Introduction to Unbound Turnarounds
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Speaker
Welcome to Unbound Turnarounds, a podcast all about the challenges women business owners think about constantly, but rarely voice. We're Nicole and Mallory, entrepreneurs, friends, and co-founders of Business Unbound. Our mission is simple, make business feel better. And that starts with honest conversations about the ups, downs, and turnarounds of entrepreneurship.
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So whether you're just starting out or you've been your own boss for years, tune in for stories, insights, and strategies that actually make work work for life. Welcome back to Unbound Turnarounds.
Transition from Business Unbound
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Last week we wrapped up season four and today we are coming to the end of our grand podcasting experiment.
00:00:49
Speaker
Hmm. That's so bittersweet when you say that. It really has been a wonderful experience. We've been able to connect with guests new and old. We're hearing from listeners and we learned like how to actually be podcast hosts. Yes. How to do this. Yes. But you know, after a lot of thought and discussion between the two of us, we have decided to sunset Business Unbound and refocus on some other ventures.
00:01:16
Speaker
Yeah, and so to our guests, we want to truly thank you and say that we appreciate you sharing your time, your insights, and your energy with us and our listeners. And then, of course, to you who have listened to many of the episodes, we so appreciate every single text, every single email you've sent us. We honestly, we can't thank you enough for your support.
Access to Resources and Contact Information
00:01:41
Speaker
And the good news is you'll still be able to snag our freebies and contact us via the website and emails through at least the end of the year. So stay in touch. And for our final episode today, we want to share some of the conversations that were really particularly impactful on each of us. So I am excited for that.
00:02:00
Speaker
Yeah, so we're going to talk about, you know, which episodes we liked, and then you guys can go back and listen. If you haven't, if you had, you can send us an email. We still would love to hear from you and see if it resonated the same way. And sometimes we do share this feedback with the guest as well.
Perimenopause and Work Life
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Now, my first episode that I want to highlight was the one we did with Dr. Mary Knutson. It was episode 23. I knew you were going to pick this one.
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I knew it. I know. And it's the first one on my list. So we talk all about perimenopause and how that might affect us and our work lives. And I mean, spoiler alert, it can affect us a lot. You probably know that by now. But my favorite thing about this is that we talked about perimenopause on a business podcast. About time, right? I know. And why shouldn't we? Half the population is going to go through
00:02:52
Speaker
this and it may affect us and it will, if it does, it's going to affect our work. So why have we not been doing that? And you know what was really cool is that we were not the only ones who think that we should be talking about paramedic pause on a business podcast. This was actually our most popular episode of the wellness season, season two, because women want to learn and talk about this. I think you've liked it too. You learned a lot, didn't you?
00:03:21
Speaker
Oh, I did learn a lot. Yes. And I have people talk to me specifically about this topic because we covered it on the pot. Oh, good. See, it's creating more conversation around this. Now, I'd already been working with her on supplements, lifestyle, dietary tweaks, and whatnot to support my health. But for me, it really reaffirmed how it all fits together. And it helped me double down on the dedication it takes to do that work.
00:03:46
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because I kind of understood it more. It was at the forefront of my mind. It really brought it all full circle of how it connects. And you know, the line that I remember the most, the paramedic boss can last 10 years. And then I was just like, Oh, no. Yeah. So it's a big part of our adult lives. It also doesn't have to mean we do it alone. We can have conversations, we can get support. So
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and it might be different throughout those 10 years. So if you feel like you aren't feeling your best and you're in this stage or potentially in the stage of life, give that episode a listen and then see if it speaks to something. And then in there, she also talks about how you can get support as well.
00:04:31
Speaker
Yes, loved it and I loved her. And she also made me want to get a Dutch test, which I plan on doing later this year and we'll just have to have her interpret for me. So, but yeah, I was like, ooh, this seems like fun data. Yeah. A Dutch test is basically a blood test. It's a little pricey, but it's an investment to do kind of at the earlier stages of perimenopause and it gives you a whole lot of information. So yeah, that's something to look into too.
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All right. So that was my first one I wanted to highlight. Nicole, we're going to go to you. What was your first episode you want to talk about?
