Cup of Ambition Podcast

Kelsey L. Schulz is an entertainment attorney with a super busy job - she's the senior counsel for female-driven media company Kin Community, managing all of their talent, vendor, and crew agreements, distribution and licensing deals, COVID-19 industry regulations, and advising on all corporate, pre-litigation, production, and intellectual property matters. It's a big job, but if anyone can handle it, it's Kelsey.  We talk about how she got into this area of law and her advice for others looking to get into the entertainment industry, be it music, TV, film, or theater law, either on the talent or the production side. Kelsey's the mom of the cutest baby ever, and we talk about her advice for other new moms with big jobs and how she manages all of the important things in her life.  Another big part of Kelsey's life is volunteer work and philanthropy. She volunteers weekly with Chrysalis, helping people in Los Angeles find jobs and reenter the workforce. We have a really honest discussion about Kelsey's expectations for how she thought she'd be able to help people as an attorney, why doing pro bono work wasn't realistic, and why she decided to work with Chrysalis on job preparation and readiness instead. Kelsey is such an inspiration and I was so happy to get the chance to chat with her! Find her on LinkedIn here.  00:05:00: What is Kelsey's job and where does she work? 00:06:10: What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:09:32: What is the day-to-day of a busy entertainment attorney? 00:17:48: What's the difference between being an attorney for talent, a production company, an agency, and the other different niches in the entertainment industry? 00:24:52: What are some of the misconceptions about Kelsey's job?  00:28:42: What are the rewards and challenges of Kelsey's job? 00:31:12: What does she look for when hiring staff? 00:34:48: What type of nonprofit work does she do? 00:43:23: How does someone advance as an entertainment lawyer - what does that look like? 00:50:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Kelsey give to her younger self? What were some of her biggest career mistakes and what did she learn from them?  01:02:00: Listener questions and our lightening round 

Do you remember studying for the SATs or ACTs and how mind-numbingly boring it was? Kalyan Ray-Mazumder does. He's a perfect-scoring SAT/ACT tutor who has taught over 10,000 hours of test prep while working as a professional Off-Broadway/film actor. He realized that his students learned better when they were laughing and enjoying the material - and their improved scores followed.  While working on his MBA at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business, he founded Prepmedians, which is at the intersection of test prep and comedian. Through SNL Weekend Update and comedy-style segments, Kalyan and his team help their students, laugh, learn, and crush the SAT/ACT. With over 220k followers on TikTok, Prepmedians is totally disrupting the staid test prep game. Kalyan and I talk about how he got here, the rewards and challenges of his business, how he markets it to students, and his advice to building a business. 00:04:13: What's Kalyan's job and where does he work? 00:08:27: What has his career trajectory looked like? Kalyan tells us how as a professional actor in NYC, he was disappointed at the stereotypical range of "brown" roles available and how Prepmedians allows him represent his identity in a positive way.  00:14:00: What does Kalyan's day-to-day look like? 00:18:50: What does he look for when building a team? 00:21:00: We talk about how remote learning has changed in the face of COVID-19. 00:26:00: What misconceptions do people have about the test prep industry? 00:29:00: What are the rewards and challenges of his job? 00:35:51: Kalyan's advice to someone building a business with or without an MBA. 00:40:00: How does Kalyan market his business? What has and hasn't worked?  00:48:12: Back to the future - what advice would Kalyan give to his younger self? 00:54:16: What advice would Kalyan give to his younger self? 00:57:18: Listener questions and our lightning round.   

Makeda Mutema-Newton is a talented and super smart event strategist and the founder of Events Unlocked. She helps creative entrepreneurs plan profitable workshops, retreats, and conferences with attendee experience at their core. She's written a 200+ page book with a detailed step-by-step guide on planning your event, and has tons of resources available at her site. She focuses on helping entrepreneurs plan an event that'll be both hugely valuable for attendees AND turn a profit for the person planning it.  Makeda has worked so hard on her business, and I'm so excited to see it grow over the years. We talk about everything from how she got started to a detailed step-by-step of the most common mistakes people make when planning their conference, retreat, or workshop. 00:03:15: What's Makeda's job and what does she do? 00:08:44: What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:16:30: What are the rewards and challenges of her business? 00:23:00: How does she market her business? 00:41:00: What are the most common mistakes people make when planning their event? 00:50:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Makeda give to her younger self? 00:54:34: A Day in the Life: What does her day to day look like? Then, our listener questions and a lightning round. 

Caroline Ballerstedt saw a lot of people in her city of Providence, Rhode Island struggling with homelessness, addiction, and a lack of services like safe housing, access to food, and harm reduction care. Instead of saying, "I'm not a social worker," or "I'm not qualified to help," or "I don't know how to help," she just.... started doing it. Caroline works a full-time job in the medical field, but fit her outreach work into her evenings and weekends. She's a testament to the fact that you can do good things even without a specific degree or job title.  Caroline started cooking big batches of hot vegan meals and giving them out to people living on the streets of her community. She then started creating safe injection kits, carrying around essential supplies like tampons, socks, and hand sanitizer, and her biweekly evening outreach became Compassion Kitchen Providence.  Caroline doesn't see herself as a savior, and is loath to take the spotlight (but I'm willing to shine it on her and say she's incredible). She sees the people in her community first as people, and believes in meeting them where they are, listening to them, and giving them love, support, a hot meal, and a friendly ear.  We talk a lot about the concept of harm reduction, which can be a controversial topic in the field of outreach and addiction. Caroline tells us why she believes that harm reduction is a more effective, safe approach than abstinence, what macro policies she think would help the homeless/unhoused population in her city, and her advice to people looking to do harm reduction outreach in their own communities.  Compassion Kitchen Instagram Compassion Kitchen Wish List 00:06:00: What is outreach work?  What does Caroline do? 00:10:53: What does she bring with her? 00:15:00: What is harm reduction, anyway? 00:23:00: What are the most important needs she sees in her community - food? Tents? Clothing? Personal hygiene products like sanitizer and toothpaste? 00:29:00: What, on a macro policy level, does she think will help with the issues of safe housing and addiction? 00:38:00: What are some misconceptions about outreach work and harm reduction? 00:40:35: How does she get all the supplies she brings? 00:46:00: What are the rewards and challenges of this work? 00:50:00: What's her advice to people looking to do outreach work in their own community? 00:58:00: Back to the Future, Listener Questions, and Lightning Round

Tori Horowitz is the founder and estate director of CanyonHaus, the coolest real estate agency in LA. Tori is a marketing genius and has crafted a really cool, bohemian, artistic brand for her company, and has built it into a successful business with a really talented team.  She was born and raised in West LA and has an intimate knowledge of the city, especially the Laurel Canyon area where she lives and works (she shares some of this cool history in the episode). After a career as an actress, writer, and talent rep, she got into real estate and prospered despite the 2008 recession. Her Masters degree in Spiritual Psychology gives her a more thoughtful, intuitive approach to the sometimes cutthroat world of LA real estate. In this episode we discuss how Tori transitioned into real estate, how she uses her creative talent in this career, how she built up CanyonHaus and hired a team, and how she's been able to thrive even during recessions and pandemics. Throw in some Los Angeles history and hidden gems and some very good advice about dreaming big, and you have one of our favorite episodes yet!   00:03:50: What’s Tori’s job and where does she work? 00:05:44: How did she identify and fill such a great niche? 00:08:11: What was her last 9-5 and what’s her career trajectory looked like? 00:21:14: What are the rewards and challenges of her business? 00:34:08: How does she market CanyonHaus - what’s worked and what hasn’t? 00:43:05: How has she been able to be flexible enough to be successful during recessions and pandemics? 00:50:30: Back to the Future and Listener Questions

I've been a huge fan of the amazing Meghann Rosales of Austin-based Nails Y'all for years, and was so excited to chat with her about all things art, nails, beauty, and business.  Meghann is a lifelong artist, but started her career in the classroom, teaching history to high school students. She's now a renowned nail artist who in her words, "paints tiny pictures on nails." Meghann's sense of humor and talent means that these tiny pictures range from "boobs doing things" to "the saddest Christmas in the world" to hidden vaginas, entire seascapes, art deco fans, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and so, so much more. Meghann takes individual appointments but also is hired for huge events like Austin City Limits and SXSW, as well as smaller events like bachelorette and birthday parties (sometimes with half-naked butlers in attendance, too). 00:04:00: What is Meghann's job and where does she work? 00:06:00: What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:10:39: What's her usual process for an appointment, and for brainstorming such unique nail art? 00:18:13: How does she market her business - what's worked and what hasn't?  00:22:00: What's her favorite event she's ever worked? 00:35:00: What misconceptions are there about being a nail artist, or about manicures in general? Is dip powder really "good" for your nails? 00:46:00: What are the challenges and rewards of her business? 00:42:00: How can people support the beauty industry during the pandemic? 00:59:00: What advice would Meghann give to her younger self? 01:05:00: Our Listener Questions and Lightning Round  

Kim Grevler is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and certified Life Coach who changes her clients' lives, careers, and relationships for the better. She's the woman behind selfishladies and is all about learning how to set and keep your boundaries.  During the pandemic, a lot of us are feeling like we're struggling to keep up in so many parts of our lives, and Kim is here to give you the no-bullshit advice you need to feel better.  Kim educates and coaches women to first notice how they are operating under fear guilt and obligation to others, and then to understand how the self doubt, resentment and anger that follows is linked to their lack of boundaries and thus lack of confidence and comfort. The work her clients do is challenging, but if committed, they emerge with a new perspective and improved behaviors in your life and relationships. We speak with Kim about how the shadow of fear, guilt, and obligation clouds our judgement and leads to resentment, anger, and unhappiness in all areas of our lives, and how getting to the root of these issues and setting boundaries will make you happier and healthier. We also talk about how she built and marketed her business, and her advice for dealing with workplace issues.    00:07:00 What is Kim's job and where does she work? 00:10:20: What's Kim's career trajectory? How did she go from being an LCSW in a clinical setting to a life coach and business owner? 00:17:48: How is she helping her clients deal with COVID-19 related fears and anxieties? 00:25:00: What are the rewards and challenges of her job? 00:31:40: We talk about the business side of selfishladies. 00:37:50: What advice would Kim give to her younger self? 00:41:40: What are the biggest business mistakes she's made? 00:52:00: Our Lightening Round segment, where she shares "the selfishladies anthem" with us (hint: Whitney Houston is involved).   

