Why I Walked Away from 15 Years, with my Marketing Agency, to Go All-In on Fire, Creativity & Experience Design

A few weeks ago, I sat down with Jared Orr on the Arizona Business Podcast to share my journey. Not the polished version. The real one. The one where burnout nearly broke me. The one where I ran two businesses at the same time while trying to be a dad, a partner, a performer, and a damn magician behind a CRM dashboard.

... and the one where I finally said:

“Enough. It’s time to go all-in on what actually lights me up.”

Listen to this Podcast episode:  CLICK HERE

^^ Watch the YouTube video instead. ^^

I Never Planned on Running an Entertainment Company

Ten years ago, I was only doing 30-minute luau shows. That’s it. Cultural storytelling. Lots of smiles. Some fire spinning. It was beautiful: simple, clean, and deeply connected to my heritage.

At the same time, I was running a marketing and systems agency full-time. I built CRMs. I automated back-end workflows. I ran e-mail campaigns. I helped companies clean up their operations and scale. That agency paid the bills, especially in the winter, when entertainment work dried up... and I was doing it for everyone else, without the capacity to do be doing hardly any of it for my own brand.

But then summer hit.

We booked over 100 shows that first season.

That’s when I realized:

This isn’t a side hustle anymore.

This is the main event.

Burnout Hit Like a Freight Train

For years, I bounced back and forth between both companies. Wake up at 4am. Slam caffeine. Handle client meetings. Build out automation with my team overseas at every odd hour of the night & early mornings. Then I would switch into performer mode for shows at night.

Rinse. Repeat. Burn out.

I did that for a decade.

And yes, I hit a wall.

Hard.

If you’ve ever tried to “do it all,” you know exactly what I’m talking about. It feels like your brain stops working. Like your soul went numb. Like there’s lead in your boots and nothing, not even your passions, feel good anymore.

I Finally Let Go

Three weeks before that podcast interview, I sold my agency.

Not an easy move.

I had to rip 15 years of my life out of my systems: email logins, calendars, Dropbox folders, client files. Gone.

It was heavy. Emotional. But also?

Liberating as hell.

Now, I have one focus: Hana Events + Experiences.

We’re a cultural experience design studio: fire, dance, story, emotion & sensory detail. That’s what I was built to do.

What Lights Me Up Now

We’re designing immersive events that hit all five senses, and a sixth: human connection. We’re not just spinning poi or throwing fire. We’re building stories. We’re invoking spirit. We’re creating magic that people feel in their gut, at an emotional level.

The show is just the surface. What lasts is the transformation people carry with them.

People walk away different than they came in. That’s the level we’re playing at now.

And when your work hits that deeply? People don’t question what you do. They feel it.

That’s brand. That’s impact. That’s what lights me up.

Where We’re Headed

We’ve got roots in Utah and Arizona. We’re building new markets in Denver and Florida.

We’ve got teams in 11 states.

We don’t need to fly in a full crew anymore. We’ve built a deep network of talent nationwide. That makes us fast, scalable, and cost-efficient while still delivering a premium, soulful product.

This summer? I’m focusing on growth in Denver.

This fall? We go hard in Florida.

But always, my priority stays the same: time with my family, and projects that matter.

This Episode Meant Something

I don’t do a lot of podcasts. But this one mattered.

Jared didn’t just ask surface-level questions. He got into it.

We talked burnout, boundaries, business growth, fatherhood, cultural storytelling, and what it takes to actually live a life that feels real.

🎧 Listen to the full episode:

Arizona Business Podcast, hosted by Jared Orr

👉 https://linktr.ee/jaredorr?lt_utm_source=lt_share_link#467809208

Let’s Connect...

If you’re a DMC, event planner, or producer looking to create something that leaves a mark, let’s talk.

We’re not here to entertain you.

We’re here to move you.

📲 Instagram: @the_joseph_cancilla or  @hana_around_the_world

Thanks for reading,