Proofing Stage

For many a small business owner, it's the toughest job they've ever loved. From sloppy egg sandwiches to doing the (nearly) impossible, come along with the founders of Bottoms Up Bagels as they pull back the curtain on building their dream.

From obstacles and lessons learned to wins and hard-earned perspective, there's something here for everyone just trying to make something happen- or even just watching it happen.

Proofing Stage is out now wherever you get your podcasts. 


Theme Music by Thorn Haze

Written by Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond

Produced by Hivecast.fm

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Get That Cash! Business Grant Guidance
Straight Cash Opportunities for Your Business, Homie.

Finally, the pro-tip episode we've been promising for ages! Well, about two seasons anyway. From grant-writing to review, Michelle and Joan join forces for a content rich, use right now conversation on grants. 

The two focus on finding, applying and reporting on those funding sources that are the best fit for your needs, while creating a process that keeps your admin time light but can still drop the cash needed to start, grow or scale your business.

From getting to know administrators to weaving the story that keeps you front and center for future opportunities, this discussion takes years of writing and reviewing grant applications and distills the basics (and then some). For those looking to take advantage of these sometimes-slippery-but-almost-always worth-it resources to support your next project, hire or revenue stream - you're gonna wanna hit "save" on this one. 

Like:

• Grants vs. hanging with Bea Arthur in a money machine
• Grant-writing experience matters, and you can build it
• Getting clear on your needs and use of funds
• 90-day action plans and a boilerplate are everything
• Essential grant components and how to excel at them
• Tracking and reporting progress even when it's not "required"

Grant Speak 101
See full definitions on the Proofing Stage website

• Budget
• Cost sharing
• Effort
• Non-dilutive funding
• Post-award management
• Pre-award costs
• Prime sponsor
• Progress reports
• Program Manager
• Project period
• Request for Applications (RFA)

Links
Chama Capital
Check out their grants database for upcoming opportunities. They're a great source for seeing what's available. Bonus! Their list is organized and you can sort based on eligibility requirements. 

Credits
Theme Music by Thorn Haze

Additional Music by: wildman48 (via Pixabay)

Podcast Cover Art by Lisa Orye 

Produced by Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond

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Prescription drug commercials tell us all the time how life can be different, better, more vibrant. Sometimes it's not that pill we take but the people, knowledge and influences we take IN that make all the difference.

Here's our pitch for regular doses of Proofing Stage making you feel like a more empowered you in no time ... with maximum side effects!

Theme Music by Thorn Haze

Additional Music by Lexin_Music via Pixabay

Written and Produced by Joan Kanner

Featuring @kaitkdesigns @okay_everything @rescuepoetix Erin Stampp, Alexis Grant and Joan Kanner

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“Proofing Stage is all about this journey. We know we could have just given up and moved on, keeping our learning (and our cringe) to ourselves. Be we didn’t.”

On Proofing Stage, Michelle Bond and Joan Kanner get to the heart of what it means to build something from the ground up. They’re talking to founders, makers, and strategists who aren’t afraid to spill the tea on their biggest mistakes and hardest-earned wins. 

Ever wondered how to recover when things go sideways? Or how to draw the line between hustling and burning out? This podcast is a crash course in pushing limits, setting boundaries, and plotting your next big move. 

Because let’s face it—what got you here won’t get you there. Listen, subscribe and share today. 

Links

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

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Alexis Grant, Founder & CEO of They Got Acquired

“What I’m passionate about is helping founders who have put their blood, sweat, and tears into these businesses, especially female founders, to walk away with as much money as they deserve,” says Alexis Grant, founder and CEO of They Got Acquired. In this episode, Lexi joins Michelle and Joan to demystify the often-underestimated art of selling a business, especially for small and underrepresented founders.

The conversation digs into why thinking of a business sale from day one can be a game-changer for small businesses, and how prepping your business for that sale often means having a better (and more fun) business to run. Lexi advocates for thinking of your business from a buyer's perspective, which doesn’t only mean revenue and profit, but also managing team dynamics and internal processes during a sale, which can sometimes put deals at risk. 

The best part? If you’re a business with a six- or seven-figure sale the payoff for years of bootstrapping and below-market salary often means more than money. Selling your business is not just an exit strategy but a launchpad for new ventures, latitude for more innovation and community empowerment. Lexi’s new data platform exemplifies this mission, providing founders with the insights they need to connect with the right buyers.