Celebrity guest alert! We're so excited to chat with the iconic Chris-Tia Donaldson - she's the founder and CEO of natural hair and skincare manufacturer Thank God It's Natural (tgin), a #1 best-selling author of two books, a two-time breast cancer survivor, a Harvard-educated attorney, and the founder of The tgin Foundation.  Chris-Tia left her corporate job to found tgin and write her first book, Thank God I'm Natural - The Ultimate Job to Caring For and Maintaining Natural Hair. It became a runaway bestseller and was called "The Natural Hair Bible" by Essence, and tgin became a multimillion dollar beauty brand.  In 2015, Chris-Tia was diagnosed with breast cancer.  During her treatment, she learned that having money could make the difference between living and dying when it came to treating this condition. In her observation, few organizations existed that provided support and social services to help women with transportation, child care, parking, or seeking disability leave from their place of employment. She founded the tgin Foundation to help support women living with the disease.  Chris-Tia has a new book, This is Only a Test: What Breast Cancer Taught me about Faith, Love, Hair and Business. She's a true powerhouse, role model, and legend, and we're so excited to have her on the podcast to discuss her business, books, and her story.   00:03:30: What's Chris-Tia's job and what does she do?   00:05:30: How did she get to this point in her career? What's the tgin story?    00:13:00: What was her first book, and what made her want to go from corporate law to beauty?   00:18:03: What does the day-to-day look for a busy CEO? How does she find the right people for her team?   00:22:00: What are some misconceptions about her job? What are the rewards and challenges?   00:27:00: Marketing - what's worked and what hasn't?   00:30:00: Chris-Tia tells us about her new book, This is Only a Test: What Breast Cancer Taught me about Faith, Love, Hair and Business. 00:37:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Chris-Tia give to her younger self?   00:40:46: Listener Questions and our Lightning Round segment   

Kelly Howard had big dreams of career success, and graduating in the middle of our last economic crisis in 2008 didn't stop her. She hustled as hard as she could to find a PR job in the middle of the Great Recession, and it was all up from there. After working her way up in the industry, she got the opportunity of a lifetime: her boss offered her the chance to acquire the agency she worked at, Post+Beam, and Kelly said yes. After a successful rebrand, Kelly has built EightSixtySouth into one of LA's premier strategic communications and PR firms. They serve clients across multiple verticals: Strategy, Public Relations, Digital and Influencer Engagement, Social Media, Copywriting and Events. They've worked with a diverse roster of clients across the fashion, beauty & lifestyle industries, developing multi-faceted, impactful strategies while still focusing on data-driven results. Their expertise includes working with large, national brands such as W Hotels and Men’s Fitness, to boutique brands like The Beach People and Lokai. Kelly chats with us about the huge leaps she's taken in her career, even when it was scary AF. She also shares the best ways to measure your business's PR ROI, and gives invaluable advice to people looking to break into the industry. 00:02:30: What's Kelly's job and where does she work? 00:04:15: What is PR, anyway? How does it differ from advertising and marketing? 00:11:20: What has Kelly's career trajectory looked like? 00:21:37: What services does a PR firm like EightSixtySouth usually offer? 00:32:45: What are some of Kelly's favorite PR success stories? 00:36:40: How does a PR firm successfully pivot as new technologies and platforms become more popular? 00:42:30: Business owners, listen up: Kelly provides invaluable pitching tips to editors and decision-makers. 00:45:54: How do PR firms measure success? 00:50:00: What are the rewards and challenges of Kelly's job? 00:57:44: Back to the Future: what advice would Kelly give to her younger self 01:03:10: Recent grads, listen up: Kelly gives you a roadmap of how to land your dream job, even in an economic crisis. 01:10:31: Lightning Round

Christine Moghadam first got the idea of a cork yoga mat when she traveled to Portugal and learned about the amazing cork trees that dot the landscape. Cork is sustainable, naturally anti-microbial, and the harvesting process is a high-wage job for workers. She realized it would be the perfect material for a yoga mat, and Corc Yoga was born. Made from 100% organic cork sustainably harvested from Portugal, Corc Yoga is committed to providing the most natural products to yogis around the world while supporting sustainable practices, fair wages, & a clean environment. For every yoga mat sold, Corc Yoga donates a percentage of every sale to support a variety of youth mental health programs in Portugal and abroad.   Christine tells us how she created the company and diversified the product line, why sustainability is so important to her, and how the company gives back and supports mental health programs. We also discuss the 2021 Corc Yoga Retreat in Portugal.    00:06:40: What is Christine's job and where does she work?   00:08:00: What's the Corc Yoga origin story?    00:12:30: How is cork a sustainable material? How is it harvested?   00:17:00: What does the day-to-day look like for a busy mom and CEO?   00:23:00: How does Corc Yoga give back through its philanthropy?   00:26:05: How has Christine built her team? What does she look for when hiring?   00:31:11: What are the rewards and challenges of Christine's job?   00:37:13: Back to the Future: what advice would Christine give to her younger self?   00:44:10: Marketing - what's worked and what hasn't?   00:46:00 Listener questions and our final Lightening Round segment  

Charles Clark was on top of the world:  a 3 time National Champion, 10 time All American, and the 6th fastest man in the world, on the precipice of inking a huge sponsorship deal. Then, a devastating quad injury ended his running career, something he'd worked his whole life towards. Charles struggled with how to move forward and what to do with his life and his future, since being a Track & Field superstar was no longer in the picture. He decided to begin sharing his story.  Instead of just talking about success, he spoke about the pain we mask and understanding that it all had a purpose. He started putting on Thrive Events and traveling around the world, impacting tens of thousands of lives each year. He's now an expert in habit improvement, discovering purpose, vision creating and goal setting, and created The Thrive Planner to help people reach their one big goal in 90 days.  In this episode, we discuss Charles' journey, what made him want to start speaking, how he dealt with fear and turned it into ambition, and his advice on reaching big goals one small step at a time.  00:08:00: What's Charles' job and what dies he do? 00:10:23: Charles tells us his story, and how a devastating injury ended his Track and Field career, but changed his life for the better.  00:15:30: We talk about Charles' idea to develop The Thrive Planner. 00:20:40: We discuss speaking engagements - how did he get into speaking for large crowds and Fortune 500 companies? What challenges and fears did he overcome? 00:29:09: We talk about Charles' podcast, The Thrive Tribe Podcast.  00:30:10: We talk about the rewards and challenges of Charles' job, and how the pandemic has affected his work. How has he adapted? 00:37:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Charles give to his younger self? 00:42:17: Listener questions and our Lightning Round segment

Sarah Rubenstein was trying to find a good Christmas gift for her artsy brother Lee when the idea of an art supply subscription box struck. When she couldn't find one, she and Lee decided to create their own, and ArtSnacks was born.  ArtSnacks is a curated subscription box service of unique, high-quality art supplies. Their mission is to inspire people through the discovery of amazing art materials. Every month, subscribers discover new products, limited edition tools, exclusive supplies, and useful techniques. Sarah talks to us about how she and Lee built the business together, when she knew it was time to quit her 9-5 job to pursue ArtSnacks full time, how they've grown their robust online community, and the logistics of running a subscription box business.  00:04:30: What is Sarah's job and what does she do? What was her last 9-5 job? Sarah tells us why she thinks working at a startup is ideal for anyone interested in starting their own business one day.  00:09:21: When did Sarah know it was time to make the leap into full time entrepreneurship? 00:15:49: What did she go to school for? 00:19:17: What is ArtSnacks' origin story? 00:28:48: What are the different subscription tiers and how did they figure out the business side of running ArtSnacks? 00:41:14: How did they grow their online community? What marketing avenues have worked and not worked? 00:55:20: What are the challenges and rewards of running ArtSnacks? 01:01:00: How do Sarah and Lee figure out what goes in each box? 01:03:45: What's her advice to creative entrepreneurs and to people in art school now? 01:06:45: Back to the Future - what advice would Sarah give to her younger self? 01:12:20: Listener Questions: what's her fave art supply ever? What advice would she give for working with family? What's her dream job if it weren't ArtSnacks? What are her favorite museums and who are her favorite artists? and our Lightening Round.  

Leah Koch and her sister Bea raised $91k on Kickstarter to open the nation's only exclusively romance bookstore, The Ripped Bodice. Four years later, it's more successful than ever (even during a pandemic), and Leah is sharing their story on our podcast. It turns out, owning a bookstore isn't really like "You've Got Mail," but Leah and Bea still have a lot of fun. They throw regular book readings, book clubs, and comedy shows at their storefront in LA, and are dedicated to highlighting authors of different races, backgrounds, and gender identities. Each year, they put out their "State of Racial Diversity in Romance Publishing Report" to showcase the state of the industry when it comes to racial diversity of romance authors. Leah tells us why they've developed this report, what they've learned over the years, and why they continue to hold their industry accountable for diversity and inclusion.  Leah and Bea also have a development deal with Sony Pictures, where they consult on interesting stories that would make great television shows.  00:08:40: What is Leah's job and where does she work? What common questions does she get when people find out about her job? 00:11:03: What's the story of The Ripped Bodice - how did they go from Kickstarter campaign to four years and counting of a successful business? 00:18:01: What lessons about retail and event planning has Leah learned in her job? What's it like being an owner of an independent book store?  00:29:26: What are some of her favorite titles? Which ones does she recommend to people new to the genre? 00:36:22: What kind of events does The Ripped Bodice host?  00:56:29: What are the rewards and challenges of Leah's job? 01:00:00: What is the "State of Racial Diversity in Romance Publishing Report" and why does The Ripped Bodice put it out every year?  01:10:30: Leah talks about their work with Sony Pictures and the type of projects they're developing for television.  01:17:34: Back to the Future: What advice would Leah give to her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made (it involves accidentally locking people into the store)? 01:24:10: Listener questions: advice for aspiring booksellers? Are there any good romance novels with transgender protagonists? and our Lightning Round.

LaChelle Chrysanne is a multitalented creative professional: she's the Founder/Creative Director of multimedia brand UNPOPCULTR, host of the Day One Fans podcast and a freelance event producer, writer, creative consultant, and graphic designer.  LaChelle talks with us about how she's built her career and followed her talents and passions, one step at a time. We talk about being selective with each new position you take, when it's time to move to the next opportunity, a lot about experiential event production and what it entails, and how she helps amplify the voices of marginalized communities in her work. 00:03:20: What's LaChelle's job and where does she work? What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:14:26: What is experiential design? LaChelle tells us about producing events like the Tribeca Film Festival - what does an event producer do? What are the rewards and challenges of this job? 00:23:20: What is UNPOPCULTR? LaChelle tells us about founding this creative production and digital content agency that specializes in amplifying the voices of Black and POC creatives.  34:05: LaChelle tells us about her podcast, Day One Fans.  00:44:22: Back to the Future: What would LaChelle tell her younger self? What's been her biggest career mistake and what has she learned from it. 00:50:00: Listener Questions: and Lighting Round

