Be fully present in your conversations. You can do this by practicing active listening — fully hear the person speaking and try not to think of your response while they are talking. Repeat what you heard them say to clarify and lead to better understanding. And fight the urge to look at your phone — it’s a conversation-killer.
Today, more than ever, wellness is at the forefront of societal discussions. From mental health to physical well-being, women are making significant strides in bringing about change, introducing innovative solutions, and setting new standards. Despite facing unique challenges, they break barriers, inspire communities, and are reshaping the very definition of health and wellness. In this series called women in wellness we are talking to women doctors, nurses, nutritionists, therapists, fitness trainers, researchers, health experts, coaches, and other wellness professionals to share their stories and insights. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Annette Furio.
Annette Furio is an entrepreneur with a passion for people, stories, design, well-being, and self-expression. She is the founder, CEO, and author of Season Journals. Annette cares deeply about empowering others to live a fulfilling and joyful life, filled with positive relationships, genuine happiness, and well-being.
Mindfulness, thoughtful design, and providing people with beautiful and valuable resources have always been at the core of Annette’s work. Annette started her career as a web and multimedia designer, quickly rising in her field to manage a digital design team and practice at a leading creative agency in Columbus, Ohio. Prior to Season Journals, Annette co-owned an award-winning wedding stationery and design company, serving more than 100 couples and leading to the inspiration for the Engagement Journal, the first journal published by Season Journals in 2020.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?
Ihave always had a passion for human connection, purpose-driven initiatives, and educating others in an artful way. These have been the threads woven throughout much of my work. Early in my career, I started with digital formats such as documentary filmmaking, websites, and apps that focused on people, relationships, and community.
Expanding into wellness and well-being was a natural next step. This shift came from working with couples who were in the process of planning their weddings. I took notice that not everyone had the skills to navigate this milestone without feeling stressed and exhausted by the time their wedding day arrived. The Engagement Journal, the first guided journal I wrote and launched, was born out of the desire to help couples plan their weddings with less stress and more intention, build their relationships mindfully, and foster their well-being during a major life change.
I knew I wanted to continue to support people through various life milestones, so I named my company Season Journals with the intention of expanding into even more of life’s seasons. Today, our journals act as both a resource and a beautiful place for people to tell their stories while reaping the mental health and wellness benefits resulting from the act of journaling.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?
One of the more interesting things I’ve done in my career was making the decision to leave my senior-level design position to take the leap into entrepreneurship, just five years into my post-graduate life. This was a major shift in my career, though I wouldn’t realize it at the time.
Today, I’m the founder of my third business, and though there are still intense challenges and side-effects of entrepreneurship, my mental health and life satisfaction have never been better. I encourage people to think about how they want to spend the majority of their days when deciding on a career path or starting a business. The freedom and space to create that resulted from working on my own businesses was the most impactful and positive mental shift that I have ever experienced. Sometimes, you don’t realize how a particular job or industry is affecting your mental health. Perhaps you see glimpses of it when you unplug, go on vacation, or talk to a friend in another job or industry. If you are feeling like your day-to-day is having a negative affect on your mental health, well-being, and relationships, consider making a change. In hindsight, you may see that it was exactly what you needed.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about a mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Something I wish I learned earlier, and truthfully, something I am still working on, is how and when to bring on contractors and engage mentors who can make the most impact on the business.
In the very beginning, I thought social media marketing was the most important thing to dial in, when in reality, I should have been working on sales strategies, getting our first 100 customers, focusing on creating products that people love, and letting the brand grow organically. Asking for help and delegating is a crucial skill for maintaining our well-being as leaders. Understanding where and when to best delegate is the next piece of the puzzle.
Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?
A unique aspect of our journals is how they are written and designed to be used by couples, thereby encouraging and promoting the act of communication and connection, leading to deeper and stronger relationships. My hope is that our journals can open these lines of communication between partners, specifically during seasons of major life changes, such as engagement, marriage, and pregnancy. When couples use our journals together, they are practicing skills like open communication, active listening, conflict-resolution, trust-building, mindfulness, and more. We aim to support stronger relationships, marriages, and families in a way that feels authentic to each couple.
