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Meet Trailblazer Andrea Robinson

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrea Robinson.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Andrea. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
For nearly 15 years, I woke up the state of Arizona on the local Fox station. I literally grew up on TV. Started as an intern, then part-time traffic reporter turned full-time feature reporter, turned full-time co-host of the show. It was a privilege and an honor to be invited into the viewer’s lives… their homes and their morning routines. I had the opportunity to tell stories and interview everyday heroes, politicians and celebrities to show off the great people of our local communities. It was a true honor. In September 2018, I left my career in tv news in search of more time with my family and flexibility in my schedule. Waking up at 2:30 am and raising two kiddos is not for the faint of heart. My heart needed to be home more.

Since leaving, I created The You Do You Journal and have been growing a community of sisters seeking connection in life. I turned to journal a couple of years ago as a tool to start a big personal growth journey that my soul was seeking. It helped clear my messy head. I chased perfection for too long and was at a point that I knew could not last forever. Shortly after leaving my career, I created this journal, selfishly because I needed one that fit my needs better. I knew I was not the only one sitting in my thoughts of “is this how life is supposed to be?” So, we launched it in January and what a ride it has been. A few minutes spent on YOU each day… setting the day with intention, focusing on gratitude, personal affirmation. The transformation from the inside out is astonishing. I am filled with gratitude to see women across the country using this a part of their healing, their journey, their work. It’s a sisterhood that this world needs. We need women to come up alongside each other, cheer for one another, lift us up when we fall and tell us to keep going. We need less fear and more courage and this is the way… I believe. Want to change the world? You must start with yourself first.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Starting on TV is never easy. I started in a very non-traditional way. I interned at the station and from there was able to land a very introductory position. I worked really, really hard. I said ‘yes’ to every opportunity to learn and grow while there. TV news can be a tough road. You have all sorts of opinions and all sorts of critics. I had to learn how to not accept most of those critiques as truth. Early on, it was hard. I was young and those words from viewers hurt me. As I grew, I learned more about myself and realized much of that was insecurities of others placed on me. It is a very hard business but it taught me so much about people and relationships and so much about myself. Here I am, almost starting over but allowing myself this new flexible schedule to be a blessing. I get to take my kids to school every day and tuck them into bed every night. THAT is what life is about. I think we as women want it all… we can have it all but it is very hard to find balance when you do it all. I learned, over the last couple of years that as I was coming to a decision on what the next chapter would look like, that I can’t balance it all, do it all or be all the things.

A “perfect” life does not exist. I would tell every young woman to learn that early on. Each season brings different priorities and challenges. Some seasons its career chasing, others it’s chasing kids, or building a new business. However, if we get really clear on where our identity is and what matters most, we transition much better into new seasons. Early in your career… say yes to new things… try it all, go above and beyond and stretch yourself. As you enter motherhood, understand and be okay with your heart changing. Your prior love of things will change… perhaps the once “career-focused” woman you were will now seek flexibility and time. As you venture into raising kids, there is nothing wrong with wanting more… more time, more freedom or something different. Your heart and feelings are allowed to change. Lean into those feelings as they come… they are prompts from God and when you listen… new seasons open up and chapters you never knew existed.

Please tell us more about what you do, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I run You Do You Media… within the company, we have one product, the You Do You Journal, that has been out since January. The journal focuses on 90 days of guided journaling to help women relearn to love themselves through daily intention setting and gratitude. I have discovered the only way to love yourself is to see yourself and your life an focus on the good… even on the hard days. Gratitude is the key to life long contentment. Jobs come and go, friendships fail, relationships change… but YOU get to find the good in it all. When it’s good to celebrate it when it’s bad to find the reason and the lesson in it and celebrate. This takes practice. Everyday. We can’t expect to always have this mindset but we can work to get there. When you work on you, it reflects on others for the best. The testimonials we get from our customers aka sisters are beyond mind-blowing. I am so proud of what it’s done for people but seeing the connections these women have made with one another through the journal and our community is what warms my heart. I believe women need real connections and friendships. They need to walk life with other women in an encouraging way, not a competitive way. This is that… it’s a beautiful sisterhood and we are just getting started. I am so proud of where this company is today and where it is headed. These women have made it and I am lucky to be a part of it.

Do you feel like there was something about the experiences you had growing up that played an outsized role in setting you up for success later in life?
I do believe my start in TV was from an early love with people… I love people. I love hearing their stories. I love learning about them. I love sharing their stories. I remember being very young and putting on shows for my Mom in the living room. I would pretend to read the news. I fondly remember sitting on the patio when I was ten reading the morning newspaper drinking “coffee” a.k.a. milk with a splash of coffee with my sweet Nana. Then, in school, I read the morning announcements every morning. It started young. Looking back clearly, it was the budding love for it that was emerging. Fast forward to my first job in TV, I remember thinking “I never want to look back and say “what if” I didn’t take this job.” I am so glad I did it. It took me through a beautiful stage of life. I will remember it forever. I do believe what I am doing now was most definitely part of it all… the connection piece of this journal is the part I love most. It is what I felt I loved most about TV… connecting with viewers, hearing about their lives, learning more about them and caring about them. This, I believe, is how we change each other for the good. Showing up for people and showing you care.

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Image Credit:
Photography by Kathy Cole

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