Kimmy Scotti is a powerhouse investor, entrepreneur, and businessperson who's been building successful businesses since she was in high school. Her jewelry line Mimz New York was sold in Bloomingdales and featured on Project Runway before she even graduated college, and her career ladder has gone upward since there. As a founding partner of 8VC, Kimmy focuses on consumer and healthcare investments. She also is co-founder and executive chairman of the women’s health and wellness company Monthly Gift. Kimmy is also on the board of the Breakout Foundation, which helps change makers get access to capital and support in their communities.  On this episode, we talk all things venture capital (and what it is if you've never heard of it before), angel investing, and building successful businesses. Kimmy gives advice on how to get started on big, seemingly impossible ideas, what advice she'd give to her younger self, and tons of great book recommendations. 00:03:30: What's Kimmy's job and where does she work? 00:04:45: What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:09:33: What are some products and companies she's super excited about right now? 00:12:07: We talk about how Kimmy got her start in retail/wholesale and why she decided that she wanted to disrupt the traditional retail paradigm. 00:16:11: What's angel investing? What's venture capital? What's the difference between the two? 00:20:13: If someone has a huge business idea, what's the best way for them to get started on it? Kimmy gives us the ingenious way she plans her years, months, weeks, and days to achieve goals in small bites. 00:27:45: What is Monthly Gift, and why did Kimmy decide to start this company? 00:32:33: What are some rewards and challenges about her job? What are some misconceptions? 00:39:00: Kimmy tells us about some of the philanthropic work she does, including with the Breakout Foundation. 00:41:00: How is her industry and her founders adapting to COVID-19 challenges? 00:46:16: Back to the Future: What advice would Kimmy give to her younger self? 00:55:00: Our Lightning Round, and Kimmy's AMAZING book list.  BONUS: I've compiled them all for you here cause they're too good to miss:  Reading for fun:  Educated by Tara Westover An American Marriage by Tayari Jones Three Women by Lisa Taddeo Business or Mindset Books: You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero The Innovator's Dilemma by Clayton Christensen Venture Deals by Brad Feld Manias, Panics, and Crashes by Robert Solow Women, Food, and God by Geneen Roth The Lean Startup by Eric Rees Antifragile by Naseem Nicholas Taleb

I've followed Kelli's popular instagram, Laguna Biotch, for ages and have been a fan of her podcast since the first episode. On the podcast, she recaps episodes of iconic mid-00s TV shows Laguna Beach and the Hills, interviews cast members, and talks all things pop culture and celebrity gossip. What I love about Kelli is that she's not only funny, but real and down-to-earth - and even when spilling the tea, she's always respectful and never mean-spirited.  On this episode, we talk all about how she started her IG page and podcast, as well as ALL of the pop culture talk about Laguna, the Hills, her interviews with cast members, and more. 00:03:30: Kelli tells us all about the podcast and how she got started with the Instagram. 00:08:00: What made her want to start a podcast? How did she get started? 00:11:37: How much time does she spend doing both the IG and the podcast each week? 00:16:00: She tells us about interviewing cast members of both Laguna Beach and the Hills 00:21:00: What's the weirdest cast interaction she's had?  00:24:00: Kelli tells us about her big move to Nashville a few years ago, and gives advice for anyone looking to move to a new city. 00:31:00: Laguna Beach Deep Dive: what's her fave season? Which couple is her favorite and least favorite? What's her favorite and least favorite part of the show? 00:40:34: The Hills Deep Dive 00:52:50: What's Kelli's dream interview, and what would she ask them? 00:56:40: What advice would Kelli give to her younger self? 01:03:00: Listener Questions and ALL THE TEA. Why did Spencer Pratt block her (this is a WILD story!!!)? If she hosted a Hills/LB reunion, what cast members would she have on and what would she ask them? What are her favorite podcasts?  01:10:00: Our special Laguna Biotch lightning round, including what cast members she'd hook up with on each show and the Laguna Biotch guide to Nashville.

Julia Croddick is a marketing guru with an enviable resume - she got her start working for such prestige print magazines Town and Country, Bon Appetit, WWD, and InStyle, then moved to various executive roles for Melcher Media, Culture Trip, and Future of Storytelling. Julia then struck out on her own to create Glow Marketing Group, bringing her endless wealth of sales and marketing knowledge to help democratize the beauty, wellness, and cannabis industries. Julia tells us how she helps her clients go from concept to shopping cart, and all of the rewards and challenges along the way. She gives invaluable advice for startup beauty brands and anyone interested in how to market a product. 00:04:10: What's Julia's job and what does she do? 00:05:18: What has Julia's career path looked like? How did she strategically build her career? 00:10:50: Are there still jobs in print media? What's the state of the industry now? 00:15:02: Why did she start Glow Marketing Group? 00:23:29: What are some of her favorite beauty and wellness brands? What industry trends is she seeing? 00:30:18: What misconceptions are there about the beauty and wellness industries, and about getting a product to market?  00:43:40: What are the rewards and challenges of her job?  00:58:34: What advice would she give to someone looking to quit their 9-5 to start their own company? 01:04:00: What advice does Julia have for successfully marketing during the COVID-19 pandemic? 01:12:00: What's next for Julia and Glow Marketing? 01:18:00: Back to the Future: What advice would Julia give her younger self? 01:29:00: Listener Questions: we had a ton! 01:58:00: Lighting Round

Dafina Smith is the powerhouse CEO of Covet & Mane, a hair extension brand that's disrupting the entire industry. With their ethically sourced product and revolutionary business model, in just a year of business their brand has exploded onto the scene.  Dafina brings us through her career, from working with Outkast during the Hey Ya era to running her own iconic beauty shop in Atlanta to getting the idea for ethically sourced, sustainably made hair extensions and creating Covet & Mane. She tells us the challenges and rewards, the good and the bad, and what drives her each day.  00:03:45: What's Dafina's job? What is Covet & Mane?  00:09:54: What was her last 9-5 job? What has her career trajectory looked like - did she expect to end up in this place? 00:13:00: What did she go to school for?  00:14:51: What's the origin story of Covet & Mane? 00:18:49: What sets Covet & Mane apart? Why did she decide to build an ethically sourced beauty brand - why was that so important to her?  00:24:33: Dafina gives us a lesson in hair extension quality and color range, and tells us why she decided to invest in a higher-quality product from the start. 00:27:24: What are the rewards and challenges of Dafina's job? She gets really honest with us about the challenges of supply chain management. 00:30:53: What resources did she find that helped her learn the nitty gritty details of how to run a business? 00:35:51: What's Dafina's "Why?" 00:40:44: Dafina tells us about her philanthropy goals, empowering female entrepreneurs, and what's next for Covet & Mane. 00:47:31: What advice would Dafina give to her younger self? What are the biggest business mistakes she's made, and what did she learn from them? 00:58:34: How does she run a thriving business and manage home life as a mom of two young boys? What is her day-to-day like? 001:06:00: Listener Questions: What are her five year goals? How can someone apply to be a Covet & Mane stylist? What advice would she give to entrepreneurs of color?  01:13:00: Lightning Round

It's a weird and scary time for everyone's career right now, so we called on our friend and favorite career coach and strategist, Jenn Walker Wall of Work Wonders Coaching. Jenn is an expert at helping people become job search ready, find new jobs, change careers, and craft a long-term career strategy.  In this episode, Jenn fields listener questions from our guests about the current job market and what to do. 00:05:50: I just got laid off - WTF do I do now? 00:10:15: When should I negotiate the terms of my layoff? When is it too late? 00:12:42: I just got furloughed - WTF does that even mean? Should I still job search even if I'm technically going to have my job and salary back when the furlough is over? 00:14:10: What does "job search ready" mean? 00:17:43: What do I do if my company reduced my salary or benefits during the pandemic? How can I negotiate this? How can I ask them when my original salary is going to be reinstated? 00: 25:31: Should I prepare to take a huge pay cut if I'm accepting new job offers now? Can I even still negotiate a salary, or should I be happy with what I get since the job market is so scarce? 00:30:25: Is anyone actually hiring for full time work in my field now? Where can I find them> 00:36:38: If I feel like my job or industry isn't coming back after all this, is now a good time to make a career change? Or the worst time ever to do that? 00:40:41: I kind of hated my job and wanted to find a new one before the pandemic started. Should I just stick with it now and be happy I even have a job? Or should I still job search? 00:46:50: Is it weird to reach out to my network for job leads now? How do I do it without seeming desperate or insensitive? 00:50:34: I haven't updated my cover letter in years. Where do I even start? 00:58:58: How do I file for unemployment? 01:04:00: What are some good work from home tips? 01:09:00: I was in the interview process before the pandemic, but the company went on a hiring freeze - they want to hire me on a contract basis. What do I look out for in the contract to make sure I'm protected and can advocated for being a full time hire when things go back to normal? 01:18:00: When you’ve been laid off, there’s a sense of emergency and an inclination to throw discretion out the window and just take the first job that’ll pay the bills. Do you have any recs for approaching this job search and considering the long term impact on my career? 

33 episodes, 31 guests, and thousands of downloads after our May 2019 launch, we're wrapping up our first season of the Cup of Ambition podcast! Our host Bonnie Bryant O'Connor recaps the lessons she learned from the past year of podcasting and gives a preview on Season 2 of the Cup of Ambition podcast, airing Spring 2020. 00:02:00 Everything you ever needed to know about starting a podcast (here's the link to the blog post referenced).  00:14:00: A reflection on Season 1 guests - what did we learn about booking so many guests?  00:20:00: Honesty time - what do we think we could improve on in Season 2? 00:24:31: The best and worst parts of running a podcast. 00:29:05: The collective wisdom our S1 guests shared - what were the most common themes? 00:40:00: Listener Questions 00:50:00: Season 2 Preview: who's in the lineup so far?   

Alabama-based wedding planner Becky Baker didn't start out planning unforgettable southern weddings - she actually began her career as an accountant before she transitioned to wedding planning. Becky's accounting skills prepared her for life as a small business owner: her business, Becky's Brides, is built on a profit-first model.   In this episode, Becky shares how she transitioned careers and what it was like starting a small business from scratch. We talk about how to build a profitable wedding business, how to avoid scope creep, and why at-home weddings are the most expensive. We also talk about 2020 wedding trends and how Becky's business has changed since welcoming her daughter in 2019. 00:06:06: What's Becky's job and where does she work? 00:08:32: How did she transition into starting her own business? 00:17:00: What are the challenges and rewards of being a wedding planner? 00:21:00: How has she built her business to be so profitable? How does she avoid scope creep? 00:31:30: What should every bride know about outdoor weddings? 00:35:43: How can a vendor get on a wedding planner's radar in hopes of working with them on future events? 00:38:54: What are some 2020 trends she's seeing? 00:44:00: What lessons did she learn as a new mom running a small business? 00:56:34: A Day in the Life: What's it like to be a wedding planner? What does an average day look like? 01:03:00: Listener Questions and our Quick Answer Segment

Carey Lowe of The Idea Emporium is one of the most talented people in the world. She's a stationery designing, bookbinding, matchbook creating, letterpressing genius who creates the most meaningful, customized, and sentimental pieces for their weddings and events.  Carey tells us how she went from waiting tables to owning a successful wedding design business and achieving her wildest dreams (getting featured in Martha Stewart Weddings multiple times, getting paid to make all her favorite things all day). We discuss the rewards and challenges of working in the super high-end wedding world, how she prices her work and gets it published in major industry publications, and how she rebuilt her business after California's Camp Fire that devastated her community. 00:04:35: What is Carey's job? Where does she work? 00:12:21: What type of stuff does she create for her clients? 00:22:48: What's the last 9-5 she had? How did she get here? 00:33:32: What's her design process like? How does she get started with her couples?  00:48:52: What's her favorite thing to create? 00:55:43: How does she price her work? 01:07:18: What are some of the rewards and challenges of her work? 01:20:42: Carey tells us how she's been published in Martha Stewart Weddings multiple times, including her own wedding. 01:30:00: We talk about some of her favorite industry events and conferences. 01:39:05: Back to the Future: What did Carey want to be when she was growing up? What advice would she give to her younger self? What's her biggest business mistake, and what did she learn from it? 01:48:00: Listener Questions and our Quick Answer Segment. Carey tells us about the time she drank a fish milkshake with Post Malone, Snoop Dog, and Martha Stewart. 

