Create Outside the Box! - Doreen Laskiewicz

Corinne sits down with creative powerhouse Doreen Laskiewicz. Listeners will learn about Doreen's journey from music teacher to photographer and magazine founder, and how she uses her talents to empower other creatives. Doreen shares insightful advice on building community, embracing collaboration over competition, and pursuing your passions. This episode provides inspiration for anyone interested in the arts or entrepreneurship!

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Transcript

Corinne Schaefer  0:00  
Hi

I'm Corinne Schaefer and welcome to Create Outside the Box! In this episode I will be speaking with creative powerhouse Doreen Laskiewicz. It's about grit and goals, why creative ladies rock and how he's putting her multiple talents to use supporting other creatives and communities. If you're interested in watching our conversation, please visit the Creative OPERAtions YouTube channel. Under the playlist, Create Outside the Box! Doreen Laskiewicz heads is a retired music and stem educator who has dedicated her life to empowering others. With a rich background in teaching and mentoring. She brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her current pursuits as a photographer, and editor in chief of grit and goals magazine. gritten goals magazine showcases the inspiring stories of women in business, the arts, nonprofits, and beyond. It serves as a platform to celebrate the accomplishments and journeys of remarkable women, providing a source of motivation and empowerment to its readers. As a talented photographer, durian captures the essence of her subjects, weaving powerful narratives through her lens. Her artistic vision and storytelling abilities shine through in every image she creates. Through her work, she aims to inspire others to pursue their passions, break barriers, and create their own success stories.

Hello, Doreen, and welcome to create outside the box. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  1:41  
Good morning. I'm so excited to be here. 

Corinne Schaefer  1:43  
I am so excited to have you as a guest. You have been seriously on my list of guests that I wanted for the podcast since the beginning. So I'm very, very excited. And we've known each other for a while because believe it or not, you were my high school music teacher. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  1:59  
Yep, I recall you coming in as a 14 year old freshman. So yeah, I It's been great seeing your musical journey from the get go as well. 

Corinne Schaefer  2:12  
Well, and you were like, right out of college at that point. So you're, you're a very young teacher at the time.

Doreen Laskiewicz  2:20  
By the time I got to teach there, I think I was probably about seven, eight years in actually, yeah. 

Corinne Schaefer  2:29  
Wow. Because we were like, wow, there's this like young, beautiful, cool young teacher that's here and you brought like a great energy to the to the program. And what's been wonderful is through, you know, social media and Facebook, we've been able to keep in touch. And I've been able to watch your journey, which we're going to get to in the conversation. But I want to start at the beginning. What was your first introduction to music?

Doreen Laskiewicz  2:56  
Church, for sure. I grew up going to Catholic school getting close enough to walk to and we were always expected to sing we would go to you know, service, we would go to Mass once a week and everybody had to sing there was no if ands or buts about it unless you want some none on you hardcore. So at but amazingly enough, like in my elementary school all the way up to like eighth grade, I didn't have any music classes in school at all, it was really, uh, this is gonna sound dreadfully naive. I just thought singing was something that everybody knew how to do or could do. Because everybody sang together, you know, in every situation that I had went to like going to go into mass and having to sing during that. I just didn't think anything of it, and then went to public high school. And just through doing some different things there in ninth grade, actually, I spent ninth grade playing softball and cheerleading. So I wasn't even in chorus yet. But I was excited to be old enough to join youth group and youth group had a choir. So that was actually my first choral experience and had already been taking piano lessons. So coincidentally, my piano teacher was the music director for the church. So she used to have me come play like, you know, Christmas, Midnight Mass and things like that, you know, getting on the organ in a very large Roman Catholic Church.

But in youth group, just discovering like, you know, like, very sulky guitar stuff, where you're like trying to harmonize by ear and all that stuff. So throughout that ninth grade year, it was Wait You mean not everybody can do this. Not everybody can sing like this. No, Doreen not everybody has a voice like you do. Oh. All right. So maybe I should like take choir, so and then that was 10th grade. So I didn't take any kind of high school choral situation except for youth group until 10th grade. And then that was sort of a whirlwind of like, music hitting me in the head that year because I had gone from everybody just sings like this, right? Everybody sings, right? 

Like, no, not everyone can sing. And then all of a sudden, like, wow, I have a lot of people telling me that. I'm really good at this. So maybe, maybe I should consider that. And then so by the end of 11th grade here, I am prepping for collegiate auditions. So

that's kind of how you know, started that. Yeah. And speaking of collegiate auditions, you ended up at the prestigious Westminster choir college. So was that kind of how you became interested in pursuing that, as a major and interested in teaching was through all of the choral experience? Yeah, a little bit. I love harmony. I loved it. I remember, for Westminster, I discovered Westminster.

The county that I lived in, in New Jersey had an arts high school program, where for 14 weeks, you would actually get bused to a different location, like kind of like what today we have like magnet programs, sort of things. But this was for 14 weeks, once a week, and you had to audition to get into it, you would get on a bus and you would get to a location where all kids from all over the county would come and do like a really like a little intensive. So there was voice it was theater was, you know, a big thing. And the voice teacher that was in that program at the time was teaching voice at Westminster. So that's how I discovered that and then when I went to do a sort of like a day in the life of a college student visitation kind of thing. They you got to sit and watch the big symphonic choir, and they were prepping Beethoven's Ninth to perform with like the New York Philharmonic because the Westminster symphonic choir had regular performance contracts with all these symphonies, like regular parts of their season, and I'm sitting there listening them, you know, and they're counting it. What are you gonna do you know, what are you gonna do we in a one and a duel, you didn't want to get it to you like, and I was just like, and then when they sang it full out, and it was like, 200 voices at the time, it was like, this is where I want to be, this is absolutely where I want to be. And even in high school, because I can play I was one of those wacky voice people that could actually play and accompany so that didn't happen a lot in voice that I learned, I kind of learned that in college, like, all your voice majors, you don't already read music and like play piano.

