Six episodes down and so many more to go! What a busy start to the year this has been for me. I am deeply grateful to my first few podcast guests, Farm Momma Soaps founder Christina (episode 1), Caz Acrez Farms founder Cindy (episode 2), Aiesha Attryde - relationship coach (episode 3), Beverley Spencer - professional coach (episode 4), Small Business Moms founder Laura Mclean (episode 5), and most recently yours truly, E, host of the podcast and founder of Main Street E-Market for episode 6/0 (6th live but really episode introduction).
I am currently booking small business owners for their chance to tell their small business story for March. If you are interested in hearing more about it. Head here to book your pre-screening call and to find out more information.
So far, these interviews have been such a great way to get to know the guests better than I ever might have otherwise. The dedicated time is awesome, especially since selling things isn't part of the conversation, it takes so much stress off. I have noticed that some common themes are starting to bear out across the interviews and I would love to share my findings with you.
For starters, founders tend to be lonely and are looking for connection and support. I can attest to this feeling for sure. While there are many great groups, some of them end up being pay to play which isn't always feasible for those in the early startup phase.
Second, there are so many ways that you as a consumer can support your local small businesses even if you can't afford to shop there (which I assure you, you probably could do more of your shopping with small business than you might think). You could show your love to small businesses through following their social media pages (hint, hint), liking, commenting, sharing, or otherwise interacting with their pages, mentioning them to others who might also love their products (word of mouth is still unbeatable free advertising), or you could review a product or leave them a review on Google, Yelp, or any of the other platforms that they might be listed. This is especially important for positive experiences. We are hardwired as a species to focus more on negative experiences because of our evolutionary desire to survive, but that leaves little room for praising great service or products. If you have had a great experience with a small business, it would be a beautiful gift to them to leave a positive review somewhere for them.
A final thread appeared during the conversations, and that was the need for balance between work and life. This is one that I can honestly say that I am getting better at in 2024 because I am really focusing my energy on doing so. Without a concerted effort, it is VERY easy to work every available minute of every day and burn out the same way that any other job would. That isn't the reason why I started my own business, and I am confident that wasn't why the other founders did either. So making. sure we are keeping healthy boundaries with our own work is an important way that entrepreneurs can support themselves. So far it looks like finding our tribe and supporting one another, getting support from small business lovers (including new ones), and being better to ourselves are common themes thus far. I wonder if that will continue throughout the episodes? You'll have to tune in to find out!
All interviews will be scheduled on Wednesdays at 1pm EST moving forward to provide more opportunity for editing and posting the shorts that come from the brilliant moments of these interviews. There are just too many great quotes to choose from! For now, the lives will be on YouTube (click here or on the Podcast logo to head there and subscribe), but I am hoping to be able to simulcast across platforms with StreamYard premium once I can raise the funds to do so. If you would like to contribute to that goal, you could either check out one of our small business boxes on our website or click the link here to donate.
I intend to be blogging a bit more as well, because there is just so much going on that I can't even fit it all into one post! I'll be back next week with more updates. Thank you all so much for your kindness and support. Make sure you shop local and check out the pop-ups for micro businesses in your area as the weather starts to warm up for the spring!