Why are you taking life advice from the friend who's never had to live in your body?

I sits down with health, fitness and business strategist Chloe Ford for an unfiltered chat about raising your standards, why "enabling friends" keep you stuck, and the difference between reading about personal development and actually doing it. They get into discipline versus hustle culture, why B-plus effort beats waiting for a perfect day, and why self-trust — not motivation — is what actually gets you results.

CONNECT WITH CHLOE:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chloefordwellness/
Website: https://cfwellness.co.nz/

Key Topics Covered:

• Why people seek out "enablers" instead of the person who'll expand them
• The difference between a coach and a professional friend
• Discipline vs hustle culture — and why they're not the same thing
• How self-trust is built through kept promises, not perfect weeks
• Why "B-plus" consistency beats chasing flawless days
• The "do you know what I'm gonna do" mindset for problem-solving on the fly

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00:00 - Intro: Confronting, but fucking fabulous
0:01:43 - Who Chloe Ford actually is (and why she hates "coach")
0:06:20 - Why Peta refuses to be your "professional friend"
0:09:02 - The friends who enable you instead of expanding you
0:14:45 - How broken promises erode your self-trust
0:19:40 - Discipline vs hustle culture, explained
0:26:56 - What Chloe does when a client's vision is too small
0:48:38 - "Disturbing amounts of enthusiasm" over fake-it-till-you-make-it
0:56:12 - Why B-plus days beat waiting for perfect ones
1:00:26 - "Do you know what I'm gonna do?" — the pivot mindset

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:

Private Advisory: https://www.professionalbabe.com/consulting/
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

You don't become a new person the day the money hits your account — you become more of who you already were, one purchase and one decision at a time.

In this episode I unpack why entrepreneurship really is the ultimate personal development tool — because it gives you the funds, time and safety to finally become the person you were always meant to be. I trace it back to my teenage self reading Vogue, why I sold my Pilates studio to stop denying my true identity, and how a $472 Dior makeup class 20 years ago still shapes how I run my business today.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why "upgrading your identity" happens in tiny daily choices, not one big switch-flip moment
• The real reason entrepreneurship is called "the greatest personal development experience"
• Why I sold my thriving Pilates studio to stop performing a version of myself that wasn't true
• How financial safety gives you permission to take more personal risks
• The "Million Dollar You" exercise for figuring out who you actually want to become
• Why you can't outsource "knowing who you are" to ChatGPT (or anyone else)

This episode is for you if:

• You feel like you're waiting for some future version of success before you're "allowed" to become yourself
• You've ever downplayed an interest or hobby because someone called it shallow or indulgent
• You want a business that grows because you're becoming more yourself, not less

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: Getting dressed as your most fabulous self
 0:03:00 - Why identity change is incremental, not a switch you flick
 0:04:26 - Becoming the benefactor (and sugar daddy) of your own life
 0:06:01 - Robert Greene's Mastery and finding your calling in childhood
 0:08:07 - Why she sold her Pilates studio to stop suffocating her true self
 0:11:03 - Losing myself during a hard, low-money season in Melbourne
 0:13:27 - How money in the bank gives you permission to take risks
 0:18:33 - The identity question you can't outsource to a robot
 0:21:06 - The Dior makeup class story and the Million Dollar You exercise

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:

Private Advisory: https://www.professionalbabe.com/consulting/
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

In this deeply personal birthday episode, I get real about the last five years of Professional Babe — the same hotel room where I shot my original branding photos, the financial milestones, and the mindset work that got me here and why self-belief is the real constant behind every result I've had.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why self-belief is the real growth strategy
• The money mindset shift behind paying myself a six-figure salary and building a growth fund
• How I lost 14 kilos through incremental, consistent change (not a quick fix)
• Checking yourself: the "would this matter if I did it every day" test
• Why I've never had a partner who bankrolled my business — and how that built my resilience
• Creating a vision board with a process, across self, power, wealth, connections and pleasure