This final episode of Season 2 of Proofing Stage leaves us fired up and ready to go, providing tactics you can walk away with to:

• Consider a business sale as the strategic move 
• Tap into resources for selling your business early on
• Identify which levers to pull to make your business more appealing to buyers
• Assess operational sticking points and risks to being acquired
• Focus on profit, not just revenue
• Take learnings from your first business to position your next one for sale
• Discuss acquisition as a growth strategy for your business

Links

Connect with Alexis Grant:

https://alexisgrant.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexisgrant/
They Got Acquired

Being a Buyer Rather than a Founder

Acquiring Minds Podcast

Theme Music: Thorn Haze
Additional Music: OgifeeltheBeat, prazkhanal, juniorsoundays
Cover Art: Lisa Orye 

Ad by Joan Kanner performed by Michelle Bond
Ad music Fresh Morning

Executive Producers: Joan Kanner & Michelle Bond
Production by HiveCast.fm

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Veronica Yanhs, Founder of Business Laid Bare & Creator of the Orgasmic Operations® Method

What do Star Wars and Aladdin have in common? For Veronica Yanhs, founder of Business Laid Bare and creator of the Orgasmic Operations® Method, they’re the start of her journey into blending kink with business operations. She joins hosts Michelle Bond and Joan Kanner to discuss her unconventional brand and the power in tightening up your business operations to achieve business growth and profitability - not to mention peace of mind!

Operations are the lifeblood of any business, and Veronica breaks down why they’re the “how” that makes the “what” possible. She paints a vivid picture of transforming a needy business “baby” into a self-sufficient “adult,” running smoothly without constant hand-holding.

Veronica also delves into a human-centric approach to operations, emphasizing that treating people right and playing to their strengths leads to better outcomes. She also offers the top tools for a basic tech stack for streamlining your processes and keeping your team on the same page. Knowledge management and email marketing are just the beginning, but less can be more!

Join us for a bold exploration of how authenticity and operational savvy drive business success. 

• Building a business that you love day in and day out
• Knowing your audience and embracing your #freakflag
• Necessity of operations for corporations, small businesses and side hustles
• Changing the trajectory of operations-related losses
• Rethinking Spaciousness in work and life
• Understanding the value of a good email marketing list
• How to work best with an outside Ops team

Veronica’s unconventional perspective and no-nonsense advice make it a must-listen for any entrepreneur looking to supercharge their operations while staying true to their vision.

Links

Connect with Veronica Yanhs:

Business Laid Bare: www.businesslaidbare.com
Veronica Yanhs Instagram: www.instagram.com/veronicayanhs/
Business Laid Bare Instagram: www.instagram.com/businesslaidbare/
Veronica Yanhs LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/veronicayanhs/

Theme Music by Thorn Haze

Additional Music by: nojisuma (via Pixabay), Keyframe Audio (via Pixabay), and nickpanek620 (via Pixabay)

Podcast Cover Art by Lisa Orye 

Fauxmercial: "Hvort End Est Oop" ("Which end is up?")

Written and performed by Joan Kanner

Music by Fupicat (via Pixabay)

Executive Producers, Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

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Follow us on Instagram and Threads @proofingstage

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RescuePoetix™ (she/her/ella/ellas), Poet, Advocate, Artist, Educator

“It’s breaking up and then finding the breakthrough in that breakup,” says RescuePoetix™ as she talks with hosts Michelle Bond and Joan Kanner about her podcast, discussing how breaking up with concepts and constructs can lead to profound insights and personal growth. 

RescuePoetix™—the first Puerto Rican woman poet laureate emeritus of Jersey City—shares her journey as a bilingual, globally published performing poet, advocate, spoken word artist, and educator. A practiced advocate for herself and others, she inspires as an artist manager, and speaks about fair pay for creatives, the heavy toll of trauma on business decisions, and the evolution of her play, “By the Light of the Ghetto Moon.”

We recommend sitting down with a cortado and a buttered roll for this #crewjersey episode as they illustrate and unpack what it’s like to be underrepresented small business owners and artists, tackling topics like the value of art, fair compensation, and intergenerational trauma.

A conversation in the truest sense of the word, these women leverage personal stories to convey:

• The realities of being a BIPOC artist entrepreneur
• Concepts and family cultures that hold us back
• Gritty details like term sheets, valuing time, and building community trust
• Balancing the hustle of chasing opportunities with the wisdom of letting things unfold naturally
• Rights and responsibilities of business leaders
• Breaking cycles and trauma reactions to improve decision-making

Note: There's also a timely mention of Richard Simmons towards the end of this episode. While we had no way of knowing he would pass before we aired, the nod of recognition is still quite fitting. #restinpower

Links

Rescue is part of the Everything is a Story podcast with Dujuana Sharese where extraordinary people share their rights of passage from Breakup to Breakthrough.

Connect with RescuePoetix™
More info: https://linktr.ee/rescuepoetix

Theme music by Thorn Haze

Additional music by Afrobeat reggaeton afro type beat (via Pixabay) and Fresh Morning (via Pixabay)

Artwork by Lisa Orye

Ad written by Joan Kanner

Ad music by BluBonRelaXon (via Pixabay) and Patrizio Yoga (via Pixabay)

Executive Producers, Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Find more at proofingstage.com
Follow us on Instagram and Threads @proofingstage

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In what would become the waning days of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes last September, Bottoms Up Bagels (BUB) trekked up to New York City to spread some bagel love, and rounded out their BUB Roadshow engaging with those on the picket line. Among them was Avis Boone, actor, model, voice actor, photographer and content creator.

