Hi! I'm Leah.
I'm a graphic designer and writer who lives on Cape Breton Island. (That's on the East Coast of Canada, in case you've never heard of our beautiful island before. Come visit!)
For three years I wrote a popular blog called
"Dream Big Cape Breton," promoting our island as a great place to live. I also run a
Facebook group of over 1000 members of the same name (feel free to join it!). Through these media, I've helped hundreds of local businesses and organizations by promoting them and the community, and I've helped thousands of people feel positive about where we live.
Now I want to "Dream Big" for myself. I want to take a 6-month business-development program called "It's Business Time," and at the end I will have a functioning business doing graphic design, copywriting, and social media consulting. You can
read more about the program on this post of my blog, and
watch the video here. The program is the brainchild of Tiffany Han, Michelle Ward and Erin Cassidy, who are all powerhouse female entrepreneurs living in the US.
I've worked with Tiffany Han before and had great success! And Michelle and Erin are both amazing at what they do too. And, most excitingly, I've applied to the program and been accepted! There are only ten spots, so that's pretty great.
What I Need & What You Get
- I need $5298 USD to pay for this program. That is roughly equal to $6658 CAD. However, I've made the goal of this campaign a bit higher to account for the fees that IndieGogo, PayPal and credit cards charge.
- Perks: I'm offering Design Credit, as well as some other unique, fun perks in case you're not in need of my Graphic Design services. You can check out my design portfolio here and if you have any questions at all about what it's like to work with me and what we can make happen for you, email me: leahcnoble@gmail.com
- If I don't reach my entire goal, that's OK. I still get the funds that are raised and it will still go towards my program. I'll just find other ways to fund the rest!
- If I happen to go over the goal, I'll pay the money forward to other local creative entrepreneurs.
- I'll be blogging on my new website all through the program, too, so you can follow along and learn what I'm learning about getting your dream business happening!
What's The Impact?
Cape Breton Island needs all the young people and entrepreneurs it can get! I'm committed to making my life here, using my economic activity to be roots in the soil, as it were, to help keep this place alive, to keep the soil from washing away. I want to have my own business in order to help other small business owners, especially women, to make their own dreams come true. I want to teach what I will be learning through this program, to others, and help them with their logos, branding and social media needs.
- I believe in community and in doing what we can with what we have. Supporting me means supporting a future entrepreneur of Cape Breton.
- In the past, I've raised funds for my class to attend the Creative Economy conference, through an art auction. It was a success!
- I've also been a freelance designer since I began design school, and have continued to take on clients to build my business even while employed full-time.
Risks & Challenges
It's true that there are risks. I may not reach the total goal. However, I believe that with my broad network of connections both on the island and across the continent, with my history of volunteering in the community and working hard towards a goal, with my good time management and realistic goal setting (and reaching!), that I have the tools I need to make this a success.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you're not able to contribute, that's OK! You can still help me out by:
- Sharing the campaign on your own social media.
- Telling a friend.
- Are you a videographer? You could help me make a video for the campaign.
Thanks so much! I'm so incredibly grateful.