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The Power of ASK: Close More Clients Without Selling
19 Plays2 days ago
In this episode, Ken Freire sits down with Shay Sparks to explore her powerful journey from salon owner to purpose-driven entrepreneur, coach, and community builder. Shay shares how healing, faith, and speaking life into others became the foundation of her work—and how those same principles now guide her approach to AI, sales, and building meaningful communities for solopreneurs and creators.
Resources Mentioned
• Maker’s Machine Inner Circle – -no url mentioned-
• Military Creator Con – https://www.militarycreatorcon.com/
• The Shay Sparks Show Podcast – https://www.theshaysparksshow.com/
• Shay Sparks Website – https://www.shaysparks.com/
Timestamps
• 00:00–05:00 – Shay’s origin story: healing, faith, and finding her calling beyond the salon
• 05:00–07:30 – The power of speaking life and overcoming imposter syndrome
• 07:30–10:00 – What Shay’s business looks like today and working with high-level coaches
• 10:00–13:30 – Biggest myths about AI and how to use it with a “human-first” approach
• 13:30–18:30 – Serving vs. selling: integrity, journaling, and releasing attachment to outcomes
• 18:30–25:30 – The power of asking, flexible offers, and reframing sales
• 25:30–29:30 – The Maker’s Machine Inner Circle and why community matters for solopreneurs
• 29:30–37:30 – Fast Five: AI experiments, challenges, goals, industry shifts, and legacy
• 37:30–40:00 – Encouragement for discouraged entrepreneurs and how to reconnect with purpose
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Shay Sparks and Her Journey
00:00:01
Ken Freire
Welcome back to another amazing episode of the Solo Skilled Podcast. Today, have with me my guest, Shay Sparks. She is the co-founder of the Maker's Machine Inner Circle and the founder of Sparks of Fire International. Shay, welcome to the podcast.
00:00:17
Shā Sparks
Oh, thanks for having me, Ken. I'm so excited be on here with you. And just want to say congratulations to all the new things going on in your world.
00:00:25
Ken Freire
Yes. For those of you who don't know, I had slew of episodes lined up. Shay was one of them. And literally, I think we were supposed to record that day or the next day. I can't really remember.
00:00:36
Ken Freire
And you were like, hey, are we recording? And I was literally in the hospital having our fifth child. So as you guys can imagine, the last three weeks of my world have been turned upside down in a great way, but it has been a lot.
00:00:49
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:00:50
Ken Freire
So Shay, thank you for being so flexible.
00:00:52
Shā Sparks
Of course, of course.
00:00:54
Ken Freire
with
From Hairstylist to Personal Coach
00:00:54
Ken Freire
us. So Shay, tell us a little bit about your story. How did you first start your business? You know, everybody's got an origin story. We'd love to hear yours.
00:01:01
Shā Sparks
Yeah, so I got to go way back, all the way back. So I actually a former hairstylist, had a salon. And during that time of my life, I went through what I call my healing journey.
00:01:15
Shā Sparks
I was able to get out of an abusive relationship, really peel away the layers of the onion that I am, that we all are, and heal. And I did that through Christian counselor, coaches, podcast books, journaling, like all of these different modalities and really, you know, as a healing slash spiritual journey.
00:01:36
Shā Sparks
And through all of that, I would share the really profound, deep things that I would learn about myself with my hair clients.
Communication & Embracing Purpose
00:01:46
Ken Freire
Thank
00:01:46
Shā Sparks
Like for an example, I would say to my clients like, hey, have you ever noticed how you talk to your loved ones?
00:01:56
Shā Sparks
And they're like, yeah, talk to my loved ones like just fine all the time. I'm like, do you? So do you ever use like sarcasm are you really good at communicating and saying what you mean and mean what you say and not saying it meanly?
00:02:07
Shā Sparks
And they're like, oh, I'm fluent in sarcasm. I'm like, I know, me too. And what I learned is that is actually anger in a clown suit. So what if you really were able to say what you mean and mean what you say and not say it meanly? And they're like, what? I wouldn't even know how to do that. Like, that makes me anxious and nervous just thinking about it. I'm like, I know, me too. And I'm really trying to dive into this whole, like, fear of being vulnerable.
00:02:39
Shā Sparks
and learn from the process of doing it scared. And they're like, what? And so then, you know, as the weeks have gone on, they would come back and I'd say, so I practiced and I shared something with my dad and my dad and I have just had this most amazing breakthrough in our relationship. And at this point, you know, we're adults, we're a friendship. And they were like, wow,
00:03:07
Shā Sparks
I'm going to do the same. And then they would come back after their four to six week next appointment and they would like, I can't, whatever you said, whatever I applied, I did what you said.
