Can I Laugh On Your Shoulder?

I realize that it is a cliché to say this at this point, but I am just going to say it: 2020 has been a year! There has been this tension of trying to get through the year while also trying to focus on our goals while also dealing with what is happening around us in our culture while also taking care of our families. It is a lot. There are many well-intentioned, encouraging messages that are preached at us, especially women. Things like "you are enough", "you can do it", and "you can pull yourself up by your bootstraps." Those are well-intentioned, but in the end, often leave us feeling overwhelmed and burnt out. My guest today is trying to restructure that narrative with a counternarrative that helps women understand how to overcome adversity and live with confidence. Alli Worthington is known for her straight-talking encouragement and practical tools that help women reach their dreams in business and in life. She's a business coach and the co-founder of Called Creatives, where she coaches writers and speakers. She is also the author of The Year of Living Happy, Fierce Faith, Breaking Busy, and her most recent book, Standing Strong: A Woman's Guide to Overcoming Adversity and Living with Confidence. Alli is also a well-known speaker and host of the popular podcast, The Alli Worthington Show. I've been a big fan of Alli for a long time. It was such a treat to have her on the show today, especially at such a time as this.

ABOUT ALLI WORTHINGTON:

Alli Worthington is known for her straight-talking encouragement and practical tools that help women reach their dreams in business and life. She's a business coach and co-founder of Called Creatives, where she coaches writers and speakers. Author of The Year of Living Happy, Fierce Faith, and Breaking Busy, Alli is a well-known speaker and host of the popular podcast, The Alli Worthington Show. Her no-nonsense, guilt-free take on business, family, and balance have led to appearances on TODAY and Good Morning America. Alli lives with her husband, Mark, and their five sons outside of Nashville with the only golden retriever who refuses to retrieve.

CONNECT WITH ALLI:

• Instagram: @AlliWorthington
• Twitter: @Alli
• Facebook: @Its.Alli.Worthington
• Website: AlliWorthington.com
• Podcast: The Alli Worthington Show

Thank you to our partners of the show:

Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

One of the things that really sets fair-trade businesses apart is how they are often led by the artisans themselves. Fair trade in many ways can really turn a traditional business model on its head. This time and time again prove to be an incredibly transformative process in the lives of everyone that the business is impacting. My guests this week are Christi Whitekettle, Tom McGregor, and Jeannine Umutoniwase, the founders of Azizi Life, a fair-trade organization dedicated to partnering with skilled Rwandan artisans in their vision to lift their families from poverty. Since 2008, they have cultivated partnerships with more than 500 artisans. Azizi Life serves as a bridge linking artisans, designers, and global customers to offer high-quality, ethically sourced goods for life and gifting. As a not-for-profit organization, Azizi Life is dedicated to the well-being of their artisan partners and their families. In addition to opening economic opportunity through fair trade, Azizi Life invests in a range of community impact projects. Their Rwandan-led team facilitates adult literacy classes and offers other resources for personal, spiritual, and economic growth. I was so thankful for the gift of technology to be able to connect with Christi, Tom, and Jeannine in Rwanda. They are an incredible team. I loved learning more about their story and the inspiring impact they are having on communities.

5:12 - The Azizi 101

• Azizi Life was started under the auspices of a different nonprofit known as Food for the Hungry that supported education, health, and small business support. Through those relationships, the founders of Azizi life made connections with artisan cooperatives and noticed that artisan's neighbors were buying their products but were only ready to pay a fraction of what the product might be worth in other markets.
• Artisans were scraping by with some income from farming, but still not enough to cover their basic needs like healthcare, clothing and shoes, and school fees for their children. Cooperatives were organized with leadership and skills to make things.
• Azizi Life realized they could be a bridge across the gap to give artisans a fair wage and become connected to people who would love and pay for their products. Artisans could work toward their own vision toward a better future for their families through their crafts.
• Azizi Life aimed to register as an independent business, separate from the Food for the Hungry nonprofit. They wanted the work of Azizi Life in Rwanda to be handed over to the local community. It was their vision to begin the business with that intent. They came in with a development background, looking to eventually put themselves out of work and be able to hand over easily.
• Christi Whitekettle, Tom McGregor, and Jeannine Umutoniwase joined us for this episode about Azizi Life. Jeannine is the Azizi Life Chief Executive Officer, and lives in Rwanda. She joined Azizi Life in 2008 after working as a housekeeper for the Food for the Hungry guest house. That is when she met Christi and helped with Christi's accommodations and helped Christi as a translator. She was also teaching Tom Kinyarwanda at the time.
• When the social enterprise of Azizi Life started, the team thought Jeannine would be a great fit to join the team and help foster relationships between the enterprise and local communities.

14:51 – Azizi Life Beginnings

• Azizi Life is incredibly special to Tom, but he was sure to let us know that Jeannine is very humble about her role and title as CEO! Tom's background is as a commercial insurance broker. He became a successful account executive doing commercial insurance for relatively large businesses. He was about to turn 30 and had that feeling that many of us have experienced or can relate to of, "There has to be more than life, this can't be my purpose."
• Tom started looking for different opportunities. He knew he wanted to look for work overseas after an experience working with YWAM (Youth With A Mission) through Mercy Ships when he was 18. He started in Togo and sailed to South Africa. When he turned 30 and started having a crisis about what he wanted to do next, he took his business acumen and love for Africa and started researching and praying.
• Tom found a position with Food for the Hungry, Rwanda to work with a team of Rwandans doing small business training in the rural communities on basic accounting, marketing, etc. Oh, and it was an unpaid position. Tom did some fundraising in January and was on a plan to Rwanda by August. Once in Rwanda, the job was not quite what Tom had read about, mostly because Tom's new boss did not think there was enough money in the rural community so support a non-agricultural business.
• Tom's boss asked him to go around to all the people who had tried to start a business to see how they were doing. A few were ok, but many people had been trained in arts and crafts with the belief that they could farm in the morning, make baskets in the afternoon, ship the baskets out of the country, and make plenty of money. All of that was working, except for there being a big or strong market in the West for the baskets.
• The artisans were seeing benefits from their business as far as interpersonal relationships, but there was no cash coming in. Azizi Life had the idea to buy the crafts from the artisans and sell them in profitable markets to return money to the artisans to spend money back in the local businesses where they live.
• Before she found her way to Azizi Life, Christi was working in recreation bringing activities, creativity, light, and love to seniors. She came to a crossroads where her knowledge of the need and pain in the world moved her to think about how to faithfully respond to those realities. Christi's desire to respond and her knowledge of sociology and crafting led her to the work of wholistic development, serving and understanding people in an integrated way.
• Christi came to work with Food for the Hungry on a similar volunteer program as Tom, trying to figure out what her future would look like. When an opportunity fell through 9 months in, she fell into a slump with no practical way to be engaged in serving people. Everything changed in a moment at church where she felt extremely uncomfortable physically, spiritually, and socially. She thought to herself that she could just go help Tom with whatever he needed to do his job with Azizi Life. The next morning, Tom approached Christi with the same idea. Christi was able to use her creative skills in a business position with Azizi Life in Rwanda.

31:12 –Azizi Life Today and the Long-Term Vision

• Azizi Life started with three people and one desk. Today they have a team of 23 permanent staff, 12 temporary staff, a big office with three locations in Rwanda, and over 500 artisan partners in Rwanda. Tom wanted to clarify that since Jeannine became CEO, Azizi Life has doubled in size. 😉
• There are several different parts of Azizi Life: Azizi Life Rwanda, Azizi Life US, and their nonprofit and impact work in Rwanda. In the US, it is a nonprofit that handles distribution and fundraising with a push for increasing sales to 10x what Azizi Life was selling two years ago.
• In Rwanda, there are three main projects: the making of the crafts, educational tours where people can visit Rwanda to learn from artisans in their communities, and work through a sister organization called Beautiful Creations that help support local beekeepers! Eventually, Azizi Life wants to keep adding on social enterprises to provide employment opportunities in local villages with the intent to turn them over to the communities.
• Any money made by the three social enterprises is funneled into a Rwandan nonprofit that runs impact projects that will help communities overcome barriers so that they can thrive. Programs include things like adult literacy programs and loans for systems that save money in the long run like water filters, fuel efficient stoves, solar lamps and more.
• Azizi Life focuses on wholeness as an individual and breaks that down into physical, social, and spiritual wholeness. They offer Bible studies and Bible distributions.

40:51 – Getting to Know Our Guests

• Find out what Christi's guilty (or not so guilty) pleasure is, what Jeannine likes to do for fun, and what meal Tom would eat for dinner if he had to eat the same meal every night for the rest of his life. Hear more from Jeannine what it means to her to run a business with purpose.

