Refine Home Inc. | Rae-Lynn Varga

REFINING AND DEFINING: THE EVOLUTION OF A BUSINESS AND TRANSITIONING FROM ONE CAREER TO ANOTHER POST RETIREMENT FROM TEACHING

 

Join us in celebrating her successes, exploring the challenges faced, and gaining inspiration for your own journey. Remember, the path to success is a collaborative one, and you are not alone.

 

Main Topics:

• Being scared and fear of change
• Choosing happy
• Sacrifices and challenges of parenting 
• Alignment and being heart-centered

 

Rae-Lynn, a Vancouver Island local, recently shared her inspiring journey from a 30-year career in early childhood education to becoming the founder of Refine Home Inc. In this episode, we delve into Rae-Lynn's personal and professional transformation, highlighting the power of manifesting change, overcoming fears, and embracing new challenges.

 

Rae-Lynn's initial comfort zone was early childhood education, where she dedicated three decades as a teacher. However, fueled by a desire for something entirely new, she embraced manifestation to transition into a different chapter of her life. Entrepreneurship was not foreign to her, given her experiences in education, but she found herself working predominantly with a younger population.

 

Rae-Lynn, driven by her why, explored her passions and confronted her fears head-on. The retirement from teaching brought a mix of grief and excitement, especially after moving to a new city. Despite the uncertainties, Rae-Lynn chose happiness first and started her day with passion and excitement, demonstrating that the journey doesn't always have to be figured out in advance.

 

Rae-Lynn emphasizes the importance of recognizing the feeling of dread when doing something unfulfilling. Adopting a positive mindset, she transformed her life, creating a business on her terms. Collaborations and networking played a pivotal role, allowing her to niche down, learn, and define her business.

 

Choosing the name "Refine" for her business, Rae-Lynn embraced the positive spin, acknowledging that the process is ongoing. She encourages others to ignore negative chatter, viewing it as fear. Rae-Lynn shares a heart-warming moment when her son expressed pride in her efforts, highlighting the challenges of being a single parent and entrepreneur.

 

The ripple effect of Rae-Lynn's passion extends to her relationship with her son, colleagues, and clients. She discusses the importance of empathy and compassion, meeting clients where they are at, and giving them autonomy in their experiences. 

 

In downsizing and organizing, Rae-Lynn addresses the challenge of letting go of memories. She incorporates creative solutions, ensuring that preserving memories is an integral part of the process. Embracing a solution-based, collaborative approach, she emphasizes the power of saying, "I don't know" and committing to finding answers.

 

Rae-Lynn recognizes that transformations are fluid, and nothing stays the same. A creative mindset compliments downsizing and organizing, challenging the notion that things have to be a certain way. Refine Home Inc. embodies the equation: "Passion+ Community equals Success."

 

As a former long-distance runner, Rae-Lynn sees pushing limits as crucial for growth. She draws parallels between running and entrepreneurship, highlighting the necessity of overcoming obstacles to achieve milestones. Refine Home Inc. is not just a business; it's a growing journey for Rae-Lynn, filled with excitement and collaboration.

 

Rae-Lynn concludes with a powerful African proverb, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together" She encourages everyone to continue dreaming, persevere through challenges, and remember that they are not a

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Music.

(00:10):
Someone who has a dream but feels stuck, if you are facing obstacles that seem
overwhelming, or if you just need a dose of motivation to keep pushing forward,
then you are in the right place. So buckle up, dreamers.
Anchor Your Dreams is not just a podcast. It's a community.
A community of dreamers supporting dreamers, women supporting women.

(00:32):
Subscribe, follow along, and let's navigate the seas of ambition together.
Thank you for joining me on this adventure.
Get ready to be inspired, motivated, and empowered.
The journey begins now.
Music.

(00:53):
Welcome to the Anchor Your Dreams podcast. I'm your host, Megan McQuillan,
and today we have a guest whose journey is as inspiring as her expertise in downsizing.
Joining us today is Raelynn Varga, the downsizing specialist and owner of Refine
Home, Inc., a thriving Vancouver Island-based business.
What makes Raelynn's story fascinating is her progression from a startup entrepreneur

(01:17):
to the driving force behind a successful and growing initiative.
Raelynn's journey is a testament to the power of passion, dedication,
and the ability to adapt. at, from humble beginnings as a teacher of 30 years
to transforming Refine Home Inc. into a household name and downsizing.
She has not only helped people declutter their physical spaces,

(01:39):
but has also created a brand that resonates with those seeking a more intentional
and simplified lifestyle.
In today's episode, we'll not only explore the art of downsizing with Raelynn,
but also delve into her innovative journey, learn how she navigated the challenges,

(02:02):
So if you are ready to be inspired by the story of an entrepreneur who turned
dreams into reality and discover the secrets behind downsizing success, stay tuned.
Raelynn Varga is here to share her unique insights on today's episode of the
Anchor Your Dreams podcast.
Music.

(02:24):
Yes, very nice to meet you. You are my first guest.
So I just want to say thank you so much for signing up to be a guest and also being the first.
There's going to be probably a few things as we go that I might have to pause
and just quickly check into.
This is absolutely a safe space. Best place to start is to hear a little bit about you.

(02:50):
And I'd love to know a bit about like where you grew up, where you're from.
Hey, awesome. So I actually grew up on the island in Porto Berni and Nanaimo.
And I went to college here, kind of wasn't sure what I wanted to do with my
life. I was a young 19 year old.
And then I ended up spending about 24, 27 years up north in Smithers.

(03:16):
Packed up my two young kids at the time and said, let's go.
And I spent the last previous to this career, I spent the last 31 years as an
early childhood educator.
So I worked with children and youth. I'm going to say over half my life.
I'm trying to think, how old am I?

(03:37):
So that was my real passion. And my first love was working with.
Children that were preschool aged and just kind of gravitated into working with youth.
So I did most of my career in that field in Smithers.
I spent lots of time in Anamo being mentored and had a really great friend that was my motivation.

(03:59):
And she's continued in that industry. I've returned back to the island about
three years ago with my youngest son, who's almost 19.
And And career two, this is what I'm doing now with Refine Home.
So I, honest to goodness, feel so grateful.
Like I've had 31 years of working with this younger population.

(04:23):
And my second career, which I'm going to say really is my second passion,
is kind of working with people near the latter part of their life.
And it's just, and it's all the same stuff. It's just a different generation of people.
So it's been really neat. I did not plan the second career this way.
I wasn't sure what I was going to do.
And it's just, it's, it's happened. I mean, I obviously, I feel like I've manifested

(04:47):
it in some way and it's just become more than what I ever thought it was going to be.
So that's a little bit about me. I have three kids, two of my children are in their thirties.
I have two grandkids and then my 19 year old is starting on his adventure in his life.
So yeah, that's a little little bit about me well
wonderful thank you so much for sharing that so what

(05:08):
was the transition like going from being a teacher and having this career like
and and really being in it for 31 years it's such a long time so to go from
doing something which is everything you know to being,
Not only moving, but, you know, starting a whole second career and passion.

(05:34):
Well, you know what? I'm going to tell you, honestly, I had a lot of fear because
my comfort zone was children.
My comfort zone was working with youth. And I often worked with nonprofits.
I worked for a school district. And that very last adventure I had in the industry
was running my own early learning center.

(05:56):
And I'm telling you, it was like the icing on the cake for me in my career,
having my own business and working with the most incredible team and women and families.
And honestly, the community was just amazing.
Amazing so I I somehow took a
lot of those experiences especially in

(06:17):
the final days of my career and thought about
what are the things I love to do I love working with
people I have a
passion for business I have a passion for working with women and in my industry
there's 99% of the women in the early childhood education field are women and

(06:37):
I really started to listen to kind of that last experience, like what is it that I love to do?
And it's, it's working in team environments. It's about being empowered by the
women that I'm working with and also providing some support and modeling and empowering them.
So that's kind of what led to the second career.

(06:58):
I love that so much because as I'm getting older and doing different things
in my life, You know, helping others has always been something that is a passion of mine.
Like every time I sit, like you had mentioned, and just think about what it
is that you love, I always circle back to helping other people.

(07:20):
It's, and I just love that you, you know, were able to kind of transition from
being an educator to owning your own business, also in education, and now transitioning.
So it does sound like you had a little bit of a transition versus it being so
cut from doing one totally different.

(07:40):
One thing and then moving totally into something completely different as far
as business is concerned.
Yeah. What could you say was your sort of biggest struggle when it's through the transitions?
Like I heard you say fear is, is, is one of them. So how did you get over some of your fear?

(08:01):
Yeah. And, you know, I think a lot of it had to do with the timing of the decision that I made.
So when I when I officially retired you
know I thought it was going to be okay good I'm retired I've
done my time I loved my job I wasn't ready
to be truthful I was not and I
don't know in the capacity of work that I was in in teaching and educating if

(08:25):
you're ever really ready I don't think you're ever really ready I really mourned
that and it came at a time like right before the a pandemic and I had moved
for a short time to Alberta.
I wasn't super happy there.
I was struggling and I kept asking myself, what am I going to do for the rest

(08:49):
of my life? What's going to be the next step for me?
So I think the timing of when I made the decision to go into a different path,
the timing was terrible.
I moved and I started a new business during a time in the world where it was terrifying for people.

(09:10):
I didn't want to be scared, but I also knew that.
I mean, and at the time, I mean, I was a single woman and I had this son that
was finishing his last two years of school.
And I thought, I know that I'm
meant for more. I know that I'm meant to do something really important.
The part that was scared for me, scary for me, and the fear where that fear

(09:32):
came from wasn't so much about I've got to make money.
It's I need to choose something that's going to make me happy.
I love that so much. I think.
It's funny because this is something that does keep coming up for me simply
because I think, and I just was sharing this with a friend.

(09:53):
Actually, I read a post through from someone that I follow.
And, you know, one of the things that she had mentioned was as soon as she let
go of the idea of lining her pockets with funds to like build that for herself
and actually allowed the idea of lining her pockets to help other people.

(10:16):
And that really hit home for me as well, because every time I've tried to do
something to make money and not necessarily reach the whole six-figure aspect of business,
but I just always feel out of alignment.
And then I'm always wondering, what did I do?

(10:37):
What do I need to change? So I just love that That you were in a transition phase,
but also able to ask yourself, what is it that I can do that is not just for
that one thing, finances?
I a thousand percent agree. And I'll tell you, I think from that first career

(10:59):
that I had as an educator,
and I think I took a lot of those years of experiences and learning into this next part.
And a lot of it really was waking up every day, going to work,
was driven by heart and driven by passion and driven by excitement.

(11:19):
And, you know, I didn't have it all figured out when I started this career as
an early child educator.
And it just kind of morphed into like one thing after another.
And it was just this. And so I take that first experience, that first career,
and I'm just moving it over into what I'm doing now. And it's honestly the exact
same thing when I wake up.

(11:42):
I get to wake up and be excited. And you know what? It's kind of like nervous
and excited. It's like nerve-sided.
It's like, gosh, I don't have clients booked two months down the road.
But it's kind of like you build it and they come. And that's just sort of how I lead.
And every day is excitement and passion.

(12:05):
So the challenge for me was the fear. But it wasn't necessarily the fear.
Year, sure, I'm not going to sit here and say that I wasn't worried about not
having an income, of course.
But it was more about choosing.
I've got to choose right. Am I doing the right thing?
And I think if we lead from a place of what excites us, what do I want to wake

(12:30):
up every day and learn about?
It's sort of like I relate it to high school, which I didn't love,
love because I was told I've got to take this course and this course and this course and this course.
And every day felt like, oh, you know, I got to go to school.
But when you choose your path, when you choose the career, when you pay your

(12:54):
tuition, when you sign up for the course and the workshop, there's this excitement.
And I feel like we give it more of an effort and it's less of a struggle to do it.
And it's the same thing in the career choice that we make.
It's when you're doing something you love, it just feels like,
oh, I want to get started.
And I really feel like that attitude that we have as a person.

(13:21):
It's kind of like positive, we gain positive from positive.
And I feel like that's really led me to where
I'm at now and and I started literally from
nothing in the sense of I didn't have this big fat bank account just dying to
spend the money on the business I didn't have this years and years of training

(13:45):
it was it was really about just saying I'm doing this I'm committed.
I love that. And that's kind of one of the elements of
being an entrepreneur that I would love to hear more stories about because now
with social media and seeing everybody's highlight reels and seeing a lot of

(14:07):
businesses saying things like you don't have to hustle and you can do it this
way and you can do it that way.
I feel like a lot of those messages are coming from people who may have started
off small and with nothing and gained to a certain level,

(14:27):
but it almost feels like it's not relatable.
They're no longer relatable to someone who is just literally starting off.
So I'd love to hear a little bit more in this new career, this new passion that
you've started with nothing.
How did you manage to build it from nothing to where you are today?

(14:49):
Great question. Key thing really was connections, networking with people that need me.
It's an easy one when you're a teacher, an educator, you know you got to go
to the families and you go to the children.
So in my industry as a downsizing specialist and professional organizer, who needs my services?

(15:10):
And right out of the gate, even moving here and getting settled was I've got
to find a fantastic group of realtors.
I've got to find some amazing stagers and movers and people that sort of work in this industry.
So it was about taking the leap of faith and putting myself out there and introducing

(15:31):
myself and getting on Zoom calls because that's what was happening at the time
and letting people know about what I do.
And I will I will tell you, honestly, I did not have it all figured out.
I didn't know how it was going to go. I was learning as I went,
which is such a cliche kind of thing to say.

(15:52):
But at the same time, it was like, yeah, I never thought about that.
So realtors would ask me questions. Stagers would say, so Rhea,
how do you handle this? And I was thinking to myself in my head, I have no idea.
So by making those connections and collaborating, I was able to define and refine what I was doing.

(16:13):
You know right yes
i love that define and refine but
it was making those connections with other people where
i was sort of forced to really figure out what am i doing what is this business

(16:33):
going to look like because when i first started i just came here as a professional
organizer and And I was doing a little bit of downsizing for mature clients.
Then I felt like after five, six, seven, eight months, I'm going to call myself
a downsizing specialist because I'm really specialized in helping people declutter
and get from large house A into, let's say, assisted living B.

(16:58):
So it just kind of defined itself. So I think it's fair to say we don't have
to have it all figured out.
We don't have to even have a title for what we're doing. I think we just have
to have some ideas of what brings this passion and excitement.
And the rest, just sort of as we make those connections with people,
I feel like we're put in a position, maybe we're forced a bit to not have it all figured out.

(17:23):
But then we're starting to think like, yeah, shoot, I never thought about this
from a realtor's point of view.
I never thought about this from a moving point of view.
And we're starting to think about all of the moving parts and the logistics
and the piece that defines what we do.
And refines our role in the passion, in the business that we've come up with.

(17:43):
So I did not have my titles figured out. I didn't know what business was 100% going to look like.
But the partnerships I made with people and the collaborations put me in a position
where I had to really start thinking about that.
I love that. That is such a great startup story because you've gone from just

(18:03):
allowing things to flow and to happen and trusting the process.
And I think that that is, you know, it's hard for a lot of people who are perfectionists
or used to having things sort of really structured,
you know, Like my day starts at this time, my day ends at this time,

(18:25):
I have lunchtime scheduled for this time because of course you're surrounded
by children and a schedule that is already set in place for you.
And now you've got this schedule that you have to create for yourself,
your own to-do list, not just somebody else's sort of peck boxes.
So that's great. And I love the define and refine sort of tagline there.

(18:51):
It really is. And I think, you know, my company,
Refine Home Ink, like it just, it was a name that came about and truthfully,
it, my business initially started as a cleaning line,
which my daughter came up with the name Refine Home Ink, and she created the
logo. And I thought, this is amazing.

(19:11):
I love it. It's really about refining because changing seems like,
ooh, that's scary. I've got to change.
She's going to come in and tell me what to change in my house.
I've got to change the way I live my life. It feels scary or harder.
And maybe it feels a little bit, from my point of view, a little bit more critical.

(19:34):
Whereas if I go in from the approach of, I'm refining with you.
We're going to refine this in your home. It's the same thing in business.
It really was a refining and defining in how business was going to operate for me.
And when you talk about kind of starting with nothing, I had an idea in my head.

(19:59):
And it's like starting a race. I'm committed. The gun went off.
I'm committed to it. And it's going to be painful along the way.
There's going to be some real hard times on this race or running this journey.
But it's it's not letting that
stuff interfere with where you
want to go and people say well how do you know
where you want to go it's really about making those connections and and having

(20:24):
that sort of attitude of yep it's a process i'm not going to have all the answers
right away oh that is so true everything really is a process and trusting in
the process can really help as well Well,
through all that and through all your connections and everything that you have made,
is there any other sort of, of course, you started doing this in a...

(20:49):
Unprecedented time of the world. So what are some things that you have been able to celebrate?
I'm going to say, you know, I want to think about this because I feel like there's a lot to celebrate.
I'm going to say from a personal point of view, I'm so glad that I did not listen
to, I did at times, truthfully, but I didn't focus on that negative chatter,

(21:13):
that mindset that says, like, what are you doing? Are you crazy?
Or this is too hard? Because I think a lot of times,
I know actually from my own experience that we get in our own way and our fear

(21:33):
holds us back from where we're really supposed to go.
And I think I always believed that. And I think at times we listen to those
things in our head, the doubt and the questioning, like, should you really be doing this, Raylan?
Should you really be taking this leap of faith?

(21:55):
And I did have those things going on for me.
I didn't spend very much time there because it's not going to lead me to where I want to go.
So it was, you know, that saying, if you're afraid to do something, do it scared.
And I really, I got to tell you, like anything I've done in my life,

(22:15):
in personal life, in my business life, always had a little bit of fear.
And I believe that, you know, I think one of the brain tattoos that I have is
if life was easy, we would learn nothing.
So it's not going to be easy. I already accept that. It's going to have some bumps in the road.
There's going to be some difficult times. I mean, moving my son out here without

(22:40):
any notice was the worst part for me because he's my son and I wanted him to be part of this journey.
But here he is fast forward two years, two and a half years from when I came here.
And I know he wouldn't mind me sharing this. He said to me, you know,
I'm sorry for making this so hard on you.

(23:02):
I had no idea like how important this dream was to you. and I could see the
success in it now. And I just didn't see it before.
And that's a 19 year old, not even, he's 18.
And he was the biggest.
Heartache and challenge for me was because I needed him to be happy.

(23:23):
And I wanted him to be settled in his new school and finish those final two
years, which are, we know grade 11 and grade 12 are super important for kids. They were for me.
And I've just taken him from where he belonged to where he didn't want to go.
So to hear him say to me two or three months ago, You know, like,

(23:45):
what was that all about for me? Why was I so upset?
You know, I just, I didn't know how important this was.
And he now, as two years later, is seeing the success of that commitment,
seeing the success of the challenges that I've gone through, and seeing me happy.
And it's almost like, what a great lesson for a young person, right?

(24:10):
So I think that the one message and the takeaway that I can give anybody that's
starting out is don't spend a lot of time in the fear and the doubt and that negative chatter.
Like, okay, it's there. I accept it. Move past it because I don't know that

(24:32):
stuff, we can get caught up in it and it's going to really hold us back.
We're going to get in our own way.
Yes, exactly. Exactly.
That's an area that I myself have really grown and I'm starting to really see
that it has held me back quite a bit over the years to have that sort of negative

(24:54):
chatter and allow it to fester,
you know?
And you don't get that time back, unfortunately.
But what a wonderful message about your son.
And that's something for me too, as a mom and someone who is an entrepreneur,

(25:16):
is my kids. It's a huge factor in a lot of things.
And I just absolutely love to hear that your son has been able to sort of like
come around and to really see everything.
And clearly that also...
Is something that you have done as well for him to be able to reflect that way,

(25:40):
you know, seeing that what you're doing and the path that you're taking is something that you enjoy.
And, and otherwise that message for him wouldn't be there.
And that's not a, you know, the reflection he would have got from it,
because if you were still not enjoying what you've chosen to do for your passion,
it'd be a whole different ballgame.

(26:02):
So that's an incredible message, like you said, for kids that are in grade 12.
It's that moment in their life where it's like, okay, you're now getting to
a point where you need to set yourself free and figure out and go on your own path.
And you've been such a great role model for that.
And so I love that. Well, and I think too, thanks for saying that,

(26:26):
by the way, I really appreciate that.
It's been been really a great, it's been a great journey with all of the challenges
and some of the adversity and, and to be able to see, you know,
my business really growing,
uh, the, the role modeling is,
you know, what the great thing is, is that sometimes we don't even know the

(26:48):
ripple effect of what we're doing when we're doing it.
And I, I didn't really realize until we had that conversation.
And it just was a really wonderful organic conversation one night at home.
He just kind of brought it up.
I walked away and I actually said, all I could really say, because it was kind

(27:08):
of really so touching, was thanks for saying so.
Like, thanks for saying that. I really appreciate that.
And I think about that conversation quite often.
And one of the things that I took away from that was really about the power
of what we're doing and how it can impact other people's lives.

(27:28):
And sure, that's a great thing. Sometimes we just don't even know it.
So I think, you know, it's not that we are going to go out and just save the
world and everything's about the ripple effect,
but that feels good too in our jobs, in our businesses and what we're doing every day.

(27:48):
It's great to know that we're impacting other people whether it's our kids our
neighbor our colleagues or other women whatever it may be so I mean I think
you know that's just a really neat,
I'm really so grateful for that it's actually honestly it's kind of been the highlight,
of what I've done was hearing him say that was honestly just something for me

(28:15):
that said that this was worth it.
Oh, that is, it's really so touching. It really is so touching to hear,
you know, because there is a lot of moms that do struggle with their making
a choice, especially starting up a whole new business. The whole unknown of.
The business side of things, and then also the whole unknown about the personal

(28:37):
side and how you're going to get to show up for your children and your family
and the personal side of things, or even friends for some people who don't have kids.
Starting up a business can change a lot. You have to set different boundaries
or you're setting new boundaries or anything like that.
So I think that's such a great message for so many people.

(28:58):
And like you said, you really don't know who's sort
of watching or listening and the impact that you have on even strangers for
that matter right so like even you know showing up on social media and the things
that you post you don't know it's going to hit somebody in some way and sometimes I know.

(29:19):
Sometimes I can sit back and think like okay you know I'm just throwing stuff
out there things that that hit me personally.
And I don't necessarily think that it's hitting someone else,
either the same way or a little bit different in a positive way.
And then all of a sudden, there might be a message here or there saying,
wow, thank you for sharing that.
Thank you for sharing your journey or saying not just about struggles,

(29:44):
but the positive stuff too.
People often do also comment on the positive stuff and the impact that just
showing up in your sort of authentic self really does impact people.
Now, with that being said, too, is how have you have you found support through

(30:04):
all of sort of like the the growth in your business?
So from like day one startup to where you are now, has the support that you've
had along the way changed?
Do you find that you have more support now or had some more support when you first started?
Definitely more support.
And I would say specifically from the community of people that I work with.

(30:30):
And, you know, it's scary because I don't know these people when I'm starting.
And it's allowing myself to be a little bit vulnerable, a little bit unsure
of what am I going to do with these new colleagues that I'm working with.
And so the support that I feel really comes from, like, I believe in what I'm
doing. I'm excited about what I'm doing. I love it.

(30:53):
My career, my second career. And I feel that this community that I'm working
with and the communities that I spend time in mostly, I feel really honored.
And I feel that my services are making a difference.
And I think that's a big part of me feeling like I'm doing the right thing is

(31:15):
I know that the work that I'm doing is helping families, It's helping my clients.
It's helping realtors and it's helping people in the community that are saying,
Ray, like my clients need you. Can you give them a call?
So, I mean, my support really comes from the people that are reaching out to
me, not just my clients, but the resource people, the people that are other

(31:41):
professionals in my industry.
So I feel I'm in the right place because,
not just because I'm making money, but because
I know it's making a difference you know that
there's they I think there has to be both it can't
just be money money money I'm money driven and I think really when we're doing

(32:03):
something that we know is having impact on others or in the community whatever
that service looks like I just kind of like that if you build it they come and
then it's like oh yeah you know oh, like people,
people need me, people need this service.
And I think that's where the support comes from is that continuing,
you know, building of relationships and making connections with the community.

(32:28):
Yes. And community connections, that seems to really be a common denominator
for a lot of people, right?
You did mention as far as building connections with a lot of like reaching out.
Have you had any surprise connections that you've made along the way?
You know, yeah, I think I can say yes to that.

(32:50):
You know, in my mind, I envisioned the direct other professionals that I directly would be working with.
But as part of my services as a downsizing specialist and organizer,
you know, we're doing a lot of getting rid of people's items and belongings
and helping them declutter was what am I going to do with all this stuff?

(33:14):
And that's a huge challenge. And that's often why people call me is they don't
know what to do with everything.
And out of that need, that I wasn't even thinking about two and a half years ago,
was making connections with great organizations and working with multicultural

(33:36):
societies and working with women's organizations where people are starting their
lives over and they need belongings.
They need tables and linens and dishes and coffee makers.
Well, that's what I do. So because I allowed myself to take on.

(34:01):
The selling, donating, all that, it's like, now I need to find places for this stuff to go.
Besides the landfill, which is not where we want things to go.
Besides your typical donation centers.
Again, I'm blown away sometimes.
I work with five main organizations that I didn't even know about or even think

(34:24):
about until I was put in that position where I'm like, what am I going to to
do with this stuff? And it's doing your homework.
It's being able to be reading things in newspapers, on social media, in magazines.
So I spent some time in magazines, local magazines, and news articles.

(34:45):
Oh, right. There's this organization.
I'd never even heard of it. It's a women's organization.
I reached out to them, left my business cards, sent an email,
Instagram, sent them a DM, boom.
And it was just these wonderful partnerships and collaborations that have come about.
I never even thought about that when I started. So it's really being open and

(35:10):
being eyes open to what's in your community already that exists.
Oh, I love that. Because like you said, and going back to, you didn't have everything
figured out. And here is something that you are able to add,
sharing with your community, your direct community, a way to support it.

(35:31):
And also be sustainable all at the same time. Like you said,
you know, you're keeping things out of the landfill as much as you possibly
can and supporting your local community.
So that's incredible. I think that's such a great, that's another great thing
to celebrate, definitely.
I just want to quickly go over a few things.

