Art can work wonders for your mental health. That’s the story of this week’s Wild Business Growth Podcast guest, Volta Voloshin-Smith. Volta is the Founder and Creative Director of Color Snack. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and your other favorite podcast platforms.
Episode 265: Volta Voloshin-Smith – Watercolor Meditation, Founder of Color Snack
Volta Voloshin-Smith, the Founder and Creative Director of Color Snack, joins the show to share her journey from loving colorful TV shows while growing up in Moldova to leading Watercolor Meditation workshops across the US. Hear how Watercolor Meditation works, why art is good for your mental health, how to get a brain massage, how to show up no matter what, and some Wild Doodles and Wild Noodles. This episode covers everything from Sailor Moon to Volta’s real name. Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:
- Where does Volta’s love for art come from
- What was her childhood like in Moldova
- When did she realize art could be a career path
- What companies does she work with
- Why is watercolor her favorite form of painting
- #WatercolorForTheWin
- Napitation in Indianapolis
- Did I pronounce Volta’s name correctly
Connect with Volta at ColorSnack.com, on Instagram @ColorSnack and @WatercolorMeditation, and LinkedIn.
Enjoy the shoooooow! Check out the show notes below for much more detail. You can also find the full transcript here.
Show Notes
- Intro & Sailor Moon
- [0:35] Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool
- [0:46] Connect with Volta at ColorSnack.com, on Instagram @ColorSnack and @WatercolorMeditation, and LinkedIn
- [2:41] Let me know what rhymes with Branstetter
- [3:00] Where does Volta’s love for art come from
- [3:08] Nickelodeon (Nick), Cartoon Network (CN)
- [4:16] Sailor Moon
- [4:40] Sailor Moon Folders
- [5:40] What was Volta’s childhood like in Moldova
- [6:17] Salary
- [8:13] What are the biggest challenges assimilating with the US culture
- [8:52] What states has Volta lived in
- The Color Snack Story
- [9:37] When did Volta realize art could be a career path
- [10:06] Master’s Degree
- [12:05] Where did the name Color Snack come from
- [12:56] When did Volta start to pitch companies on her workshops
- [13:44] Skillshare
- [14:15] Content
- [16:02] What companies does Volta work with
- [16:42] Hire Volta!
- [16:48] Shoutout, Hoboken
- [17:26] CreativeMornings
- [18:05] Networking
- [18:21] The Home Depot, Meta
- [18:47] What is Watercolor Meditation aka getting watercolor meditated
- [20:46] Nirvana
- [21:03] How does Watercolor Meditation work
- [23:02] Flow State
- [23:21] What are Volta’s students and clients painting in her workshops
- [25:02] Brain Massage
- [25:13] What has driven the success of Color Snack
- [25:51] Social Anxiety
- [26:46] Such an honor speaking at Podcast Movement ’23 in Denver! Sign up to grab the slides from my session at MaxPodcasting.com/PM23
- [26:48] Sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter and receive How to Edit Your Podcast in Audacity
- Inspiration & Creativity: Art & Mental Health
- [28:31] Dad Jokes
- [28:43] Why is art good for your mental health
- [28:56] Neuroscientist, Art Therapist
- [29:16] Your Brain on Art by Susan Magsamen & Ivy Ross
- [29:53] Multitasking
- [30:41] Wild Doodles!
- [31:30] Wild Business Growth Podcast
- [31:52] Why is watercolor Volta’s favorite form of painting
- [32:54] Watercolor for the Win #WatercolorForTheWin
- [33:25] Shoutout, Lefties!
- [34:07] How do you meditate
- [34:37] Stress
- [35:29] Napitation in Indianapolis
- [37:05] Calm
- Rapid-Fire Q&A
- [37:35] What is the hardest food to paint
- [38:20] Wild Noodles!
- [38:51] Amanda Natividad – Wild Business Growth Podcast #178: Social Media Sleuth, VP Marketing at SparkToro
- [39:20] What is Volta’s favorite painting she’s ever created
- [41:09] What is the biggest way someone’s butchered her name
- [42:27] Sea what I did there
- [43:18] Gif-ted at GIF-ing
- [43:27] Did I pronounce Volta’s name correctly
- [44:26] Come on, Max
- [44:35] Connect with Volta at ColorSnack.com, on Instagram @ColorSnack and @WatercolorMeditation, and LinkedIn
- [45:01] What are Volta’s Final Thoughts
- [45:51] Punbelievable
- [46:12] Follow the Wild Business Growth Podcast and tell a friend about the podcast. And show love (or roast me) by leaving 5 stars on Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify
- [46:31] Check out the Wild Business Growth Podcast on Goodpods, where you can see what your favorite people are listening to
- [46:33] Connect with me on Instagram, Twitter (aka X), and LinkedIn @MaxBranstetter
- [46:37] Save time with your high-quality podcast. Email me at to bring your podcast to life and use it as a business-building tool
- [46:42] Sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter and receive How to Edit Your Podcast in Audacity
- Theme music: Freestyle Percussion Magik – “Jungle Tribe” – provided by Jamendo
What is the Wild Business Growth Podcast?
Wild ideas. Wild growth. Every Wednesday morning a new entrepreneur joins the Wild Business Growth Podcast to share the wildly creative and unusual ways they grew their business – and teaches you how to do it, too. Hear the minds behind WordPress, Stacy’s Pita Chips, Drybar, NFL RedZone, Big Mouth Billy Bass, the voice of Bart Simpson, and more Wild stories. Hosted by Max Branstetter (that’s me), Founder and Podcast Producer at MaxPodcasting.
How do you start a podcast?
Interested in starting a professional-sounding podcast for your brand, but don’t want to deal with the time commitment of all those behind-the-scenes details? I’ve got you covered. Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool.
Thanks for listening to Volta Voloshin-Smith on the Wild Business Growth Podcast. To hear more Wild stories like this one every Wednesday morning, follow the Wild Business Growth Podcast and tell a friend about it. And watercolor meditate them. Until next time, Let your business Run Wild…and Bring on the Bongos!!