Meg Clarke is an Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategist and an expert at connecting the dots of data to get your business found on Google. There are six billion Google searches per day, and there are people out there who WANT your services/products, they just can't find you online. Meg's job? To help you get found. We talk about how she got started in the SEO business and what her "why" is. We also discuss the technical stuff - how do you find keywords? What are the biggest misconceptions about SEO? What's the difference between organic and paid search, and why choose one over another?  00:02:31: What's Meg's job and where does she work? 00:08:46: How did she get involved in SEO? 00:14:34: What's her why? 00:23:00: What's the biggest misconception about SEO? What's an E.A.T. factor and why is it so important? 00:30:15: What's the difference between organic and paid SEO? 00:40:57: How has Meg been able to scale her business? 00:48:00: Meg gives her tips on how to kill it on Youtube and Pinterest search. 00:52:53: Our "Back to the Future" segment - Meg tells us the advice she'd give to her younger self and what her biggest business mistakes are (and how she learned from them). 01:11:45: Listener Questions - how do you find keywords? How do you get found in local search? And Quick Answer segment. 

Allie Block is a super talented, super successful textile designer in New York City - she became a design director for a major textile brand in her thirties, when most people only get to that level after decades of experience.  Allie talks with us about how she got to this point in her career, starting with the surface pattern design program at Syracuse University and winding through jobs in the home design and fashion industries. We chat about how she designs collections, finds manufacturers, and plans photoshoots, and her favorite places to source inspiration. 00:02:40: What's Allie's current job and where? 00:05:00: What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:09:16: What are some of the differences between textile design for fashion and textile design for interiors? 00:14:56: What did she go to school for? 00:21:18: Allie gives us an overview of her design process, from idea to completion. We also talk about how much of the design process is her own creativity vs. how much she has to keep things like sales goals in mind. 00:28:28: Where does Allie find creative inspiration? 00:34:40: How does manufacturing work - she's designed this cool pattern, but who makes it? Allie walks us through this side of the industry. 00:45:30: Does she ever have to deal with knockoffs in the interior design industry? 00:50:52: Does she go to trade shows? Are they a big thing in her corner of the industry? 01:00:08: Photoshoots! What's it like planning a huge photoshoot for a collection? 01:12:12: What are the challenges and rewards of her fun, often glamorous, but very labor-intensive job? 01:19:14: What does she think about the future of the interior design industry? 01:27:30: What does she look for when hiring a team? 01:35:00: Our Back to the Future segment: what did Allie want to be when she was younger? What advice would she give to her younger self? What's been her biggest career mistake? 01:44:44: A Day in the Life: What does day-to-day life look like for a busy design director? 01:56:30: Listener Questions and Quick Answer Lighting Round

Gina Colagioia is the jill-of-all-trades, insatiably curious polymath, and event planner behind NY-based company Renaissance Person. Renaissance Person is an event series with the tagline "Okay at Everything" that teaches people fun, interesting, and kinda weird skills: beatboxing with the world beatboxing champion, faking your own death, making homemade butter, and many, many more. Their events are low cost and designed to be educational-ish, super fun, and let you satisfy your curiosity.  We talk about Gina's career trajectory and how she turned her curiosity and thirst for learning #AllTheThings into a unique and successful company. Gina's super real and honest with us, and we had a great discussion about the future of Renaissance Person, her tips for throwing events that people will actually come to, and more. 00:05:26: What is Gina's current job and what does she do? 00:12:01: Gina tells about her day job and her interesting career trajectory. We talk about how a lot of creatives have day jobs, too! 00:30:32: What was the origin story of Renaissance Person? 00:39:32: What are the challenges and rewards of running Renaissance Person? 00:46:15: What's Gina's "why?"  00:52:00: We have an interesting chat about perfectionism and how limiting it can be. 00:60:00: Are there any legal liabilities Gina has to think about when throwing events? 01:04:00: How does she market events to make sure people actually come? 01:14:00: Gina has a bunch of certifications herself: an ordained minister, a licensed marine fisherman, a NY Poll Worker, Naloxone carrier, Trap-Neuter-Release for feral cats, and Google Analytics. How did she get these certifications? Was it hard? 01:22:00: What's her favorite RP class so far? 01:25:00: Is it hard to find spaces at which to host the events? 01:33:00: What's the future of Renaissance Person? 01:41:00: Back to the future: what advice would Gina give to her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 02:09:25: A Day in the Life: what does her day-to-day look like? 02:15:00: Listener questions and quick answers, with some bonus questions thrown in. 

Jess Green has it all - she's kind, smart, funny, and super talented, having built a successful interior design business of her own after years working under one of the world's most well-known designers. She's also a full time mom who juggles a thriving business with motherhood and family life. We talk about everything from how she prices her services to the challenges and rewards of the interior design industry to the surprising things designers work on that most people don't think about. Jess also answers a ton of listener questions about the business and about design advice. 00:04:30: What is Jess's job and where does she work? 00:07:00: What was her last 9-5? Would she recommend working for bigger designers before starting your own business? 00:13:24: We talk about budgeting and bookkeeping, which can be difficult for designers when they have to purchase so many goods. 00:17:21: What did Jess go to school for? What's the origin story of her business? 00:28:30: What are the challenges and rewards of being in the interior design industry? What are some of the surprising things that she does that no one would realize? 00:45:50: What's her favorite part of the design process? 00:48:50: How do designers handle photoshoots? What was it like doing huge editorial photoshoots when she worked at a large firm? 00:54:30: The big question: pricing. What's Jess's pricing strategy and how does she price her services? 01:01:30: How does she set boundaries in her business? 01:04:30: How does she feel about the future of the industry, especially with the rise and fall of so many e-design sites? 01:12:00: How does Jess market her business? 01:13:35: Has she ever done a designer showhouse? 01:17:10: How has the internet/social media changed the landscape of the industry? 01:18:10: Does Jess go to trade shows like High Point Market? 01:22:15: Back to the Future - what advice would Jess give her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 01:33:00: A Day in the Life: What does an average day look like for her? 01:41:00: Listener questions - we had a lot! 01:52:00: Quick answer segment and where to find Jess online

We loved chatting with the effervescent Kaitlyn of Kaitlyn Ferris Photography - she's fun, smart, hilarious, and was super honest, open, and generous with her time and knowledge. Kaitlyn is a talented and super successful wedding photographer on Long Island's East End. She's built a thriving business since she shot her first wedding eight years ago, when she was just a college student. She went from one wedding a year to four to seventeen and is now fully booked at over forty weddings each year. How did she do it? She niched down, said "no" to things that were sucking her time and energy, and said "yes" to things that lit her creative fire. We talk about everything from how she got started to how she balances a busy schedule (hiring an editor has been a lifesaver) to business expenses, what she always brings on a wedding day, how she markets her business, what she does during slow season, and more.  00:04:00: What is Kaitlyn's job? What's her career ladder looked like to this point? Kaitlyn is super open and vulnerable and talks about how losing her dad in high school changed the course of her life. 00:10:00: How many weddings did she start out doing? How did she grow from one a year to over forty a year? 00:13:40: When did she start really organizing her business (setting up business accounts, branding herself, etc)? 00:25:02: How does she find support as an entrepreneur, especially after long, lonely days editing photos? How does she balance her schedule?  00:39:08: Kaitlyn tells us how hiring an editor changed her business. 00:45:00: What are some unexpected business expenses that come from being a photographer? What does she bring on every wedding day?  00:59:00: Sales and pricing strategy - how did Kaitlyn decide to just sell one package? What are the challenges of selling albums? 01:07:00: How does she market her business?  01:13:00: How does she utilize slow seasons in a smart way? Is there even a slow season anymore, with so many brides getting married in January and February?  01:16:00: Kaitlyn tells us how she manages her clients with Honeybook. 01:26:00: We talk about pricing. What does Kaitlyn do when brides ask for a discount? 01:30:00: How has she seen the wedding industry change? 01:35:00: What's the biggest mistake she sees brides make when planning their weddings? 01:40:00: What's her favorite venue to shoot? 01:49:00: Our Back to the Future segment - what advice would Kaitlyn give her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 02:00:00: A Day in the Life: What does an average day look like for a busy wedding photographer? 02:06:00: Listener Questions and our super fun Quick Answer segment

Matthew Anthony and Nicholas Bartolozzi are not only two of the world's most talented makeup and hair artists, they're also the nicest, funniest, and most down-to-earth people we've ever met. With years and years of salon, freelance, and beauty counter experience, they joined forces to create The Beauty Boys in 2018 and it's been a runaway success ever since.  Matthew and Nicholas tell us how they got started in the beauty industry, their advice for aspiring beauty gurus, and how they stand out in a crowded industry. We talk about the rewards and challenges of working with and living with your boyfriend (they've since gotten engaged - so now, fiance!), their process for busy wedding days, and their inside scoop on all the best beauty, skincare, and hair products. 00:03:00: What is their business and where do they work? 00:05:47: What were their last 9-5 jobs? What have their career trajectories looked like? What schooling/training do hair and makeup artists need? What are some of the weird classes you wouldn't think you'd need to take to get licensed?  00:14:04: When did they start The Beauty Boys and why? 00:21:10: What are the rewards and challenges of living with AND working with your fiance? 00:25:00: What percentage of their business is weddings vs. regular hairstyling and coloring? How do they stand out in such a competitive market? 00:36:00: What's the process for wedding day beauty? Do they do all the bridesmaids themselves? How many weddings can they handle in a day/weekend? 00:44:00: How do they keep track of inventory? 00:47:00: What are their favorite hair, makeup, and skincare brands? 00:56:36: What are some beauty trends they're NOT into?  01:04:00: How do they market their business? 01:07:00: What's next for the Beauty Boys? 01:12:00: Back to the Future: what did Matthew and Nicholas want to be when they were growing up? What advice would they give to their younger selves? What's the biggest business mistake they've made? 01:31:00: A Day in the Life: What does an average day look like for busy hair and makeup artists?  01:39:00: Listener Questions 01:43:00: Quick Answer - fave movies? TV shows? Beauty books? 

Laney Schenk is a super talented calligrapher, stationery designer, and business expert. She's created not just a successful stationery business, but a booming coaching business with invaluable resources for creative business owners. How did someone without an art degree who got her start in tech sales create such a unique creative business? Laney takes us through her career trajectory from selling fibers for fiber optics networks to becoming a full-time calligrapher, then transitioning to stationery design and business coaching. We talk about how to make a profitable creative business while remaining creative, the importance of organized project management, how to avoid scope creep, whether or not you should list pricing on your website, and the industry and design trends Laney is seeing pop up.  00:07:01: What is Laney's job and where does she work? 00:09:00: What was her last 9-5? 00:10:13: What has her career trajectory looked like? Did she go to college for art? How did she transition from tech sales to calligraphy to what she's doing now? 00:28:00: We talk about pricing and project management. What project management software does Laney use - Dubsado or Honeybook?  00:39:00: Every stationer's question: collection vs. semi custom vs. custom: how do you price them? How do you avoid scope creep?  00:51:00: Should designers have their pricing on their website? 00:58:39: What industry trends does Laney see? In ten years, will everyone just send email invitation - why or why not? What design trends is she seeing? 01:08:00: How did Laney build such successful passive income streams? 01:18:00: Laney tells us about her business boot camp. 01:26:00: How does Laney market her business - what works and what doesn't? 01:32:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Laney give her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made, and what did she learn from it? 01:40:00: A day in the life: What does an average day in the life look like for her? 01:46:00: Listener questions: does she assemble her designs, or does the bride do it? And our quick answer segment where we, as usual, talk about the Gilmore Girls A LOT. 

