Semifinalist on America's Got Talent 2018 and CEO of Purple Diva Productions
Ever since I decided to pursue my singing career, now that my kids are grown; so many people have asked me if I have been signed by a record company or if I have someone to help me put on my events and this bothered me because it seemed to create a mental hurdle. I felt like I was supposed to wait for a Record Company to come on their white stallion and rescue me and provide me with the singing career of my dreams. Well this woman waits for no one to come save her lol. So, I decided to create Purple Diva Productions – my own production company to produce my music, my merchandise helped me pave the way for my singing career, all on my own terms. I have self produced all my music projects such as my music videos, singles and my mixtape “SingChristina”.
Releasing a Christmas Album on 11/23/18
What were the biggest initial hurdles to building your business and how did you overcome them?
The biggest hurdles in my opinion are always money and time. I have been blessed with great people and incredibly talented musicians and so I find myself looking for the time needed to plan, and the money needed to bring those plans to fruition. I have overcome one of those hurdles by quitting my full-time job as a Registered Nurse. It is time for me to invest my energy into myself and quitting my job was my first step towards that goal. Second, I started reaching out into my community and asking other businesses to work with me to create positive events that were family friendly that I could also perform at. My business partner, manager and friend David Wuensch and I have made it our mission to bring a message of joy and a can-do attitude along side of my music. We have found a formula that is working.
What books are you currently reading? And your recommendation for entrepreneurs to read?
I am currently reading “Codependent No More” as well as “Help Thanks Wow”. I read something every single day just to feed my mind and help me to continue to learn. I think that all entrepreneurs should remember to learn about more than the skill that created their business. I try to read about marketing strategy, business models, and other ways to get returns on my investments. Sometimes I will realize that I am so focused on singing that I forget the importance of all the other pieces past the creativity.
Did you ever deal with contention from your family and friends concerning your entrepreneurial pursuits? How did you handle it? What would you do differently in hindsight?
I think the biggest issue with people outside of the business, whether it is family members, previous coworkers, friends - is usually their desire to add to your fears and insecurities with their own fear. They are afraid of the risk involved with starting a business and they will tend to bring gray clouds under the premise of giving advice. I always try to be appreciative of advice and respect my elders, but I know what I am capable of and what I want to accomplish, and I refuse to take on other people’s fears. I will shine my light big and strong and never allow those fears to take hold of me.
What would you say was the single most influential factor in your business success?
I feel the most influential factor in my success thus far is the human beings I have working for me and with me. I always say my true talent lies in finding great humans and knowing when certain people may not be the best fit. Humans and human relationships are the most important export and import an any business. Who are your humans is a questions I ask myself daily and I am always assessing my interpersonal business relationships.
What do you know today that you wish you would have known when you first got started as an entrepreneur?
I now know that believing in myself is not an option. I cannot choose to follow my gut and my heart one day and then the next day begin to second guess all my decisions. This is not how successful businesses are run. We must make decisions and choices based off the information we have at hand, and have no regrets, accept our mistakes and learn from them quickly and then move forward.
What advice would you give to an upcoming entrepreneur locally and internationally?
If you are going to start your own business and go after your dreams stop and take a very intense inventory of yourself. There are so many talented and smart people out there and you need to know what sets you apart. Are you a great communicator or is that a weakness for you? How will you bridge that gap when you run into problems? What is your strength and how do you utilize it to make your business run stronger. I think that there is room for all of us in the world of business, art, music etc. and we just need to find our niche and allow our imaginations to grow along with our confidence.