00:03:17
Shā Sparks
applied it to my relationship with, and I had so many, it was like my boss, my team at work, my kids, my parents, my spouse. And things started to shift. I'm like, yeah, I know it's crazy, right?
00:03:27
Ken Freire
Wow.
00:03:30
Shā Sparks
And they're like, yeah, what are you doing cutting hair? Like, have you ever considered start becoming a coach or writing a book, starting podcasts, being a motivational speaker. you thought about any those?
00:03:41
Shā Sparks
I'm like, in the back of my mind, I was like, honestly, yes, but I'm too scared. There's no way I could have the confidence or even think about doing this. And after the umpteenth hundred person really spoke life into me, which was the first time I've ever had life spoken into me, was talking to one of my mentors and she said, well, what if they're right?
00:04:04
Shā Sparks
What if they see this in you and you just borrow the confidence from them and you learn? And I was like, well, I guess the worst thing that can happen is I learn new skills. Okay.
00:04:18
Shā Sparks
And so that led me into doing all of those things, my coaching journey and becoming a coach and writing a book, starting the podcast and being a
Involvement with Maker's Machine and AI
00:04:26
Shā Sparks
speaker. And it's just been really just the most...
00:04:32
Shā Sparks
profound, still a spiritual experience because you're, I'm really stepping into what I'm called do, really stepping into my purpose.
00:04:43
Shā Sparks
So yeah, that's, that's my journey.
00:04:46
Ken Freire
That, okay, so just so everybody's clear, five minutes, Shay, you confronted me on sarcasm.
00:04:52
Shā Sparks
Good.
00:04:57
Ken Freire
But then the second thing is like, you just talking about speaking life. Like there was people who spoke life into you at the beginning of your journey where I'm sure there was like imposter syndrome, fear of man, fear of failure, all of those fears that we typically have.
00:05:00
Shā Sparks
Yeah. Yeah.
00:05:10
Ken Freire
But there was enough people speaking life into you that were saying, hey, we think you could do this. And I love how you were talking about it. You're like, hey, If it doesn't work out, at least I've learned some skill sets along the way.
00:05:23
Ken Freire
Do you recall any of the specific words that people spoken to you that really kind of broke down those barriers of fear and just kind of made you say, okay, I'm going to go for it?
00:05:34
Shā Sparks
Well, it was really like just that, like, have you ever thought about doing this, being a speaker?
00:05:38
Ken Freire
Okay.
00:05:39
Shā Sparks
Have you ever thought about sharing your story? Have you ever thought about writing a book? You'd be so good at it. And really just kind of boosting that, like you'd be so good at it. This is what you're called to do. Like you are helping me. You could be helping so many more people.
00:05:54
Shā Sparks
And coming from one, an abusive relationship, but then going through all the things I learned was that it was an abusive home. I didn't have anybody speaking life into me. I didn't have anybody who gave me words of affirmation. So then all of a sudden, I'm in my mid-30s at this stage of my life. And I'm like, I don't know what this is, but it feels good. And to have that boost of confidence, just seeing myself through other people's eyes really, in my opinion, because I'm a, like I said, I'm a spiritual person. I really felt like it was God speaking through them. So I got a glimpse of what God saw in me as well.
00:06:38
Ken Freire
That's great. Okay, so you, a lot of it has been driven by your faith. And as I'm a strong believer. So that's part of the reason why we've connected so well.
00:06:45
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:06:46
Ken Freire
When you fast forward as today, what does your business look like?
00:06:51
Shā Sparks
So what are the, well, you mentioned the maker's machine, Inner Circle. So that is actually community. It is for purpose-driven entrepreneurs and creators. And it is networking slash mastermind slash accountability group that that meet on a regular basis and really speak life into each other, hold each other accountable and mastermind, you know, life's most tough, toughest challenges.
00:07:22
Shā Sparks
And I say life because it's not always about business. Right. So that's really where my business has gone. And I am also I am also a coach. I am coaching one of the most world renowned coaches in the world. Tony Robbins. I'm coaching his clients.
00:07:40
Shā Sparks
I work with his group and I work with his business partner, Dean Grazioso is on AI. And so I'm teaching and training and really working coaching with like how to help business owners use AI that, that taps into that human interaction or as I like to call it, hi, human interaction. Yeah.
00:08:03
Ken Freire
Yeah, my business partner and we call it the human edge. You know, we're always about like human first and then AI driven.
00:08:06
Shā Sparks
Hmm.
00:08:09
Shā Sparks
Yes, yes.