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: Birthday, a hotel suite and unexpected tears
0:02:27 - Back in the exact room I shot my Professional Babe branding
0:05:35 - Then vs now: lockdown, cheap shoes and a stressed-out shoot
0:08:16 - The real growth system: goals, offers, people, sales — and mindset over the top
0:10:35 - Why AI (or losing a program) could never take my success away
0:15:10 - The "would it matter if I did this every day" self-check
0:22:00 - The money talk: six-figure salary, growth funds and cash in the bank
0:27:10 - Cheers to clients, 177 episodes, and what's next

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:

Private Advisory: https://www.professionalbabe.com/consulting/
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

You can be the best in the room and still look average — if the people you're working with won't rise to meet you.

This episode is about the client calibre problem nobody wants to name. If you're an expert who feels flat, uninspired, or like you're dragging people across the line, the issue probably isn't your skill — it's that your work can't be expressed in its highest form until you're working with clients capable of living up to the standard. 

Key Topics Covered:

• Why A-grade work needs A-grade clients before it can look like art
• The energetic, creative and reputational cost of taking the wrong client
• How to spot the client whose identity is keeping them stuck
• Why the fix isn't more clients — it's the right clients
• The embodiment test: are you actually a match for the clients you want?
• Using offers, pricing and application processes to vet the room
• Positioning that sells certainty instead of looking like a hobby
• Reframing imposter syndrome as a signal to upskill

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00:45 - The Olympic coach dropped off at the local gym
0:01:48 - The choreographer and the room of reluctant dancers
0:03:38 - Killing the "I should be grateful for any client" belief
0:04:59 - The client who showed you how good you actually are
0:07:39 - It's not more clients, it's the right clients
0:08:49 - The reputational cost nobody talks about
0:11:44 - When a client's identity is the thing holding them back
0:19:42 - The game plan: deciding who your client needs to be
0:21:06 - Embodiment, offers, positioning and imposter syndrome

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:

Private Advisory: https://www.professionalbabe.com/consulting/
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

The strategy and the mindset behind selling premium offers — and why being called expensive should be a compliment.

Most people lead with their cheapest offer and wonder why high-ticket sales feel impossible. This episode breaks down exactly how to build, position and sell expensive offers — from restructuring your offer suite and making your premium service the hero product, to the mindset work that lets you say a big number out loud without your voice breaking. Real pricing, real numbers, no fluff.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why your beliefs about "expensive" are quietly making your business decisions for you
• The two-part pricing formula: what it's actually worth vs what the client walks away with
• How to build an expensive offer when you've never sold one (you probably already have)
• Why your hero product should be your most expensive offer, not your entry-level one
• The credibility assets premium buyers actually look for before they pay you
• How to stop making people hunt to pay you — and why hidden pricing kills high-ticket sales
• The "say it out loud" hack that makes big numbers feel effortless in a pitch
• Why premium buyers are already lurking in your audience without commenting

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Why making money with extra zeros attached is exceptionally fun
0:01:21 - The caveat: you need skills worthy of the price tag
0:02:28 - What does "expensive" actually mean to you? (Check your beliefs)
0:05:00 - How I price my offers: value, transformation, client
0:05:55 - Why I want clients to think I'm unreasonable and expensive
0:09:39 - Strategy 1: You need an expensive offer (you may already have one)
0:12:07 - Strategy 2: Make your most expensive offer your hero product
0:14:36 - Strategy 3: Stop making people hunt to pay you
0:17:45 - Strategy 4: Build the credibility that sells the price for you
0:23:30 - Mindset: Say your price out loud until it's as easy as ordering coffee
0:26:28 - It's not the price stopping you — it's the client and the scope
0:29:15 - Why your self-worth can't depend on people paying you

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:

Private Advisory: https://www.professionalbabe.com/consulting/
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

We started our business to be ourselves — so why do so many of us still design the business we think we should have?

In this episode of The Business Fondle, Peta unpacks what really happens when entrepreneurs get the freedom to build a business their way, but keep shrinking back into who they think they need to be. Sparked by a client's comment after Peta got called out for "looking too glam" to be doing content, this one covers the real cost of authenticity, why she got dropped from a major brand deal for not being "brand-friendly," and how to know if you're actually ready to deal with the fallout of showing up as your full self.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why building a business "to be yourself" is a decision you remake daily, not a switch you flip once
• The brand deal Peta lost for being "too much" — and why it was the best thing that happened to her business
• How to tell if you're operating from a "should" instead of what you actually want
• The identity upgrade that has to happen before your brand and your real life match up
• Why the people who unsubscribe when you're fully yourself matter less than the ones who stay
• A gut-check question to use anytime you're tempted to hold back or dilute your message

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: The comment that sparked this whole episode
0:03:03 - The "brand-friendly" version of Peta from her Pilates studio days
0:07:49 - Losing a huge brand deal for not being "brand-friendly" enough
0:11:02 - The decision to go all-in on being herself (and why 2017 was the turning point)
0:12:37 - The Gary Vee quote that changed everything
0:15:22 - Why she'd rather be disliked for being real than loved for a performance
0:19:24 - The "sexy identity upgrade" — closing the gap between your brand and your actual life
0:21:21 - The gut-check question for when you're tempted to hold back
0:27:17 - So, who is the version of you that you want to show up as?

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

Confidence isn't something you're born with — it's evidence you've collected. And you already have more of it than you think.

This episode is the pep talk I gave a friend who couldn't see himself the way everyone else sees him. We're unpacking why imposter syndrome, not pitching, not selling and not showing up are all the same problem wearing different outfits — and the exact process I use to build confidence in a brand new situation by borrowing proof from the parts of my life where I already slay.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why imposter syndrome, avoiding the pitch and not selling all come down to one thing
• The "book the plane ticket" method for finding confidence you didn't know you had
• How to stop waiting for evidence and start creating it
• Why avoiding hard things starves your future self of proof
• The real reason most small businesses never break past $50K
• How I built a six-figure process by selling it before I'd created it
• The kindest gift you can give the version of you six months from now

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: The pep talk that became a podcast episode 
0:00:47 - Imposter syndrome, pitching and selling are the same problem 
0:02:30 - The plane ticket method: find where you already slay 
0:04:19 - Why "I've never done it before" keeps you stuck forever 
0:05:00 - Proof you can do hard things: the dental chair story 
0:07:04 - Where you're already confident and don't even notice 
0:08:13 - How I stay confident: trusting yourself to figure it out 
0:09:57 - Avoiding hard things starves you of future evidence 
0:11:39 - Why most small businesses never break past $50K 
0:12:37 - Your action step: go first and collect the proof

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

You could hit a million dollars and still hate how you made it. Here's the process that stops that from happening.

I'm walking you through Million Dollar You — the exact three-day immersion I just ran with my Business Bang clients — and the seven areas that have to be a 10/10 for your million-dollar year to actually feel good, not just look good on paper. Think of it like a tent: if one spoke is weak, the whole thing collapses, no matter how solid the rest looks.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why hitting a million dollars means nothing if you burn out getting there
• The seven areas of a business that determine whether success actually feels good 
• How to think and plan from the identity of your future million-dollar self, right now
• Why your standards are the rule book that holds your identity in place
• How my client Brooke had a viral moment because of years of consistent body of work
• Designing an "offer wardrobe" instead of settling for one price point
• Why the how is cock-blocking your vision (and what to do instead)

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: Why hitting your million-dollar year still isn't enough
0:01:18 - Inside the Million Dollar You immersion process
0:02:43 - The tent metaphor: why one weak area sinks your whole business
0:09:24 - Identity: meeting your million-dollar self
0:11:55 - Standards: the non-negotiables that hold your identity in place
0:16:26 - Body of work: what you're actually known for
0:20:36 - Offers: designing your million-dollar offer wardrobe
0:25:00 - Clients: who you actually want to work with
0:27:38 - Circle: who's sitting at your table
0:29:54 - Opportunities: what a million-dollar inbox looks like

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

I'm making a million dollars this year — and it started with realising my goal was embarrassingly small.

