Latest / WOC and Allies: Business and Career Realtalk with Elaine Lou Cartas / 1. What is Color Your Dreams?

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1. What is Color Your Dreams? · WOC and Allies: Business and Career Realtalk with Elaine Lou Cartas

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hey legacy makers, welcome to the Call Your Dreams podcast.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm so excited for you to listen to the first episode.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: You're going to learn where color your dreams originate from and how my past experience as a grassroots organizer, activist, and nonprofit fundraiser led me to be a business and career coach for women of color and allies, and your podcast host for this podcast.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll also learn about the exact moment I realized I wanted to own a business, to have a coaching business.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: Here's the hint it wasn't cheap.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: So grab your coffee, tea, and or boba, and let's call your dreams to create your legacy.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: As a first-generation immigrant, I know how much pressure there is from our family and society to have a safe and secure life.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: But in the Call Your Dreams Podcast, I'm here to challenge you to be your best self by creating a business and career that is sustainable, abundant, and enriching without playing by other people's roles.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: We'll have real talk on the deep inner work to create lasting transformation and the tactical strategies to create a profitable business and career.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: We both know you have a vision, roots you're proud of, and a legacy to create.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: Now it's time to do things your way on your own terms.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: So let's get started.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: Now grab your coffee, tea, andor boba, and let's call your dreams too.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: Can't wait to dive in and talk about what is color your dreams.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: So it's short for the color your dreams movement, which is to support women of color and allies like you to become better together and to really create a legacy that aligns with what they want as opposed to what other people want.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: So why is it called the Call of Your Dreams movement?
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: It's not called the Call of Your Dreams movement just because the word movement is trendy and every single coach uses it.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: I actually've been an activist back before when the word activist was really cool.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go back 12 years ago, which is insane because when I think even two years ago, I think it's 2000s, but it's not, but 12 years ago to 2011.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: And this was around the recession, and I became a grassroots organizer right after college.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: I went to UC Irvine, Zot Zot.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I am born and raised in California.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: And instead of staying in California to get a full-time job, I actually moved to Des Moines, Iowa, which is a swing state.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: And there I was working on a statewide Senate race.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: And from Iowa, I moved to Indiana, Montana, New Mexico, Massachusetts.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: Usually it's the other way around, right?
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: You come from there, move to California.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: I went there, and I was so focused on moving legislation as well as voting candidates that aligned with similar values as me.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: So what does it mean to be a grassroots organizer and an activist?
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Well, the experience I had then, before I became a business and career coach, was learning how to put people together, a whole community, political leaders, community leaders, and voters for a single cause, whether it's equal rights or supporting a candidate that shares similar values.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: That was the experience that I came from being an activist and a grassroots organizer.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: It's what helped me create this call your dreams movement and become what I am now, which is a business and career coach for women of color and allies.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: And this podcast that you're listening to, the Call Your Dreams podcast, it's an extension of the movement to support the woman of color and allies to work together, to be better together in understanding our differences and celebrating one another.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: And speaking about our differences, I can't take full credit of the name Call Your Dreams.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: I actually want to give a shout out and gratitude to one of my former colleagues.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: So after I was a grassroots organizer working in these different states, Iowa, Indiana, Montana, Massachusetts, I got into nonprofit fundraising and I got my dream job.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: And that was working at Pasanese City College as a fundraiser.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: And there I got to meet my most incredible team to this day.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'll call it my dream job.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: And yes, I am now a business owner, but I now have my dream business.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: But I did have my dream job.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: And there I met Peggy Kelly, who not only has been a colleague but a friend.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: She does event management within the Pasadena area.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: And she actually helped me at my first ever event back in June 2018.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: So a year later, after I launched my business.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: And I was talking to her and asking for advice.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: I really want to call my event something that really accentuates and emphasizes women with color and allies.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: And she came up with the name Call Your Dreams.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: And I told Peggy that is brilliant.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: And obviously, trademarked it.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: Shout out to my lawyer, Andrea Sager.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: I'm part of her legalpreneur program, but trademarked it.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: And that's where the name came from.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm really here in this episode to talk to you about what Colour Your Dreams is.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: So, Peggy Kelly, like I was mentioning, not a woman of color, actually, an ally.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: And that's the beauty of it is learning how to work with different people, differences, but celebrating one another, learning how we could be better together.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: So, why better together?