The energetic, hilarious Samantha Louise Marett is a self-taught abstract artist splitting her time between Atlanta and San Diego. Sam is known for her bold & unexpected color palettes and blending watercolor with acrylic paint with various textures on canvas. Sam is also a mental health advocate. She talks with us about how getting a diagnosis and learning how to manage her mental health changed her life for the better.  Sam also talks about busting the myth of the "starving artist" - one of her biggest missions is showing other creatives that they can make a living off their talent. 00:02:20: What's Sam's current job and where? 00:04:01: What was her last 9-5? What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:11:41: What's the origin story of Samantha Louise Designs? How did she make the transition from a wedding planner to an artist? 00:14:51: We talk a little bit about Sam's experience in the wedding industry. What were the challenges and rewards of working in this industry? 00:18:55: Aspiring muralists, listen up: Sam tells us everything you need to know about creating a mural.  00:28:06: Sam tells us about her creative process/ 00:34:00: We talk about Sam's mental health journey and how she got into mental health advocacy. 00:38:55: How does she market her business? What works, and what doesn't? 00:44:00: We talk about teaching art classes. 00:48:19: Back to the Future: what would Sam tell her younger self? What was her biggest business mistake, and what did she learn from it? 00:54:39: A Day in the Life: What does a day in the life of a successful working artist look like? 01:00:00: Listener Questions: How does an artist get brand partnerships? What % of her time is spent on creative vs. admin work? What type of paint does she use? And our quick answer segment, where we talk our fave Broad City episodes and more. 

With over 188k Instagram followers, 40k Youtube subscribers, and three successful Facebook groups, Becca Courtice of The Happy Ever Crafter is indisputably the queen of modern calligraphy. Her tutorials and guides provide a wealth of information to the aspiring letterer, turning even the most "unartistic" person into a calligraphy maven. It turns out that Becca never really thought of herself as an artist at first, either: in fact, she HATED the drawing classes she had to take in school. It wasn't until she took a calligraphy class in 2015 that she realized this was her calling. She soon was making enough money teaching calligraphy that she was able to quit her full time job. A few years later, Becca is one of the most successful and well-known modern calligraphers out there. We talk about how she got started in the craft, what it was like to quit her job, how she was able to build such a successful passive income stream, and much, much more. 00:03:40: What is Becca's job title? What does she do? 00:05:46:What did she go to school for?  What's her career trajectory? How did she get to this point? When did she know it was time to quit her 9-5 job?   00:16:16: What's the hardest part of her job? 00:20:15: We talk about Becca's sales strategy. 00:26:18: We talk passive income - a hot topic for creatives. 00:28:15: We talk pricing strategy and Becca's take on discounts - how does a calligrapher avoid having to give a discount on every friend-of-a-friend's wedding signage? 00:38:14: We talk about Facebook groups as a marketing strategy and how Becca's been able to run three groups successfully. 00:41:09: We talk about Youtube - how she got started and what she's learned. 00:43:50: How did Becca start wholesaling her own branded pens? 00:47:36: We discuss in-person workshops: the challenges and rewards. 00:52:26: Back to the Future: What advice would Becca give her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 01:00:00: A Day in the Life: What does an average day look like for Becca? 01:05:00: Listener Questions: How much should an aspiring calligrapher practice each day? How many pens does she have? What are her favorite supplies? And our Quick Answer segment.   

Sharon Peykar, ACSW is an LA-based therapist and life coach who uses a transparent and collaborative approach with her clients. She works a lot with young women who are dealing with managing their work stress, life stress, and trying to learn better self care. Sharon talks with us about how she decided to go into private practice with this population, advice she gives women in the workplace about setting boundaries, the imposter syndrome issue, and how to find the right therapist for you.  00:05:00: What's Sharon's current job? 00:06:15: What licensure and credentials does a therapist need and how long does it take to get them?  00:11:00: Sharon tells us about her career trajectory and how she got to her current role. 00:21:20: We talk about common work/life balance issues that women face. 00:24:30: What advice does Sharon give to women in the workplace about setting boundaries? 00:26:42: What are the biggest workplace challenges she sees people face? 00:33:20: We talk about self care and spirituality, and how spirituality can mean different things to different people. 00:41:00: What are some common myths and misconceptions about therapy? 00:44:20: How can someone find the right therapist? 00:50:32: Sharon tells us about her work with the therapy app Ootify. 00:54:06: Back to the Future: What advice would Sharon give her younger self? 00:58:00: What's the biggest business mistake she's made, and what did she learn from it? 01:01:00: A Day in the Life: What does a therapist's day-to-day look like? How many clients does she see a day? What other work is there to do? 01:06:00: How does a therapist market themselves? 01:08:32: Listener questions: What do you do about recurring nightmares about work? Do therapists do remote sessions? What are some strategies to not bring work home? What do you do when coworkers try to rope you into toxic workplace gossip? How do you keep boundaries in an inflexible job?  01:20:00: Quick Answers 

Keira Lemonis is a talented photographer who, along with her team at Brand Vamp, helps transform a business's visual presence. Brand Vamp's team of photography, cinematic videography, production, and creative direction pros turn your business from blah to "I NEED IT!"  They create branded photoshoots and videoshoots for businesses of all stripes. Need a video for your website that explains your brand's mission and ethos? Need a 30-second attention-grabbing video of your product to convert leads on social media? Need a branded photoshoot for you and your whole team? Brand Vamp is where it's at.  Keira got her start by photographing weddings and family/personal photo shoots. She realized that there was a hole in the market - businesses needed these services too! - and Brand Vamp was born. We talk about how she got started, how she started a side business with two partners, why businesses might want fresh content regularly, and the details of photographing product, food, and more.  00:05:37: What is Keira's job and where does she work? 00:08:50: Did she go to school for photography?  00:11:05: What is Brand Vamp's origin story? What are the rewards and the challenges of working with business partners? 00:17:27: What's the process for a brand photo shoot? Can people who live across the country hire Brand Vamp? 00:22:14: What's the "fresh content" service? Why do people choose this? 00:25:08: What are her favorite client projects so far? 00:26:55: Keira walks us through the planning of a brand videoshoot.  00:28:56: How do they find models? 00:30:51: How do they organize props and budget for a photoshoot? 00:38:06: We talk about product photos - why would someone hire a professional to shoot these?  00:42:41: Why is video so impactful on social media? 00:46:07: Keira gives us a little food styling 101 00:52:28: What's Keira's favorite part of her business? 00:56:28: Back to the Future: What advice would Keira give to her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 01:11:28: A Day in the Life - what does an average day look like in the world of a brand photographer?  01:19:00: Listener Questions: What's the best weather to shoot product photos in? How can you get a good shot of food?  and our Quick Answer Segment

Janet Grosso is more than just a CPA: she's a money therapist, a business fixer, the Oprah of personal finance. No matter your business, industry, or niche, Janet can look at your books and tell you how to maximize profits and make your business thrive. She's also warm, funny, and understanding - the coolest CPA you'll ever work with. Janet speaks with us on all things business building. What's the difference between an S Corp, LLC, and Sole Proprietership? What's the first thing people should do when they open their business? Should you have 1099 or W2 employees? What's the weirdest thing her clients have been able to write off for their business?  00:04:00: Janet tells us what her current job is. 00:06:50: What's the last 9-5 she had? What did she need to do to become a CPA?  00:14:00: How did she make the leap from being a CPA for hedge funds to owning her own firm? 00:26:31: What's the differencebetween an S Corp, LLC, and Sole Proprietership?  00:30:29: What are the biggest mistakes she sees business owners make?  00:34:56: What's the first thing you should do when deciding to open a business? 00:39:05: We talk employees - what's the difference between a 1099 and a W2 employee? Which should you hire? 00:48:47: Janet gives us her expert advice on hiring and managing a team. 00:50:58: How does she find clients? We also talk about how much she hates networking events and the one networking group she's found that she actually likes. 00:57:03: What does she tell clients with money anxiety? 01:03:00: What's the dumbest/most wasteful thing she sees her clients spend their money on in their businesses? 01:04:00: What advice does she have for businesses that hold inventory on keeping their costs down? 01:07:00: What's the weirdest thing she's seen someone put on their profit and loss statement to write off? 01:11:28: She tells us about Anthony & Janet, the consulting business she owns with her husband Anthony. 01:17:48: Back to the Future: Janet tells us what advice she'd give to her younger self and the biggest business mistake she's ever made. 01:24:25: A Day in the Life: How does someone who owns three businesses and has three small kids organize her days effectively? 01:32:00: Listener Questions & Quick Answers

At first glance, Anthony Grosso is an enigma: he quit his stable law enforcement job and gave up his pension to start his own business. When you learn more, you start to realize that he's kind of a genius: he worked really hard during those years to set up a sustainable and ever-growing real estate empire of rental properties, and realized he could make more money with his real estate investments than he would working 16 hour days as a cop for the next fifteen years. He opened up his own brokerage, helping over 100 fellow cops find homes before putting in his notice and going full-time with Grosso Properties.  How did this hilarious and no b.s. guy from Long Island with no trust fund or fancy family connections build such a successful real estate business? On this episode of the Cup of Ambition podcast, he tells you exactly how he did it. No sales techniques, no pyramid schemes: just smart-but-common-sense moves and a lot of elbow grease with his wife Janet (as Anthony tells us, "I've worked really hard to not have to work hard anymore.") We talk about how he and Janet got started investing, the best and worst states to buy an investment property in, why he will NEVER flip a house, the scariest part about leaving his 9-5 job, and everything you ever wanted to know about real estate investing.  00:07:00: Anthony tells us his genius elevator pitch and what his current job is. 00:10:00: Anthony tells us about the first business he opened when he was in his early twenties - he fixed people's PCs and found a LOT of weird stuff on them.  00:14:00: Anthony tells us the story of when he graduated the police academy... right into a recession. The new recruits were told they might lose their jobs before they even started - those so-called "stable" jobs aren't always as stable as they seem! He tells us how he got started in real estate. 00:18:12: Anthony tells us how he and Janet got started in rental properties and why multi-family properties are the best investment. 00:24:14: NO FLIPPING! We have a great discussion on why house flipping is the worst investment move you can make. We talk about why smart, sustainable real estate investing is such a good long-term investment move: it can pay for your retirement, your kids' college funds, and the lifestyle you want.  00:31:02: We get real and talk about the scariest part of leaving your 9-5, and how Anthony decided to niche down into law enforcement and first responders.  00:36:00: Anthony tells us about how he trains his team - no sales training or techniques, and if someone walks in saying they love to cold call he kicks them out the door.  00:44:04: Anthony tells us about the networking events and charity events he works with, and why his competition will never be able to edge into his unique market. 00:50:07: We talk more about the challenges of self-employment, especially when you have kids. 00:58:00: Anthony tells us the biggest mistake he sees homeowners make. 01:03:00: We get real specific and discuss the specific challenges that Long Island homeowners face. 01:07:00: Anthony tells us about his consulting business with his wife, Anthony & Janet. 01:13:00: We talk about the maintenance required for rental properties - can you actually do most of it yourself? 01:16:00: Story time! Anthony tells us his best landlord stories (apparently everyone takes the toilet seat when they leave), and the craziest fellow brokers he's dealt with (hint: she answered the phone while getting a wax. Seriously.).  01:30:00: Back to the Future: What advice would Anthony give his younger self: 01:35:00: What's the biggest business mistake he's made? 01:38:00: What's a day in the life like for an entrepreneur with three kids? 01:45:00: Listener Questions and Quick Answer  

