The Story of Starting - Introduction

The Story of Starting - Introduction

a note from kelly:
 
Hey KJS Family!!
 
I'm just so full of gratitude that you are with us and are a huge part of this journey of growing Kelly Jean Snacks! Some of you have known me pre- starting this company, and some of you are new here (HEY!!! 👋 ) and I'm so excited to get to know each other more!
 
As much as we are passionate about our Snack Bites, there is so much more that I want this space to be about! There have been many seasons of my life where I just wanted connection and to know I wasn't alone; which is why I am starting the series called “The Story of Starting”! 👏🏻  I hope by sharing our story (whether it is our personal stories, or telling about how we started Kelly Jean Snacks, and all the way up to where we are now as the journey continues) is that it inspires you to START. Not only do I want this series to be about my starts, but I can't wait to share more stories of other people in our communities “starts”! Let our failures make you laugh, help you know that you are not alone, that the struggle is REAL, and last but not least to celebrate all the good things! 

NOTHING LOOKS THE SAME AS IT STARTS

Some of you may recognize the packaging at the top of this email. It was our FIRST design of Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip that we did in December 2019. You'll notice there is still many parts of the packaging that we have kept… as well as a few changes since then. But can I add, my mindset when we finalized the design was that it was perfect! Done. Check it off the list and move on! Lots of other things to do. haha 
 
Well- I didn't know that a dark background would make our product feel “hidden” on a store shelf and hard to see. Or that the background which we thought depict the whole ingredients in our product actually made it seem more like a trail mix than our 2 bites. Did we want to market as protein, or did we want to promote health? In our minds it was both, but makes a HUGE difference for a consumer standpoint and we had to figure out who are product is for!
 
Here's the thing- you don't know what you don't know, and you won't find out until you start. Don't let the mindset that it has to be perfect, or that the first attempts at something won't be exactly how you would like it to be, to not even let you get past the starting line. How many of us haven't done an exercise/workout/hike because we judge ourselves and don't think we will be able to do it? What about just posting authentic things on social media because the “photo isn't perfect” or we worry what “Billy” will think? Maybe it won't be perfect, maybe you'll even quit (gasp!😆)  But don't miss out on memories, experiences, journeys, and result that you can have just because of the fear of not doing it right the first time. Here is your permission to do it imperfectly (i mean, check out my first podcasts i recorded or IG posts😳) - learning is never a failure! I promise you, it actually turns out better than the start 99% of the time You are going to look back at that starting line and be so proud that all it took was one step forward.
 
So- here I am taking my own advice and scared as hell to do it! The Story of Starting has been on my list for 2 years and I am starting this email series today! My words are not perfect, but I do believe the more I do it, it will get easier and better and nothing looks the same as it starts.
 

APPRECIATE YOU ALL!