Mom Boss Life

 

For the mom boss who’s rocking her career and business, or the aspiring founder itching to ditch her 9-5

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Why Womenpreneurs Need to Reclaim Their Time

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Hey gals, Jessica here. 2019 was a year for the books, would you agree? I have been challenged in so many new ways this year, and have been rewarded (two-fold) in ways that I never could have imaged.

As we enter into this new decade, I wanted to reflect on something that I’ve been thinking a lot about this year – productivity. Now, I’d like to preface this piece by saying that I’m not going to give you 5 tips to be more productive, nor am I going to give you 3 tools to increase your productivity. Our incredible team of Sohuis contributors have loads of content dedicated towards everything relating to helping you become a productivity ninja.

In this post, I wanted to take a broader look at productivity and share some personal experiences with you that I’ve learned this year that could help you think differently about how you’re going to show up for yourself in 2020 and beyond. 

First and foremost, I wanted to share that I’ve learned that productivity is not the same as busy. And man – do we glorify being busy.

The other day I was cleaning out my bookshelf and I came across one of my old calendars/notebooks. This wasn’t any old calendar/notebook though, this was my calendar from the very first year Thomas and I launched our agency. That thing was so worn out, the pages were barely attached. It’s red, with one of those old school ties you wrap around it to close it, with a slot in the middle to insert a pencil. I kept that notebook for so many reasons, the primary being that it’s literally a time capsule from my first year as an entrepreneur (my naiveté leaps from the pages). It’s also the last year that I reluctantly gave up using a paper calendar, that’s a story for another day. Every single square is jam-packed with notes, meetings, calls, to-do’s, my entire life for a year lives in this historical text, and I will never throw that old notebook away. 

As I was reading through my days of 2013 (this way predates children), the only thing I could think about was time. I thought about how, during those days, I genuinely believed that I didn’t have enough of it, I could always use more of it, and I didn’t see it for what it truly is, currency. Truthfully, this was because I hadn’t developed a sense of how valuable my time was, which I would figure out as I evolved over the years.

I gave away my time like free balloons at a balloon festival and holy crap – was I tired. 

Tired in a different way that I am tired today (where my mamas at?), tired because I was so incredibly inefficient and unproductive. My days were so full, I literally had an event of some sort from sun up to sun down. Client calls, demos, networking events, parties, community events, pitch competitions – client work, you name it. I was so insanely busy, but I wasn’t necessarily productive, and I sure as shit wasn’t efficient.

Now, that’s not to say that we didn’t do great work – we did. But now that I’m on the other side of entrepreneurship having folded our agency and started a new company armed with my learnings and lessons, I now understand that time was, and is, my most valuable currency. 

This little story brings me to what I wanted to talk about now – productivity. It’s easy to understand the relationship between these two commodities, time and productivity. Without productivity, we waste time, and in theory, additional time gives us the ability to do more things. 

And in 2019, I feel like I finally learned the art of truly balancing productivity and time. Coincidentally, as my daughter gets older and becomes involved in more activities, it’s even more critical that I maintain this balance as much as possible. 

So as you embark on this next decade and season of change, whether you’re a small business owner or aspiring entrepreneur, here are a few things I figured out this year that I will continue to do in 2020 and beyond to increase my productivity and maximize my time:

I learned to unapologetically shut down and turn off my work when my mind and soul need it.

Also related, I hardly ever (ever) work more than 6 hours a day. For those of you slaving away working 15 hour days, I can feel your distain. Don’t worry, I did that for a loooong time too, (too long). Obviously this may not work for everybody with where they are in their careers, but it’s important to note that I have made a conscious choice to seek opportunities, clients and roles that allow me the flexibility to do this. I have turned down well-paying positions because it meant I wouldn’t have the flexibility of time, and I’ve learned over the years, since the days of my old red notebook, that I do not function well as a human being if I cannot take a break and reclaim my time. This has lead me down a unique and interesting professional path, but necessary for me, to maintain my mental health, happiness and relationship with my work. 

Think I’m crazy for working less hours and not slaving away at my business like I did before? Take a look at what Microsoft has done in Japan. Microsoft tested a 4-day work week during the month of August and gave all of their employees Fridays off (while paying them their full salary), and you know what they discovered – a productivity increase of 40%. 

Humans are not designed to be machines with focused outputs for extended periods of time. In fact, a recent study showed that the traditional 8-hour work day is a completely irrelevant and antiquated way of working. Our brains actually crave 1 hour of work time and 15-minutes of rest. When is the last time you could feel yourself getting tired at work, but you pushed through to make your quota, or you worked through your lunch break because it made you feel more productive? 

I explicitly seek professional opportunities that allow me to work from home majority of the time for this exact reason. I don’t work from home so I can answer emails in my pajamas (although that’s pretty awesome). I work from home so that I can take a quick 15-minute break and fold some laundry, or run an errand, to give my brain some time to recharge and relax. 

For almost 2 decades I worked 12-15+ hour days, so trust me when I say I’ve been there. And I’m aware that not everyone can make similar choices that I have. I’m also aware that I have missed opportunities or passed up certain things in exchange for this time – which is something I accepted long ago. 

So, if you are in the position to reclaim your time, or you’re working towards a place where you can work in a similar fashion, know that your productivity is not based on the amount of time you dedicate – it’s about how you structure the time that you do spend. 

The other thing I learned this year is that slaving away at your business is unhealthy. 

Yes, it’s true that entrepreneurs have a hard time disconnecting from their businesses. But when you become a slave to your business, your business ends up running you, where it should be the other way around. As entrepreneurs, the core of our identities gets associated with our company, and during that process, it’s so easy to absorb your entire self into your work. 

I learned during the time of our agency that we were walking a tricky tight rope of muddying the waters between personal and business, and Thomas and I made a distinct choice to physically shut the doors to our home office and turn off our computers around 3pm on Friday afternoon. Everyone thought we were crazy.

In fact, someone once told me that if I wasn’t working on my business 24/7, I wasn’t a “real” entrepreneur. 

