In this brief "6 questions in 7 minutes" interview, Professor Pete Alexander talks with Christina Hawatmeh, founder and CEO of Scopio, the largest library of authentic photos. Christina explains Scopio’s two‑sided marketplace that connects global photographers and creatives with buyers, highlighting the constant flow of fresh visual content. She stresses the importance of work‑life balance, advocating regular exercise and mindfulness as essential for the entrepreneurial marathon. Christina recommends fellow leader Huda Kattan as a podcast guest, praising her genius‑driven beauty empire. Her core advice to entrepreneurs is to start immediately—one minute of action beats years of idle thinking—and to treat creativity like a muscle that must be exercised. She shares a personal mantra, "Impossible is just one more phone call away," and recounts her first jobs, from a country‑club server to a staff role in the US Congress, illustrating how early experiences shaped her entrepreneurial mindset. The episode closes with contact details: Scopio’s website (scop.io) and Christina’s LinkedIn profile.
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This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where business leaders share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, tell me who you are and what you do.
Thank you, Professor Pete. I'm Christina Huotma. I'm the founder and CEO of Scopio, the largest library of authentic photos. With over 200,000 images that buyers can use to build the next generation of businesses. And anyone around the world can submit to monetize their art.
Christina, thank you for being on the show. Question number 2: What's the best thing about working in your industry?
So I have a two-sided marketplace, both buyers, creatives, and photographers that submit. So on both sides, I'm blessed with some of the most creative people around the world, and I learn from them, and they're creating things every day, new designs with our images. So I get to be a part of that and witness that around the web and in printed products like books when I go to Barnes Noble.
Oh, how fun. Question number 3: I hear from other business leaders that staying in a good work-life balance for them and their team members is a challenge. What are your thoughts?
I think this is the most undervalued, important lesson that still has yet to be worked on. The most thing that I see from business leaders that are successful are ones that have a workout regimen and that take care of their health because it's a marathon, not a sprint. And doing things that calm you down because entrepreneurs generally are very hyper in their minds. So instead of doing hyper activities, it's better to slow down and be able to rest.
That's very sage advice. Question number 4, what other successful business leaders like yourself should be on my podcast?
So I've been geeking out to billionaire Huda Kattan, who is the founder of Huda Beauty, started her beauty empire by herself. And I find her really giving people the opportunity to go along this journey with her, anyone from the person selling her products in the store all the way to her interviews she does. And it's really important to find leaders that are totally in their genius. And feel like you're having fun along with them as they build their businesses and their ideas.
Oh, I think that's a great referral. I'll try and reach out to her. Question number 5: What insight or advice would you give to other business leaders?
What is that? There's so many insights. I think start, start as soon as you have an idea. Notice ideas around you. They're everywhere, but people often ignore them. If you feel like you have an idea, keep going with it and explore Go for it. One minute of work on it is more valuable than 10 minutes of thinking about— sorry, 10 years of thinking about it. And then I think be surrounded by people that you admire, that you believe in, that you want to be spending your time with.
Great advice there. And I especially like the point about, you know, one minute of working on something versus 10, you know, 10 years of thinking about it because you actually are getting something done and it's moving forward, I assume. That's what I get out of that.
Yeah, it's creativity is a muscle and every entrepreneur that's successful has mastered creativity and allowing themselves to go through it. So if I have an idea and I, even if I know it won't work, I'll still go through the process of as if it was working until I figured out that it won't work. So that's a mental exercise and game that you become good at. And that's really my job. And any entrepreneur's job is to be able to think through those creative ideas. And even if they're not something that you'll see through, because that is what sparks the other idea, or canceling something out is what makes another idea make more sense. So creativity is the most important, I think, skill you have, especially in solving problems. It all requires you to be able to be creative and to come up with solutions. Mm-hmm.
I couldn't agree with you more. And question number 6—
Impossible is just one more phone call away. That's my favorite new quote.
Sorry, say it again because I was talking over you. What was that?
My favorite new quote is impossible is just one more phone call away.
Oh, that's great. I love it. I love it. That's a great quote. And question number 6, tell me about your first job.
So my first job was as a server in a country club, and I hated it because I was 16. And I felt like I was invisible, like nobody was paying attention to me and that I had so much more to offer the world. So then my second job was in US Congress where I learned the art of navigating this powerful institution and I was like, this is more like it. I think I can figure out how to get through these systems and that's why I enjoy being an entrepreneur too.
Oh, I love that. Great, great. Two totally different types of jobs. My goodness, that was— gave you different experiences. My goodness. And so Christina, thank you so much for being on the show. How may people find you?
So you can visit our website at SCOPIO, which stands for Scope It Out, at scop.io, or you can find me on LinkedIn at Christina Howatma.
Wonderful. Well, thank you so much. This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. For more insights and ideas, please go to LinkedIn, YouTube, or Facebook and search for Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.
