"Don’t wait until you get it perfect, or because you feel you don’t have anything original to share" with Gissele Taraba

Gissele Taraba is co-owner of Maitri Centre for Love and Compassion and the Host of the Love and Compassion podcast with Gissele.  She is a trained therapist, as well as a mindfulness and compassion teacher.  She offers coaching services to individuals and workplaces looking to introduce compassion into their organizations.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

Of course!  I have two Masters, one in research and another one in social work.  I was introduced to compassion by accident really. I was looking for a long-lasting, and effective solution to the suffering I observed at work while I was in leadership at a not-for-profit.  I was already a long-term meditator but I was unaware of the concept of compassion. Once I started learning about the power of compassion and then self-love, I went all in! Now we have a centre where we focus on reminding people of their own self-love and self-compassion and helping them unlearn everything that prevents them from being their authentic, most loving selves.  

What inspired you to start your podcast?

I think I should start by admitting that I did not think that I was ever going to be a podcaster. It was nowhere in my conscious awareness. I had never listened to a podcast nor was I aware it was a “thing”.  I was a Director of Administration at the time, and was chatting with my friend, Lara Naughton, who does work on compassion in the prison system.  She was helping me figure out how to introduce compassion into the child protection system when, unexpectedly, I asked her if she had published a book.  She had, and the book is called “The Jaguar Man.”  Long story short, this book is about her experience of being kidnapped and raped at gunpoint while on vacation and her journey of finding compassion for herself and her assaulter during and after the assault.  This story shook me to the core and I thought, “I have to share this story with others as an extraordinary example of compassion”. Someone suggested I start a podcast, and the rest is history.

How did you start it? What were the first steps you took?

I honestly did not know anything about podcasting but the universe aligned everything to make this happen.  I’m very lucky that my partner is super supportive and so he dove head in to help me find the microphone, programs I could use, and to help me perfect my craft.  At the same time, the university I graduated from was offering free podcast support, which had just started the month before, so I took the opportunity to learn what I could from them.  I have also joined Facebook groups for podcasters and have met some amazing people in the podcasting world by hosting other podcasters on my podcast, and by being a guest on their podcast.  I love being able to share podcasting stories with my fellow podcasters. We all have that story of being afraid that we didn’t record the session, or that the audio was terrible, or the video didn’t download.

For those just starting out, get yourself a decent microphone, use Zoom or Zencastr (both free), and record both audio and video. You never know how you will repurpose your content later on. I wish I had done a video of my first three podcasts, as much later on, I started a YOUTUBE channel.  Also we strongly suggest you use Descript to transcribe of all your material.  Descript makes transcribing a breeze. Uploading transcripts enables your audience who require subtitles to access your podcast and it also helps with your SEO.

 What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your podcast?

Honestly, it has been word of mouth. It has been heart warming for me to get emails from people who listen to the podcast and share how they feel inspired, motivated, moved, and how it has helped them find hope during these challenging times.  Our listeners have shared how it helped them have conversations with others about sometimes, taboo or challenging topics. I have done all the traditional things: marketing, social media and so on, but nothing is more powerful than friends sharing their favorite podcast with their friends and loved ones. 

It means so much to us that people find our podcast so transformative and impactful.  

What have been your biggest challenges when launching your podcast?

I like to think that challenges are opportunities either for re-direction or for growth so for me challenges are “feedback”.  My first challenge occurred in attempting to find more extraordinary stories of compassion.  Sometimes, the people who are the most compassionate, are not always the most comfortable sharing their stories publicly so I had to refocus my podcast more on bringing stories of how love and compassion have impacted people’s lives.  We have discussed stories of forgiveness, parenting, health, and so much more.  I think part of the challenge is that we are not looking for stories of kindness.  While stories of kindness are amazing and should be shared, generosity is not the same as compassion.  Compassion and unconditional love are about looking at all the aspects of ourselves and others that we do not like and finding a way to accept and love those aspects.  It is about how we lean into each other’s suffering, and help ourselves and each other in a way that doesn’t deplete us but recharges us.

My second challenge was finding our audience.  In the beginning, we didn’t get many downloads.  Our downloads primarily came from my family and friends who have been very supportive about our podcast.  I didn’t realize that listeners will wait until you have a good number of episodes in the bank, before they commit to your show.  We were also releasing our episodes one time per month, but we heard that it was too long to wait for the next episode, so we have moved to every two weeks due to our work schedule with the business.  I would love to be able to do something once a week but right now, every two weeks is what we are aiming for. The longer between episodes, the longer it will take to gain momentum in gaining listeners.    

How do you monetize your podcast? What are your best tips to monetize a podcast?

We currently don’t monetize, as the podcast is not our main source of income but my aim is to start monetizing this year.  We have had people approach us about monetizing but for us, it has to be the right product, and right messaging! I believe that the right opportunities will present themselves at the perfect time.

In general, there are a number of ways to monetize. You can use Patreon and have people fund your podcast. I have a number of friends who use this approach successfully.  Alternatively, you can charge your audience to get access to special episodes.  Although we have a Patreon account, it has never felt right for us to charge our listeners because we feel, especially right now with COVID19, that the world could use greater compassion and love! We want to offer our content free of charge for as long as possible, and offer it as accessible as possible. 

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new podcasters?

The best advice I received from my fellow podcasters when I was starting out was: #1- don’t wait and #2-the riches are in the niches.  Don’t wait until you get it perfect, or because you feel you don’t have anything original to share.  If you are feeling motivated to start a podcast, and the thought excites you, go for it!

#2, going too broad will make finding your audience challenging. The more specific you get about the purpose of your podcast, the more likely you will get people who are truly invested and committed to listening every week, or month. 

If you show up as your authentic self, have fun and keep producing podcasts consistently, your people will show up!

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

If you do not mean books related to podcasting, then my favorite book right now is Parallel Universes by Frederick Dodson.  It’s mind blowing. I love to stretch my thinking beyond the known. 

I am an avid reader and my “favorites” usually change depending on what my interests are currently.  There are so many amazing books out there.  My favorite blog is my own, because it is therapeutic for me to write about my experiences with compassion. 

Apps? I love TikTok. I never thought I would. I love how influencers are making an impact.  They are so bold, and it seems that they are having so much fun creating! It’s fun to see. We have started a TikTok account but you won’t see me dancing or acting, or cooking on it (laugh.)

If it is related to podcasting, then absolutely anything by Pat Flynn. He’s such a generous soul regarding podcasting.