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_00: I grew up as this weird kid.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_00: I had friends of all ethnic backgrounds, different sexual orientations.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: And it's interesting, I never, I'm Filipino and I never just hung out with a Filipino crowd or hung out with Asians.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: I loved getting to know different people and just came from a place of curiosity.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: And to be honest, when I graduated college from UC Irvine, I want to get out of California because I want to explore the world and the country, not just the world, but the country.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_00: From that, I've learned the importance, especially as a grassroots organizer, of listening and understanding one another.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_00: Not necessarily that we have to bring everything, but when you start understanding how people grew up, whether it's societal constructs or how they grew up culturally, you have a better understanding of who they are.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm so jealous of this current generation, Generation Z.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: So last year I was really into this show.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: Mindy Kayling wrote it.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: It's called Never Have I Ever.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm just so jealous of how diverse that show is.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: And it's an example of many shows out there, in fact.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: Like the main character, she's Indian.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: And then there is this other main character who's mixed.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: He's white and Japanese.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_00: And then his sister has Down syndrome.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: And then the main character's best friend is gay.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_00: Like just the diversity.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_00: It's so beautiful to see in our media and seeing more women of color being shown.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_00: I wish I had that when I was younger, but it's great to see that it is happening right now.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: So that's why I want to talk about why it's important why I focused on my business and this podcast on bringing both women of color and allies together.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: Because when you bring us together, we can really move the initiative, everything we stand for, and celebrating our differences, better understanding one another.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go back to the name color your dreams.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: So when people think about dreams, they don't think it's going to be reality.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: Just this fictional future, it's never going to happen, but we're just going to daydream about it.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: So the reason why I added color your dreams, it means literally like if you're a kid coloring in between the lines in the heart, right?
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_00: Where we're made, I am here in this podcast to guide you along with my guests, to color your dreams, to actually create your legacy.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: And hey, guess what?
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_00: I know the color dreams logo, if you've seen it, it's a heart shape.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to color it red just because when everybody thinks of a heart, they think of the color red.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: You get to color it however the way you want it.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: And regardless if it's your career, moving up there, or in your business, I really want to be here to reinforce that you don't have to copy and paste from the goldy, shiny object syndrome of, ooh, I need to go do this or do that just because I've seen like 10,000 hits on this IG reel, or because my mom or my dad told me what to do.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_00: But it's really being intentional about the choices you make in your career or and or business.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_00: You could have both.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: So my experience personally, I'm a first-generation immigrant.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_00: Both my parents immigrated from the Philippines.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: My dad, along with his parents, so my grandma-grandpa and my great-grandfather immigrated here to work in the grapevines.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_00: And there's this quote: I don't know who said it, but I cannot take credit for it.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_00: Our grandparents survived, so our parents could provide.
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_00: Our parents provided so we can thrive.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_00: So that cycle from going to surviving to thriving.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_00: And I acknowledge that my parents and generations before them didn't have this privilege I have now.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: Like I have this privilege, this life of choice, this choice that I get to do this podcast, the privilege that I don't have to worry about food in front of me.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what our parents and generations before them had to sacrifice, where they couldn't even choose the life they wanted.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: And I know for me, by going, by coloring my dreams, that I am honoring all of the sacrifices made before me.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: And I actually want to share an example where I wasn't coloring my own dreams and I was following what other people told me.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm not blaming other people, I just acknowledge that I wasn't listening to my true heart.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_00: So, for example, when I was working at Pasanese City College, I had this a dream at the time to be an executive director for nonprofits.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: And in order to move up, especially if you're doing nonprofit higher education work, you do have to go to get back your master's or go for your EDD or doctorate.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_00: So I went to go get my master's, paid for it all in cash.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_00: And the day I graduated from my master's, I realized hold up, wait a minute.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_00: I really don't want this.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: I think I just did what everyone else told me I should be doing.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_00: And that day I graduated, I realized I want to have my own business.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: I want to be a coach.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: You know, at that time when I got my master's, before that, like I've shared my journey.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: I was a grassroots organizer and I had to navigate as a first generation immigrant, as a woman of color, where I had a job where I was making 60K and I wanted to ask for a raise.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_00: And I asked my parents how to get a raise, and they responded like any immigrant parents would.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: And it's not their fault, they just grew up differently, where they said, well, if you work hard, they're going to give you the raise you deserve.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: But I knew, no, that's not how it works.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: So I actually hired my first coach and I went from making 60 to 72K.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: And I realized, well, I got the money I wanted, but I'm not happy.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_00: Money doesn't buy you happiness, guys.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_00: So when I realized that the raise wasn't even worth it, I then transitioned and found my dream job working at Passame City College as a fundraiser.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: I was making close to six figures.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: And more important than the money, I got to raise money.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_00: I got to meet with incredible donors where we raised a million dollars in six months for 200 student scholarships.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: 200 student scholarships.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_00: I changed 200 students' lives.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: Like I said, that is my dream job.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: And I realized going flashback to like when I got my master's, if I was able to go through that journey of finding my dream job, I want to help others, whether it's coloring their dreams to find their dream job or coloring their dreams to create or scale their own business, because I knew what was missing for me when I was going through my journey.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I had incredible mentors.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_00: Shout out to my ex-boss, Bobby Abram, who's executive director of Passanee City College, who is an ally.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_00: I also had an incredible coach that I hired who was also an ally, but I didn't see women of color who looked like me.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_00: And that was such a huge difference.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: But at the same time, I know that I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the allies who brought me up.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's just so important to see both women of color and allies working together to raise everybody up.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: And that's possible.