00:08:11
Ken Freire
So I'm curious, you know, you got your hands in a lot of plates and we could go in a lot of different directions here, but we use AI quite a bit. I'm curious for those who are starting a business right now, what are some, the most misconceived or biggest myths that you have seen when it comes to AI?
00:08:32
Shā Sparks
That they're mind readers.
00:08:34
Ken Freire
Yeah. Okay.
00:08:35
Shā Sparks
Okay, that's one of the biggest myths. What I help with is really like narrowing down and chunking down to who you are at the core of as a person, as a business owner, and the pain point that you're really trying to solve and then connect it to the why that's really important, connecting it to your purpose. And then we put that into...
00:09:03
Shā Sparks
AI and creating clone and then you can create everything you want from there rather than just going and asking a question and being like, well, this is what it told me and then I'm copy and paste it and then have this awkward dash in the middle of all these weird sentences, right, that you can't get rid of.
00:09:19
Ken Freire
Yeah. Okay. So by you narrowing down, you niching down on either the project or whatever they're working on, have you found a certain way to teach AI to people that they've fallen love with and like, oh my gosh, this makes sense to me?
00:09:36
Ken Freire
Because I know several people who are still in the, I would say AI is still in the early adoption phase.
00:09:40
Shā Sparks
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think what it really is, is being able to understand, know, ChatGPT is a great example of being able to create a clone and what that looks like, and then being able to create projects inside that clone rather than just going and saying, you know, I'm a whatever business owner, as I knock my mic over, I'm a whatever business owner, and this is what I do and blank. And then you get this like,
00:10:07
Shā Sparks
generic, less humanized response. And yet you're like, oh, this is great. And it is, don't get me wrong, it is. And yet it could be so much more. And so the aha moment that I'm finding with clients is that, wow, I had no idea this could be so much more.
00:10:26
Ken Freire
How do you help them get there where there's so much more? How do you help them build the clone and all that stuff?
00:10:31
Shā Sparks
Yeah, I just help them walk through all these different questions on really figuring out and filling out kind of a document, really. But it's just a lot of questions on, like I said, asking what it is that they do, who do they serve, why it's important to them, why it would be important to the people they serve, and then the outcome that they're helping with.
00:10:55
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:10:55
Shā Sparks
And I love it when I'm working with really purpose-driven, service-driven clients rather than somebody who sells a wrench or a widget or something, right?
00:11:07
Shā Sparks
Because the thing is wrapped up in their product rather than wrapped up in their purpose.
00:11:12
Ken Freire
Yeah, and that's what we're similar. It's like always looking for those impact driven or what we call expert led businesses that were like, hey, do you want to make an impact on people's lives?
00:11:23
Ken Freire
Because that's who we want to work with. And what I have found to be extremely useful with AI
00:11:25
Shā Sparks
mm hmm.
00:11:28
Ken Freire
is in like, especially in ChachiPT, when you talk about like the personalization section, like you can always put certain things. I've also put my core values in there. Like this is the way I think and the way I process and how all decisions are structured.
00:11:42
Ken Freire
So then when it prompts me or gives me answers to things, it's coming more from my perspective versus just like, here's what... the the grand uh internet says you know and like that's not what i believe but now it does structure it the way i believe because my core values
00:11:54
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:12:00
Shā Sparks
Agreed. And, you know, it's funny. You're like, and this is what all of the internet says you should do. then it's like, well, think about how many people are asking the same question.
00:12:09
Ken Freire
yeah
00:12:09
Shā Sparks
So they're giving the same answer to all these people. So that's why it's so important, like you said, to really put in those very specific personalized things. Like what are your core values? What are you really, what is really your purpose here?
00:12:23
Shā Sparks
And when you think about it from that lens, then you're getting a more personalized, specific answer and direction for you rather than just everyone, folding you into everyone on the internet.
00:12:36
Ken Freire
Yeah, and I do this with marketing and sales as well, you know, because I think a lot of times you hear so many different marketing ideas like try this, try this, try this new funnel, new, new way to do it.
00:12:44
Shā Sparks
Thank
00:12:48
Ken Freire
And what I've realized is like, well, depending on your core values and your personality, certain things are going to flow better than others. Like I'm a huge podcaster, you're a huge podcaster. So it's kind of like we love it. It's great. But then for others, like put them in front of a camera and a mic and they'll like be petrified.
00:13:05
Ken Freire
So I have found like, well, what's your style? What's your personality? What do you value? And that's the type of marketing you should do. Shay, I'm curious for you, as you have grown your business, what has been like the main levers that you've used to grow your marketing and your sales?
