Learn how Jessica Hsu co-created the equestrian apparel brand, Gray & Bay Horse Co.with her sister and how it helps her stay connected with horses during a hectic phase of managing the needs of a young family. She candidly shares her challenges and accomplishments of raising two young boys, running a busy household, upholding family commitments, managing a business and also finding the right balance of riding for this period in her life.
1.) Describe why riding/horses are so important to you?
To be completely honest, riding is important to me because it's time for myself, me time!
I'm a mom of two very young boys and neither of them, nor my husband, ride. I consider it a good thing that I get to go to the barn alone and use riding as an escape from everyday adulting! Not that I'm trying to escape from my life...I'm very blessed and grateful, but what I mean is that some people go to yoga, some go to tennis, but horse riding is how I stay sane and almost for a moment there are no problems in the world and stress is forgotten. My coach always says to me, "When you are here (at the barn), have a clear mind." So I think that's pretty much it - riding forces me to be focused, so I really can't be letting the daily noise in my head distract me and affect the quality of my ride.Even just being in the presence of the horses is a way for me to unwind, refresh and recharge. I find that if I'm having a bad day or I'm just not in the mood, I always leave the barn happy.
What advice would you like to provide to other riders that are balancing riding with work and/or family commitments?
Well, my current situation is balancing riding with family commitments and my advice to other riders in the same situation is to COMMUNICATE!
When I had my first child I found it extremely hard to find a routine and rhythm that incorporated time for myself. I kept it all inside how much I missed going riding every single day, going to the barn with my sister to see our boy Jimmy and even to the idea of getting another horse, which I spent days smiling into my phone screen and exchanging texts with my sister about trying this new horse. I hid all of my feelings and thoughts and one day my husband asked me, "How come you don't go to the barn anymore?" I felt like yelling, "uh duh! How can I?!" ...this helped me open up on what I still wanted to do in terms of riding, including showing, and what my wishes were. It was not perfect, but my husband was willing to help me make it work as well my parents helped tremendously.
Honestly, some days I felt like I was just rushing out the door hoping the baby didn't wake up or just flinging the diaper bag at my parents while I jumped into my car to take off to the shows. It took planning and show days were hard due to the early mornings and class delays, so I have definitely had to make some sacrifices and cutbacks as to how many shows I would like to attend or how often I wish to go riding. I think some is better than none at all.
3.) Tell us about Gray & Bay Horse Co. and your products?
With a background in fashion design, I have always wanted to incorporate riding with designing. About 5+ years ago I drew up a logo that I envisioned in my head. At the time I felt a lack of resource on starting a business. I tucked the sketch away thinking I would just get over it, but it was always on the back of my mind so I knew I had to give it a shot or else I'd regret it. I found the sketch, located a graphic artist to digitize it and as I started my second maternity leave, Gray & Bay Horse Co. was born.
Gray & Bay Horse Co. Is an e-commerce equestrian apparel company, which I own and operate with my twin sister. We actually had a tough time coming up with a name for our company. We were a bit backwards because we had a logo, but no name. One day, in the shower, it just came to me and coincidentally it worked perfectly with our logo, which has two horses. I think people that know us think there are two horses because we are twins, but Gray & Bay is actually named after the colors of two special horses we have had in our lives.
Currently we have t-shirts which are designed with the equestrian lifestyle in mind with simple, yet classy graphics. Our tees are versatile enough to take you from schooling to happy hour and can be worn with flats or heels, a skirt or your favorite busted jeans and of course, breeches! We believe in women empowerment and encourage positive self-esteem. All our tees are printed with an inspirational quote on the inside, just in case you need a reminder how fabulous you are! All of the designs and printing are created in-house and we are involved in all aspects to ensure our customers are receiving the best. We often ask ourselves if we love a design and can we see ourselves wearing the pieces. Our rule is, "If we don't love it, nor would we wear it, then we are not putting it out to the public."
2.) What is your biggest struggle in your family-work-horse life balance ?
I think my biggest struggle in my family-work-horse life balance IS trying to balance the family-work-horse life! Haha! I don't even know where to begin as with two kids every day is different, but I would say it would have to be giving equal attention to all aspects of my life; the kids, the business, the horse and on top of that there are the daily duties such as preparing meals, cleaning, etc. as well making time for myself.
Obviously my family and kids are always going to come first, so at times that means that my business struggles, gets neglected, or I don't get to work on it as much as I had planned on each day. Even the smallest things, such as composing an email, can seem like a huge ordeal as interruptions are a common theme with the little ones running around. Some days I honestly feel like all I do is change diapers and pick stuff off the floor and my only accomplishment of the day seems to be transferring the wet clothes from the washing machine into the dryer.
Currently my twin sister is the primary caretaker of our horse Jimmy and since I don't make it out to the barn much these days I compensate and fulfill that part of my life via my equestrian apparel company, Gray & Bay Horse Co.. For me, it's all about making sacrifices for what I ultimately want and putting in my time to make it work. It's not out of the norm that I stay up until 2am finishing off loose ends on the business so that my kids can have my full attention during the day. I get up early before the circus starts, drink my coffee in silence and think about my goals and attempt to tackle my to-do list for the day. I take opportunities to fit in whatever needs attention and often refer to my car as 'my office' because I tend to make most of my calls there after I drop my toddler off at school. When my kids were newborns, I would be nursing them and working away on my laptop at the same time, or if we had a busy day on the weekend running errands then that meant swinging by the barn as a family to see Jimmy.
I absolutely love working on my business and I find it so fulfilling and therapeutic, but the real struggle has got to be finding the time to consistently work on it. In a way, not having as much time as I like to spend towards the business has made me a stronger person and really pushes me to go after what I want. I use to hate making cold-calls but now I've got a lot better at it having to do it more often as It's way more convenient than composing emails and waiting for a reply back. I've realized that time is so precious to be spent waiting around for things to happen and sure I have days when I think to myself, what am I doing? Why am I even trying to attempt all this when I already have so much on my plate? But when you are following your dreams, there is never going to be a perfect time so it's so worth trying to navigate it all within all this chaos and really, I wouldn't have it any other way.
4.) Words of Advice…”Do your own thing, you belong”
I think living a balanced life is definitely achievable, but will obviously differ from one person to another. These days people are so consumed with social media and it is so easy to get the wrong idea that it's not always how it looks. I believe in having realistic goals and dreams for yourself rather than going after what you see others are doing or feeling like you have to be doing something specific in order to belong. Do your own thing, you belong!
In my current situation with the two young kids, I just don't have the hours in a day to spend at the barn. By starting the Gray & Bay Horse Co., I feel like I've created an opportunity for myself to still be in the realm of the horses and the riding world. Speaking from my personal experience, balancing life with riding shouldn't feel forced, nor stressful. When I was showing, shortly after I had my first child, I must say it wasn't easy and. At times I did feel like I was always in a rush...rush to get out the door,...rush to get to show grounds...rush to get home to the baby. This schedule did no work because it was not fun anymore and it sure did not feel like a good balance. I currently have to temporarily accept the fact that I can't show nor ride every single day anymore; at least not right now when the kids are 2.5 years old and 8 months.
I know when the time is right, I will have my time in the saddle again.
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