Stand Out in Vacation Rentals (Know Your Why)

When I met my now-husband, Rod, I visited his apartment and noticed a vision board on the wall.

Taped-up notes, magazine clippings, and sketches. Pieces of what he was building or dreaming of.

Somewhere near the center was a white piece of paper titled:

7 Levels Deep

One question. Seven answers. Seven whys.

I asked what it was.
He said, “It’s an exercise I did to figure out what actually matters to me.”

I was curious, so I tried it too.

It was challenging—and eventually, it led me to the core of my motivation.

My 7 Levels Deep

Later, I did the exercise again with a different starting point.

That simple practice helped me uncover the deeper reason behind everything I now build, especially why I love creating unique stays inspired by cultures.

I asked myself the same question seven times. Each time, I used the new answer as the starting point: Why is that important to me?

I started with this statement:

“I love creating unique stays inspired by cultures.”

1. Why is that important to me?​
Because I want guests to step into a space and experience wonder, beauty, and meaning.

2. Why is that important to me?​
Because I believe a stay can be more than a place to sleep. It can awaken people and make them feel alive and connected.

3. Why is that important to me?​
Because when beauty is rooted in culture and story, it opens people up. It invites them to slow down and see more broadly.

4. Why is that important to me?​
Because I’ve found a deep sense of home in places far from where I was born. Cultures that were once foreign became part of me.

5. Why is that important to me?​
Because I left home at sixteen, and every new country I lived in gave me a new piece of identity. I learned to find belonging in unfamiliar places.

6. Why is that important to me?​
Because creating these stays lets me honor the beauty I’ve experienced. It’s a way to offer others the feeling of home I once found in different cultures.

7. Why is that important to me?​
Because I believe that through beauty and openness to other cultures, without stereotypes and with a desire to understand, we create connection. We build empathy. And we move toward a more peaceful world.

From this deep why comes my brand identity, my choices in design, language, and even furniture.
If you’ve seen my personal website, its main background color is beige. To me, beige is a symbol of neutrality, peace and nature. It all connects back to my why.

In any space, business, or project—saturated or not—what truly stands out isn’t the square footage, the furniture, or the layout.
It’s the story behind it.
The founder’s story.
The reason it exists.

That’s what makes a unique stay truly unique.

Everything else can be replicated.

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​But you—with your deep why, your story, all the good, the hard, and the in-between—are what make your work one-of-a-kind.

And other one-of-a-kind humans connect to that.