(35:51):
So we've talked a lot about the entrepreneur side of things.
And I was wondering if you are open to sort of talking about what it what it
is that you do and giving some tips on the downsizing piece of it.
I would say probably, you know, although I came into my company as a professional organizer,

(36:13):
the downsizing piece really became a big part of it because in order to get
organized, I'm going to say 99% of the time, we've got to get rid of things that we're not using.
So that just became part of it in the organizing hat that I wear.
In in regard to my service my services a lot of what i do is straight downsizing

(36:36):
working a lot with with clients i know a mature population where people have lived in their homes for,
30 40 years and they've got their whole life in between those four walls and the roof,
and one of the things i tell people right out of the gate because they're worried
that i'm going to come in and tell them what to get rid of and make them get
rid of everything thing.

(36:57):
So obviously we know that it's a keep, donate, slash sell or discard.
That's kind of sort of three areas or four areas that I work in.
How do I get people to make those decisions?
Is I ask a lot of questions and it's about how, you know, the obvious, how often do we use it?

(37:18):
Is it really something that we see ourself using in the future?
One of the real things for me that I have great success in is when people feel
like the things that they've already paid money for, and I tell them you've
already spent the money.
When they know that the thought of this item in their home could possibly be
upcycled or repurposed or used again,

(37:42):
take some of that maybe sadness away or that hardship they feel like,
oh, I got to let go of this.
Knowing that it's not just going to go in the garbage.
Because that's something that nobody really wants to see happen with stuff.
So, you know, I think really the main kind of pieces for me when I'm in a downsizing

(38:08):
job with a client is I ask the questions around how are they feeling about me even being there?
How do you feel about us downsizing? That's often just recognizing where people
are at and meeting people where they're at and having a bit of a platform to
have a discussion about that.

(38:28):
And it's about building trust with my client.
That's the number one thing for me is I want them to know that I have their
best interests and I do in regard to going into their home.
And the logistical part of it about donating and selling, that part's really easy.
The hard part is more for them and I like to kind of walk beside them in helping

(38:52):
them make decisions and asking the questions and often what happens is is they
really come up with their own ideas of what they want to do with stuff.
So it really happens quite organically. I love that.
And it just, as soon as you said that, the word that came to my mind is autonomy
and how you were saying that even when you were in high school and as soon as

(39:14):
you felt like you didn't have that choice for what courses you were taking. And that's just it.
As you get older, same thing.
When you're feeling forced to make choices,
it can certainly sort of create a block on on seeing a different way of doing
things or seeing that their item could essentially be repurposed for something. So that's wonderful.

(39:39):
Well, that's right. And I agree with you that there's this resistance sometimes
before I even knock on the door.
And, you know, I love that my clients feel comfortable enough to say,
because I'll say, how are we doing?
You know, It's not just, hi, I'm Raelynn, it's nice to meet you,
and them introducing themselves.

(40:01):
It's, I'm genuinely sitting down saying, how are you feeling about this process?
And I love that my clients feel comfortable enough to say, honestly,
Rae, I'm terrified because I don't want you to make me get rid of all this stuff.
And I like that people can say that because I need to know that,

(40:22):
because then I need to know what I need to be to them and how I'm going to help them in this process.
Because it's not just coming in and hauling stuff out by the truckloads,
saying bye-bye to your memories.
And I also like to come up with ways for my clients to keep those memories and
to keep those sentimental things without physically having 49 photo albums.

(40:47):
So there's ways. I work work with a great digital downside or organizer that
can help with some of that you know I and again working with organizations there's
ways that we can let go without it feeling like,
you know that overwhelm and a trauma
for some people they experience that you know when you think about the memories

(41:12):
and you know a lot of people are experiencing loss in this program and this
process or have experienced loss to take away things that are the only memories
of that person. It's traumatic.
Everything for me is really about...
Paying attention to how my client's feeling, reassuring them,
and being very solution-based in what we're going to do and how we're going

(41:37):
to decide things together.
It's all a collaboration. I love that.
Collaboration, that word, I know it's going to be popping up a lot this year, definitely.
And connection and community. And like you said, meeting people where they're at. And also curiosity.
I find that when we're open to being curious and like how you say you go in

(42:02):
and you allow them to let you know how they're feeling,
like really feeling and building that sort of relationship right away with just the question.
So you're showing up, being curious of where they're at and not sort of showing
up and saying right away, this is what we're doing. So that's wonderful.

(42:24):
I know so many people do have such a hard time letting go of things.
I myself can be one of those people for sure. I can only imagine,
especially with an older population, like you said, and have had some of these
things for so many years.
And we really have to allow ourselves to be really empathetic.
And the energy that I get from you, I know we're on a screen right now,

(42:45):
but it's so soft. And it's so like, I do, I was just sitting here thinking,
like, I could just listen to you talk forever.
Like, you do, you make people feel very, like, I think, calm and that's such
a great quality to have when you're dealing with difficult situations.

(43:06):
I really thank you for saying that because, you know, when you were commenting about that,
you know, it triggered a thought for me that as a business person,
it's okay to say either in your head or even out loud to your client or your
other professionals, I actually don't know the answer to that, but let me find out.

(43:28):
Or I've never come across this. I'm going to explore this.
And I think it's really important. And this is one thing that I really gained from my first career.
Working with children. Oh my Lord, there's no one manual.
There's no one manual on downsizing and organizing.

(43:50):
There's some great organizers out there in the world.
There's some great downsizing specialists, but you do not have to have it all
figured out on day one. How am I going to handle this?
There's no way in business and in life until we get to it, until we get to that

(44:10):
moment where we're going to know what to do with it.
And sometimes I walk away from a client and I'm not kidding you,
like I'll sit in my car and I'll have, sometimes I'll have a little cry.
Because my heart is just like broken or it feels just so hard sometimes with some of my clients.

(44:32):
And I'm thinking to myself, what am I going to do about this?
Like I'm not in my client's appointment or consult necessarily processing like that.
But I can be in my own space going, I've got to figure out a way to make this work.
And so I'm forced to, or pushed a bit, where I've got to come up with a solution.
It's not even being forced. It's just those opportunities.

(44:56):
This is a better way of saying it. Those opportunities with those certain clients
are causing me to have to visit and revisit how I do business.
You know, so like I too am always being refined. I too am always being defined.
So you can have a little small vision and template of how you want your business

(45:19):
to look. But I can say, I celebrate that I've allowed myself to evolve.
And a lot of the answers and a lot of the definition of what I do came from
just jumping in and saying, I'm committed. I love it.

