Your business can do more than generate revenue - it can change lives.
In this episode (the first in our series of interviews with the Powerful Women Rising Impact Award winners) you'll meet Talisa Caldwell, Founder of Freedom Creators Co. and winner of the 2024 Business for Good Award.
What began as a personal solution to a skincare problem became a purpose-driven brand that not only creates clean, non-toxic products but also funds education for children around the world.
In this episode, we discuss what it really means to build a business with impact - one that aligns with your values, serves a greater mission, and creates lasting change.
You'll Learn:
✅ How building impact into your business model creates long-term success
✅ The power of giving back in a way that feels authentic and sustainable
✅ How to stay focused on your mission and avoid comparison traps
✅ The role of faith, patience and perseverance in building a business
Talisa's journey offers powerful insights on building a purose driven business, proving that success isn’t just about sales, but about creating meaningful change.
This episode is part of the 2024 PWR Impact Awards Winner Series, featuring women entrepreneurs who are redefining success and impacting the lives of others.
Want more inspiration and real-world strategies to make an impact with your business? Subscribe and don’t miss the next episode in this powerful series!
Links & References:
- Join us at our next PWR Virtual Speed Networking Event!
- For even deeper connections, check out the Powerful Women Rising Community!
- Learn more about Talisa and Freedom Creators Co:
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1. Buy me a coffee to show your appreciation!
2. Leave a five-star review
3. DM me on Instagram and let me know
4. Share it with a friend!
Connect with Your Host!
Melissa Snow is a Business Relationship Strategist dedicated to empowering women in entrepreneurship. She founded the Powerful Women Rising Community, which provides female business owners with essential support and resources for business growth.
Melissa's other mission is to revolutionize networking, promoting authenticity and genuine connections over sleazy sales tactics. She runs an incredible monthly Virtual Speed Networking Event which you can attend once at no cost using the code FIRSTTIME
She lives in Colorado Springs with two girl dogs, two boy cats and any number of foster kittens. She loves iced coffee, Taylor Swift, and Threads.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Melissa Snow (00:00):
Hello Talisa, welcome to the podcast.
Hi Melissa, thank you forhaving me.
I'm so excited to chat with youtoday.
This is the first interviewthat I've done so far of the
women who have won the 2024Powerful Women Rising Impact
Awards, and you are a greatperson to kick it off, because
you really are.
You're not even Powerful WomanRising, you're like Powerful
(00:20):
Woman Rizzing, rizzin' Rizzin'Rizz.
Powerful woman, rizz.
There we go.
Yes, we have Rizz.
So before we get into theinterview, tell everybody a
little bit about you and aboutwhat you do.
Talisa Caldwell (00:40):
So, yes, my name is Talitha and I'm the
founder of Freedom Creators Co.
And that is a non-toxicskincare company that is based
out of Colorado Springs.
All of our products are madewith seven natural ingredients
or less, but what really helpsus to stand out is the fact that
not only is the products greatfor your skin, but they are also
really great for the world.
So I donate 5% of our revenuetowards an orphanage in Uganda,
(01:02):
and that helps to providefurther schooling and basic
needs, things like that, and sowith every purchase, we're able
to help support those kids.
Melissa Snow (01:11):
I love that.
So the award that you won in2024 was the Business for Good
Award, and that was an awardthat was created to honor a
woman who is dedicated to socialimpact, community advocacy or
charitable work and is using herbusiness as a force for
positive change in her communityor on a broader scale.
So you were nominated by yourpeers.
(01:33):
You were chosen as the winnerby a panel of judges.
So congratulations on that, andtell us a little bit about how
you got this idea.
Like, were you already makingthe skincare and then you were
like I should do this otherthing, or did it happen the
other way around?
Talisa Caldwell (01:50):
So I've been supporting this orphanage since
about 2012.
So about 12 years, but justkind of like on my own.
And then I started my companyin 2020.
And at that time I still hadkept them separate.