Memorable Quotes

6:52 - "We realized that if we could a bridge across the gap…the artisans could work toward their own vision for a better future for their families and use their craft to those ends."-Christi

14:22 – The artisans really value this work. Every moment when they are creating a product, they think about where we came from, what we are aiming (for), and they make sure that whoever will buy the product will be very happy about it and also they think about how it can impact their families." -Jeannine

36:26 – "We're really keen that people buy the products because they're beautiful with the bonus that they make an impact, as opposed to a "pity" buy."

38:49 – "Every business we look to start, we look at whether it's going to be beneficial to the community and to the rural community and that will bring something to God's kingdom there."

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

The fashion industry is one of the biggest polluters in the world. It actually makes up 10% of humanity's carbon emissions, drying up water sources, polluting rivers, streams, and oceans. More than 85% of all textiles go into the dump each year. There are many incredible fashion brands that are tackling this issue head on by creating fashionable, sustainable, and zero waste products that are making a big impact. My guest this week is Paola Masperi, the founder of Mayamiko, an ethical, sustainable, and zero-waste fashion and lifestyle brand on a mission to champion a more responsible approach to shopping. Using slow and traditional craftsmanship techniques, Mayamiko works with global artisans from Malawi to Milan to create trans-seasonal women's clothing, accessories, and homeware collections. With a zero-waste policy, the brand utilizes pre-consumer waste and reclaims materials where possible, including cotton deadstock from reclaimed silk alongside locally sourced artisanal fabric from Malawi, geo-TS certified organic cotton and linen. Paolo is also the founder of the Mayamiko Trust, which helps Mayamikan get up and running with training schemes and microfinance projects which provide funding and teach basic financial and business planning skills. The trust then connects the trainees to fantastic ethical and sustainable fashion brands and designers. This creates links to markets where they can trade their products as high-value items according to fair-trade principles. I loved this conversation with Paola and I learned so much from her!

5:48 - The Paola 101

• Paola was born in Milan, Italy and grew up there in a big family with strong, independent women and men who supported them. She moved to England to finish her studies and early in her career, traveled to Germany and then a number of African countries for work in the early 2000s.
• Through her work in Africa, the seeds of Mayamiko were planted and began to grow. Her worked in Africa focused on using digital innovation to support education across developing countries. Through that work, she became very passionate about the potential of the places and people she met, and the friendships she developed through her work.
• Paola grew up seeing two sides of her family working day jobs while also working on social engagement projects. Her dad opened the first cinema in the town which became a safe place for the youth of the town who may have otherwise been affected by the growing drug problem in the community. It became a place to learn about culture and diversity while also creating a safe community gathering space.
• Growing up with family who worked hard on both their careers and passions influenced Paola with confidence that she could work a day job while also pursuing passion projects and traveling the world.
• In the late 80s and 90s, there was not a lot of diversity in Milan, but when Paola moved to London, she worked for an educational company working on software to teach language. Each year on the project, Paola wanted to do a little more to bring education to more places and more people. She made a suggestion to the company's leadership to see if they could apply language solutions to a broader global context.
• The company started working with governments across African countries to see if their technology could support bringing primary education to those countries as well. Paola spent the majority of her time working in Malawi and Uganda. It was a formative experience that taught her how much she had to learn from what was going on around her, even if just by listening. Whenever Paola lands in an African airport, it feels like home to her.

14:42 – Mayamiko

• The heart of Mayamiko came from a friendship with a woman Paola worked with on one of her language projects. The two started thinking about what else they could do to help empower women. They understood more than anything else that women needed choices. They agreed access to choices came from access to education and finance.
• In 2008, they started the Mayamiko Trust to provide those choices to women through vocational training and access to fair wages, both which would continue to open women to more and more opportunities and choices.
• The Mayamiko Trust allows women to make their own choices about what skills they want and need, letting them make choices about what they are trained on and what to do with those skills after training. They can either stay with Mayamiko in an apprenticeship and go on to be employed by Mayamiko, or take out a microfinance grant to set up their own business.
• Some of the women went out on their own and others set up group co-ops together. Mayamiko is now 12 years old, and nothing has changed in that approach to give women those choices. Mayamiko also wanted to offer sustainable income opportunities to women, so they started the Mayamiko label, setting up their own brand to create a long-lasting employment opportunity and to not be dependent on donations. Now they have a self-sustaining model that creates jobs.
• The first few years Mayamiko experimented with accessories and bags to test the concepts. It was 2012, and there were not many conversations happening around ethical or sustainable fashion. It was still very niche. They realized direct to consumer resonated most, and customers loved knowing the stories behind their products and knowing that the artisans making them were being treated well and compensated fairly.
• In 2015, Mayamiko launched a small women's wear capsule and has been slowly broadening the quality of those projects and telling their stories to create products people love for a long time, both for their aesthetic quality, and the story behind them as well.
• More often than not, the root of global poverty comes from lack of economic opportunity. Both charities and business have a role in tackling global poverty. Mayamiko would not be where they are today if they'd not started their charity first. Risk is inherent to business, and Paola was clear she did not want to risk any of the money meant for charity initiatives with the Mayamiko Trust. That was the motivation behind separating the charity and the business.
• Mayamiko comes from the Chewa language spoken in Malawi used for both boys and girls that means "Praise" or "Thanksgiving." Along with having a beautiful meaning, it is also the name of a child that Paola worked with and so it has a special personal meaning to her as well.

27:27 – Not the Great Equalizer

• Covid-19 has affected people disproportionately, and statistically it's reversing a lot of progress that had been made for people rising out of global poverty in all parts of the world. While we're all experiencing it at the same time, our experiences with it are going to vary greatly.
• For many artisans around the world, whether or not they are getting paid is a matter of life and death. Paola was acutely aware of Covid-19 a bit earlier because of her family in Italy. When the UK started to enter lockdown, the training academy in Mayamiko in Malawi had to shut down and people were sent home. For people in Malawi there started to be a question of whether to social distance or earn a living, and working from home looks very different in different places around the world.
• Day to day life is conducted in big cities with bustling markets and crowded public transportation is needed to do business in the cities. It's not possible to social distance in some places in the world. The responses to Covid-19 really need to be localized.
• For Mayamiko, they knew prevention was the most important answer. The government did well closing borders, shutting down airports, and monitoring people who came into the country from other parts of the world. They also realized they could space out sewing machines within their facility and give everyone hand sanitizer and masks. But the reality is that to get to work, people had to use crowded public transportation options.
• Mayamiko decided to come up with their own plan to allow employees to work from home. While they love making clothing, it was much more important to make masks for the community. Mayamiko employees work from home while wearing masks, and Mayamiko provides a system to bring supplies to artisans at home and collect them when they are finished.
• Mayamiko has done their best to make the most of a difficult time. Luckily, they've worked hard and been able to keep everyone healthy and employed while also giving back to the community!

39:45 – Getting to Know Our Guest

• Find out what Paola's favorite TV show was growing up, what her biggest guilty pleasures are, what she's reading right now, and of course, what it means to Paola to run a business with purpose!

Memorable Quotes

13:07 – "One of the things that I learned very quickly is that I knew nothing…very quickly I realized I could put all my past knowledge to one side and have a listening attitude to everything that was happening around me."

16:39 – "We were very clear from the beginning that we were not going to make choices on behalf of women, we were just going to equip them with the skills that they told us they wanted and needed, and then it was entirely up to them what choices they made with those skills and those tools."

23:43 – "At the time, the choice was the charity and the charity's funds should be safeguarded to do charity work, the business should be allowed to take reasonable risk as a business would, and therefore it makes sense to separate the two. The two still have an agreement that any money that the business made, it goes back into the charity."