(45:39):
I really do. All the messaging that you've had since we started talking has been so easy to digest.
It makes me, thinking about it and being a listener,
it makes me feel like there's so much potential and hope to either start something

(46:00):
from the ground up or just go back into something that maybe someone has already
kind of started or they're questioning whether they want to.
Maybe they're a very creative person,
which I have another question for you in a second, but, and they're not sure
if they want to take that, you know, hobby, so to speak, and turn it into a business.

(46:21):
And I just, one thing that keeps coming up in the word that I,
I jotted down here is I've noticed that there's lots of reframing happening with words.
Just a minute ago, you, you know, took one word and thought,
no, I want to reframe that. And then you switched it to the word opportunities.
And I I just, that's something that I feel like if we take a second to reframe

(46:48):
some of our experiences that we've had and reframe,
even the language can be such an important piece.
So there's the language that we use to talk to people.
There's the language that we use in our own head and sort of going back to that
fear and doing things scared.

(47:09):
And if we reframe this sort of language and everything that we don't have to
be perfect, we can do things and figure them out as we go.
And also go quickly going back to sorry my I have a pup like she's young and
I thought I hired her out but one thing I wanted to touch on is do you find

(47:34):
that being a creative person.
Having it sort of I use the word creative because I did actually look on your
Instagram page and notice that you were sort of doing some painting and refinishing.
And that to me is a creative ability to look at something one way and visualize

(47:57):
it being different and then executing that.
So do you feel that creative ability really is complementary to the process
that you take into your business?
For sure, 100%. And I think that when I think about the things I've done,
whether I'm refurbishing furniture or whatever I'm doing, and I'm always,

(48:20):
I like that kind of stuff because I like the transformation.
And I love seeing something really old look new or something new look old.
I mean, it doesn't have to be one or the other.
And I think that that whole kind of approach, even to my life,
but particularly to business, is that it's always, it's changing all the time.

(48:45):
It's nothing's one thing. It's just always like evolving.
And if I don't like how something is, I'm going to make it something else.
And you know, I think about that a little bit. When I first started,
this was during the pandemic, when I first started refurbishing furniture.

(49:05):
I would do it in a color, I'd do it in a stain, and I'd be like, oh, I don't like that.
And I'm like, I'm going to change it. And out comes a sander,
and I just change it. And it was like, oh, I like that.
And you know, it's just, it's being able to say that it doesn't have to be this one way.
It doesn't have to be the way all the organizers work.

(49:27):
And you know, I'll be honest when I first started in this industry,
and it was less than four years ago,
I think it's really important to, sure, I think it's good to look at other people's
websites and get to know what other people are doing and be familiar with your
industry. I think that's important.

(49:47):
However, I think we have to leave lots of room to define it the way it works
for us as a person, because then we get into this rut where we're doing all
this comparing and comparing
of, well, my Instagram page isn't like theirs and I don't do business like them.
I don't have all these nice million dollar containers.

(50:10):
And we start to get caught up in what everybody else is doing.
And I just tried to kind of focus on what am I good at?
How do I want to finish my piece of furniture? I just kind of spend time kind
of defining and refining what makes me happy.
And And yes, I have to listen to what the need is. And I do have to pay attention

(50:32):
to my professional colleagues and my clients.
But I think in regard to what is everybody else doing, pay attention to a point,
but refine it and define it the way it works for you.
And it's okay that you don't post every day on Instagram.
It's okay that you don't have the perfect filters.
Oh, well, you know, like it's okay.

(50:54):
You know, we're still working, right? Right. We're still making a difference.
We're still being successful.
Definitely. And I think when people show up, heart centered is kind of like
the combo of words that I like using with it is, like I said,
even though we're on a screen right now, I can feel that come across.

(51:15):
I can feel that in your energy.
And so, so much of our conversation today, the energy of everything that I'm
getting out of it is really just been such a pleasure speaking to you.
And I think just to sort of go back to Instagram real quick, because.
There is, like you said, too, there's no manual. There is no manual for what

(51:38):
so many entrepreneurs are dealing with where we're at, you know,
in this era of the digital ages,
you know, like showing up constantly on social media.
And like you said, not worrying about being perfect on there and having filters
all the time, you know, but even just a quick scroll sometimes as long as people are showing up.

(52:01):
Up, heart-centered, I do truly believe that that will come across no matter
what you might think about what it looks to other people.
As long as you're showing up heart-centered and true to yourself and with the
energy of like, this is what I'm bringing to the space, I truly think that that

(52:23):
does come across for a lot of other people as well.
It's true. And I think one other thought thought to tag onto that because I
think everything you're saying there really is super valid is also,
when you're thinking about as a business person, a business entrepreneur starting out.
That's where it's important to do what you love.

(52:46):
I know, I think I heard this when I was young, do what you love and you never
have to work another day in your life, something like that. That's true.
But really, there's a lot to say about that because I think that's where the
energy comes from is you're not waking up going, I got to go to high school today.
You're picking something that's at the heart of who you are and what you want to do.

(53:10):
And it comes from a place of passion. And I look at other business women,
I'm thinking, wow, they're doing really well from just doing that.
And I'm going to use an example. I was watching this girl and she has this amazing
t-shirt company. I'm like, that's crazy.
And she's doing like six figures. And again, it's got to be about the money

(53:33):
to a point, but she loves what she does.
And I can I I think to myself when
I watch it she loves her job and to me
it's like love your job equals success love your
job equals partnerships love your
job equal growth you know I just kind of I
feel like those are the math equations that I want to pay attention to right

(53:57):
so I mean it's really that's again that's kind of leading back to the part in
my part of my life where I'm starting starting my second career was the fear came mostly from,
am I, am I doing the right thing?
Not so much. I got to make money.
Because when I think in you're doing what you love, everything else just comes.

(54:20):
All good points. Yes. Is there any points that we haven't touched on that you
would like to make sure that we talk about?
Honestly, I feel like, you know, I think we've really covered so much of it.
And I think the biggest thing that for me is, we haven't, yeah,
I guess we haven't, we talked about too much, but indirectly,

(54:43):
we talk about fear and doing a scare.
But I think the other piece that really resonates with me is,
is being able to push past your limits.
And what that means to me is we think there's this limit to what we can do.
I'm going to go into this career and this is kind of what I want to be and this

(55:03):
is what I want to do. When I talk about pushing past your limits,
it's like, this feels icky.
This feels hard. This is way too difficult.
I've got this barrier here. I have this roadblock here in building my business.
I tell myself this, and I would tell anybody else in business,
we're supposed to have that.

(55:23):
We're supposed to have the challenges. We're supposed to have the adversity,
both in business and in our personal life. life, push past them.
Because when you push past it, it actually, we get to exercise what we're capable of.
We exercise how strong we are in what we're doing.
And so it's kind of coming again from that mindset of, this is so hard.

