Launching Cyntivee: 3-Month Progress Report

Hellooo!

I want to take a quick moment to write down the state of affairs as we reach the 3-month mark of Cyntivee!

The first Cyntivee Instagram post was on 4/20 and while fitting, it was less intentional than you might imagine. Five months had passed since leaving my job and I was desperate to feel productive again. There were a million reasons not to post. I had no business plan, no media strategy, no brand message or anything really. But I wanted to DO something. So I made myself do it.

I definitely had at least 2.5 meltdowns when uploading that first post. Have you ever thought about how Instapeople format their captions so perfectly? I hadn’t. So when I realized that there was a precise method to spacing on Instagram, I had a mini-existential breakdown mixed with a full-on cursing of technology.

Now three months have passed and while things have at times felt excruciatingly slow, we’ve made some wonderful strides! I figured out how to space my captions on Instagram and to date, Cyntivee has over 500 followers alongside a newly launched website!

One of our first reposts! Our CBD Paleta's made it to Women Grow's 141K Instagram audience!

One of the times technology was mean to me.

On the business side of things, I’ve been trying to make Cyntivee as educational as possible but I’ve also been pushing myself to test out a variety of things to figure out the functionality of different platforms and to understand what works best for this audience. Instagram, Squarespace, YouTube, IGTV, Facebook...each one has different formats and best practices so it’s been a daily foray into figuring all of this out. Luckily, I’m also getting to witness how many of my friends lead undercover lives as writers, chefs, photographers and more. I’m blown away by how talented my support system is and how willing they’ve been to help out with all of this.

Getting the website launched was such a big moment! It means this is all becoming real life

On the more personal side, while I originally intended for Cyntivee to be a raw chronicle of this journey, I’ve learned that there is perhaps TOO much rawness to share openly. Learning about all of these different platforms, cannabis and fitness has been a welcome challenge, but sometimes, it’s simply overwhelming. I spend most days working from home alone and thinking through these projects solely from my own perspective (which of course, I’m not sure is always the right one).

And while this is supposed to be my business and crafted from my own mind, I’ve also had to really make an effort to keep my mental health in check and avoid the isolation that comes along with that. It may go without saying, but I feel way less comfortable sharing those parts of the process on social media. Perhaps as I master some of these initial skills, I will open up more about the day-to-day since I want this to be real. And real isn’t always pretty.

The new coloring scheme of Cyntivee! 😍Created by @erikawho

Separately, part of my journey is a personal commitment to becoming a Certified Personal Trainer and while the desire is still there, it’s been much slower than expected. It’s only a 10-week program, but learning all the bones and muscles has been painstaking so it has taken a backseat to getting Cyntivee launched. Still, I hope to be done in the next few months so that I can make stronger connections between my cannabis and fitness routines! Maybe this can be a bigger part of Cyntivee moving forward?

And finally, some exciting news: we’re moving to California! After almost four years in New York, it’s time to make it back to the Bay Area and see what I can build out of Cyntivee. I’m excited. I’m terrified. But mostly, I’m ready.

Stick around to see what we can make happen in the NEXT three months!                                                                                                                                 

Let’s get it,

-Cyntivee