About Paola Masperi: Paola Masperi is the founder of pioneering women empowerment charity Mayamiko Trust and lifestyle brand Mayamiko The Label, which has sold to over 40 countries and counts Meghan Markle as a fan. With a background in International Development and Digital Innovation, Paola has a a passion for crafts, traditions and the stories they tell about the people behind the product, their relationship with each other and their natural environment, which she attributes to growing up in Italy surrounded by a strong culture of traditions, combined with a strong sense of curiosity about the future. She started Mayamiko Trust after working on several projects with women across a number of African countries, and the Label followed a few years later as a way to create dignified, creative and sustainable employment for women. The label now works with women's initiatives across different countries such as Malawi, where the main hub is located, SriLanka, Peru, Afghanistan and Italy. An award winner for sustainability leadership, alongside Stella McCartney, Raeburn, Bottletops and others, Paola is always searching for collaborative ways to create responsibly, and ensure that her work has a positive impact along the entire supply chain by actively protecting the environment and creating safe, sustainable and creative jobs for women, as well as remaining leaders in innovation and sustainability. Paola is passionate about meaningful storytelling, and has a keen interest in the 'future of work', exploring opportunities and challenges posed by automation and the impact on human relationships with each other and our planetary environment. Connect with Paola Masperi & Mayamiko:

• https://www.mayamiko.com/
• https://twitter.com/Mayamiko_
• https://www.facebook.com/MayamikoTheLabel
• https://uk.pinterest.com/mayamiko/
• https://www.instagram.com/mayamikodesigned/
• https://www.instagram.com/paola_ohlala/?hl=en

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

Every business owner will tell you that entrepreneurship is hard and it takes time. Rarely do you find a "silver bullet" or the thing that leads to your "overnight success." Most overnight successes are really 5, 10, 30, 50 years in the making. Nothing happens overnight, especially in the fashion industry. My guest today has spent the last 15 years growing an incredible ethical fashion brand that is changing lives, and changing trends. Belinda Kazanci is the founder of Bel Kazan, and ethical women's wear brand made with modern women in mind: Empowered, adventurous, independent spirits. Belinda started Bel Kazan after a life-changing journey to Bali, Indonesia. From the delicate flower offerings that lined the streets to their vibrant textiles and joyful spirits, she felt an unparalleled sense of inspiration among the people of Bali. It was then that Belinda decided to uproot her life in Los Angeles, determined to make her vision of a socially and environmentally responsible apparel line real. I can't wait to share Belinda with the Business with Purpose listeners!

3:52 - The Belinda 101

• Belinda Kazanci is the owner and designer of the brand Bel Kazan, that specializes in women's clothing made from original prints in Bali and uses sustainable and environmental practices. The goal is that the Bel Kazan garments have minimal impact on the environment.
• Belinda and Bel Kazan have been in business for 15 + years now! They built their own factory in Bali from the ground up and have been training women and men from villages in skilled training like sewing, quality control, and more. They've been slowly growing their business through this skills training program.
• Belinda has been a singer and songwriter all of her life. She has always been doing music, and she felt like her only other creative outlet was through fashion. Her family comes from the textile business in Istanbul, which is also where Belinda was born. Much like music, she's been around textiles her whole life.
• Textiles and creative expression through clothing has always been an interest of Belinda's, but she never thought it would take off into a career. In 2005, she took a course with the Landmark Forum where she met a woman who spoke about her business in Bali. She and Belinda connected after the talk and that's how Belinda was introduced to the manager she has now.
• After their initial conversation, Belinda booked trip to Bali within two weeks! She fell in love with the people, the culture, the textiles, and she started sewing her own designs with help from local women along the way. Slowly, it turned into an independent business with its own factory!
• And before all of this, Belinda was already a singer-songwriter who grew up playing jazz flute, singing in choirs, and was even in a band called The Echo Cell, and played all over Los Angeles for many years! She's also written and created albums as well as worked on a few TV show and written songs for film.
• All of Belinda's grandparents were in the textile business. They sold and purchased textiles, and both of her grandmothers were also seamstresses who made beautiful clothes for her and her mom growing up. Her parents own a dry cleaning and alterations business. It taught Belinda about how style, how care for fabric as well as production and purchasing.

11:18 – It's Going to Be Successful

• The timing of the Landmark Course aligned with where Belinda was in her life, and she left feeling like anything was possible. She was ready for a change, and she fell in love with Bali. She was like a sponge, learning about the culture and getting to know people around her. She really felt a warm welcome from the people there.
• She also started falling in love with culture, textile, and colors. Belinda wanted to find a way to bring two worlds together while modernizing the textiles but also keeping their cultural feel.
• The plan was never an intentional move toward big production. Everything started very small scale, and even with their own factory now, is still relatively small.
• Belinda uses what she calls a "lean production model" which means each order is "cut to order." When an order is placed, the garment is then cut, sewn, made, and shipped. Having their own factory allows Bel Kazan the luxury of not having to meet minimum order requirements.
• Reducing waste has always been a value of Bel Kazan, but they also now look at what fabrics are sustainable, garment wearability, their impact on the environment, and more. All garment cuttings are upcycled and donated to villages that need baby and kids clothing.

22:33 – 15 Years, Humble Beginnings, Calculated Risk

• There's a statistic that most business fail within the first 18 months. Belinda is now 15 years in with Bel Kazan. I mentioned that things start small with Bel Kazan, but go all the way back to the beginning and it started even more humbly with no investments and $1,500 that was borrowed, and run in a garage while Belinda continued working full time.
• Slow strategic growth and minimizing spending helped Belinda and Bel Kazan get off the ground, as does continued awareness of the budget and spending carefully and conservatively, minimizing costs as much as possible.
• Taking risks and putting Bel Kazan out there has also truly paid off for Belinda. She'd always dreamed of having Bel Kazan garments in Anthropologie, so she had an artist in Bali paint a picture of the Anthropologie window with Bel Kazan dresses in the window. She shipped it to Anthropologie's buying office with samples of each dress.
• A year later, an Anthropologie representative contacted her to tell her that Anthropologie saw one of her pieces and a partnership formed. The store loves Bel Kazan prints and does a lot of exclusive pieces with them. It's been a great partnership with new projects starting regularly. A face mask partnership is on the way now!
• It's a great start to see a big fashion corporate company partnering with a sustainable brand. All the money made from masks with go toward helping Bel Kazan sewers and keeping them employed during Covid-19!

30:51 – Working Vision

• Belinda would love to see her prints in stores like HomeGoods. So many people compliment Bel Kazan prints (which are all created by Bel Kazan and copyrighted!) and ask for them on pillows and baby clothes.

32:07 – Getting to Know Our Guest

• Get to know some fun things about Belinda like who she'd choose to sit next to on a 13-hour flight to Bali, which of her pet peeves is the strangest, how she'd prove she's from the future if she could time travel 400 years into the past, and of course, what it means to Belinda to run a business with purpose!

Memorable Quotes:

8:21 - "Well it's a process, and even though I think one is writing a song and the other one is designing a garment, the process is very similar. There are different types of steps, but it's all about details and they all kind of work together."

19:04 - "What we can now do is, maybe (if) we have some fabric left over, we can rework that fabric into a new style so it's not just wasted."

About Belinda Kazanci and BEL KAZAN:

ORIGINS

Behind every collection is designer Belinda Kazanci, who started BEL KAZAN after a life-changing journey to Bali, Indonesia. From the delicate flower offerings that lined the streets to their vibrant textiles and joyful spirits, she felt an unparalleled sense of inspiration among the Balinese people. It was then that Belinda decided to uproot her life in Los Angeles, determined to make her vision of a socially and environmentally-responsible apparel line real.

Today her time is split between the BEL KAZAN production facility in Bali and her studio in Los Angeles. She is committed to giving back to the culture and people that gave her a renewed sense of purpose.

APPROACH

BEL KAZAN womenswear is made with modern women in mind: empowered, adventurous, independent spirits. Inspiration is taken from around the globe to create bold prints and effortless silhouettes that easily take wearers from day to night, and quickly become wardrobe staples. Every BEL KAZAN garment is crafted in our personally-constructed factory in Bali, using traditional techniques for an authentic, timeless feel. Learn more about our design process, fabric choices, and the art of creating each print by hand.

CONNECT HERE:

• https://www.belkazan.com/pages/about
• https://www.facebook.com/belkazan
• https://instagram.com/belkazan
• https://twitter.com/belkazan
• https://www.pinterest.com/belkazan/

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

When you were a kid, did you ever think about being an entrepreneur? For the women listening, what about you? Do you remember seeing examples of women in the workplace or starting and running large companies? My guest today realized there was a market for reaching, teaching and inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs: young girls. Brian Weisfeld has helped build a number of well known, billion dollar companies like IMAX and Coupons.com. He is also the founder and chief squad officer of The StartUp Squad, an initiative dedicated to helping girls reach their potential and follow their dreams, whatever their passion is. Brian lives in Silicon Valley with his wife and two daughters, and you can find out more information about him at BrianWeisfeld.com and https://www.thestartupsquad.com/

4:26 - The Brian 101

• Brian started and co-authored The Startup Squad to inspire girls to start their first businesses and start to think like an entrepreneur, with the thought that girls with an entrepreneurial mindset will be more successful in life, regardless of the path they choose.
• Brian grew up on Long Island, and spent four years in Ann Arbor, Michigan for undergrad, and lived and worked in New York City for most of his career, helping entrepreneurs and founders scale their businesses.
• In the early 1990s, the was part of a three-person team that bought IMAX when it was just being played in museums for educational purposes. His team realized that people were walking out of those theatres blown away by the experience. They saw beyond museums and thought about what might happen if comic book characters and action-packed movies were shown in IMAX.
• About 13 years ago, Brian moved from New York City to Silicon Valley to work at this chief operating officer of Coupons.com. After helping grow and scale that business, he wondered what company he might grow and scale next.
• At the time, Brian's oldest daughter was 8-years-old, and he watched her sell Girl Scout Cookies and charity bake sales with enthusiasm, but no knowledge of how to successfully market and sell a product (something as simple as telling them that the proceeds from the sales would go to charity).
• One Sunday morning while reading with his daughters, Brian was troubled by the marketing geared toward girls. It all talked down to girls, instead of lifting them up. In that moment, he decided to create a novel series to encourage girls to interest in entrepreneurship.
• Brian spent four years learning how to write and literally bought "Writing Children's Books for Dummies." It was four years of a crash course in writing with classes, self-educating, and hiring editors. He was eventually able to sign a three-book deal with Macmillan. The first two books in The Startup Squad series has been released, and the third will be released in May of 2021.