What's your favorite business/podcast tool or resource? Why?

I love Pat Flynn’s podcast Smart Passive Income because it is super informative.  I think we all have this desire to have freedom.  We desire to be free to explore our passions, do what we love, and have experiences in life that bring us joy and happiness.  Pat’s podcast helps you find ways to make income in a way that doesn’t feel like work.  I definitely believe the future of work is not “the grind”, rather it’s more inspirational and it comes from multiple sources not just one job for example.   

What projects do you have planned for the next six months?

Oh so many exciting projects! With respect to the podcast, we are still looking for extraordinary stories of compassion so if anyone has one, please reach out to us.  I would love to have people who are actively working on bringing more love into the world like @realdaryldavis or @valariekaur on the show.

My dream is to get funding to travel the world in search of extraordinary stories of compassion and love to show that our true nature is truly compassionate.  Once we unlearn all the barriers we have to our compassion, we return to being our true, most loving selves.  I am also interested in exploring spirituality more, the power of the heart and mind, and truly diving into the concept of unconditional love in the podcast.

Regarding Maitri Centre, we now have a self-serve section and we are working on getting some of our self-serve modules on compassion at work uploaded on our website. Even though we love cohort based courses, and group work, it is not always possible for members of our community to be able to complete learning synchronously so we are offering our clients greater options.   We believe compassion in leadership is the next big thing in the workplace.

How can our readers connect with you?

We love to hear from people.  Our email is info@maitricentre.com or if you want to personally reach me, g.taraba@maitricentre.com.  If you want to check out our podcast or our centre, our linktree is here: https://linktr.ee/MaitriCentre

Thank you so much for the opportunity to podcasting journey!

“Making Money Better for Everyone” with Dana Sitar

Photo courtesy of Dana Media

Dana Sitar is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance®. She’s written about work and money for publications including Forbes, The New York Times, CNBC, The Motley Fool, The Penny Hoarder and a column for Inc. Magazine. Dana owns the content agency Dana Media, who’s flagship site, Healthy Rich, publishes stories from budding writers to diversify the voices in personal finance media.

Can you tell our readers about your background? 

I’ve been writing and editing for online audiences since 2011, covering personal finance, careers and digital media. Along the way, I’ve always guided other writers in the craft and business of writing.

I’ve written about work and money for Forbes, the New York Times, Inc., CNBC, The Penny Hoarder, The Motley Fool and more.

I’m driven by a fundamental belief that work should be fun and money should be easy. I’m a bit of an evangelist for freelancing, remote work, positive workplace culture and financial empowerment.

I fell into personal finance writing in 2015 and worked on staff and in leadership for The Penny Hoarder, a perennial Inc. 500 company, for four years. That experience put me in the vanguard of personal finance media and gave me an early peek inside emerging financial services.

Years of consuming financial trend data, reading messages of gratitude from newly empowered consumers, reporting stories of everyday financial wins and testing hundreds of financial services solidified a love for this niche I never expected.

Since January 2020, I’ve run my own business as a personal finance writer, and expanded to create the Dana Media agency in 2021. In summer 2021, we launched the personal finance website Healthy Rich to publish stories that illuminate the diversity of our relationships with work and money.

What inspired you to start your business? 

I started Dana Media to create a platform to make good work for writers and diversify the voices in personal finance media. Through our flagship site, Healthy Rich, we’re starting a new kind of conversation about money.

Throughout my years in personal finance media, I’ve realized we’re often answering the wrong questions. We’re writing guides about how to make a budget while education is defunded, parental labor is devalued, and employers legally discriminate on the basis of our gender, race and ability. Our audiences are ashamed of debt, even when it’s the only thing that gets them through college, feeds their children or affords them the “luxuries” necessary to compete with white men in the workplace.

We tend to ignore the nuances of our relationships with work and money, because money advice comes from a bunch of people with similar (privileged) identities and backgrounds. Through Dana Media, we’re putting more voices in the mix, and through Healthy Rich, our stories are shining a big, bright spotlight on those nuances.

Where is your business based?

We’re 100% online, based in the U.S. I work out of my home in Madison, Wisconsin, and our contractors work wherever they want!

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

My business has grown organically as my career has grown. Dana Media grew out of a need for more writing capacity than I had myself, and Healthy Rich is a natural way for us to use our agency’s talent and expertise to create an asset of our own. We’re starting with content, because that’s in our speciality.

The next steps are building the first Healthy Rich product by talking with our customers to learn what they want to know about personal finance. In the meantime, we’re building the audience through lead generation. We’re taking everything one step at a time, so when we’re ready to launch the first product, we’ll have an eager audience in place.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business? 

Launching Healthy Rich with a writing contest was a great way to promote the brand while immediately providing a service to both the audience and writers we want to serve. It lets us build a fledgling community based around the opportunities and platform we can offer, rather than around what we want to sell to customers.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them? 

Building a brand from scratch always comes with a financial challenge. I’m bootstrapping Healthy Rich, and I’ll have run the site for at least a year before launching the first revenue-generating product, so I have to continue to support myself and fund the business in the meantime — without burning out.

Dana Media continues to generate income through writing and consulting work. Before launching Healthy Rich, I focused on increasing rates, becoming more efficient and delegating as much as I could, so I could earn more in less time and free up time to build the new brand. Now I can earn a full-time income and pay contractors by working on client projects just three days a week, so I have plenty of time and funds available to invest in growing Healthy Rich.

How do you stay focused?

My focus hinges on the business’s core mission, which is the linchpin that keeps every other piece of the business in place. We want to make money better for everyone. That includes myself, our team, our clients and our audience.

For every project I want to pursue, I can ask, “How does this make money better for everyone?” For every milestone set and task assigned, we ask the same thing, so we can stay focused on that end goal: “How does this project/client/step make money better for everyone?” It’s a simple way to keep from getting sidetracked by shiny objects and bring my focus back to any task I have to complete, because I know exactly the impact it’s going to have on the bigger picture.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition? 

My altruistic answer is that our mission sets us apart. The practical answer is that we’re developing a business model that intentionally goes against the norm of the industry, and it forces the brand to stay focused on the mission.

Dana Media’s mission is to make money better for everyone. We do that by hiring marginalized writers, like BIPOC, women, LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities, whose voices we don’t hear enough in personal finance media. And we share stories through Healthy Rich that  illuminate the diversity of our relationships with work and money. 

For Healthy Rich, we’re creating a business model that forces us to stay on mission.

