Coffee #42 with Jenni Bost

Fifty Cups of Coffee #42: Jenni Bost
Date: December 20, 2024
Location: Zoom

How we know each other

Jenni and I first met several years ago through Portland Bloggers, an organization she co-founded and ran for a few years. We’ve followed each other on social media through the years and more recently, we’ve run into each other while doing TV segments on our local ABC stations’ AfternoonLive show. It’s been so fun to actually see her in real life again outside of social media!

What Jenni is doing now

Jenni currently lives in the Portland, Oregon area with her husband and their two sons, ages 13 and 9. She works as the Vice President of Marketing in senior living space and is also still an entertaining blogger at A Well Crafted Party.

Three questions

During these Fifty Cups of Coffee chats, I ask each person the same three questions. The reasoning behind each is as follows:

Question 1 – Social media makes it easy for other people to think that they know us, when truthfully, we all only see a small sliver of someone’s life and who they really are. This is the interviewee’s chance to share something that is important to them that, for whatever reason, other people may not know.

Question 2 – We all have fears, no matter who are are or where we are in life. This helps connect us and show we are all more alike than we are different.

Question 3 – I believe the answer to this question helps show each person’s true values, passions, and their why in life.

There are no right or wrong answers to any of these. I’m including each person’s answers in first person. Their answers have been edited from my notes for length and clarity, but these are their words.

What is one thing you wish more people knew about you?

“I wish people knew that I am somebody who just enjoys other people. Because I do like to have big parties or because I am very particular about the way I do things, some people feel a little bit like they have expectations set to them if they’re hosting me or if they want to go out or with me or do things with me. And I don’t actually hold anybody to the same expectations I hold myself to. I really just enjoy spending time with people. I think sometimes I cause other people stress because of my own way of being, and so I think I want people to know that I’m actually a lot more easygoing than I seem to be. I tend to be hard on myself and I’m very type A. People around me can sometimes feel that, but really I don’t expect those things of anybody but myself.”

What is your deepest fear?

“I guess my deepest fear, and this is probably just because of the way I grew up, is not being able to provide for my family or myself. I’ve always worked. I’ve worked since I was 15. I’ve worked several jobs. I love work. I actually derive a lot of joy from it. However, part of the reason why I work so hard is because I am constantly worried that there’s going to be something that would happen that would make me unable to provide, and I don’t want to be in that position. I grew up pretty dependent on the state and the kindness of others for food and shelter ,and all of those things. So I think that that’s probably always going to be something I carry with me.”

If you had unlimited funds, what would you do with your life?

“Okay, so I have this silly thing that I do… I don’t do the lottery, but there’s a big sign that I drive past all the time that shows the lottery winning numbers. So I have this thing where I ask myself, ‘if I won that amount of money, would I still do the job that I’m doing today?’ And if my answer is that I’d take a really long vacation, but then I’d want to come back to this job, then I know I’m in the right spot right now.”

“And if the answer is nope, I would totally cut it out, then it is the wrong spot for me and I need to make a change. So far, I would take a really long vacation and keep doing what I’m doing. So I would have a lot of fun and I would invest in great things and maybe spend a little bit more time and money on my own projects. The money would free me up to be able to spend that time to invest in myself a little bit – my own projects and my creative endeavors. But I’d still want to do marketing and I’d still want to work in the senior space. It’s a way to give back and it’s kind of my why at the moment. But I’d take a very wonderful vacation first.”

Lessons Learned

It’s always so great to catch up with Jenni, and I’m glad we had this chance for a longer chat! Here are a few takeaways from our conversation:

  • Type As don’t expect you to be Type A. I completely relate to what Jenni is saying here. Just because someone is an overachieving party planner who may overthink every detail to the extreme (talking about myself here), doesn’t mean they expect you to be the same. So don’t stress about spending time with your Type A friends — all they care about is enjoying more time with you!
  • We work hard because we know life can change at a moment’s notice. I can also relate so much to Jenni’s answer to the second question. The inability to provide for my family scares the crap out of me, and is part of the reason why I work as hard as I do.
  • More money means more time. So many people, like Jenni, have responded that they love what they do and would not stop working. And how having more money would give them more time to do additional things that are important to them.

Thanks so much for taking the time to chat, Jenni!

Learn more about Jenni

You can learn more about Jenni on her blog, A Well Crafted Party. You can also follow her @JenniBost on Instagram.

Follow 50 Cups of Coffee

Follow 50 Cups of Coffee on Instagram.

Visit my main website: Urban Bliss Life.

Learn more about me at MarlynnSchotland.com.

More Coffee Chats