Women We Love: Amy Eastlack

Amy Eastlack has managed to find a way to be a full-time mom, wife and business woman by becoming a best gal pal to the Charlottesville-area community as managing editor of SuzySaid Charlottesville. Eastlack is married to Courtney and is the mother of two daughters, Maggie, 9, and Katie, 7, as well as two “adorable but menacing dogs,” Miley and Scout, and one “fat cat,” Belle. Becoming a social media guru, Eastlack has propelled SuzySaid into the minds and hearts of her neighbors—all from her home, and “pretty much anywhere else I can find free Wi-Fi. This summer it will be from the Fairview Swim and Tennis Club pool.”

Eastlack graduated from the University of Denver with a bachelor degree in biology and psychology. So how did she end up a writer?

“I’ve always loved to write but hadn’t found a way to turn it into a career until now,” she says. “After being urged by many people—from my husband to the ladies in my mom’s bridge group (who love my Christmas letters!)—I finally decided to really work at it. SuzySaid actually fell into my lap when I reconnected with a childhood friend on Facebook, believe it or not. Fate? Divine intervention? Luck? I don’t care—I’m just so happy it happened.”

Being her own boss—and working from home—has a lot of positive aspects for Eastlack, but also some challenging ones. Her days are often long, but afford her the flexibility to be the mom she wishes to be.

“During the school year I typically work from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 9 p.m. to midnight,” she says. “Sounds kind of crazy, but it allows me to avoid child care costs, be at the bus stop every day when the girls get home—as well as sneak in a workout and dog walk in the middle of the day.

“Typically I start the day with 15 minutes of social marketing on Facebook and Twitter (I actually had to start using an egg timer to limit social media time!) and then buckling down with writing and researching for a few hours,” she adds. “Most days I will have at least one interview or committee meeting out of the house. At 2 p.m. the computer goes off so I can walk the dogs and pick up the girls. I bring my phone while I walk the dogs so I can add in another 15 minutes of social marketing time and then listen to podcasts about sales and marketing.”

The writing and personal interaction comes pretty easy to Eastlack, but the sales aspect is a challenge.

“First I don’t love sales, yet it’s paramount to my success. Second, the economy has put a pinch on a lot of companies and often one of the first things to go is the advertising budget,” she notes. Eastlack says she’s facing it “head on by pushing myself to get over my fear of sales, looking to hire a fabulous part-time sales person and making SuzySaid so good that people would be out of their mind not to advertise with us!”

Eastlack has a prescription for leading a balanced life that has worked for her.

“I surround myself with amazing people: my husband, my friends and my family—I am so fortunate,” she says. “Two, I’ve learned to ask for help when needed. Three, I make time for fun.”

She takes care of herself, mentally and physically, by exercising, sleeping well and scheduling an “Amy Day” or at least a few “Amy Hours.” “Sometimes a good pedicure is all I need,” she says.

For others considering following in a similar career, Eastlack offers the following advice:

“Have fun, never stop learning and always be networking. Things are constantly changing in this field—and you need to have your finger on the pulse of what is happening to make sure that you are marketable.”

8 Things You Might Not Know About Amy Eastlack…

1.  Who is your favorite author and why? Right now, Sue Monk Kidd. “The Secret Life of Bees”—awesome. Then Marijean Jaggers gave me “Traveling with Pomegranates”…beautiful and meaningful, especially as a mother of daughters. She is a lot deeper than I am—and does a type of writing that I do not do—maybe that’s why I love it so much?

2.  Favorite thing about Charlottesville? Small town feel with big city opportunities (i.e. sports, culture, etc).

3.  What is your favorite hobby/pastime? Being with my family, especially traveling and day-tripping to local vineyards and other beautiful spots in our area.

4.  What is one of your hidden talents/skills? I’m really good at cannonballs off the diving board, but my husband said that was dorky to say so how about—interior design, especially on a budget.

5.  What is your guilty pleasure? Playing silly word games like Text Twist and Pathwords on my phone and Facebook.

6.  What is your favorite movie and why? “National Lampoon’s Vacation”—love totally corny movies, especially if they have old school Chevy Chase in them. Close second is “Slapshot,” which I blame on Paul Newman and my upbringing in Minnesota.

7.  Where did you grow up? White Bear Lake, MN—Go Bears!

8.  What is the greatest invention of your lifetime and why? At the risk of sounding typical I will have to say that given my occupation and lifestyle—the Mac and iPhone. Can’t imagine my life without them! I work from them, schedule from them, talk to my friends all over the world from them and play Text Twist—how cool is that?  (And truthfully, my life would not be the same if Sara Blakely hadn’t invention Spanx back in 2002—though that may be too shallow to print!)
Take it from me, Amy, it’s right on the money!