But that's a whole different conversation altogether. Right? Um, but I had been asked while I was in high school, to help prepare some people for auditions, because I played better than, you know, maybe some of the teachers I had, but anyway.And it was really cool to actually see things come to fruition on a stage because I, you know, I brought that person to that.

Even senior year, it was interesting. We had a math teacher that would accompany the musicals, rehearsals, right? She was piano play that she would come in. And they were doing we were we did Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. But she had health issues that year, and just they didn't have time to hire somebody. So I would go to these rehearsals, and there would be no accompanist for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, which has no speaking parts whatsoever. You know, it's music from top to bottom, and I would just say, Okay, I'll go play. And I would say at the piano, and then I was, I don't know if you're familiar with the show, but there's, I was a narrator, 

Corinne Schaefer  9:07  
Oh the main part! okay.

Doreen Laskiewicz  9:09  
So we broke up the narrator, there was three of us, but I was narrated number one, and while staging is being done, and blockings being practiced now that where am I, I'm sitting at the piano singing my part while I'm playing for everybody. And even rehearsals, like we just didn't always have a pianist, they just, it just kind of didn't work out. So I spent a lot of time accompany and helping teach people, the music. And, you know, in my senior year while I was a cast member, of course, they hired somebody for the actual show. And then the great thing about that was when it came time for me to actually be on stage, I hadn't been blocked anywhere. I just kind of put myself like, Okay, well, I'll put myself in the center whenever I can. So I just kind of like you know, did it

But it was just it was, I found it immensely satisfying to actually look at a production or see somebody else perform and be like, Wow, they can do that because of what I did. And that's where it really was like, I can't believe like getting that, you know, a curtain call is great. But when they they gesture to you as that music person who, who taught everybody those parts, like that was just as satisfying. And I was like, wow, this is kind of cool. So, you know, went that that education, education route, you know.

Corinne Schaefer  10:33  
Yeah, but I love it, because it was such an organic evolution. And it really was because from a very young age, you were able to see the full picture, and you liked being part of the creative process and building something at that's actually a really mature viewpoint. I don't think a lot of teenagers in high school are thinking that way, you know, of really seeing the larger picture and building it and being able to step forward and step back when it's their time. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  11:03  
Yeah, I mean, you know, it really was satisfying getting that applause for being the director, you know, being a music director, I so it was exciting. And even, you know, teaching high school and young people and seeing that progression.

You know, there were a lot of singers who weren't in those select choir who still wanted to do, you know, when we had cabaret and watching them build up their confidence and whatnot, and seeing them succeed. I mean, it's, it's very gratifying. And a lot of people you know, my parents, of course, like a lot of adults are like, oh, you know, that's the more edge going the education route. Is, is a good backup, you know, if you don't want to perform, but I don't agree with that. Because if you don't absolutely want to be teaching, you shouldn't do it. Because it's exhausting. You know, and all encompassing, when you're really in the thick of it, you know, it's not, I don't think it's a good backup career, it's a career, like, you have to be dedicated to it, and you have to be ready to be in the thick of it. 

So

Corinne Schaefer  12:11  
I agree, I think it's a calling, I think that certain professions are a calling where you really have to love it, because it's a lot of work and a lot of sacrifice. And I definitely agree with that with teaching. And also because it's, it's physical and emotional energy, you know, because you're really having to be there. You know, for your students, as you said, there's the building something from a learning standpoint, where you're helping people build their skills, but there's also this emotional stand point where, you know, you're building their confidence, you know, or insecurities, and you're helping them become stronger, more independent individuals and watching them grow. So you really need to be committed to that. So I agree, and I think that it has just as much value as any other career in the performing arts, you know, I felt like when I went to IU, the people who were doing the education majors had to take most of what the performance majors were doing. But then even more so I mean, it was a lot of work to do that a lot of student teaching.

Doreen Laskiewicz  13:12  
It is exhausting as well, you're expected to take on the full schedule of a teacher and you still might have coursework at the same time, you know, so that was really another really satisfying part of my education career. I had about a dozen student teachers throughout the years, all of them from Westminster, because I had, I was teaching, you know, it close enough proximity to take on Westminster student teachers, which is, you know, very gratifying. Matter of fact, after retiring, one of my student teachers ended up taking my position, which was kind of cool. 

Corinne Schaefer  13:47  
Oh, that's awesome. It's really awesome. And like building the legacy, I love it.

I know that you love all different kinds of music, but I kind of wanted to ask you what are some of your favorite genres of music? And which do you enjoy performing the most?

Doreen Laskiewicz  14:04  
 Well performing I would say I am in terms of singing definitely. I'm an old school American Songbook. Give me a Gershwin you know, musical theater from the early years I'm a Rodgers and Hammerstein type soprano. You know, that's, that's totally my my wheelhouse. In terms of music that I listen to though. I listen to a whole bunch of different stuff. It really is sort of a mood thing.