Janelle Langford is a PR and business development expert who's written a book, dressed Lady Gaga, launched multiple businesses, and helped her clients build major brands. This powerhouse is on the podcast this week to chat all things business building, public relations, and career success! 00:05:00: What is Janelle's current job ? 00:12:04: What was her last 9-5 job before starting her business? 00:14:08: What has Janelle's career trajectory looked like? (HINT: It started with a chemistry major and all changed when America's Next Top Model came on the air...) 00:24:00: How did Janelle transition from the medical field to owning her own PR business? 00:29:20: We talk all about PR. What can a PR person give you that you can't do yourself? What are the best placements to ask for? When should you promote certain things - how long of a lead time is there? How do PR firms get paid? 00:43:57: Janelle gives us a Media Training 101. What is media training and who needs it? What are the biggest mistakes people make that she helps fix? 00:47:12: Press tours - what are they and who needs to go on them? 00:53:50: Janelle is a serial entrepreneur. She tells us all about her other successful businesses and her group coaching service.  01:07:00: Janelle tells us about her podcast and her book (find it on Amazon and in Barnes and Noble!) 01:11:30: Janelle is one of the best-dressed people I know, and she tells us where she finds all of her amazing outfits. 01:18:50: Back to the Future: What advice would Janelle give her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 01:29:43: A Day in the Life: What does an average day-to-day look like for her? 01:42:12: Listener Questions: how can someone track ROI when they hire a PR person? What placements are better for sales, and which are better for prestige? Quick Answer Segment: Janelle tells us her favorite movies, tv shows, and more. 

Tata Tickaradze has always had the drive to work hard and succeed: when she was a kid in the Eastern European country of Georgia, she would find little jobs to do around her apartment building to stay busy and earn a little money. In her early twenties, her dream of being a fashion buyer was dashed when the program was cancelled during the 2008 recession, but Tata kept going and building her resume until she founded To the Moon Social.  Tata helps her clients leverage grow their businesses through social media and digital marketing, and she's all facts with no B.S. She's built her reputation by being honest with clients and helping them find a marketing strategy that fits their budget. In this episode we talk a lot about the real numbers of paid ads and paid social marketing: what you can expect to spend and what you should do instead if you can't afford to spend that.  She also founded Barter & Be, a curated community of female entrepreneurs exchanging essential goods and services without utilizing capital We also talk about Tata's best and worst jobs (singing a hook on a Gucci Mane song was a high point, selling door-to-door hail insurance was a low one), how to recognize client red flags, how her Instagram Growth Hack helps grow Instagram followers organically, and how she launched Barter & Be.  00:03:00: What is Tata's current job and where? What was her last 9-5? What are the best and worst jobs she's had? 00:09:53: When did she decide that she wanted to open her own business one day? What did she go to school for? What has her career trajectory looked like? 00:49:56: What services does she offer, and what does her business structure look like? 00:51:41: Tata tells us about her Instagram Growth Hack and a behind-the-scenes look into how Instagram is changing their algorithm.  00:55:00: Tata tells us how much a business can expect to spend in paid ads - the answer might surprise and terrify you (Hint: 4-5 figures. A month.).  01:17:00: What are the biggest digital marketing mistakes she sees people make? 01:19:00: Tata tells us about founding Barter & Be, a curated community of female entrepreneurs exchanging essential goods and services without utilizing capital.  01:24:00: Tata shares her favorite Barter & Be success stories. 01:31:17: Back to the Future: what advice would Tata give her younger self? 01:40:00: What's the biggest business mistake she's made? 01:42:00: A Day in the Life: what does a day-to-day look like for her? 01:52:00: Listener Questions and Quick Answer

Christie Jones of Swell Anchor is an extraordinarily talented artist and a passionate mental health advocate. She ran a successful calligraphy business for seven years, rising to the top of a competitive market and having what seemed like #AllTheThings figured out. When chronic health issues, multiple surgeries, and PTSD started taking a toll on her body, she made the brave decision to put her health first, say goodbye to the calligraphy and wedding world, and pivot her business to be more in line with her passion. Now a full-time painter, Christie creates stunning paintings inspired by her mental health journey and the world that surrounds her. She talks about the highs and lows of the wedding industry, what day-to-day life was like as a calligrapher, her journey healing from anxiety and PTSD, and how she successfully pivoted her business and launched her new art collections. 00:02:41: What's Christie's job? What was her last 9-5? What made her start her business in 2011?  00:08:26: Did she learn calligraphy and art at school, or is she self-taught? 00:12:37: What is life as a calligrapher like? What is modern calligraphy? How long does it take to do one envelope? Christie tells about all the "stuff" that calligraphers do that takes a ton of time: sorting, drying, mixing ink, etc. 00:20:50: THE DRIFTWOOD INCIDENT! This starts our discussion on the highs and lows of the wedding industry. What did Christie love about it? What was more challenging? 00:33:00: We talk about how physically demanding being a calligrapher can be, and how the physical challenges led the way to some serious anxiety and mental health issues for Christie. Christie is super honest and open about the challenges she faced that led to her pivoting her business. 00:49:51: PTSD storytime! Christie and I have both been diagnosed with PTSD, and we talk about EMDR therapy, a specialized, evidence-based therapy for PTSD that we've both had. We also talk about some PTSD misconceptions and what it was like to be diagnosed and to manage this chronic and misunderstood illness. 01:12:00: Christie successfully taught over 500 people calligraphy in her sold-out workshops. What were the rewarding and challenging parts of teaching? 01:16:00: How does Christie set business boundaries when she gets so many DMs about proprietary information about her work? 01:21:00: Christie tells us all about her new work and what's next for Swell Anchor.  01:33:00: Our back to the future segment: What advice would Christie give her younger self?  01:37:00: THE DREADED SIGNPOSTS! Christie tells the story of the biggest business mistake she's made and what she learned from it. 01:41:00: A Day in the Life: what does the day to day look like for a working artist? 01:45:00: Listener Questions and Quick Answer. We have a very long Gilmore Girls conversation, as usually happens on this podcast. 

Julie Schecter is a multi-talented, super-successful serial entrepreneur. After graduating from Harvard Law and working the corporate law world, she launched a successful fitness studio in NYC. After trying to keep in touch with her friends across the country and keep up with everyone's personal and career successes, she got the idea for Small Packages, a curated care package company that allows you to send major love to the people in your life in just five minutes. Julie's business model is genius: she designs curated care packages for life's biggest occasions and offers three price points for each care package AND flat rate shipping. Your friend will get a beautiful box filled with unique items by small vendors and a hand-written note on a custom letterpress card. I've sent a bunch of them to my friends since interviewing Julie - it's my new go-to gift for everything from a new baby to an illness to a housewarming. Julie talks about her career trajectory, how she got the idea for Small Packages and how she implemented it, the crowd funding process, how she finds vendors and stocks inventory, and more. 00:05:45: What's Julie's job and what does she do every day? What was her last 9-5 job, and what was her career trajectory from a dance major to Harvard Law to being a business owner? 00:16:00: What's the origin story of Small Packages - how did she take it from idea to implementation? 00:26:00: How does she source product? How does she manage the inventory and costs? 00:33:00: Did crowd funding work for her? What platform did she use? 00:35:00: We talk about shipping and how it can be the bane of every business owner's existence. 00:41:00: Does Julie have a warehouse, or does she fulfill orders herself? 00:52:00: What's the most popular occasion people buy Small Packages for? What's the most popular price point? 00:55:00: What's Julie's favorite part of her job? 00:57:36: What did owning a successful fitness studio teach Julie about being a business owner? How did it prepare her for Small Packages? 1:00:00: Does Julie have a staff on hand? How does she manage all of the orders? 01:04:00: Back to the Future: What advice would Julie give her younger self? What's her biggest business mistake and what did she learn from it? 01:10:00: A Day in the Life: What does an average day look like for Julie? 01:18:00: Listener Questions and Quick Answers

Nashville-based Jacy Dawn Valeras knows the music industry inside and out. She got her start as a performer and performed on stages/opened for megastars like LeAnn Rimes, Reba McEntire, Wynonna, Willie Nelson, Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Lorrie Morgan, Martina McBride, Carlene Carter, Jo Dee Messina, Darius Rucker, and Tanya Tucker to name a few. She's also an accomplished songwriter, with more than 30 of her songs having been recorded by artists worldwide.  Jacy leveraged her industry know-how to create Platinum Circle Media, where she's  created marketing and social media campaigns for Grammy, CMA and AMC Award Winners, including Country Music Hall of Fame Members, Ricky Skaggs and Bobby Bare, Country Music Icons, TG Sheppard, Collin Raye, Lorrie Morgan, Pam Tillis, Kelly Lang, Mandy Barnett and more. Jacy has designed digital advertising content and graphic design pieces for numerous Fortune 500 companies, artists, record labels, charity organizations, music venues, and businesses to help further their growth and outreach. Through content creation and digital marketing, Jacy has helped countless independent and emerging artists to grow their online presence. She offers her expertise in increasing online visibility, tone, and how to achieve both long and short term goals. Jacy’s YouTube channel, a platform devoted to the mentorship of aspiring artists, has amassed over 160k + views.  We talk with Jacy about how she got started in the music industry and her advice for up and coming artists. We also talk A LOT about how to market yourself and make money in the ever-changing music industry. 00:04:00: What is Jacy's job and business? What does she do? What was her last 9-5 job, and what has her career looked like to this point? 00:12:30: When she started out as a performer and songwriter, how did she learn how to hustle to get found in such a crowded field?  00:19:45: What are some specific marketing challenges for musicians and performers? Do her clients create their own content, or does she create it for them? Has a client ever posted something unapproved and totally embarrassing without the marketing team's okay? What's the difference between her job, a publicist, a manager, and the record label's marketing team, and how do they all work together? 00:44:00: Musicians used to make their money on CD sales, but that's changed. How do they make money now, and how do they diversify their revenue streams and income? What's her advice to a performer who's looking to get creative with their revenue and brand? 00:55:00: Jacy tells us about mentoring young, up-and-coming artists. 01:03:00: We talk about what it's like to be a songwriter. How does it work? Do you pitch your songs to artists? To record labels?  01:15:00: Our Back to the Future segment - Jacy tells us what advice she'd give to her younger self.  01:22:00: Jacy shares her biggest business mistake and what she learned from it. 01:24:00: Our Day in the Life segment: what does an average day look like for a songwriter and marketing expert? 01:32:00: Listener Questions: does she have any good country music stories? What advice would she give to someone who wants to grow their Youtube Channel? Quick Answer: Jacy tells us her biggest advice, favorite movies and TV shows, and the best places to hang in Nashville and her hometown of Boston.  

