Hey, my name is Nicole and I have been grinding since I was 13 years old and when I moved with my family from Europe to Seattle. 

Life in the US kicked off with working my butt off to get straight A’s in high school, while joining 5 different extracurriculars, playing a sport, and applying to top colleges across the world. Then VROOM. I’m at the University of Southern California. Four of the best years of my life. There I kept up with every social activity, class and adapted to living in a new city that was even faster paced than what I’d experienced in Seattle. I was partying, dancing, living, studying and repeating it all week after week. The thoughts of how I could fit in more, how I could achieve more, were constantly running through my mind.  Somehow, though, on top of that there was a whole new world competing with my current one, taking  up so much of my space & time. Instagram. 

I saw my friends change and adapt and they began to focus on posting the perfect picture or at least creating the “perception” of the perfect moment captured. And I was doing the same. In fact, I catch myself still doing the same. It felt like the digital world became reality and constantly being available for communication became the norm. I was phone-obsessed, phone-reliant and I was developing a phone-addiction. 

Fast forward post college where I went straight into an Accenture consulting career. MORE GRIND. MORE INSTAGRAM. Then I was off to NYC, talk about continuing to ramp up on pace of life, to work at two startups that redefined what it meant to GRIND. More work, more events, more pictures, more posts, and pretty soon…. I snapped. It was November 2022 and I didn’t want to run or to “hustle” anymore.” I was deeply exhausted and all I wanted was to find peace so I asked my team if I could take a mental health break or “sick leave” to go upstate to a phone-free retreat I decided to curate for myself.

The first day of no-phone was weird. I didn’t really know what to do with the jitters. I felt confused that the hours that used to go by so quickly were now soooo slow. I decided to walk into town and grab groceries for the week which would kill 2 hours. Now what? 

Then day 2. I woke up in a sweat, went to grab my phone to realize it was off. I could do this - I thought to myself. I decided to do a workout and then walked the property again. I was so in my head asking myself why I was doing this and putting such stress on myself. Then I kept asking myself “when could I ever do this for myself again?” Best to take advantage of the opportunity. I later met the property manager and he offered to take me on a walk the next morning. He said he’d meet me downstairs at 10 am. I got nervous that I'd sleep in because of not having a phone alarm.

But to my suprise on day three, I woke up rested. I checked the clock and it was 8am. I couldn’t believe I didn’t feel groggy. I had no idea what time I actually went to bed, but I didn’t have this high-stress tightness in my chest that I needed to be somewhere or do something - I could just be. 

After all of my tech-sales burnout I didn’t really want to talk to anyone, but oddly with this property manager I felt so chatty. There was something different. Pure, genuine connection. I didn’t have to care about his social status or what he did for work - I was so excited to just ask him questions and interact with someone without needing to close a deal. He was the happiest man ever and thought he had the best job in the world. I’ll never forget it and how much of an awakening it was that I didn’t need to be the best or to be constantly striving to do more - I already had it all.

I slept great on the fourth night. I journaled every day and had nowhere to be. No constant notifications pinging me and taking my thoughts away that I couldn’t find a way to grasp back. The reaction to respond right away fell away.

It was on this journey that I started to reflect on how I could bring this short but life-altering experience to other people during a time when phone-detoxing isn’t yet prevalent, or always accessible without going away to a retreat. A time where millions of people spend more time on their phone than they do interacting with others. Where anxiety and depression rates are higher than ever, including mine. I thought, what if I looked up more instead of down? All the things I missed by looking down, whether it was walking in NYC  and not remembering how I got home, or being with friends and not feeling present because I was texting someone who wasn’t there. I was so phone-reliant. What was the solution to my phone impacting my happiness? A phone lockbox was my  first thought. I felt so strongly that I decided to quit my job and figure out how I could create a solution out of an unexpected concept that serves more as a reminder to look up, than a punishment for looking down, that can live within our homes. Enter… LookUp. A brand here to invent fun, unexpected, and functional objects that help to remind you just how good life can be when you put your phone down.