To that I said, “ugh, yea…but I like sleep, and travel, and spending time with the ones I care about. And If I can’t be present and enjoy these simple pleasures of life, what does it matter how successful I am?” If success comes at the price of alienating yourself from everyone you know (your kids, your family, your friends, whoever is important to you) – then, was it really worth it? 

I share this with you because I want you to know that it’s okay to set your business down for a minute.

It’s okay, healthy and encouraged to take breaks and stop for 5-minutes to smell the roses and admire how far you’ve come. I recently partnered with The Boss Project and spoke at a virtual conference on how to maximize your marketing for the holidays, and my session was on how to realistically commit to your goals in 2020 and beyond. In that session, I stressed that everyone forgets that success is the culmination of a million little steps – it’s the tiny steps that add up to the large leaps. And while everyone else only sees the large leaps, you are living alongside your tiny steps. 

So as you think about entering into the New Year with your ambitious goals and aspirations, I implore you to make a personal agreement with yourself that you will focus on productivity over busyness, and you will work to reclaim your time, giving yourself, your soul, and your mind a few breaks along the way. Don’t worry, we’ll all get there in the end, it’s important to enjoy the scenery along the way. 🙂 

xoxo,

 

AUTHOR, JESSICA KORTHUIS

Jessica is the founder of Sohuis and creator of the Sohuis StartupBluprint, a online accelerator designed to help female founders define, distinguish and differentiate their brand in 30 days or less. She has a passion for writing and educating and an obsession with teaching others how to bring their brands to life.

Jessica has been featured by Girlboss, the Lean Startup Company, is a 40 Under 40 Award recipient and has been listed as a “Woman to Watch in 2019 and Beyond” by the national publication, Biz Journals. She is a contributing writer to Girl CEO Inc., proud mompreneur, and to keep up with her super inspiring and fun content, follow her on Instagram @jessica_korthuis.

 

 

 

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12 Things No One Tells You About Running a Home Business

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Hey gals!

Sohuis team here – sometimes we come across content that we simply cannot pass up sharing. This post was originally posted here, on a blog we love called “The Balance Small Business,” and we wanted to share it with you. 

 

There’s no doubt that starting a home business has many perks. You get to be your own boss. You can work how and when you want. You set your own fees, essentially earning what you’re worth.

But there are a few drawbacks that many home-based entrepreneurs forget to mention.

1. You’ll Get Less Respect or Be Asked When You’re Going to Get a “Real” Job

Although this is a little less than it was 10 years ago, for some reason, many people don’t view home businesses as legitimate career choices. Instead, it’s something people do on the side to make a few extra bucks, or until a real job comes along.

2. People Will Think You Have All the Time in the World to Do Them a Favor

Because you work from home, you must have time to let the cable guy in for your neighbor, pick up your sister’s kids at school, and have lunch with your mother. To avoid becoming the go-to, on-call helper, have set work hours and be a stickler to others about respecting them.

3. You’ll Use More Mental Energy Than at a Job

While jobs do require mental energy, owning a business, in which you’re in charge of every aspect, and your success is dependent on how well you manage it, means you think a lot about your business. Even when you’re not working, you’re thinking about it.

4. Work Isn’t Always Fun

Even if you start a business doing something you love, there are aspects that aren’t fun. Some of these tedious jobs can be outsourced to a virtual assistant, but even then, you’ll have days where you don’t like your business.

5. Work Is Rarely Ever Done

Calendars, schedules, routines, and to-do lists will help you stay on top of tasks, but you’ll probably never come to the end of your list.

6. You’ll Sit More

Because you don’t have to get up, get dressed, and commute to a job, you’ll move less. Unless your home business is in landscaping or fitness training, you’ll likely spend a great deal of time at your computer. This can lead to weight gain and related health issues. In fact, health experts indicate that sedentary workers don’t need to exercise more, they just need to sit less. So get up more often.

7. Work and Life Blur

Having your career in your home means it’s easy to work when you’re off and be off when you’re supposed to work. While flexibility can be an advantage of running a home business, if you’re not consciously making decisions about work and off time, you can begin to feel overwhelmed and scattered. This is where time management can make a big difference in the quality of your work and personal life.

8. It’s Lonely

The quiet and solitude of a home business are nice for being focused and productive, but it’s lonely too. There’s no water cooler for gossip or feedback from a colleague. Social media and online groups can help with this, but it’s important to make an effort to connect with people in real life. This can be done through live networking events, co-working facilities, or MeetUp groups.

9. It Gets Harder to Go Back to a Traditional Work Situation

Once you get used to having your own schedule and working without a boss, it gets difficult to want to go back to that situation.

10. You’ll Work Too Much (or Maybe Not Enough)

Especially in the beginning, home businesses take a great deal of time to get up and running. You may not have a day off for weeks or months. This can cause problems with your family. Or, it’s possible you’ll not work enough. A home business is flexible, but not so flexible that you can make a living during your child’s nap times or working only an hour a day.

11. Some Days You May Not Get Dressed

Working in your pajamas is a perk of having a home business. But spending the entire day in your “jammies” will make you feel frumpy. Many experts suggest a morning routine for your home business just like you would have for your job; shower and get dressed.

12. You’ll Be Home All the Time

Living and working under the same roof can get tedious. On the days you don’t get dressed, it also means you don’t leave the house. Fortunately, many home businesses can be run from other locations and since many public spots have free wi-fi, you can take your work on the road for a change of scenery.

Proudly reshared and supported: the original blog for this post can be found here.

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10 Amazing Christmas Gifts for Womenpreneurs

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It’s Christmas time!

While Santa Claus is checking his list (twice!), you want to make sure he has a good idea of what to get your friend who has been KILLING IT as a BOSS while managing her small business! For the entrepreneurs and career women, here is a list of great gifts that you can either get for yourself or get for your fellow girl bosses this Christmas:

This 2020 planner by the creative geniuses of Create & Cultivate will inspire any entrepreneur. There are weekly and monthly spreadsheets to keep you organize with your goals and notes. There’s even a #BOSSboard that lets your creative juices flow by doodling and writing your next big business plan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Be organized and chic with this desk organizer that’ll sit nicely on your desk. This rose gold piece contains a pen holder, paper organizer, and desk drawer. You’ll get a lot of work done with this beauty!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Conde Nast International hosted a lunch with author Kevin Braddock on his book for #WorldMentalHealthDay so it must be a good read. Sometimes the grind can take a toll on a small business owner, and it can be difficult to navigate the triumphs and trials. The book, Asking for Help dives into mental health education, awareness, as well as fighting against social stigma.

