Jun 24, 2018
In this episode, Sara talks
with Jake Keiser about leaving her lifestyle as an
award-winning, six-figure earning, Hamptons-vacationing
publicist in Tampa, Florida to become a farmer in rural
Mississippi. After experiencing the pain of miscarriages
and a divorce, Jake found herself in the depths of depression,
anxiety and suicidal thoughts, and dreamed of escaping to the
country and raising chickens. If she wasn't going to be the wife
and mother she'd imagined, Jake wondered what she WOULD be. Now,
she finds a sense of true joy caring for, and educating the public
on, the roughly one hundred animals that call her Daffodil Hill
nonprofit farm home. Despite living a quiet, new life outside of
publicity, Jake's "Gucci to Goats" blog was discovered by
"Cosmopolitan" and "People," bringing her back into
the public eye.
Sara and Jake
discuss:
- What drew Sara to Jake's story
- Jake's studies in political science and international relations
- Going into marketing for nonprofits
- Jake's drive for increasing freedom
- Becoming self-employed
- Being plagued by anxiety, and pushing it down
- Dreaming of the peace of a farm life, despite no real experience with it
- Her initial impression of chickens
- Her new farm life coming together more quickly than she'd imagined
- Secretly leaving the city
- Not understanding what was happening to her, how to relate to others or how talk about what she was going through
- Feeling depressed and suicidal
- Re-imagining her life, if she wasn't going to be the wife and mother she'd planned
- Good friends and family making bets on how long she'd last at the farm
- Worrying that she had to choose between different parts of herself
- Her fantasy farm vs. reality
- Death on the farm
- Experiencing true joy for the first time
- Rupert, the "therapy turkey"
- Turning her farm into a nonprofit
- A powerful dream that compelled her to start blogging again
- Getting contacted about doing a documentary with Danny Glover
- "Cosmopolitan" finding her blog and coming out to her farm to create a video
- Realizing how much others benefited from hearing her story
- Doing an article for "People" about her miscarriages
- Assisting animal births
- The hardest part of farm life
- The reception she got from her new farm neighbors
- The financial impact of her leaving her six figure salary for farming
- Jake's female role models in life: Oprah and Corazon Aquino
- Her biggest piece of advice for those looking to leave the city and start a farm
- The documentary she's going to be in: The American Dream
- Her advice for those living with anxiety and depression
- ...and more!
Jake's full
bio:
Jake Keiser started her own
marketing and public relations firm in January of 2006. She
maintained a number of high-end clientele and excelled
professionally, even winning 40 under 40 for the Gulf Coast of
Florida. Then, she realized that, despite her professional success,
she was unfulfilled. In 2012, she decided to challenge her
depression and make a big life change. She secretly exited her city
life to start a farm, where she could learn self-reliance and
redefine her life. She started a blog called “Gucci to Goats,”
where she connects with others looking for, or going through, big
life changes. Despite living a quiet, new life outside of
publicity, her blog was discovered by "Cosmopolitan" and "People,"
bringing her back into the public eye.
Connect with
Jake:
Websites: www.guccitogoats.com
Facebook Pages: www.facebook.com/GuccitoGoats
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gucci_to_goats