Our next conversation is with Nate Brown, a NYC-based creative director who’s worked with Beyoncé, Calvin Klein, and Nike for over 15 years. He’s also the cofounder behind Rosaluna Mezcal. Most recently, Nate launched Handstand, his agency fueled by curiosity.

1. Creativity can be so subjective, what does it mean to you?

Finding the answer to the unanswered questions.

1. How do you suggest finding and nurturing your own unique creative voice?

You already have the voice, creativity is the act of revealing it. Reveal it by making things, failing at it, learning and adjusting, and making more. Enrich yourself by learning about as much as you can, and surround yourself with people who show you new things.

1. How do you connect to yourself? (offline, no screens!)

Meditate, write, and sleep.

1. Who is someone in your community who reminds you to look up?

I am always inspired by one of my best friends (we also co-founded Rosaluna together), Terry Lee. We’re always sharing books, music, travel, food and more together, and we’re never on our phones when we hang out.

1. Bonus question: You mentioned you’ve been experimenting with making a concerted effort to spend less time on your phone, even deleting social media from your device. Have you felt this impact the way you approach your world, if so, how?

It has, reality is what you want it to be, so my reality just shifted, and you adopt pretty quickly. I use social media, though, it’s a powerful tool that has connected me to many talented people around the world in ways never possible without it. But I took it off my phone to break the habit of mindlessly opening it.

Stay tuned for more six more offline encounters happening this month :)

Our first conversation is with Camilla Marcus, the founder behind west~bourne, a thoughtful pantry-staples brand with a mission to do better for the planet. 

As you well know now, LookUp is a brand creating physical reminders to LookUp from your devices, starting with a tin box. As you may or may not yet know, The Charlie Fund is a non-profit that provides resources and programming to help educators, caretakers, and students build emotional fluency + tools to build healthier, more intentional communication. And we are so lucky and excited to be partnering them.

Together, we’re holding space for conversations with creatives, from chefs to artists, athletes, and founders, on what it means to scroll less and LookUp more. In celebration of Mental Health Month and as part of this partnership, LookUp is committed to donating 5% of sales to The Charlie Fund during May.

1. Food and language have such a strong connection. How has life as a chef changed the way you communicate outside of the kitchen?

When you live your life connected to how food is grown and then transformed to nourish others, I look at everything through an even more intentional lens. Quality time is my love language, so it grounds me to bring people together. I’m also a very fluid, visual creator, and I think that infuses into how I communicate and show up in the world - with passion, some spontaneity, vibrance, and care.

1. How do you think a meal changes when you approach cooking with curiosity and creativity?

My cooking philosophy is all about playing jazz - letting the ingredients, your mood, the occasion, and some outside inspiration guide you as you dance through the process. To me, the thrill and vibrance of creating a meal and taking care of others comes in act of creation - not knowing completely how it will come out in the end and taking chances on a new piece of produce or technique I’ve not tried before. In that way, it becomes an adventure and meaningful growth experience, rather than a routine or chore.

1. How do you connect to yourself? (offline, no screens!) 

I try to do something every day for me, just for me - a solo bright spot.  Sometimes that’s a walk with my dog, sometimes it’s a solo hike, other times it’s just hanging with our chickens and listening to the garden, while other times my moment is cooking testing out a new recipe or idea. I find meditative practices in really being with my own thoughts, giving time and open space to a creative spark, or just even an indulgent nap when my body feels I need it.  It’s never the same respite, but it’s always intuitive.

1. Who is someone in your world who inspires you to LookUp? (put your phone down, be present, etc)

There is nothing more grounding in my life than my children and our animals. They have an innate cosmic connection to the universe that’s raw, unfiltered, and spontaneous. Their limitless capacity for joy, exploration, and unpredictability keeps me on my toes and pulls me into reality at any given moment, away from the world of tech and responsibility. Being with them, you feel everything without distractions if you let yourself fully surrender to the moment with them.

Thank you to Camilla for kicking off our Offline Encounters series, and for being a beautiful reminder to us all of the beauty that exists outside of our screens.

We challenge you to take one piece of inspiration out into the world with you this weekend- cook a meal with a friend, make a thing, unplug.

Stay cool and LookUp.