Valerie Chiang is the founder of Doll & Dollhouse!
background
Valerie was inspired to create Doll & Dollhouse from her own diverse experiences and struggles with figuring out what she wanted to do with her life.
Her path started out with nursing at the University of Pennsylvania, which led to a degree in linguistics at the end of her collegiate journey. Upon graduation, she moved to Melbourne, Australia before relocating to Seattle, Washington immersing herself in various industries such as cryptocurrency, ridesharing transportation, robotics, and cannabis. The monotony of the 9-5 schedule and a toxic manager spurred her to start her own small business in a new field - energy healing and divination. The success of her business allowed her to move to Ko Samui, Thailand, where she opened her own art gallery and even learned how to tattoo. From there, she embarked on a graphic design project for an astrology mobile app as she moved around the world to countries such as India, Vietnam, and Mexico.
With each new skill acquired, Valerie's horizons expanded. Yet she remained restless, seeking a career path that resonated with her the most. She had spent many years researching various careers that fit her criteria - ones that allowed for creativity, full autonomy, movement around the world, low barriers to entry, and a dash of unconventionality. But the fear of committing to a possibly romanticized job, a lack of mentorship available for exploring unique careers, and the desire for continuous expansion into new territory prevented her from finding "the one."
"Antiques? What's that all about? Maybe interiors. But herbalism also sounds interesting. Nah, that was interesting yesterday. Today is all about independent journalism! But how to get started on that? Feng Shui also seems cool. Do they make spaces pretty or..?"
After a decade of this struggle, the idea of creating a platform for people like herself blossomed.
motivations & beliefs
Valerie found her passion through her belief that every individual should have the opportunity to continually explore new avenues in life, make a decent living, and feel supported doing so. Her immersion in various communities and cultures led her to find many people worldwide like herself - entrepreneurial, creative, ambitious, unconventional, sensitive, and do not fit the mold of "work my way up in a 9-5 job until retirement."
A common point of topic in conversations among these entrepreneurial individuals was always about career - their lack of fulfillment in their previous traditional jobs, their lack of free time there, health issues from overworking, dreading Monday mornings, life purpose, the ability to explore their heart's desires, entrepreneurial ideas they hoped to pursue, where to find supportive resources, etc.
Many individuals that Valerie met, including herself, received these entrepreneurial opportunities through serendipitous encounters and good fortune.
Doll & Dollhouse aims to provide that good fortune to many more people worldwide.
goals for the future
Through Doll & Dollhouse, Valerie hopes to contribute to the evolving perception of career. The beliefs that money can only result from high levels of education, that successful entrepreneurship is only meant for a few, and that we must stick to what we know are slowly becoming outdated.
Rather, Valerie's goal is to promote the idea that our careers, which take up about 1/3 of our lives, should feel expansive. That we should wake up every morning feeling excited to work. That we should feel like a valued part of our communities through work. That we should feel totally empowered in what we do.
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