Emotional Health and Resilience with Lorca Matana
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Yes. So this isn't going to be a wild surprise to you either. But my first one I wanted to mention was episode 15 with resilience coach Lorca Matana because she literally changed my life. She changed my life.
00:05:23
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So I just want to say, if you have not listened to this episode and you're craving a deeper confidence and a sense of peace and more trust in yourself, you definitely want to go back and listen. We talk a lot in this episode about how to heal what hasn't happened yet, which I just think is an incredible phrase. We talk about how to cultivate a healthier emotional ecosystem and just
00:05:46
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kind of reframing that to ourselves, what is my emotional ecosystem? What is the inputs? What are the outputs? And we talk about developing a joy that is independent of circumstance, which is something I am not wildly good at as a prepper. Who is? Well, maybe Laura is. Actually, Laura is great at it. She does a really good job.
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Following that episode and you actually introduced us, I immediately hired her as my resilience coach for four months. And then at the end of that, I was healed. No, I extended it because there was more to be done and she will probably never be rid of me. This makes me so happy because Lorca was a former client of my company, my more you company, and she's a resilience coach. So when we decided we want to talk about resilience as a big part of wellness,
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It was like, obvious, okay, we have this great person. I had no clue you two were gonna hit it off. And you guys are two, like a little match made in. I know. So it makes my heart happy. It makes my heart happy. We end every coaching session with like, I love you, okay, I love you, bye. That's totally healthy and normal. It's totally healthy and normal,
Achieving Flow State with Stefan Underwood
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But I mean, thinking back on this, this is a good exercise for me to just think back to the beginning of this. And I just remember learning how she was able to process the Mount Hood accident during her high school years and how she then went on to start a really cool nonprofit for medical transport. She is someone that I look at and I'm like, you have earned your stripes on this. There are things I can learn from you because you've been through the wringer several times.
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So that gives me a lot of a lot of respect for her for sure What do you guys talk about in your weekly sessions then? Yeah, so it's a lot of I don't know just kind of having a mirror, you know and getting some clarity and perspective and She has just such a peaceful presence to her. Yes You know like a lot of times people will think that I am very calm Which is adorable?
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I love that for whoever's out there thinking that and not seeing inside my brain stem. So she brings me a lot of peace. And so we can talk about personal struggles, professional struggles. She's very good about making me do acknowledgments of what is going well.
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And there's just been a lot of ups and downs these last 18 months. And I just am so grateful that she has been in my corner for the whole thing. So it was like completely serendipitous that we did this and we met. So I love that. I know. The podcast has given us more than we even knew. The podcast has given us so much. Yes. So she is now in the process of helping me kind of imagine a new kind of work project that will
00:08:49
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basically combine my love for horses with this really big need that I'm seeing in the amateur equestrian community for support and education. So working on some new things and it's just really fun to have someone kind of come along for the ride and give you an outside perspective and I love that. So if you need a little bit of hope or you want to chat with her about resilience coaching, absolutely go back to episode 15 and reach out to her.
00:09:18
Speaker
Yes, perfect. Okay, now I was hoping this next one would be on your list because I don't want you to get divorced. Tell us whose episode you liked from, well, it was episode 25, right? Season two. Yes. Yes. Okay.
00:09:40
Speaker
Well, he doesn't listen regularly, so he'd never know. So it's probably okay. And I really am not just being biased, but I do have to say the flow episode that we did with my husband, Stefan Underwood, it was also one of the most memorable for me, topic-wise. So again, yes, that was season two, episode 25. It was our second most played episode of that season.
00:10:03
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So, Stefan gave us an overview of what flow state is and then how to prime ourselves to find more of it in our day, but more importantly, then why we would even want to find it. And he also talks about things that block us from getting into that state.
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What I like, too, about the way we frame the conversation is that he shares insights from his extensive corporate wellness background, but he does it with an entrepreneurial focus. And that was really helpful, I thought. And he has the science, too. I'm always like, show me the receipts. So what are we talking about?
