Who are your mentors and why? Anyone who follows their bliss. Oprah and Barbara Streisand are the first two people who spring to mind. I particularly love that their success was not based on the way they look  (in fact it was despite that)  or family connections –  but simply grit, talent, perseverance and results.

What’s next for your business? I’m excited about the prospect of merging content with entertainment via webisodes. I think it’s the perfect marriage of my core strengths and access to clients interested in supporting their marketing objectives with funded programs involving branded entertainment.

Current business challenge:  Balancing expectations of clients (both shows and products) with articulated realities of the marketplace. I always disclose exactly what I will deliver… yet often people hear what they want and not what you tell them. I have a hard time masking my frustration when someone raises a concern that is in direct conflict with something you told them not to expect before they engaged you in the first place.

What are your thoughts on how you view your competition? I have always believed in letting the value I deliver speak for itself. If someone likes what I deliver and the manner in which my team does it, then I assume they will want to work with me again and again. I think too often people become obsessed to the point of distraction with what their competition is doing. I have never been a looking-over-my-shoulder type of runner. I simply run at my own pace with the confidence that I will finish the race with a time I am proud of. I am obviously aware of what the competition is doing and what standards are being set in my industry; I am just not often inspired by it. I have pride/confidence in the product I deliver and am always flattered by the imitation (and sometimes downright plagiarism) I see among my competition.

How do you live your brand?  The success that both my company and I have had is a direct result of the service I provide to others. The high-profile events with which we partner and the celebrities whom we gift create a halo effect that makes Distinctive Assets/Lash Fary appealing from a media perspective. It’s this media platform (and celebrity access) that allows us to elevate our clients’ brands as well.

Favorite way to build buzz, create celebrity and change the world: Celebrity seeding via award shows, special events and direct-to-talent.

Best business decision:  Transitioning from a partnership to a solo-leadership situation.

Hardest lesson learned:  People don’t respect free work, so charge them for it.

Guilty pleasure:  I don’t feel guilty about any of my pleasures, but I do watch more television than an overweight teenager. And love it!!!!

Favorite hobby:  Tennis

Favorite book or movie – Why?: Beaches…worthwhile relationships endure…and there’s an amazing ballad…I’m a sucker for a great ballad!

Pet peeve: People who still leave voicemails.

For lunch today:  Leftover pizza from Mozza.

Pen or Pencil: I have hated pencils since childhood.  I even did my calculus homework in pen.

Twitter or Facebook:  Facebook.  If it’s not documented on Facebook, did it really happen????

Lastly, where can we find out more about you?

Web Site:  www.distinctiveassets.com

Twitter: @DAssets

Facebook:  facebook/LashFary

You Tube:  youtube/RLashFary

© 2012 Meredith Liepelt, Rich Life Marketing