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_00: And my success is not, I hate when people say, like, wow, like they're self-made.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_00: I am not self-made.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: My mentors helped to get me here.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: And the generations before me got me here.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: That is why I know I'm living a life of privilege.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: And the hard part is being aware of like, of knowing that, okay, I'm aware of this in my life that needs to change.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: And let me take aligned action to the legacy I want to create.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: And that is what the color your dreams movement is all about is supporting women of color and allies together to color your legacy.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_00: See what I just did there.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: So as your host, I will help guide you to take aligned action towards your legacy, to listen to your intuition, honor your ancestors, and take the practical and tactical strategies that are sustainable so you don't burn out.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_00: Because remember, when you're growing in your career or business, your business and career can't exist without you if you don't care for you and put yourself first.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_00: So just like I do in my coaching with my own clients in this Color Dreams podcast, we're gonna have real talk.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna talk about the strategies, also spiritual advice.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: What a lot of people don't know about me, by the way, is I am Reiki attuned and Reiki certified.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_00: And sure, I don't have a practicing Reiki business, but I use Reiki to serve my clients as a business and career coach.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_00: This is why I'm doing this work.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_00: It's to bring women of color and allies together, to put ourselves up.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I know by doing this work, I'm also honoring all of the generations before me, and not even that far from my parents to all the generations before that.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: So, how I love ending episodes and what I will be doing for you moving forward, whether it's just me as a solo episode or even with my guest, is two things.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_00: One, a reflective question.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_00: So I want to make sure you get a pen and paper out or type on your notes app, unless you're driving, please don't do that.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_00: And two, I'll give you an action.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_00: So here's my reflective question for you.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_00: And before I give you the question, I want to preface by saying, I meet a lot of people who have moved up quickly in their career or quickly in their business.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: And they freak out, oh my God, I created this foundation and now I want to break it and burn it down.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, what if you're not breaking and burning it down?
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: What if you needed all those experiences to get to the next level and it's complementing you?
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_00: For example, I just shared my experience being a first-generation Filipino immigrant, my experience as a child, loving, meeting, connecting with different friends, and my experience being a former grassroots organizer, activist, and nonprofit fundraiser, all of those experiences brought me to what I am now, a business and career coach for women of color and allies, and your podcast host every Thursday.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_00: So, all that being said, the question is: I want you to journal all of your past experiences.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_00: How has it helped you to get to where you're at now?
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_00: And how will all of your past experiences help you in the future?
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_00: Because if you're listening to the podcast, you probably have a level of awareness of I'm not happy, but I have spent so much time and energy where I'm at, I don't want to burn or break anything.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: You are not.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_00: You're honoring all of the experience that you have to get to the next level, your next calling.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: And here's the second thing: your action.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_00: If you love this podcast episode already and you want to get more tips and tricks and cool, funny gifts as well from me.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_00: I actually have a Call Your Dreams newsletter where every Monday, if you guys remember back in the day, like Live Journal and Zanga, where people are kind of sharing their daily, weekly thing.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_00: And that is what my color your dreams newsletter is.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_00: I want to bring back live journal and zanger.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: And if you don't know what live journal or zang is, that means I'm just too old, I guess.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh, millennials.
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: I just want to let you know we're getting older.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_00: This decade in the 2020s, this is when we're turning 40s.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_00: Anyways, I regress.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: Let me go back.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_00: So my action for you is join the Color Your Dreams newsletter where every Monday you receive a newsletter from yours, truly me, with funny gifts and tips in your business and career, and just even my personal take on stuff.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_00: So to join it, go to elanelew.com slash join.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_00: That's J-O-I-N.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: It's ElaineLou.com slash join.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_00: So welcome to the Color Your Dreams podcast, everyone.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_00: And just remember, you're gonna get a new episode every Thursday.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_00: So make sure to subscribe and review to the Call Your Dreams podcast.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_00: I'll see you guys next Thursday.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: It goes a long way, and it's one of the best ways to support our Call Your Dreams movement.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_00: Want more?
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_00: You can find all the links and information mentioned in this episode in the show notes on my website, ElaineLou.com slash podcast.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: All right, legacy maker.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_00: I'll see you next Thursday for our newest episode.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: Remember to call your dreams to create your legacy.