Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessika Jake.
Hi Jessika, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
RistRoller™ started while my daughter Jade was away on Semester at Sea. I barely got to talk to her, but every time I did, she had some incredible new adventure to share—running a half marathon in Ireland, riding a camel, things like that.
Then one day, I heard that familiar excitement in her voice.
“Mom, I have the BEST news!!”
I waited for the latest amazing story.
“I made a friend with a foam roller.”
Wait…what?
My brain went, “Does not compute.” But then I realized foam rolling must be amazing. I instantly wanted a foam roller for my wrists because they were killing me.
And that’s where the idea for RistRoller™ began, and it has been run mostly by Jessika, Jade, Theodore and Bella (the latter 2 being of the canine variety).
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I would say it’s been an adventure. I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into when we started, but I’m so glad we stuck with it. We had to figure out things we never even realized we would have to figure out.
There were also a lot of surprises along the way. I still wonder how the heck our first customer even found us. We weren’t marketing. Honestly, we barely market RistRoller™ even now.
What has really surprised me and touched my heart are all the uses people have found that we never even thought of. Feet? Okay, I get that. It’s easy to understand why someone would want to use it on their foot. But I met an occupational therapist who uses RistRoller™ to help flatten tissue after surgery so her patients don’t get scar tissue. A nurse told us they use it with burn patients. Someone in Korea did research showing how RistRoller™ can help with plantar fasciitis. A physical therapist told me it cuts down the time he needs to treat patients with trigger finger and trigger thumb, and they have less pain. I never would have thought of any of this. Of course, if you’re using it for a medical reason, follow the recommendation of a medical professional. But it has been super cool to hear these stories.
It probably took longer to make money than a brand-new entrepreneur might expect. People can have this idea of, “I have a great product, and magically I’m going to be an overnight success.” Honestly, I don’t even know that I was thinking that way because I really just wanted one for me. My wrists were killing me, and when I Googled around, I couldn’t find a small foam roller.
So Jade and I decided to make one. She was still away on Semester at Sea, and we figured it out through this very drawn-out WhatsApp conversation. A conversation that probably would have taken three minutes in real life took about three weeks. Meanwhile, I was getting foam samples and trying to cut through foam with a hot wire. I learned very quickly that I am not good at cutting foam with a hot wire.
Like I said, it’s really just been an adventure unfolding before us. I guess the struggle could be “Where’s the money?” but we were having too much fun and enjoying the adventure to worry so much about that.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I never mapped out a journey from Point A to Point Z. Something interesting or an opportunity would appear in front of me, and I’d think, “Ooh, I want to do that.” I’d follow it, and eventually the next path would appear.
I’ve been a lot of things along the way. I started with a BS in biochemistry and loved teaching the SAT and MCAT classes. That led to me becoming a subject matter expert and writing educational books. And from there my paths have taken me everywhere from helping build websites for international law firms to working at NBC, managing major technology projects, teaching project, program, and portfolio management, flying to Aviano, Italy, to train the U.S. Air Force, and even being a dog concierge at a fundraising event (which of course was my favorite thing to do ever, and I wish that was an actual job).
RistRoller™ opened the door to the wellness world, and I loved that community and wanted to do more in it. That path led me to become certified in Havening Techniques® and Yin Yoga and to explore neuroscience, trauma, and wellbeing. Then a shallow near-death experience opened another unexpected path into consciousness and the Superconscious, which became part of my speaking, research, and work.
I guess that’s been my career: I follow what fascinates me, learn everything I can, make things, teach things, help people, and see what path appears next. These days I share the Knowledge Compounding Approach and its flagship models that help you leapfrog over the timesuck of disconnected learning. And I love doing so because it helps people keep their jobs, de-stress, and never bashes on anyone, or any part of them.
How do you think about happiness?
Joy. I know that is kind of a silly answer to the question. But experiencing joy, experiencing awe, being brought fully into the moment (blowing your mindstuff away), and seeing or helping other people find that perfection within themselves makes me happy. Laughing, being joyous, being kind, loving each other. Watching people help each other makes me happy too, especially when you see people come together for someone (even the fluffy someones) who needs help.
There’s a blog post I read such a long time ago – probably 2 decades ago if not more – that I still think about. I found the guy’s website because he had made a free calculator that helped me add up hours and minutes for my billing. I checked out his blog. He wrote about how he always ordered from the same Chinese restaurant in Brooklyn, and one day he was sick, so all he ordered was soup. They sent him the soup along with all the other things he usually liked and a note to feel better. What a sweet thing to do. I really believe we are here to amplify love, kindness, joy and the like.
I feel the same way when an animal is struggling and people rally together to help save them. For that moment, everything falls away and people just come together to help. Compassion connects. It reveals the truth of what we are (Love).
I think we are here to blossom, to shine, to call back to love anything that is unaligned with love. If something life-threatening happens, of course our bodies prioritize survival. But when we’re safe, we’re also here to play, connect, create, bask in the warmth of those who love us, to experience joy and awe, and to live in the eternal now. I think when I die I will look back and see how much of my life was spent in the now, and that is kind of the scorecard – or part of one- for my life review… How much time did I spend actually alive?
In all my RistRoller early hustle days I did a lot of networking and I almost died at one of the events. I had a shallow near death experience. I also had a quantum experience thanks to nondual mediation (during COVID this was my new exploration) and that was in line with what a lot of NDE experiencers say. So the way I know it to be now is that the 1 truth is love, the frequency of love. The foundation of all is not matter. When you see the term human being, the word “human” has us covered with the who-ness and the world of form and the word “being” would be our perfect light that cannot go out or go bad. I am happy when people connect to this always 100% perfect light in themselves and when I can bust myths that people share that pathologize or have people bashing on themselves.
And that’s what makes me happy. Those moments when everything else fades away, we are completely here, and we are that one truth in ourselves.
Pricing:
- RistRoller.com offers single rollers, small bundles, bulk ordering and custom mini foam rollers as well
- Single mini foam rollers are $14.99 (various colors)
- 3 packs are $34.99
- There is no minimum of customized RistRollers (full color sticker on one end of the roller)
Contact Info:
- Website: RistRoller https://ristroller.com/ | https://jessikajake.com/ |https://tiqileaders.com/
- Youtube: DJ Bella Beyond (Music project) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRhGviVthBU
