Today on the show we are dishing out all the secret sauce! We get asked all the time, “How do you get so much done and not work an insane amount of hours?” And today, we are going to be answering this question by looking really closely at the systems and software that we use to make our business happen and give us the time to have a four-day weekend if we want it!

If you have been looking into these systems for your own business, this episode might just help you to narrow down your options. We are going to run through our list of apps and programs and tell you the pros of each system and how it helps our business function without having to do all the nitty-gritty little things throughout the day. If you are looking for a way to automate your business, communicate more effectively, and do half the work in half the amount of time – then this episode is for you!

Today on the podcast we welcome back one of our BFF’s, Jordan Ellis, of Jordandené. Jordan owns a geek chic apparel company where she sells all the nerdy, girly stuff you could ever imagine – all across the country and the world. Jordan also does live events and sells her products online, making almost half of her annual revenue during the three to four-week holiday season! That’s right, ‘tis the season for sales!

So today, we are talking products and how to not miss out on opportunities and stress yourself out when it comes to the crazy holiday season. We discuss everything from the best time to start preparing for the holiday season, lining up your stock, handling Black Friday promotions, roping in assistance and how to get yourself super prepared for this exciting and rewarding time of the year. We want to encourage you to use this episode as your guiding light for the holiday season, whether it’s this year or next. It’s never too late to get prepared so you can win in the realm of product. So let’s jump in and get started!

On today’s show, we will be answering our most frequently asked question: “How did you get from point A to point B?” We will be sharing what to do, when to do it and how to do it all in your first two years of business. These steps got us from zero dollars to nearly half a million dollars and we want to give you a step-by-step breakdown of everything we did along the way. Even if your goal is not to make half a million dollars, the strategies we implemented and the lessons we have learned can definitely be applied to any business goal. Whatever your ultimate goal, the strategies and order we did them in are the same.

Inside this episode, we give you a business roadmap and the eight main steps we took to reach our goal. The order of these steps is key and that is exactly why we will be sharing them in detail with you! To give you a little taste, here is how we are going to break it all down. 1) Build Your Foundation, 2) Craft Your Message, 3) Nurture Your Dreamies, 4) Streamline With Systems, 5) See The Big Picture, 6) Create Sustainability, 7) Formulate A Passive Business, 8) Reach Those #Squad Goals. Okay, are you ready? Let’s get started!

We get asked so many questions all the time about our launches and how on earth we manage to do so many while keeping it all organized, keeping communication going with our community and just how we get it all done!? There are so many tiny steps that go into launching just about anything. You end up feeling so anxious about it all. Well, babes, we are here to tell you there’s an easier way to launch! We can tell you how to schedule it all and keep on top of what, when and how you are doing the launch.

On today’s episode, we are here to give you an overview of every single step starting at the very beginning. Specifically, we will be talking about what we do before we launch a program so you can adjust this for your own business to make it work for you. We are going to walk you through how we do it and of course, we can’t do it without our little magic tool, our favorite platform - Trello. So make sure you are listening intently to this one as we are about to help you help your business!

Today, we are bringing you something new, unique and kind of awesome. In this episode, you are going to get to hear from alumni of our program, The Strategy Academy, answer questions about their businesses, growth, mindsets and all the amazing things that have happened in their lives and businesses from taking our program earlier this year.

They are all pretty awesome peeps. You are hearing from, not only a service-based person, but a product-based person, a blogger and a podcaster. We are giving you the full enchilada of what’s going on inside their businesses, where they were before and how The Strategy Academy has helped them ramp up. We have formatted it a bit differently today, so each guest’s story is summarized for you to get the most out of their experience with The Strategy Academy. Keep listening to hear more!

Today on the podcast we have Reina Pomeroy. Reina is the founder of Reina and Co. She is a life and business success coach and helps right-brained, heart-centered women be their best selves. We have loved Reina for a long time and have been able to watch Reina’s business grow and prosper. We definitely have a personal connection with her and are excited for you to hear the amazing things we jumped into in this podcast.

We are talking about something that might make some of you cringe, but we really want you to stick around for this one. The unique perspective Reina brings to sales funnels is actually REALLY good. She works with a lot of creatives. She knows how our brains work and created a new method for thinking about bringing our clients, our audience, and our customer on a journey with us. She knows how to set it up in a way that makes sense; where you are profitable and giving away content. We are asking her what she thinks when people say they are worried about giving away too much for free, what comes first, the free content or the paid content, and how to fill the spaces in between. Believe us when we say this episode is jam-packed and you are going to love it.

Today on the podcast we have Madison Sanders, of Madison Sanders Events. Madi has been a wedding planner and designer since 2014 (and also, it just so happens that she and Emylee went to highschool together!). Madison has gone from working for other agencies to building her own business, to even growing her agency where she now has other planners working for her.