8:59 – A Pivot

• Brian has always been interested in business and how things work. It's safe to say entrepreneurship has been in his background, too. He was always interested in learning and he was fascinated by the success stories of people who built businesses from nothing.
• In undergrad, he studied business and had plans for law school. It was just what everyone did. He realized while it would have been a good education on how to think, it wouldn't give him the same knowledge that working for lawyers, accountants, and people in business would. After working for some time, he realized he wanted to build a company, which is what led him to the IMAX team.
• The first book is about four girls in 6th grade and their class is going on a field trip and needing to raise money for the trip. Each team must run a lemonade stand, and whichever team raises the most money gets special VIP perks on the trip. The girls have to figure out how to work together, and the narrative is light on business, and heavy on the social side, which appeals to girls in that age range.
• Each book gives lessons on business in the back of the book. There is a nonfiction section that refers to the story narrative with definitions of business terms and practical startup business tips. The back of each book also features an interview with a real-life girl entrepreneur. There is a contest each summer giving girls the opportunity to possibly be featured.

14:25 – The Startup Squad

• Brian new he wanted his books to be fiction, even though nonfiction would have been much easier to write! The thinking was never that every girl should grow up to be an entrepreneur, but that girls become comfortable with risk and failure and seeing them as opportunities instead of problems.
• Brian knew a girl who picked up a nonfiction book about starting a business already had the "business bug," but he wanted to do fiction to appeal to a wider audience. He knew a "story first" approach would get through more than a nonfiction educational book.
• The Startup Squad is "girl targeted but boy inclusive." The book is for boys too! It's just as important for boys to read about girls being entrepreneurs as it is for girls! The reality is there are not as many examples of female entrepreneurs and business is modeled for boys much more that it is for girls.
• Brian advises kids who are selling items to benefit a charity to not set a price, but just tell people what charity the proceeds go to, and people often give more than the price of the item the kids are selling.

23:36 – The World Through My Daughter's Eyes

• When seeing what reading materials was available to his daughters made Brian want there to be more of a balance and more empowering material. All he was finding for them was books about princesses and fairy tales.
• Fairy tales can be great for imagination but may not have the same impact as stories of women who have endeavored toward their own business goals. Not ever book needs a lesson, but it hit Brian that there was no balance of both options.
• Brian notices a lot more by hearing the experiences of his daughters. Something as simple as soccer cleat selections in the store were communicating to his oldest daughter that she can't have things she likes – like the turquoise cleats because they only come in boy's shoe sizes.
• Brian wanted to see more role models for his girls that show them they can do whatever they want. When a message starts to be repeated over and over again, it becomes ingrained. Brian set out to make sure his daughters and other girls could find the empowering messages too.

30:40 – The Startup Squad Parts Two and Three

• The second book in the series features Harriett, one of the four girls from the first book. She's in a rock band with her brothers and the girls take over merchandising for the band. The lessons focus on negotiation, customer service, pricing, and the differences between revenue and profit. It's introduced in a tangible, relatable and age-appropriate message vetted by children entrepreneurship experts.

• The third book that comes out in May features the story of Didi, who is very artistic and starts creating wedding calligraphy for someone who is getting married. The party planner gets sick, so The Startup Squad comes together to take care of putting the wedding together for the couple. It focuses on girls discovering finding their passions and what they enjoy doing in business.

35:22 – Getting to Know Our Guest

• Find out what Brian would eat if he had to eat the same meal for dinner every night for the rest of his life, what his favorite TV show was growing up,

I am so excited to share The Startup Squad with you! Thank you, Brian, for creating a better balance of resources for empowering and encouraging young girls in entrepreneurship. You can find more about The Startup Squad series HERE and check to see if an independent, local bookstore carries the first book, The Startup Squad, and Face the Music. You can also find the books from Amazon, Target, Barnes & Noble, Book A Million, and Bookshop. Be sure to mark your calendars for the release of the third book, Party Problems, on May 4th,2021!

Memorable Quotes

8:26 – "This was going to be different from anything I've ever done before. This was going to be harder, I was going to fail, I was taking a lot of risk…I had to get comfortable with failing more than I had in a long time."

15:15 – "The thinking here is not that every girl should grow up to be an entrepreneur, but that girls who run that first lemonade stand and get comfortable with risk and failure and see opportunities instead of problems, they're going to be more successful in life if they have that skillset…"

16:10 – The way The Startup series works is that it's a novel. It's been described as The Babysitters Club meets Lean In."

19:50 – "Seeing the world through my daughters' eyes has really changed the way I view things."

About Brian Weisfeld:

Brian Weisfeld has helped build a number of well-known billion-dollar companies including IMAX Corporation and Coupons.com. He is the Founder and Chief Squad Officer of The Startup Squad, an initiative dedicated to helping girls reach their potential and follow their dreams, whatever their passions. Brian lives in Silicon Valley with his wife and two daughters. You can check out thestartupsquad.com for more info.

Praise for The Startup Squad

"An inspiring story about entrepreneurial girls."—Ann M. Martin, author of the Baby-Sitters Club series

"The Startup Squad encourages girls to dream big, work hard, and rely on each other to make good things happen. It teaches them how to succeed—and reminds all of us that girls mean business!"—Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org and OptionB.Org

"A great read that is fast-paced, fun, and empowering. The Startup Squad comes complete with a treasure trove of tips for starting a business." —Katherine Applegate, Newbery Medal-winning author of The One and Only Ivan

About The Startup Squad:

Girls mean business in Brian Weisfeld and Nicole C. Kear's Face the Music, the second novel in The Startup Squad series about friendship and entrepreneurship, featuring how-to business tips and a profile of a real-life girl CEO in every book!

Harriet's brothers' band, the Radical Skinks, are hoping to enter a local battle of the bands. Winning could get them on a reality TV show! But low funds have left them without the right equipment.

The Startup Squad jumps into action! Harriet, Resa, Didi, and Amelia quickly pull together to sell T-shirts to raise money for the band. It's a great plan, until everything starts to go wrong. From ruined T-shirts, to musicians with stage fright, and money mishaps, these tasks aren't easy. The Startup Squad will have to focus on each member's strengths and act like a team in order to get their business back into the groove.

About Mary Marantz:

Mary grew up in a single-wide trailer in rural West Virginia. The first of her immediate family to go to college, she went on to earn a law degree from the nation's top-ranked law school, Yale. After ditching six-figure-salary law firm offers in London and New York, she started a business with her husband, Justin. Together they have built a successful online education platform for creative entrepreneurs. She is also the host of the highly ranked and popular podcast The Mary Marantz Show. Just YESTERDAY, Mary released her first book, "Dirt: Growing Strong Roots in What Makes the Broken Beautiful,". She lives in an 1880s fixer-upper by the sea in New Haven, Connecticut, with her husband, Justin and their two very fluffy golden retrievers, Goodspeed and Atticus.

Connect with Mary Marantz:

• https://marymarantz.com/
• https://www.instagram.com/marymarantz/
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/marymarantzshow/
• https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

How to Get Started Shopping Ethically | Business with Purpose Podcast EP 210

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One of the most common questions I get asked on a regular basis is "How do I get started shopping ethically?" It is easily the most common question I get asked. Today I wanted to answer that question. Normally each week I interview someone like an entrepreneur, CEO, non-profit director, community leader, or just an incredible person who is trying to make a positive impact, not only with their personal life, but also with their career. My goal is to show you that no matter what you do for a living, you can make an impact wherever you are. But this week is episode 210 which means it's time for another solo episode, and I have some questions that many of you submitted that I will be answering today!

2:52 - Why is it important to shop ethically?

• We're not just talking about shopping ethically because it's cool or trendy, it's because it really does make a difference.
• Not only are you providing actual wages, skills, and safe options to real people, you're telling other companies that these things matter, that money talks.

4:44 – Do I need to get rid of all my stuff?

