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So excited to have the Etsy Success Course featured on @businessinsider - https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-make-money-on-etsy#youtube-channels https://www.instagram.com/p/CIo3IBOjlPh/?igshid=7bd3jkqyggi3

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Currently Craving: February

I’m just a couple of weeks away from my due date, and my goodness - mostly what I’m craving is having this baby on the outside, rather than the inside!  As you can imagine, his quarters are starting to get a little cramped, which means a lot of awkward stretching for both of us.  Since I’m feeling especially connected to this little guy, here’s what I’m currently craving.

A Cute Mug

My weirdest pregnancy craving?  Hot water.  Not boiling, just hot - something cozy and comforting in my hand, helping to offset my constant thirst and the freezing February temperatures.  I love the look and feel of handmade mugs, and this one is just gorgeous! 

The Joy of Missing Out: Live More by Doing Less

I just finished reading this book - and I have to say that I loved it.  Especially as I start this new chapter of my life, I’m working on figuring out what my top priorities are and how to stay true to them.  This book had some amazing, actionable steps to help achieve that!

Fun Spring Dresses

I know, I know - it’s still February, and yes frankly the idea of buying clothes right now is a little intimidating. But I can’t help but love checking out fun and bright spring dresses - and Anthropologie’s selection is always my top choice!  Hopefully there will be some finds that work for new moms.  Open to any and all tips on this, friends!

Instant Pot Recipes

I have on bulk cooking overload - and since we were lucky enough to get an Instant Pot for our baby shower, I’ve been going crazy making new recipes!  It’s been a ton of fun, but it’s hard to find vegetarian meals.  I’m looking into all the vegetarian instant pot cookbooks I can - again, totally open to recommendations!

Tropical Plants

February is a strange time of year in Upstate New York.  It’s 100% still in the camp of winter, but it’s when we all collectively decide that winter should be over, and are unpleasantly surprised that it lingers for another month or so before inching into spring.  To help combat this, I’ve been really into fun tropical plants that give me jungle vibes - even with the thermostat cranked and the fire roaring!

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Six Tips for Better Communication & Connection

I might sound like the worst millennial when I say thing, but nothing drives me up the wall more than when I’m out with a friend, family member, or my husband and they spend all of their time staring at their phone.

I’m sure there’s a lot that could be taken away about me as a person from that statement, but at the end of the day we can all agree - it’s a bad feeling when someone you love accidentally makes you feel unvalued.

In the spirit of working on connections in your life, let’s talk about a few ways that you can be a better communicator with the people in your world - and how you can set the stage for how you want to be treated.

Set Time Aside

If this is with your partner, it might look like a weekly date night.  Or maybe it’s monthly brunch with your besties, or a particular workout class with your work buddies.  Whatever it is, schedule that time to focus on just connecting with the people you’re spending time with.  Mark it off in your calendar, silence your phone, and give it your all!

Especially if this is with close friends or a partner, you could even take turns planning out adventures.  Maybe there’s a local park that you’ve always wanted to explore, or a new paint & sip place opened up locally.  Great! Check it out and try something new - you never know what might turn out to be a new favorite!

Express Appreciation

I can personally be really bad at this, but take time to thank the people in your life who go above and beyond when they do something.  My husband, because he’s an unsung hero, will almost always take out the gross trash without being asked.  He also makes sure to take care of the dog at night when I find the yard spooky, and he gets the mail every single day without fail.

All these little things felt like nothing to me - until he deployed and I was overwhelmed by all the things I needed him for.

Especially if you’re friends with or in relationship with someone who’s love language is words of affirmation, this is a big way to show someone how much you appreciate all that they do for you, and how much it means to you. 

Be Open and Honest

I know that this is a tough one, because in a lot of ways we’ve been conditioned as a society to first act like nothing is an issue to maintain the peace, and then eventually blow up about something small and make it into a huge deal.

But rather then letting things fester under your skin, call attention and speak honestly about things that are causing your stress, hurting your feelings, guilty, or just in general causing you to feel icky.  It’s uncomfortable in the moment for sure - but the more you let things like this fester and get under your skill, the more you’re risking isolating yourself from someone important to you.  

