Meet Renee Yang | first-time founder & nail art enthusiast

We had the good fortune of connecting with Renee Yang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Renee, how do you think about risk?
I think of risk-taking as choosing to embark on journeys where the outcomes are not guaranteed. It doesn’t mean sacrificing anything, but being open to experimentation and getting it wrong a few times. I’ve found that this is the quickest way to learn. When you put yourself in tough situations, you end up learning so much more about yourself and what you’re capable of! Plus, it makes for good stories down the line.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I wanted to create a business where I could be free to express myself, experiment, and truly experience what building a brand encompasses. I wanted to create an environment where I didn’t feel pressure to do things a certain way, and felt free to explore any and all ideas. Sometimes the best ideas are not going to be the ones that generate the best revenue short-term, and I didn’t want to be restricted by that.

For that reason, I kept my day job (and still work full time), which has taken a ton of stress off of building the business (and thinking it needs to hit x revenue by x date). It might mean slower progress and growth, but that freedom is worth it to me, for now.

That desire to explore and experiment is fully baked into the DNA of the brand — it’s a platform where nothing is boxed in. Nail art can look like anything, and a business can be grown in whatever way feels true to the brand. It is a growing, evolving brand, kind of like a sculpture that is a work in progress and not yet fully formed, but still beautiful in and of itself.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love to explore cities by imagining what it would be like to live there, so my travel itineraries are full of restaurants, cafes, and strolls outside. I currently live in orange county, so I’d suggest starting the day getting brunch — currently loving Malibu Farm in Newport. Then, we would walk around the area, go to the beach, and perhaps spend the evening in Laguna Beach walking through galleries & getting good food.

I see destinations as an avenue to create memories, learn about the local culture, and to spend quality time with friends. For me, it’s all about enjoying the vibe of where you are & not putting too much pressure on hitting everything on the itinerary.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I remember reading a book where the author talks about the value of having a consistent support network in being an entrepreneur — I have my friends to thank for that. Having gone through a number of turbulent personal and professional changes throughout my 20s, it’s been invaluable to have deep relationships that I can depend on and friends who support me even when they may not always know every detail of what I’m going through. When choosing to embark on an entrepreneurial journey where things change all the time, it’s been important for me to have consistencies in other areas of life.

Personally, I love to learn and explore personal development through psychology, philosophy and history books. One of my favorite books is Thinking, Fast and Slow, which really helped me with putting things into perspective and realizing the importance of the bigger picture. One of my biggest learnings from starting a business is the importance of having clarity and balance. Things don’t always work out, even when you make the right decisions. So it’s much more valuable to be able to deal with stress and uncertainty, than to feel like you’re making the right decisions.

Website: https://staysticki.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/staysticki/