Story Teller Extraordinaire Patrice Poltzer
Patrice and I first met at a dinner with friends, and from that moment we’ve been thick as thieves. With children in the same age range, we’ve connected not only as mothers but also as women navigating busy, full lives. Patrice has an incredible gift for storytelling, her wit and humor shine through in every conversation. I deeply admire her relentless work ethic and her ability to balance motherhood and career with both grace and resilience. It’s an honor to share her story.
WH Can you share a bit of your background and what you were doing professionally before becoming a solopreneur?
PP I’ve always considered myself a late bloomer. While many of my Midwestern peers were getting married, engaged, or having babies, I was still an intern at 29, trying to break into the TV industry. It took me a while to find my footing professionally. After college, I felt lost and ended up selling books door-to-door across the country throughout my twenties. Nothing screams “I have no idea what I’m doing” like selling books in random towns with a suitcase.
But once I realized I wanted to work in television, things took off. I eventually moved to New York and became a producer at The Today Show for many years. I loved it, I won awards, told other people’s stories, shot and edited videos, and worked at 30 Rock every day, which was truly an iconic experience.
Still, I always knew deep down that it wasn’t it. In a corporate environment, you’re often beholden to a boss, usually a middle-aged white man and your ideas only matter if they think they’re good. I hated that. If I didn’t have a boss who appreciated me, it became really difficult to thrive.
On the side, I was always creating. I launched a website called First Bites when my first son was born, where I reviewed restaurants based on how parent-friendly they were. I rated them on a zero-to-five “bite” scale. Honestly, that was the idea that got away, another company eventually sold something similar for millions, but I didn’t follow through.
After having my second child, I was poached for a “dream job” at a New York startup while on maternity leave. It paid more than I’d ever made, but it was a disaster. Anyone in journalism knows you’re constantly made to feel replaceable, and this was no different. I got laid off within 100 days, and it crushed my sense of identity and self-worth.
At the start of 2017, I had no self-esteem. I couldn’t imagine re-interviewing for media jobs, so I told myself I’d freelance while I healed. People knew I had video experience from The Today Show, so they started asking if I could shoot and edit videos for their websites. I didn’t want to but I needed money. I had a husband, a toddler, a newborn, and was living in New York City.
That’s how my business started. By accident. I never saw myself as an entrepreneur, much less a founder. It took me years to really grow into that identity.
WH What inspired you to start your business?
PP I didn’t aspire to start a business. I think that’s a myth, that entrepreneurship always begins with a big, grand idea and a burst of inspiration. Sometimes, it starts because life leaves you no other choice.
At the time, I was just trying to survive and rebuild my confidence. But once I got going, things started to move. My video business in New York began to gain traction, and because I had The Today Show credibility, I landed some impressive clients.
Still, I never wanted to run a video agency, which is exactly what I did for the next four to five years. Then COVID hit. By that point, I was pregnant with my third child, and production work completely shut down. My husband was making another big career leap, and I needed to pivot fast.
At the start of 2020, I wasn’t even online. My Instagram was private. I wasn’t on LinkedIn. But I had a deep intuition, I had to get online. I didn’t know what that meant, but I followed it. I met a woman on Instagram who invited me to join her mastermind. I had no clue what that even was, but I paid her $10,000 on a credit card. I felt sick, but I also felt like she was my person.
She taught me how to sell online, run Zoom bootcamps, and set up a checkout page. By April 2020, I had launched my first bootcamp. Strangers paid me $200–$300 to teach online, and I was floored. I only had about 800 Instagram followers, but I used it as a business platform not a photo album. She shifted my entire worldview.
By the end of 2020, I had made nearly $30,000 from online teaching. At the time, that felt like a million. That was the moment I realized: this could be something real. And that's why, fast forward to today, I’m living in Lisbon. I shut down my video agency two years ago and fully transitioned online. Storytelling has always been my thing , I just never had the language to build a business around it. Now I do. And especially with AI, I’ve created a storytelling tool that helps others unlock their voice and share their message.
Because when more people, especially women, minorities, and people from marginalized communities have the courage to show up online and tell their stories, that’s how change starts.
WH What research did you do for your business beforehand?
PP None. I didn’t do any research before starting, I was in survival mode. I needed to earn money and heal my confidence. But once you're in business, you're always researching.
That’s a big myth, that building a business is some pretty, curated, Instagrammable experience. It’s not. It’s messy. You learn as you go. I still don’t know everything I should. But as issues come up, I figure them out. That’s the job.
I wore every hat in the beginning, and I’m glad I did. It’s why I think people who outsource social media without ever managing it themselves are making a mistake. You need to know what works before you hand it off.
Now, I consume podcasts constantly. I listen to them on school runs. I ask for help. I message people who know more than me. I used to watch YouTube for hours to learn video editing. I even took a Final Cut Pro class to sharpen my skills. And yes, I’m a chronic book buyer, even if I only make it one chapter in.