It’s always better to have a productive conversation about the things that come up, rather then eventually exploding because of something else unrelated.

Don’t Hide Your Weird Side

Look, your best friends and partner have probably all seen you on your worst days and still love you- so why is it that you’re pretending you don’t listen to Backstreet Boys and that you’re super excited for the Taylor Swift documentary?

Be real about who you are, and connect with people over it!  Maybe they won’t get it - but I promise you, there’s something weird that they’re into that to you is totally bonkers.

For instance, I absolutely love Harry Potter.  I have them all on Audible, and when I’m sick or stressed, I listen to them. My husband has not only never seen or read them, he once announced that when he watched it in Spanish class, there were no wands. Clearly he has a limited interest. 

On the flip side, he loves to collect bottles and research their history - which is a bit of a snooze fest to me, to be honest. 

But we both support and embrace the other’s weirdness, because it’s what makes us fun together - and also, strangely effective at trivia.  Don’t hide the parts of you that are silly or different - just enjoy them with the people you love!

Be a Safe Harbor

This ties into the last point, but essentially learn to accept people in your life as they are, and don’t be a jerk.  If people feel comfortable and safe around you, they’re more likely to connect with you and be real about themselves.

In a way, it’s easier to explain what not to do here - don’t be the person who is always saying mean things about everyone else, don’t focus on the bad over the good, and don’t shoot down your friends or partners goals.

Instead, focus on being that positive inspiration for people, support their goals, and speak praise before negativity.

If there are people in your life currently where you simply can’t be this person for them, you have to ask yourself - is this person worth keeping in my life? 

Make Eye Contact

When you’re talking to someone, for goodness sake - make eye contact.  Staring at your phone gives the impression that you’re not really paying attention.  Instead, look people in the eye when you’re chatting, or at least when you’re listening to show that you’re engaged in the conversation.

What are some ways you work on improving your communication and connection with others?  Let me know in the comments below!

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How to Connect with What You Want (and get it!)

Since this month is all about focusing on connection, let’s get started by being super clear on what it is that you want.

This can be a great time to check back in with your intentions or goals that you set last month - what is it that you’re looking to tackle this year, and what would you love to see happen?  Spend some time brainstorming what it is that you really want in life, and then write them all down.

You don’t have to limit yourself to your goals, or even little things either - consider whether you’re looking for a new apartment, job, relationship, finances, or vacations.  What exactly is it that you’re hoping to call into your life?

Try not to filter yourself too much here - it’s ok to have some big dreams, as long as their specific! 

Some of the things on my list right now are:

Take a trip to Greece

Fix up a vintage airstream

Open a retail space to sell my art

Build a custom home with a massive kitchen and workspace to create art

Grow a network of like-minded Mom friends who I can rely on for support

Now that you’ve got the basics on your list, get into the nitty-gritty of it.  List the things that you must have, what you’d preferably have, and what you will not have.

For example, my vintage airstream dream

Must have a solid shell, base, trailer system, electric/gas hookups (that’s outside my skill set)

Preferably have an aluminum shell, decent interior that just needs cosmetic updates, and a 16ft body

Will not have big rust holes, smoke smells stuck in the trailer, scary vermin of any kind, or mold.

Once you’ve gotten clear on all of these areas, pin your list somewhere you see it everyday - maybe that’s your bathroom mirror, or your fridge.  

If you’re able to achieve one of your dreams (high five!) then check it off your list, and be sure to write a thank you note to anyone who helped you achieve your dream (even if it’s yourself!).

Obviously, it might take a lot of time to achieve some of your goals, while others might build up quickly.  But know that the process is going exactly the way that it should be, and trust the journey!

What are some of the things you’re adding to your list?

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First Anniversary : A Year in Review

It’s crazy to look back and think that one year ago, I left my corporate job with Etsy to be self employed.  It’s certainly been a whirlwind of a year - I’ve learned a ton that I didn’t know before, and I’ve had a few moments where I needed to reminded myself of lessons that I’ve shared dozens of times.  