One of the things that I really clicked with when I did teach a high school is I would have a lot of kids in my music theory classes that were not your band or chorus kids. They were the GarageBand you know, guys, you're the ones that were doing like, you know, the all ages access shows and somebody's club, basement sort of thing. And, the reason why like they connected with me is because I was really into heavy metal in the 80s You know, so have seenMetallica and all sorts of groups like that. So I'm, uh, you know, you'd never know it by the abundance of us have girly pink, but I may have done some spandex back in the day we try to not, you know, publicize those those pictures but anyway, thank goodness there wasn't social media back then.

Yeah but music wise like, for me I find it directly connected to mood or motivation like if I'm cleaning around the house like I'll put on, you know, like really upbeat stuff. Sometimes I just get a hardcore, you know, hard rock metal mood, and I'll just be blasting that with the windows open. And so I like a lot of different stuff. You know, it's really like, you can go in my car, I have a, you know, I have a CD because my car still has CDs like of Beethoven sonatas, because that was my standard repertoire of taking piano lessons. So I'll sometimes I'll listen to that. And other times I'm putting on like, Five Finger Death Punch hard rock stuff. So yeah. But in terms of performing singing wise, I'm, like I said, I'm a classic American Songbook kind of girl and piano, I don't really get to do repertoire anymore. I don't have a use for it, if that makes any sense. So, but I do enjoy accompanying actually a lot. You know, I enjoy working with other singers and being at the piano.

Corinne Schaefer  16:47  
You kind of got into it with with the past questions here. I mean, you're an artist that has talents and multiple disciplines. You're a singer, performer, pianist, choral conductor teacher. But on top of that, you are a professional photographer. And I was kind of curious how you kind of made this transition into like, hey, I'm interested in photography, and then pursuing it professionally. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  17:12  
Well, interestingly enough, before I discovered that I could sing, I had spent all of my childhood carrying around like sketchbooks, and I was craft kids, drawing books, all that kind of stuff. And it was always, you know, my mom would always say, like, Oh, she's probably going to end up at art school. So I was really a visual, you know, a visual person from the get go. I always like to say that, it discovering that I could sing and taking piano lessons sort of interrupted my visual arts charity a little bit.

So it was kind of funny a few years back, like even just taking out sketchbooks again, and you know, having sets of colored pencils, and markers and whatnots just kind of get into that, but I had always had a camera.

You know, in the 80s a lot of like, photo shoots, you know, came out and it was really easy to drop film off and whatnot. But I had always taken a lot of pictures where I know, I'm taking a picture of something, but why doesn't it look like what it looks like in this magazine? Or, you know, like, why can I not create like that. So when I had kids now, of course, you know, having having much more of a reason to take a lot of pictures. I was like, you know, I'm just gonna make that leap. And I'm gonna get that first DSLR. And once I had gotten that, you know, camera where I could actually learn how to manually shoot, I just, you know, I just kind of dove in, I was carrying the camera everywhere, I was just hungry to like, learn as much as I could. And then once I started feeling really comfortable shooting manually.

I was like, Well, what's next, like, I feel like now I want to learn Photoshop and I just started learning, editing and, you know, taking some online classes and, and participating in online forums, like where you would be able to submit stuff and have professionals like nitpick you apart, because I think every artist no matter what your art form, you need critique, you know, and that's, you need critique, I can't even stress that enough. Because there certainly were moments where I felt like wow, look at how awesome this picture is. And then somebody be like, oh, did you did you see that like footprint on the floor that that you missed? I was like, oh, like I didn't even notice that. So, you know, just kind of going through again, it was just sort of an organic thing, but I had always been a visual person drawing sketchbooks, all that stuff. And then kind of getting towards the end of my teaching career, you know, and having kids. I was like, Oh, now I have a reason to really want to learn it and having that first family friend be like, you know, what, can you take our pictures for our holiday card? What? What me like, Okay, so after a, you know, a little while of doing that, I was like, Wow, maybe I should actually, you know, make this business. So just kind of rolled into it, you know? So it wasn't sort of a, I really have a desire for this it just kind of like again just sort of happened. Happened chance happenstance whatever. 

Corinne Schaefer  20:34  
Yeah, organically. I see a theme that all of these things organically happen. It's not a choice. You're like, I'm here. I'm talented in this. Oh, not everyone can do this? Join? Okay, yeah. Which is kind of great. You know, I think sometimes it works better when it's like a natural thing and not not forced. And I love that you're talking about that critique can be such a useful, useful tool. And I think that there's a difference between like criticism and constructive criticism. And I think that, like criticism just to be mean, or to be nasty, or to bully, like, yes, we're not talking about that, that should not be allowed. And that does come into the artistic world, more than probably we would like, but that constructive criticism is more about building a trusted community where you can get feedback so that you can grow, and then other people can grow as well. And if you trust each other, then you can continue the artistic dialogue and grow together, which I know you're all about that. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  21:42  
Yeah, and you know, social media has both improve that and diluted that at the same time. And I see this in a lot of photography groups where people ask for feedback, no new photographers asked for feedback. And sometimes people even asking for feedback aren't quite ready for it.

