Soul Traders

There's no doubt persistence and tenacity are great attributes and essential to running any business. But knowing when and how to quit is also an important and often overlooked skill.

In this episode, Bo and Amy talk about quitting and how it can be a brilliant way to make space in your life and your business, to cut your losses and to move on. Like an old car that will keep draining your time and money, sometimes projects, relationships and even ideas are not worth persevering with. So, while grit and resilience are the buzzwords of the day, Bo and Amy think quitting is a skill we should all invest time in building.

Links:

Amy's reading 'Can't Even; How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation' by Anne Helen Petersen

And Fiona Killackey's book 'Passion. Purpose. Profit.'

Bo was featured in Aurora Magazine this month (on the cover no less!)

Bo's dog Velcro has finally been featured on the Instagram account @dogsinsliversoflight!

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

Also, review us on iTunes! Go on! We love reading them!

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

In this short episode Bo delves into the mystery and magic of pricing your services as a freelancer. Pricing is a dynamic process. As a business of one you need to frequently review, restructure and occasionally raise your prices.

Bo covers the dangers of pricing too low, how to know when you're ready to raise your prices and when to do it. She also gives a few notes on valuing yourself, your time and your expertise. If you've been looking for a pep talk on pricing, this is the episode for you.

Links:

Listen to our season 1 episode about pricing:

Pricing for freelancers

And our episode Passion Tax - are you paying it?

Find out more about Bo via her website

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Do you use Instagram to market your business? This week Bo and Amy respond to a question Amy gets asked a lot: 'I spend so much time on Instagram but I'm not seeing results for my business. Why is it that everyone else seems to have so many followers and do so well whereas I just seem to waste time?' They reveal their own approaches to using Instagram to market their services and Bo asks Amy to explain the dreaded Instagram Algorithm (with a capital 'A').

Bo and Amy also talk about their recent experiences: Bo travelling through the Pilbara and Kimberley regions and Amy travelling nowhere because she's stuck at home in locked down Melbourne.

Links:

Listen to our season 1 episodes about Instagram:

Instagram and originality

Mini episode: Amy's Instagram engagement tips

Marketing and community building for creatives, without the ick factor

Mini episode: Amy's tips for writing great social media captions

And our episode about competition and comparison

Bo is offering mentorships for emerging photographers

Catherine Deveny's lockdown memes on Instagram (definitely not a waste of time)

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

There are so many business systems and software subscriptions out there and they make big promises: to free up your time, grow or scale your business and streamline your life. But as freelance business owners who question investment and growth at every step, both Bo and Amy are hesitant to sign up to the latest fad.

In this episode Bo and Amy discuss the systems and software they use in their businesses, including the very straightforward, paper-based ones. They cover productivity and time keeping, communication and collaboration, file storage and backup, photography, accounting and bookkeeping, social media scheduling and email.

Links:

Listen to our episode about questioning business growth Resisting the call to grow

Bullet journalling

The Notes app and Google Keep for time management and productivity

Pomodoro timers TomatoTimer and Flow

Toggl Track for time tracking

Google Docs and Slack for collaboration

Pixieset and WeTransfer for file transfer

Lightroom Mobile Photo Editor

Later for social media scheduling

Spotify for tunes

Lug and Carrie Melbourne cargo bike rental

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Amy speaks to Haley Berryman, a freelance copywriter who works with purpose driven businesses on their communications and strategy. She also facilitates an online community of founders and freelancers called Cool Wow Collective.

Amy asks Haley about flow state, an idea first introduced by positive psychology founder Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. We all know the feeling of being 'in the zone' but how do we cultivate flow? Haley has some great ideas to help us get there.

Links:

You can find Haley online at coolwowcollective.com and haleyberryman.com or on Instagram @coolwowcollective

Read Haley's blog to learn more about flow state: 'How to find your flow state? 3 essential ingredients'

Pomodoro timers: Focus app, Cuckoo, Tomato timer

The Social Dilemma documentary

Cool Wow Collective x Girl Friday Planner's A5 Daily Focus Jotter

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Are you waiting for that much anticipated big break? For most of us in creative industries, it's more a case of small steps rather than giant leaps.