 

 

 

 

 

For the stylish entrepreneur, this bag will have everyone turn heads while carrying this fabulous bag! This wine red shoulder bag can hold any 13 inch laptop or tablet, with foam bubble padded in the bag for bump and shock resistance. Stylish, comfortable, affordable; what more can you want?!

 

 

 

 

 

Every business owner needs business cards, and every owner also needs a card holder that represent them and their brand. This cardholder from Kate Spade will guarantee have people give you compliments as you seal with the deal with your business contacts.

 

 

 

 

Is your hard working entrepreneur friend a coffee lover, but doesn’t always have the time to make her own cup? Does Starbucks have majority of her money? Then she’ll LOVE the Primula Pace Cold Brew Coffee Maker! This cold brew coffee maker will make a fresh cup of cold brew coffee within minutes, and will have her up and ready to go (and will save her money!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a business woman, sometimes we have travel for business and conferences. Give the gift that reminds the entrepreneur that you’re always with her, even when she’s on business, with a personalized luggage tag. Have their name or a cute graphic on the tag so they can spot their bags a mile away.

 

 

 

 

Wanna splurge a little bit? These Ghostek soDrop 2 Wireless Headphones are one of the most comfortable headphones on the market. They’re also wireless and have Bluetooth connectivity that’ll pair with any of your devices. An added bonus is that the set comes with a microphone, so you can take a phone call while listening to your favorite music.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For someone always on the go, having a portable charger is absolutely essential while being an entrepreneur. You wouldn’t want your phone to die while you’re doing a video recording, or trying to post something on social media. That’s why this phone charger is a must-need this holiday season! The durable charger has an amazing battery capacity so you never have to worry about a low battery while taking notes on your phone.

I hope you enjoyed these gift ideas, show a fellow girl boss that you appreciate them this holiday season!

 

 

 

 

Content courtesy of  Lara Ashley, Founder and Editor of Brenley Magazine, Redefining what it means to be a Southern belle; an online magazine that helps women wear their crowns with grace.

Contributing Author, Lara Ashley

Lara Ashley is a multifaceted Journalist. Lara Ashley obtained her Mass Communications degree at Southern University and A&M College and is obtaining a Master’s degree in Magazine Journalism in the U.K. from Cardiff University. When she’s not watching her fav reality shows (LOVES the Real Housewives franchise), spending her afternoons watching Netflix or with a good book, she’s writing and journaling.

Follow Lara @brenleymag and connect with her on Facebook

 

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Pros & Cons: Launch Your Own Business or Work For Someone Else?

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My husband and I have always been entrepreneurs at heart.

It was in our blood since we were both in grade school. When we started having kids while attending college, we both decided that we needed the stability of a full time pay check instead of the erratic and extensive but flexible hours of running a business.

Most all businesses need capital, and time to kick start. This could mean up to three years of investment without any real return. That makes selecting a business that you are passionate about even harder when that business may not return the dividends you hoped to get just to pay your bills and survive.

In our case we went for businesses that had a good infrastructure and at least moderate success, knowing we would have to work to fund the business. We chose Real Estate and worked that business for almost ten years.

Having a business is about the hustle of the sale

Most people want to start a business to be their own boss. It sounds great until we, as the sole source of income for our household, realize that we aren’t making any money at it – initially. Pouring 50 to 60 hours of effort into something that doesn’t pay off can be a drain.

Here’s what we did to focus on sales, but not worry so much about returns when we first started.
  •       Work part-time to fund marketing and sales for business
  •       Use part-time job to network and gain customers through relationship building
  •       Use part-time job to fund household while building business
  •       Realize that business income is based on sales and that at the base of the business, you have to sell the business offerings
  •       Partnering with someone that can help run the business and take some of the pressure off
  •       Partnering with someone to get vacation time

Many people are in love with the type of business they own, but hate the aspect of selling it. If that is you, maybe other options are better.

Working for a company – the benefits over owning one

With having a bill from college debt, we realized that owning the business didn’t gain us what we needed most at the time-a regular paycheck, health benefits, vacation paid time off, sick leave in some cases and standard work hours.

In most cases, working a job, you can depend on the pay being the same every week and getting the deposit with no more effort than what you were expecting going in.

Deciding on the best-case scenario

The best case for us was working for a company that allowed us to have our business as a part-time endeavor. Having a constant stream of income, we could count on most of the time, gave us comfort and joy in building our business part-time. We partnered with others and the part time business grew to the point my husband could work it full-time. It helped for one of us to stay employed to gain health benefits and others from a well-established company.

Finding what works for you

Doing your research and evaluating what your reason is for starting your business is your first stop. Then map out a business plan. Decide when you need to make money on your business and if you are willing to put in the time and effort selling your product, marketing it, and being on social media to promote it. If you aren’t interesting in the selling of your product, are you willing to pay someone to do that for you? Then you will realize what the cost and benefit is of starting your own company or working for someone else.

Check out LM’s Blog: http://homeschoolandwork.blogspot.com/

Content courtesy of LM Preston, author of Building Your Empowered Steps and Homeschooling While Working To Shape Amazing Learners, www.empoweredsteps.com

Contributing Author, LM Preston

LM Preston, is an author, business owner, wife and mother who has written both fiction and non-fiction books that have reached best-seller status. Her passion for writing and helping others to see their potential through her stories and encouragement has been her life’s greatest adventures. She also is a personal coach who supports clients in writing, publishing, goal realization, career imagination, parenting, homeschooling while working and much more.

Connect with LM on Facebook and follow her work on Twitter @LM_Preston

Her fiction novels can be found here, and her blog can be read, here.

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Channeling Beyoncé: BEYiness That We Can All Learn From

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September 4 was a National Holiday: It was Beyonce Knowles-Carter’s birthday.