Serving Clients & Flexibility in Business
00:13:24
Shā Sparks
I love this because it's something that I often forget. And then as soon as I hear it from someone else, I'm like, I go right back to it. And then it's like, oh, this made all the sense in the world. It's about serving, not selling.
00:13:41
Shā Sparks
how are you giving, how are you being generous? How are you investing in your audience just by sharing wisdom and rather than selling the wisdom?
00:13:54
Shā Sparks
And I think for me, every time that I go to post something, I really make sure that I'm in that mindset of how is this serving my audience, whatever that looks like, whether it's social media or email, rather than how am I How am I going to get, you know, my goal today by the end of the week, you know, kind of a thing.
00:14:15
Ken Freire
How do you stay in a place of serving where, you know, the way I've heard it before like serving is selling, right? Where you consistently serve, but I know some people, and this has happened to me if I'm vulnerable enough, right? Where it's like, I'm serving, but in the back of my mind,
00:14:32
Ken Freire
I want the sale. So I have to like make sure I turn that selling part off because people could read that a mile away, right?
00:14:38
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:14:38
Ken Freire
They're like, oh my gosh, you're trying to sell me something even though you're quote unquote serving.
00:14:39
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:14:43
Ken Freire
So how have you found that balance? And maybe there isn't a balance to just like completely serving them, but also making sure that people know your offers, people know that you're available and you're actually closing the deal and never just giving everything away for free.
00:14:59
Shā Sparks
I mean, this is a fantastic question. And if I had the answer, I think I'd be a millionaire by now, right? But what I can say is, is that I try to look at the, what I, before I do anything, first all, I journal.
00:15:13
Shā Sparks
And really am journaling about like from the standpoint of kind of a letter to God, like a prayer journal.
00:15:13
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:15:22
Shā Sparks
And always ask for direction and for him to just speak through me. And so when I, and then I set an intention like today I want to practice serving first and take any kind of sales lingo out of it. And yet still at the same time attract, I'll say it that way, not make money. I'll attract the right customers.
00:15:46
Shā Sparks
And is
00:15:48
Shā Sparks
slower than normal or slower than what you can imagine. I've actually had, People try to sell me. know, you got to do is just copy and paste into this Canva thing. Then you can make millions of dollars and blah, blah, blah. And I was thinking, I think about this often. I'm like, if I want to stay integritous with who I am and my values, then I need to make sure that that's coming through everything that I do.
00:16:18
Shā Sparks
So is it about the service piece or is it really about, have to sell this? Because I believe that when I, I'm going to speak from my point of view, when I go into sales quote unquote mode, no one buys.
00:16:25
Ken Freire
you
00:16:37
Shā Sparks
And when I go into the, here's, I'm just going put this out there and see where it lands. I have clients that show up that I would never have guessed from my audience that was like, yes, I'm interested in working with you. was like, oh, I didn't see that one coming. So that's really been fascinating.
00:16:57
Ken Freire
Yeah, you know, I have found that same thing where like in my heart, when I feel like I don't need something from this individual, but I'm just completely there to be like, okay, how can I help you?
00:17:10
Ken Freire
And it's not going to go anywhere.
00:17:10
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:17:11
Ken Freire
I'm not expecting anything, but I'm just going to like bless them to nth degree.
00:17:17
Shā Sparks
Yeah. Yes.
00:17:17
Ken Freire
And if there is something there, man, maybe the Lord will show it and be like, great. Like, hey, do you want to work with each other? you want partner? Great. But if not, hey, we've built at least a relationship.
00:17:27
Ken Freire
I have found for me, at least that has been helpful. And I've been in sales for like 15 years, almost 20 now, now that I think about it. And it's just like, so quickly, think we're expert led businesses or solopreneurs get caught in the trap of feeling like they have to sell.
00:17:44
Ken Freire
How have you, Shay, and you mentioned journaling, you've mentioned just kind of like serving. Is there anything else that you've done to make sure that you don't fall into that trap of like, I feel like I have to sell?
00:17:57
Shā Sparks
so I want to take this back to my salon days, right? So one of the things that I learned early on in my career was that you have service and then you can like do an add-on, right? Of different things. You can add on different services. You could add on retail products.
00:18:15
Shā Sparks
And It's really, one of the things I learned from my dad, actually, who is also entrepreneur and in sales, is that sales isn't always about wanting to,
00:18:31
Shā Sparks
it's about providing the benefits. So instead of focusing on For an example, like I'm using this product on your hair today because you had just told me that this is how you style it. This product would work really well because it will help you with shine and control and frizz and da-da-da-da-da. And here, you want to put it in their hand, smell it, taste it.