Most personal finance sites are advertiser-supported. That lets them make 100% of their content free for readers, which is a nice service. But it means their customer is the advertiser, not the reader — no matter how much you try to drive home the mission in that scenario, you always run up against a battle between advertiser and reader interests. Since advertisers keep the business alive, their interests tend to win out.

Healthy Rich is intentionally advertiser-free, and our revenue plan is to sell courses. That means customers will have to pay for some of our personal finance advice, but we’ll still offer a ton of value for free so we can continue to serve folks even if our products aren’t right for them. More importantly it means we can always steer the business according to our customers’ best interests.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business? 

Healthy Rich is almost 100% content and email focused. We grow the community by creating valuable content, sharing it via email and encouraging our readers to help spread the word. In 2022, our marketing efforts will be focused on list building, because that’s the main way we’ll connect with our audience and market our paid products.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs? 

Imagine the company you’d want to run if you had 100 employees (or 1,000), and shape your policies and systems to that vision from day one. I don’t think I want to run a company of 100s or even dozens of employees. But imagining the way I’d like that to look has encouraged me to develop and document systems as I go, and it reminds me to create the kind of work life I want — if I would want to offer ample flexibility, paid time off and benefits to employees, why not make sure I can do that for myself and contractors from the beginning?

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

Right now, I’m in love with Jenny Blake’s Free Time book and podcast. The philosophy behind them spoke to me right when I was turning from a solo contractor into a business owner. I don’t rely on many apps for business, but I use the Calm app for daily meditation, and that’s been an important contribution to a productive daily routine.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

In the short time since it launched in beta, I’ve come to totally rely on Google Tables. It’s my to-do list, bookkeeping software, reminders, CRM and whiteboard for when I need to brain dump and capture information. 

As I’ve expanded to add team members, it’s a perfect lean project management tool and content calendar. I love that it’s accessible as part of a Google Workplace account, and our writers can collaborate with us for free as long as they have a Gmail account.

Who is your business role model? Why? 

I’ve been a huge fan of Jenny Blake while she was working on her first brand, Life After College, more than a decade ago. I’m loving her work through Free Time now. 

Alexis Grant was an early influence and mentor for me, and I’ve had the chance to work with her on several projects over the years. I continue to follow and be influenced by her work, and I’m loving what she’s adding to the business world through her latest company, They Got Acquired.

I’ve learned a ton from Marie Forleo in the past couple of years, both from doing B-School and from following how she runs her own business (disclaimer: I did some contract work with Marie Forleo International a couple of years ago). I love the intersection of personal development and business building.

How do you balance work and life? 

I don’t keep a to-do list; I keep a calendar (in my Google Tables!). When I’m faced with an opportunity, assignment or task, I slot it into my calendar with a “to-do” date. I keep a four-day workweek, so the task has to fit into one of four available days each week. This makes it easy to avoid overscheduling and keeps work from spilling into evenings and weekends.

What’s your favorite way to decompress? 

I take a walk at the end of most work days. Walking through any city I’m in is one of my favorite activities — I can listen to a podcast or audiobook, watch people, get fresh air and move my body. It’s a perfect way to shake off the stiffness and focus of a work day.

What do you have planned for the next six months? 

The first half of this year will be focused on building the Healthy Rich community through content and email. And this fall, we’ll launch the first Healthy Rich course — EASY Money. So my time for the next six months is laser-focused on course content creation and developing a marketing plan for the course.

How can our readers connect with you?

Follow Healthy Rich by subscribing via email: https://www.healthyrich.co/subscribe and you can follow my update on social media @danasitar .

"How Two Hiking Partners are Disrupting the Outdoor Industry for Every Body" with Liz Thomas

Liz Thomas is the co-founder of Treeline Review, an outdoor media company focused on obsessively researching gear reviews for everybody.

 Liz is a former speed record holder on the 2,200-mile long Appalachian Trail and founded Treeline Review with her hiking partner, Naomi Hudetz because neither could find a women-owned, women-run place to read about outdoor gear.

Liz knew Naomi was a business partner she could rely on because together, they’ve stood off grizzly bears and mountain lions.

Now, Treeline Review is one of the biggest outdoor gear review websites with a mission towards obsessively researched gear reviews for and by people of all genders, sizes, and abilities with 50% BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ writers—unprecedented in the outdoor industry.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I’m Japanese American and the child of an immigrant. I fell in love with the outdoors on a school field trip. As someone whose family didn’t spend time outdoors, I had to teach myself how to hike and what gear to bring.

Those lessons and a lot of hard work and practice propelled me to break the speed record on the 2,200-mile hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian Trail. After years as a professional outdoor athlete, I wrote the National Outdoor Book Award-winning Long Trails: Mastering the Art of the Thru-hike (thru-hike is a term for a backpacking trip that is hundreds or thousands of miles long).

I created Treeline Review because I wanted a space where people can learn about the skills and gear they need to get outdoors—even if they don’t have a family or community to teach them.

What inspired you to start your business?

When I was a professional athlete, I struggled to find honest gear reviews written by women. Early in my career, I once had an editor tell me that he writes the gear reviews for items marketed as “women’s gear” and then puts his wife’s name as the byline because “women can’t write reviews.” I proved that editor wrong. For years, I worked for The New York Times’ product review website, Wirecutter. When their women-led outdoor team disbanded, I formed Treeline Review to continue telling objectively researched outdoor articles.

Where is your business based?

Treeline Review is based in White Salmon, Washington, a small town in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. As an outdoor business, it’s an ideal place to be. We’ve got the river, hiking, skiing, mountain biking, and mountaineering all within an hour’s drive. However, our remote team is across North America from Squamish, British Columbia, to Mexico to Colorado to Maine. Having a geographically diverse team lets us test summer gear in Southern California when our headquarters are covered in snow and winter gear in Alaska when the rest of the US is sweltering. It also allows us to test the same gear item in different climates and weather conditions, so we know our reviews reflect many users’ experiences.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

We started small, writing many of the first stories ourselves or working with former colleagues from Wirecutter. We knew what made an excellent gear review. We wanted to set the tone for the level of quality for all future stories.

We also had to teach ourselves Search Engine Optimization (SEO), a crucial part of any product review website. We used free courses from ahrefs, Digital Marketing Kitchen, and Semrush to learn the basics. Neither of us had any experience with SEO, so it was all new to us.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Word-of-mouth has been the best way of growing a website like ours. When trusted friends tell each other how Treeline Review is different, it goes a lot farther than any ad space we could buy. When ski and climbing buddies share how Treeline Review helped save them time and money when making a gear decision, that means more than any awareness campaign we could run.