Devyn Taelor is a talented baker, cookie artist, and one of the sweetest guests we've had on the podcast (no, that's not a cookie pun! Okay, maybe it is).  She recently quit her 9-5 desk job to become a full time cookie artist - and when we say cookie artist, we're not talking about baking Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookies. Devyn creates edible works of art: she makes each batch of cookies from scratch, custom mixes all of the different colors and consistencies of icing, and hand-pipes all of the tiny details herself. She also does all the marketing and admin for her business - it's a more-than-full-time job, and she also has to pay attention to health code regulations and the physical toll her work takes on her body. In this episode, we talk about everything from how she got started in the industry to what regulations she has to follow to how she learned how to effectively price her product.  00:03:30: What is Devyn's job title, and what does she do? 00:07:30: How did she get started making cookies? What goes into making a custom decorated sugar cookie? When did she know it was time to quit her 9-5 job?   00:14:36: What are the occupational hazards - does her arms and hands always hurt? How does she deal with it? Does she ever get sick of cookies?  00:18:00: We talk about the great salted vs. non salted butter debate. 00:20:16: How many cookies does she bake per event? When planning a wedding, should a bride do 1/guest or 1/couple? What types of other events does she do? 00:21:16: How does she price her cookies? Has her pricing mindset changed? What is her workflow like? Does she have a minimum order?  00:38:00: What licenses or food inspection rules does she need to follow? How does she deal with food allergies?  00:52:33: What cookie trends is Devyn seeing?  00:58:00: How does she organize her supplies? 01:01:12: What's the biggest advice she'd give aspiring cookiers? 01:09:00: Our Back to the Future segment - what advice would Devyn give her younger self? 01:24:30: Our Day in the Life Segment - what does a day-to-day look like for her? 01:30:20: Listener Questions and Quick Answer

Alessandra Levy is a talented professional voiceover artist, actor, musician, and music producer. She's recorded spots for businesses like Google, Amazon, Hasbro, HelloFresh and many more and has performed with Ben Folds and the Pittsburgh Symphony, sang for Radio City Music Hall as a Rockette, and was on My Brightest Diamond’s album “This is My Hand.”  In this episode, Alessandra talks all about freelance life and the hustle it takes to succeed in a competitive industry. She's worked every job imaginable, had to deal with health issues, and still has made a successful niche for herself. We talk a lot about how being a freelancer IS running a business. Our conversation includes gems of knowledge for any creative or freelancer, not just for entertainers.  00:03:20: What is Alessandra's job and where does she work? 00:06:12: What was it like quitting a steady full time job to be a full time musician and voice actor? What has her career trajectory looked like to this point? (Hint: everything from doing in-store demos at Costco to singing for the Rockettes to background extra work in film and tv shows).  00:29:00: Did she go to school for what she's doing now? 00:38:05: What is freelance performer/musician life like - how do you find jobs? Through an agent? Through Craigslist? 00:41:00: Unions - how do you get in a union and get that sweet, sweet union pay and healthcare? 00:44:38: How does a voice artist audition - in person, or online? 00:54:00: What's the coolest/most exciting job she's ever worked on? Is she ever asked to sound like someone else - a famous actor, for example?  01:05:28: Setting rates - how does she know what to charge? How has her pricing and her money mindset changed since her business has grown? 01:12:00: Does she create her own characters, or is she told what the client wants?  01:18:00: How do she and her husband (also a self-employed person) get health insurance with no 9-5 job? What does a voice actor do when they have a sore throat? 01:29:00: Our back to the future segment - what advice would Alessandra give her younger self? 01:44:22: Our day in the life segment - what does a day-to-day look like for a voice actor and musician? 02:00:00: Listener Questions: how do you get started in the industry if you have no experience? 02:10:00: Quick Answer - Alessandra's favorite books, TV shows, and movies.  

Paper florist Margie Keates of The Lovely Avenue never thought she'd be a creative business owner. In fact, up until a few years ago, she'd never owned a hot glue gun or even thought of herself as artistic at all. That all changed when she created her first paper flowers for her own wedding in 2013. Within two years, Margie had quit her full time job to run The Lovely Avenue, and has developed it into a powerhouse handmade creative business with her own studio and staff. Margie was super honest and real about business challenges, the struggles of being a handmade business owner and not being seen as "just a crafter," how scary (and rewarding) it was to quit her 9-5 job, how she protects her proprietary information, and how she built The Lovely Bloom subscription service to make sure her business was able to stay profitable throughout the entire year. 00:03:06: Margie shares her super interesting elevator pitch that always gets follow up questions. She also tells us about her last 9-5 job and her career trajectory from college to now. 00:09:41: We talk about leaving a 9-5 job and how truly scary it is. What did Margie's transition look like? How did she get started in paper flowers? She also tells us about how finding out about crepe paper on Instagram changed her life, and when she realized there was a niche in the market for her. 00:27:00: We talk flowers! Margie tells us what goes into creating each paper flower (hint: each petal is individually hand cut!) and how long each flower takes (anywhere from 5 minutes to two hours).  00:34:00: What percentage of her business is creative, and what percentage is administrative? How does she hire and manage a staff while protecting her proprietary information? Are her team members W2 employees or 1099 employees? 00:45:00: How does she manage inventory and make sure she has enough paper and supplies in stock?  00:48:00: What's the biggest challenge of owning a handmade creative business (it's not what you think it would be!)? 00:55:00: Why Margie decided to pivot from weddings and how that decision led to the Lovely Bloom subscription service. 01:02:00: There are many subscription box services out there, and not all of them are successful. How did Margie build a successful, profitable subscription service?  01:08:00: We talk about The Lovely Avenue's fine art Still Life collection and why Margie got started doing these large scale, high end pieces to add to her collection.  01:15:00: We talk about pricing. The Lovely Avenue has such a wide and accessible range of price points - how did Margie build this pricing structure? 01:20:00: Has Margie ever taught classes? Will she in the future? 01:24:00: How does she set boundaries on social media? 01:27:00: What's the coolest project she's ever worked on?  01:30:00: What advice would she give to someone who wants to run a full time creative business? 01:34:00 Back to the Future segment: what did Margie want to be when she was growing up? What advice would she give to her younger self? 01:44:00: A Day in the Life segment: What does an average day look like for a paper florist? 01:53:00: Listener questions: how does she make sure her staff doesn't take all her flower templates and designs and start their own paper flower business? How does she get her business out there - social media, styled shoots? 02:03:00: Quick Answer: what's her biggest business achievement? (Hint: Martha Stewart was involved.... twice). What's her favorite real life flower, movie, and tv show? 

Philadelphia-based Kishna Jeantine of EGD Grants is a nonprofit powerhouse. She's the founder of Exponential Growth & Development, LLC., but most people know her as "The Grant Lady". She is a business consultant, certified business coach, and grant writer. She also has a degree in Social Work and has been working in the non-profit sector since 2001 with Family Support Circle, Inc. Not only is she their Youth Development Director,  she is also a CPR trainer, Sexual Risk Avoidance Facilitator, and a single mom of two children. Kishna is also an advocate for Domestic Violence and speaks to survivors throughout her city. In this episode, we talk about how she got into this line of work, and a whole lot about nonprofit businesses. What is a grant? Who can get them? How do nonprofit owners get paid? How the heck do you form a board of directors? What are bylaws, anyway? We also talk about how Kishna markets her business, and some good listener questions about nonprofit businesses.    00:03:20: What does Kishna do? How does she describe her business? What was her last job before starting EGD Grants? How did she get here? Did she go to school for grant-writing... is that even a thing? 00:11:40: What is a grant, anyway? Who can get them (Hint: nonprofits, businesses, even homeowners). What's a big misconception about grants? How can small for-profit businesses get grants? Who's in charge of making sure the grant's stipulations are met? What type of businesses can quality for grants 00:18:00: OK... so... how do you get PAID if you own a nonprofit? What's the process to start one? What are the four things you need to start one (hint: board of directors, 3 years projected financials, bylaws, conflict of interest statement)? Who NOT to have on your board of directors, and who SHOULD be on it. What are the responsibilities to being on a board of directors?  00:28:00: Bylaws - WTF does that mean, and how do you make them? Where would someone find a grand if they have no idea how to start? Can an average person write a grant on their own (Hint: yes, but it'll take a lot of time). How long before you find out if you got it, and when do you get the money? Is every state different when it comes to grants?  00:47:30: Back to the future: what did Kishna want to be when she was younger? What advice would she give to her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made, and what did she learn from it? 00:55:00: A Day in the Life: what does an average day look like for Kishna? As a single mom of two young kids, how does she make time for self care? 01:00:00: Listener Questions and our Quick Answer segment

Amanda Hawthorne of Live Well Paint Often is a live event artist who travels to weddings and events to paint them on-site: think, painting your first dance as you twirl around in the ballroom, or painting your wedding ceremony as you recite your vows.  Amanda is also an art instructor, public speaker, and all of the superlatives: warm, kind, smart, funny, and extraordinarily talented. She's dedicated to a number of charities supporting youth in the foster care system, children with serious illnesses, and adults living with Alzheimers and dementia; she teaches free art classes to these populations and donates a percentage of her profits to support them.  In this episode, we talk about how Amanda built a successful creative business, her day-to-day, how she prices her work, and what it's like to work in the wedding industry and work on over 40 weddings per year. We also go deep: we talk about eating disorders, work pressure and anxiety, and why Amanda's work is so much more than just "painting weddings" - it's giving people a lifelong heirloom of their happiest moments.  We also have a lot of fun and talk about the time Amanda was on a popular reality TV show and what it taught her about reading contracts and the entertainment industry in general, the weirdest things wedding guests have said to her on the job, and a LOT about the Gilmore Girls.  00:02:42: About Amanda: what does she do? What was her last job before being a full time artist? How did breaking her foot change her life? Did she go to school for art? 00:12:15: Amanda's origin story: How did she get into live event painting (hint: totally by chance!!)  00:21:24: What's her favorite painting style? How does she prep for each wedding? What does she wear to weddings? How does each painting start? What's her favorite wedding tradition? How does she know which family members to include in the painting? Is it weird when guests watch her paint - does she get nervous? 00:45:00: The weirdest, most inappropriate thing a drunken wedding guest has ever said to her... and how she dealt with it in the moment. 00:49:30: How does she make teaching art classes profitable? 00:54:22: We talk about Amanda's philanthropy work for charities like the Hope gala, Hope for Youth, and Katie's Art Project.  01:14:00: We talk business: raising prices, giving discounts, non-wedding events, and more. 01:33:00: We get deep while talking about whether or not Amanda gets wedding fatigue as she paints over forty weddings a year. Amanda tells a beautiful story about a bride that touched her heart forever, and how this experience keeps her going.  01:43:00: We get deep again: Amanda opens up to us about her past work experience and her challenges with eating disorders and the pressure of her past career in the entertainment industry. 01:55:00: Time for "The Celebrity Apprentice" story! Amanda tells a WILD story about when she worked as a set designer and agreed to appear on camera on a reality TV show... and what it taught her about contracts, trusting people, and herself.  02:19:00: A Day in the Life: what her day to day is like on a non-wedding day. 02:25:00: Listener Questions: what's her favorite part of the job? Did business come naturally to her? When did she realize she could make a living with her artwork? 02:43:00: Our Quick Answer segment, my favorite part. We talk about the Gilmore Girls and Golden Girls A LOT.    