Even though we know Queen Bey as being a world-renowned singer, actress, and songwriter, the now 38-year-old has accomplished so much more than being an inspiration on our Pinterest boards.

Beyonce owns multiple businesses through her company, Parkwood Entertainment. Parkwood produces movies, music as well as fashion brands. So the movie that had us gushing over Idris Elba, “Obsessed” and the activewear Ivy Park all came from the same company. The wife and mother is definitely making money moves! According to Forbes, she raked in $60 million in 2018, hitting the number three spot on the outlet’s highest paid female musicians list.

As business women, we can learn a lot from the entertainment mogul in our own practices today. In celebration of the United States’ undocumented queen, here are some lessons that every business woman should practice in their own workplace:

Social media is the free press that you’ve always needed:

Beyonce is known for her surprises, and album drops that there are several social media accounts that have been created just to send alerts to the BEYhive members. In 2013, she dropped a visual album without any prior announcement or declaration of a new project. The Beyhive was on full alert; the social media accounts did the work for her and made live posts and campaigns of the album dropping. Within the first three days over 800,000 downloads of the album were downloaded-just because of social media. Never forget the power of the Internet, and use it for your own advantage. Still have doubts? Before the release of her 2016 visual album, “Lemonade,” Beyoncé posted lemon-themed pictures on her Instagram page. Of course, the Beyhive speculated for weeks of the meaning behind it, and Beyonce was trending on Twitter. ”Lemonade” debuted exclusively on Tidal for its first weekend and reached the number one spot on the Billboard magazine charts.

Be personable:

In the September 2018 issue of Vogue magazine, Beyonce showed her vulnerable side and opened up about being pregnancy for the second time with twins. She talked about the beauty and pains of a mother’s womb, and her fears of leaving a legacy for her children. It was the first time that the accomplished magazine allowed such a personal and open book piece to be featured in the magazine, but it was a smart move. It was a different side of the megastar that the audience rarely witnessed, and it was something that Vogue knew would grab people’s attention. Plus, it was relatable. Beyonce acknowledged that she is having problems just like every other mother, which opened another genre of fans.

She listens to her customers:

In 2015, husband and rapper Jay-Z bought Tidal; a subscription-based music streaming service that offered songs as well as music videos exclusively to its audience. Beyonce, and other famous artists such as Rihanna and Madonna, were co-owners of the company. In the first year of its release, there were 540,000 subscribers that were mixed between happy with the services, and with the ones who are not content with the pay. According to Investopedia, critics of the service complained about the initial service fee, which was $240-per-year subscription rate. The owners listened to the complaints of their customers, and decided to appeal to their audience. The current rate is $9.99 per month for the premium subscription and $19.99 a month for the Hi-Fi option including with lossless High Fidelity sound quality and high definition music videos. There are also less expensive options for students, family plans and for military members. Currently, Tidal has over 3 million subscribers. It is always good to listen to the needs of the customers, and to make changes to a company to appease everyone.

 

Content courtesy of  Lara Ashley, Founder and Editor of Brenley Magazine, Redefining what it means to be a Southern belle; an online magazine that helps women wear their crowns with grace.

Contributing Author, Lara Ashley

Lara Ashley is a multifaceted Journalist. Lara Ashley obtained her Mass Communications degree at Southern University and A&M College and is obtaining a Master’s degree in Magazine Journalism in the U.K. from Cardiff University. When she’s not watching her fav reality shows (LOVES the Real Housewives franchise), spending her afternoons watching Netflix or with a good book, she’s writing and journaling.

Follow Lara @brenleymag and connect with her on Facebook

 

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Business Ideas for Aspiring Mompreneurs

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Wanting to start your own business is a big step for working moms. Therefore, selecting a business that will meet your needs, be flexible, calls to your passions, and makes you money is sometimes hard to find. There are so many personal factors that impact the decision, and as a fellow mompreneur, I’ve tried many.

Investing in your business or get paid out the door

When considering starting a business that you are supporting from home or as a working parent, money and the amount to invest is usually a concern. You want a business that has as little startup cost and operating cost as possible. That’s one way that you can ensure that it is a financial benefit for you and your family.

Popular types of Mompreneur businesses

Creating a micro-business specific to your experiences and areas of interest is a great option for many. This involves taking what you’ve done in your career and making it your own business. Working in freelance to provide administrative and marketing support for other small and large businesses is a great business that works around your personal schedule. Another possibility is transferring your knowledge and interest to an online course or coaching business. Online store owner can be a business where you basically sell your old stuff or buy then sale in various marketplaces such as Etsy, Mercari, Amazon, Craigslist and more.  

Starting a franchise business is a pricey, but potentially profitable, business. There are small businesses such as tutoring services like Kumon and Sylvan where you can invest in the franchise for a small fee. Other choices are Cruise Planners, Fit4Mom, Chem-Dry, Jazzercise, Jan-Pro which offers services from travel, fitness, and cleaning services. 

Multi-Level-Marketing is a form of business that many mothers find cheap to start up and easy to work around their family obligations. Some popular and successful ones include Usborne Books, Avon, doTERRA Essential Oils, Pampered Chef and Scentsy.

The final decision

Your final decision should be based on what you intend to gain by starting your business; with it’s goal to include income and self-gratification. If you aren’t making money from the work you are putting in, it is a detriment to your family and goals. It is a discouraging aspect of starting a business. Do your research on the business you hope to pursue. Make sure it checks all the points that are important to your goals. Realistically, it takes at least three to five years for any business to make a profit. Knowing that, consider what you would want to do for that amount of time just for the experience. Having your business in line with your personal areas of interest you are passionate about makes it a success even when you aren’t making the money from it you’d like. 

Blog: http://homeschoolandwork.blogspot.com/

Content courtesy of LM Preston, author of Building Your Empowered Steps and Homeschooling While Working To Shape Amazing Learners, www.empoweredsteps.com

Contributing Author, LM Preston

LM Preston, is an author, business owner, wife and mother who has written both fiction and non-fiction books that have reached best-seller status. Her passion for writing and helping others to see their potential through her stories and encouragement has been her life’s greatest adventures. She also is a personal coach who supports clients in writing, publishing, goal realization, career imagination, parenting, homeschooling while working and much more.