And there's no doubt that rejection is a part of life. We've all experienced that kick-in-the-guts feeling of being rejected: when we've invested so much into a creative project that we feel ultimately doesn't pay off.

In this episode Bo and Amy talk about rejection in the visual arts, design and publishing sectors, sharing stories of professional ghosting, the treadmill of grant and award applications and ultimately, resilience.

Links:

The Countess Report, gender equity in the visual arts

Know My Name, a gender equity initiative of the National Gallery of Australia

Parlour, women in Australian architecture

'Bouncing Back from Rejectio‪n‬' WorkLife with Adam Grant

How To Fail With Elizabeth Da‪y‬

'I Got Rejected 101 Times' by Emily Winter in the New York Times

Nyinalanginy/ The Gathering at PICA

Balancing Act at AGWA

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

We all know that as humans, we're hardwired for connection. But for most of us, freelancing or remote working can be a lonely business.

In today's episode Bo and Amy discuss the importance of connection and community to avoid feelings of isolation. The benefits of having a solid community around you as a freelancer are numerous: they might offer a sounding board for ideas, share common gripes and grievances and provide accountability and support as well as friendship.

Bo and Amy talk about how they've overcome isolation in their own working lives and share practical ideas for building up your own infrastructure of support and community.

Links:

Former PM Kevin Rudd's IGTV for handball tips

Cool Wow Collective virtual coworking

Soul Traders is charting in the top 20 for marketing podcasts in Australia! Yay! So a big thank you to all of our regular listeners and anyone who's shared an episode with a friend recently, we really appreciate it.

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast Have a question? Just DM us, we love questions!

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Bo speaks to Kate Stokes of Coco Flip, a Melbourne based furniture and lighting design studio founded in 2010 and run by Kate and Haslett Grounds.

Bo asks Kate about the values that underpin her business, nurturing long term partnerships with local manufacturers, her approach to slow and considered business growth and her thoughts on the importance of sustainability in the fast paced and glossy design world.

Links:

Find Coco Flip Online and on Instagram as @coco_flip

Find out more about 'Small' a panel discussion as a part of Melbourne Design Week and register here.

If you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast or join the Soul Traders Podcast Community on Facebook. Have a question? Tag us on social media using the hashtag #soultraderspodcast Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

There seems to be an assumption out there that a business that is growing, is one that is doing well. But growth isn't always good. Growing your business might look like hiring staff or investing in tools or subscriptions. Sometimes these are necessary and beneficial steps. But often growth like this creates more stress and less flexibility for a soul trader.

Bo and Amy talk about resisting the siren call of growth and maybe even staying deliberately small with examples from their own careers.

Links:

'Company of One; Why Staying Small is the Next Big Thing for Business' by Paul Jarvis

San Cisco - 'On The Line' music video featuring Bo's caravan 'Lemon Delicious'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlubk5RYCAc

Bo recommends 'Coat Route; Craft, Luxury, and Obsession on the Trail of a $50,000 Coat' by Meg Lukens Noonan

Amy recommends following author Bri Lee on Instagram

Register for Plyroom and Coco Flip's panel discussion 'SMALL' as a part of Melbourne Design Week here.

As always, if you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend by sending them the link. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast or join the Soul Traders Podcast Community on Facebook. Have a question? Tag us on social media using the hashtag #soultraderspodcast

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.

Amy speaks to Sarah Wallwork, a fitness trainer based in Fremantle. Sarah is well known for her ability to inspire and energise people into taking action to achieve their fitness goals.

Amy asks Sarah to reveal her approach to goal setting and accountability, how she adapted and responded to the challenges of 2020 and how she's built a vibrant and engaged community around her business.

Links:

You can find out more about Sarah's business, Bodyschool, through her website and Instagram @bodyschool1

As always, if you've enjoyed this episode of Soul Traders please, please take a moment to recommend it to a friend. It's the best way to make sure the podcast reaches new ears.

You can find Soul Traders on Instagram as @soultraderspodcast or join the Soul Traders Podcast Community on Facebook. Have a question? Tag us on social media using the hashtag #soultraderspodcast

Intro music kindly provided by Lucy Peach. Production by Sound Mind.