Meet Jillian Livingston | Female Solo Entrepreneur, Blogger, Influencer, Connector

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jillian Livingston and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jillian, what matters most to you?
Relationships. The community of culture that I am building stems from the desire to help others before helping ourselves. What I have built is a true testament that success does indeed come from leading with this mindset.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As a female solo entrepreneur, I am an influencer, content creator, blogger and a connector. Since 2009 I have been capturing the Aspen and Roaring Fork Valley lifestyle by writing stories on the blog and my social media platforms highlighting the locals and the incredible adventures to be found.

Using my blog as a vessel to market our valley’s top local businesses, from 2018 to 2020 I produced monthly sold-out events. To keep everyone connected over the pandemic, I took it further and created memberships, holding Zoom coffee chats weekly and offering my marketing services for a nominal rate.

There is money being made through my network; a $15K client procured from one newsletter, a huge construction management lead for an all-women crew from one Instagram post, and job hires. Many articles have been written about me for the culture of community that I continue to build.

Has it been easy? Not at all.

With landlords changing the landscape of Aspen to highly exclusive, many Aspenites are feeling a greater need for connection. I am working with many businesses to support our desire to grow the community. As I navigate this valley I bring in others who ask the questions, “how may we help you?” with the understanding that this mind set will help us all grow together.

I truly care about putting our admired professionals in the spotlight. Having lived here for over 30 years, people trust that I market those who deliver excellence, but my reach goes beyond our valley since many of us often reach capacity with clients.

Based on feedback from those spending top dollars on magazine or newspaper ads, the ROI is extremely low. I believe my model of storytelling marketing through the written word, as well as video, is far more dynamic and effective. As a writer, filmmaker, and vlogger, I have been told that I create an infectious positive vibe that people want in on, whether it is for brand exposure or just to stay connected.

My biggest challenge is what being a solo-entrepreneur entails. After 12 years of building my site, I am finally building a robust team of content creators to grow our brand and continue to attract an international audience who wants to connect with our valley and the services offered. Having my boots on the ground has been the best way I know of to attract the people I am reaching towards. With a team my pace will accelerate exponentially and I will be able to work more in my flow rather than hustling from the trenches. 

I am proud to have built platforms large enough to share the voices of others, and to be connecting people together to generate more work and relationships. It is amazing to me that by leading with my heart I am actually realizing success. What an empowering message I have to share with others.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Many of our local favorite hangouts in Aspen have been bought out or have moved downvalley due to high rents, like the beloved Wienerstube where Klaus Obermeyer and his buddies had breakfast every morning, but a few locally owned places still exist; Local Coffee & Jour de Fete in Aspen and Craft in Basalt for delicious coffee and Poppycocks for Manhattan Eggs and smoothies.

After breakfast I would take them for a hike up the Vista trail in Snowmass or The Ute Trail in Aspen and then on to the top of Ajax, but only if the gondola is running so that we can have a snack on the top and then not kill our knees hiking back down. Another option is to mountain bike in the beautiful woods of Hunter Creek and bike to Four Corners with a descent on the other side that drops one down into Hunter Thompson and Aspen’s ex-sheriff Bob Braudis’ old stomping grounds at the Woody Creek Tavern for some of the best margaritas in town. For a more civilized adventure, road bike up to Ashcroft and have lunch in a spectacular mountain setting at Pine Creek Cook House.

Another lunch location is the historic Hotel Jerome on their garden patio. This is my go-to for a luxurious lunch out with my boys. We love their Tuna Tartare Tacos with Wasabi. Naturally, to work off our decadence, lunch must be followed by a competitive game of Pickleball.

For fun, head to Aspen Art Museum to see the local exhibits and enjoy happy hour on the beautiful open rooftop cafè, or head to Aspen Tap for a craft beer. For other craft beer options, hike or bike Snowmass and head to the Belgium Ranger Station.

If you really want to find the locals, head downvalley to TACAW for a show or continue on to Carbondale and get a cocktail from the most sustainable distillery in the world, Marble Distillery. Book a room in their Inn, but do it well in advance, they only have 6 rooms. If you are staying for a while, buy yourself a barrel of whiskey from them and have private whiskey tastings for those you want to impress.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My sister and my mother have been my business advisors and support group.

My sister, Michele Cardamone, is Aspen’s leading portrait photographer and has been a tremendous influence on me as I have watched her diligently pursue her dreams. She has taught me how to be ultra-focused and grounded in my mission and I have watched her methodically chart her course to reach her success. I am far less methodical and have had to learn that just because I operate differently does not mean that I cannot learn to work in a more structured manner.

My British mother is an avid reader and quite particular on good writing. She has been the one who has always valued my writing and encouraged me to keep going.

Website: https://www.aspenreallife.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aspenreallife/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillianlivingston/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/aspenreallife

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aspenreallife

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/AspenRealLifedotcom/videos

Image Credits
Jillian Livingston