Connect with LM on Facebook and follow her work on Twitter @LM_Preston

Her fiction novels can be found here, and her blog can be read, here.

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5 Ways To Build a Platform For Your Small Business

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I have started many small micro-businesses. I even consulted a few people. It’s hard starting from scratch, but with proper planning and the power of social media you can go from a nobody to a somebody really quick. There are some quick start tips, but the truth is, for momentum, you have to put out the feelers and the foundation for your online exposure early.

Social Media for Personal vs. Business

I advise setting up two different social media accounts. Setting up a media account for your business, with your business name, logo, and professional photo on all social media platforms. Once you set up your accounts, use tools like IFTTT (If this, then that) to make each post to your social media platforms count. This tool will take a blog post and replicate it to post on twitter, Instagram and other social media sites. Also, use tools like Hootsuite or Socialoomph to do the same. 

Creating a blog and posting to it weekly gives you content you can push to all your other social media platforms to create an ever running presence.

Getting Exposure for Your New Platform

In order to boost your presence, you need to start collaborating with other like-minded businesses, people, and prospects. The easiest places to find them is on Quora, Facebook, Instagram, Forums, other Blogs. You can set up a collaborative blog hop with other bloggers or Twitter chat with other businesses. Usually, it just takes asking the question and you will be surprised with how much people will help you for free.

Other options are to purchase exposure or trade it. If you have a newsletter, then you can request someone swap information in their newsletter for yours. Both of you get exposure. Collaboration with others is the best form of exposure. It’s like an unwritten word of mouth.

Write Articles and Share Your Blog Post

There are services for media calls like HARO. You can also post it on other open sites like Medium, Reddit, LinkedIn Articles and ask other bloggers to post.

Tell Everyone About Your Business in Press Releases

Every stride your business makes, share the news through press releases. There are many free press release sites to use and doing so gets your name and your business name out there to a different set of readers. You can pay to have your press releases shared to newspapers and magazines, just don’t make the message too sales focused, and more about sharing of information or ways your business is helping the community. 

Advertise for Free and Buy Ads

After you have your social media sites set up, and you have a working and chiming feed of information from your random post and your blog post, start to purchase ads. By this time you should know your audience and have somewhere that is filled with information and others of like mind to interact with through your channels. Budget and test your ads before you pour your money and efforts in other areas. 

First, go for the free options such as sharing videos, webinars, and promos on your blog, Facebook page, website, and some of your collaborator’s blogs. Take your videos and boost those that are doing well on Facebook, then create an ad based on your findings. After you have utilized the free exposure, then consider google ads, Facebook ads, optimization of your website and promote wherever your content resides. Then consider buying ads where your product is sold.

 

Content courtesy of LM Preston, author of Building Your Empowered Steps and Homeschooling While Working To Shape Amazing Learners, www.EmpoweredSteps.com.

Contributing Author, LM Preston

LM Preston, is an author, business owner, wife and mother who has written both fiction and non-fiction books that have reached best-seller status. Her passion for writing and helping others to see their potential through her stories and encouragement has been her life’s greatest adventures. She also is a personal coach who supports clients in writing, publishing, goal realization, career imagination, parenting, homeschooling while working and much more.

Connect with LM on Facebook and follow her work on Twitter @LM_Preston

Her fiction novels can be found here, and her blog can be read, here.

BookBub: LM Preston

Patreon Exclusive Readers: LM Preston

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My latest feature on VoyageATL

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A few weeks ago, I sat down with the super vibrant and fun publication, VoyageATL for an interview on my story. They just released it and I wanted to share it with you here!

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Korthuis, Founder and CEO, Sohuis.

Jessica, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.

My journey is a bit of a crazy one! So, I suppose I’ll start with relatively recent events. About seven years ago, I was working for a corporate fashion brand in Public Relations – it was everything to me. I had always wanted to work in fashion and through a ton of hard work and grit, I landed this amazing role. In fact, my former boss and mentor were grooming me to take on her leadership role, as she was planning to exit and start her own company and follow her personal passion. About six months after working in this role, I found out that my job was going to be eliminated due to corporate downsizing across the United States.

Done. Finished, my dream job and career were inadvertently flushed down the proverbial toilet and I was absolutely devastated. My husband, who was my fiancé at the time, and I drowned my sorrows in several bottles of wine and did a lot of chatting about our futures and what we really wanted out of our personal and professional lives that evening. At the time, I didn’t realize it, but this was the moment my future was forever changed. After much discussion, my husband and I decided we wanted to launch our own branding and marketing agency. I had been working in communications for a while and had some significant relationships under my belt. My husband was, and still is, the tech and creative unicorn of the two of us, and just like that – poof! We created our own company, designed our first logo, developed a basic (and crappy) website all in that weekend.

4.5 years went by from that point and we built our branding agency from the ground up. We had no idea, no mentors, and no clue. We just followed our passion and ran the agency off of our own moral code and ethics, and after the first year, we were able to bring on two team members. By years 2-3, we built a team of six, including us, and we worked with brands like Red Bull, Girls Who Code, TedxWomen, Stanford University, and from there did work internationally with the European Union and the U.S. Department of State to support entrepreneurship across the globe.

It was insane! It was from these experiences and owning our agency that I discovered something very important about myself. I discovered that I was born to be an entrepreneur and a leader. You see, while I always got along great with my colleagues at other formal jobs, I never truly fit in – and I honestly could never pinpoint why. At some point, I always felt like I was able to grow within the company, but only at the pace of someone else’s success. I was encouraged to learn and to lead, but only so far until I needed to stay in my lane and respect my own box. I never realized until I became an entrepreneur that having the ability to look at a problem through multiple lenses was actually an asset, not a weakness. And I learned that having wild, innovative, creative and crazy ideas was a strength to a team and not a liability.

A critical moment of clarity for me, I knew entrepreneurship was where I belonged, and I knew the road would be full of challenges and uncertainty. But it was in those challenging moments that I brought my best and learned the most about myself and my business.

Since then, we decided to fold the agency for a number of reasons, all of which are good, and we still have great relationships with our former clients to this day.

