“Even if you fail, fail fast and try again. Don't be afraid to make mistakes,” says Jennifer Taback. She is co-CEO at Design de Plume inc, a member of Shawanaga First Nation, who lives in Lively, Ontario. For most of her adult life, she’s lived in the Sudbury area. A mom of a six year old boy, she’s busy attending to his needs. She enjoys travelling and she beads with her sister and mom as a creative outlet, attending powwows.

Design de Plume Inc started as a creative agency with two of her friends out of college in 2009. Indigenous and women owned, they do graphic design and marketing consultation across turtle island and globally. They have worked in health care, finance, with government, First Nations, Indigenous and Indigenous-serving organizations.

Taback describes their roles as translators, helping clients craft their messages on websites to avoid racist and outdated language. They graphic design websites, create logos, brochures, and also hosting listening circles to understand how messaging should be structured. They offer writing, photography, videos and commercials. She builds teams to find solutions. “I don't always know exactly what the solution is going to be, which is why I'm so excited every day for my job,” she beams.

Graphic design wasn’t Taback’s first choice. She wanted to be a teacher but her grades weren’t high enough for Teachers College. She went to university for history and was not successful. She quit business school because she was not succeeding. When she worked for a tech company, she had a side hustle selling websites but needed to learn design so she signed up for graphic design at Cambridge College. “It took a long time to get there, which is okay, because I think when you do find your calling and you've tried a lot of other things, it makes so much more sense to be on the path that you're on,” she reflects.

When it comes to obstacles, finances were a challenge given Taback didn’t come from a rich family. Her schooling wasn’t paid for by her band so she had to work to pay for it. When she graduated it was during the 2009 recession and there were no jobs even though she was top of her class. Becoming an entrepreneur was a necessity. She got a business license after asking friends to start a business with her. Her computer was expensive but she only had $5 otherwise. Getting financing from banks to buy camera equipment was a challenge. Her credit wasn’t poor but she had no money and banks weren’t willing to lend.

At first, Taback started in programming, building websites and creating logos, but her role has since evolved to be more financial. She is client facing, selling the services, looking into financing and grants, and paying the staff of 16-17. She also handles the HR. Her co-CEO handles the operations.  Two years from now, Taback sees Design de Plume scaling, working to get bigger jobs and going national. They are looking to stay on their path, be consistent and flexible.

If Taback could give advice to aspiring entrepreneurs it would be to get support early on. It’s what she would tell herself as an introvert, to reach out to networks and take what she can learn from them. “Even today, I'm always asking questions about what is it that I don't know? Especially starting my business, if I had known what I would have gotten into, I might have scared myself away,” she muses aloud. “I think …. being naive and passionate is what you need in the beginning, but don't be afraid to … put yourself out there, ask the questions, and take people's feedback seriously…,” she continues. “It takes time to find yourself, but it's worth it at the end of the day,” she concludes.

To keep her mental health in check, Taback sets boundaries around when she communicates with clients to manage expectations. She makes sure she takes care of herself, mind, body and spirit. She has some physical New Years resolutions she’s working on, she tries to drink water, get up and move around. She tries to sustain her love of what she does so she doesn’t burn out by creating balance despite her long days.

When it comes to inspiration, the Registered Graphic Designers Of Canada brought in speakers, two women who owned a company and that sparked the idea that Taback, too, could own her own company. Seeing clients and colleagues come into their own has also brought her inspiration. Watching her friends blaze trails has been inspiring, too. She’s also inspired by all the work left to do and how she hopes more Indigenous communicators will do this work as well. “We have power in our voice. We have some great solutions, and I draw inspiration from that in the world around us, and how much more work we need to do and how good we need to be to get there,” she shares. There weren’t many Indigenous women designers when she was in school and she still hopes more join the field.

Her advice for introverts is “fake it til you make it” and “people really want to hear what you have to say…. There's people who definitely value what you have to say… There's people who need to hear what you have to say.” Taback also reminds herself “there's good people out there…. it's good for your mental health to be out there.” She recommends protecting your space and knowing your limits, taking quiet time to recharge.

In closing, Taback says, “if you have a passion, think about pursuing it… Entrepreneurship is one of the fastest ways to wealth as well… There are stupider people doing crazier things and getting away with it… You're good enough, go do it now…”

Inspired by entrepreneurial speakers, Jennifer Taback started creative agency Design de Plume with friends from college. Graphic design wasn’t her first career choice but eventually she found her passion and followed it to owning her own business. It took her time to find herself but it was worth it at the end of the day; now she’s co-CEO and working with global brands.

Thanks to Alison Tedford Seaweed for authoring this article.