Dear Creator

How do you share the messy middle of your business online without burning out or losing credibility? In this episode of Dear Creator, I sit down with Nicole of Groovy Social to talk about her burnout story, a soft pivot toward a business that supports her life, and what she’s learned about authentic social media.

We cover how to share what you’re going through (and what to keep private), what to do when you feel like a fraud in your own field, why engagement is a two-way street, and the offline habits Nicole uses to protect her time and energy.

Nicole is a special sauce concoctor, human-centric marketer, and professional fun-haver who's been navigating entrepreneurship + the as-wonderful-as-it-is-whack online space for the last 5 years. While there's still a LOT of figuring-it-out to do, she's created an inspiring + sustainable relationship with social media, and found what lies on the other side of content that feels "too cringe" to share: opportunities, community, money... but more than that? Self-acceptance, self-trust, and self-love.

Through you-coded, feel-good content strategy, she helps founder-led brands create content that feels like an outlet (not a chore), stand out online as their whole-ass selves, and create the kind of connection + impact that lasts long after they’ve logged out.

Connect with Nicole:

https://www.instagram.com/groovysocial/

free notion content cal template: https://groovy-social.kit.com/4eae702f0a

website: https://groovysocial.co/

Pivoting your business doesn’t mean starting from scratch.

Becky, a vision strategist and brand designer for women in wellness, self-development, and creative industries, shares what she’s learned from two closed brands, a self-taught design career, and a pivot she’s navigating right now.

In this episode of Dear Creator, we talk about why the fear of being seen often outweighs the fear of failing, how to test a new direction with beta offers instead of a perfect launch, and how success is perceived differently in the UK and the US. Becky also walks through her six-phase Creative Alchemy Framework and why understanding your own pattern helps you stop stalling.

If you’re mid-pivot, stuck in the “journaling instead of doing” phase, or just wondering whether you’re allowed to be more than one thing, this one’s for you.

Connect with Becky:

http://instagram.com/beckysymes/ 

https://beckysymes.com/creative-alchemy-cycle  

www.beckysymes.com

Is your intuition a real skill you can train? Psychic, coach, and neuroscience grad Ashley B. Jones says yes, and she’s turned it into practical tools for everyday life.

In this episode of Dear Creator, Ashley shares how she went from panic attacks in a corporate job to building her own business, why calling herself an “entrepreneur” has started to feel performative, and how she chooses labels that make her feel like her favorite self. She breaks down the “body pendulum” technique for making decisions, the five parts of self, and the daily habit bingo card she’s played for 479 days, which is especially handy for ADHD brains.

Ashley B. Jones is a psychic, writer, teacher, and artist. She teaches practical magic, helping neurodivergent creatives and value-aligned entrepreneurs make the right decisions and take the right action to fall madly in love with themselves, meet their soulmates (lovers, besties, creative co-conspirators, and clients), so they can bring their too-good-to-be-true dreams to life. Ashley's known for her viral group program, Magnetic Habits Bingo, and soulmate match-making in her Meet Your Future Lover psychic readings.

If you’re a creative figuring out your identity, your next move, or how to take care of yourself while building something, this one’s for you.

Connect with Ashley:

Website: www.ashleybjones.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashley.b.jones/

Substack: https://ashleybjones.substack.com/

[free] starter kit for magnetic habits bingo 101: https://ashleybjones.myflodesk.com/habit-bingo

[free] favorite self treasure hunt workshop: https://ashleybjones.myflodesk.com/favorite-self-treasure-hunt

sanctuary | 7-week program to expand your capacity for wealth and luck: https://ashleybjones.myflodesk.com/sanctuary

Therapist turned Coach Alexis joins me on Dear Creator have a conversation about how type A moms and high achievers can keep their ambition, let go of perfectionism and control, and stop being driven by fear. You'll learn her POWER framework, why burnout isn't a badge of honor, and how to start with a simple pause.

We also cover these topics in this episode:

- Why perfectionism keeps you from starting and how it still shows up for Alexis

- Her soft pivot from therapist to full time coach

- Why burnout isn't proof of success

- Changing the fuel, not your ambition

- The first step of the POWER framework

- What to do once you're self aware but stuck

- Hiring help even when your ego says you "shouldn't need it"

- What it's like to work with a coach who has a therapy background

Connect with Alexis:

Instagram

Power Mom Accelerator

Website

Beige branding is safe. But it’s also forgettable.

In this episode of Dear Creator, I sit down with Chloe to talk about why "professional" doesn't have to mean bland, and why the businesses that stand out are the ones brave enough to bring their real personality into their brand.

Chloe is a Designer, strategist, customer experience enthusiast (nerd?), and someone with an alarming amount of opinions about businesses making things harder than they need to be. She works with service businesses to fix the way their brand feels, from first impression to final touchpoint.

She shares her journey from hospitality marketing at one of Australia's largest venue groups to running her own full-time design and CX business, including the money struggles, accountability challenges, and identity shifts that came with going independent.

We dig into how to build a brand that's actually you instead of a beige copy of your competitors, how to map a customer journey that builds real trust, and why small "ick" moments (like ManyChat auto-replies) can quietly kill customer loyalty. Plus, the customer experience story so good it'll make you cry.