Now, I’ve expanded my journey through entrepreneurship and have founded my second company, Sohuis.
Sohuis started out as a brand consultancy, allowing me to spend time with my new baby and manage motherhood in a way that made sense to me. Since last year, it has grown and transformed into a living and breathing educational platform that supports and empowers other female founders to create businesses they can be proud of and to live life by their own rules.

I create branding and marketing training materials, from guides to ebook, free courses, mini-courses, to a full-fledged program called the Sohuis StartupBlueprint; which is a step-by-step blueprint designed for entrepreneurs to take their brand and marketing strategy from idea to execution in as little as 30 days.

When I hear from my course members how much my content has changed their lives and the trajectory of their business, I just literally beam from all corners of my heart because this is my purpose – to lead and to teach. And if I can empower other female founders to live their lives by their own rules, then that is what I am here to do.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome? 

Hell no!
I’ve hit so many obstacles I don’t even know where to start. Of all, some of my biggest struggles were actually more emotional than anything else. As an entrepreneur, no-one really understands your world except you. Even your closest friends and loved ones cannot see everything exactly from your point of view. As such, entrepreneurship can be incredibly isolating – as you’re always stirring around in your own head.

When I started to notice this was affecting me, I reached out to other female founders that I met online or through other avenues and essentially created an unofficial committee of advisors. I reach out to them when I feel overwhelmed or need to advisement, and they reciprocate by providing guidance and their point of view, as I provide guidance to them when they need it.

I also started joining a bunch of online communities of other female founders and I find a lot of solace in knowing that we are all effectively dealing with the same things – whether you run a $50K business or a $50 Million business, everyone needs support and advisement.

Do you have any advice for young entrepreneurs?

I actually have two big pieces of advice for other women, particularly young women who are just starting their journey:
1. You just need to START. It’s not going to be perfect. You’re not going to get it right at the beginning. You’re going to receive push back and it will be challenging. The goal of ANY business is not to be perfect. The goal is to understand your customers and know how you bring them the MOST value. If you exist to serve your customers and serve them well, your business will flourish.
2. The other piece of advice I would give is this: Overnight success is absolute bullshit. If you’re seeing other women miraculously succeed overnight, it’s most likely because they’ve spent years chipping away at it. Slow and steady wins the race, and you cannot succeed without learning. And the only way you learn is to make mistakes along the way, growing and improving with every little step you take.

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.

My work is exclusively geared for female business owners and entrepreneurs, who are either at the idea stage or early revenue stage, that needs crystal clear plan of actions to brand and market their businesses. I’ve worked with large corporate entities all the way to 1-person founding teams, and the #1 thing I see is that everyone knows marketing and branding is important, critical even, for success. They know they need to build a brand, communicate what they do, understand their customers, deliver products and services that are needed and valued. The problem is, the marketing landscape continues to expand and it is overloaded with information – it’s just simply too much. Everyone knows the ingredients of the marketing salad, but nobody knows how to put the salad together.

That is what Sohuis helps female founders do – I help them understand all of the ingredients and put them together in a way that makes sense, is digestible and sustainable to implement.

I am proud of so many things about my company. I’m proud that we are unapologetic in who we serve. I’m proud that we show up authentically as ourselves and have attracted female founders who align with our values. I am proud that I’ve created a product line that will support a sustainable marketing engine so that I can create wealth for myself and for others. Probably most importantly, I am proud that other women trust my knowledge and my experience to invest their time, energy and resources into my education.

What sets me apart from others is that while I deliver value through marketing and branding education, I’m here to do more – to change lives. I’m here so that the mom of four who’s barely managing to keep her head above water can actually build a business that brings her joy and freedom. She can do this simply because I provide no fluff, and no-nonsense education that she can actually act on. In my experience, when women are able to show up as their full and authentic selves, communities thrive and the world just simply works better.

Looking back on your childhood, what experiences do you feel played an important role in shaping the person you grew up to be? 

Oh, yes.

First and foremost, I was raised by a single mother. This has undoubtedly played an outsized role in my journey. I saw my mom work 3-4 jobs in and out of my childhood, I saw her open up her own hair salon and close the doors because she didn’t have the resources to carry it all the way through. I was raised in a small little town in Florida that I desperately wanted to get away from. As a result, my mom sat me down when I was 14 and told me that the best way to expand outside of what I knew was to go to college. And on that note, we didn’t have money to send me to college so I either needed to get a soccer scholarship (I was playing premier at the time), or an academic scholarship – which I set out to do when I got into high school.

I started working at 14, (I bagged groceries at a grocery store and I thought it was the coolest!), I played competitive soccer my entire youth, which definitely influenced my ability to work hard, practice, get back up, it honed my leadership skills, and so much more.

In case you’re interested… I did end up getting that scholarship and I went to the University of Central Florida on a full scholarship where I studied Communications and Art & Design.

The original link to this article can be found here.

Contact Info:

afenya

Nourish Your Soul, Nourish Your Goals

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When you’re busy building a career or business, taking care of yourself can end up as the least important topic on your list of competing priorities. But let’s be honest with ourselves, burnout is very real. When you’re not being good to yourself, you’re no good for anyone else. Self-care has become such a buzz term that it’s easy to forget the importance of actually practicing it. We are always thinking of ways to reach our goals, accomplish our next great achievement and level up in our businesses or careers. Sometimes, In the midst of planning for our next big thing, we forget to keep our own mental, physical and emotional health top of mind.

Here are 3 ways that you can nourish your soul while nourishing your goals:

Take Daily “Me” Breaks

This is a time when it’s okay for everything to be about you (because it should be). Take some time out for yourself. Meditate, paint your nails, read a book for pleasure. Whatever it is that YOU want to do, do it. Everything you do does not have to result in a business outcome. It is okay to make yourself a priority.  Make this a consistent thing: Pick a consistent time during the day, add the time into your calendar so you’re more inclined to take it and simply enjoy doing something you love. Get out of “go mode”. We are conditioned to always strive to achieve something or gain some outcome. Decompress, detach and be ok with it. Doing this will foster creativity because you will be able to step away from your thoughts and let your innovative juices flow.