00:10:48
Speaker
Well, yeah, that's exactly right. Yeah, that's what I love. That's his whole thing. So now one thing he talks about is how we can find flow without ensuring... We can't find flow without ensuring we have enough rest. So rest and recovery actually has to start the process of flow. It seems so obvious, but we don't prioritize that. We do not.
00:11:14
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So we have to recover and process the stressors from the day in rest so that they don't compile on to the next day's stressors. Yes. And we do, we talk a lot, but I feel like in the entire season, we talked a lot about sleep.
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And just how important it is and all the things it does for us. And if we don't prioritize it, what happens? And this episode in particular was very good. Like scientifically, you need to rest.
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And it's like the first thing to go when we get stressed. It's the first thing to go when we're short on time. It should be more rest and more sleep, but we just are wired to not think that. I don't know why we do that. And so if you're going, okay, great.
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But how do I get more rest or whatnot? Go back to that episode again and listen because we also talk about, you know, a few ways that you can help your body with rest. And it's not just the normal like sleep in a dark room that you've already heard. There's a few other things like talking about how to support your circadian rhythms with sunlight and
00:12:23
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your ultra, ultra radium rhythms and all that. So check that one out. Now, I really like that we're covering this because I do have to say I also really love Lorca's episode, but this, so this isn't just to say the ones that I'm picking are my favorite and the ones Nicole's are picking. These are, this is not, you know, resonating with us today more. Exactly. And so I love Lorca's episode too. I love Stefan's. I'm glad you liked it as well. And we loved all our episodes.
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But these are just some takeaways that really landed for us. Yep. It's also what lands at this moment in our lives. Throughout the year, we've all had different experiences, same for every listener. I was surprised going through the season, some of the ones that resonated with me on that exact day. You're just like, oh, I needed this today. That was very cool.
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Love what you're hearing? Go from big idea to business owner in five days with our free Be Your Own Boss Bootcamp email course. Or learn how to implement the insights from this show in your existing business with our complimentary guide, Five Ways to Make Business Feel Better. Packed with practical tools and solutions, these resources draw from our collective 15 plus years of entrepreneurship and work with more than 100 clients.
00:13:48
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visit unboundboss.com to grab your freebies. It's time to make work work for life. What's your next one?
Stephanie Jansen's Entrepreneurial Journey
00:13:58
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Yes. So I am going to go all the way back to season one in which we were doing stories about why women were starting businesses.
00:14:07
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And this one is episode three, which is be your own boss bootcamp with Stephanie Jansen sharing her startup story. So she is a personal friend and she was actually the first person that I encouraged to go out on her own after I did so special. And, you know, hearing about her journey
00:14:29
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All these years later, from who she is today, really just made my heart really full. It was just so fun to hear that A, she's still doing it, and that B, she wouldn't take it back. It just was really cool to be like, you know what? Maybe when we encourage someone to go out on their own and be like, you can do this, and let's talk about how to make you feel like you can,
00:14:56
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Sometimes that really works and it works for the long term and that's like life-changing decisions. Yeah, and it's gratifying. And if I remember correctly, hers was the most listened to episode of season one. Oh, I think that's true. Yeah, I think that's true. And a little bit, you know, I think it's kind of this boot camp concept is interesting to people.
00:15:18
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Because it feels like when you want to go out on your own, you never feel ready. And so she was really good about talking through the things that made her not feel ready, the things that made her feel ready enough.
00:15:34
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and how some of those things shifted over time. So I think that was a great story. We talked about our long weekend in Montana, talking about pricing and marketing and all that good stuff, systems, of course. And just giving her that confidence to leave her corporate job with four kids, four kids, and venture into her own copywriting business. So I just loved it. Loved it.
00:15:59
Speaker
Well, I think because of this, really, because of her and her story and that experience you guys had, we do have a boot camp. So as we mentioned at the start of the episode, our freebies are still available. There is a freebie, a boot camp of how to get started to be your own boss. Be your own boss boot camp so you can check that out on our website and snag your freebie at least before the end of the year. Yes. And she's just a good example of
00:16:30
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I feel like she did a great job of explaining all of the benefits that she's gotten from this. She does a good job of explaining the stressors too, of course. But what she has gotten back in time with her family, in financial freedom, in just flexibility of her schedule, she's definitely one that lives, that life comes first. Matra and I just, it was just a joy to speak with her on that one. So head on back to episode three, if you miss that one, because it's a gem.
