We had the good fortune of connecting with Barb Miltenberger and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Barb, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
Success? What defines it? It depends who you are asking. For me it is not about how many people are following my page, but are my followers engaged? Am I making an impact in my community? Is there an immediate need for what I do? As sole contributor to Around The Town, does my work fulfill me and make me happy? I believe these are the most important questions for me to ask myself, and I believe the answer to all is a resounding YES! I believe the main reason for my success is that I love what I do and that I am highly interactive with both my followers and the business owners in our community.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Doing my thing with Around The Town means that I am always on the go, including scheduling fun “field trips” that I hope will inspire my followers to try something new. I try to find ways of engaging with the arts and finding my own creativity as well. Research is a constant, and yes, I do it pretty much around the clock. I am always trying new businesses, and remembering to give a shout-out to the long-established ones as well, as they are the backbone of our community. Emphasizing the importance of supporting local has grown to be a major focus of my work. The love of what I do has brought me to where I am today. Eleven years after starting this gig, I can tell you that if I didn’t have an earnest passion and enthusiasm for what I do, I would not have lasted. I hope that my affection and dedication shows in everything I do and how I communicate with my audience.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
North County San Diego is such a great place to live and for others to visit. I have so many favorites. If I had a guest in town for a week, my sample itinerary might look something like this:

Eat/drink: Shak’s Mediterranean Bistro, Pacific Coast Grill, Jalisco Cantina, Del Lusso Pizza, The Grand Tea Room, The Veranda at Grand Tradition Estate and Gardens, Harlow’s, The Miller’s Table, The Prado, 508 Tavern, Handel’s Ice Cream, Shorehouse Kitchen.
 
Activities: Whale watching with Oceanside Whale Watching, food tour with Carla and Linda’s Walking Food Tours, hike Annie’s Trail, aka Mushroom Caves, wine tasting in the Escondido hills, Chuao Chocolate Factory tour, Riddle Routes scavenger hunt, Gondola ride with Black Swan Gondolas on Lake San Marcos, San Diego Botanic Garden, zip line with La Jolla Zip Zoom. Facials at Carlenaz Skincare.
Shop: The perfect 5 in downtown Vista- Metaphor Boutique, Urban Barn, Twice, Tin Gypsy and Refind. Cedros Design District in Solana Beach, Grand Avenue in Escondido.
I could go on and on…each North County city has its own charms and draw. For more ideas on things to do and see, check my “favorites” page at www.barbaroundthetown.com.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My shoutout is to the people who choose to follow, but even more importantly, to engage with Around The Town. I absolutely cannot do what I do without their interest and participation. I am grateful that this community has joined efforts with me to keep the spin positive, I also want to give a shoutout to all of our awesome local San Diego businesses who inspire me to want to advocate and be a voice for them. I appreciate and value all the relationships I have formed with business owners and don’t take for granted that they trust me. I have been constantly in awe of their determination and creativity to get through, especially in 2020.

Website: www.barbaroundthetown.com
Instagram: @barbaroundthetown
Facebook: Around The Town

Image Credits
All photos are my own.

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