Meet Marissa, the Founder & CEO of STIL - a company that empowers women to be their best selves through its organizational products. While running STIL, designing products, forecasting, designing all visuals and aiding in photography, Marissa has successfully launched 2 Kickstarter campaigns, holds a 20 ON THE RISE Award and recently won a 30 under 30 award. Read on to learn more about how Marissa got started with her journey and her advice to those just starting out.

What is your story? 

I was born & raised in Switzerland, where I learned to appreciate minimalist design & living. Also, I am a vegetarian and very passionate about intentional & sustainable living. I love to DIY and love a good thrift find in my spare time! 

What inspired you to start your business? How did you get started?

I've been a planner girl for a pretty long time. I used planners when I was in elementary school and then through high school. Back then, I created fully customized versions for myself every year. In 2014 I not only had a full-time job and a side-hustle, but I was also going to school for design, so I needed a planner that worked. I noticed that a ton of planners were targeted towards moms or new moms who were making activity planning, meal planning, a lot of scheduling for their kids, grocery lists. All things that I necessarily didn't need at the time because I was 24. I just wanted something that was clean-looking, beautifully designed, and the inside pages were just a nice layout, excellent typography. However, I couldn't find anything that was like that. So I set out on this mission to design a planner for myself - not necessarily intending to start a business, just with a necessity for something that I needed in my life.

What are some tips to boost productivity with the 2022 planner? 

I've got a few amazing tips to start the year off right! 

1. Start your morning at night! Don't wait until the morning to make your to-do list. Think of the night before as part of your morning (i.e. you just gained another hour in your day for getting things done).
2. Exercise! Even if it's just for 20-30mins do something to get your body moving in the morning. There is nothing worse than feeling sluggish all day because you couldn't get your butt out of bed.
3. The worst comes first! Look at your three tasks and pick the worst first so you can get it out of the way and out of your mind. There is nothing worse than a task looming over your head all damn day.

How do you set goals in the new year? Can you give any advice on this? 

Yes absolutely! Setting goals is one of the biggest questions we get at the end of every year. There are a few easy ways to create goals you will actually achieve. 

1. Set goals you can control. If your goal is based on something completely out of your control, you won't be able to control whether or not you'll achieve it. Be realistic about what you can and can't be responsible for. 
2. Have SMART goals. If you haven't heard of them before, they are goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound. If you set goals with these in mind, you're more likely to succeed. 
3. Break them down. Make your goals more digestible by breaking them down into manageable chunks. You can use something like a "goal ladder" by writing your main goal at the top, and underneath, you can write all the little steps it will take to get there. 

What does a typical day look like? 

A typical day for me begins around 7:30 am. I either work out at home or go to the gym for 30 to 45 minutes. Afterwards, I usually make a smoothie or a juice and look at my inbox for 30 minutes. Then I typically get ready for work, and because I haven't been going to an office for almost 2 years, I usually try to do minimal makeup to feel a bit put together, and I'm always ready for a last-minute zoom call. I don't usually take lunch, but I love taking a mid-day break around 2 pm where I go for a walk or do something other than work. 

Things are about to go back to normal, though for us in January with the opening of our new office, so I'm excited for my morning routine to change back to something that resembles a bit of normalcy.

If you weren't running your business, what would you be doing?

If I weren't running this business, I would be running a different one. 

Favourite and not-so-favourite part of your business?

My favourite parts about running my own business are making my schedule, working with and being around amazing and talented women, and having the freedom to do anything I want with the company. My not so favourite part is the fact that my work can sometimes be all-consuming, and I tend to make myself feel guilty when I'm not working. 

Your favourite way to care for yourself amidst running a busy, growing business? 

I love nothing more than randomly deciding I'm done for the day and booking myself in for a mani-pedi. 

You can follow STIL @stilclassics, and you can also find Marissa directly @marissacristina on her personal Instagram. If you'd like to get organized for the year, please use code MALA25 for 25% OFF our entire store.