• No! Don't feel like you have to get rid of everything you've bought previously that isn't ethical. If you want to "Marie Kondo" your stuff, I have talked about ways you can ethically dispose of the things that may no longer "spark joy" for you.
  • You can find that information on Episode 130

5:27 – Which category is "most effective?" Is there a particular item that has a better or bigger impact than others? For example, should I start with ethical denim vs. ethical jewelry?

• There are a few ways to look at this. At the end of the day, it's more about intentional, little by little choices and understanding what your morals or your values add up to. If you're somebody who wants to shop ethically and you're also environmentally conscious, ethical denim may be a great place for you to start.
• When I started shopping ethical brands, it was also important for me to look for companies making a difference in the area of human trafficking. I started with companies working directly to combat human trafficking by supporting human trafficking overcomers.
• You have to figure out what is an area that you really care about, or a topic you want to really tackle.
• Another place to start is taking a look at what products you already purchase in greater quantities. Start with that product. If you love shoes, you can start by changing out which types of shoes you buy and the companies you by shoes from. It could be beauty, or skincare, or jewelry, not only for the environment, but for clean ingredients as well.

8:20 – Shopping Ethically on a budget

• I have another podcast episode on this exact topic, Episode 120, which is all about tips for shopping ethically on a budget. The short answer is YES! You can shop ethically on a budget. Shopping second-hand is arguably the most ethical way to shop and it's really affordable. Check out Episode 120 for a more in-depth look at this and 6 tips for shopping ethically on a budget.

8:59 – How do I know that a brand is really ethical? How do I know they're not just "greenwashing?"

• Would you believe I have another episode about that? Episode 110 also goes into this topic of how to tell if a brand is truly ethical.
• When in doubt, always contact the company. Reach out and ask specific questions like whether or not they have a 3rd party auditor, where they manufacture, what kinds of auditing they do of their factories, whether they work with certified organic material, if they monitor where they source their materials from, how they check their supply chains, etc.
• There are very specific questions you can ask companies. If they can't give you a definitive answer, there may be reasons for a little bit of a red flag.
• There are brands that green wash and lie about these things, but you can do your due diligence to not shop with them. We will make mistakes along the way, but this is about progress, not perfection. Little by little, these choices really do add up.

10:39 – How do I get my family or husband on board?

• This question came up a lot! My husband and I have talked about this on the podcast. I have so many conversations with him about shopping ethically that he understands that I am passionate about it, though he may not be as passionate about is as I am.
• He also has very different buying habits than I do and only shops for himself once, maybe twice a year at the most. He buys something and wears it until it is hanging on by a thread. That's an ethical way to shop too.
• There are areas he's also changing his own buying habits. He'll check with me when he needs to purchase something. Just recently he needed some new gym socks and asked me if I knew of an ethical company where he could purchase his new gym socks. Turns out those are now his favorite gym socks and he wants to order from that company all the time now.
• Having a conversation and communication is key. Understand that there are times when husbands might just not be on board and it might take time.
• I also watched the Netflix documentary called "The True Cost" with my husband, which opened up an opportunity for us to have a conversation around these topics as well.
• I talk about this stuff with my kids all the time. My daughter is 7 and my son is 4. My son doesn't really understand yet, but my daughter does. Now she'll ask me if a company is ethical and she can understand and discuss it with me to an extent.
• There are age appropriate ways to have these conversations with these kids and explain why we care about the planet and other people. You can explain that there are children their age that have to work in factories to make toys and that kids their age shouldn't have to do that. It's a great way to open a conversation about ways we can advocate for those children.

15:52 - How do have these conversations with my teenagers?

• Since I don't have teenagers (yet), I reached out to a friend of mine who has a teenager who is the type of young woman I hope my daughter grows up to be like. I asked her mom how she got Emma on board with this.
• Her teenager's nature is to want to make sure that no one is hurt. It steers her away from wanting anything not ethically made. It's important for other parents to find out what their teens care about. Emma cares about dogs and small children, so it upsets her to hear that children are working instead of going to school. She hates bullying, so they talk about how trafficking and the unethical treatment of people is related to bullying.
• It's about finding what your teen cares about and help them see how it might relate to unethical practices in business.

17:25 – Is it ethical to wait to shop an ethical company only when they run sales?

• There's likely a variety of opinions on this but in general I would say no. Brands (especially ethical brands) that run sales typically do so to clear out previous seasons or older products to make room for new products.
• The majority of the businesses I know that run sales run them very intentionally so that there is still a way for them to pay artisans. When they have excess inventory, they've already paid the artisans in full, but simply need to clear the shop to make way for new product.
• Sales can also be a gateway for people who want to shop ethically, but don't have the opportunity to do so when items are full price.

19:31 – How long did it take you to transition to shopping ethically?

• I started this process back in 2011 and bit by bit, slowly started to change my buying habits. It's not something I overhauled overnight and became an expert in. I'm constantly learning, changing, and adjusting. It's become a process.
• You don't have to change everything or learn everything overnight. It really can be a little by little intentional process each day.

20:37 - Do you always shop ethically for everything?

• The answer is, of course not. I'm sure there are people who do, but to shop ethically 100% of the time would be very difficult. I'd love to get there one day.
• If I can't buy it from an ethical company, I'll try to buy it second hand. If I can't buy it from an ethical company or second hand, I'll try to find a local small business to buy from.
• I also try to choose the lesser of the two evils if I can't find it ethically, second hand, or from a local small business. I love Target, and they've actually made big strides in partnering with IJM (International Justice Mission) to help illuminate labor traffic and have started supplying from ethical brands like their fair trade denim line.
• Sometimes there may not be an ethical option. My daughter is obsessed with Barbie this year. I was able to find some items second hand. I felt OK knowing that whatever Barbie brand items we buy for her will be well-loved and used for years and years to come until we pass it along to another family to use.
• My goal is not to judge other peoples choices, but decide which ones are the right fit for me and for my family and share the information so that others can make the right choices for their family.

22:47 – Additional Resources

• You can follow my journal toward ethical shopping on my blog and social media:
  • You can find me on all social media networks: @stillbeingmolly and @businesswithpurposepodcast
  • You can find more episodes on these topics at my website stillbeingmolly.com as well as my Ethical Brand Directory.
  • You can also join my Purpose with Purpose Facebook Group to continue learning more about shopping more ethically and intentionally.

Memorable Quotes

3:44 - "When you buy from a company like a fair-trade company or a small business, you really are making an actual difference…one small purchase might be worth 10 hours of dignified work."

7:10 - "I think that for you, you have to figure out what is an area that you really care about? What is a topic that you really want to tackle?"

10:28 – "Will we make mistakes? Yes. But this is about grace, not perfection. Progress not perfection. Little by little, these choices really do add up."

18:31 - "The majority of the businesses that I know that run sales, run them very intentionally and so it really is an opportunity for them to pay their artisans…at the end of the day, the artisan is still getting paid their full wage…"

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

After 2 years of global impact, Simple Switch is raising money to grow the company and make ethical shopping our new normal. You can learn more about that campaign at IGG.me/simple-switch

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

All of us have something in our lives that we might feel embarrassed by, or something that has happened to us that gives us a feeling of shame or something in our past that is holding us back. There are times where these negative thoughts come into our head and we feel like we're not worthy enough or capable; maybe that we're not even worth loving. My guest today is an incredible woman of faith who is trying to change that narrative to let women know that they are so worth loving. My guest this week is Eryn Eddy, the founder of So Worth Loving, a lifestyle clothing brand bridging the gap between not talking about self-worth and talking about it. Eryn began her clothing brand as a refuge. She needed to be present with other people's stories before she could be truly present with her own. "Divorce broke me" said Eryn. "My heart had to be shattered in order to see the hole that God wanted to fill all along. I resisted accepting or believing that God could love me so recklessly and beautifully. The enemy watches our vulnerabilities and uses his findings against us, but God always brings beauty back in." Eryn is releasing her debut book in January 2021, and she is the cohost of the new podcast, God Hears Her, which launched back in May. The podcast is for Christian women seeking friends to come alongside them in the hurts, joys, and struggles of the everyday. This conversation was so refreshing. There is an air and spirit about Eryn that is just filled with joy and peace, and I felt in so many ways that it was for me, but I know it was for so many of you listening too.