Find Your Tribe

As a high achieving entrepreneur, career professional or woman in leadership, it can be difficult to find nourishing relationships.  We can be so busy moving and shaking that we forget to build these connections. Healthy relationships with like-minded people give us the opportunity to gain support, celebrate our wins, vent about our losses and understand that we aren’t alone in our struggles. Our emotional needs are just as powerful as our physical ones and we have to recognize how we can be affected by them. When a group of supportive peers are working towards the same goals as you, it’s easier to hold each other accountable. Accountability can be therapeutic because as you see yourself progress, you become more motivated to finish what you started.  

Start Journaling

When your brain just won’t turn off, try getting those thoughts out with journaling. You will begin to find joy in the small things and become more appreciative of your journey despite any challenges or obstacles in your path. Journaling can be extremely cathartic and you might find out things about yourself that you never knew. Putting pen to paper can help you find clarity in difficult situations. If you can’t think of anything to start with, begin with gratitude. Jot down 3-5 things daily (in the morning or at night) that you are grateful for. It’s natural for most of us to focus on the negative things that we go through. To change these thoughts and nourish your mind, you have to adopt a mindset of gratitude. Expressing gratitude will shift your focus to positive experiences.

 

Content courtesy of Afenya Pongo Montgomery.  This content was originally published on The Glu and can be found here.

Contributing Author, Afenya Pongo Montgomery

Afenya took a leap from being a nurse focused on healthcare consulting to becoming a ladyboss determined to help women and people of color leap into entrepreneurship. She’s founder and Chief Innovator behind The iCAN Collective, a professional development platform that connects diverse entrepreneurs to resources, information, business partnerships and collaborations through live events.

Since long walks on the beach at sunset are few and far between, she mainly enjoys spending her time as a business strategist, helping new entrepreneurs create, launch and scale viable businesses. When she’s not working with other Girlboss CEOs on building brands and businesses that they can be proud of, she’s juggling le struggle of being the ultimate momboss at home with 3 junior girlbosses and a law-enforcing hubby.

You can keep up with Afenya on her website here.

You can connect with Afenya on her Facebook page and follow her work on iCAN Collective Facebook page too. This Ladyboss also has an Instagram page for herself and her business! Go give her a follow you won’t regret it. 

 

 

momboss-blog

6 Reasons Why Moms Make the Best Entrepreneurs

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Today is May 9th. May 9th is an incredibly special day for me because it’s also my daughter’s birthday. And today, my baby girl Aèden, turns 3 years old.

Three, I can’t even believe it. She’s no longer a tiny little infant that needs to be taken care of in every way imaginable. She’s my little rocket ship of energy and charisma with thoughts and feelings all her own – who has wants and desires and a clear point of view. And while I think about celebrating her on her 3rd birthday, I’m also thinking about how much I’ve learned from her, and from my own personal development journey, over the past 3 years.

“There’s no manual when it comes to raising children.” This was one of the many pieces of advice my mom gave to me when I told her I was pregnant; and I have since harnessed everything about this motto as I’ve embarked on this journey over the past 3 years.

If you know my story, then you know that I was an entrepreneur long before I became a mom. And as I sit here in my pool of nostalgia, reminiscing on our collective experiences from the past 3 years in celebration of today, I can’t help but make the strong connection between the similarities I’ve experienced from motherhood to entrepreneurship. I mean, I always knew that women were incredible multitaskers and that we, obviously, were the more superior gender. 🙂 But it’s only been fairly recently that I’ve noticed the many correlations in how the daily life of motherhood can prepare you to be a super-successful entrepreneur. So in celebration of Aèden’s birthday, I wanted to share a few funny stories about my journey and write a piece about how my experiences have lead me to the concrete conclusion that moms make for the absolute BEST entrepreneurs.

Here are the 6 reasons why moms make the best entrepreneurs

1. We’re all making it up as we go

If there is one fundamental truth I’ve learned over the past 3 years, it’s that we’re all just making this shit up.

Let’s call it what it is. My mom was right. There is no manual, and we’re all just doing the best we can. This is fundamentally true of entrepreneurship as well. While there are endless mommy blogs and tons of incredible resources for new moms, the same way that there are mountains of resources for entrepreneurs, at the end of the day – we’re making it up as we go and learning from our daily experiences.

We’re relying on our instincts and natural wherewithal to navigate the tricky waters of entrepreneurship and motherhood, and while at some point you do get the hang of it. At first, and for the most part, this fundamental truth stands.

Here’s a cool fact: there are 8.1 Million women-owned businesses in the US that generate $1.3 Trillion in revenue and employ roughly 7.6 Million people. And guess what, all of these women once were making it up as they went along, too.

2. Moms are multi-tasking ninjas

True story: before launching Sohuis I worked for a nonprofit organization that supported entrepreneurship all over the globe. I was their director of marketing and the CEO enthusiastically invited many of the moms to bring their kids to work when needed and during this particular time in my life, Aèden would come to work with me about 2-3 days a week. She was less than a year old at the time.

So here I am…in my office (door closed), Aèden is sleeping in my left arm, I’m managing to handle my pump with my right arm, I’ve got my headphones plugged in because I’m on an important call with the U.S. Department of State, as we were rolling out a global marketing plan to bring entrepreneurs from Latin America into the United States. Meanwhile, I’ve got leaders from all over the U.S. government asking my thoughts on how to roll out the program, what strategies we should try first…I’m trying desperately to give short, concise, serious answers so that nobody puts the pieces together that my pump is what’s making the sound of a city bus starting and stopping. I’m praying that Aèden just continues to sleep for 5 more minutes, and my marketing coordinator is taking notes for me because she knows that I literally cannot do another task at that moment.

What’s incredible about this is that I know this is one of MANY similar stories and experiences that other working moms can relate to. And while my story is unique to me, the concept of ninja-like multi-tasking most certainly is not. As an entrepreneur, you multi-task in similar capacities because oftentimes you’re the only one who can do those specific tasks in that specific moment. You’re constantly managing multiple things at the same time and after a while, you get deviously good at switching from various tasks quickly and efficiently.