When you’re working for yourself, it’s easy to forget that there’s natural ebbs and flows of business; that not all of your clients will be dream clients; that sometimes, it just really sucks to have to build your own systems, website, and branding.  And man, can it be time consuming!

I’ll be honest - I’ve had moments where I wished for the stability of the paycheck and the corporate life again.  And the snacks - oh my gosh, the snacks at Etsy were on point.

But for all the low points, I can’t help but look back and be incredibly proud of all that I’ve built.  In the last year, I’ve had the privilege to work with some incredible (and inspiring!) people and businesses.  I launched my first eCourse, have written six eBooks, developed 2 planners, hosted workshops and yoga classes beyond count, and crafted a maternity leave in a new business, plus launched a new creative enterprise with my husband.

And with all the ups and downs, I’m still all about that entrepreneur life.  If you’re getting started on launching a new business this year, here are some of the harder lessons I’ve learned, and what my recommendations would be for you going in:

Trust Your Gut

When I first launched, I thought I had signed my dream client.  They were practically matching my Etsy salary, it was work I loved, and people I trusted.

Within about two weeks though, I noticed a few things that should have been red flags - the client was cagey about follow-up, non-committal about contracts, and I was waking up panicked about what needed to get accomplished while they were hesitate to even review the basics.

You’re probably thinking what I would immediately tell any client - girl, get out of there!!  

But instead, I attributed my feelings to stress from leaving a great job, traveling the less-walked path, imposter syndrome —  basically, I told my gut instinct that was screaming “BAD CALL” to shove it and did the work anyway.

It didn’t end well, as you likely guessed.  I’ll spare you the details, but the lesson from this one is simple, friends - trust your gut.  If you’re waking up panicked because you’re concerned the client relationship isn’t what it should be, there’s probably a reason.  If your client isn’t willing to sign a contract, do NOTHING for them, even if they’re a friend you trust.  And last but not least, learn to recognize that even if someone wants and needs your services, it doesn’t mean that they’re ready to work with you.

Evaluate Your Priorities

One of the first mistakes I made was in setting prices that were based on an hourly, contract rate as a consultant in businesses.  As such, I gave clients the option to pay me a certain amount of money for consultation an hour.

Just typing that up now makes me feel silly - because I never thought, in my wildest dreams, that people would expect full time work from me at those rates.  And yes, they absolutely did.  

It didn’t matter what my working hours were set for, or the limits I tried to impose - clients felt that because they paid me per hour, they were my first and only priority.

Now - I wasn’t setting a valid expectation for my clients.  They thought they had unlimited access to me, and enforcing boundaries in that condition was challenging because I wanted to deliver top-performance results to each client.  After all, I was just get started and word of mouth marketing is a REAL THING.

I ended up burnt out, exhausted, and answering work emails on vacation within hours of finding out I was pregnant at one of my best friends weddings.

And friends?  That was totally my fault.  By setting an impossibly high standard for myself, I de-prioritized the most important thing in my business - myself.  Sure, it’s important to me that I scale my business, grow, deliver top-notch service — but my absolute top priority is to walk my talk.

I can’t be a holistic health and business coach who doesn’t enforce their own boundaries.  I can’t tell people to turn their phones off at night and connect with family if I’m not doing the same thing.  I can’t preach setting business hours if I’m debating calling my mother to tell her about my positive pregnancy test or respond to that clients “urgent email” that got pushed through my vacation mode responder.

Knowing your priorities and always, ALWAYS honoring them is a huge lesson I learned this year. 

Compare Energy Expenses to Income

Whether you’re in a service based industry or a product based industry, if doing your work is sucking out your soul - it’s probably not worth it.

After the aforementioned mistakes I made, I created a document that tracked how many hours a week I worked on particular projects or clients, and the financial investment I was getting from them.  I ranked the clients and projects in terms of how much I enjoyed working with them, and how much of a percentage of my business they were.

Unsurprisingly, the clients and products that were the biggest drains of my energy and most challenging to work with also happened to be the clients that paid me the least.

Within a few months, I closed out all of those contracts and didn’t offer up the option to renew.