I knew that I wanted to giveback and do something good for
the community, but I was stilllearning business and had no
(02:14):
idea what I was doing.
So I started Freedom CreatorsCode just out of my home,
started making it for, like, myeczema, my sensitive skin, and
it started working out reallywell for me.
And then people were interestedin it.
So I really wanted to like I'vealways been an entrepreneur at
heart.
I don't really do well workingfor other people or like having
(02:36):
to be at a certain time.
You know, as an employee, Ijust Sitting still.
It's a hard time for me, yeah,because I'm always like thinking
of different things I could bedoing.
So I just went full in for mybusiness in 2020.
And then, in October of 2023, Idecided to go out and visit the
orphanage myself.
I'd never gone in person before, I'd just done like phone calls
(02:59):
with the owner, and we becamelike really really close over
the years and I talked to thekids over the phone and video
calls and things like that, butI'd never seen them.
And so I was like, okay, it'stime for me to go out, I'm just
going to go and do it.
And so I went out there bymyself and then I just even more
deeply fell in love with thekids there and I was able to
(03:22):
like raise some funding when Iwas there, just from, like
donations of friends and stufflike that, and we paid off their
school fees.
And then I was like I came backand I knew that I didn't want
to just end there and I was like, okay, well, I have this
business, I have this kind ofcharitable work, this nonprofit
that I didn't want to just endthere.
And I was like, okay, well, Ihave this business, I have this
kind of charitable work, thisnonprofit that I want to start
like, why not combine the twointo one thing, thinking off of,
(03:44):
like you know, tom's and likePacha Soaps big companies who
are like B Corps, who have donestuff like this.
So I was like, okay, this issomething that can be done.
And then that's when in Januaryof 2024, I was like let's just
kick off this year and I decidedto donate 5% of our revenue
towards them instead of justkind of like giving from my own.
(04:07):
I was like no, this is going tobe a staple in the company and
what we do.
And so, yeah, last year, 2024,was the first year of me doing
that and I got to test out andkind of rebrand and just figure
things out.
And I will say I'm stillfiguring it out, but the
storytelling and the messagingis getting more clear and that's
(04:28):
awesome.
Melissa Snow (04:28):
So tell us a little bit about what that money
does.
Talisa Caldwell (04:32):
Yeah, so it actually this year we were able
to raise 7,000, a little bitover 7,000.
And so this paid off the schoolfees for over 70 kids.
Melissa Snow (04:44):
That's amazing 70.
That's so cool 70.
Talisa Caldwell (04:48):
Yeah All, and they all range.
The youngest one is about fouryears old and then the oldest
ones are 20.
Melissa Snow (04:57):
That's really cool .
So you mentioned that you'vehad some struggles, some
challenges, some obstacles, somethings that you thought were
going to work out, that didn't,and you're like, okay, now we
got to take a differentdirection, and also that you are
still figuring things out,which I think is just the nature
of entrepreneurship.
I think we're always stillfiguring things out, even 20
(05:19):
years into it.
What keeps you going whenthings are hard, like?
I'm sure, just like the rest ofus, you've had moments where
you're like this is a disaster,this is not going to work.
What am I doing?
How do you keep going duringthose times?
How do you?
Talisa Caldwell (05:34):
keep going during those times.
I'll definitely say that for me, the biggest thing is my
relationship with God andpraying over situations and
instead of me trying to do itall alone, handing it over to
God and being like, ok, likethis is your business, you want
these kids to have theseopportunities, you want this
business to grow.
You gave me the ideano-transcript oh, like I know,
(06:27):
like it really does something tomy heart and makes me feel
fulfilled.
So I would say that that'sanother thing.
Like the dedication to the kidshave has gotten me to continue
the business, cause I feel likeif I wasn't helping these kids
like, I probably would have beenlike nah, like it's not worth
it, you know, but because youknow these kids in this
(06:49):
organization is reliant on um,our donations in order to help
them continue to grow.
That's what really is like okay, there's like literally 70 kids
out there who would not be inschool were it not for these
donations, and that brings likea weightiness to what I do.
