagram: vittoriascleancounter

Image Credits

All images were taken by me/are mine. 🙂