00:17:00
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Yes, okay, cool. All right, back to me.
Mindfulness in Mundane Tasks with Tiffany Grimm
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So I also wanted to highlight episode 17. It's also in season two with Tiffany Grimm. It's called Making It Sacred.
00:17:15
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So you talked about someone who has a calm presence. It was a good one. Yeah. I feel like she is so wise. Just the way she communicates and what she's saying, her insights come across in a calm and a wise and insightful way. And the whole episode, you really get that from her.
00:17:36
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The conversation resonated with me really the whole thing, but one of my favorite takeaways was how to make the mundane tasks of running your business and living your life sacred.
00:17:51
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How do you make invoicing clients sacred? How do you make cleaning, changing the sheets a sacred experience, you know? And it's really, it comes down to noticing and appreciating and really being just present and aware in the moment.
00:18:10
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and flipping that mindset, right? Like I get to do this because I have a home and I have a family. I get to do this because I have my own business. If you don't have your own business, you're not likely invoicing unless you're, unless you're, you know, accounting. So, you know, like it's a simple mindset shift, right?
00:18:32
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And what I liked, yeah, I loved her general attitude, like you said, but what I also liked was that it wasn't just sugary, you know, like a layer of gratitude, like it is, but she was very real about
00:18:50
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some things are just really hard or some things are not in your wheelhouse or some things are not very fun. You can be honest and authentic about the unfun while still changing your perspective on it. I just loved it. She was really positive, but it wasn't in a way that was inauthentic or surface level. She was like, let's go deep on how we can really change some of these tough things. I agree. I just thought she was incredibly wise.
00:19:18
Speaker
Yes, yeah, and later on in the conversation, she talks about how to be a resource to connect people to the right support, and that's kind of what she desires. And I deeply admire that vision and that desire to help people because she's talking about putting them in the right place, even if it isn't her working with them directly.
00:19:42
Speaker
So what a beautiful gift of service to others. A couple other things. So we also talked about primal wisdom and soul synergy. So you'll have to go back and listen. I don't want to butcher what those mean, but I'm loving those terms, even reading them again. I'm like, yes, I love those phrases.
00:19:59
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And I thought the whole episode really went for me. Again, we're talking about why certain episodes resonated at that time for each of us. So it goes with one of my yearly ways of being, which is to trust, to trust big and to stress less.
00:20:15
Speaker
We're nailing it. Trust big and stress less knowing that you have the answers within. If only we could do that all the time, right? And I want to thank Tiffany because hers is the most by far listened to episode of all because she really, I think put it out there and promoted it. So we really do appreciate the efforts there that she did in sharing.
00:20:42
Speaker
The podcast absolutely and she had a really cool story to like if you didn't hear this one i would go back even just to hear about kind of her corporate past and then how it led into what she's doing now because she she does have quite a resume but it's it's unique it's not it's not your typical story that you're in here so i did i love that one too that's great one.
00:21:05
Speaker
Okay. I think we have one more from Nicole.
Using Anxiety as a Strength with Maria Service
00:21:08
Speaker
Yes. Okay. Let's do one more. So this was one where I think back and I'm like, sometimes we get on these calls and it just instantly feels like we've known the guest forever. And this was one of those for me. So we chatted with Maria service in episode 22 called make anxiety your superpower.
00:21:27
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which we know is a topic close to my own little anxious heart. What I really liked, kind of like you were saying about the Paramount of Paws episode, I love having anxiety and by extension depression, which we talked about later with Tori. I love having those in the business conversation because it's so not separate from
00:21:49
Speaker
Right. Like if you're struggling with anxiety or depression or a myriad of other things, ADHD, we did an episode on, these are just things that bleed over into your work life so greatly. And I loved that Maria came on to talk about how to turn this particular challenge into a real advantage.
00:22:09
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So that was just really lovely. She also talked a lot about kind of the mind-body connection that's so often overlooked by those of us who just fret. And she reminded me that I have the permission to pivot.
