Should you Stop or Yield at the Intersection of Life Circle and Business Drive?

We often find ourselves at the crossroads of life's intricate dance and the relentless rhythm of business. In Episode 6, we had the pleasure of chatting with Denise O'Malley, the visionary CEO and founder of You Define Wellness. Our conversation dived deep into the ebb and flow of personal and professional spheres, navigating the delicate balance that defines the entrepreneurial journey.

The conversation drew focus to the intricate challenges faced by business owners as they navigate the blurry boundaries between work and life. At the heart of our dialogue was a fundamental question—What happens when life and business intersect? Should you stop entirely, focusing on either business needs or life’s desires and demands? Or should you gracefully yield, finding a harmonious rhythm that blends both life and business seamlessly?

Natalie and Shanna infused the conversation with their dynamic energy. Weaved within were personal stories and professional insights, creating a rich tapestry of wisdom. Alongside Denise, they stepped beyond the conventional norms of the hustle culture, challenging the notion that success necessitates sacrificing health and well-being. This episode not only aimed to ignite contemplation but also delivered practical strategies for our audience to thrive in both their personal and professional domains.

Denise Delivers: Balancing Life, Beating Burnout

Denise challenged the idea of a strict work-life balance, suggesting that work is part of life. Instead, she encourages finding harmony between the two spheres. Having interests and activities outside of work can enrich your life and relationships. She suggests having interests outside of your business that bring you joy.?

Maybe it's gardening, a hobby, or a side gig unrelated to work; whatever you choose to do, diversifying your interests can provide a well-rounded and fulfilling life. Building and nurturing relationships with friends, family, and loved ones is also essential for overall well-being. It's crucial to invest time and effort in these relationships, as they provide support and balance. Denise's insights highlight the importance of maintaining a balanced and fulfilling life as a business owner, which can help prevent burnout and improve overall well-being.

Let’s talk about Burnout

Burnout is a pervasive issue in today's fast-paced work environment, and Denise offered valuable insights on how to prevent it. Denise shared with us how she is well-familiar with burnout and experienced it when she was creating You Define Wellness. Her advice centers around creating a balanced and sustainable approach to work and life.

Here are a few of Denise’s suggestions to avoid burnout:

1. Set Priorities and Create Boundaries
2. Utilize Tools and Technologies
3. Emphasize Self-Care

Early in the conversation, she emphasized the importance of prioritization and setting boundaries. She talked about the need to define clear boundaries between work and personal life, which is a challenging task, especially when working from home. However, by establishing these boundaries, individuals can prevent work from encroaching on their personal time, thereby reducing the risk of burnout.

To further support this notion, Forbes suggests that maintaining a clear separation between work and personal life is vital for overall well-being, especially if you work remotely. Over the years, numerous strategies have emerged to help individuals strike this balance. For instance, it is essential to identify and communicate your boundaries clearly, as this allows both yourself and others to respect your personal time. Creating post-work rituals can also be beneficial, as they serve as transitions that signify the end of the workday, making it easier to mentally detach from work.

Another key aspect of Denise's advice is the use of technology and tools to streamline tasks and reduce stress. Technology and automation can be powerful allies in managing your workload efficiently. She recommends harnessing the power of automation and utilizing virtual assistance to manage work efficiently. These tools can help individuals avoid overwhelming workloads, a common precursor to burnout.

Denise also underscored the significance of self-care in preventing burnout. An article by Everyday Health, defines it like this, “Self-care means taking care of yourself so that you can be healthy, you can be well, you can do your job, you can help and care for others, and you can do all the things you need to and want to accomplish in a day.”

Implementing self-care strategies can lead to a healthier work-life balance, reduced stress, and a decreased risk of burnout. Denise’s insights offer a holistic approach to achieving a balanced and fulfilling life, both personally and professionally. She had a few mic drop moments during the conversation that enlightened and encouraged the audience in a way that only Denise can.

Just Good Business: BJC Jewelry

In this segment, Natalie and Shanna discussed a remarkable business, BJC Jewelry, who exemplifies the essence of purpose beyond profit. BJC Jewelry began as a solution for budget-conscious brides but has since evolved into a business that caters to jewelry enthusiasts of all kinds, offering affordable options. What makes this business stand out is its commitment to supporting organizations beyond its own growth.

In 2023, the owner, an alumna of Barbara Scotia College, learned of the college's need to raise funds for rebuilding and regaining accreditation. In response to this call, BJC Jewelry created a product line representing the college's history and commitment to excellence. However, the commitment didn't stop there. BJC pledged to donate an impressive 50% of the profits from the sales of this collection to support the Barbara Scotia Rising Initiative.

But that's not all. BJC Jewelry also extended its philanthropic efforts to breast cancer awareness. They added to their line of breast cancer awareness bracelets and pledged to donate a portion of all sales from this collection to support breast cancer research and global awareness initiatives.

Benevolent and Beautiful, BJC Jewelry

Barbara Currence, founder of BJC Jewelry, was a guest on the show, and the hosts were excited to see the growth in her business, especially on Instagram. Barbara mentioned her passion for supporting Barber Scotia College and how she aims to contribute to the college's revival. She has also embraced breast cancer awareness, driven by her personal connection as her mother battled breast cancer.

The conversation shifted to discussing challenges Barbara faces, particularly related to marketing and funding. She emphasized the need for funding to grow her business and reach more customers.?

