Meet Sara (schuhardt) Gisi | Flutist, Educator & Communications Professional

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sara (schuhardt) Gisi and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sara, do you have a budget?
Yes, I have a budget! I actually find it exciting to sit down with my husband every month and talk through budget balancing and planning, and it’s super easy to see all in 1 place with the Every Dollar app. It feels freeing to track and strategize about expenses, like it’s taking that worry about if I have enough money off my plate. I see finances as a reflection of what matters to me in a way—taking care of my health, investing in my work, providing for my family, being generous towards others, enjoying experiences, saving for the future. I think decisions about spending are made based on the balance of these things, and if that baseline is there, it’s fun to decide where extra funds should go. I like the variety of sometimes saving extra or sometimes going on a vacation or sometimes giving an extra chunk away.

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.
I started my career with a Music Education degree, then did my master’s and doctorate in Flute Performance with goal of being a college flute professor. The journey was definitely long, taxing, emotional, satisfying, growing, fulfilling, life-changing, and probably everything in between. I suppose I stayed focused on the end goal of finishing my degrees and held onto what must be a deep belief of mine that I will finish whatever I start. I am proud and thankful that I have a terminal degree and that I pushed myself to heights in my flute playing and musical knowledge that I didn’t know I could achieve.

When I was finally done with school after being well into my adult life and was starting to look for faculty jobs while doing a lot of part-time work and freelancing, I was definitely feeling a need to find a full-time job. Along the way during my doctorate at the University of Northern Colorado, I had gotten experience with websites, editing, email campaigns, event planning, etc. as a graduate assistant in the arts marketing office, and I decided to apply for a full-time communications/marketing position for the arts at UNC, which I got! That was 4 years ago now, and it’s hard to believe how much I’ve learned in that time. I have wrestled with imposter syndrome, gone through the growing pains of learning a job that had never existed in this way before, navigated many institutional changes, and gained lots of new skills and knowledge as I’ve gone.

Perhaps the most surprising part of this journey for me has been that I now find myself in a place where I want to keep doing this kind of communications and marketing work in further career steps. I’ve learned that the things I love about playing and teaching the flute are actually present here, too—needing to be incredibly creative and detailed at the same time, working on large and small scale projects that involve collaborating with others, getting to share a polished final product that I’m proud of, being a part of my passions of music/arts and education.

I think what strikes me after years of education/trying to take my career somewhere is that I now have more choices of how to use my creativity and skills than ever before and than I might have imagined. I can play my flute and teach however I want in my spare time, and I can keep learning about marketing and websites and project management and social media and writing and communications platforms in my full-time job. I truly believe that my success at any point on this path has not really been due to my talent or natural leaning towards anything, but to persistence, openness, hard work, and support from 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?
Well, there’s a lot to do in Colorado! I suppose if I thinking of the places I’ve lived/worked, this will be mostly along the Front Range and northern Colorado area. And since I like outdoor activities, I’ll assume my friend does, too…here are a few options for the intinerary.

Hike Horsetooth Rock and/or Rocky Mountain National Park Wild Basin area
Bike the Poudre trail between Greeley and Windsor
Get beers at WeldWerks Brewery in Greeley
Paddleboard at McIntosh Lake in Longmont
Eat at one of the many good restaurants in Old Town Fort Collins
Go to a concert or movie at Redrocks Amphitheatre
Hang out at Friday Fest in Greeley
Get coffee at John Galt Coffee in Greeley
Walk on the beautiful trails near my house in Broomfield
Eat breakfast at First Watch in Broomfield

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I absolutely agree that maybe one of the biggest keys to success is having a healthy support system. I think I would be remiss in some way if I didn’t shout out to the people who have collectively been my rock for so many years—my parents and sister in Iowa who have always known me, my husband who is daily a part of all the joys and struggles, my long-time friends who have been only a phone call away, my recent friends who support me in this city, my coworkers who are with me in what feels like the trenches sometimes, all the teachers and bosses who have mentored me towards professional goals. I dedicate this to all who have been close enough to me to truly see me and hear me on my journey; I am grateful for your support.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sara-schuhardt-286b1a34/