Courtney DeLuna shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Courtney , so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Lately, when I’m not clocked into my 9-5 or on the clock for motherhood, I’m on my MacBook Pro teaching myself web design for my blog that launched last April! As challenging as it is learning an entirely new skill it has brought me so much joy!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Courtney DeLuna and I’m the Author of UnPolished the Blog. It’s a Lifestyle Blog with a chic, unpolished voice! Think luxe vibes delivered like a real friend over wine, no stiff influencer polish. When I started the blog I initially wanted to write about topics I found I myself constantly being asked about in my circle of friends. My phone was always ringing for the following “What’s my advice on navigating careers? What’s my green smoothie recipes again? What wellness trends am I trying out this week? How, am I handling motherhood at the moment? What trip do I have planned next? What’s my advice on healthy living? What Luxury Items am I stalking these days?” having conversations about in real life with friends. What I found is that in my first year of blogging I spent more time writing about my day to day than giving advice. The last time I met with everyone on Voyager Denver Magazine I shared the news that we would be moving over the summer. We’ve been amid cardboard boxes and chaos as we are preparing to move to our new home state. Lucky for me the Blog comes everywhere I go and I’ve been writing weekly posts of all of our moving chronicles for my readers to keep up with as everything has been playing out in real life.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who taught you the most about work?
My Dad, he raised me to have a very strong work ethic. There were no conversations about having a fairytale ending and living happily ever after. He had very real conversations with me about growing up and how I needed to prepare for the real world. I got my first job when I was 16 and he would coach me before my interviews. He explained to me how employers would be watching me from what I was wearing to how I articulated myself from just picking up an applications. He set the bar very high for a minimum wage after school job at the mall. What I couldn’t see at the time was that it was setting me up for the workplace. It would serve as my inner voice as I was navigating my career as an adult. It was always “dress for the job you want not the job you have” or “don’t focus on where your friends are going, focus on where you want to go and how you’re going to get yourself there.” In my teen years there was a lot of discipline and at a moments notice he would drop knowledge on me. I would be running out the door on a Friday night, car keys in hand one foot out the door the other one the front entry way still “Ok byyyyeee” and he would say “Courtney, before you go come sit down” and I remember having an attitude every time “Dad, please my friends are waiting” as a teenager you don’t know how to process those moments. But as a young adult navigating the big world in my own, I quickly realized how valuable those gifts were that he gave me. After graduation I joined the Military and I was so far from home living on my own and those conversations were all I had at the time to help guide me. I realized when I entered the workforce that not everyone you encounter were given those same lessons. Now that I’m seasoned in my career, I often bring those same conversations to my teams i’m managing.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
If I could say one kind thing to my younger self “there’s soft landing ahead keep flying.” As an adult I chose an unfamiliar lifestyle than what I was traditionally raised by my family. By societal norms I did everything the untraditional way. There were so many times in my early adulthood I was forging this unknown path and I felt alone. I constantly felt like I was going against the cultural norm and falling short of everyone’s expectations of me around me. That is a strange battle to confront. My mentors I surrounded myself in would confirm I was making the right choices but by cultural expectations my family disagreed. Internally, I always felt at peace with my decisions. I had my own self development in self trust. I wrote a blog post about this titled “Conspiracy Theory” It’s a play on words that have my own conspiracy theory that all my hard work will pay off one day. To have the opportunity to whisper “there’s soft landing at the end keep flying” would confirm to my younger self that I’m on the right track.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a cultural value you protect at all costs?
At all costs protect approaching the world with my Mexican Cultural Values. Being warm-hearted and a collectivist no matter what. Growing up in a bi-racial home I always naturally felt more connected to my Mexican roots and my Nana played a big role in my upbringing, that was something she instilled in me from a young age.She taught me that these values came from her religious beliefs, but as I have grown older I believe they stemmed from our cultural values as well. We believe in being connected to our communities. As collectivist when one of us succeeds we all succeed! Staying connected to my cultural roots and carrying those values with me throughout my day to day is very important for me to stay grounded.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Have you ever gotten what you wanted, and found it did not satisfy you?
Of course! There have been a few chapters in my life where I chased a goal and it didn’t satisfy me. I felt like I climbed Mount Everest to reach my goal and when I finally achieved it failed to meet my expectations. I learned you have to let go of your expectations when you’re going for something. It’s better to have lived and learned than to have never gone for it all.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://unpolishedtheblog.com
- Instagram: @unpolishedtheblog
- Facebook: unpolished
- Youtube: @unpolishedtheblog
- Other: TikTok: @unpolishedtheblog8
Blue Sky Social: @unpolishedtheblog.bsky.social
Pinterest: @unpolishedtheblog