Avis produces the That's How We Role podcast, where she talks with women making an impact as entrepreneurs, business owners, creatives, artists, actors, entertainment industry professionals, advocates, solopreneurs about their businesses and careers. Especially, their motivation and inspiration all while serving as role models and mentors for those wanting to create their own path in their career journey.

During Women's History Month Avis sat down with Michelle and Joan to discuss starting BUB and their transition to Proofing Stage. We're sharing it with you during this summer break and look forward to being back with you next on 7/17 for a brand new episode of Proofing Stage.

Enjoy the conversation and here's how you can follow THWR:

IG and Threads: @avis.boone
Website
Podcast Stream

If you like what you're hearing, please rate and review our shows, wherever you get your pods.

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Sue Ellsworth (she/her), Manager of Piedmont Food Processing Center
and Founder of WE Power Food 

In the food industry, facing challenges is like battling summer heat—you can’t escape it, but you can learn to thrive with the right supports. In this episode of Proofing Stage, hosts Michelle Bond and Joan Kanner explore the realities with Sue Ellsworth, Manager of Piedmont Food Processing Center and Founder of WE Power Food, about running a shared kitchen successfully.

Sue reveals how the center evolved into a 10,200 square-foot haven for 65 companies, navigating cross-contamination and overcrowding with its unique setup. She emphasizes the importance of truly serving the entrepreneurs who use the facility by championing the art of starting small, testing products at farmers’ markets, and using raw, unbiased feedback to improve them before going big on packaging and marketing.

Michelle and Joan serve up their own tales from Bottoms Up Bagels (BUB), underscoring the goldmine that is direct customer feedback and how it helped inform their product development and the overall BUB brand. Whether you are a food business owner, consumer or champion, tune in to this episode for sharp insights, practical advice, and a dose of real-world grit on fostering a thriving food business ecosystem.

Highlights include:

• Building a community of would-be competitors
• Navigating red tape of food entrepreneurship
• Nitty gritty in regulations and labeling
• Tanking two of our episode sponsors
• Passion, vision (and an assist!) are all equally necessary
• Long-term thinking impacts “success” and can fight food insecurity
• Opportunity calling (but Kool Kat Sue sends them to voicemail)

Links

Connect with Sue Ellsworth:

WE Power Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/WEPowerNC

WE Power Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/we_power_food1/

WE Power website: www.wepowerfood.org

PFPC Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PFAPNC

PFPC website: www.pfapnc.org

More on food business startups and spaces S1: EP3, Share Kitchen Confidential

Theme music by Thorn Haze

Additional music by William King (via Pixabay), SergePavkinMusic (via Pixabay)

Artwork by Lisa Orye

Executive Producers, Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

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Guest - Sarah O'Leary (she/her), Founder and CEO of Mend Acupuncture
---
Imagine entering a dimly lit room. It's vast and yet you immediately feel tucked in. Soothing sounds swirl around you with a "whoosh, whoosh." You sit down in a dreamy recliner. After you settle in, you notice others quietly resetting their nervous systems. And just as you ask yourself "Could I be next to go on this journey?" you are approached by an open, capable and trendy practitioner. They speak first, offering both expertise and partnership delivered in a dulcet tone "What would you like to work on today?" Then, excited that the next words you offer will start you on the path to wellness you say...

"I gots the trots! Where can you stick me for that?" in the least discreet way possible.

And just like that, you wake up to the sound of your "Radial" iPhone alarm. Why?

Because it's after 6am and you know the latest episode of Proofing Stage comes out WITH NONE OTHER THAN SARAH O'LEARY! That's why!

For long-lasting effects, let Joan, Michelle and Sarah plant a seed or two on your earlobes with these here gems:

• Sarah spills the (chaga) tea on all things community acupuncture
• Our verbal cupping will suck out any desire for "move fast and break things" growth
• Joan argues for adding a "Sexy is..." sentence completion segment to the pod
• We dispense indispensable advice for young people entering the work world
• If you smell what Michelle is cooking...  it's #integrity
• And, when taken regularly (and seriously) data decreases your risk of making bad business decisions

Now peep that through your #windowpoints, son!

More on Mend Acupuncture:
Website: https://mendacupuncture.com/
Instagram
Facebook

Faux Sponsor: "The iFOAT Diet"
- written by Joan Kanner
- performed by Michelle Bond, Sarah O'Leary and Joan Kanner
- music: Lady of the 80’s by Grand_Project (via Pixabay)

Theme music by Thorn Haze
Additional music
Ocean by Oleksii_Kalyna (via Pixabay)

Podcast cover art by Lisa Orye
Executive Producers, Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond
Podcast production provided by HiveCast.fm

Find more at proofingstage.com
Follow us on Instagram and Threads @proofingstage

Join Proofing Stage+ to support us supporting you, AND access new bonus content in-between episodes!

See Buzzsprout's Privacy Policy for listener privacy and read our disclaimer here.