Today we’d like to introduce you to Jen Cox.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Jen. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I born in Illinois and grew up in the midwest. My parents took us on a lot of vacations and I traveled a lot as a child. In addition, I moved frequently because of my dad’s job, but we always lived in the midwest. I did my undergraduate degree at Lawrence University in Wisconsin and during that time studied abroad in both London and Athens. I spent all my free time backpacking and trying to get to new countries! Highlights include traveling by camel in the Sahara and being in Berlin for the World Cup! After graduation, I moved back to London to be Program Manager of a study abroad program. Eventually, I moved back to the US, started working in finance in Minneapolis, and attended St. Catherine’s University for my master’s certificate in Organizational Leadership. I continued to travel as much as I could to get away from the freezing temps in Minnesota and most notably took a vacation every month in 2018!
After the hardest winter ever and the most stressful year of my job, I made the crazy decision to make a big change. I quit my job, ended my lease, and relocated to Texas for warmer weather. My boyfriend had already moved down to Dallas to help his family and I followed him here, pledging to really take time to reset and start fresh. I promised myself I would embrace every day, find as much time possible for self care, and appreciate all the little things.
I have always taken photos and travel blogged for family and friends, but I decided to finally build a brand around the permanent vacation life I was living after making so many changes. I started my Instagram to collect content from my adventures in order to build a blog and to share my story. My first goal was to go everywhere, be everywhere. Now, I’m having so much fun sharing all the places I go and new experiences I have living in DFW. Lately, my goal has been to connect with awesome businesses in DFW so I can try new things! I currently work with an amazing group of girls in the Dallas Social Influencers, putting on events and connecting content creators with resources. I’m so lucky to have found an awesome community in Dallas!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I’ve had my fair share of struggles. If you can name it, I’ve tried to take a vacation to get away from it! Traveling around the world alone, I gathered a few stories of missed trains, getting lost, and most notably getting deported from the UK after mixing up visa requirements.
Also, I deal with anxiety, so combining that with my nomadic sensibilities, I find it hard to stay in the same place too long. As a result, I’m often happiest when traveling. After living in Minneapolis for several years, I broke up with my boyfriend at the time and lost a lot of friends in the process. I was undervalued and stressed at my job, felt very alone in the city, and was craving a warmer climate after the coldest winter of my life. From so much school, I have a lot of student loans, so the choice to quit my job and move across the country was a little financially daunting. Now my challenges are exploring a new city and trying to capture the fulfilling moments I’m having in a way that will build a blog and a brand.
Nowhere I Would Rather Be – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
My natural tendency has always been to want to explore new places, and I rarely compromise when I set my mind to something. When I started to share my story of getting fed up with living an unfulfilled life, choosing to quit my job and move somewhere warm and follow my passion of being on a permanent adventure, I was surprised by how many people were interested. I think a lot of people wish they could just walk away from everything, quit their job, and vacation for a living.
I try to share my experience to inspire people to strive for that life they might think they can’t have. I think that my social media and influencer marketing strategy has always been to show the things I experience through my eyes and appreciate where I am in life. That’s why I started Nowhere I Would Rather Be, to inspire everyone to live in the moment, take mini-breaks, and do things they love. As someone new to Dallas, I’ve been really lucky to partner with businesses that share this vision. I think a lot of Texans have pride in their community and love seeing a page that highlights the best experiences you can have if you relocate to DFW. I am legitimately excited to try everything and made a promise to myself to appreciate every little thing I can about my new city! I’m definitely a creative and passionate person about the things I love, but being an influencer comes naturally because I truly want other people to feel inspired to live their best life.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
When I started my idea for a page that focused on Dallas and Fort Worth, I initially defined being successful at that as having something that would be useful to people. I wanted to have a resource for people like me who crave that feeling of luxury or vacation on a budget while having to deal with normal life obligations. I started by simply sharing highlights of things that I had experienced as a newbie to Dallas that I thought other people would want to spend their time and money on, or that I thought would be a great way to take a mental break. I have seen great social media growth and engagement, which has helped me succeed in building an audience in DFW of people looking for this type of page, where they could escape or make a list of things that they would want to do if they had time off of work. I’ve been able to partner with my favorite newly discovered businesses and get people as excited as I am! In terms of success, if I can live my best life while supporting my local community while traveling to new places, I’ll feel like I’ve made it. I just want to inspire others to do the same!
Pricing:
- $50-100 per post/photo
Contact Info:
- Email: nowhereiwouldratherbe@gmail.com
- Instagram: @ nowhereiwouldratherbe
Image Credit:
Hailey Lutz, Fabiano Faria, Lana V Photography, Joshlyn Photography, Sarah K Photography
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