After 18 years in business, I'm declaring my million dollar year and taking you inside everything that shifted to get here. From scrapping a program format within two hours of a dead call, raising my prices across the board, and deciding clients basically need to audition to work with me — this is what raising the standard actually looks like.

Also. Here's Chloe's Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/chloefordwellness/

Key Topics Covered:

• Why hitting your goal every month means the goal is too small
• The exact moment I knew a program format had to die (and how I changed it in two hours)
• Letting go of misaligned clients before your business ends up on life support
• Energy leaks: why raising your standards gives you your energy back
• The discomfort of growth vs the discomfort of staying exactly where you are
• The Million Dollar You process that took my clients from a 3/10 to a 10/10 belief

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: I ghosted you — and I'm making a million bucks this year
0:02:15 - The Million Dollar You immersion (and a future book)
0:07:07 - The empty call that changed everything: "I'm too fucking good for this"
0:09:45 - Fix your business before it's on life support
0:14:57 - My real numbers: salary, bonus and a $55K June
0:16:33 - Why my $620K goal was too small
0:20:38 - Letting a client out of contract to raise the standard
0:23:53 - "Not the standard of someone I wanna make rich" — calling in aligned clients
0:28:45 - Raising prices and auditing everything ruthlessly
0:32:48 - Two kinds of discomfort — only one has a payoff

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.

What if getting rejected 100 times was the fastest way to grow your business?

In this episode I break down the 100 No's Challenge — the exercise I gave my clients that had one of them calling it "fucking impossible." Inspired by Brooke Castillo's urge-resisting jar, I've adapted it for entrepreneurs: go out and collect 100 genuine no's from bold, stretchy, salesy asks, and watch what happens to your confidence, your business, and your bank account along the way.

Key Topics Covered:

• Why a "safe" no doesn't count — and what actually counts as a stretchy no
• The exact rules of the 100 No's Challenge (and why being left on read isn't a no)
• Why some of my clients struggled because they kept winning instead of losing
• How waiting to be "chosen" is quietly capping your opportunities
• The Marie Claire cover girl story that only happened because I asked for more
• Why following up on a no today can turn into a yes in six months

This video is for you if:

• You freeze up at the thought of being told no in business
• You're playing small and waiting for opportunities to fall in your lap
• You want a practical, repeatable way to build unshakeable confidence in your asks

TIMESTAMPS

0:00:00 - Intro: Are you actually good at hearing no?
0:00:37 - The 100 No's Challenge explained
0:01:14 - Where the idea came from (the urge-resisting jar)
0:02:07 - The rule that makes this work: stretchy no's only
0:03:28 - The exact challenge rules (100 no's, log every yes)
0:04:12 - The problem: clients kept winning instead of losing
0:06:13 - Waiting to be chosen vs. going and getting it
0:08:00 - The Marie Claire cover girl story
0:10:23 - The real challenge: go bigger than your comfort zone

LINKS AND WORK WITH ME:
Good In Business: https://www.professionalbabe.com/good-in-business/
Hot Business Audit: https://hot-business.scoreapp.com/
Business Bang: https://www.professionalbabe.com/business-bang/
Give Good Email: https://www.professionalbabe.com/give-good-email/

Spill your secrets (or ep requests, feedback, or praise to me) by sending me a text 💬

Support the show

If you’re craving more, you can find me on Instagram @professionalbabe and make sure to subscribe to my email list which you can find at professionalbabe.com — word on the street is I give good email.