Inside today’s episode, we talk about how that entire process worked, what she invested in along the way and how she was able to utilize relationships with vendors to continue to grow her business. We discuss the ins and outs of wedding planning – from managing multiple marketing platforms, to how she gets her clients, communicating with employees and clients, asking for referrals and setting boundaries so that you can look after your own well-being. Even if you are not in the wedding industry, there are so many valuable nuggets in here, for any entrepreneur, in any industry. Take a listen!

Today we are excited to tell you about a workshop coming up next Tuesday, September 12th. We are going to help you create a foolproof plan so you can literally conquer anything. Inside this workshop we are going from step zero to done (and everything in-between). We are going to show you the steps you need to take before you even think about being more productive. On this episode we go through some of the actual steps inside the challenge so you can start to see results right away and know that the stuff that we share and talk about is legit.

We are also taking it a step back in the workshop so we can help you create a good framework going forward. Finally, we will also be sharing a couple of saucy hacks that you can implement to make running your business on the go faster, easier, and more polished. Then, we are moving to “to-do list, done” - crossing them off because they are done. So we are going to talk about how other successful business owners look at their goals and their strategies and how they can work specifically for creatives. So how do you get there? Let’s jump in and take a look.

Today on the podcast, we have Dr. Beth Brombosz. Beth is an author, copywriter, content creator, and the host of the Blogger to Author Podcast. In 2015, she turned some of her own blog posts into a book titled Yoga for Runners, which is now available on Amazon. Beth’s book has helped her build a platform as an expert in her field. She is passionate about helping fellow bloggers turn their content into books so they can build authority in their niche, share their passion with the world, and earn passive income.

In this episode, you’re going to hear all about that process. From repurposing your content to creating a book, to self-publishing, pricing, layout and sales, Beth really breaks it down into an easy step-by-step process. She self-published her book in just 30 days! She proves that it’s totally doable, with no publishing experience needed. If you’ve never written a book in your life, but are thinking about it, then today’s podcast is for you.

Today, we are chatting about the good old pivot; the pivoting to your passion, the figuring out what the heck you can work on right now to start getting your feet wet. It is all about testing the waters of this whole creative biz ownership thing, making some actual money, and then transitioning to whatever keeps the fire in your soul burning. We want you to dive in to where you are getting paid to do something that you are good at, even if that thing is not what your business is going to be in the next year or two.

So in this episode we are going to dive into starting with your MVP and what that means, and then explain to you kind of how we kept that top of mind in our own creative business journeys. Now, we are not talking about the most valuable player on your baseball team. No, it is your most viable product. What is the thing that you can sell today without having to learn a new skill, without having to go to school or take a class? What can you bring to market right away that you can sell and make money off of? This is exactly the thing that people need to be focusing on instead of other fluff.

For today’s episode, we are going to have some therapy. We are going to get real today. So kick up your feet, lay down, get a glass of wine, get some coffee, sit on the sofa, whatever it is that you want to do, because today we are talking about that feeling of intense overwhelm. You know, that anxious feeling of looking at what you have to do and avoiding it with all your might. We dive into the different ways that we like to avoid things, like being afraid of the big fat failure, or being afraid of success. Often this kind of overwhelm and avoidance leads to a whole lot of planning, but a little less doing. You can even go as far as saying that planning is more fun than actually doing.

We have been hearing from a lot of you lately that this is a really big piece of why you sometimes just cannot seem to move forward in your business. So we thought we would give our two cents on the matter and let you know how we used to think about these exact same things in our business, plus some of the ways that we avoid these feelings and what we do differently today. Perhaps you just like to get organized as a way of covering up the fact that you are not getting any work done. Oftentimes we tend to love the process of getting everything in a row more than actually doing the work itself. If that sounds like you, then this episode is a must-listen. So sit back, and find out exactly how to get back on the productive track.

Ever wonder how to keep your business running without actually being in it? Today we’re lifting the curtain, getting super real, and giving you a behind-the-scenes look at how we’ve still gotten things done here at TCC even though we have had a hot mess going on in the background. We want to walk you through the systems, the processes, the mindsets, the workflows, and all the good meaty stuff that we were able to put in place in our business so we were ready when we had to step away.  

So, close your eyes for a second and imagine what would happen if you absolutely had to stop and walk away from your business today? Would you be able to just drop everything if you were forced to? Would you be able to replace yourself if need be? Sounds kind of scary, huh? In this episode we share the strategies that we put in place so that our business could run itself, rather than be an on call business (you know, the kind that buzzes you every hour). Plus, we’re covering some things that we wish we had set in place. So, come with us on our journey to see what’s been going on here at TCC and get some insight on some ways that you might be able to put your business on autopilot the next time life happens.

We think a lot of people get surprised when they find out exactly how much stuff gets done over here at Think Creative Collective. We think you might be shocked by some of the hacks and the tricks that we implement in our everyday to stay on top of our goals, to make sure that our list gets done and of course so as not to get distracted. In this episode of The Strategy Hour Podcast, we’ll jump into the exact structure we use every morning that holds us accountable to getting stuff done. Plus, how we’re able to set up realistic expectations, not only for ourselves but for each other.