00:18:55
Shā Sparks
Not taste it, but you know, smell it, feel it, whatever they want to do with it, right?
00:18:56
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:18:58
Shā Sparks
And then release attachment, which is the key to whether they buy it or So then when I go to check them out, now mind you, they're already buying the service from me, the haircut.
00:19:12
Shā Sparks
But then I always ask, can I wrap that product up for you? Or would you like to purchase that product we used on you today?
00:19:19
Shā Sparks
you want me to order it for you if I'm out? Because then there's that little tiny bit of scarcity. Oh, I better get some because it'll run out again. You know, something like that. So for me, it's more about, it's really focusing on releasing the attachment to whether they take the sale, make, you know, buy from you or not.
00:19:40
Ken Freire
And I actually heard two things there. It's the releasing the attachment, but also asking. And you did like an assumptive close a lot there, right?
00:19:46
Shā Sparks
Yeah. Yeah.
00:19:48
Ken Freire
Where you're like, hey, would you want me to order this for you? Would you want me to package Assuming they're going to close, you're asking. And I think that's where a lot of people fail is they never ask. Even scripture talks about that.
00:19:56
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:19:58
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:20:00
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:20:00
Ken Freire
It's just like sometimes you just need to ask and people be like, oh yeah, I would love to do this.
00:20:04
Ken Freire
I would love to partner with you. And is that correct that I'm hearing those two things there?
00:20:08
Shā Sparks
Yep, you're right. Yep, you're right. Yep, they ask.
00:20:10
Ken Freire
When it comes to asking, what do you find is key attribute or maybe a key skill set in asking where it doesn't sound pushy or it doesn't sound offensive and it's genuinely there to serve?
00:20:24
Shā Sparks
I love this because I call it the power of ask, right? And ask is an acronym. Stands for ask, seek, knock. right? So, the ask is ask, for what it is that you want or, you know, ask for the sale and then seek the opportunity for what else you can add, how else you can add value and then knock to see if there's something else.
00:20:53
Shā Sparks
So, some, some time else, right. it might not be right now, but you're, you're knocking to see if there's, um, there's,
00:21:00
Shā Sparks
Well, next time. Well, when you run out of product, you know, you'll have that let me know before your next haircut and I'll order you some and I'll have it waiting for you. So there's possibilities in just the ask than just the sale, because a lot of times that seek could also be planting the seed.
00:21:22
Shā Sparks
And I think people forget that, that they assume the no means no, not right now. or no, period, never ask me again. And the no actually is an acronym that stands for next opportunity.
00:21:35
Ken Freire
Yeah, and that's the biggest thing that I have found for a lot of new people in sales is just like, it's okay if they say no, because they may say yes later on.
00:21:45
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:21:46
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:21:46
Ken Freire
And what I love about what you're doing is that you're knocking, you're seeking for opportunities, but you're doing it in such a way that you're not closing the door. right where I think most people shut it down.
00:21:55
Shā Sparks
Right.
00:21:56
Ken Freire
And it's like it feels sleazy like I don't want to talk this person ever again. You're like, Alright, well, let's, there'll be another time. I like how you were talking like, hey, do you want to order this in case you run out?
00:22:07
Ken Freire
In the future?
00:22:07
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:22:08
Ken Freire
It's like, you're just looking for opportunities.
00:22:11
Shā Sparks
Well, and yeah, and I want to say this because I feel like sales
00:22:17
Shā Sparks
might be like a dirty word. I'm pausing there because I'm trying to figure out the right phrase.
00:22:19
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:22:22
Shā Sparks
I'm pausing because I'm like, is this going to make sense if I say it? So I'll just keep talking. So it can be used like a dirty word, like, oh, I don't want to be attached to sales. Like that's who I am, a salesperson. Because when you say salesperson, I immediately picture the old school, like used car salesman that's kind of like greasy hair and smarmy and trying to manipulate you, right? And I'm from the thought process of sales is really, like I saw, is really about showing this person the benefit of what you're offering
00:22:54
Shā Sparks
And as a solo entrepreneur, you get the opportunity to be flexible in that offer. Now, here's what I mean. So you might say, and I'm just going to make stuff up, right? Here's as a, I will say as a coach, right? Here's my offer, uh, 10 sessions, a thousand dollars in a package. Okay.
00:23:17
Shā Sparks
thousand dollars for 10. Yeah. Make easy number, easy math.