The hosts and experts (Denise O’Malley, Sandra Connor, and Angie Giltner) provided valuable insights and advice:

1. Build an Expert Reputation: Barbara was encouraged to position herself as an expert in jewelry and accessorizing on social media. By sharing tips and advice related to jewelry styling and how to incorporate her products into daily wear, she can build trust and credibility, making it more likely for potential customers to convert.
2. Social Proof: Social proof is highlighted as a powerful tool. Encouraging customers to share photos of themselves wearing her jewelry was mentioned by a few experts. These user-generated photos can be used as social proof, showing others that real people love and enjoy her products.
3. Email Cart Abandonment Reminders: Implementing email reminders for customers who have added items to their shopping carts but haven't completed their purchase can help recover potentially lost sales by gently reminding customers about the items in their carts.
4. Value Proposition: Ensuring a clear and compelling value proposition on her website is crucial. Customers need to understand why they should buy her jewelry and what sets it apart from competitors.
5. Partnerships: The idea of partnering with local businesses, such as florists or stores that cater to brides, was suggested as a way to increase exposure and sales. Collaborating with businesses that complement her products can be mutually beneficial.
6. Consignment and Packaging: For those considering consigning jewelry to gift shops or other stores, it's important to ensure proper packaging and provide a way for customers to find more of your products easily. Additionally, verifying that the shop owner's insurance covers your products is essential. For consignment deals, tracking inventory and sales is crucial to ensure you receive the appropriate payments for your products.

Additionally, they recommended finding a marketing director, exploring partnerships, and possibly collaborating with college students on marketing projects to expand her reach. Pinterest was also mentioned as a potential platform to explore for driving traffic to her online store.

Preparing a Powerful Pitch

It’s Ya Boy Fitzroy continued walking through technology to help new and emerging business owners. Pitchbook is a leading resource for comprehensive data, research, and insights spanning the global capital markets. It was founded with the vision of creating an actionable and extensive database for private equity-focused intelligence. It is a powerful tool for businesses and investors to explore opportunities in the capital markets and should be considered as a resource in the quest for funding. Pitchbook is essentially a one-stop shop for companies and investors looking for deals. Fitzroy emphasized the importance of signing up for Pitchbook sooner rather than later to leverage the platform's capabilities in finding funding for your business.

Do The Side Hustle

In Natalie‘s Money Minute she introduced us to Side Hustle Stack, which offers a variety of side hustle opportunities that people can explore to earn extra income. She highlighted that the website categorizes side hustles based on various interests and skills. Some of the opportunities include making money through gaming, teaching, tutoring, offering online exercise classes, and more. She emphasized that this platform can be particularly helpful for individuals who have transitioned to working from home due to the pandemic or those looking for additional income sources.

Natalie reminded the audience that having a positive mindset towards money and maintaining a good relationship with it can lead to financial opportunities and even unexpected savings, as she shared her experience of purchasing an iPhone 15 for only $78. The key takeaway from Natalie's Money Minute in this episode was that with the right mindset and effort, individuals can explore various side hustle opportunities to boost their income and achieve financial goals.

Grants are Game Changers

In this episode, Shanna passionately encouraged entrepreneurs to explore and pursue various grants tailored to their businesses. She emphasized the accessibility of these funding opportunities, ranging from the Start Her Grant by Texas Women's University, benefiting women-led businesses in Texas, to the Route 66 Extraordinary Women Micro Grant, supporting enterprises along Route 66 that have a majority of women ownership. She also spotlighted the Brown Girl Jane and Shea Moisture Grant, catering to black women entrepreneurs in the beauty and wellness sector nationwide. Shanna's message was clear: Grants like these can be game changers for your business, providing financial support and exposure, so seize the opportunity and start your grant search today.

Key Takeaways

In this mid-season episode, we explored the delicate balance between work and life, challenging the traditional concept of strict work-life balance. Denise's insights encouraged harmonizing both spheres of existence rather than treating them as separate entities. We encourage you to regularly assess your priorities and adjust as needed. Life can change, and your priorities should adapt accordingly. Just as you evaluate and modify your priorities in response to life's shifts, establishing clear boundaries allows you to protect your time and energy. Denise’s message was clear: a balanced and fulfilling life as a business owner, with a holistic approach to well-being, can prevent burnout and promote overall health.

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Meet Your Hosts:

Natalie Essman has been a financial strategist since 2004. She has a heart for entrepreneurs and helping small business. When she's not crunching numbers and providing financial advice, Natalie can be found designing creative journals and hosting her live weekly show, The Better Your Business Show, which is available on all major social media and podcasting platforms. When she's not working hard, she loves spending quality time with her husband Sam, her son Paul and their dog Diamond.

You can learn more about Natalie or schedule time with her here.?

You Can Find Her Collection of Journals on Amazon.com

100% of the Revenue From Her Autism Appreciation Journals is Donated Back to Programs Helping Those with Disabilities.

Shanna Mavis is an experienced Seed Stage Business Coach, Tax Consultant/Advisor, and Certified Master Instructor. Driven by a desire to help small business owners (SBOs) achieve their visions, Shanna works with SBOs to educate and empower them with a renewed focus on doing what they do best and what they need to grow their businesses. She has held a variety of positions from administrative to executive in multiple industries. During her tenure at H&R Block, Shanna became a Certified Master Instructor and taught basic and supplementary income tax courses for state licensing requirements. Her background in technology, coupled with her business acumen and tax knowledge, has served companies from startups to Fortune 100. She takes pride in providing the best experience possible through interpersonal connections, shared resources, and education. Shanna has been recognized by organizations for her extraordinary commitment to excellence and passion for people.

You can learn more about Shanna or schedule time with her here.