What have been your biggest challenges, and how did you overcome them?

As an online media company, we rely heavily on Google search. At the end of 2020–already a trying time for businesses–Google ran an update to their algorithm that impacted the outdoor industry. We had to find creative ways to spread the news about our work–from word-of-mouth and social media campaigns to working with other businesses and leaning on our communities.

How do you stay focused?

I’m powered by the feedback our readers give us. Some readers are looking for gear reviews that are detailed, well-researched, and objective—hard things to find these days. Other readers come to us because they want to read about the outdoors from people who look like them. When our readers tell us that they trust our findings and that we’re changing the industry, that makes it easy to get up and do this work every day.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

Two things make us different from the rest of the outdoor media: obsessive research and creating a space for all people in the outdoors.

First, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find a detailed gear review. Testing and being specific about what makes a product work is more work than short, specs-driven guides.  There’s also a lot of sponsored gear articles out there. We go deep, testing gear over hundreds or thousands of miles of backpacking or entire seasons of guiding in Alaska.

Second, the outdoor media space has always been dominated by cliché able-bodied rugged outdoorsmen. Yet the outdoors has physical and mental health benefits for every person and every type of body. Treeline Review is where people of all backgrounds can feel seen and get outdoor expertise from people like themselves.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Since we haven’t been able to go to many outdoor-themed festivals in the past two years, partnering with outdoor brands through contests and giveaways has been a considerable way to share audiences.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Hang in there! The first 6 months were the most difficult for me because there was so much unknown. I struggled over the big and small decisions: what to call the company, whether to be an LLC or S-Corp, what stories should our website feature, and what color to make outgoing links. I learned that the more decisions you make, the easier each subsequent decision is.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

The Later app is my favorite for scheduling social media posts. Our audience is often active when I have meetings or am deep into writing or editing, so Later gives me back a few hours of peak productivity.

My favorite business book is Let My People Go Surfing by Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia. It’s about creating a work culture where people can have the flexibility to do the things they love. Happier workers mean they’re more likely to stick around and grow with you.

I love the (now canceled) Start-Up podcast by Gimlet Media. Hearing about other entrepreneurs and the sticky positions they’ve been able to get out of has been a morale boost as we grow Treeline Review.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

It’s low-tech, but I love my Panda Planner Venture for Entrepreneurs. This daily/weekly/monthly/quarterly planner helps me prioritize and not overcommit. I appreciate the daily prompts: 1) what am I grateful for?; 2) what am I excited about? And 3) what’s my daily exercise and renewal plan? Answering and committing to these items at the beginning of the morning keeps me energized throughout the day and helps prevent burnout.

Who is your business role model? Why?

My business role model is Brian Lam, the founder of Wirecutter and Lifehacker before that. As a fellow Asian American and first-generation American, I’m inspired by his ability to create useful websites where people can learn about the world and expand their horizons. He values people above all. To writers and editors, he told us that when our readers purchase what we recommend, they are entrusting us with their money. There’s a duty and responsibility to our work.

How do you balance work and life?

I know too many people in outdoor media who barely ever get outside. To combat that, Naomi and I set up a workshare system so that each year, both of us can be balanced and restored by extended time in nature.

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Going for a hike! To prevent myself from working 16-hour days, I also sign up for yoga class at the end of the day to signal to my mind and body that it is the end of my workday.

What do you have planned for the next six months?

We’re planning to get face-to-face with our readers more in 2022. We’ll start with more Facebook and Instagram Live events and (hopefully) get to meet people in person at outdoor and hiking festivals as the year progresses.

How can our readers connect with you?

We’re at www.treelinereview.com. Subscribe to the newsletter or follow us on Instagram www.instagram.com/treelinereview or Facebook www.fb.com/treelinereview.

“What unique angle can you bring to the conversation?” with Kathy Sucich

Kathy Sucich is the Host and Executive Producer of the Smarter Healthcare Podcast, which is distributed on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Deezer. She is also Vice President of Marketing at Dimensional Insight, a data analytics company based in the Boston area. When she is not working, Kathy is an avid reader, Marvel movie watcher, and Peloton-er. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband, three daughters, and a dog.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I went to college in New Hampshire, which is the state that hosts the first-in-the-nation Presidential primary every four years. I had some friends who were involved in the college radio station, and because I was a government major with an interest in American politics, they asked if I would join the radio station to interview presidential candidates as they swung through town. I did, and was instantly hooked on broadcasting. I ended up becoming news director and anchoring our Election Night coverage in 1996. That was the birth of my career in communications!

After college, I worked as a television news writer and producer for a few years before making my way into the relatively more stable world of technology public relations. I worked at a PR agency for about nine years and then did some freelance writing and public relations before joining my current company. I have now been at Dimensional Insight for nine years in a variety of marketing roles. I started as a part-time PR & Social Media Manager and I’ve worked my way up to VP of the department.

In January 2020, after probably about a year of both noodling on the idea and putting all the right pieces into place, I launched the Smarter Healthcare Podcast to profile people working on the front lines of healthcare innovation. The launch of the podcast felt a bit like coming full circle, going back to my roots in broadcasting, but in a modern way.

What inspired you to start your podcast?

Healthcare is one of the primary vertical markets in which Dimensional Insight has customers, and over the years, I’ve immersed myself in the world of healthcare technology. I’ve found that there are so many interesting stories in this area that I wanted to share, from applications of telehealth, to artificial intelligence, to VR and robotics. And with my background in broadcasting, I was itching to do something “on air.” A podcast seemed to be the logical way to combine these interests.

How did you start it? What were the first steps you took?

The first step was to figure out what I was good at, and what I was not so good at. I determined that my strengths lied in booking and interviewing guests. My weaknesses were in audio editing and distributing the podcast. So I opted at the outset to not even worry about those aspects of the podcast and outsource them. I’m currently working with a great editor and a great podcast distributor, and I couldn’t be happier to have these tasks off of my plate.

Next, I gave a lot of thought as to my audience and angle for the Smarter Healthcare Podcast. There were a lot of different directions in which I could have taken the podcast, but ultimately, I decided that I wanted to focus it on the technologies and people who are shaping the future of healthcare.

The last initial step was to start booking and interviewing guests. There comes a point where you have to turn your thoughts into action, and just do the darned thing. I had thought about doing a podcast for many, many months, and actually starting to do it was both exciting and scary.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your podcast?

