By: Jon Stojan
In recent years, social scientists and academics have been studying entrepreneurs, trying to determine what makes them tick. While entrepreneurs have wildly different life stories, one study has found a link between adversity early in life and entrepreneurship. This lends credence to theories that many founders’ past traumas manifest in their businesses, and through their entrepreneurship, they are turning their trauma into triumph.
One such entrepreneur is Kim Diamond, the founder and inventor of PhoneSpuds. This product combines the characteristics of a decorative pillow, a phone case/holder, and a power bank when recovering from a long bout of COVID-19 in 2020. Named for its potato-like shape, the PhoneSpud has a removable and replaceable transparent vinyl screen that allows users to operate their phones. Its zippered compartment stores a power bank, allowing the user’s smartphone to remain up and running anytime.
According to Diamond, she came up with the idea for the product while she was recovering from COVID in 2020. After being diagnosed with Long COVID, she also suffered an accidental fall and head injury, prolonging her recovery and forcing her to lie in bed for long periods. During this time, using her smartphone was among the few activities that she could do. While her condition has greatly improved, she is still taking medication and undergoing physical therapy for it.
“Using a smartphone is one of the few activities you can do while convalescing,” Diamond says. “I experienced this personally during my recovery from Long COVID, as did my husband during his battle with leukemia. Our experience inspired me to create the PhoneSpud, allowing people to keep themselves informed and entertained, whether recovering, traveling, or even relaxing at home.”
While the recovery from COVID was the immediate catalyst for Diamond’s entry into business, she says that the adversity she faced goes way back. As a child, she suffered from bullying, which shaped her outlook growing up. In adulthood, she also experienced abuse at the hands of a former partner.
Her response to these traumas was to always be out and about. She would distract herself from her thoughts and channel her energy into exercising. Aside from her job as a teacher, Diamond is also a trained actor and singer, and she frequently engages in these artistic pursuits. This is why her Long COVID diagnosis came as a huge blow, as it severely limited her capability to do the things she loves. While dealing with her condition, she refocused on entrepreneurship, designing PhoneSpuds and selling them.
As a trauma survivor, Diamond cares deeply for others who have experienced a similar predicament as her. As such, for every purchase of a PhoneSpud, she will donate to support survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.
Furthermore, Diamond says that her entrepreneurial journey was boosted by working with an organization known as ProductMentor®, which taught her more about business and product development. She initially pitched her idea to the organization, and they saw its potential, which helped her get it off the ground. Through investment, coaching, and other forms of assistance, several of ProductMentor’s partners have gone on to become multi-million-dollar businesses. Diamond appreciates the organization for helping create an environment conducive to success.
“My past experiences and traumas have made me who I am today,” Diamond says. “Despite all the challenges life threw at me, I’m proud that I’m still as tenacious as ever. Aside from growing the PhoneSpuds business by attending trade shows and linking up with more distribution partners, I am back to pursuing my interests, such as directing a school play, Alice in Wonderland, and writing my musical. I believe my entrepreneurship journey has helped me overcome the traumatic events of my past, and I’m looking forward to what the coming year holds for PhoneSpuds.”