And, you know, I think any kind of art form, you have to have that mindset that if you have somebody like critiquing you, and you said like, not bullying, not trying to put you down not being like, Oh, look at that. Any of those art forms, if you if you don't get used to the idea of critique as a way to get better, you have to have that mindset. And my son went through to like, he just got his BFA in graphic design. So he has looked at some things that have come through the magazine and whatnot, or, or what, and I remember, he made a comment, like, Oh, this is a person who's not used to being critiqued because you can see it in their work. Right, so But on the positive end, though, social media has allowed for more people to be part of communities that they wouldn't normally have. If you're in remote areas, or you have a certain specialty, or, you know, you're just looking for, you know, your tribe, your people, it's a good thing. But a lot of new photographers, unfortunately, have gotten it in their head that they're really good because all their friends and family tell them what a great picture that is. But well, your friends and family don't know squat about the art form or about the tech, the technical end. It's not a magic unicorn box, when you press a button like rainbows fly out, it's the machine and you have to learn how to operate a machine.

So yeah, so it's definitely interesting with the, the critique part of it, and I embraced it. And I guess probably it was great for me, I enjoyed getting like meaningful critique because I had already been through the rigor of an arts program. So you know, I think anybody who gets into any art form needs to sort of check their mindset in terms of that if they want to grow and get better. You have to constantly be willing to learn. And not everyone's going to be your cup of tea either. And that's okay, too. So yeah, take it for what it's worth. That is okay. 

Corinne Schaefer  24:45  
And it was interesting while you were talking, it reminded me I believe it's in Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic that she and I'm not going to quote this perfectly but she is kind of advising people not to think about their craft, whatever art form that is as their baby, because that's like way too personal. So that when you do get criticism, it's directly an emotional attack, and you're going to react and respond emotionally. And that's hard sometimes, especially when you are your product, how do you disassociate the performer or the artists part of you with the product? And what's going outside? And it's tricky. And I think we're always trying to balance that. But I think that that's a healthy way to look at it is this is not people attacking you, personally. Your art is not your child. This is Yes, something as personal maybe as that, but you have to be more objective about it. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  25:44  
Yeah, and I think that's difficult for performing artists, especially because I believe that for an effective performance, something that touches your audience that there is a certain level of vulnerability that you bring into that. Or else it seems fake. So it but it's difficult, there's a there's a balance there, between what level of vulnerability Are you bringing into it, and then when somebody does critique it, you know, I put myself in this vulnerable position. And now I have to sort of take the arrows from it. So it's definitely a balancing act, I find it not so much being vulnerable with photography, because a lot of what I create gets that like, wow, factor right away. So which is fine. But what it is you do put a little piece of yourself in there, and you do have to kind of take it for what it's worth, you know, even even when you get critiqued that maybe isn't meaningful, just to be able to say thank you. And I'll take that into consideration. And thanks for your feedback. Have a nice day. 

Corinne Schaefer  26:51  
Exactly, and I think that's important too. And you made that point is that I think sometimes as artists, especially those of us who have gone through rigorous training programs, you don't have to take all of the criticism, like we're trained to just like take it all. And at some point, you have to go Alright, I've had this much experience, and I can take what's useful to me, I can listen to what I'm maybe isn't so useful or hard to hear and go is there something truthful in that? Is there like a grain of truth in with all of that, maybe, but you are also it's allowed to be like, Okay, thank you, like you said, Thank you for your for your input. But push it aside, you don't have to take every critique as as gospel, you just have to respectfully listen and just see what you can learn from it, or what you can discard from it. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  27:39  
Absolutely. 

Corinne Schaefer  27:39  
Going back to the to photography, you have a real talent for bringing out the best in in your subject. And as I'm saying this, I'm going okay, well, this kind of makes sense with your journey because as you know, a student in high school, you were also bringing out the best in other people, whether that was helping them with their entrance auditions or preparing for the school musical, musical or, you know, your students, you want to bring out the best so you bring that to your to your photography. And I think that's such a beautiful, beautiful thing. What, what are some of your favorite subjects to photograph, 

Doreen Laskiewicz  28:16  
I would have to say if I could choose one thing to photograph for the rest of my life, like forever, I absolutely love working with dancers.

I think any any performance artist in general because they're so aware of themselves physically. So when you pose them and whatnot, I even when I was teaching, you know, even middle school, doing musicals, I always love working with the dancers, because they're very used to a certain amount of rigor, self discipline structure, just because of the nature of how they've had they've trained. And also to a lot of my photography, I've never been one to have a studio, or the kind of person who would go buy a lot of different backdrops and props. And some people do that. And they do that beautifully, but I don't have the storage, or, or the space or the time to deal with any of that. So a lot of what I've developed is just my style is really just sort of using the environment that we're in. I love finding things that have shaped to them leading lines framing, and working with dancers, you can you can sort of explore that together because they're still aware of what they're doing with their bodies. You know, you can, you can have them sort of explore the space in the same way. And that creative process is really satisfying, especially working with, you know, not kids. I mean, if you work with dancers, you were kids, it's like they they know their poses and the standard attitude. You know that that kind of stuff, but working with dancers who are willing to explore the shapes around them, and things like that, because that's very similar into what I create, you know, I'm always looking for things to frame people and, and whatnot and not having a studio with, like I said, a lot of backdrops and props. It was okay, here's, you know, me, my subject. And wherever we are, so what are we going to do with it? So, I think if I had find the pick one type, that would be it, it would be dancers, I love working with dancers.

