Monthly Muse: Jen Biswas, Paisley + Sparrow
I am loving all the smart, creative, and driven women I’m meeting through this series. This month’s muse is Jen Biswas. You might know her from her blog Paisley and Sparrow. Jen has successfully mastered SEO and turned her websites into a full time career that generates significant income for her and her family. She’s also sharing her knowledge (along with two other inspiring and driven women - Chris Freytag and Lindsey Bomgren) at the Content Creators Conference in May. Read on to get to know Jen.
Let's start at the beginning - what did you want to be when you grew up? Did that influence where you are today?
I wanted to own a chain of hotels! I guess in a sense it influenced where I’m at today because I now own a chain of websites! ;)
What led you to blogging? When did you realize you could make this a full time career?
I’ve literally been blogging my entire life…or at least since college. :) I started my first blog back in college when I blogged about things like crafts, my year long spending freeze and fashion. Since then I’ve had a few different blogs until the one that turned into my career. I realized I could make blogging a full time career about 5 years ago when a friend of mine told me about working ad networks and how to monetize your blog. After that I dove headfirst into learning all about bloggings so I could make it work for me! I now own and manage 5 different blogs!
How do you structure your days and where/how do you work best?
I get up early (5:30am), workout and get a bit of work done. After all 3 kids are gone at their various schools, I get back to work until they’re all home. We always do family dinner together and after the kids are in bed I usually hop back on my computer while my husband and I watch a show. I work best in my office on my desktop computer (vs my laptop). I also work best when I keep my phone out of my office so I don’t have any distractions!
How do you plan out your content? Do you plan it for the whole year? Quarterly? Monthly?
I have quarterly evergreen content that we update and work through every year (a 30 day declutter challenge, gift guides, Nordstrom sale, etc). In addition to those, we plan out our supplement content for all of our blogs monthly.
What would you have done differently if you knew then what you know now?
I would have learned SEO from the beginning! I didn’t learn anything about SEO until I had been working on my website for a few years so I had to go back and fix so much content.
What’s the best advice you ever received and what advice would you give to someone wanting to start a website/blog?
The best advice I ever received was to not take yourself too seriously and honestly that’s the advice I would give someone just starting out! You will constantly be growing and evolving as you blog and things will never be perfect, especially in the beginning. If you wait until it’s perfect you’ll never start!
Who are your biggest influences and why?
Sara Blakely is someone I will forever look up to for her hustle and also her (seemingly) intent to always be giving back, not taking herself too seriously and spoiling people in her life.
My dad is also someone who influences me. He’s a musician and at 66 he got his first song in a big time movie (Tom Hank’s A Man Called Otto). He’s never given up on his dreams and is still chasing after them!
What is still your biggest challenge?
My biggest challenge is never having enough hours in the day and learning to shut my computer and take a break. When I started my business I was part of the “naptime hustle” crew and worked early mornings, late nights and during naptimes to make it work. It can be hard to not work 24/7 especially when you love your work!
What’s next?
We’re working hard on growing my husband’s blog and continuing to grow the rest of mine! ;)
Rapid Fire
Coffee order? Miel (a latte with honey - yum!)
AM Warrior or Burn the Midnight Oil? AM Warrior
What’s one thing people don’t know about you? I spent my 25th year of life in 11 different countries
Style icon? Rachel Zoe
Favorite piece of clothing you own? That changes all the time but I’m currently loving this hot pink printed shacket I picked up from none other than WalMart!
Favorite plant? My giant monstera
Thanks for sharing your story Jen. You can find Jen on her blogs, Instagram, facebook, and she’s holding a content creators conference with Chris Freytag (another Muse!) and Lindsey Bomgen that still has a few slots left (I wish I was in Mpls to take part!)