(07:10):
I think it'd be different if itwas just me being like oh, I
want to have a nice car and niceblah, blah, blah.
Like those things don't reallyme personally, don't motivate me
as much as like giving back andmaking the world a better place
for the future generations does.
And, yeah, also just a lot ofrace with myself and not
(07:33):
comparing myself and my journeyto others that you see on social
media, because, like you reallydon't know their backgrounds
and things like that.
Like, I feel like 2020, there'sthis huge burst of business
entrepreneurs, because I thinkeverybody got shut down and then
lost their jobs and whatnot andwas like, okay, well, like I
(07:56):
need to start my own thing, andso that was just kind of like a
thing that happened, especiallyin America.
And like, with that, you stilldon't know where people were
starting from.
You don't know if they hadalready tried a business or, you
know, had multiple businessesbefore, or have parents who are
(08:17):
investing, or have familymembers who have given them.
Here's $100,000 for you to playwith.
Like you know, you don't likenot everybody shows that aspect
of it.
For me, this is like a lifelongthing.
I'm 29,.
I'll be 30 this year, so I feellike that's like a good age to
be investing in a business.
(08:38):
You know, like the average, Ithink, millionaires in like
their 40s or 50s you know ifyou're talking those big things,
and so you know there's stilljust time, and being gentle and
patient and not trying to likerush, rush, rush and go, go, go
and look a certain way, becausethen some of these companies
that you see on social mediamight be like, yeah, we look
(09:00):
like we're doing great and thenthere are hundreds of thousands
of dollars in debt, like youknow, absolutely no idea, and so
that's been a big thing.
For me of keeping me going islike being okay with where I'm
at and knowing that, even if itmight feel like a long process,
I would still be grateful if ittook me 15 years to have a
(09:23):
company that has a firmfoundation, is doing what it
says it's doing, is profitableand is giving jobs to people as
well, as, you know, helpingthose around the world.
So for me, it's just like,however long it takes, you just
have to be patient and persevereand, yeah, just keep going.
(09:47):
So yeah those are the pointsthat helped me.
Melissa Snow (09:50):
That's great, yeah , I think, staying focused on
like the bigger picture.
I think it's really easy for usto get caught up in these like
little dumb things that don'tactually matter, like how many
followers do I have on Instagram?
Or like, how many likes didthat post on threads get?
Like I do that all the timeanyway, and then I'm like who
actually cares?
Like I, I grew my threadsfollowing from like 220 to like
(10:16):
over a thousand in like fivedays, but only because I started
posting pictures of this catthat I got that's like so ugly,
he's cute and so like is thathelping my business?
No, like my, my entire threadsfollowing is just cat ladies,
which is great.
I love cat ladies, but that'sone of those things that's like
(10:38):
I could go all over and be likeI grew my threads following five
you know 500 times in five daysand everybody would be like wow
, she's doing so much betterthan me.
Like I'm actually not.
I just have a lot of cat ladies.
Talisa Caldwell (10:52):
So all these cat people yeah.
Yeah, you really, really don'tknow.
Melissa Snow (10:56):
So yeah, they're called vanity metrics.
For a reason they're not calledsuccess metrics.
Talisa Caldwell (11:01):
Exactly Like the community, it matters more
than the amount you know theindividual.
Melissa Snow (11:09):
So yeah, absolutely.
So you've touched on some ofthese things already that I was
going to ask you in the lastquestion, which is just what
advice would you give to femaleentrepreneurs, in particular if
they're just getting started orif they are, you know, kind of
struggling to find success?
You mentioned a lot of thingsthat I think are really helpful
not comparing yourself to otherpeople, giving yourself grace,
(11:30):
keeping that bigger picture andyour why and the impact that
you're having in mind.
Is there anything else that youwould add that you haven't
mentioned yet?
Talisa Caldwell (11:38):
that you would add that you haven't mentioned
yet.
Yeah, I would also sayknowledge and community.