(55:47):
You know, when kids are young, they're like, oh, mom, this is so hard.
And you're like, keep going, son, keep going. You can do it. You can do it.
We just got to take that same stuff to ourself, that we're supposed to have
these times where we just feel pressed against what our capacity is.
And I told myself this many times, we're supposed to have that.

(56:10):
And this is where we're going to build our strength as a person,
as a businesswoman. This is where we're going to grow.
This is where we're going to build capacity and what we're able to do.
And I equate a lot of it to my past where I used to be a long distance runner
and a middle distance runner.
And, you know, I equate my life to it. There's a real parallel for me where I've never run a race.

(56:35):
I've never trained a single mile where I'm like, what am I doing here? This is insane.
This feels awful. I want to quit. You know, all that kind of stuff.
Stuff so really it's it's the same thing in business it's the same thing in
life that how do I know that I can't run 10 miles unless I actually run nine

(56:58):
you know so how do I know I can't,
run a marathon unless I run a half marathon so it's being able to push past
the limits of what our mind thinks oh I can only run five miles I can only go
this far in business I can only do do this much in my life. Not really.

(57:19):
Because it's so comfortable there. But as soon as you get out of uncomfortable
and you push yourself past what you think your limits are, you're like, wow.
I look at that now with business for me.
I never had any idea that my company would require three three other team members.

(57:40):
I never thought that I would have a problem with balance and not working seven days a week.
I just didn't have any idea that this company would grow the way it's grown.
And it's been a good problem. And this year for me, it's thinking about what

(58:00):
is going to sustain my business.
What is going to be realistic for me in regards to keeping balance in my own life.
So yeah, I mean, it's really about accepting that part of your life and that
part of your journey in business and in personal where you're like,
this feels awful. This feels too hard.

(58:22):
And again, I just say it's supposed to be.
And it's going to lead you to this great place of growth and building capacity
in yourself as a person and as a business. Yes.
And the word optimism really comes to mind, you know, listening to you talk about it in that way.

(58:44):
And I think that's such a great message because I think so many people do get
stuck in thinking, well, limiting beliefs, right? right? They have these limiting beliefs.
They come from all sorts of places, whether it's the way that they were raised
or experiences that they've had throughout their life in other careers or anything like that.

(59:05):
And then they have these limiting beliefs and it's just a matter of pushing
through that uncomfortable feeling.
And each time we do do that and we raise the bar a little bit,
And then again, some people will get comfortable again, and we raise the bar again.
And so I'm just wondering, too, with that being said, do you have any goals

(59:30):
for yourself for this year that are going to put you out of your comfort zone?
Yeah, I mean, I think about this a lot in the last, you know,
six, seven months as business has been growing is...
I think it, I don't even know if it's my comfort zone. I think it's not knowing.

(59:51):
I don't have the answers.
And I don't know what my team will look like in regard to just service delivery of making,
sure that my team members are growing and that capacity is being built in them
and that they're feeling rich in what they're doing.

(01:00:14):
I mean, that's important to me in my team.
And I don't know exactly how it's going to all look. And I think it's okay.
You know, it's all right that I don't have it all figured out.
I have these great women that I'm going to be working with and that I have been working with.
I'm going to actually ask them a lot of the questions of how do you see your role being?

(01:00:39):
So when I don't have the answer, sometimes I just ask a lot of questions. You,
I love that. I love that because it's also including them in everything and collaborating.
So what a beautiful way to build your business and have your team and all of you on the same page.

(01:01:03):
No, I think it's so important when you are working with other people that asking
them questions and allowing them to give their answers,
whether it matches exactly or not, at the end of the day, allowing them to be
part of that with you, I'm sure makes them feel so wonderful to know that you do care.

(01:01:29):
That they're being heard in everything as well.
Because I think in a lot of ways too, that's really what a lot of people in general really love.
Like your clients, they want to feel like seen in the moment of their hardship
of having to deal with downsizing. And you're doing that for them.
And you're also doing that for your team as well. So that's incredible.

(01:01:52):
Well, I think it's actually too, yeah, thanks for that. I think it's also, it's easier.
And it's safer.
When I say safer, it's more about allowing other people to help define what
I do. And I talked about that earlier.
My team members, I don't know exactly how the company is going to look with

(01:02:16):
four people, you know, delivering services, but we're going to figure it out.
And I want to ask the questions to my team members.
And it's no different when I go into a client. It's saying, you know,
how are you feeling about this?
Because I don't really, I don't have to have it all figured out.
I don't have to have the answers. I don't have to have it in my little manual.
This is how Ray handles this, you know, and it's being open as a person,

(01:02:41):
being open as a business person that you need other people.
To run your company. You need other people to grow your business.
So I think about that. I don't really lose any sleep over this whole,
I've just hired two new team members. They're going to be incredible.
I've been working with a fantastic team member. I've had other great team members

(01:03:05):
that have come and gone from business. They've gone on to other things.
And I feel feel really grateful for that. And I think a lot of it has been as
I've also allowed them to define and refine what's happening with my company because I need them.
It terrifies me to think that I would have to do this all by myself.
And there's this little mantra that I've had for a long time,

(01:03:28):
even with my world of sport and fitness back in the day, that we can go faster
or alone, or we're going to go farther together, right?
It is so powerful. And I think, and it's not even, it's even ironic that I used
to be a runner, like, sure, I can go fast, but I want to go farther.
Like, there's no way I can run my company without all of these people.

(01:03:53):
And I think what the takeaway for me is I just have to allow it.
And I need to take the pressure off myself to have it all figured out and knowing
that I'm going to have some limits that I'm going to have some adversity and
I'm not going to have all the answers.
Cause I think once we spend too much time there, it really holds us back from growing.

(01:04:16):
And, and I think I've just come to terms with my own life and my business world
that like I need people to, to help me do what I do. I love that.
We do need people. And that's just it. We aren't meant to do all these things alone.

(01:04:36):
We are meant to do things together. And I think it is really hard a lot of times for people with,
especially when they are solopreneurs and doing so many things by themselves
that built a business by themselves to start allowing people in and part of their team.
So how you have just explain that you include them as part of it,

(01:05:01):
I think is just such a great way to transition as well into having more team
members because of that mantra that you have. I think that is such a wonderful mantra.
And I've taken a mental note that that is going in there.
That's a mental note for me too, because... I think it's an African proverb.
I don't know. I research it. I don't I don't even know who said it,

(01:05:22):
but it's like an African proverb.
And it really is true that, you know, I think sometimes we stop dreaming the dream.
We stop with the passion of what we want to do because we're like, I can't do this.
I'm a single woman or a single mom, or I don't have all the players that I need.