00:23:18
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:23:20
Shā Sparks
Right. And, They're like, oh, that's my budget. Okay, great. So tell me what works in your budget. What are you willing to work with? Maybe they're like, well, I can only pay this amount of money. Okay, great. So what if we broke it down instead of an hour sessions or 10 sessions, we broke it down to maybe five 30-minute sessions or 25-minute sessions. Make it unique. It doesn't have to be 30. It can be 27 minutes, right? But you're figuring out your own method of what would serve that person, especially if they're hung up on the money and then they put up a brick wall, but yet you know that what you have would really benefit them.
00:24:03
Shā Sparks
So be willing to be flexible in your offer.
00:24:09
Ken Freire
And man, that's so huge because I think sometimes people will be like almost ironclad. Like this is my offer. I can't do anything. And especially at the beginning where it's like, well, no, like let's just work with people and let's see what we can do.
00:24:18
Shā Sparks
Right.
00:24:23
Ken Freire
And I think this is why I love group coaching offers so much more too because it's so much more easier to be flexible because adding one extra person is not going to be too much of your taking too much of your time.
00:24:26
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:24:35
Ken Freire
And you're like, yeah, let's work with it.
00:24:35
Shā Sparks
Right. Right.
00:24:37
Ken Freire
Let's see what we can happen. Or let's have a payment plan. Or let's extend it.
00:24:40
Shā Sparks
Right.
00:24:40
Ken Freire
Whatever it is that you do, flexibility is key.
00:24:44
Shā Sparks
Right. And you can add different tiers to whatever it is you're doing, right?
00:24:46
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:24:48
Shā Sparks
I mean, that's how we started the membership. I mean, the maker's machine is really around that. The membership is the entry-level tier. And then as we grow and as we do other things, it's like, okay, the access point is more valuable.
00:25:03
Shā Sparks
And it's not just in the membership. It's not just in the group. And so you can move your prices around.
00:25:10
Ken Freire
Yeah, what for you in your business do you see as like the biggest thing you're working on this next year?
Future Plans & Community Support
00:25:18
Shā Sparks
So we've created this framework for the maker's machine and I feel, and we've seen it because we've talked to enough people that, and it's just, we've talked to enough people, door, the right door just hasn't aligned, opened yet.
00:25:34
Shā Sparks
That what we're doing is so needed in bigger organizations like corporate companies, like partnering with a bigger company, right?
00:25:44
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:25:44
Shā Sparks
So right now we work with primarily solopreneurs, but, and there's so much need for what we're doing inside corporations for their, maybe it's just a team or maybe it's a certain group of people, or maybe it's just, you know, going completely off the grid and doing like their special interest group.
00:26:05
Shā Sparks
I work with a lot of veterans and I know a lot of, key brands have like veteran special interest groups. And so when we go in there and we talk to them about, you know, this is what we have to offer, they're so curious and they're so see the benefit. They just haven't said yes yet. And so that's really what we're working on in 2026 is aligning with the right partnerships for that.
00:26:29
Ken Freire
I love it. And that's my hope that when people listen to this podcast, be like, oh, I could use it. It's a solopreneur as a company. They'll like, this is the thing. Shay, before we wrap up, there's a couple of questions.
00:26:40
Ken Freire
There's something do called the Fast Five. You've been in podcasting a while.
00:26:42
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:26:44
Ken Freire
So you're familiar with that. We'll address those in a little bit. But for those who are listening to this and they are saying, I'm intrigued by what Shay is talking about. I'm intrigued by the membership.
00:26:56
Ken Freire
Can you explain a little bit about who the membership is for and what would they get?
00:27:01
Shā Sparks
Yeah, sure. So is for purpose-driven entrepreneurs and creators. And I say creators, that could be podcasters, YouTubers, people who are making something in the world, whether it's crafts or they're selling an Etsy, whatever it is.
00:27:18
Shā Sparks
And I have found that a lot of us work alone.
00:27:18
Ken Freire
Yeah.
00:27:22
Shā Sparks
We work from home. We're isolated and we're feeling lonely. We might feel like they need some positive, uplifting energy. So remember I said about speaking life, right?
00:27:32
Shā Sparks
Or they feel like they just don't have the network to turn to if they're just hitting a brick wall on a challenge. What I found in going to countless dozens and probably hundreds of networking events is that when you're in person and you're at a networking event, most people are trying to sell you and they pitch you. And then you walk away with a business card and then you have a stack of business card and all these pitches and then nothing, no real connection.
00:28:01
Shā Sparks
And so what we really wanted was to create an inner circle for like-minded and like-hearted people to come together and be open and saying, hey, this is what my challenge is this week.
00:28:12
Ken Freire
Sure.
00:28:14
Shā Sparks
I have an ask, I really need a connection to be able to take my business to the next level. This just happened, actually, if I can share this. One of the women, so we're all going to this podcast. Most of us, I shouldn't say most. I shouldn't say all.
