Meet Danica Carson

November 5, 2024

We were lucky to catch up with Danica Carson recently and have shared our conversation below. (Copy of story here.)

Danica, we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time.

Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?

Over the years, I’ve learned that confidence and self-esteem are struggles for just about everyone, especially in business. But starting your own business amplifies those insecurities tenfold. The highs and lows of work are so much more intense when it’s your business or product out there to be judged and assessed by the world. You’re making tons of sales one month, and the next, you have none. The constant up and down can take a huge toll on your confidence, not only professionally but personally, too.

Two things I have come to realize over the last few years are that, first, success can’t be measured in dollars, and second, that your business is not all you are. Tying your self-worth and your business together can be more than just detrimental to your mental health but also to your business. A major aspect of business ownership is adaptability. When you take business failures personally, your perspective is muddied and you become less able to adapt to an ever-changing market.

When I finally realized those two things, it had such a liberating effect on my confidence and self-esteem. Ultimately, it made me better at running my business.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Most people don’t know this, but Hack Decks™ is the result of another business I co-own with my business partner and mom, Cathy. We started a boutique organizing company in 2019 called The Uncluttered Life®. The Uncluttered Life® was initially created by my mom after years, and I’m talking decades, of organizing on the side for fun. You read that right; I did say fun. As you can imagine, I didn’t love having an organization-obsessed mom when I was younger. I used to dread the days when we cleaned out my closet. But as I got older, I saw what a huge gift it was to have an organized home, and I eventually grew to love it. I was fortunate to have her on-call to help me when I needed it, but I picked up so much of the skill just by being her kid.

I realized as an adult that organization was a skill that the vast majority of people lacked. That’s not to say that they don’t try to be organized, but it’s difficult for people to determine where things should go, what is no longer serving them, or how things can be most efficiently stored. It’s something that I had unknowingly been trained in my entire life. Most people aren’t so lucky.

As our business grew, we heard the same thing over and over, “I’m so overwhelmed. I started this big organizing project and realized I was in over my head. Do you think you can fix this?” Our response was always, “Of course! Don’t stress, don’t worry.” To my surprise, that response was often met with tears from the client. Tears of relief, tears of joy, and sometimes even tears of disappointment in themselves. Clients would sometimes sob. That’s when I came to realize that organization was about so much more than a tidy home. It was about unburdening and coming to terms with who and where you are now. It was about finding peace in your surroundings, and at times it was about letting go.

The emotional responses of our clients deeply resonated with me. I both sympathized and empathized with them because, believe it or not, I understood. Without boring readers with my life story, I’ve struggled with serious health issues throughout my life. While I may not have the same root cause, I do understand the suffocating burden of things that feel beyond your control, I understand helplessness and being overwhelmed, and I understand struggling to let go of who you used to be or hoped you’d be by now.

I sincerely wanted to help, but clients often couldn’t afford to have us organize their entire homes. I found myself staying late without charging for the extra work more and more. I didn’t mind doing it, because I could feel how this little thing I did was monumental, sometimes even life-changing, to them. But, I have a family, and my son and husband are always my priority. They needed my time, too.

So, I developed our very first Hack Deck™, Declutter Deck®, to help our clients get organized on their own with quick and easy organizing prompts. It was a way for me to be there for my clients without physically being there. Declutter Deck® was developed for our clients, but people loved it, so we decided to take the leap and pursue creating a full line of life hacks in a box, or Hack Decks™.

We now proudly offer five themed Hack Decks™, all focusing on mental health and eliminating the inherent stress that comes with various topics. Declutter Deck®, Date Deck®, Dorm Deck®, New Mama Deck®, and Random Acts of Kindness Deck®. Each deck prompts users to take proactive steps to connect with themselves and loved ones, all while having fun and addressing common pain points with little life hacks.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

In my opinion, one of the most important skills for anyone to develop is perspective. Perspective allows you to determine what is truly important and changes how you internalize challenges. What may have felt like a “problem” becomes a puzzle or opportunity.

In my life, my creativity has been incredibly beneficial, both professionally and personally. Creativity is one of the most crucial attributes any business owner can possess. Creative problem-solving is the biggest part of my job. On any given day, you could be sourcing manufacturers, figuring out workarounds for specific customer requests, or keeping track of inventory across multiple platforms. The list goes on. Every single day presents a new challenge when you are part of every aspect of a business.

People tend to view it as negative, but accepting that you’re going to make mistakes is important. Sometimes, those mistakes are big and expensive. Sometimes they’re inconsequential. Accepting that you don’t know what you’re doing but doing it anyway is part of life as a small business owner. As they say, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” But you’ll never learn if you don’t push forward and do it anyway.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I love collaborating with other businesses! When we first started Hack Decks™, we were very interested in private labeling decks for other businesses and personalizing them to fit their needs. For instance, we could private label Declutter Deck® for realtors as personalized housewarming gifts. I love the idea of designing decks alongside other companies to develop something truly memorable or unique to their market.

I find collaboration is usually very beneficial to both parties, even if it’s just by getting you outside of your comfort zone and pushing you to do something you wouldn’t have done otherwise. In our organizing business, The Uncluttered Life®, we collaborate with a custom storage solution company called Inspired Closets DFW, and it is such a symbiotic relationship. They design and install gorgeous custom closets, pantries, garages, you name it, and then we go in and optimize, organize, and stage the space for their clients so that it reflects the client’s needs and personality.

If you’re interested in collaborating, reach out at hello@lifehackdecks.com, and we can brainstorm!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lifehackdecks.com/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifehackdecks/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hackdecks/