4:34 - The Eryn 101

• Eryn comes from a line of self-starting entrepreneurs. Her parents manufactured furniture for 45 years, and Eryn now owns a clothing company and lifestyle brand called So Worth Loving. So Worth Loving bridges the gap between not talking about struggles of identity and self-worth and talking about it. Eryn started So Worth Loving a little over 9 years ago with no intention of starting a company.
• Eryn did not go to college and had no idea what she wanted to do with her career. She started working in ministry for an organization called Orange working her way up from no experience. While at Orange, the owner asked Eryn what she wanted to do with her life. Eryn thought she'd found her path working at Orange but when asked again about what she wanted to do, she couldn't come up with an answer.
• Eryn realized that for a lot of her life she'd just been reactionary and never thought too far beyond whatever her circumstances were at any given time. After considering her boss' question some more, Eryn thought he wanted to pursue music and dove in headfirst.
• Jumping full speed ahead into a passion you're excited about often makes us vulnerable to other people questioning your ability to do it. Eryn saw a good amount of success with her music finding its way to commercials and TV shows. Everything happened quickly. In that time, Eryn wanted to create something to support the people who supported her music.
• Eryn felt that the people who loved her music were more like friends than family. They were not admiring her art from the outside, but they were actually making it happen. Eryn decided to create t-shirts for free and get this – they included her HOME ADDRESS!
• Luckily no one showed up at Eryn's house, but they did sent her their t-shirts to her to spray paint and send back to them. Many included letters with stories of why they struggled with self-worth and wrestle with believing they are worth of love. It was then that Eryn realized this was about so much more than just her music.

10:10 – An Important Conversation

• We all struggle with self-worth at one time or another, but our society is not well-equipped to face and discuss it. Part of Eryn's story includes her divorce while she was building and growing So Worth Loving.
• When Eryn started So Worth Loving and began hearing other people's stories, she noticed after her divorce that she had not been paying attention to her own story. She was carrying the weight of what other people had been going through and was not as present in her own life.
• As So Worth Loving grew, the company was shipping to all 50 states and did everything in- house, and Eryn started experiencing burnout. It wasn't until her divorce that she started to realize she'd been trying to find her self-worth in the wrong places.
• The hardships of shame and the divisions that can come with divorce left Eryn questioning whether she was enough and if she was worth to be loved again. At that time, Eryn decided to take about a year and a half off from So Worth Loving so spend time on herself and work for another organization.
• Historically, the church has not been great with responding to divorce or people who experience divorce. Divorce has a stigma and we're uncomfortable with it because we don't talk about it and don't know how to talk about it. Stigmas are divisive. Eryn experienced a lot of divisive questions from people in the church during and after her divorce.
• Eryn decided that it was not up to her to fight her battles, it was God who she would let fight her battles, including the misrepresentation of who God is through wrong comments from people in the church. That didn't mean it was easy, but God did fight Eryn's battles and it strengthened her relationship with God.

18:33 – Encouragement if you are in the midst of a marriage crisis 20:41 –Book Resources: How To Survive the Loss of a Love and Option B, and The Soul of Shame 21:50 – To friends and family members of someone who is going through a divorce and some ways to love someone going through a divorce. 29:49 – So Worth Loving & God Hears Her

• Eryn's book launches in January of 2021 and it's called So Worth Loving: How Discovering Your True Value Changes Everything. It's a formal journal where Eryn shares about her wrestling with who God is, her questions, mistakes, and journey to understanding her value. You can preorder wherever books are sold!
• Eryn also launched a podcast in May called God Hears Her and cohosts the show with Elisa Morgan. The two share personal stories of hope and encouragement. True freedom comes from sharing our journeys and knowing we're not alone. Be sure to subscribe!

36:28 – Hear more about So Worth Loving, how it has evolved through the last 9 years and what the organization is doing today. They also provide valuable and helpful resources on their So Worth Living page.

38:01 – Getting to Know Our Guest

• Find out about one of Eryn's unusual talents, who she'd most like to sit next to on a 16-hour flight, what her hype song would be, who she'd choose to play her in a movie about her life, and what it means to her to run a business with purpose.

Memorable Quotes

12:09 – "When I went through my divorce, I had to go through a dismantling to see where I found my self-worth. I was finding it in my finances, I was finding it in the growth of my business, I was finding it being in a relationship, I was finding it in the communities I was around, I was finding it in the network that I had."

12:31- "Anybody who's listening has experienced divorce, they know that it is a death and the person is still there. You lose friends, you get a Scarlett letter immediately, especially in the Christian community, there's a lot of shame, and people pick sides. And so all of that definitely played a part in my wrestling with 'Am I enough? Am I worthy to love? Am I worth to be loved again?' "

17:32 – "At the end of the day, I knew the Lord would fight it and He did and I am so glad because it was an opportunity for me to develop a deeper intimacy with Him."

20:35 – "You are worthy to be taken care of."

Eryn is the founder and CEO of So Worth Loving, a lifestyle clothing brand. Since starting in 2011, she's grown her company to include customers in all fifty states and in thirty countries, and the company is still going strong. She and her work have been featured on CNN and MSNBC, as well as Southern Living and Atlanta Magazine. This creative enjoys oil painting and singing, and she's even had her music featured on MTV and VH1. Eryn is also an author and a speaker, and she calls Atlanta home. Connect with Eryn Eddy:

• https://www.eryneddy.com/
• https://www.eryneddy.com/soworthloving
• https://www.facebook.com/iamErynEddy/
• https://twitter.com/ErynEddy
• http://instagram.com/eryneddy
• https://soworthloving.com/
• http://instagram.com/soworthloving
• http://facebook.com/soworthloving
• http://twitter.com/soworthloving

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com.

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

After 2 years of global impact, Simple Switch is raising money to grow the company and make ethical shopping our new normal. You can learn more about that campaign at IGG.me/simple-switch

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

There's a lot of debate these days around the topic of masks…no, I'm not talking about Covid masks right now, I'm talking about the proverbial masks that a lot of us put on. Maybe we are putting on a mask that says that we think we're perfect or our life hasn't been hard, or maybe we're hiding things in our past. Those masks can be so dangerous, but when we begin to remove those masks to reveal the deep layers of truth within us, that's when we really come alive. My guest this week is Ashley Abercrombie, a writer, speaker, and author of the book Rise of the Truth Teller: Own Your Story, Tell It Like It Is, and Live with Holy Gumption. She's also the cohost of the hilarious and helpful podcast, Why, Tho? and can be found basically wherever there is a coffee or a cheese board. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two sons. I had the absolute best conversation with Ashley. When I met her, I knew she was my kind of person. With no further ado, join me to hear more about Ashley and her mission.

6:00 – The Ashley Abercrombie 101

• Ashley is an author, speaker, and podcaster. When she was 21, she moved from the small town of Eden, North Carolina to Los Angeles where she met her husband and they had their first baby. Four years ago, they moved to Manhattan and had their second baby. Not long after, they realized how much they missed their home in California and decided it was time to move back to their beloved community there.
• Ashley has been writing since she was her little girl. Her best-selling author and chart-topping podcast were not overnight successes. Ashley has been writing since she was a little girl; hers has been a journey of 20 + years spent writing on lunch breaks, early in the morning, and late at night because she simply loves expressing herself through the written word.
• Writing has been a way for Ashley to process her own pain and serve the community around her. In her early 20s she became distracted from that calling and experienced a lot of pain, but was able to process it, recover, find her voice, and pursue writing and speaking full time.
• It took a long time for Ashley to understand how to put on her own oxygen mask first but take off her "performance" and "strong" mask to realize she couldn't be strong all the time, every day.
• Especially in the Christian sphere, we can act like we need to show up with everything clean and tidy and that we can't have messy stories, which is obviously a lie from the pit of hell.

11:36 – A Deep Wound, A Lifeline

• Growing up, Ashley and her brother spent a lot of time with their grandparents and great aunt while their parents worked. Ashley went to church with her great aunt every Sunday morning and brought flowers for the alter and opened the library for the pastor and church members. For Ashley, it represented a place where she could find respite and quiet from the noise of school and the hustle and bustle of trying to figure out everyday family life.
• When she was 16, Ashley decided to walk away from the faith community because as a teenager, she was struggling to relate to an older church crowd. At 21, while living in Los Angeles, Ashley came back to the church in one of her most broken moments. She found a community where she was loved and not judged.
• So many people grow up in the church but walk away from it at a young age, wrestling with their faith and what church looks like as an adult. We can absolutely be constantly wrestling with God and asking hard questions.
• There is so much shame around difficult conversations. Often the church makes judgements or avoids these conversations all together. The silence of shame became unbearable for Ashley and becoming more an more isolated worry what people would think about her but knowing she couldn't tackle her struggles on her own.
• She started asking God where He was. One day she took a drive around Raleigh, NC and it started to storm. She started shouting at God and as she did, she felt flooded by the love the Holy Spirit had for her. She'd never experienced anything like it before, especially since she thought she had to have everything right before she could be loved by God.
• It was the first time she admitted to herself that she couldn't hold things together, and certainly not on her own. It's when she started to take the mask off and stopped caring what people thought about her.

