Meet Kevin E. Wood | Creative Director & COO of CapriTaurus Media

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kevin E. Wood and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kevin E., have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
I get this question a lot! Especially, when co-workers, peers, or people I have crossed paths with see how I have worked diligently over the years trying to increase what is most important to me….. which is keeping as much time for myself to enjoy rather than provide it for compensation.

As a cusper, between Millennials and Gen Z, I have overheard and been involved in many topics of conversation about the workforce taking massive strides and shifts in company culture and practices towards equal work life balances, what that means on a person to person basis, and how everyone has an ideal definition of the perfect balance!

For myself, since leaving the 9-5 job grind in 2018, my balance has changed throughout the years and sometimes it was very turbulent. From the early years of starting my first business about 4 years ago – I had no balance whatsoever. Every waking moment I could spend or had to spend on the various functions needed to get my business of the ground kept me occupied. Many times this meant skipping meals, leisure time, and even having to hop on calls while walking my dog. I simply had no time to myself…..

Eventually, I got to a point where I saw my business starting to develop on its own. I had figured out the needed avenues to keep it afloat without pulling all nighters and now needed to grow again. Expanding in other ways and allowing others to help to ease the stress was the only way I thought I could do increase my work life balance. Otherwise, I would get burned out and eventually have animosity towards the path I chose . With that idea in mind I was able to start thinking more clearly on what was perfect for me.

Fast forward 4 years later, through many ups and downs, I’ve been able to consistently see my physical time and labor decrease while increasing profits and the functionality / services my business provides. In total every week I work about half as much as I used to during my first year in business with my average revenue increasing every year. It is always an evolving definition for me but I always think about these key factors when it relates to the optimal work life balance.

Question 1: How much is your time worth and is it more beneficial to delegate a task rather than do it myself?

Question 2: When working with a client, charging for a service, or selling a product – what price will make me happy in exchange for the effort, energy, and time I put into this task?

Question 3: If I am stuck on these two questions – what research, marketing, or tasks can I do to learn how to better my situation in exchange for my time?

Question 4: Will this task ultimately get me to my desired goal? If not, why am I wasting my time on it?

I got into the habit of asking myself these questions daily. On top of that I journaled, practiced writing down affirmations, and reading a lot! I believe everyone can benefit in some way from practicing this.

Today, balance to me is the practice of figuring out the ideal situation in which you exchange the least amount of labor/time possible for the most optimal result. Whether that result is an increase is revenue, spending more time with your significant other or family, being able to have alone time, or learn a new skill or hobby. What is it that makes you happy and what do you have to do to increase the things that promote happiness?

The path to discovering this for everyone is different and I personally think thats part of the fun of it! The more work, learning, and personal growth you achieve on the journey – the more rewarding the outcome!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Since 2018, CapriTaurus Media has grown into something I never could have imagined! Currently, my time and energy is spent on operations and partnership development. We differ in our skills and creative eye from competitors with the expansive talent pool we work with. We are constantly looking for new creators to expand both our creative style and brand voice within our work and for the clients we serve.

Our main bread and butter services and what we are known for are centered around our white glove service for commercial/corporate clients looking for video production services completed through their entirety. The clients we work with are within the commercial, tech, and branded content space but we serve other industries as well and a wide array of clients of any shape and size … or as we say – across the Zodiac!

These clients range from mom and pop businesses, individual creators and artists, nonprofits, and companies like Beyond Meat, Compass, UBTech Robotics, Casper, Michaels Arts and Crafts, Warby Parker, Origin Protocol, and others.

On a personal level as a business professional, I am always seeking new ways to grow. Recently, especially during Covid, I found a new love for searching ways I can help others within entrepreneurship and personal finance. This is something that has always been deeply important to me and I’ve realized there are a lot of people who could benefit from the knowledge and skills I continue to grow throughout my life.