00:22:27
Speaker
whenever my mind or body says to do so. Like you call it, I think in that episode, you've been mentioned it, but like, calling it your sacral knowing, you know, and whether something is a yes or no. And, you know, sometimes you'll leave me voice memos where you're like, I'm cleaning the gymnastic mats. This is a sick.
00:22:47
Speaker
Yeah, totally. But, you know, just like reminding ourselves to listen to what our mind and body are telling us, because sometimes when you're someone that struggles with anxiety or depression, you learn not to trust yourself. And so she was really, I love that conversation. She was like, listen, you still can trust what your mind, but particularly what your body is saying. So I thought that was a really good
00:23:15
Speaker
I also, yeah, and I like that too because the pivot part, like we do this in entrepreneurship, right? We make decisions, we verbalize, look, we're literally doing it right now. We said, this is our new company, here's our podcast, and now it's, quite frankly, for both of us, has become no longer a circle, yes.
00:23:38
Speaker
And so we are pivoting back to your new project with horses. I'm putting and changing some things with my original company, more you. And that is listening in and like you said, knowing that we have the permission. Otherwise, isn't that the whole point of starting your own company? Yes. Yeah. But I mean, we've said this many episodes along the way that we all end up kind of trapping ourselves in the things that we create.
00:24:08
Speaker
And so I think we've heard that enough in conversations that, along with many other things, I would like to think we're getting better at being like, okay, well, we're just constantly checking in and we're constantly seeing if this is still what we want. And I would just encourage people to do that because there's nothing that says you have to run your business the way that you started on day one.
00:24:30
Speaker
There's no rules like that. Hopefully this is permission to people to be, you know, this is we are looking at this like a grand experiment. Amazing time we got to partner. We learned so much. We did different things. Someone could look at that and be like, that's a failure. They're quitting. But it's not. It's it's it's how you're looking at it. And I do want to point out, though,
00:24:53
Speaker
Now that I'm saying that, I just want to mention, there are going to be sacral no's that come up. That doesn't mean you have to pivot. You have to shut it down and quit. I mean, you know, what it does do is you acknowledge, okay, this exact task
00:25:09
Speaker
Your example of me having a clean gymnastics match, that was because my daughter joined a competitive tumbling and trampoline program, which I didn't know was a thing until we moved out of Canada. I didn't know either. In the Olympics, yeah. So because she was able to do that, I had to put in a certain number of volunteer hours.
00:25:31
Speaker
and we didn't get our hours in in time and so because we started halfway through the year so to wrap up I had to go and mop mats like four different times and I knew it was a sacral no but it's in service it hear me out it's in service to a sacral yes my daughter having an experience having activity having a group setting all these other things that are sacral yes so there are going to be sacral no's
00:25:58
Speaker
in your sacral yeses, that doesn't mean you have to burn everything down and pivot all the time.
00:26:03
Speaker
I'm just saying, I don't think we should call it volunteering if it's mandatory. Yeah. That's all I'm saying. That's all I'm saying on that one. Totally fair. Totally fair. But yes, that is, I think there are a lot of those things when you run your own business where you're like, this is a nightmare. I'm either not good at it, I don't enjoy it, whatever. And you just have to be able to track it back a couple of steps and be like, but is this supporting something that is a yes? And if it is, then OK.
00:26:32
Speaker
get it done or figure out a better way to do it or make a system for it or whatever. It doesn't mean you have to do it in the most painful way possible either. I like what you said though, it's just a constant checking in. Even if you don't do anything with the information you're getting, it's just getting used to checking in and knowing what you feel about that certain situation and then you can make a choice.
00:27:00
Speaker
Yep. And it, you know, that reminds me of when we had the episode about, you know, red, yellow, green sticky notes. And that's just that constant check-in to just be like, okay, how am I actually feeling about all the things? And let's not just keep them sloshing around in our head. Let's, uh, let's put them on paper. Let's see them and then let us address them. So yes.
00:27:23
Speaker
Now, before we wrap up though, Nicole, what has this experience meant to you on a grand scale, not individual episode-wise?