21:30 – Leading with Story

• Recover communities lead with stories. The first thing you hear when you go to a meeting is other people's stories. They also helped Ashley realize the things from her childhood that affected her as an adult.
• Ashley leads with stories in her book, the way she learned in recovery. It's connective and teaches us that we're not perfect. We don't have to wear masks all the time, performing for each other.
• For the first time in her life, Ashley started to read the Bible and listen to sermons. She realized in the church she was fed a "victory narrative," but when she took time to examine the lives of people in the Bible, she realized their lives were very hard and began to identify with the imperfection she was finally learning about.
• The Bible makes room for ALL people from all walks on life on all different journeys. Ashley realized she could finally stop trying to be perfect all the time because victories never came from easy times in the Bible. God uses imperfect, flawed people with imperfect, flawed stories.
• These biblical stories were literally the foundation of our faith and God's plan! The more we own the dark parts of the story, the more healing it is for others who have parts of their stories they feel shame over.
• It's easy for our shame to creep back in even in the midst of owning our stories in their entirety. God doesn't lead us with shame or guilt or holding our past over our heads. We may have to reconcile our pasts, but you can identify that shame is not from God. It is not how we would speak to ourselves or anyone we love.
• We're often expected in our cultures and societies to stay inside certain boundaries and stay in our little boxes. If we branch out from this, we're told to get back in line. This is especially true for women in our culture. The reality of integrity is a deep commitment to being who we are, even when we're working toward improving our lives.

32:47 – Consequences

• We can made mistakes and find freedom in forgiveness and repentance, but there may still be consequences to our actions. Even when David repents and has been forgiven, God tells him he will still have to face the consequences of what he did.
• When we're brave enough to take off our masks and make mistakes and try again and do our best and be honest with our story, we give others the courage to do the same. We are supposed to value people as made in the image of God. It creates community here on earth as God designed it when we drop our performance narratives and allow our real stories to come through.

37:30 – Faith and Justice

• Ashley is passionate about social justice, fighting human-trafficking, and initiatives against mass incarceration. There's a huge relationship between faith and justice and for many people in the world right now, they are waking up to it for the first time.
• Justice is the heart of God and goes hand to hand with righteousness in scripture. There is never a way we can hate our neighbor but say we love God. We can't divorce our love of God from love of neighbor.
• When Ashley really started listening to people's stories, she finally started to understand how unjust our systems are. God invites us to learn His ways in a relationship with Him that includes humanity. We must hold people and systems accountable to right damages and injustice that they create, which includes letting them feel the consequences of those actions.
• God has a lot to say about injustice, over 300 scriptures as a matter of fact. We are to create righteous communities and connections, valuing all people in God's image.

51:06 – A Prayer

• As we navigate the rest of the 2020, Ashley's prayer for the world and for herself is that this would be a time for us to lean into what the Spirit says.

54:00 - Getting to Know Our Guest

• Find out what Ashley's professional athlete hype song would be, how she'd prove she's from the future if she could time travel, what she thinks we'll be nostalgic for in 40 years, and a few of her guilty pleasures. Be sure to stay tuned to find out what it means to Ashley to run a business with purpose.

(So Many) Memorable Quotes

10:26 "I believe that I have a voice and that it's important that I use it. I believe that about every person, no matter our sphere of influence. I believe that God has created us so uniquely to speak and that we live in this very wild world that is looking for hope and looking for grace and looking for more nuance than our news narratives and social media narratives allow us to have."

10:59 "I didn't know how to let people in I didn't know how to say, 'I have needs too,' and I just thought I could always be the fixer or the advisor, the one people came to, the strong one…you realize that falls apart at some point. I'm not strong all the time."

11:19 "I had to go on a real journey of taking off my mask and getting real and stop pretending and performing and learn how to be in real relationship with people. We can be loved even though we're broken."

14:58 - "I'm still unlearning some of the things [in the church] that are cultural and not biblical. Even though I've been hurt in the church, and I think if you're human you have and the church is not perfect (it has imperfect people in it), overall I really do love that gathering and the corporate worship, and being together."

15:27 - "For me in some ways the church has been a deep wound, but it's also been a lifeline."

22:27 – "I have come to a place where I value so much more, integrity over image."

23:32 "I really began to identify, and I began to allow myself to be imperfect because that is all I saw in the scripture … imperfection."

"The bible is so diverse and rich. It makes room for people. It makes room for people of all colors, all shapes, all sizes, all backgrounds, and I just began to cultivate a life that did that too."

35:59 – "When you meet a free person, you feel free to speak…when you see a brave person stand up against injustice, it makes you feel brave. It makes you feel like there's a normal person doing the right thing, so I can be a normal person doing the right thing instead of pretending this thing doesn't exist."

"Our courage gives others courage. Our vulnerability allows space for vulnerability for others. Our love for humanity cultivates diversity, equity, opportunities for people to be together and I think that's really what we're here for."

39:23 – "Justice is just not a trend. It's the very heart of God. Justice and righteousness are present together in scripture."

About Ashley Abercrombie:

Ashley is a speaker and writer, whose work has been featured in various magazines and digital outlets, including Darling, OprahMag.com, Relevant, and Grit and Virtue. She is the author of Rise of the Truth Teller: Own Your Story, Tell it Like it is, and Live with Holy Gumption, and her YouVersion devotional, Finding God in the Hard Places, has been completed by over 250,000 people. Ashley is the co-host, alongside Tiffany Bluhm, of the hilarious and helpful podcast — Why Tho.

For more than 15 years, she has worked in non-profit spaces, leading faith-based initiatives, serving as a prison chaplain and pastor, and speaking at conferences, churches, and events. Ashley has an unrelenting passion for justice, particularly anti-human trafficking and mass incarceration initiatives, and serves as the Executive Board Chair of Treasures, a non-profit that reaches and supports women in the sex industry, and victims of sexual exploitation. Ashley and her husband, Cody officiate a lot of weddings, leading couples through premarital counseling, and are developing a curriculum and course to help people prepare for marriage.

Born and raised in the Southeast of America, Ashley has called Los Angeles and Manhattan home, so she's got a little southern, east coast, west coast twang. Ashley currently resides in Los Angeles, raising two boys by the pool, with her husband and beloved Nespresso machine.

Connect with Ashley:

• https://www.ashabercrombie.org/
• https://www.instagram.com/ashabercrombie/
• https://www.facebook.com/ashleyabercrombienyc
• https://twitter.com/AshAbercrombie
• https://www.pinterest.com/ashabercrombie/

Thank you to our partners of the show: Ammas Umma

Did you know I have an ethical brand directory? That's what Chelsea used to start finding products for her boutique almost four years ago! Now, Amma's Umma carries over 50 intentionally sourced brands and is the perfect one stop shop for all your gift giving needs. As a thank you to the Still Being Molly community, she is offering 20% off with code SHOPWITHMOLLY for the month of August. Head to shopwithmolly.com for all the details.

GOEX

At GOEX, we believe in the power of purchase. We use a simple t-shirt to connect our customers with their apparel makers. GOEX customers sustain fair wage jobs that liberate workers from poverty and empower them in their families and communities. We are proud to be a verified member of the Fair Trade Federation. Shop sustainable, eco-friendly t-shirts and sweatshirts with purpose today at goexapparel.com. (Clocked at :26)

Simple Switch

I want to introduce you all to a company I believe in that helps you more conveniently purchase with purpose, SimpleSwitch.org

Simple Switch is an online marketplace for ethical and impactful shopping. They let you shop online for more than 3,000 products ranging from everyday essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to special gifts like journals or jewelry. Every product has a positive environmental or social impact, like planting trees or fighting human trafficking.

Simple Switch is offering a discount exclusively for our listeners. Check out the marketplace on simpleswitch.org and get 20% off your first order with code PURCHASEWITHPURPOSE at checkout!

After 2 years of global impact, Simple Switch is raising money to grow the company and make ethical shopping our new normal. You can learn more about that campaign at IGG.me/simple-switch

The Lemonade Boutique

This episode is sponsored by The Lemonade Boutique, a women's clothing with a cause store. Featuring ethically made and fair trade items from over 10 countries, every item is made by women facing extreme challenges such as trafficking, poverty, and more. Your purchase empowers women to take life's lemons and make lemonade. Shop at THELemonadeBoutique.com. Listeners of the Business with Purpose Podcast can save 15% by using code PURPOSE15 at checkout.