00:28:30
Shā Sparks
Some of us are going to this podcast conference in January. And one of the members said, hey, I would like to go, but I just don't have the funds. And I go, oh, do you need a hotel? I think we're sharing an Airbnb.
00:28:43
Shā Sparks
We can get an Airbnb. She's like, what? I'm like, oh, yeah. I have a car. I'll be driving so I can from the airport. she's like, what? And just those things, right?
00:28:49
Ken Freire
oh
00:28:51
Shā Sparks
One guy said, was very vulnerable and he was like, I'm not sure I'm going to make it through the day. He was parenting, solo parenting, just because his wife was out of town working. And he was deep in his depression, very Conversations with himself on money. And we went through this whole thing of speaking life into him and encouraging him.
00:29:18
Shā Sparks
And in an instant, I can tell you that, gosh, probably three months later, he's thriving. So much is coming to him. And it's that breakdown before the breakthrough that we go through that when you have a soft place a community that you can vent that breakdown.
00:29:41
Shā Sparks
and then people around you that are invested in your growth as well, that's what we do inside the maker's machine. We really help facilitate these conversations. We help facilitate mindset shifts, mastermind toughest solutions to their toughest challenges. And say somebody is like, well, I've been really...
00:30:04
Shā Sparks
I am so guilty of this. So I'll use my example. I've been guilty. I'm not really editing my podcast right now. And they're like, okay, do you need me to text you every day? I'm like, yes, yes. And yes. And that's really, that's what we do for each other because we're invested in each other's success inside the group. And so that's one of the many reasons I could talk about in the whole hour about why this is so important. It's about building a community.
00:30:28
Ken Freire
I love it. And community for sure one of those things that so many solopreneurs, entrepreneurs are looking for. They just don't know which ones. And I'll talk about more from a kingdom perspective, right?
00:30:37
Shā Sparks
Yeah.
00:30:39
Ken Freire
I know a lot of entrepreneurs who are like, I would love a community, but the ones that I see out there, it's all about like drinking, smoking, partying.
00:30:39
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:30:47
Ken Freire
And they're like, I have a family.
00:30:47
Shā Sparks
Yep.
00:30:48
Ken Freire
I don't want to be involved in that.
00:30:50
Shā Sparks
Right.
00:30:50
Ken Freire
And I want glorify God. And you're over here saying like, hey, there's this community that we're doing those things. And we're helping you holistically is what I'm hearing.
00:30:59
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:30:59
Ken Freire
It's like, here's your business.
00:31:00
Shā Sparks
Yes.
00:31:00
Ken Freire
But we also understand there's personal life issues that come up.
00:31:03
Shā Sparks
Yes, absolutely.
00:31:04
Ken Freire
So I
00:31:04
Shā Sparks
Yeah. It's a business and personal development is what I call it. But it's also, and I love that you said about the smoking and the drinking and all that. I'm sober for 25 years and I don't, I don't smoke.
00:31:16
Shā Sparks
And that was the other thing. I'm like, I want a happy hour of actually being happy for each other and not being around drinking. So yeah, I love that.
00:31:25
Ken Freire
Yeah, exactly. I'm like, there's other ways to be happy besides a happy hour.
00:31:28
Shā Sparks
Exactly. Exactly.
00:31:30
Ken Freire
Shay, as we wrap up, I did mention we wanted to talk about Fast Five. These are five questions I've been asking everybody. am doing a expert-led business trend report. So from everybody that I'm interviewing, and I'm going to take all of this data and then just kind of make a report for 2026.
00:31:45
Ken Freire
same five questions i've been asking everyone and just seeing where where uh you land so i'm not going to respond to them i'm not going comment on
Rapid-fire Q&A
00:31:52
Ken Freire
them you can just give me quick 30 second responses to it so question number one uh what's something in your business you're experimenting with right now
00:31:53
Shā Sparks
Okay. Okay.
00:32:03
Ken Freire
okay can you can expand a little bit more on like what do you mean by ai what do you do
00:32:07
Shā Sparks
Yeah, so just experimenting with all the different ones, chat GPT, of course, but also perplexity, comet, things like that. There's so many. I've been working with AI for so many years already, especially in the podcasting world of, you know, things like that. So, yeah, just more of experimentation with AI. Yeah.
00:32:26
Ken Freire
Love it. Okay. Question number two, which part of your business feels the most influx or that needs the most work on these days?