We have LinkedIn and Twitter accounts for the Smarter Healthcare Podcast where we promote new episodes, and we also cross-promote on our Dimensional Insight LinkedIn and Twitter feeds, as well as our corporate website. In addition, I ask my guests to promote the podcast. I’ve found that typically, the episodes that have the most downloads are those where the guests themselves have been actively promoting them.

If I were to take a “next step” in terms of promoting my podcast, I would look into paid opportunities, such as advertising or joining a podcast network.

What have been your biggest challenges when launching your podcast?

Hands down, the top challenge has been the COVID-19 pandemic! I initially wanted to do most of my interviews in person, because I felt that made for a better conversation, so I tried to schedule interviews either at conferences I attended or with somewhat local guests. In fact, my Episode 2 guest was an in-person interview I had with a global health professor at Dartmouth College, my alma mater. We talked for a few minutes about this virus in China that we were starting to hear about, and then about a month after that interview aired, the whole world shut down.

After that, all my interviews went virtual. Although I was initially disappointed at that, I’ve found it’s alright because it actually broadens the pool of people I can interview, and I have had guests from all around the world. I now conduct my interviews on Zoom and request that guests keep their cameras on so I can see them so it’s more like an in-person interview where you can better read pauses or non-verbal cues in the conversation.

How do you monetize your podcast? What are your best tips to monetize a podcast?

Our podcast is currently not monetized, since it is financed by Dimensional Insight. Monetization is definitely something I have given thought to, though, if we ever look to broadly expand in the future.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new podcasters?

My biggest piece of advice goes back to the audience and the angle for your podcast. Really give some thought as to who you’re targeting, and what you can provide to them that’s different from what they’ll get anywhere else. There are so many podcasts out there these days, so it’s important to think about what makes yours unique.

A follow-up piece of advice would be to stick to that angle! Yes, you will find other interesting stories or things you will want to share with your listenership, but you don’t have to be everything to everyone. Less is often more, as they say.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

Favorite app: Peloton. It’s important for me to have an outlet outside of my work, and during the pandemic, my husband and I hopped on the Peloton bandwagon. I love having an endless number of workouts to choose from every day on my Peloton app and being a part of a supportive, albeit virtual, community.

Favorite blog: NY Times Live Feed. The “live” blog on the NY Times website is one of the first places I go for news each day. It gives me a quick synopsis of what is important in the world today without being too much of a news overload.

Favorite book: The Plot. Gosh, this one is hard, so I picked the best book I read in the last year. The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz was great – good characters, good pacing, and quite an ending! I have a Bookstagram account @books.happen on Instagram if you want to see some of the other books I read throughout the year.

What's your favorite business/podcast tool or resource? Why?

Honestly, I think the best podcast resource is just listening to other podcasts. It helps me figure out what is newsworthy, what is interesting, and what is appealing as a podcast listener.

I listen to NPR’s Up First every morning. Similar to the NY Times live blog, it keeps me up to date on the news each day. Less frequent in my rotation (but still great shows) are The Daily by the NY Times, which goes more in-depth into a newsworthy topic, and NPR’s How I Built This with Guy Raz, which profiles entrepreneurs and how they built their businesses.

Also, WTF with Marc Maron is an outstanding podcast. I spent a lot of time listening to Marc Maron and how he interviews guests prior to starting my own podcast. Although I don’t think I could ever be as good of an interviewer as Marc is, it is certainly something I aspire to.

What projects do you have planned for the next six months?

I am headed out to a healthcare technology conference in a couple of months – the first conference that I will attend in more than two years! I talked earlier about how I originally wanted to conduct all of my podcast interviews in person. I’m hoping to connect with people for interviews during that conference if I can. I recognize that even post-COVID (if that day ever comes), I will still do many of my interviews virtually, but it would be nice to start to weave in some interviews that I’ve conducted in person if possible.

How can our readers connect with you?

Both the Smarter Healthcare Podcast and my company, Dimensional Insight, can be found online, as well as on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Smarter Healthcare Podcast

https://www.smarthcpodcast.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/smarthcpodcast/

https://twitter.com/SmartHCPodcast

Dimensional Insight

https://www.dimins.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/dimensional-insight/

https://twitter.com/DI_tweet

"Please stop, think carefully about how passionate you are" with Dr. Wellner

 Dr. Wellner was drawn to medicine at a young age, inspired by her father’s work in the medical field. In college, she pursued international mission trips, and this passion for service and healthcare is reflected throughout her illustrious career. From founding several international medical programs to providing free breast cancer screenings and services to the underserved and uninsured, Dr. Wellner truly embodies the values of her oath.

Her acclaimed career is marked by her dedication to patients and her belief in overall wellness. After witnessing her patients experience the trauma associated with a breast cancer diagnosis along with the psychosocial, emotional, and physical consequences of a surgically altered body, Dr. Wellner dedicated two years to pioneering a state-of-the-art Oncoplastics Program at Hackensack University Medical Center. This innovative approach integrates breast cancer tumor removal with reconstructive surgery.

Dr. Wellner began her career as an Assistant Clinical Professor at Mount Sinai Hospital. She went on to serve as an Attending Physician at The Beth Israel Medical Center. In 2009, after being appointed to be the Director of Breast Services at The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, Dr. Wellner continued her mission to provide exceptional healthcare and she developed the center into a satellite of the NAPBC-accredited Continuum Cancer Centers of New York.

In 2015, after serving on the surgical faculty at Hackensack University Medical Center, she accepted the position of Senior Breast Surgeon at Montefiore Medical Center. At that time, Dr. Wellner had established a stellar reputation and was at the forefront of cancer medicine. As the Senior Breast Surgeon, she saw patients immediately after they had been diagnosed with breast cancer to develop an aggressive and comprehensive treatment plan with them.

She is the acclaimed author of the Dr. Roo children’s series, where Dr. Roo the Kangaroo and her group of friends teach children the importance of staying healthy.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

As a physician, I know a great deal about health problems, how to diagnose them, and solve them.  Basically, the mystery is a "differential diagnosis" as Doctoroo first rules out other causes of the problem at hand until the clues lead her to the right conclusion.  I love kids and want to see them grow up healthy and happy, especially in these precarious times of pandemic- I chose to focus on what we CAN do, not what we can't, to help maintain and improve our health, starting with the youngest young.

What inspired you to start your business?