How the Enneagram is a Tool with Purpose | Business with Purpose Podcast EP 207: Ian Morgan Cron

Ever since I was a little kid, I remember being fascinated by personality quizzes. I remember being in elementary school and taking my first Myers Briggs test, and just learning how my friends scored so differently on so many things. It was really a point where I learned that we are all so different with how we view the world and interact with the world. A few years ago, I discovered the Enneagram, I just loved the way that this particular personality tool really helped ignite a better understanding within myself of how I view the world and how my friends and family view the world. Well get ready ya'll, because today, I've got THE Enneagram guy on the show. Ian Morgan Cron is a best-selling author, psychotherapist, Enneagram teacher, Episcopal priest, and the host of the popular podcast, TYPOLOGY. His books include the novel, Chasing Francis, the spiritual memoir, Jesus, My Father, the CIA, and Me, and the Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery. Know for his transparency, humor, and depth of insight into the inner workings of the human heart and mind, Ian uses the Enneagram personality typing system as a tool to help leaders cultivate self-awareness and emotional wisdom. He is a sought-after speaker, thinker, and advisor to a growing roster of clients such as The Discovery Channel, Ramsey Solutions, Michael Hyatt Company, Warner Bros., among others. He and his wife Ann have three kids and live in Nashville, TN. I was so honored to have Ian on the show! I'm a huge Enneagram nerd, and have followed his work for quite some time. You're going to love this conversation! Join me to hear more about Ian and his journey of cultivating self-knowledge that is equipping so many people with the tools to understand themselves and interact well with the world and the people in it.

5:04 – The Ian 101

• Ian has been married to Ann for 31 years and they have three adult children and he's also dad to two of the most perfect dogs in the world, Percy and Pipp. 😊
• When people ask Ian what he does, he says he has a portfolio life. He does a little bit of everything as a writer, speaker, trained psychotherapist, trained spiritual director, Episcopal priest, and a double award-winning songwriter!
• When Ian really started giving into his career he had such a variety of interests and thought he was vocationally confused because he wanted to do so many things. He realized all of his interests led back to one ultimate goal of helping people better understand themselves, their spirituality, the world, and the people around them.
• So many of us can relate to Ian's feelings of questioning our purpose, our careers, our interests, our relationships, and how they all intertwine and interact.
• Ian first came across the Enneagram in 1992 while on a Catholic retreat monastery in Colorado and came across the monastery's library where he found a book by Richard Roar on the Enneagram. At the time he was getting a master's in psychology. He sat down and started reading where in the world this book had been in all his studies. It was practical psychology mixed with spirituality, and Ian thought it was a great tool.
• At the time Ian was busy with school and a young family, but the Enneagram was always in the back of his mind as something he wanted to pursue further. About 8 years ago, Ian decided he really wanted to throw himself into it and try to figure it out, especially because people were starting to talk about it more. He knew it could really help people since there are not a lot of books on the Enneagram that are not 500-pages long and overwhelming with information.

9:23 - Door to the Enneagram

• Ian wanted to find a way to bring the Enneagram to people in a way that would help them, but not overwhelm them. Ian now has so many tools to help bring the Enneagram to a wider audience through many platforms like his podcast, TYPOLOGY and his book, Road Back To You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery.
• Even as someone who has delved into the Enneagram, Ian can see that there is much more to life than the Enneagram and other sources of self-knowledge. Many people in their excitement to learn more about themselves nearly become obsessed with the Enneagram. Ian understands it as just one of many helpful tools to obtaining better self-awareness.
• It's important that when studying the Enneagram, that we realize that within each of the 9 types, there is an infinite variety of expressions of that type. No two people with the same type look identical. That may be part of the reason so many people are drawn to the Ennegram: it doesn't put people in boxes with a set "type."

13:54 – Enneagram in Business

• The Enneagram is gaining steam in the business world. Many corporations and non-profits are using it in their management and the way they are leading their teams. In the professional and workplace environment, Ian helps teams learn their types. They can begin to understand that their coworkers see the world differently and may be motivated by different things.
• The biggest mistakes leaders can make is to assume their way of seeing the world is what's normal. That puts them in jeopardy of seeing the ideas of others as wrong. When leaders and teams learn there are 9 "normals," it reduces conflict, improves collaboration, detoxifies cultures, improves retention and engagement and so on. It removes inefficiencies caused by personality differences.

17:38 – Enneagram in Unprecedented Times

• The Enneagram can be helpful as we collectively experience a global pandemic as well. We all experience and process this collective trauma differently. Using the Enneagram can help us support each other better during this time.
• Ian just completed a series on the Enneagram and stress, which is really about the Enneagram and stress in the time of Covid-19.
• Each type is going to have its own challenge and opportunities during this time. If you know your type well, you can cut the challenges off before they take over into reactivity and build on your strengths so you can love the people in your world that may not be handling this time as well.
• Knowing ourselves can help us to not judge how others are reacting to the coronavirus, and even prevent us for being too hard on ourselves in the way we are reacting as well. It helps us cultivate a healthy practice of compassion.
• Ian defines suffering as not being able to feel at home, ever. It's a dis-ease and it's important to remember we all experience it. It can arouse compassion and get yourself out of your own ego.

28:27 – Enneagram Stereotypes

• As the Enneagram has become more popular, you see it a lot in social media in the form of memes. It actually drives Ian crazy that there are Enneagram memes because it risks the very useful tool into stereotypes. Especially when it's used to market products.
• It trivializes the Enneagram. It's a powerful system to help people grow spiritually and psychologically and it can be dangerous territory when people who haven't spent years studying it suddenly think they're experts on it. It took Ian 5 years to understand the Enneagram.
• Ian talks about the differences between a stereotype and a type. A stereotype is a generalization about a whole group of people that by virtue of its generality, it inaccurate. Typing understands that in any subset, there is an infinite variety of expressions of those people, they're individuals all having individual lives.

34:22 – Enneagram and Mental Health

• When you have mental health conditions that are life-interrupting, the Enneagram becomes less helpful because there are too many other complications in the mix.
• The Enneagram is not meant to measure a personality with a level of science required for mental health categories and medical conditions.

35:50 – Children and the Enneagram

• Ian warns parents not to try to "type" their children, especially when they're younger. If your child takes an interest in it, you can find age-appropriate reading for them to learn more. The teenage years is a better time for kids to start learning about what type they might identify with.
• It can be world-changing for teenagers to gently explore the Enneagram, especially when they're navigating complicated social worlds during adolescence.
• Tune in at 38:02 for important discussion and warnings about the damage that can happen when you try to type children at a young age.

38:50 – A Vision for the Enneagram

• Ian wants to see the Enneagram start to help people appreciate and celebrate difference, especially in the cultural climates we live in now. It could reduce "us vs. them" mentalities that we are often caught in as a society and in interpersonal relationships like marriages, friendships, workspaces, etc.
• You can take the IEQ9 assessment HERE for the most accurate and in-depth enneagram report available.
• Ian is putting together 9 live online trainings for each Enneagram number and has a lot of plans for more helpful tools in the future.

42:00 – Getting to Know Our Guest

• Find out some fun facts about Ian like what of his pet peeves are the strangest, what meal he would have for dinner if he could only the same thing every night for the rest of his life, what his favorite TV shows were growing up, something that no one would ever guess about him, and what song he'd choose to be his hype song. You'll definitely want to stay tuned to hear what it means to Ian to run a business with purpose.

Memorable Quotes

6:19 - "It dawned on me one day that everything that I did, all of those different streams met up in the same pool of interests which was helping people have a deeper conversation about who they are, who God is, why they're here, what does their suffering mean, what does their joy mean. Just helping people accompany me on the journey of asking and trying to answer questions of ultimate importance."

10:47- "I think we have to remember that the Enneagram is not the end all or be all of psychology or spirituality. It's just one of very many useful tools."

21:22 – "If you know your weaknesses, you can move through the world with more wisdom and say to yourself, 'This is not a good place to be, I need to do this and avoid that so I can live in a good state of equilibrium.' "

24:20 – "One thing you can know for certain about every human being is that they're suffering, and they are experiencing that suffering all the time. It can arouse and awaken compassion for others and it can get yourself out of your own ego's obsession with itself."

About Ian Morgan Cron:

IAN MORGAN CRON is a bestselling author, psychotherapist, Enneagram teacher, Episcopal priest, and the host of the popular podcast,Typology. His books include the novel Chasing Francis, the spiritual memoir Jesus, My Father, the CIA, and Me, and The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery. Known for his transparency, humor and depth of insight into the inner workings of the human heart and mind, Ian uses the Enneagram personality-typing system as a tool to help leaders cultivate self-awareness and emotional wisdom. He is a sought-after speaker, thinker and advisor to a growing roster of clients such as the Discovery Channel, Ramsey Solutions, Michael Hyatt Company, Warner Brothers Music, OCLC, among others. He and his wife, Anne, have three children and live in Nashville, Tennessee.

Connect with Ian

Social:

• @ianmorgancron
• @typologypodcast
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/imcron

Websites:

• https://ianmorgancron.com
• https://typologypodcast.com

Projects:

• Enneagram Made Simple online course: https://businessmadesimple.com/enneagram-made-simple-ian
• iEQ9 Enneagram Assessment – https://ianmorgancron.com/assessment
• Typology Podcast – https://typologypodcast.com
• Book: The Road Back to You