This is a story that had me feeling deeply wrapped in hope, light and warmth at the end of it, the kind that leaves me in awe, admiration and respect, the kind that stirs and inspires you to reconsider and break open norms and boundaries, the kind that makes you think “Wow, she’s someone I want to emulate when I become a mother.”

Joining me on the podcast today is Samantha Ong, founder and owner of Joeydolls, a company that creates diverse Asian cultural dolls for children. Samantha began her entrepreneurial journey with a successful photography and videography business before pivoting to Joeydolls in response to the rise in anti-Asian hate around the world during the pandemic lockdowns. As a mother of two young girls, she wanted to help young children feel proud of their heritage and feel valued in society.

Samantha walks us through the intricacies of how caring for her young daughter during the Covid pandemic times led her to embark on this quest to make dolls that look like her daughter so that she doesn’t feel alone. We also dived into the juiciness of how the sheer strength of her WHY’s was what supported her through the trying moments when it seems there’s much more working against her than for her, her aspirations for the brand, before bringing us to a poignant yet gentle close as she shared with us a guiding principle that helped frame her mindset whenever she met with challenging situations.

This is a truly hopeful and heartful one. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did having the conversation and that perhaps it’ll stir and encourage you to give that one wild idea that you’ve held in the depths of you a little nudge and take action to let it meet this world. Deep breaths always, dear ones.

Connect with Samantha:

• Website: www.joeydolls.com
• IG: @joeydolls
• Tiktok: @joeydollsco
• Subscribe to her email list to stay informed of the upcoming launch (woohoo!!)

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