Those are huge, huge thingsthat'll be able to keep you
going.
I think that one of my biggeststruggles and I really didn't
figure out exactly what I wasdoing until like midway through
(12:00):
last year, when I was like, oh,I know exactly what I need to do
on this day and this day andthis day and this is what I need
to be doing and this is how Ineed to be doing it it took me
yeah was like so that's fouryears to figure out what the
heck I'm even supposed to bedoing.
So if you can get like a coachor a mentor, I would say that's
(12:22):
definitely valuable, somethingthat I wish I would have done at
the beginning.
And I know some people are likeI just want to get started
right away and I know that's aninvestment and it's like okay,
but like you can either teachyourself how to do it and it'll
take all this time that was kindof like what I did or you can
just get the mentor and they'llteach you how to do it, and then
(12:46):
also like being involved in acommunity and networking,
especially with small businessand just any business in general
.
It's all about who you know,it's all about connections.
It's really hard, like you'rereally not meant to do business
alone like it's impossible forone person to do it all and like
.
(13:06):
People want to hear your story,people want to hear um about
your business, people want tosupport you and a lot of times
it's not necessarily the peoplein your immediate circle or
friend like I like.
Some people get likediscouraged by that, but for me,
I had to like make a switch andbe like oh, wow strangers want
to support me, and like peoplelike I think that's amazing.
(13:29):
And also, when you go to likenetworking events, don't just go
there, you know, with like, oh,like, what am I going to get
out of this?
Who am I going to meet?
That's gonna blow, you know,because people can sense that
like, oh, you're just trying toget something out of me.
Go there for like genuineconnection.
You never know.
Like hearing somebody else'sstory might inspire you.
(13:49):
You might meet a social mediaperson that you want to join on
your team, that has similarpassions with you, or you might
just enjoy yourself and be ableto be around some like-minded
individuals so that you don'tfeel so alone, because a lot of
times, maybe, we're just sittingin front of our computers or
sitting in our offices alone andwe're like, oh, like, is there
anybody like me who understandsthis?
(14:12):
There are people like you whounderstand what you're going
through, who might have evenbeen doing it for like 12, 15
years.
And you're like wow, like I'veonly been doing this for like 12
, 15 years.
And you're like, wow, like I'veonly been doing this for four
years and you're doing this for15 years.
Like, I want to hang out withyou Like what is keeping you
going, you know and so, and it'seasy to be like just on social
(14:32):
media with all of theseunrealistic expectations, but
when you go to these events youmeet like real business people,
like the reality of being anentrepreneur, and so, yeah, that
was something that I kind ofput off, really until also the
midway through last year, whereI was like and this year my goal
(14:52):
is to go to one networkingevent per month.
Being in your actual community,local wise, is also very
important, because if you'retrying to reach all the way out
there, the whole world, you gotto reach what's around you first
and so that's been a big bigthing.
For me is like oh wait, likeColorado Springs doesn't even
(15:14):
know about me, like let me likebecome known here and then try
you, you know, to branch outfrom there.
Melissa Snow (15:21):
So yeah, absolutely, and I didn't pay you
to say any of that, but that isall stuff that I would pay
someone to say.
And that's one of the thingsthat I talk about a lot with
networking is that like if youhave a hundred people in your
audience, but now you and I areconnected and I have a hundred
people in my audience, that'snow a hundred people in my
audience, that's now a hundredpeople who are hearing about you
(15:44):
who wouldn't have heard aboutyou otherwise, just because you
and I are connected and youdon't have to go have a hundred
coffee dates with them.
And they're all coming to younow as like warm leads because
they trust me and they know thatI trust you, and it just keeps
working like exponentially overtime.
Talisa Caldwell (16:01):
So it's like magic, exactly, yep, yeah,
definitely.
The people who have become likethe most consistent customers
are ones who have like, eithermet me face to face personally
or met somebody who was like, ohmy gosh, you have to try this
stuff.
And then they're like, oh yeah,like this is awesome, you know,
and so, just like what you said, yeah, it's building trust and
(16:23):
things like that.