Connect with Chloe:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crcbrands/

Website: crcbrands.com.au

Can you really use intuition to run your business? That’s what we discuss on this episode of Dear Creator. Me and Bec talk about how to trust yourself, stop overriding your gut instincts, and build a business that fits your season of life.

Bec Cuzzillo is a Spiritual Business Coach for spiritual women ready to build abundant, heart-led, sustainable businesses – businesses that truly set their souls on fire.

Her approach combines soulful business strategy with mindset, energetics and fully embodied feminine spirituality to ensure you walk away with the practical and intuitive tools and strategies to build a life and business that you love.

We talk about other topics like:

• Whether spiritual business is “woo-woo”
• Simple exercises to build your intuition and self-trust
• The offer she launched, got sales on, and pulled because her body said no
• Running a business with three young children and a 3-month maternity leave while her program kept running
• Why recurring income beats hustling for new clients every month
• The habits that help her show up, from quitting coffee to bricking her phone at night.

If you’re a multi-passionate creator, coach, or spiritual entrepreneur trying to tell intuition from fear, this is a conversation to listen to.

Connect with Bec:

Instagram: instagram.com/bec_cuzzillo

Feminine Fire with Bec Cuzzillo Podcast: beccuzzillo.com/podcast

Program: https://www.beccuzzillo.com/mistressmind

Is rebranding your business a step forward, in the right direction, or a way of avoiding a real problem?

In this episode of Dear Creator, me and Diana, brand director and founder of Deeply Rooted Studio, talk about what actually makes a brand “future-proof.”

We get into topics like:

- How to know when it’s actually time to rebrand vs. when you’re just chasing a trend

- Why “safe” aesthetics can flatten your brand identity

- How found-led businesses can design around personality instead of Pinterest boards

- Why Diana walked away from her group program to go all in on 1:1 client work

If you’ve ever felt shiny object syndrome around a new offer, strategy, way of running your business, this conversation is your permission slip to slow down and build from who you actually are.

Tune in!

Connect with Diana

Instagram

Website

Max Williams is a videographer based out of Chicago focusing on music, interviews, events, corporate work, and more!

From filming his friends skate boarding to shooting for Sofar Sounds, Ben Rector, Jack Antonoff, NFL wide receiver Allen Robinson, and brands like Coca-Cola without a “traditional” path into the industry, Max breaks down exactly how he got his YouTube channel monetized in a bout a month.

It’s a strategy most creators don’t talk about. He shares how he built three distinct tiers of content to grow his personal brand, what it’s really like to deal with hate comments and online anonymity, and why he’s not worried about AI replacing filmmakers.

We also get into:

• Why creative burnout is real and how skateboarding keeps Max sane
• How Google Business listings and relationship building has helped build his freelance career
• The three-tier content strategy that makes people discoverable
• Why content about AI stealing creative jobs is mostly marketing to for online courses

If you’re a creator, freelancer, or videographer trying to figure out how to grow on YouTube, build a personal brand, and actually make money doing creative work, this episode is for you!!

Connect with Max

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maxwilliamsvideo/

Website: Http://www.maxwilliamsvideo.com

Have you ever used ChatGPT to write your website copy, Instagram captions, or About page? You’re not alone. And you’re not a bad business owner for doing it.

In this episode, I talk to Delia, founder of Tidewater Studio, who’s a brand strategist and copywriter. We talk about how using AI might be a shortcut that is quietly costing entrepreneurs the one thing that actually gets them clients, customers, brand recognition, and their own authentic brand voice.

Delia is a brand strategist and copywriter working with founders, service providers, and creative businesses to build communities that buy from you, because of you.

After working in every facet of corporate marketing, she took the leap into entrepreneurship, working with business owners to go beyond “what makes them different”, guiding you through how you can use your personality and perspectives as a core part of building your brand.

She’ll break down why AI-generated copy is hurting your brand personality across the internet, how founders can rebuild trust in their own perspective, and why “professionalism” is due for a societal change of perspective.

Connect with Delia

Instagram
Threads
LinkedIn
Newsletter

Disclaimer: This episode has spoilers, so if you haven't seen Twilight, which you probably have... be aware.

Eden and I have a really fun episode for you! We talk about the Twilight saga, almost 20 years after the first movie came out. We swap stories between our origin stories of watching it, talk about Team Edward, Team Jacob, and Team Charlie.

We also trace the wild pop-culture lineage connecting My Chemical Romance's 9/11 inspired formation, Twilight, and Fifty Shades of Grey. Eden breaks down how the film's color grading and curated aesthetic shaped her approach to personal branding and business too.

We also talk about the iconic quotes, underrated vs overrated characters and so much more.

Eden Cantrelle is a multi-passionate creative, business consultant, and operations strategist. If she's not getting chatty on Threads, you can find her nose in a fantasy book or enjoying the nature of her home in Midcoast Maine.

Eden's currently re-building the business of her dreams while helping her clients reach theirs!

Connect with Eden on Threads! @edencantrelle