I truly enjoy spreading positive messages.  I've done many television spots about breast cancer (my specialty), and I've always loved delivering a message to the public in a digestible way so that everyone can understand perhaps a complex medical issue by boiling it down to the basics.  I actually have had a lot of fun on podcasts, and I often feel like I'm being interviewed by a good friend, even if the interviewer is tough! I came up with the inspiration for Doctoroo 20 years ago, but I didn’t think I had the ability to write for children, so I decided not to pursue my dream.  I regret not doing so at the time, and I encourage others to pursue their dreams and not to let limiting beliefs stop them! With the help of some experts and self-training, I learned the necessary skills to write for kids, and in no time Doctoroo materialized.  My background in international health served as an inspirational driving force to create Doctoroo as a global physician, solving health mysteries around the world, in the process teaching health lessons around the world.  By doing so, she teaches not only about good health and hygiene but also teaches kids about an important landmark or two in each book. 

Where is your business based?

I am based in Los Angeles, but I have the flexibility to write from anywhere.  Doctoroo, on the other hand, is primarily based in rural Australia.  Her medical practice brings her all over the world, as she is a global physician.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I started with a simple ‘treatment.’ In other words, I outlined what the first story was going to be about. I knew how the book was going to end before it began and then I wrote the story with a beginning, middle, and end, appropriately arcing the story to spend about a third of the book, in the beginning, a third in the middle, and a third in the end.  I used the medical convention of a ‘differential diagnosis’ to create the mystery.  A differential diagnosis relies upon the various causes behind a specific illness, for instance ‘can an illness be caused by an infection, a birth defect, a tumor, an occupational exposure, etc.’ I used simple causes of what could be the mysterious culprit of an illness to create a mystery that would keep children engaged.  Doctoroo would narrow down the causes in each book until she finally nailed the cause, solved the mystery, and cured the patient.  The books are meant to be very satisfying for the readers, as they solve the case along with Doctoroo and save the day, while they learn important basic health lessons! 

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

I owe a lot of credit to the brilliant publicists I’ve surrounded myself with, who have arranged several podcast appearances, virtual tours, and interviews.  I have also done quite a bit of social media. 

 What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

The following dictum has taken me decades to realize: writing plus creativity equals passion for me.  That is the formula behind my makes me tick.  Sadly, if I would have put it off any longer, I think I would have done damage to my soul, I can’t think of a better inspiration for this long-awaited project.  I lived with putting this off for most of my adult life, and initiating a writing career became one of my biggest challenges, as it became harder and harder to start.  Fortunately, I began writing in the nick of time!    

How do you stay focused?

I think I have a humorous answer to this question.  For most of my life, people have called me a “jack of all trades, master of none.” While I’m a natural multi-tasker, that’s not exactly true, as anything I’ve put my mind to, I’ve been sure to master.  For instance, as a surgeon, I certainly mastered my subspecialty in order to provide my patients with the highest standard of care.  For me, it’s been no different as a writer, and I have to say that the practice of writing has included re-writing and re-writing and re-writing.  Practice makes perfect, as they say.  No one gets it right the first time- anyone embarking on a writing career should be prepared to do a lot of re-writing, in my opinion.   

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?  

Doctoroo represents the perfect role model for children as a kangaroo doctor.  Marsupials inherently contain a pouch, and Doctoroo is no exception, sporting a sparkling pouch that contains all of her medical supplies when she’s about to go on a mission! Add that to her piloting expertise and globetrotting and Doctoroo is certainly a role model for children everywhere.  While teaching basic health lessons to kids along with her furry friends, she certainly pushes the envelope, challenging kids to learn, at times, complex topics, while solving exciting mysteries.  I believe that Doctoroo is unrivaled as a media character today. 

 What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

I would say the synergism of podcasts, virtual book sours, and social media has represented a trifecta of sorts.  A little tip: If you promote your books/blogs on social media, always retweet it, “like” it or “love it, or send it around again.  This is how the algorithms work.  The more you re-circulate the social media campaigns, the higher the ad campaign appears on the search engine. 

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Please stop, think carefully about how passionate you are, and whether or not you have the resources and the bandwidth to proceed with a project of this magnitude.  This is not a side project—it is life-consuming.  Luckily for me, I enjoy every minute of it.  If you feel the same way, I would say a project like this is for you.  I'm finding that just getting the book out there and sharing Doctoroo and friends with the world is challenging, but the books are starting to gain traction, which warms my heart.  I believe in these adorable, noble characters and hope that everyone can reap the benefits of reading about them.  The take-home message is: love what you’re doing, whether it’s successful or not.  You can’t predict success, but you can love what you do.    

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

I have so many role models, this is hard to answer! However, as a child growing up, I can recall Judy Blume and Carolyn Keene's (Nancy Drew series) books representing a couple of my favorites.  Judy Blume wrote great coming of age books for young girls and Keene wrote exciting mysteries for young girls.  Thirty-plus years later and I still remember them! Of course, I’ll never forget the classics I read later, but who can forget these formative gems?

How do you balance work and life?

This is a work in progress.  Self-care has always been a challenge for me, but I’m working to achieve it- I practice Yoga almost daily, I eat healthfully, I try to ensure I sleep 8 hours nightly, I exercise daily, and try to maintain good social supports.  I admit I still work much harder than I should, but let’s just say balance is my 2022 New Year’s Resolution!

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

I love to exercise, so I try to work that in tennis, running, swimming, yoga, Pilates, spinning, hiking, to name a few.  Somewhere in the middle of all of that, I have to squeeze in some travel! I also enjoy reading, Netflix, and writing (as you know)!)

What do you have planned for the next six months?

I plan to release 2 more Doctoroo books.  I have a movie on the horizon called Blonde Doctors (stay tuned!) I’m also the founder and CEO of a biotech company called Caelum Diagnostic Solutions, which is a real-time cancer diagnostic company poised to yield cancer diagnoses in seconds for patients with suspicious diagnoses.  To put it lightly, I have a lot on my plate! If all goes well, the next six months will include some marketing tours, appearances, book signings, and more! My dreams include a cartoon series for Doctoroo as well as some merchandising opportunities for the characters. Of course, a lot will depend on the global pandemic- as a physician and humanitarian, it is my daily wish that our world will survive this pandemic and turn it into a memory. 

How can our readers connect with you?

Please find me at www.doctoroo.health.  I’m also on Instagram at Rachel Wellner.  My website is Drrachelwellner.com. 