Did my business take a hit?  Yes, frankly - but it pushed me to explore other options that were more aligned with my goals and where I wanted to be.  It pushed me to launch the Etsy Success Course, build out more workshops and eBooks, and get back into selling more products.  

Especially as I transition into being a mother and business owner, I want to set the model for my kid that working for yourself is the opposite of slogging away at work you hate - instead, it’s about finding the solutions that meet your skill set and getting paid to do it well.  

If you’re just starting up, I recommend evaluating the work that you’re doing - make sure that the energy you’re putting into a client or a project is being appropriately compensated.  I get that sometimes you have to work with tough clients or projects you don’t love - but don’t let that dominate the work you do.  

Systems Are Worth The Investment

I launched my business as a side-hustle about a year before I left my corporate job.  I advocate hard for bootstrapping your business, I recommend against going into debt to launch, and I’m a huge fan of investing your returns back into your own growth and business.

So when I came across a lot of systems that were expensive when I first started, I laughed.  Why pay $400 a year for project management and CRM software? That’s totally within my skill set.

WRONG.  SO WRONG.

Let’s run through what a typical inquiry would look like when I first launched.

Client saw blog

Client struggled to find “Contact” page

Client reached out and waited for my response (depending on the day of the week, maybe up to 4 days)

I set up time to chat with client, typically about a week or two after making contact with them, and pitched my services.

If they committed, I manually ran their cards/checks, handled all the paperwork as .pdfs or physical sheets, and had to run my books each month for a few hours.

Friends. That is a cumbersome process.  Now I use Honeybook in my business, and as soon as someone reaches out that they’re interested in working with me, they immediately get:

Pricing sheet

Clear, outlined expectations of what’s a part of my coaching practice

Details about working with me one-on-one

The option to set up a consultation, which links them to my work calendar to schedule an appointment, and automatically sends them reminders after they’ve booked.

If they decide to move forward with me after a consultation, a full coaching contract gets sent out immediately - including payments, which were automatically taken and stored.

Seriously - the amount of time I spent working with clients halved in terms of paperwork - and I didn’t spend as much time on consulting calls where people were unclear about what the coaching process looked like, and what resources were available to them. Instead, I was getting on calls with people who were already clear on my offerings and committed to the outcome.

If I were to go back and relaunch, I’d start out by investing in either Honeybook or something like it purely because it’s saved me so much time. It’s like having a personal assistant in my business that just manages my paperwork and I absolutely love it.

If looking over this list makes you feel like there’s no way you can tackle your first year in business - you’re totally wrong.  You’ve got this!  

Every job is hard.  Every job has tough days.  You’ll have bad bosses, bad clients, and things will periodically blow up in your face.

But unlike a traditional job, when you work for yourself, you know that every single one of your wins is because you worked hard to achieve them.  There’s seriously nothing as amazing and building up your work and watching it bloom.  

Instead of looking over these hard lessons and thinking that it’s not worth starting, use them as a way to anticipate some trouble that you might run into.  I never thought that a huge obstacle to growth for me would be as simple as software - but making small changes let me grow in a crazy positive way.  Similarly, I never thought of clients in terms of the energy I was spending on them, and what it’s worth was to me. 

What are you most excited about in the first year of your business?  What hard lessons did you learn, and how did that change how you tackle things?

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Weight Watchers Diet

If you’re the type of person that thrives in environments with accountability and community, Weight Watchers might be the best diet style choice for you.  While the science and food recommendations are ever evolving, at its core, Weight Watchers assigns points or values to specific types of food, and you can choose which foods to fit into your daily intake.

There’s a lot of factors that go into…

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Holiday Self Care Ideas

Holiday Self Care Ideas

The holiday season is in high gear – which means, carving out some time to take care of yourself might be a quick note jotted at the bottom of your ever growing to-do list.  But between marathons of holiday movies, a thousand parties you have to attend, and a gift list that rivals Santa’s, it’s easy to feel burnt out and overwhelmed — and dare I say, down right Grinchy.  Today I’ve got a few…

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Superfoods Diet

Hang tight, friends – Superfoods aren’t just for your morning smoothies anymore! In fact, there’s an entire dietary theory that focuses just on emphasizing Superfoods – and making it the centerpiece and staples for your life.