Melissa Snow (16:24):
So Absolutely yeah .
And if you're listening to thispodcast and not watching the
video on the YouTube channel,you have to go watch it on the
YouTube channel so you can seewhat beautiful skin Talisa has,
because she's actually 98, buther skincare line is so amazing.
She looks like thisWrinkle-free natural Botox Even
(16:46):
at 98.
It's amazing.
Talisa Caldwell (16:48):
Even at 98.
Melissa Snow (16:49):
Absolutely Well.
Thank you so much for thisinterview.
This has been really good,really inspiring for, I think,
everybody listening and justthank you so much for all the
good that you're doing in theworld.
That, I think, makes all of uswant to be better people.
So thank you.
Talisa Caldwell (17:05):
Awesome.
Thank you so much for having me, melissa.
This was an honor, and thankyou for the judges who voted for
me and whoever nominated me.
It's really just an honor to beseen, and then also, that also
motivates me to keep going aswell.
So thank you.
Hello Talisa, welcome to the podcast.
Hi Melissa, thank you forhaving me.
I'm so excited to chat with youtoday.
This is the first interviewthat I've done so far of the
women who have won the 2024Powerful Women Rising Impact
Awards, and you are a greatperson to kick it off, because
you really are.
You're not even Powerful WomanRising, you're like Powerful
(00:20):
Woman Rizzing, rizzin' Rizzin'Rizz.
Powerful woman, rizz.
There we go.
Yes, we have Rizz.
So before we get into theinterview, tell everybody a
little bit about you and aboutwhat you do.
Talisa Caldwell (00:40):
So, yes, my name is Talitha and I'm the
founder of Freedom Creators Co.
And that is a non-toxicskincare company that is based
out of Colorado Springs.
All of our products are madewith seven natural ingredients
or less, but what really helpsus to stand out is the fact that
not only is the products greatfor your skin, but they are also
really great for the world.
So I donate 5% of our revenuetowards an orphanage in Uganda,
(01:02):
and that helps to providefurther schooling and basic
needs, things like that, and sowith every purchase, we're able
to help support those kids.
Melissa Snow (01:11):
I love that.
So the award that you won in2024 was the Business for Good
Award, and that was an awardthat was created to honor a
woman who is dedicated to socialimpact, community advocacy or
charitable work and is using herbusiness as a force for
positive change in her communityor on a broader scale.
So you were nominated by yourpeers.
(01:33):
You were chosen as the winnerby a panel of judges.
So congratulations on that, andtell us a little bit about how
you got this idea.
Like, were you already makingthe skincare and then you were
like I should do this otherthing, or did it happen the
other way around?
Talisa Caldwell (01:50):
So I've been supporting this orphanage since
about 2012.
So about 12 years, but justkind of like on my own.
And then I started my companyin 2020.
And at that time I still hadkept them separate.
I knew that I wanted to giveback and do something good for
the community, but I was stilllearning business and had no
(02:14):
idea what I was doing.
So I started Freedom CreatorsCode just out of my home,
started making it for, like, myeczema, my sensitive skin, and
it started working out reallywell for me.
And then people were interestedin it.
So I really wanted to like I'vealways been an entrepreneur at
heart.
I don't really do well workingfor other people or like having
(02:36):
to be at a certain time.
You know, as an employee, Ijust Sitting still.
It's a hard time for me, yeah,because I'm always like thinking
of different things I could bedoing.
So I just went full in for mybusiness in 2020.
And then, in October of 2023, Idecided to go out and visit the
orphanage myself.
I'd never gone in person before, I'd just done like phone calls
(02:59):
with the owner, and we becamelike really really close over
the years and I talked to thekids over the phone and video
calls and things like that, butI'd never seen them.
And so I was like, okay, it'stime for me to go out, I'm just
going to go and do it.
And so I went out there bymyself and then I just even more
deeply fell in love with thekids there and I was able to
(03:22):
like raise some funding when Iwas there, just from, like
donations of friends and stufflike that, and we paid off their
school fees.