Mariah Magazine is a website development and strategy guru. She's able to cut through the technobabble and help her clients understand what's really going on with their website and search engine optimization (SEO). Mariah is a valued and treasured member of my team at Bonnie Bryant Creative - I love that she's able to make website and SEO strategy super clear for our clients and help give them autonomy over their online presence. In this episode, we talk a lot about how Mariah got started in the industry, when and how she started her own business, Mariah Magazine Studio, the difference between different website platforms, the biggest website mistakes she sees business owners make, and more. 00:02:48: What's the difference between a website strategist and a website designer?  00:05:30: What's the last job Mariah had before starting her own business (hint: air purifier sales?!?!) What has her career trajectory looked like? Did she go to school for website design (hint: she credits her success to Myspace). 00:15:22: How did Mariah learn the ins and outs of Wordpress design? She also gives us a little Wordpress 101. 00:22:05: How does she keep up with SEO changes? How did she learn so much about SEO?? 00:24:55: What's the biggest SEO mistake people make? What should they ask when hiring someone to do web design or SEO management? 00:40:22: What's the best website platform to use - Wordpress, Squarespace, Wix, GoDaddy? Something else? 00:50:00: Back to the Future: Mariah tells us the advice she'd give to her younger self, and the biggest business mistake she's made and what she's learned from it. 01:06:54: A Day in the Life: Mariah gives us the day-to-day of a busy website developer and strategist.  01:11:22: Listener Questions: What code should an aspiring developer learn? How reliable is Google Analytics? What are three takeaways for your site's SEO? Do you need to do 3 blog posts/week to be successful? 01:20:00: Our final Quick Answer segment where Mariah tells us her fave movie, tv show, and more. 

Britt Rohr of LA-based Swell Press is at the forefront of a once-dying, now resurrected art: letterpress printing. With her five enormous vintage letterpress machines and a small but dedicated team, she designs and creates invitations, business stationery, and brand collaborations for her discerning customers.  Every single invitation or business card that leaves Britt's studio has been hand-fed through one of her letterpress machines after the custom letterpress plates have been made and specific ink colors have been hand-mixed. If an invitation has two or more colors, each color gets its own specific letterpress plate and custom-mixed color. This craft is not an easy or quick one to do, but the results are so worth it.  On this episode, Britt discusses how she went from the entertainment industry to owning a handmade creative business, how she deals with copycats and setting boundaries with her proprietary information and designs, how she manages her CRM and contracts, setting her prices to reflect her worth, the biggest business mistakes she's made, and the thoughtful advice she'd give to her former self. 00:05:00: Letterpress printing 101. What is it? How long does it take? Can you letterpress on anything? 00:11:40: How did Britt get started in letterpress printing and design? What has her career trajectory looked like? How did she take her business from one machine in her garage to five machines in a 1400 square foot studio? 00:21:00: Britt shares her advice for people starting out in the industry. 00:31:00: Does Britt get wedding fatigue? How does she set boundaries with her clients?  00:45:00: What do her systems look like? Which CRM does she use? How does she handle contracts and proof agreements? 00:53:00: How has she set her pricing to reflect her value and make sure she's fairly compensated? 01:06: Britt talks more about education and workshops, and the future of those in her business model. 01:12:00: How does she set boundaries with followers and clients when she gets dozens of Instagram DMs a day? What does she do when people ask for proprietary information? 01:19:00: How does she deal with copycats? 01:28:00: Our "Back to the Future" segment - what advice would she give to her former self? What are the biggest business mistakes she's made? 01:34:00: "A Day in the Life" - Britt walks us through the day-to-day of running her business. 01:42:00: Listener questions - what's her favorite part of running her business? What are her tips on hiring a good team? How would calligraphers or artists reach out to work with her? Are there any trends she's noticing in wedding stationery?  02:00:00: Our Quick Answer segment where Britt tells us about her favorite pump up song, biggest hero, and favorite movie (Hint: it involves dinosaurs and Jeff Goldblum, whom she loved before it was a thing).   

Boston-based Christina Knowles is the definition of "career goals." Her resume is so long and impressive, it could fill a book.  Christina is passionate about mentoring young women and helping them leverage their experience to advance in their careers. She's been a mentor of our host Bonnie Bryant O'Connor for over a decade, so much so that Bonnie's guiding principle in any professional challenge is, "What Would Christina Do?" Christina is the current Finance Director at Voter Choice Massachusetts. In 2018, as the Finance Director for the "Yes on 3" campaign, she directed a $6 million fundraising effort to ensure that transgender equal rights were upheld at the ballot. Yeah, you read that right. She raised six million dollars: from small donors, big donors, and major corporations and institutions like the New England Patriots.  Christina has been a policy director, executive director, policy advisor, communications consultant, and lobbyist for a whole host of social justice issues both in Boston and Washington D.C.  In this episode, Christina discusses her career path, what it's really like to work in politics, how you manage your career when you need health insurance but not every job offers it, how to negotiate, how to deal with sexism, and her tips for mentees.  00:04:10: What's Christina's job? What the heck is Ranked Choice Voting? What was her job before this one (hint: raising six million dollars, no biggie)? What has her career trajectory looked like?  00:19:30: Are all lobbyists evil like you see in the film "Thank You for Smoking" (hint: no. There are lobbyists for homeless youth, lobbyists for education bills, lobbyists for social workers, lobbyists for unions - all sorts of "good" lobbyists out there!)?  00:23:00: How do you plan a career in politics when campaigns are so short-lived? How do you leverage your experience and build upon it? 00:26:50: What's the best and worst part of working in politics?  00:34:00: How does someone in the historically low-paying nonprofit industry get access to healthcare and retirement benefits? As someone who needs health insurance, has not having access to these things limited her career in the past?  00:45:00: HOW DO YOU RAISE SIX MILLION DOLLARS 00:48:00: How would someone in a nonprofit role cultivate major donors? Do you just call up The Patriots and say, "Hi, Tom Brady, can you give me some money for this ballot campaign" (hint: No)?  00:51:20: How does Christina deal with sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace? Has she ever experienced pay discrimination, and what did she do to combat it?  01:11:45: Christina talks about her mentoring work with young women and the advice she gives them. 01:20:00: Christina tells us about what she wanted to do when she was in high school, how it's changed, and what advice she'd give to her younger self. 01:32:00: A Day in the Life: Christina tells us what her day-to-day as a political mover and shaker looks like. 01:36:00: Christina gives her advice on hiring a great team.  01:41:00: Listener questions: how do you do "the ask" for big donations? What are some networking tips? 01:43:00: Our super fun quick answer segment where Christina tells us her fave TV show, best pump up song, and biggest hero.     

Leonora Benza of Yellow Heart Art is an extraordinarily talented artist and a super hilarious human being. You've seen her artwork in stores like Macy's, West Elm, TJ Maxx, Homegoods, and more. She's also designed for major events for celebrities like Lauren Conrad, and her work has been seen in the homes of Mindy Kaling and Kourtney Kardashian.   She talks with us about how she got started in the industry, what it's really like to do a trade show, the real nitty gritty of how she got her products in major stores, and more.  00:01:40: What is Yellow Heart Art? What has her career path looked like to this point?  00:11:21: How would someone get their product into stores? What's the difference between selling it wholesale and licensing your work? What are the pros and cons of both? What are some of the unexpected costs of getting your products into stores? Is it worth it to try to sell wholesale to local boutiques? 00:22:50: All about trade shows: what is it like to do one? How much does it cost? Is it worth it? 00:43:00: What are Leonora's most and least favorite things to design? What's her process? What are her favorite projects so far? How does she balance her style with what the client wants, if the two are disparate? 01:09:00: Back to the Future - did Leonora always want to be an artist? What advice would she give to her younger self? What's the biggest business mistake she's made?  01:18:34: A Day in the Life - what does an average day look like for Leonora?  01:27:00: Listener Questions - how do you get your products into stores? What's the best selling platform - Etsy or your own site? How do you find inspiration? How do you find manufacturers? 01:44:00: Quick Answers - our most fun one yet! What talent does she wish she had? Who's her favorite member of each 90s boy band? What was her favorite early 2000s fashion moment? Who's the best Gilmore Girl love interest?  

Jenn Walker Wall is an experienced career coach who doesn't just help you find a new job - she changes your job hunting game for life. Her clients learn how to leverage their skills to find new jobs and change careers entirely, leaving them with a sense of autonomy over their futures.  Jenn talks to us about how she started Work Wonders Careers and shares a huge wealth of knowledge about how to switch jobs, change careers, update your resume, and interview for a job the RIGHT way.  00:03:05: Jenn tells us how she got here. What has her career ladder looked like? How have her goals changed over the years? 00:24:12: How did Jenn transition from a full time job to being self-employed? What's her favorite part of her business? How has changing her prices changed her business?  00:42:00: What's the biggest resume mistake she sees and how can people fix it?  00:44:00: How does someone switch career paths? What if you want a different job but it requires a degree you don't have?  00:56:00: Jenn tells us about her own podcast, Making Life Work. 01:02:00: Back to the Future - what did Jenn want to be growing up? What advice would she give to her younger self? What are the biggest mistakes she's made in her career and what would she do differently? 01:15:00: A Day in the Life - what does Jenn's day-to-day look like? 01:25:00: Listener Questions - how far back should your resume go? How does a job seeker make sure their resume gets seen by an actual human? 01:35:43: Quick Answer - our fun short answer segment to wrap up the show. 

Adeniz Villar is a talented LA-based creative director and content creator. With a background in digital marketing, she helps her clients refine their brand voice, develop a brand strategy, and launch successful digital and influencer marketing campaigns.  Her day-to-day includes organizing brand photo shoots and A LOT of influencer outreach and management. Adeniz tells us what it's like to be a creative director and entrepreneur, and drops serious knowledge on how to uplevel your business's marketing. 00:02:30: Adeniz's origin story: what Storyplace Media does, and how she got here. Is she doing what she went to college for? 00:07:30: What goes into planning photoshoots for a brand? What's the strategy behind it? What are the logistics like - if you don't have a proper permit, will she get kicked out or something?  00:14:56: How does she find photographers and models - how would they pitch to her? 00:18:02: All about influencer marketing! How does a brand start out with influencer marketing? How do you approve their content and measure ROI? How many followers does it take to be an influencer, and how much do they get paid? What advice does she have for aspiring influencers? How should smaller brands dip their toes into influencer marketing? 01:06:00: Back to the Future - did Adeniz always want to be a creative director? What would she change about her career? What was the biggest mistake she's made, and what would she do differently? 01:20:00: A Day in the Life - what does an average day look like? How does she structure it and get everything done? 01:28:00: Listener Questions - how does she find clients? How does she send pitch emails? How does a brand find their target market? 01:37:00: Quick Answer Segment - favorite tv show, song, book, best LA spots.