“A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbor — such is my idea of happiness.”
― Leo Tolstoy, Family Happiness
Mission
To be useful and engaged throughout my career by sharing my design, analytics, and collaborative abilities to make complex business decisions easier for people because life is better when we can spend less time worrying and more time enjoying our lives.
Values
Be Honest. I am trustworthy; I mean what I say. If there is an issue, I communicate it clearly and early on.
Be Conscientious. I choose my words and actions according to their potential affect on others.
Be Enthusiastic. It is important to have fun working; enthusiasm fosters a positive working environment and sparks creativity.
Be Detailed. I have a detailed approach to my work; I can be trusted to catch issues before they happen.
Be Open-Minded. Being receptive to others’ ideas and differences cultivates a collaborative working environment with those around me.
Be Collaborative. Working with others lights up my brain; group tasks provide energy fresh ideas.
Be Independent. I work well individually; I thrive with minimal guidance and maximum autonomy.
Be Direct. No beating around the bush; I am a confident decision-maker and articulate myself in a straightforward, concise fashion.
Be Driven. I think about the big picture, focusing on long-term goals and avoiding short-term minutiae, which helps me accomplish big goals.
Be Organized. I use free flowing physical and digital asset management systems with fewer obstacles and distractions; less clutter means more freedom.
Be Nice. People don’t remember what we do but will remember how we make them feel.
I am a naturally-curious problem-solver, motivated to use compelling storytelling and design to communicate and present data. I support senior analysts in maximizing their clients’ competitive advantage by analyzing and visually organizing data in a way that people can easily understand and act upon.
I returned to WWU in 2019 to pursue a degree in Marketing to learn how to analyze data and forecast changes in the market as a means to make profitable business decisions. In 2022 my team and I won the WWU Marketing Department Case Competition by creating a repositioning and promotion strategy for FIGS Scrubs. Our success was partially attributed to my skill using analytics to drive strategic decision-making.
I cultivated my design and leadership skills during six successful years a senior designer for a B2B company. In my role as Director of Design I determined client needs and leveraged market trends to build and deliver effective digital and physical brand assets for clients. I am ready to take my career to the next level by sharing my skills with a team to collect and analyze data as a means to create successful high-level marketing strategies.
I live in a special little city in the northwest corner of Washington state. When I am not working, you’ll find me outside with my husband Nathan and our Australian Shephard, Billy.
What’s this tagline all about?
I felt naturally drawn to using a bee as the symbol of my brand because I already owned the domain nicoleshive.com, which can be read as either Nicole Shive dot com or Nicole’s Hive dot com. Upon exploring my values however, I realized bees symbolize me on a deeper level. Bees are icons of teamwork, focus, dedication, hard work, prosperity, generosity, sharpness (intellectually) and sweetness (as in honey). Always Connecting the Dots also means more than the dotted circle around the bee in my logo. The tagline ties in the three criteria I need in my career to find fulfillment in my work: creativity, analytics, and collaboration. Design-wise, connecting the dots means working point-by-point to illustrate a concept so that it can be shared with others. Analytically, connecting the dots means putting together points of data to find hidden answers. Collaboratively, connecting the dots symbolizes the networks between people that make us all stronger as we work together. It is my commitment to always bee connecting the dots so that the people around me — my customers, clients, co-workers, managers, friends and family — can spend less time worrying and more time enjoying their lives.