And then I was like I came backand I knew that I didn't want
to just end there and I was like, okay, well, I have this
business, I have this kind ofcharitable work, this nonprofit
that I didn't want to just endthere.
And I was like, okay, well, Ihave this business, I have this
kind of charitable work, thisnonprofit that I want to start
like, why not combine the twointo one thing, thinking off of,
(03:44):
like you know, tom's and likePacha Soaps big companies who
are like B Corps, who have donestuff like this.
So I was like, okay, this issomething that can be done.
And then that's when in Januaryof 2024, I was like let's just
kick off this year and I decidedto donate 5% of our revenue
towards them instead of justkind of like giving from my own.
(04:07):
I was like no, this is going tobe a staple in the company and
what we do.
And so, yeah, last year, 2024,was the first year of me doing
that and I got to test out andkind of rebrand and just figure
things out.
And I will say I'm stillfiguring it out, but the
storytelling and the messagingis getting more clear and that's
(04:28):
awesome.
Melissa Snow (04:28):
So tell us a little bit about what that money
does.
Talisa Caldwell (04:32):
Yeah, so it actually this year we were able
to raise 7,000, a little bitover 7,000.
And so this paid off the schoolfees for over 70 kids.
Melissa Snow (04:44):
That's amazing 70.
That's so cool 70.
Talisa Caldwell (04:48):
Yeah All, and they all range.
The youngest one is about fouryears old and then the oldest
ones are 20.
Melissa Snow (04:57):
That's really cool .
So you mentioned that you'vehad some struggles, some
challenges, some obstacles, somethings that you thought were
going to work out, that didn't,and you're like, okay, now we
got to take a differentdirection, and also that you are
still figuring things out,which I think is just the nature
of entrepreneurship.
I think we're always stillfiguring things out, even 20
(05:19):
years into it.
What keeps you going whenthings are hard, like?
I'm sure, just like the rest ofus, you've had moments where
you're like this is a disaster,this is not going to work.
What am I doing?
How do you keep going duringthose times?
How do you?
Talisa Caldwell (05:34):
keep going during those times.
I'll definitely say that for me, the biggest thing is my
relationship with God andpraying over situations and
instead of me trying to do itall alone, handing it over to
God and being like, ok, likethis is your business, you want
these kids to have theseopportunities, you want this
business to grow.
You gave me the ideano-transcript oh, like I know,
(06:27):
like it really does something tomy heart and makes me feel
fulfilled.
So I would say that that'sanother thing.
Like the dedication to the kidshave has gotten me to continue
the business, cause I feel likeif I wasn't helping these kids
like, I probably would have beenlike nah, like it's not worth
it, you know, but because youknow these kids in this
(06:49):
organization is reliant on um,our donations in order to help
them continue to grow.
That's what really is like okay, there's like literally 70 kids
out there who would not be inschool were it not for these
donations, and that brings likea weightiness to what I do.
(07:10):
I think it'd be different if itwas just me being like oh, I
want to have a nice car and niceblah, blah, blah.
Like those things don't reallyme personally, don't motivate me
as much as like giving back andmaking the world a better place
for the future generations does.
And, yeah, also just a lot ofrace with myself and not
(07:33):
comparing myself and my journeyto others that you see on social
media, because, like you reallydon't know their backgrounds
and things like that.
Like, I feel like 2020, there'sthis huge burst of business
entrepreneurs, because I thinkeverybody got shut down and then
lost their jobs and whatnot andwas like, okay, well, like I
(07:56):
need to start my own thing, andso that was just kind of like a
thing that happened, especiallyin America.
And like, with that, you stilldon't know where people were
starting from.
You don't know if they hadalready tried a business or, you
know, had multiple businessesbefore, or have parents who are
(08:17):
investing, or have familymembers who have given them.
Here's $100,000 for you to playwith.
Like you know, you don't likenot everybody shows that aspect
of it.