Once I accepted that I probably wasn’t going back to corporate America, I started educating myself relentlessly.
WH Do you have a team? What has the hiring process been like?
PP Yes, but only in the last couple of years. I had no team for the first four years of my business. And honestly, having a team is a luxury, especially early on.
In the beginning, you’re undercharging, wasting time, and learning. But that’s part of the process. I’ve been lucky, everyone I’ve brought onto my team has been amazing. I trust my intuition. I’ve hired people without “perfect” resumes, but who were hungry, aligned, and sharp.
I often joke that I attract Germans, I love people who are organized, efficient, and structured. It balances me. My team is nothing like me, and that’s a good thing. I naturally hire for my weak spots, and I think more people should do that.
“Over time, my definition of success has evolved. I used to dream of TV fame, going to the Oscars, working high-profile jobs. Now, I want freedom. I want to live abroad. I want to spend summers with my kids. That clarity only came by living through it.”
WH What has been the biggest learning curve while establishing your business?
PP Stepping into my identity as a founder. As women, we often downplay ourselves: “I’m just a freelancer,” or “just running a little business.” We don’t fully own what we want.
I had a moment in a New York networking group where a business coach asked me, “When are you going to level up?” And I realized I wasn’t talking about myself the way I needed to. I was trying to be “fun Patrice,” not “founder Patrice.” That changed everything.
Over time, my definition of success has evolved. I used to dream of TV fame, going to the Oscars, working high-profile jobs. Now, I want freedom. I want to live abroad. I want to spend summers with my kids. That clarity only came by living through it.
Now, I’m building AI storytelling software. I’m in the tech world. It’s wild but I’m here, because I stopped being afraid of stepping into new roles.
“Ultimately, if your work helps people, solves a problem, or brings beauty into the world, then it’s meaningful. That’s what we’re all here to do. So don’t dim your light, adjust your angle if needed, but keep shining.”
WH You're entering a male-dominated space. What advice do you give to women doing the same?
PP If you believe deeply in what you're doing, it doesn’t matter what industry you’re in. Male-dominated or not, that belief fuels you.
That said, I am mindful of my audience. I show up differently on LinkedIn than I do on Instagram. That’s not inauthentic, it’s strategic. You can be yourself in different ways depending on the room you’re in.
Ultimately, if your work helps people, solves a problem, or brings beauty into the world, then it’s meaningful. That’s what we’re all here to do. So don’t dim your light, adjust your angle if needed, but keep shining.
WH What’s the greatest challenge of being a working mom?
PP Ironically, I didn’t feel guilt early on. I had a very supportive husband who was more domestic than me, and we made it work. But now that my kids are older (they’re 4 to 12), the guilt is real.
People focus a lot on the baby years, but I think it’s actually harder as they grow up. They notice. They say things. Recently, my son told me I’d been “working all summer,” and I was shocked, I thought we’d had a magical, travel-filled summer.
In my mind, I was thinking, "Wow, I can work from anywhere. We’ve been traveling all summer, spent a month in England, stayed in all these cottages—it’s amazing!" Meanwhile, I realized my son’s perception was different. To him, it seemed like I was always on my computer, always taking calls.
Now, I’m much more aware of it. When my kids come into the room, I make a point to put down my laptop. I never thought about it like that before. When they ask me to join them, whether it’s to watch a show, go outside, or play. I used to say no, or “I’m busy” or “Mom’s working.” Now, I try to say, “Absolutely!” and make the time.
It’s hard. Honestly, I think it gets harder as they get older. It’s a constant work in progress.
WH Do you feel motherhood has altered your career path?
PP 100%. It’s the most cliché thing to say, but absolutely true. Up until I had my first child and funny enough, I got pregnant on my honeymoon, so yes, those stories are real, I wasn’t overly excited about having kids. Honestly, I wasn’t planning on it for at least a few years after getting married.
At the time, I was at the peak of my career as a TV producer. I had just started winning awards, finally receiving recognition after years of hard work. And then I had a baby and everything shifted. Suddenly, the early mornings, the Saturdays in the office, the last-minute breaking news assignments, it all felt wrong. I remember thinking, I don’t want to do this anymore.
Motherhood made me think bigger. I had never once considered myself entrepreneurial, it wasn’t something I grew up around, and it wasn’t a goal of mine. But after I stepped back, started freelancing, and saw glimpses of what life could look like outside of that grind, something clicked. I discovered a new kind of freedom. Not full freedom, let’s be real, starting a business is anything but freeing at first. In the beginning, you’re working nonstop, hustling to make it work. But the energy is different, because you’re doing it for yourself, with the long game in mind.
For me, that long game is choice. I want to work hard now so that one day I can take summers off, six full weeks without my laptop, just being present. I’m not there yet, but I know it’s possible.
So yes, motherhood completely transformed my career. It pushed me into entrepreneurship, gave me the courage to build something of my own, and ultimately brought me here to Lisbon. A life I never would have imagined without my children.