Good Hustler: Hollie Bradley || Omm Collective
What do you do when you have a dream and no idea of how to execute on your vision. Simple. You just begin. Understanding that you don’t need to know the outcome, but you just need to be open, curious, adaptable and humble was a boon for yoga teacher Hollie Bradley who has taken her love and belief in yoga and in a super good hustly way, applied it to her desire to make the administrative life of yoga teachers easier.
"I have always believed that anything is possible. In one romantic vision I dreamt up the ultimate software for my busy career as a yoga teacher, as nothing really existed. I created artistic drafts and started to pour all of our savings into bringing Omm Collective to life - even though at the time I could barely back up my iPhone"
Hollie is an awesome gal on a mission, and if anyone can do it, she can.
1. Describe your business in one powerful sentence.
Omm Collective app is a platform designed for teachers by teachers. It takes care of their essential business needs so they can spend more time doing the things they love.
2. How do you integrate service to others in your business model?
Service is everything to me. It is our fundamental principal and why I created Omm in the first place - to help teachers. When it comes to the day to day operations of Omm, I am the front end. I have an utter sense of urgency when replying to users' questions or dealing with any technical issues. I am completely committed to providing service that goes above and beyond expectation. I also consider education to be an important service, so we freely share information that directly supports teachers through our social media channels, blogs and newsletters.
3. What were some of the highlights and lowlights of your journey to where you are now?
The whole creative process has been immensely rewarding, but as I mentioned I had no technical background so the learning curve was very steep. Early on I had a technical partner, but after time frames and budgets blew out, the stress resulted in our eventual separation. At this time I was almost destroyed by what I was attempting - thank goodness for my beautiful husband and his unwavering belief in me.
Very early on I reached out to Jess Humphries who is the editor of AYJ. Jess has been working with me on Omm for almost a year and has been an absolute tower of strength. She has kept me buoyant and our vision burning bright, and we have grand visions of her one day being our CEO - once OMM is a raging success :) That incredible support and friendship has above all else been my highlight.
4. Do you have a spiritual practice?
I think being a creative it's hard to stay grounded. I have a place I call “My Church" - a pristine native bush headland, where I go to pray, reset and meditate. Every night I do some restorative yoga under the stars (my lounge room has huge doors looking out to the sky) and I always close my practice by going outside to gaze at the moon and give thanks to the universe, and offering my hopes and dreams to be heard by powers greater than myself.
5. Advice for others who want to start their own good hustle?
Fall in love with your idea, let it consume your thoughts, see the end product clearly in your mind as though it already exists in its greatest expression, and work on that project EVERY SINGLE DAY! This, I believe, is the greatest way to gain momentum.
Ask for help and guidance from people who have done what you are doing, listen and apply what you learn, and always be willing to pivot when things require change.