For me, this is like a lifelongthing.
I'm 29,.
I'll be 30 this year, so I feellike that's like a good age to
be investing in a business.
(08:38):
You know, like the average, Ithink, millionaires in like
their 40s or 50s you know ifyou're talking those big things,
and so you know there's stilljust time, and being gentle and
patient and not trying to likerush, rush, rush and go, go, go
and look a certain way, becausethen some of these companies
that you see on social mediamight be like, yeah, we look
(09:00):
like we're doing great and thenthere are hundreds of thousands
of dollars in debt, like youknow, absolutely no idea, and so
that's been a big thing.
For me of keeping me going islike being okay with where I'm
at and knowing that, even if itmight feel like a long process,
I would still be grateful if ittook me 15 years to have a
(09:23):
company that has a firmfoundation, is doing what it
says it's doing, is profitableand is giving jobs to people as
well, as, you know, helpingthose around the world.
So for me, it's just like,however long it takes, you just
have to be patient and persevereand, yeah, just keep going.
(09:47):
So yeah those are the pointsthat helped me.
Melissa Snow (09:50):
That's great, yeah , I think, staying focused on
like the bigger picture.
I think it's really easy for usto get caught up in these like
little dumb things that don'tactually matter, like how many
followers do I have on Instagram?
Or like, how many likes didthat post on threads get?
Like I do that all the timeanyway, and then I'm like who
actually cares?
Like I, I grew my threadsfollowing from like 220 to like
(10:16):
over a thousand in like fivedays, but only because I started
posting pictures of this catthat I got that's like so ugly,
he's cute and so like is thathelping my business?
No, like my, my entire threadsfollowing is just cat ladies,
which is great.
I love cat ladies, but that'sone of those things that's like
(10:38):
I could go all over and be likeI grew my threads following five
you know 500 times in five daysand everybody would be like wow
, she's doing so much betterthan me.
Like I'm actually not.
I just have a lot of cat ladies.
Talisa Caldwell (10:52):
So all these cat people yeah.
Yeah, you really, really don'tknow.
Melissa Snow (10:56):
So yeah, they're called vanity metrics.
For a reason they're not calledsuccess metrics.
Talisa Caldwell (11:01):
Exactly Like the community, it matters more
than the amount you know theindividual.
Melissa Snow (11:09):
So yeah, absolutely.
So you've touched on some ofthese things already that I was
going to ask you in the lastquestion, which is just what
advice would you give to femaleentrepreneurs, in particular if
they're just getting started orif they are, you know, kind of
struggling to find success?
You mentioned a lot of thingsthat I think are really helpful
not comparing yourself to otherpeople, giving yourself grace,
(11:30):
keeping that bigger picture andyour why and the impact that
you're having in mind.
Is there anything else that youwould add that you haven't
mentioned yet?
Talisa Caldwell (11:38):
that you would add that you haven't mentioned
yet.
Yeah, I would also sayknowledge and community.
Those are huge, huge thingsthat'll be able to keep you
going.
I think that one of my biggeststruggles and I really didn't
figure out exactly what I wasdoing until like midway through
(12:00):
last year, when I was like, oh,I know exactly what I need to do
on this day and this day andthis day and this is what I need
to be doing and this is how Ineed to be doing it it took me
yeah was like so that's fouryears to figure out what the
heck I'm even supposed to bedoing.
So if you can get like a coachor a mentor, I would say that's
(12:22):
definitely valuable, somethingthat I wish I would have done at
the beginning.
And I know some people are likeI just want to get started
right away and I know that's aninvestment and it's like okay,
but like you can either teachyourself how to do it and it'll
take all this time that was kindof like what I did or you can
just get the mentor and they'llteach you how to do it, and then
(12:46):
also like being involved in acommunity and networking,
especially with small businessand just any business in general
.
It's all about who you know,it's all about connections.
It's really hard, like you'rereally not meant to do business
alone like it's impossible forone person to do it all and like
.