This fall, we are bringing it back to the self with the release of our Everyday Collection. Our goal with this new collection is to help people show themselves the self-love they deserve, spread kindness in the world, and increase gratitude and positivity in the lives of everyone who picks up their journal each day.
It has been shown the benefits of journaling include reduced stress, improved mood, increased self-awareness, and more positive processing of change and challenge in life. We are dedicated to playing our part in helping people experience these powerful benefits in their own lives.
Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing?
1. Start a daily journal practice. If you prefer to write in a stream-of-conscious style, set an intention for a number of pages you’ll journal or amount of time you’d like to spend. Start small to build the daily habit and give yourself small rewards to reinforce the practice. If guided journals are more your speed, find a journal with a layout that speaks to you. For example, our Everyday Positive Journal (Coming October 2024) framework encourages you to write one word to guide your day, one act of self-love for yourself, one kindness for others, and space to document gratitude.
2. Make a sincere effort and commitment to do one thing for yourself and one thing for someone else every day. An expression of self-care or self-love paired with an act of kindness will bring, at the very minimum, two moments of positivity to your day. Doing something for a friend, neighbor, or stranger not only helps them, but can make you feel joyful and fulfilled as well.
3. Introduce outdoor morning movement in whatever form feels best to you. Walking, running, hiking, swimming, yoga, and cycling are all excellent options that can be done outside. Studies show that morning exercise can regulate your circadian rhythm, leading to better sleep quality. The morning sunlight can improve your mood and enhance vitamin D synthesis, which is essential for bone health and immune function.
4. Release guilt around doing what makes you happy. Finding true joy is something to be cherished — don’t let anyone take that happiness away from you. Practice self-compassion and allow yourself to do what makes you happy and authentically you. I know it is easier said than done!
5. Be fully present in your conversations. You can do this by practicing active listening — fully hear the person speaking and try not to think of your response while they are talking. Repeat what you heard them say to clarify and lead to better understanding. And fight the urge to look at your phone — it’s a conversation-killer.
If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?
My vision is that everyone has a journal practice to help them do three things:
1. better understand themselves and the world around them
2. work through hard things such as fears, anxieties, or challenges, and
3. record the good days, milestones, or memorable moments
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?
- Entrepreneurship can be a lonely place. Find people to surround yourself with such as a business coach, mentor, or group of fellow business owners to serve as your support system. These individuals or groups can help you feel better-connected and heard.
- Don’t compare. When you look at what others are doing in life or business, you’re only seeing a portion of what is actually going on. Stay focused on your goals and the progress you’re making.
- Determine the exact tasks you’re going to do before you sit down at a computer. I have been guilty of taking 2 hours to do a task that should have taken 20 minutes, having meandered into multiple tabs and documents before settling into the real task at hand. To reclaim some of your time, set a pomodoro timer, get it done, move on.
- Don’t just set goals — determine the actual steps you’ll take to get there. These are sometimes called lead measures (activities that are expected to lead to a desired outcome) and lag measures (your goals).
- Do small things to make your customers and community members feel seen and appreciated. People aren’t looking for companies to act like their best friends, but as humans, we feel good when we are communicated with in an authentic way.
Sustainability, veganism, mental health, and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?
I am passionate about mental health because, like many of these other topics, it affects everyone in the world. Mental health and the importance of prioritizing our own mental well-being can be the difference between life and death at the most serious, and between a good day and bad day in the everyday setting. I hope to do my part to help others bring awareness to their own mental health, take action to move toward wellness, and arrive at a place where they feel more authentically themselves in their daily lives.
What is the best way for our readers to further follow your work online?
Connect with us on our website and on social. You can find us:
www.linkedin.com/company/season-journals/
Thank you for these fantastic insights! We wish you continued success and good health.
About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com .