Corinne Schaefer  0:00  
Yeah, I see like with a lot of your work, there's a lot of movement, even in the nature shots, because you do some beautiful shots of nature and architecture as well. And there's always movement, and I think some of it is that you have a very good eye for light and capturing light, whether that's kind of lighting the subject to bring out the best in them, or using it to portray some sort of movement in the piece. It's beautiful.

Doreen Laskiewicz  0:28  
Well, thank you, that's probably one of the best compliments as a photographer, you could definitely get and actually, it's interesting because my journey like relating to light has changed as learning photography, because at first, like a lot of people, it's Oh, because now I have fantastic gear, I can take better pictures. And then it my, my next lightbulb moment was sort of like, oh, it's all about measuring light, and like, seeing how it reacts. And then probably the most recent thing that I cling to in terms of light is, it doesn't matter if it comes from the sun, or a bulb, or a strobe or whatever the physics of light never changes, you know, how it reflects how it retracts how you know, how you can create it, how you can bounce it off things, how you can absorb it, those physics never change. And that I think, is what really kind of brought me to my next level, you know, because once you realize that, and you learn those physics of how a beam of light, regardless of what its source is, then you actually realize, oh, I can control this, and I can create it or I can, you know, block it out, you're in control, as the photographer,

Corinne Schaefer  1:55  
It's interesting. You know, we were talking about building up other people and bringing out the best in them, and this has been like a theme throughout. You recently retired from teaching, but you have no surprise, continued your role as as a mentor, and this is either, as you know, bringing emerging photographers on professional shoots with you to just kind of absorb and shadow what you're doing. But you also have your online group, we were talking earlier about community and how important that is, Creative ladies rock, which serves as a resource for creative women in business to empower and inspire them. Oh, I love it with the glitter. That is awesome.

Doreen Laskiewicz  2:42  
Yeah, my friend, my friend Robin of fashionly twisted makes these great patches. So she makes me branded stuff.

Corinne Schaefer  2:52  
Oh my gosh. And could you put that on like a jean jacket that's fit can go clothes?

Doreen Laskiewicz  2:55  
Yeah, it's lined and everything. So you can sew it right on.

Corinne Schaefer  2:59  
That is amazng. Yeah.

Doreen Laskiewicz  3:01  
She has the big machines to do all kinds of great custom work. But anyway, I digress. Sorry. 

Corinne Schaefer  3:06  
No, no, it's fine. Again, it's it's the community, it's the connections, and so that leads me to my question is this like, why are these kinds of roles and relationships and communities so important? Because this can be such a competitive business? So why is it important, or especially important to you that we create these relationships?

Doreen Laskiewicz  3:31  
I think a lot of especially a lot of people, especially women, right now that are in these businesses are solo entrepreneurs. So, you know, you get no matter what you get into whether it's craft or, or even creating an art based business, like a photography business, many of us are doing it alone. And I was in some Facebook groups. Before starting that group, I was in a lot of Facebook groups, and I got sick of being sold something in some way, shape or form. And I was in need some, you know, moms groups, women's groups, different types of Facebook groups. And anytime there was some sort of thread in a in it, where, you know, share what it is you do or sell. You know, there was a lot of stuff in there that I just didn't relate to. And I felt like a lot of these groups didn't really didn't know what it was like to go through the creative process in any way. They didn't know how to relate to artists, they didn't sort of know what it was like to build something what it was like to create from the ground up. So that's kind of why that's why I started the group. But most of the women that are in that group, the vast majority of them are solo entrepreneurs. They're they're getting online, they're getting their LLC's are getting there, whatever. And they're just kind of doing it on their own. It's not like going to a traditional job where you're showing up and you have all sorts of, you know, people in the workforce with you. So these communities really help people feel like one they're not alone and what they're doing. For a lot of solo entrepreneurs, it's like their ongoing professional development, it's their education, you know, to be able to show up in a group and say, by the way, I don't know how to do this, like, how do we get, you know, what do I need to file for taxes? Or what kind of materials should I do for this project, you know, all those kind of questions, but just kind of feeling like you're part of a community, when you're solo entrepreneur, there's a lot of stresses and a lot of hats that we wear, and so that we all, you know, share the knowledge and what we, what we know. And everybody feels like they're just not alone in their solo entrepreneur journey.

Corinne Schaefer  6:00  
And that's so true, because I think, a lot of people, but I'll go out on a limb and say, women, we feel like we have to have all of the answers before we try to do something. And that's just not possible. And it's okay not to know things. And it's okay to ask for help, and you don't have to be perfect. At the get go, that's impossible. So just to be able to enter a safe space and say, hey, you know, I'm creating something that I need support, and have people support you and not to feel a shame that you don't have the answers, or you don't know it all or, you know, because I think we just feel like we have to have it all together all the time, and that's just impossible.

Doreen Laskiewicz  6:42  
Right? And you know, like it, we don't always get a lot of grace, from the people that interact with us, especially on social media, right? If you make a mistake, or maybe somebody thinks you're too expensive, or all that stuff. So to be part of a community where people could say, Hey, this is a great next step, or why don't you try this, or this is how I did it. You know, you helps you feel a little more pulled together.

Corinne Schaefer  7:09  
And there is no path to success that doesn't include failure, you know, because that's absolutely, that's how you learn

Doreen Laskiewicz  7:16  
Failure is a great teacher.