(13:06):
People want to hear your story,people want to hear um about
your business, people want tosupport you and a lot of times
it's not necessarily the peoplein your immediate circle or
friend like I like.
Some people get likediscouraged by that, but for me,
I had to like make a switch andbe like oh, wow strangers want
to support me, and like peoplelike I think that's amazing.
(13:29):
And also, when you go to likenetworking events, don't just go
there, you know, with like, oh,like, what am I going to get
out of this?
Who am I going to meet?
That's gonna blow, you know,because people can sense that
like, oh, you're just trying toget something out of me.
Go there for like genuineconnection.
You never know.
Like hearing somebody else'sstory might inspire you.
(13:49):
You might meet a social mediaperson that you want to join on
your team, that has similarpassions with you, or you might
just enjoy yourself and be ableto be around some like-minded
individuals so that you don'tfeel so alone, because a lot of
times, maybe, we're just sittingin front of our computers or
sitting in our offices alone andwe're like, oh, like, is there
anybody like me who understandsthis?
(14:12):
There are people like you whounderstand what you're going
through, who might have evenbeen doing it for like 12, 15
years.
And you're like wow, like I'veonly been doing this for like 12
, 15 years.
And you're like, wow, like I'veonly been doing this for four
years and you're doing this for15 years.
Like, I want to hang out withyou Like what is keeping you
going, you know and so, and it'seasy to be like just on social
(14:32):
media with all of theseunrealistic expectations, but
when you go to these events youmeet like real business people,
like the reality of being anentrepreneur, and so, yeah, that
was something that I kind ofput off, really until also the
midway through last year, whereI was like and this year my goal
(14:52):
is to go to one networkingevent per month.
Being in your actual community,local wise, is also very
important, because if you'retrying to reach all the way out
there, the whole world, you gotto reach what's around you first
and so that's been a big bigthing.
For me is like oh wait, likeColorado Springs doesn't even
(15:14):
know about me, like let me likebecome known here and then try
you, you know, to branch outfrom there.
Melissa Snow (15:21):
So yeah, absolutely, and I didn't pay you
to say any of that, but that isall stuff that I would pay
someone to say.
And that's one of the thingsthat I talk about a lot with
networking is that like if youhave a hundred people in your
audience, but now you and I areconnected and I have a hundred
people in my audience, that'snow a hundred people in my
audience, that's now a hundredpeople who are hearing about you
(15:44):
who wouldn't have heard aboutyou otherwise, just because you
and I are connected and youdon't have to go have a hundred
coffee dates with them.
And they're all coming to younow as like warm leads because
they trust me and they know thatI trust you, and it just keeps
working like exponentially overtime.
Talisa Caldwell (16:01):
So it's like magic, exactly, yep, yeah,
definitely.
The people who have become likethe most consistent customers
are ones who have like, eithermet me face to face personally
or met somebody who was like, ohmy gosh, you have to try this
stuff.
And then they're like, oh yeah,like this is awesome, you know,
and so, just like what you said, yeah, it's building trust and
(16:23):
things like that.
Melissa Snow (16:24):
So Absolutely yeah .
And if you're listening to thispodcast and not watching the
video on the YouTube channel,you have to go watch it on the
YouTube channel so you can seewhat beautiful skin Talisa has,
because she's actually 98, buther skincare line is so amazing.
She looks like thisWrinkle-free natural Botox Even
(16:46):
at 98.
It's amazing.
Talisa Caldwell (16:48):
Even at 98.
Melissa Snow (16:49):
Absolutely Well.
Thank you so much for thisinterview.
This has been really good,really inspiring for, I think,
everybody listening and justthank you so much for all the
good that you're doing in theworld.
That, I think, makes all of uswant to be better people.
So thank you.
Talisa Caldwell (17:05):
Awesome.
Thank you so much for having me, melissa.
This was an honor, and thankyou for the judges who voted for
me and whoever nominated me.
It's really just an honor to beseen, and then also, that also
motivates me to keep going aswell.
So thank you.
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