00:27:32
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, I think it reminded me how many of us there are out there having these shared experiences because sometimes it can feel very isolating to have your own business. And, you know, I think I talked about this in our early episodes, you know, when I found you and I heard Abby and it was just like that relief of being like, Oh,
00:27:54
Speaker
Like, I don't have to do everything by myself. If there's a problem, there are other people to help me handle it. Like, it's just such a relief. So this was kind of an extension of that for me to say, hey, this is maybe a tough 18 months in my own life, but look at all these stories of people who have also had all these different things, ups and downs and everywhere in between, and we're all still out here doing it.
00:28:23
Speaker
we still choose this. So that was really lovely for me to see. And so, yeah, it just gave me more confidence and just felt less alone, which is something I think we both are really hoping to do with this project.
Podcast as a Medium for Connection
00:28:39
Speaker
So that for me was definitely a win. What about you?
00:28:44
Speaker
So one of my, or maybe my main core value is connection. And this was a way to connect with new people, but also there was so many entrepreneurs in my life because of the nature of what my company is, that it was just an excuse to reconnect with them. Like, hey, we're gonna have this podcast conversation. But the reason I like this platform so much more than other things is
00:29:13
Speaker
It's an in-depth conversation and it's focused, right? And so it gives you a chance to have a deep, meaningful conversation.
00:29:25
Speaker
and it's not forced and it's not gonna ramble on, it's a set amount of time. It's really the perfect platform. Sometimes we ramble on, but. There is editing for that. Yeah, we have so much for that. But it really is the perfect platform for connection, when you're having guests, right? So it really comes back to me to that value of connection and being able to do that. I also wanted to say that,
00:29:53
Speaker
We've been working together for a long time, trying to think back, end of 2017, seven years. That's been a minute.
00:30:04
Speaker
but in a different dynamic. And so this was a way to partner together on a project. And it was so fun to be able to have, because we both built our company solo. So it was so fun to be able to have someone else to share responsibilities, bounce ideas off of, get on calls, get jazzed up, brainstorm together, because we never had that in an entrepreneur setting.
00:30:26
Speaker
Yeah, like I said, it just gets kind of, it could be isolating. Yeah. And so I thought that was really fun to be able to do together for the podcast and for Business Unbound personally. I agree. And I think it's made our relationship stronger. Oh yeah. I mean, you're not getting rid of me, so.
00:30:47
Speaker
year eight, here we come. Yep. So as we're wrapping up, I am, our website's still going to be around through at least the end of the year, I think a couple months into the new year before our software expires.
00:31:03
Speaker
But then after that, I am on LinkedIn. I think I have some other social media platforms, but I'm not active. So people who can find me there, Mallory Underwood. What would be the best way for people to contact you post Business Unbound?
00:31:19
Speaker
Also on LinkedIn, so that's a great spot. Shoot me a message over there. You can also find me at nrossatcreativequarterback.com with my agency. So that's another great spot. But yeah, feel free to reach out anytime. We love hearing from you all and we love being able to support you in whatever way.
00:31:40
Speaker
We can, even if it's just listening to a freak out. So we're here for that. Yeah. And we are still entrepreneurs. We are still in the trenches with you. Yeah, we can't go back to work. Yeah, I know. We're not doing that. No. Yeah. Even on our worst days, it's not really going to happen.
00:31:58
Speaker
So again, I want to thank our listeners, our fellow entrepreneurs out there.
Gratitude to Listeners and Entrepreneurs
00:32:03
Speaker
Thank you for your support, truly. Even though we won't be in your ears each week, we, again, we're still in trenches with you. We are always cheering you on. Keep going. We see you. We understand you. We know you. We are you.
00:32:17
Speaker
Yes. And I also just want to say thank you for joining us on this adventure and remembering that all the small things that come up in these episodes and just between our conversations can make a really big difference when it comes to making work work for life. So thank you for listening and we love you. We love you. Bye. Bye.
00:32:43
Speaker
Thanks for listening. Visit UnboundBoss.com to download free resources, browse our courses, or leave us a voice memo for the podcast. And if you like the show, please subscribe, leave us an Apple review, and share your favorite episodes with other women entrepreneurs. Talk to you soon.