Even though we’ve expanded, it definitely has not been an easy road, but each roadblock only sets me up to gain more knowledge and grow stronger. Through due diligence, research and a strong drive to grow I have found new avenues to expand business we are very excited to give to our clients. Outside of media and production we are expanding with non profits and other programs, creating new online courses and tools for digital creators to access knowledge, and fostering connections between people to help bridge the gap in access to key resources within entertainment. Collaboration, developing genuine and real connection with people, and an open mind are my top lessons I try to practice daily.

At CapriTaurus Media, our main motto is that we work with clients in “Mapping their project across the Zodiac” and we continue to evolve that definition of what we do. What we mean by this is that our team, core values, and entire creative process are suited for ANY client and their needs. Not only do we boast a wide variety of success across numerous industries and media BUT we thrive on differences in diversity, messaging, and helping those who inquire about our services grow beyond what they thought was possible in the digital age!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is such a great question- and living in southern California almost makes this hard because there are way to many things to name that would constitute the best time ever!

To keep it concise I think I’ll break it down into one day trip and then add my must see destinations for other points throughout the week.

Day 1:

First we would take a quick walk, early in the morning, through the local fashion and arts district in DTLA. My on the go, ABSOLUTE FAVORITE breakfast spot, is Eggslut in Grand Central Market.

After our first meal we would hit the road with some great music and head west towards Malibu for an early morning hike at Corral Canyon and Jim Morrisons Cave. After taking some amazing pictures of the scenic rolling hills we would head out to Santa Monica or Paradise cove and enjoy an afternoon bathing in the sun and swimming in the waves.

Lunch would be at my favorite sushi stop in all of LA… Sugarfish! I’d only allow my friend to have me order them the “Trust Me” menu selection for the ultimate surprise factor. Then we would have to make a must see stop through Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive, the Hollywood Sign, the Griffith Observatory and visit a Korean Market in Koreatown.

Dinner would be either at two of my favorite places for the breathtaking views of the LA landscape – Yamashiro Hollywood if we are feeling the Japanese fusion cuisine OR Perch DTLA for a more raw urban feel and some great French American fusion food and a great DJ set.

Throughout the rest of the week I would highlight recommend any of these top destinations for day trips or even overnight sights to knock off your bucket list:

1. Sequoia National Forrest
2. Lancaster Poppy Reserves
3. Santa Barbara and a drive up the PCH
4. Some of the best local wineries of SoCal either in Malibu or Temecula
5. The Salton Sea, Palm Springs, Salvation Mountain, and Slab City
6. San Diego and Coronado Island

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I love this question!

Yes, I have so many mentors, friends and family, and books I’ve read and other avenues to get where I am today. I owe a deep and sincere thank you to too many supporters to name but I can provide my top ones.

My business partner and best friend RJ Tolson deserves the largest shoutout of all! Thank you for helping me learn, shape myself and mindset, and motivate me to push through the hard times. Especially, with how stubborn I can be sometimes. I was lucky to cross paths with this guy who is an amazing motivational speaker, best selling author, entrepreneur, and great friend!

I also have a lot of other books, mentors, and role models which I pulled key information, practices, and knowledge from over the years to help get to where I am today. The topics they helped teach me cover all aspects of life including financial literacy, building small businesses, developing work life balances, harnessing the power of relationships, and much more.

People

1. Kevin Paffrath
2. Graham Stephan
3. Emily Liou
4. Michael Hiller – My AMAZING accountant!!!
5. All of my closest family members and my sister!

Books

4. Robert Kiyosaki – Rich Dad Poor Dad
5. The 4 Hour Work Week – Tim Ferriss
6. How to Die with Zero – Bill Perkins

Website: www.capritaurusmedia.com

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Other: Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/capritaurusmedia For anyone interested in connecting or learning more about or services and packages offered through CapriTaurus Media – Please reach out to use via this form for a quote or more information: Contact Us / Get A Quote: https://www.powr.io/form-builder/i/31909825#page

Image Credits
Videokot, DCStudio, gnepphoto