Work It Wednesday - Mimi Boyer

When Mimi Boyer realized her corporate career wasn't fulfilling her, she took a look around and noticed that she wasn't the only one with major work week woes. That's when she made the bold decision to truly live her passion as a career instead. Thus, Happy on Mondays was born. We were fortunate enough to get the scoop on how her intention-focused meetups are taking Toronto by storm.

1. First off, tell us about yourself! Who is Mimi Boyer?

What a tough question to answer! I’m still discovering myself everyday! I’m a bubbly, social, life-loving woman that recently finally took time to ask myself the right questions. I’ve always been the one connecting with people, hosting happy hours at my place and spreading positivity around me. I recently realized last July, after hitting rock bottom, that my career had been dimming my inner light. I was unhappy, unfulfilled and knew there must be something better out there for me. I’ve been on a journey of soul-searching ever since and discovered a totally new side of me. I now know myself more than ever before and I’m doing exactly what makes my soul shine.

2. We’re huge fans of your new venture, Happy on Mondays. What’s the story behind it?

After having made that realization, I looked around me and saw so many other people in the same situation - unhappy with their work life and only living 2 days out of 7 happy. I realized, we only have one life to live! It’s crazy that most of us don’t really take full advantage of it and stay in a unfulfilling job. I believe we are all worth doing something that feels meaningful, we should be excited by what we’re building, we should do what we’re really passionate about and we should all thrive to become the best version of ourselves! Why are we settling?

That’s when I knew I wanted to ignite a spark in people. I wanted to make them ask themselves the right questions and inspire them to do what they love the most. I believe this is what will bring them success and happiness. I figured I could be helping people that are in the same situation I was to change their unhappy work life and start living their best life. I am starting a global movement by hosting meetups here in Toronto as a first chapter. My goal is to have chapters around the world hosting meetups. I also want to have an online community, sharing great content with them and spreading the word about this movement. It’s a way of life, it’s choosing happiness as a lifestyle.

3. You’re so open with your audience about your professional evolution recently. From a thriving sales career to starting your journey as an entrepreneur, what are some changes you’ve had to make to shape your career into something you can really be passionate about?

Talking about changes and sacrifices is something I really love to share. I believe authenticity is the best way to connect with people and gain their trust, this is why I am not shy to tell people that I moved back with my parents (along with my husband, yes really!) for 6 months. This was the first sacrifice I needed to make in order to gain a little more financial freedom and be able to quit my job 3 months after having this “aha moment". The tricky thing about my corporate career is that I got addicted to getting promotions after promotions and always wanting more money. I was spending incredible amounts of money on clothing, restaurants and rent just to numb the ugly feeling I had on Mondays. It was the worst circle to be in, as I was even more addicted to the money my salary was getting me in order to keep up with all those expenses. So I went on a minimalist trend, gave back my company car and decided to be careless, stopped eating out and crashed at my parents place. Being able to save money while I was still working in my corporate job enabled me to have a little break and take time to actually think about what I wanted to bring to the world. After a couple months of thinking and stressing out as I didn’t know exactly what to do, I decided to take 1 single step forward. I decided to plan my first event. Putting this first event in stone was the best thing that ever happened to me! I started meeting tons of people, networking, building my brand, planning the event and really starting to notice results of my efforts. I gained my confidence back, because having been in a job you’re not passionate about, you don’t feel like you’re good at it, as you're always comparing yourself with truly passionate colleagues that are in the right shoes. So I reinvented myself completely and allowed myself to follow my gut, do what I truly love and be 100% authentic and not try to fit in anywhere.

4. What piece of advice would you give to someone looking to change industries?

I would tell them everything is possible. You are capable of anything you wish to accomplish. The first thing though is to know yourself really well so you set a strong personal brand. Once you’re clear on the direction you want to go, do things that will give you the exposure and shape the person you are aiming to become. Don’t hesitate to reach out to people, you’ll get great connections that will help you get where you want to go. But mostly, put yourself out there, shine like never before and show to the world who you truly are!

5. Who inspires you?

I’m inspired by strong headed people that work hard to get where they are today and are not afraid of failing and getting back up. One of my favourite “famous” people to follow now is Marie Forleo. She has this amazing bubbly and authentic approach and helps people accomplish what they dream of.

We really admire the value you place in creating spaces for face-to-face interactions between passionate people. You recently hosted your first meetup as a movement - congrats! What was it like to see all of your efforts materialize?

Seeing all those amazing human beings gathered on a Monday morning 8:00AM was quite magical. The vibe felt at the event was even more amazing than what I had in mind while planning. Seeing the energy behind this movement really made me realize there is a great appetite for this type of movement! It was important for me to create a time where we could unplug and actually meet face-to-face and talk about this together. Social media is definitely an important part of Happy on Mondays, but being able to physically materialize the movement was so incredible, I still have goosebumps thinking about it. I’m so touched by all the support I’ve been having and can’t wait to see what the future holds for Happy on Mondays!

6. On that note, what’s next for Happy on Mondays?

Save the date for the next event coming up on May 14th 8:00AM at Project Spaces at their second location (King and Bathurst)! I’m planning on having consistency with the meetups here in Toronto, every 6 to 8 weeks.

I now have a team of volunteers in Toronto that want to help grow the movement! I’m very excited to have a team and am looking forward to what amazing things we can accomplish with more people onboard.

Also, Happy on Mondays now has it’s own Slack Channel where we continue the conversation outside of the events and share insights, resources and ideas all together.

I will be looking at hosting a meetup in a new city soon! I’m actually looking for people to start chapters around the world!

And finally, I am hoping to grow my online presence significantly in the next few months.

Very exciting stuff going on!

7. How do you #workit everyday?

I’m a morning person. I simply LOVE waking up early! My first step is in the kitchen. I need to eat before I can do anything! I love preparing fresh fruits and enjoying a breakfast composed of either a smoothie, oats, toasts or cereals. It is super important for me to take time to eat properly in the morning as it sets the tone for my day. I check my social media accounts and my emails while eating.Then, I usually workout at 6:30AM at F45 for a good sweat, and by 8:30-8:45 I’m showered and ready to go on with my day! I meet a lot of people for coffee and try to work in different settings as often as possible. I’m also very social and share stories on Instagram all the time. Since I started doing what I truly love, I work all the time, but I don’t feel like I am. I’m enjoying myself and creating meaningful work for myself.

Photos: Provided by Mimi Boyer / Credit to: Be The Next Her, Tannaz Sepehri, Catherine Ong