I have two Facebook pages:  rachelwellner@hotmail.com and Rachelwellner@gmail.com and I’m on Linked in as Rachel Wellner.  I’m also building a super site for blogging.  I’ll keep you posted on that one!

" Trust the inner you" with Ladi Goldwire

Ladi Goldwire is a State licensed General Contractor and Building Code Administrator certified through the International Code Council. She has over 15 years of experience in the construction industry. Her primary focus has been on the creation and expansion of small to medium size construction firms. She has found a passion for hemp construction which is sustainable and economical. Ladi is extremely dedicated to mentoring and empowering women in business.

1. Can you tell our readers about your background? 

I am happy too. I am a small business owner who lives in beautiful South Florida. I am a native of the state. I am a practicing General Contractor and State Licensed Building Code Administrator. Licensed for well over 15 years, I’ve gone on to secure licensure as a Home Inspector, Real Estate Agent, and Licensed Property Adjuster. My children are all adults and I have a 2-year-old grandson named Liam. I am a mental health and industrial hemp (cannabis) advocate. I enjoy writing and eagerly awaiting the release of Woman You Are, my memoir this March. 

2. What inspired you to start your business? 

I was inspired to start my business by way of default. If I am honest, I could not find employment years ago that could adequately support me trying to raise my three children. I was always around the industry. My father was a block mason. His father was a tile setter. Initially, I doubted whether or not I could make it work but going into business for myself is by far one of the best decisions I have ever made for myself and for my family. 

3. Where is your business based? 

My business is located in West Palm Beach, Florida. It is a beautiful city about 60 miles north of Miami. Because of its central location I am able to perform work throughout the tri-county area which encompasses Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami. 

4. How did you start your business? 

I was able to start my construction company in 2006. It was relatively difficult only because it wasn’t as simple as just securing a business name and registering it with the state. In order to advertise and call me a contractor, I had to study for and sit for a state exam. Also, I had to complete a four-year apprenticeship and prove to the state board that I met the minimum qualifications. I wanted to make sure there were no limitations to the license with regard to what types of construction I could engage in. In Florida, contractors are classified as residential contractors( 2 stories) building contractors( 3 stories), and general contractors ( unlimited story height). It was important to me to secure the unlimited license. The state laws prohibit you from advertising as a contractor if in fact, you don’t have the appropriate licensing. For these reasons, starting my business included a few additional steps 

5. What were the first steps you took?

I kind of mentioned that earlier but essentially licensure was the biggest step. After, I secured an EIN number with the IRS for tax purposes, registered with the state, and then I opened a bank account. I made fliers and called every contact I had in my phone to let them know I was open and available to do small jobs. I also made it a point to certify my business with the federal government, securing the classification as a Minority Owned Women Business. All of these steps were critical to my being able to pull off starting a general contracting firm. Actually finding work and putting systems in place that have more or less evolved over the years. 

6. What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Word of mouth, not doubt. I have had my greatest success and got the greater portion of my business through referrals. As you are aware social media has changed the idea of marketing and customer outreach. I can truly say my business has only been enhanced by social media now that I have a handle on how to use it to promote my business. Many of my business also comes by way of real estate agents. Over the years, I have found a means to carve out a niche for my business. So much of what I do is centered around cleaning up and legitimizing unpermitted work. Because most agents can’t transfer property without making sure all open, expired, and violation permits are cleared this has turned out to be a very lucrative pathway for my firm. 

7. What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

Overcoming my biggest challenges has not been easy but it has been doable. I have always held to the mantra that what is happening to you is also happening for you. Because of that I try my best to push through. I am always open to exploring new and innovative options and I like to rely heavily on data, past experience, market trends, and leaning into what “feels right”. More times than none my intuition has served me right and I have been able to avoid major mistakes by simply listening to my gut. Staring the challenge in the face and peeling back the layers until you can find a resolution is really the only way to defeat hard times, in my opinion. Another method that has proven successful in avoiding many challenging situations is getting the hard conversations out of the way first. It is a relatively simple concept but something many of us would rather avoid. By having difficult conversations- asking all of the hard questions up front, I have found that you can avoid many of the hiccups that come along with guessing outcomes and expectations. 

8. How do you stay focused? 

I struggle to focus if I am perfectly honest. I was diagnosed with ADHD in my teens and it has been a thorn in my side in every sense. I don’t know that I am successful at maintaining focus however I am able to home in on deadlines and I always envision the satisfying feeling of completing a task. I also make lots of lists. I keep them everywhere. Once I have things out of my head and on paper I like to challenge myself to begin an item on that list and see it through to completion. Notorious for starting tasks before I complete others, I am constantly trying to rid myself of the habit by forcing myself to finish the things I start. It doesn’t always work but it is always the goal. 

9. How do you differentiate your business from the competition? 

My business is quite different from many general contracting firms in that much of what I do is on the front side of construction. While I do engage in new and renovation construction at least 45% of my business centers around project management, planning, and resolving permitting and project licensing roadblocks my clients may run into. Because so much happens prior to shoveling in-ground, the services that I offer are invaluable. Many of us in this industry are super focused on what happens vertically. So much of the magic happens long before any dirt is turned over. My business offers insight and plans for the obstacles before they present. The reassurance that we offer in my firm is what many of our clients pay top dollar for. 

10. What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Social media has proven to be a gem. I completely underestimated its value in the beginning but over the last decade, it has made a world of difference. The reach that I have been able to obtain via social media has proven to be a critical component of my market strategy where growing my business is concerned. Although the strategy fluctuates, the goal is to reach as many people in my market as possible who are willing to pay for comfort and convenience. 

11. What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

The best piece of advice I would give to aspiring and new entrepreneurs is to trust the inner you. The inner you is working in sync with the Universe to ensure that you will be successful. Keep the details of what you are trying to birth by way of your dream and vision close to the vest. Share what needs to be shared in order to move your plan forward. However, don’t overshare. So many people are unintentionally positioning themselves to talk you out of your dream and if you are too vocal about it in its infancy stages you may thwart the possibilities with all the noise. Listen beneath the noise and push your dream forward. Study the competition and learn as much you can about your competition and your industry. 

12. What's your favorite app, blog, and book? 

My favorite blog currently belongs to my daughter-in-law. It’s www.saskyann.com 13. Why?

She is a young school teacher specializing in English literature who happens to also be a foodie. She is super fun and super passionate about inspiring young kids in inner cities to learn. She makes it so fun. It is really cool to see all of the innovative ways she is able to present new methods of learning to children. Teachers are so underrated. This pandemic has been so hard on educators and to see up close and personal the sacrifice they make to invest and mold children is amazing to me. 

