Messy Mompreneur

Hello and welcome to the Messy Mompreneur Podcast, where we cover all things community, parent entrepreneurship, and building life-first marketing efforts for your small business! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford. I’m a mostly-work-from-home mom with a background in brand photography and a passion for sustainable marketing strategies. You’re probably listening because you, too, wear all of the hats, and I’m so happy to have you here!

If you hit play on this episode, I’m going to guess that you might be feeling overwhelmed managing all of the things. And if you’re listening to this in real time as this episode is published, I’m also guessing that the holiday to-dos aren’t helping. Today I want to address the thing that we call mental load, how it affects parent entrepreneurs, but more specifically how it affects mom entrepreneurs. I want to share 7 ways to reduce that mental load and overall stress, and all can make a difference through the year if you put them into practice. This wasn’t an episode I’d originally planned to drop at this time, but I’m feeling the importance of sharing it now and I really hope that it feels like a big hug.

Main topics included in this episode:

• A definition of "mental load"
• Relatable examples of how it affects me as a busy toddler mom and small business owner, and how it likely affects you as well
• 7 ways to reduce that mental load and overall stress

Resources Mentioned:

• Capture the Chaos Planner (Use code ALYSHA15 at checkout for 15% off)
• Episode 24 - Real Talk - Pivoting Your Business After a Hard Life Season
• Episode 2 - Eight Ways to Find Time for Self Care as a Busy Mom
• Metricool scheduler
• “The Friday Mix" sign up

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome to the Messy Mompreneur Podcast, where we cover all things community, parent entrepreneurship, and building life-first marketing efforts for your small business! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford. I’m a mostly-work-from-home mom with a background in brand photography and a passion for sustainable marketing strategies. You’re probably listening because you, too, wear all of the hats, and I’m so happy to have you here!

If you’ve been feeling like your sales, bookings or business in general has slowed down, the calendar is emptier than you expected, or you’re wondering “am I doing something wrong?”… this episode is for you. I’ll walk you through why slow seasons happen, how to shift your perspective, and the practical steps that you can take right now so that you can either turn it around, or prepare before your usual slow season hits.

Main topics included in this episode:

• An important mindset shift regarding slow seasons
• How to acknowledge and diagnose the reason for the slow season
• 8 areas of focus that can all improve bookings and sales
• The unexpected benefits of a slow season

Resources Mentioned:

• Free in-depth checklist of 20+ ways to boost booking during a slow season.
• Metricool scheduler
• “The Friday Mix" sign up
• Fall website refresh episode

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome to the Messy Mompreneur Podcast, where we cover all things community, parent entrepreneurship, and building life-first marketing efforts for your small business! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford. I’m a mostly-work-from-home toddler mom with a background in brand photography and a passion for sustainable marketing strategies. You’re probably listening because you, too, wear all of the hats, and I’m so happy to have you here!

You’ve already heard how collaboration and partnerships can lift your business during last week’s episode… if not, please go back and give it a listen.

And today, we’re taking that one step further — exploring why shopping small and supporting fellow small businesses matters more now than ever. Whether you’re running a service-based business or a creative brand, the ripple effects of your holiday spending and support are far-reaching. By the end of this episode, you’ll have both the mindset and the tactics to show up intentionally this season — not just as a seller, but as a community builder.

Main topics included in this episode:

• 3 reasons why shopping small makes a big difference
• Some gift ideas that mean the most
• Where to shop small this season
• My challenge for you this week

Resources Mentioned:

• “The Friday Mix" sign up
• Gift Guide blog post for small business owners.

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome to the Messy Mompreneur Podcast, where we cover all things community, parent entrepreneurship, and building life-first marketing efforts for your small business! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford. I’m a mostly-work-from-home mom with a background in brand photography and a passion for sustainable marketing strategies. You’re probably listening because you, too, wear all of the hats, and I’m so happy to have you here!

You know what I’ve been thinking a lot about over the last few months?

How much I miss the kind of community we had before everything went fully digital — when word of mouth, face-to-face support, and genuine camaraderie were how we built things… in both life and business.

I want to talk about bringing that energy back; small businesses lifting each other up, sharing the love, and remembering what community really feels like. Because that’s the magic of the “shop small” season — it’s not just about sales, it’s about connection. And this episode tells you exactly how and why to collaborate with other small businesses to grow together.

Main topics included in this episode:

• Why community seemed to be stronger in the analog era, and how it hits differently now
• Why networking and collaboration with other entrepreneurs is important for your life, business and marketing efforts
• 4 simple, feel-good areas to collaborate and support each other (with plenty of examples)
• My challenge for you this week

Resources Mentioned:

• “The Friday Mix" sign up
• Gift Guide blog post for small business owners.

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome back to the Messy Mompreneur podcast! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford, and I’m so happy to have you here. If you’re juggling motherhood, business, and about a hundred moving parts, this episode is for you. I’m sharing the planner that changed how I run both my home and my work — the Capture the Chaos Planner. It’s part planner, part workbook, and completely built for real entrepreneur life. You’ll hear how this system helped me simplify my days, create balance between mom life and entrepreneurship, and finally see my business and personal priorities in one clear space. I’ll walk through my favorite features, how I use them each week, and the biggest mindset shifts that came with it.

