Running a Business As a Projector: Tiffany Chao of Tiffany April Co.
There are a million ways to live in purpose, on purpose.
And there’s no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to doing your thing — especially when it comes to running your own business. In fact, the methodology behind Human Design points directly to the idea that there are five different types that work synergistically to make the world spin ‘round.
We’re featuring five different entrepreneurs, creatives, and business owners to learn more about how they utilize (or don’t!) their Human Design strategies in their day-to-day work. Keep scrolling to meet our second entrepreneur, Tiffany Chao.
Tiffany is a powerhouse marketer — which might surprise you, since she’s a Projector with that blasted “wait-for-an-invitation” directive. But I’d argue her Projector nature is part of why Tiffany is so good at what she does. Projectors see trends and patterns naturally — an important trait for anyone creating cutting-edge marketing and or creating the next new ‘It’ brand.
After working at a high-powered ad agency and creating her own killer dance-based wellness brand that got her global praise, Tiffany launched her own creative studio … a perfect transition for a visionary Projector. Read on to learn more about Tif’s struggles and successes with Projector life.
Hey, what’s up, hello
Who are you?
Tiffany Chao of Tiffany April Co.
Where do you live?
Brooklyn, NY
What's your title on your email signature?
Digital Strategy + Marketing Consultant
What do your parents think you do?
Marketing - whatever they think that means!
How do you describe your work?
I help small to medium sized businesses scale through digital marketing, paid acquisition, and strategic design.
Let’s Get to the Good Stuff: Your Human Design
Your Type: Projector
You Inner Authority: Self-Projected
Your Profile: Heretic-Investigator (5/1)
When did you first find out about your Human Design type? How did it make you feel at first?
I believe it was in the beginning of 2019 after reading an article (on Holisticism!) that mentioned Human Design and I was honestly shocked at first. I thought my type would be a bit more aligned with my Aries profile but understanding my human design type provided a sense of relief for me. It gave me a deeper understanding of myself in ways that my astrological sign didn’t touch.
Were you living by your design already?
Definitely no, lol.
How do you feel about it now?
I use it to approach situations personally and with my career. As a projector, my strategy is to “wait for the invitation” and that was fucking illuminating. I was always hustling, pushing — often times meeting tension and couldn’t seem to figure out why.
What's your favorite part of being a Projector?
I don’t know if I have a favorite part just yet, I’m still learning about all of it as I go!
Least favorite?
Being patient, as I’m naturally impatient :)
Your Type and Your Work — Finding a Balance
How does knowing your type help you with work? Do you do things differently (plan your schedule, hire certain employees of other types, etc.)
It’s definitely helped me trust in the natural process of things and to be more patient. Let the chips fall the way they should as they say - and not feel like I can control every situation. The right project/opportunity/team will come.
How many hours a week do you work?
Probably a healthy 65 hours/week — if you count the times you work on your own business and not just your clients. As an entrepreneur, you don’t ever really stop working.
What does your schedule look like?
I usually structure my days so I give myself some personal time in the mornings to start the day off right. Whether that’s making a cup of coffee, morning or movement/yoga. The next few hours until about 6/7pm I’m in between work, emails, calls, or meetings. I generally like to keep my Fridays free of important meetings/calls to focus on creative work that’s not tied to any particular client.
What's easiest for you when it comes to your work or role?
I don’t know if this is the easiest vs. what comes naturally to me, but I would say coming from an agency background has helped me create structure for my clients. Especially as most are start-ups handling a million things at once, it’s fun to help them establish a “method to the madness” if you will.
What's the hardest part of your work?
Finding decent health insurance? But honestly though, I think one of the hardest parts of my work is learning how to be okay with the nature of the clients I serve. Start-ups have their ups and downs and one of them is that you are constantly figuring things out, which means not everything always has a clear cut answer. So it requires working with a level of uncertainty that’s often pretty uncomfortable — but also exciting.
What's something that you're still working on when it comes to understanding yourself and how to work with your natural areas of genius or areas of opportunity :) ?
I’m definitely working on patience and learning to “wait for the invitation”.
What advice would you give to other Projectors as they explore their purpose in life and in their careers?
I would say to tap into what you know to be true for yourself. Don’t go on overdrive trying to prove yourself to people or even yourself. Trust your gut and intuition.