14. What's your favorite business tool or resource? My favorite business resource is Inc. com’s business courses they offer in varying subjects about entrepreneurship. I am always stalking their site to see what they will showcase next. I enjoy being able to purchase and participate in their curriculums. 

Why? I enjoy there's so much because they are typically in tandem with what is going on in the market and its information is always fresh and representative of the latest trend. 

15. Who is your business role model? Mark Cuban and Jay-Z. Why? Both men took a very nontraditional approach to both starting and heading up their businesses. They are both gut thinkers and they both seem to live by the practice of that you don’t have to be a jerk to be in charge. They lean into their truest assets - their employees. I hear they are great people to work for. 

16. How do you balance work and life? 

I balance work and life in all honesty by not buying into the concept that I have to balance it. So much of being an entrepreneur means that your work and your play is intertwined. If you are approaching it in the right way it is. I don’t want to compartmentalize business and work. I know that is not a popular opinion but I don’t, however my work is a huge part of my life. I am keenly aware that I work to live as opposed to living to work- but I also know that so much of who I am is my work. I don’t take issue with nor am I of the mindset that work is bad or taxing and I don’t view it as keeping my nose to the grind. I am happy to be doing something I love and because it does not feel like work- I am not looking to extract it and create a separate space for it in my life. 

17. What’s your favorite way to decompress? 

I love to listen to podcasts. I totally enjoy listening to music and I love the art of sitting still. Sitting still would be my favorite out of those three. I like to get quiet. Evaluate all of the things I am super grateful for and just give thought to how fortunate I am to have my life. It is not a perfect one but I feel as if I have created a pretty amazing space of living for myself. 18. What do you have planned for the next six months? 

I am eagerly looking forward to a year of travel provided this pandemic will slow down a bit. I want to visit Greece and Africa. I have them planned for March and December respectively and I am counting down. I have my memoir tentatively scheduled for

March of 2022. It is called “Woman You Are” and I have several additional professional certifications that I am actively pursuing. That will keep me busy for the next six months, I am sure. 

19. How can our readers connect with you? 

Viewers can find me on Instagram @gcgalladi and @brinmarconstruction.

Website: https://www.brinmarelite.com/home

"“If not now, when? If not you, who? Get your plan together and jump in” with Kathleen London

Photo Credit: Linda Dobel Photography

Kathleen London has brought a taste of the UK to the Main Streets of Michigan- building upon years of retail industry experience to found London Beauty, a cheeky beauty space that allows customers to express and embrace their individuality through independently owned, cruelty-free makeup and skincare products.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I was born and raised in the Midwest, and moved to New York City shortly after college. Making it to The Big Apple & experiencing all NYC has to offer was always a big dream of mine. I soon entered the world of high-end luxury retail, working as an executive for brands such as Sergio Rossi, Max Mara, and Mackenzie Childs. I also managed the Madison Avenue Barney’s NY and fell in love with the cosmetics floor there. It was at that time that brands were launching exclusively in places like Barneys, and hearing the founder’s stories & being able to play across brands sounded extremely freeing. From there, I soon found myself driving down the Main Street of Brighton, Michigan- where I discovered a tiny little gem with a ‘for rent’ sign. That gem would become the first London Beauty location- a posh, UK-inspired storefront that encapsulates everything I love about beauty and retail.

What inspired you to start your business?

As a woman, I have always felt that the makeup and skincare industry tends to try to lump us into a single category. Young or old, full glam or all-natural. It was frustrating because I feel like I could be in any category on any given day. I craved a place where women could go & not feel judged, feel free to ask all the questions they want, and buy what makes them feel awesome at that moment.

Where is your business based?

We are happily based in Southeast Michigan, with hopes to expand into more areas of the Midwest.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I had the idea for London Beauty many, many years ago, but life & love finally brought me to the place where I had the support and the ability to execute it– Brighton, Michigan. I began by making lists and hiring an amazing designer to craft our logo. It was like getting into costume– it truly set the stage for everything else.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Getting yourself and your team to truly live and reflect your brand in every aspect of the day. It motivates those you encounter to get curious and check you out. In the early days of a business, this is the most cost-effective strategy.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

Money, money, money. There is a lending gap for women-owned businesses. Banks don’t like to back us. Find ways to run lean, open small, and grow organically. And absolutely use your support system to keep yourself sane.

How do you stay focused?

The question really is– how do I stop focusing? When it’s your own business, it’s hard not to be myopic. You wake up at 3 AM remembering a task or brainstorming an idea. Delegating and letting go is the challenge.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition? 

Kindness. We focus on making each client feel heard, and then giving them the London Beauty experience. In today’s industry, it amazes me that this is a missing element.  

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Word of mouth. It really is the best, most inexpensive way to get your message out. I remember hearing a story about Jo Malone when she first launched in NYC– she would have her friends take her beautiful shopping bags with them when they walked their dogs on Madison Ave. Absolutely brilliant.  

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Go for it! If not now, when? If not you, who? Get your plan together and jump in.  

What's your favorite app, blog, and book?

Lately, I’ve been obsessed with the fitness rings on my Apple Watch– chalk it up to January! I don’t read many blogs, but I love to read to decompress. My favorite series right now is the Inspector Gamache Mysteries by Louise Penny. It’s extremely well written and allows me to completely escape!

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

My favorite resources are my fellow female business owners. During the pandemic, I found great comfort by sitting between 2 other women leading businesses. With them, I can cheer, cry, brainstorm, and find partners.

Who is your business role model? Why?

I have so many business role models! Bosses from my past, fellow female founders, industry leaders. Inspiration can be found everywhere.

How do you balance work and life?

I know it sounds trite– but seriously, it never feels like work when you love what you do.

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Working in the beauty industry has many perks! I get the fun of trying all of the fun products I see at home. Right now I’m playing with a new Crystal IR Mat & Light Therapy Mask!

What do you have planned for the next six months?

London Beauty is currently acquiring a new location, so we are hyper-focused on making sure we have that baby up & running as smoothly as our original location!

How can our readers connect with you?

The best way to see what we’re up to & connect is on our Instagram- @LondonBeautyOnline. Feel free to ask our team questions & hit us up anytime!

www.londonbeautyonline.com

www.instagram.com/londonbeautyonline

www.facebook.com/londonbeautyonline

www.twitter.com/londonbeautykat