00:32:37
Shā Sparks
Probably the
00:32:40
Shā Sparks
Like the details that I don't want to do Like the editing of my podcast The social media posts Writing them isn't the problem It's like now I have to copy and paste and put it over here And now I have to do it over here It's just the little mundane things It's probably the most in flux, yeah Yeah
00:32:52
Ken Freire
Yeah. Yeah, I hate the mundane stuff. Question number three, what's a goal you're building toward this year that you're really, really excited about?
00:33:04
Shā Sparks
Yeah. So our goal is to be sponsoring a networking or connect connection mastermind. don't know what you want call it. So there's a conference coming up in April that is a military creator con. And so I'll throw that out there, please. If you're in the military and you're creator, go to militarycreatorcon.com and I'll see you there in April. And we're really focusing on sponsoring like a,
00:33:30
Shā Sparks
happy hour that revolves around happiness and networking and building each other up. So I'm excited about that.
00:33:36
Ken Freire
I love it. Question number where do you see the industry, meaning like the membership or coaching industry or the expert-led business industry, where do you see it shifting and how are you preparing for it?
00:33:50
Shā Sparks
I'm doing my work internally of more healing and more really peeling away of really up leveling my skillset, especially in the coaching world.
00:33:52
Ken Freire
edge.
00:34:00
Shā Sparks
Just kind of how we talked about in the beginning, AI is here and the more artificial
00:34:07
Shā Sparks
as society, we get to each other, the more human interaction is needed. And so everything that you're doing with the human, what'd you call it?
00:34:18
Shā Sparks
Human entry.
00:34:19
Shā Sparks
And what we're doing with the human interaction, these are what's going to be needed the most, even though the trend will be artificial blank.
00:34:31
Shā Sparks
It's that human edge, that human connection that's going to be even more valuable.
00:34:39
Ken Freire
Okay. Question number five is what type of legacy do you want to leave behind when everything's all said and done with your business?
00:34:49
Shā Sparks
that I've made a positive impact in the world.
00:34:53
Ken Freire
Okay. Shay, and maybe can I ask a follow-up question on that? What does positive impact look like?
00:35:01
Shā Sparks
just being able to be on stage, be on front, being acknowledged for a job well done, for making a difference, like people saying thank you.
00:35:13
Shā Sparks
That really helped me. Thank you. That wisdom really meant something to me. Oh my gosh, I felt like you were speaking to me.
00:35:21
Ken Freire
Shay that and that and I believe people who listen to this episode are going to get that.
00:35:27
Shā Sparks
Thank
00:35:28
Ken Freire
You know, just so I want to say thank you for being transparent at the beginning of, you know, with your story with everything that's kind of gone on, and even the ups and downs of business because we all have it.
00:35:28
Shā Sparks
Yeah. Right.
00:35:37
Ken Freire
And I think, you know, on LinkedIn a lot. And it's always like positivity. It's always like this is how great everything is like, yeah, but we know it took 12 failures before you hit that one success.
00:35:47
Ken Freire
but all we hear is the success. But I appreciate you just talking about your struggles and your obstacles and the failures and the challenges all along the way. were like, I'm still doing this. And people still spoke life into you to keep going where you're at today.
00:35:59
Ken Freire
So thank you, Shay.
00:36:00
Shā Sparks
Yes, thank you.
00:36:01
Ken Freire
Any final words that you wanna share to those who are listening to this that may be discouraged and like, I kinda wanna give up on my business.
00:36:10
Shā Sparks
Great question.
00:36:12
Shā Sparks
So saying to you, don't give up is not enough. Asking you Why you started begin with. What were you feeling called to do, called to make?
00:36:26
Shā Sparks
What impact were you feeling led shift? Tap into that and remember that and embody that. Visualize feel it in your body, soak it in, breathe it in, and then start again from that place.
00:36:46
Ken Freire
Shay, thank you so much for that. For those who want to get in touch with you or reach out to you, what's the best way contact you?
00:36:53
Shā Sparks
Yes, you can go to any social media, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, SheaSparks. That's S-H-A-S-P-A-R-K-S. And then my website is SheaSparks.com. And then my podcast is TheSheaSparksShow.com. So you can reach out to me, connect with me, say, hey, I heard you on Ken's show. I would love to hear from you.
00:37:16
Ken Freire
Perfect. And I'll make sure all that's in the show notes as well. So for those of you who are driving you're like, I want to stop, you don't have to. It'll be in the show notes. Go check it out later. Shay, thank you so much for your transparency. Thank you so much for just everything you've been doing for entrepreneurs.
00:37:32
Ken Freire
And I think you called them purpose-driven entrepreneurs. Thank you so much for that.
00:37:35
Shā Sparks
Yeah. Thank you, Ken.
00:37:36
Ken Freire
We need it. And it's been a blessing to have you on the show.