Now, what exactly is a Superfood?  There’s some differing beliefs on this – some believe that any whole food (unprocessed) is a super food, while others think that…

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Balancing Home & Work Life

Balancing Home & Work Life

I wear a lot of hats in my life.

I work with my coaching clients, both one on one and in groups. I teach yoga at a few different studios, dashing around town to get to each class.  I manage this blog, plus my brand presence beyond my site, and two Etsy shops. I freelance manage businesses to help them with staying on track. I make 98% of my families food from scratch, and support our family by…

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Butternut Squash

We all already know that my absolute favorite time of year is fall - after all, what truly is more fun than crunching through leaves, bundling up in cozy sweaters, and devouring everything even remotely pumpkin themed?

But, as much as I love pumpkins, there are more delicious squashes in the world than one excellent for coffee beverages and tea loaves.  There’s a ton of delicious options at this time of year!

My go-to squash for fall is typically Butternut Squash - a tasty, nutrient dense powerhouse of a fruit that’s chock full of delicious goodness.

Not only is butternut squash high in vitamins A, B, C, & E, it’s also a great source for folate and manganese; a great pregnancy snack, if ever there was one!

You can find butternut squash in a couple different variations at your local grocery store.  Whole butternut squash is fairly heavy, with an oblong, figure eight shape and creamy orange colored skin with bright orange flesh, but to save time (and your fingers) you can also buy it pre-chopped, or frozen in cubes.

If you’re adventurous and go for a whole squash, the easiest way to get rid of the peel is to crop it into quarters first and remove the peel with a sharp knife — the skin’s really too thick to get through with a veggie peeler (trust me, I have the finger scars to prove it!).  Personally, I almost always just go for frozen or pre-cut, since the last thing I need on a weeknight dinner is a ton of prep.  

As for prepping butternut squash, it really depends what your end goal is.  If you’re making a soup, most recipes call for it to be added in at some point - although you can steam it and make a puree (so delicious in baked goods or as a side) or roast it (which brings out all the caramelized goodness).

Next week, I’ll be posting a scrumptious butternut squash soup recipe that’s my staple Fall favorite - but in the meantime, what’s your favorite way to enjoy butternut squash?

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Raw Food Diet

Do you remember back in the 90s when Raw Foods restaurants really started to take off in cities like New York and LA?  They were full of interesting sounding dishes, like raw burgers? Advocates for the Raw Foods Diet believe that cooking food reduces it’s nutritional value, so all foods in these restaurants were comprised of raw foods – or, foods that aren’t cooked.

Generally the guideline for…

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Raw Food Diet

Do you remember back in the 90s when Raw Foods restaurants really started to take off in cities like New York and LA?  They were full of interesting sounding dishes, like raw burgers? Advocates for the Raw Foods Diet believe that cooking food reduces it's nutritional value, so all foods in these restaurants were comprised of raw foods - or, foods that aren't cooked.

Generally the guideline for the Raw Foods diet is a minimum of 75% raw foods - and the higher the percentage of raw, uncooked foods, the better!Naturally, the diet is largely grounded in vegan-types foods - think a heavy emphasis on land and sea vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, and grains.  To help with digestion, seeds, beans and grains are all soaked and sprouted; remember, the goal is to avoid cooking foods.

Some raw foodies do allow for cooking foods up to 115 degrees, so it's possible to have dried foods.  Similarly, some raw foodies even eat raw meat, fish or eggs - though I do no personally recommend that, and would highly suggest you speak to a doctor before considering that step as it may (and likely will) cause serious illness.

There's some positives to raw foods though - by eliminating processed foods, there's some evidence that raw foods may ward off disease, increase energy, and improve skin quality.  It can certainly jump start a weight-loss program, since you're eating almost exclusively raw fruits and veggies.

However, because it's so strictly restrictive, it may be too low-calorie for people, particularly for children, pregnant or nursing women, those with anemia, or those suffering from osteoporosis.

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