Main topics included in this episode:

• Why basic planners weren’t cutting it anymore
• How the Capture the Chaos Planner helps me organize life and business together
• The daily “top three” method for staying focused
• The benefits of weekly, monthly and quarterly check-ins
• The epic business hub section that includes a dedicated space for project and content planning
• How slowing down brought more clarity, calm, and balance

Resources Mentioned:

• “The Friday Mix" sign up
• Capture the Chaos Planner (Use code ALYSHA15 at checkout for 15% off)
• Capture the Chaos Planner VIDEO
• Colie James' Airtable Content Hub Template

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome back to the Messy Mompreneur podcast! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford, and I’m so happy to have you here. Before the busy holiday season hits, let’s make sure your website is ready to convert visitors into clients — not lose them to broken links or outdated info. In this episode, I walk you through a quick five-step website audit you can do in under an hour to keep your site polished, professional, and ready for holiday traffic. We’ll cover what to check, refresh, and simplify across your essentials, tech setup, visuals, and content — so your website continues working for you while you focus on motherhood, homemaking, and running your small business with ease.

Main topics included in this episode:

• The 5-step website audit for small business owners
• What to update - contact info, links, and pricing
• Quick fixes for speed, SEO, and mobile-friendliness
• Simple ways to refresh visuals and calls-to-action
• Traffic drivers that bring people back to your digital home
• Why a fall refresh saves time (and stress) during the holidays

Resources Mentioned:

• “The Friday Mix" sign up

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome back to the Messy Mompreneur podcast! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford, and I’m so happy to have you here.

If your fall season feels like a whirlwind of school schedules, client work, and never-ending to-dos, this episode will help you breathe again. I’m walking you through a simple, life-first content rhythm designed for busy mom entrepreneurs and small business owners who want to stay consistent without burning out.

We’ll talk through my three-part marketing framework, a sample batching schedule that actually works for work-from-home life, and how to repurpose your blog, podcast, YouTube or email content so that you can spend more time with your people—and less time chasing the algorithm.

Main topics included in this episode:

• Why simplifying your marketing this season matters
• My three-pillar Life-First Marketing Framework
• A four-week batching rhythm for creating and repurposing content
• How to stay visible without daily posting and inevitably doom scrolling
• Encouragement for balancing parenthood, business, and the rest of your personal life

Resources Mentioned:

• “The Friday Mix" sign up
• Metricool (scheduling game-changer)

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome back to the Messy Mompreneur podcast! I’m your host, Alysha Sanford, and I’m so happy to have you here.

After taking a one and a half year break to navigate motherhood, grief, and major life changes, I’m back with a fresh look at what it really means to build a life-first business as a mom entrepreneur. In this episode, I’m sharing how brand photography evolved into marketing strategy, what I’ve learned about balancing work-from-home life and homemaking, and why pivoting your business can actually be a powerful move toward sustainability and purpose.

Main topics included in this episode:

• Why my capacity and calling both shifted
• What grief taught (and continues to teach) me
• The transition from brand photography to the content marketing strategy behind the session planning
• Sustainable systems for real-life business seasons
• Encouragement for fellow parent entrepreneurs ready to pivot

Resources Mentioned:

• “The Friday Mix" sign up

Connect with Alysha:

• Photo & Marketing Website
• Website
• Instagram
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome back!

In today’s conversation, we are chatting with Kara Taylor. She’s a mom of three, navigating the beautiful chaos of life. Originally from Roseburg, OR, her journey took unexpected turns after marrying her high school sweetheart with six relocations to different states in eight years. Along the way, she fell in love with newborn photography, which evolved into a small business crafting handmade props like sleepy hats and headbands. Balancing mom life amid constant moves has been a wild ride, but she’s found her stride. Her family LOVES outdoor adventures, making the most of weekends with hikes, mushroom foraging, river dips, and coastal sandcastle building.

Main topics included in this episode:

• Kara’s journey into motherhood and business through many moves
• The pivots and comebacks she’s experienced as an entrepreneur
• How she has found her groove, and the systems that have helped

Connect with Kara:

• Website
• Instagram
• Facebook
• VIP Group (Most Active!)

Resources Mentioned:

• Metricool Scheduler

Connect with Alysha:

• Website
• Photography Website
• Instagram
• Facebook
• Pinterest
• Tik Tok
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.

Hello and welcome!

Today I wanted to share some reverse engineering hacks to reduce photo session stress! You’ve likely heard the popular phrases recently of, “backwards math”, “mom math”, “girl math” … it’s all relative to reverse engineering!

I’d love it if you’d connect with me over on Instagram! It’s where I’m most active and I love to share behind the scenes of mompreneur life on that platform.

Main topics included in this episode:

• 4 ways to reverse engineer your photo session to reduce stress
• Examples and questions to ask yourself in that process

Connect with Alysha:

• Website
• Photography Website
• LTK Shop
• Instagram
• Facebook
• Pinterest
• Tik Tok
• [email protected]

Music licensing information:

• Eli Lev - Dancin' on the Lawn

For full show notes, please visit the website.