Corinne Schaefer  7:18  
Yeah, I mean, you don't love it when you're going through it, of course. But I think that it's also important that when there is, you know, a challenge that comes instead of thinking, Oh, my gosh, this is another problem that I need to deal with, and getting stressed out about it is to try and look at these challenges as opportunities, and to get maybe excited about it. Because every time I've had kind of a stumbling block, a kind of thought forces me to pause sometimes, and sometimes doors open. So instead of challenges being things that closed doors on you, or add stress, really look for the opportunities to grow and expand when those those challenges come up. And I think that that's, you know, another thing that when you're sharing your experiences with other artists and other women to like, let them know that there are ways through this and their positive ways through it.

Doreen Laskiewicz  8:11  
Absolutely, and I and I think Facebook groups especially are great for that. Because people you know, when you're amongst your own people, you can be like, Guys, I really messed up or what do you think of this? But yeah, mistakes are something that every entrepreneur artist whatnot has to deal with. And there's a lot of stuff that I've encountered throughout the years that now have altered my photography workflow, not even the actual picture taken, but like little checklist that I go through, like, okay, are my memory cards ready? Did I charge batteries? You know, all the things that I've tripped over, over the years where it's like, I can't believe I did this whole session not in like raw files, but JPEG, you know, things like that. Now, they become part of my workflow, like any other experience, but a lot of groups I do see people go guys, I think I really messed up, like, and somebody's like, Oh, I've done that, too. Here's what you can do to get through it. So community is really super important for that. But, you know, mistakes will really kind of get your, for me, it kind of got my workflow for a lot of things that I do when I approach a session, or even even things like working with a lot of dancers, right, even things like do they have a hair tie on their wrist where, you know, like things that I look over people and I'm like, oh, take that off, you know, do you want that on you know, that kind of thing. So because then I don't have to photoshop it out later in like 50 pictures. Yeah.

Corinne Schaefer  9:45  
And that's again learning, learning through experience right? You know, better you do better, you know, and you can't know everything from from the get go. We're talking about community, but on the same note, we've already kind of brought that up is you know, women's supporting women, and this is something that's very important to you collaboration over competition and supporting other women. Like for a lot of people, that's common sense, why wouldn't we support each other, but, you know, women are still in the minority when it comes to leadership roles. And we're often still competing against each other for limited spaces. And I just wanted to get your opinion on how we as women can be better allies to each other and, and how we can really get it out there that we're stronger when we work together.

Doreen Laskiewicz  10:35  
I think what what I've seen a lot of is that whole, I wouldn't have done it that way thing. You know, like, we have very individualized journeys, and whether it's deciding to have children at a certain point of your life, or leaving the workforce, you know, like, for me, particularly, I can't not have anything going on. My brain just doesn't do that. So I don't personally relate to say somebody who could spend 10 years as a stay at home mom, to me, that's like, like torture, I mean, don't get me wrong, not that I don't absolutely, you know, would would throw myself in front of a bus for my two sons. But just, that's just how my brain is just sort of Wired, like I have things going on all the time. And I think we need to just be a little more graceful with with each other, when you encounter people who have very different journeys than you and very different opinions, I think there's a lot of divisive stuff that we come across these days, particularly if you are on social media a lot. You know, so I think really just sort of affording everybody the grace to know that it's not, it's not about you all the time, and just realize that everyone's got a different path to get where they want to go. But you know, and, and taking help when offered, I think is always a great thing to there are some people who are just who are a little stubborn, and and I'm gonna do it my way. Okay, well, okay, that's good, you know, whatever. So I think just being graceful with graceful with each other in terms of, you know, everyone's got a different journey, and just try to support that.

Corinne Schaefer  12:31  
Exactly, different strokes for different folks, you know. And I think that's an excellent point. And I think that, you know, having more grace, whether that's with other women supporting them, and whatever their individual journey, but I also think for people in general, I think that's a really good way to move forward when you're dealing with other people's just, you know, take a beat, have some patience, have some grace, and understand that everyone doesn't view the world the way that you do. And again, like you said, it's not always about about you. But exciting news. I mean, not that you don't have a lot going on, but as your list of credits, you are the founder and editor of Grit & Goals. 

Doreen Laskiewicz  13:17  
Yes. 

Corinne Schaefer  13:18  
And I wanted to talk about that. Yes. Oh, yes that person looks familiar.

I wanted to talk about grit and goals, and also what inspired you to create your own magazine?