(01:05:44):
And we just quit because we think we're alone and we're like, I don't know this.
And I think that's good. Feel exactly that. Like that's good to feel that.
Because that's your cue to push past your limit.
That's your cue to be vulnerable and start making those connections.

(01:06:07):
And start figuring out what other people are doing. And pay attention to what
your clients are saying. Pay attention to your other professionals.
So, I mean, that's really about, you know, going farther together.
Together is, is knowing that, yeah, okay, good.
I don't have to, I don't have to do this all on my own and I don't have to have it all figured out.

(01:06:27):
And I guess the bottom line is you're not really alone.
You know, it feels like you are because you're having to make these decisions.
Not really because you're going to let yourself be defined and refined when you get going.
Think about it. When you start a race, when you start any kind of project,
or again, I kind of go back to that, that running race,

(01:06:50):
I would have no idea what's going to happen to me. And I'm going to use in a marathon.
I would never have any idea that I'm going to hit a wall at mile 17.
And that really happened to me.
I had no idea. So, you know, you can't always know what the journey is going to look like.
You just have to know before the gun goes off, before you start the business,

(01:07:12):
before you start down the path of something, I'm committed.
Whether I got to to crawl across that finish line, I am committed because you're
going to have moments in that journey, in that process that are going to feel
awful and they're going to want to make you stop and they're going to want to make you quit.
And I would say, you know, that's normal.

(01:07:36):
What you do with it after that is going to kind of show you what you're made of. Yes, for sure.
And I think it's interesting because running, I don't run anymore,
but I used to and I used to use running and everything mentally that I needed
to get through those days where I didn't want to train and I didn't want to

(01:07:57):
get out there or the weather was just awful.
That was just like I literally used to put plastic shopping bags on my feet
and slip those in my runners.
To get myself through. But this is, you know, even building that armor against
the elements, the things that are going to happen.

(01:08:19):
And I think a lot of our conversation has really been talking about getting,
you know, feeling, allowing ourselves to feel where we're at,
but also pushing through.
And everything is, we can figure things out for sure.
The word dream to me is so important because I think that when we allow ourselves

(01:08:41):
to visualize things, of course, like you said, we don't know when we're going to come up to a wall.
We don't know when we're going to come up to an obstacle.
But going back to that sort of original dream
and allowing ourselves to get into that space can really help us to keep pushing

(01:09:01):
forward and visualizing that finish line or visualizing sort of crossing the
finish line and what you're going to do and how you're going to feel afterwards,
I think is such an important piece of it all too. too. It's really, really true.
I mean, and that stuff so parallels to anything in our personal life.

(01:09:21):
And it just, it really can overflow into business and that whole kind of approach and mindset.
Yeah, I have to say, I mean, that's really, you know, kind of getting back to
your question around celebration.
I think that probably is the answer for me is being able to.
To keep going, to let business go where it needs to go. Sure.

(01:09:43):
I can't just sit back and let it, you know, drive itself.
I have to have the forward thinking. It's, yeah, it's being able to kind of
accept all the stuff that's part of the process, whether it's the hurdles,
adversity, whether it's the unexpected partnerships,
the stepping out of my comfort zone opportunities, like there's,
there's all kinds of stuff that can evolve when we allow ourself to accept it and be be part of it.

(01:10:09):
And that's kind of where that refining and defining come in for me.
Yes. Oh, well, I just, I really do love everything that we've talked about and the message.
This is part of the reason why I've also really, it's been a dream of mine to
do this podcast is because I think it's so important to share with people what

(01:10:29):
it looks like behind the scenes,
not just, you know, what's on social media and what we see.
And like you had said as well, We can easily go and scroll somebody's social
media and it really does look like all this positive stuff that's happening.
But there's also some behind the scenes stuff that we're not seeing.

(01:10:51):
And I do think it's important to share some of that, to share some of the struggles
and talk about what it's like to start a business with nothing.
Like from nothing. saying.
To me, after our conversation, it really goes back to being heart-centered and
allowing yourself to feel all the feelings,

(01:11:13):
to push past some limits, but also to sort of what I like to say is sticking
to your true north, allowing your true north to guide you.
And also we can change, But being open and curious to why we might feel like
a different direction is where we need to go.

(01:11:34):
But also doing things together, community, connection,
and being open and curious and reframing sometimes how we think about things
in entrepreneurship, I think is so important to do.
So I do want to say thank you so much for coming here and sharing all of your

(01:11:56):
information and advice and tips and everything for the listeners to be able to gain.
So I really do feel like there's so much to gain from our conversation for people,
whether they are just starting out or they do have an established business.
I think that there's so many takeaways and I'm so excited to go through our

(01:12:18):
conversation and get this one aired.
Well, thank you so much for having me. It's been your, this is my first podcast. So thank you.
Well, I really appreciate you coming on. And wow, what, what a thing,
like, I guess that's a good question too.
When you saw the call out, like

(01:12:39):
what, what was it that really prompted you to, to agree to come on here?
It's funny you asked that. I was just going to comment and say how I got to
this point where I even emailed you. I think I emailed you like right away.
I really believe in, you know, other people finding their true north,

(01:12:59):
living and living all their passions.
And you had another word there that you used, you know, dreaming the dream.
I love all that stuff. Always have.
And there's something in your post when I was listening to it and it was like, yep, we're aligned.
I felt like we had similar excitement about this and I wanted to jump on and

(01:13:24):
be useful in what you're doing.
And I just think it's so great. Like, I love listening to your voice.
I love how you kind of lead your questions are great.
And like, I feel like today as I'm working, I'm going to be thinking about this
conversation and some of the things that you said to me and some of your questions.

(01:13:46):
Like I can sit here and go blah, blah, blah, whatever.
But to really apply them and think about this whole hour, whatever amount of
time we had, it's really valuable for me as a business person too.
Music.

(01:14:11):
Thank you for joining this week's episode of Anchor Your Dreams.
I hope you enjoyed today's conversation as much as I did.
A big thank you to our incredible guests for sharing their wisdom and insights.
If you resonated with today's episode and want to explore more about turning
your dreams into reality, be sure to subscribe to the podcast.

(01:14:32):
We have a lineup of amazing guests and valuable content coming your way.
Don't forget to connect with us on social media. You can find us on Instagram
and Facebook. Facebook.
Share your thoughts, insights, and your own journey using the hashtag anchor your dreams.
Head over to our website at meganmcquillan.com in the podcast section,

(01:14:53):
where you'll find the show notes, resources, and information about upcoming episodes.
Before we wrap up, I want to express my gratitude to each and every one of you.
Your support means the world to me, and I'm thrilled to be on this journey with
you. Remember, anchored dreams become goals, anchored goals become you.
Music.