In fact, a recent study showed that, on average, “moms manage at least 26 tasks in the morning while completing at least 12 major jobs per day.” And that’s all before 10am!

Now, it’s been my experience that long-term multitasking in this way isn’t the most sustainable option for your well-being. But the fact of the matter remains that we become pretty damn good at it, and it translates to being nimble, efficient, resourceful entrepreneurs.

3. Speaking of resourceful, moms are resourceful AF

I feel like there are endless examples of mom-resourcefulness. Like that one time I totally forgot to pack extra diapers in my bag and I had to make-shift one out of toilet paper. And I’m not talking about good, luxurious toilet paper – I’m talking about the crappy public bathroom toilet paper that practically disintegrates upon touch. Did I mention that the restaurant I was at also didn’t have a family restroom or changing table? Yea..so I managed to craft her Tarzan diaper on the counter and POOF! Nobody knew the wiser.

Entrepreneurship is defined by resourcefulness, especially in the beginning. Like motherhood, everyday poses a unique adventure with unforeseen challenges and obstacles that require you to channel your inner Macgyver and curate out-of-the-box solutions.

4. A mother’s intuition is never wrong

This recent study illustrates a fascinating scientific discovery about a mother’s intuition. Everyone knows that the mother passes DNA on to the child through the placenta, but apparently, fetal DNA also passes back to the mother and can find a home inside of the mother’s organs – particularly, the brain. And in this study, they concluded that the DNA that was passed from the fetus in utero stays with the mother for life – hence, the science behind a mother’s intuition because they carry the DNA of their children inside of their own bodies. CRAZY!

Many famous entrepreneurs have credited their intuition as the main vehicle for their success. And while I haven’t built a multi-million dollar business (yet), I can get behind this notion all day long. One of the first things I do with a new business opportunity or partnership is listen to what my intuition is telling me. It took me years to figure out how to do this, and I can honestly say that becoming a mom has sharpened this tool ten-fold.

5. Fall down 9 times, get up 10

Moms. are. resilient! It’s been said that motherhood is the wildest rollercoaster on earth – and I believe it. Some days I wake up feeling like I’m totally owning this #momboss life, and other days I just want to watch Project Runway reruns all day and take a nap; bonus for me if I get around to washing my hair. In another post I wrote, I talk about the realistic version of entrepreneurship that nobody sees, and it looks a lot like this:

Both moms and entrepreneurs, even during the toughest of times, have days where we go to bed exhausted and wake up ready to do it all over again. Moreover, we wake up wanting to be better – to keep going, keep chipping away at it, and to keep believing in our vision.

6.  Moms are expert negotiators

“Use a sticker chart to potty train,” they said. “Give them a reward every time they pee in the potty,” they said. “Girls are way easier to potty train than boys,” they also said. Potty training Aèden was one of the most ambitious obstacles to date. Not because she was difficult or had a hard time with it – I’m actually thankful for our experience after learning what other moms have gone through – however! How do you use a sticker chart with a child who hates stickers? When we first started potty training, Aèden was totally not interested in any incentive I would offer. She would just sit on the potty and sing songs, get down, then immediately pee on the floor. It wasn’t clicking. Something about my proposal was not enticing for her – that is, until she discovered popsicles.

We had been “attempting” for a couple of weeks when I decided to pull out the big guns. Everything I read stressed that I shouldn’t lose my cool, no matter how frustrated I got. And let me you tell you, I was getting frustrated. Our negotiations went back and forth for some time until one morning, I cleared my entire schedule and self-proclaimed that today was the day. With the most amount of zen energy I could muster, I sat on the bathroom floor with a day’s worth of reinforcements (books, crayons, toys, etc). She wanted a snack, I would point to the potty – not saying a word. She wanted to go outside, I’d look at the potty. She wanted to watch her favorite show – potty. I was never upset at her, and occasionally she would sit on my lap and we would read and color and play. I just made the following very clear – “I am going to sit right here until you pee on this potty, and nothing will happen until you do so. I can play this game all day, and you will not break me, little toddler.” This went on for 2.5 hours.

Then, when I knew she was seriously considering my proposal, I brought out the big guns – popsicles. (We didn’t even have any popsicles, but that wasn’t important) I told her that she would get a popsicle if she peed on the potty and sure enough – success! We celebrated, high-fived and hugged, and off we went for her to pick out her favorite popsicle. She’s been potty trained every since, and I’m happy to report that she now has a new love and appreciation for stickers. 🙂

In my entrepreneurial experience, negotiations are never about winning or losing, they’re about co-creating a solution that works best for both parties. It requires patience, strategy, and anticipation of the other person’s wants/needs/desires so that you can propose something that works best for you, and for them. Moms can do this in their sleep

Bonus! Moms don’t take no shit

Let’s take note from one of my favorite mombosses, Daenerys Targaryen, mother of dragons.

International Womens Day GIF from Internationalwomensday GIFs

Want a visionary to execute a powerful idea? Take a few notes from a mom you might know. Need some perspective on how to manage that client from hell, call a mom you know. Working on a huge deal that could make or break your business – you know what to do.

To all of my fellow mombosses out there, I see you. And to all of the mamas who are thinking about launching their own business, remember that you already have every skill needed to be a successful entrepreneur – you already do it every single day.

xoxo,

Jessica

 

 

 

 Author, Jessica Korthuis

Jessica is the founder of Sohuis and creator of the Sohuis StartupBluprint, a online accelerator designed to help female founders and entrepreneurs build authentic and meaningful brand strategies. She has a passion for writing and educating and an obsession with teaching others how to bring their brands to life.

Jessica has been featured by the Lean Startup Company, is a 40 Under 40 Award recipient and has been listed as a “Woman to Watch in 2019 and Beyond” by the national publication, Biz Journals. She is a contributing writer to Girl CEO Inc., proud mompreneur, and to keep up with her super inspiring and fun content, follow her on Instagram @jessica_korthuis.

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Hey there!

I’m Jessica Korthuis, a branding and marketing expert with a passion for teaching female founders and aspiring mompreneurs how to market and brand their businesses.

I’m here to teach you all my secrets!

Let’s connect. 

@jessica_korthuis

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