Doreen Laskiewicz  13:32  
Well, I've been in a couple as a photographer, and I can tell you seeing your stuff in print, seeing yourself published, is a very similar feeling to being a performer. It's that, you know, that that feedback from an audience that that curtain call at the end, being published, and being an apprentice is a very similar feel. And I know it's kind of weird to compare the two like, you're thinking apples and oranges, but it is. And then having my oldest son get into graphic design, you know, learning like layout and stuff like that, you know, we were the you know, the were like two peas in the pod, which stuff like that, like when he was going through his college experience, we would zoom regularly when he was at school, we would watch like, Oh, look at this, like cool YouTuber who's got like a Photoshop channel. Oh, cool. Let's check out this edit, you know, things like that. And we would like watch them through zoom together. So it just, it kind of came together. And I also would say, like, in the same way that it felt good watching somebody that I taught how to sing something, that satisfaction of watching them perform and knowing that I had something to do with it. It's the same kind of feeling when you say to another small business owner, I want to put you in a magazine. Like, like, wow, like that's, you know, it's that it's a very similar feelings. So you know, it's very satisfying for a lot of, for me to actually see business owners get that feature, get that, you know that putting them on the stage, so to speak in the same way. And a lot of women are really surprised that you're interested in what they're doing. The what's the words I'm looking for the imposter syndrome is definitely strong amongst a lot of women that I meet. And for me to say, No, I think this is really interesting. And I want to hear more about your story. And let's get it out there. So and a lot of, you know, a lot of people get very intimidated by the fact that it's a magazine, because it's a, it's a piece of media, it's considered press. But on the other side of it, there's this real people, I would encourage anyone who's thinking about pitching to a magazine to a newspaper, or to a TV station, like, there's this people on the other side, and they want to hear your story. We're all looking for content constantly. Everybody's looking, you know, just like those of us who are solo entrepreneurs have to always come up with like, what's my next social media post, going to be about? But it was really a very similar feeling for me, when I would see those kids learn how to sing because I did that, or they would get on stage and perform something because I taught them that it's a very similar feeling to take a solo entrepreneur who thinks they're just sort of trudging along day to day and they're not doing anything particularly special, or they're not confident in themselves. And for me to be like, by the way, I would love to put yourself out there. So it's very gratifying. A lot of work, but very gratifying. Yeah. 

Corinne Schaefer  16:53  
And it's amazing because you are spotlighting other female artists, entrepreneurs, you're spotlighting nonprofits and local businesses? How do you find the people that and businesses that you're spotlighting for your issues?

Doreen Laskiewicz  17:06  
Well, being a complete extrovert, I am always looking for networking opportunities, like I love going to like those girls night out kind of networking events. So I'm always meeting people. Just social media, a lot. I mean, there's a lot of things that come across on social media that I'm like, wow, this is really interesting. Like, you know, I'm also that I have no problem if I think someone is another. Like I say motivated businesswoman. I'll send them a cold email, and be like, Wow, this is really neat what you're doing. I'm always interested in network, would you like to set up a zoom? As awesome, you know, can I talk to you or people who have event spaces and whatnot, I'm starting to plan for the magazine, maybe some of my own networking stuff. And some, you know, I'll sign up for the tour like, like brides do when they're looking at event spaces. But then, and I'm not planning a wedding. I just want to come to your space. And let's talk about collaboration. Can I do branding pics for you, in exchange for, you know, like a weeknight out, you know, that kind of thing. So it's just all like everything, there's not really one thing. But I'm just constantly looking constantly, you know, just seeing what sparks my interest

Corinne Schaefer  18:32  
And open to connecting. Again, there's this connecting and community and building alike are just themes that are throughout a lot of your business journeys or an artistic journeys, is this kind of connecting with community and building up things. And that kind of leads me to my next question is because the magazine written goals is so focused on showcasing you know, artists and community and all of these nonprofits. I've often, you know, said that, you know, we talk about the arts, and we sit there and go, people really aren't investing in the arts anymore. And I sit there and say, Well, what are we, as artists, investing in the communities? And I feel like with grit and goals magazine, you are, you are investing in these artists and communities and all and these businesses that are enriching the cultural fabric of the small towns. So since you're doing it so well, what is your advice to other artists or nonprofits to get involved in the community so that we can help each other?

Doreen Laskiewicz  19:44  
I would say be open to collaboration. And not every collaboration is going to put money in your pocket, but you may get something that's just as valuable. You know, of course, you can't you can't pay your bills with Libration, I get it. But sometimes you may find that it's that one little thing that you did with somebody else that leads you to something else. And you never know where those things lead. So I use that word collaboration a lot when I interact with women, especially for the first time. I will, of course, follow about a good border, because who doesn't need good photography? Right? Like every industry needs pictures for content and social media. So I of course, definitely have that to my advantage. But I love collaboration, like, Oh, you do this thing. Like, I want to do that. And I think too, I see a lot of times, women that I interact with, through groups, and through the magazine, I don't think everyone's inept at really taking that first step to say, Hey, do you want to get coffee? Can we have a phone call? Can we do you want to zoom I'd love to just interact like, just an example. During the pandemic, I, I saw a girl who's starting not a girl, she's a woman, a woman who is starting a new website. And I had noticed that when I went to it, because I've checked out everything, I may not comment on it all the time, but I look at a lot of stuff. And I saw her website was like, when it showed up on the screen, it was off. Like the the logo was like, like it wasn't spaced correctly. So I said, Hey, let's connect. And I said, Oh, let me help you with your bat. And just, you know, she was able to fix it, but maybe wasn't aware, whatever. And our industries were somewhat connected. So I said, Hey, you know, maybe, you know, we could do something together. And we just kind of kept in touch, right? So when I started gritten goals, this person had connection to some event spaces. So I said, Hey, any of your clients can provide a space, I'm going to do like my first cover shoot for the magazine. And then she connected me with the person who owns the the gorgeous, beautiful event space in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where I did my first cover sheet. So you just never know, I would just say like, don't be afraid to make that first move. And not everyone's comfortable with that. But like I said, I'm a complete extrovert. I'll be in your face and a hot second. If I, if I find you interesting, and which is served me well as a teacher, for sure. Cuz you can't be timid, especially when teaching high school. You know, you can't go into it, and be wishy washy about it. But not everyone's like that. So I know, I have to temper that for myself sometimes, but especially now I'm a Jersey girl living in central Pennsylvania. And I'm still kind of getting used to like, while people are actually really nice out here, like, everyone's really cool. You know, kind of getting used to that. But I would just say like, don't be afraid to say to someone, hey, I think I think I really liked to talk to you, and maybe we can collaborate? Do you want to go get coffee? Or do you want to, you know, set up a zoom? Or can I call you, you know, whatever. Yeah. So,

Corinne Schaefer  23:25  
And being open. I think it's important. And it's hard. Because, you know, as you were saying earlier, it's like when you're in, in the arts, or even as a business person, it's hard sometimes to put yourself in a vulnerable position of contacting someone, and maybe they don't respond or they're not interested. But again, it's, you know, if you, if you don't put yourself out there, you'll never get the good, you know what I mean? So you have to take the bad with the good, and there's going to be more good experiences than bad.

