Army Officer to Interior Designer. Sounds like the plot of a Hallmark movie, doesn’t it? My client, Laurel Smith, joins me to share her career journey and how she’s positioning interior design as a wellness solution for women who are juggling a work life, a home life, and a love life. 

On this episode, Laurel and I discuss:

• Transitioning out of active duty and following her creative curiosities,
• How mom guilt has influenced her career decisions,
• Where she was getting stuck explaining her brand story and point of view on her own,
• What surprised her about working with me, and 
• Choosing to slow business growth in favor of building a solid foundation.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

Rebranding is a labor of love. When done right, it can propel your image and your confidence. When done wrong, it can confuse your audience and send the wrong message about your business. This episode is dedicated to my experience rebranding over the past seven months with my highly talented and wonderfully attentive designer, Shauna Haider.

On this episode, Shauna and I discuss:

• Her nontraditional path to graphic design,
• How Shauna knew I was ready to embark on a rebrand at this level,
• The reason Shauna believes she’s never had to market her business,
• Why I was shocked at the feedback people were giving me about my new visual identity, and
• What made investing with Shauna the best money I’ve ever spent in business.

Visit my new site(!) for show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

Getting to the next level of success requires a huge shift in how you think about investing in yourself and your business—what got you here won’t get you there. If you’ve heard yourself saying, “I really want to work with them, but I don’t have the money,” I dedicate this episode to you. I’m sharing the growth trajectory of my business and the relationship I’m seeing between investing in high-level services and increased revenue. 

On this episode, I share:

• When DIY or group-based solutions will no get you the return you’re seeking,
• Specific ways investing in help will free up your time and energy,
• How to decide what makes a client a “hell yes” for you,
• Why it’s critical if you’re selling high-ticket services that you have done so yourself,
• The myth of waiting to have cash on hand to hire out.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

If there’s one common claim my clients make, it’s that they aren’t good at writing. Some will say flat out, “I’m not a good writer,” while others will admit that while they can do it for others, writing about themselves is impossible. Today I’m sharing 8 hacks that will help anyone get past the blank page.

On this episode, I share:

• The differences between academic writing and marketing writing,
• Lessons I used with my career coaching clients that apply to copywriting,
• Tips for formatting text for ease of on-screen reading, and
• How to make your written communication sound less stodgy.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

There are four topics we’re all conditioned to not talk about: sex, religion, politics, and MONEY. We’ll leave the first three alone (for now), but we need to be engaging in conversations about money continuously if we want to have highly profitable businesses. Jereshia Hawk joins me to bust some money myths and share advice for selling high ticket services.

On this episode, Jereshia and I discuss:

• Learning business principles while climbing the corporate ladder,
• An important distinction between being rich and building wealth,
• The shame many of us feel about our desire to make a lot of money,
• The importance of separating your identity from your business, and
• Advice for hiring a team while developing a company culture.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

After being in business a while it’s easy to feel that we inherently know our customers. But when we assume we know how our customers think, feel, and act, we risk missing the mark with our messaging. I’m sharing a system you can use to track what your customers are telling you, moving from guessing why they buy to knowing for sure. 

On this episode, I share:

• The points along the customer journey you should be paying attention to,
• When customers are sharing valuable insights with you,
• How to spot patterns across those who book you and those who don’t, and
• Why a tracking document is going to strengthen your marketing messages.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

Yosemite wedding planner, Roshel Ryan, first reached out in 2019 when she needed website copy written—and fast. She joins me to talk about why she contacted me after she had wrapped a rebrand and how our partnership has helped her leverage her value proposition in her market.

On this episode, Roshel and I talked about:

• The role a modern brand plays in staying relevant in the wedding industry,
• Helping clients see the time, energy, and stress you save them,
• How I pulled out her value proposition, even when she couldn’t see it herself,
  
• Why she was able to raise her prices after working together, and
• The crazy stories Roshel has from planning events in such an unpredictable environment.

Storytelling has gained popularity for a good reason—it works. But the ways many teach us how to use storytelling in messaging and marketing is overly complicated and lack specific examples. I’m here to break down a simple approach that will help you use storytelling in your business today—no course needed.

On this episode, I share:

• Why storytelling is an effective communication tactic,
• The difference between brand storytelling and your brand story,
• A common mistake businesses make when sharing stories, 
• Four places in your business to mine for stories, and  
• The three things you need for any story to work.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for full show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

Most advice about becoming a premium brand focuses on developing a luxury brand presence and targeting customers with the highest budgets. Valerie Gernhauser flips this notion on its head as she shares how she’s become one of the most sought out wedding planners in the country by bridging an industry and openly sharing everything she knows.

On this episode, Valerie and I discuss:

• Getting past the fear of instilling boundaries with clients,
• The result of sharing her business strategy with her entire industry,
• Why your ideal client shouldn’t be ‘the ones with the most money,’ and
• How she’s using storytelling to showcase her skill set.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for full show notes and links to resources mentioned on this episode.

Consumers are researching and getting much closer to a purchase decision before they ever reach out to a business. This means we may never have the opportunity to personally share the results we get for our clients. Case studies are a powerful testament to the way you work and—when used properly—will help your audience put themselves in your clients’ shoes.

On this episode, I share:

• How consumer behavior is changing and why it demands social proof from your marketing,
• The difference between testimonials and case studies,
• Various formats you can use to develop compelling case studies,
• An easy to follow case study structure, and
• How to obtain permission and results from your clients.

Visit Pattern of Purpose for a full manuscript and links to resources mentioned on this episode.