Doreen Laskiewicz  23:56  
Right, and there's definitely been times that I have done a completely cold email to someone and I don't get a response, you know, I'm not everyone's cup of tea, some people can get really turned off by a complete stranger being like, Hey, by the way, I'd like to get to know me, okay, you know, and I use you know, if I cold email someone, it's usually because, hey, I see you do this in this industry, or I see you look like you're you really got your stuff together. And I'm always looking to meet other business women, whatever. But there certainly have been times like you said, it's not always going to land, so to speak, and I've certainly have sent some emails that either just nothing came out of home or people just didn't respond and that but you know what, I've got enough interaction around me and stuff that I can do that. It's your loss. 

Corinne Schaefer  24:50  
Exactly, and you're looking to build your tribe, right. As you said, like in creating these communities and reaching out you want to have the people around argue that you trust that get you where you can exchange feedback and support each other. And if someone's not going to want to be on your team, you're like, Great, then you're not for me. And I'm not for you, you know? And yeah, you've saved me some time. Because why would I invest in a relationship or process that's not ultimately going to benefit both of us? You know, you don't mind your people. I'll stick to mine over here, you know.

Doreen Laskiewicz  25:24  
Yeah, and I've got a strong, quirky, quirky personality. And so I know I'm not everyone's cup of tea, because I can come on a little bit strong sometimes. But that's okay, you know.

Corinne Schaefer  25:35  
That is okay. It's more than okay. Yeah. As if you didn't have enough to do you also have your own podcast? Creative? Yes, rock, can you tell me a little bit about that, and where people can listen to it?

Doreen Laskiewicz  25:48  
You can listen to it and kind of everything, I think I've got it like everywhere like apple. It does have a YouTube channel, if you just do creative ladies rock.com. It'll lead you right to the YouTube channel. But But I think it's on everything. I'm just going to start to get back on posting for that. I, you know, going through the whole selling my house and moving and then moving again, because my new house wasn't ready. And all that jazz, I'm going to be really starting to kick that back up again. And it's going to be a mix of the interview format. And I think I'm also going to do some solo episodes as well, because I have a lot of thoughts. I want to get them all out of my head.

Corinne Schaefer  26:30  
Yeah, that sounds really cool. I feel like you've got your hands in like so many different pots. But at the same time, like is there are there other things on your creative bucket list list that you would like to achieve or go after?

Doreen Laskiewicz  26:47  
Yeah, one of the things that I've been thinking about for a while and I'm actually planning on starting it this fall is I think I'm going to finally take all that teaching experience and apply it to photography to create a photography education program. And one of the things that I going to do to really focus that is I want to make it highly individualized. Taking on my experience of knowing how to assess someone, learning the technical skills, really catering the program shaper local to me so that I can actually set up live shoots, and you can actually shoot with me. So this is something I've been kind of toying around with in my head for quite some time. But I really had to wait to be available, you know, retire from teaching, be settled in an area start to build up, just getting to know people. So I think I'm ready to kind of take that next step to be that personalized photography mentor, that somebody who's a newer photographer who's ready to really be serious about learning the skill set, learning, editing, learning, Photoshop, learning social media, the whole nine yards, like, it's not going to be a lot of students. And because it's really going to be, like I said, hyper local, and very personalized. But if you're serious about really getting those skills in order, and you really need that one on one small group instruction. That's, that's my next step.

Corinne Schaefer  28:25  
That sounds really, really cool. Ah, I want to thank you. But before I do, where can people find out more about you creative ladies rock, and where to get their copy of Grit & Goals magazine, and I will include everything in the show notes.

Doreen Laskiewicz  28:42  
Absolutely. So my website, Doreenphotography.com sort of wraps up a lot of things, I do have links to all of those things on that site. But more directly creativeladiesrock.com and gritandgoals.work, I decided to do .work instead of.com because I wanted to reflect that. This is the work that women do, whether it be artistic or business or otherwise.

Corinne Schaefer  29:10  
Very cool. And this is going to be our premiere episode for season three. Do you know your fall edition is coming out for Grit & Goals?

Doreen Laskiewicz  29:21  
It will be sometime in the beginning of September. So we're I'm in the thick of it right now. 

Corinne Schaefer  29:26  
All right, so first week, week of September 1 Friday, so go get your copy of grit and goals fall edition. You will Yeah. It's just gorgeous photography, wonderful highlights of wonderful Women in the Arts and Business and I love that you're always spotlighting all the local businesses and nonprofits in the area you really learned so much.

Doreen Laskiewicz  29:50  
Great. Well, thank you for having me on. It's been a pleasure.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai