On this week’s episode of The Localist, Carrie is joined once again by showrunner Michelle Phillips. Carrie and Michelle take a deep dive into Carrie’s experience as a freelancer, starting off with how she began writing, her first paid writing gig, and the fun party trick she learned at her first internship. Carrie then tells us about freelancing on the side while working full time, gives us a great analogy for writing fiction, and introduces us to NaNoWriMo. Carrie describes her process of getting freelance opportunities and gives tips for anyone beginning their freelance journey. Carrie and Michelle then get into the financial side of freelancing: establishing your rates, finding different ways to charge clients, and managing expectations (you might never be wealthy in this industry!). Carrie then gets real with us about the feasibility of making a living as a freelancer, the misleading nature of social media, and whether all the hard work and hustling pays off eventually. They wrap up the conversation with the double-edged sword of being your own boss, imposter syndrome, feeling like a failure, and whether the struggle between making art and making money is worth it.

Mentioned in this episode: 

The Florida Sun

Morning Joe

Sluggo's in Pensacola

Rita Skeeter

Cary Norton 

Birmingham Post Herald 

Jonathan Benton, Bookseller

NaNoWriMo

No Plot? No Problem! By Chris Baty

The Localist book 

Sri Koduri on instagram

Kevin Wilder 

The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell 

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Infomedia

Drea Z. Harbin, artist, graphic designer, creative entrepreneur, and owner of the vintage clothing and jewelry collection Eyes of Wise, joins Carrie on this week’s episode of The Localist. Drea and Carrie dive into how Eyes of Wise came about, Drea’s transition from agency art director to independent entrepreneur, and how it’s just as important to know what you don’t want as well as what you do. Drea then tells us what being on a styled shoot is like, the value in collaboration and cross promotion, and how important it is to have support and people you can bounce ideas off of. Drea and Carrie talk about how the advice from men can differ from the advice given by women, how change can sometimes feel like failure, and how slowing down and self care are crucial (face masks are recommended but aren’t cure-alls!). Drea and Carrie then get into the business side of Eyes of Wise and discuss Drea’s ultimate goal with the business and the services she offers (which sound like a dream come true!). Drea and Carrie wrap up with the sustainability aspect of buying second hand and local, Drea drops some shocking statistics about the fashion industry and then offers tips on how to make the change to more sustainable clothing options. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Eyes of Wise

Daughters Baking 

Cooking Light magazine

Cary Norton 

Sapere Collection

Liesa Cole

Forecast Salon

Brittany McNaughton

Mark Hyde

Verra Studios

Botanica BHM 

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Brene Brown TED Talk 

Rising Strong by Brene Brown

Selune Jewelry

Aaron Lane of Lane Woodworking, a custom cabinetry and fine furniture company, joins Carrie this week on The Localist. Aaron and Carrie start off by diving into Instagram. Even though Aaron isn’t the “Instagram type,” he recognizes the value in it, and they discuss how Aaron turned social media into a valuable tool and how he has connected with other designers through the app. Aaron takes us back to the beginning and tells us how he got started in woodworking, what made him realize he wanted to pursue woodworking as a career, and how studying marketing in college actually worked in his favor. Aaron and Carrie then dive into business operations: handling mistakes while keeping the customer happy (hint: communication is key!), the hiring process at Lane Woodworking, and how they do things differently from other companies. Aaron tells us how he discusses pricing with clients and how that has evolved through the years, how he manages working on a team with other designers and contractors (again, communication!!), and how important it is to know your own limitations. Aaron and Carrie wrap up with the Airstream Aaron purchased as office space for the team, which turned out to be popular with clients — who wouldn’t want to have a meeting in an Airstream?!

Mentioned in this episode: 

Lane Woodworking

Lane Woodworking on Instagram

Bobby Michaelson of Ramwood Furniture 

Make Birmingham  

City Hardwoods

Woodcraft of Birmingham

Church Street Coffee and Books

Kelly Cummings of the Birmingham-based photography studio Spindle Photography joins Carrie on this week’s episode of The Localist. Kelly and Carrie kick off the conversation with how Kelly started and grew her business; they offer some networking tips and discuss how to approach someone you’d like to learn from (never, ever use the phrase “pick your brain!”). Kelly tells us how she utilizes Instagram for Spindle Photography, what you should really focus on when posting, and her current social media strategy. Kelly and Carrie dive into the behind-the-scenes aspects of running your own business: websites, accountants, hard stuff you never thought you’d have to learn, and the joy of finally being able to outsource. Kelly tells us the value in setting boundaries, not taking things personally, and still letting your personality show through in your work. Kelly and Carrie talk about Curtsy, the women’s group Kelly created for creatives, explain what a styled shoot is, and give the low down on what a second shooter does. We wrap up the conversation with how Kelly deals with the stress that inevitably comes during shooting a wedding, tells us about the Instagram workshops she offers, leaves us with simple tip for better iPhone photos. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Spindle Photography

Spindle Photography on Instagram

Spindle Photography on Facebook

Spindle Photography on Twitter 

Creative Mornings

Lisa Congdon 

Elizabeth Anne Designs

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Holly Hollon 

Birmingham Creative Roundtable 

Morgan Trinker

Susan Rollwagen of Pepperbox Solutions joins Carrie on this week’s episode of The Localist. Susan is a performance management consultant who works with small businesses to help get their teams aligned in order to produce optimum business results. Susan also happens to be Carrie’s mom! So there’s no better topic for them to discuss than the pitfalls and benefits of working with family members (and friends). Both Carrie and Susan share their personal experiences working with family members, and Susan discusses how to go about entering into a professional relationship with someone you’re close to personally — she outlines how to tell if you’re making the right hire, how to have difficult conversations, and the importance of deciding on an exit strategy before you begin. Susan ends by sharing a special deal for Localist listeners who need advice or help building a strong staff (whether or that staff is made up of family members).

Mentioned in this week’s episode:

Pepperbox Solutions Sounding Board Service

Infomedia

Localist Episode with Mallory Webb

Localist Episode with Nathan Pocus

Localist Episode with Dreamer’s Supply Co.

Javacia Harris Bowser of See Jane Write joins Carrie on this week’s episode of The Localist. See Jane Write is a community for writers that offers support, advice, guidance, and so much more to its members. Javacia and Carrie start the conversation with what Javacia’s days look like now that she’s running See Jane Write full time, how she tackles her writing projects, and how she plans her week with Sunday Slay (we can’t think of a smarter way to start the week, honestly). Javacia tells us how she decided to take the leap and quit teaching after 10 years to run See Jane Write, and why she wanted to start SJW in the first place. Javacia and Carrie then dive into the details of SJW: the membership piece, the logistics of the business, and the importance of having trusted advisors to avoid (or fix!) costly mistakes. Javacia tells us how she got started with events, how she went about getting those set up, and her goal of doing more events in 2020. Javacia and Carrie wrap up the conversation talking about the hustle of entrepreneurship, work/life balance (spoiler — it’s a myth!), and Javacia’s best tips for anyone who wants to start writing.

Mentioned in this episode: 

See Jane Write

Javacia Harris Bowser 

bit.ly/sjwnetwork

Javacia Harris Bowser on Instagram

Pomodoro technique

Desert Island Supply Co.  

Birmingham Post Herald 

Southern Progress 

Courier Journal 

Associated Press

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Blog Like Crazy 

NaNoWriMo

This week on The Localist, Mary Drennen of Nourish Foods joins Carrie. Nourish is a meal delivery service based in Birmingham, AL that specializes in providing healthy meal and snack options throughout the southeast. Carrie starts off the episode telling us what she loved about using Nourish (sustainable packaging! healthy options! snacks!) and Mary tells us how she first got involved in the meal delivery business. Mary and Carrie talk about the importance of having a business partner that can complement your strengths and weaknesses, and the value in having a sounding board that’s as invested as you are. Mary tells us how she met her business partner, how they got started with a catering side hustle, and how Mary eventually convinced Tiffany to come over to the dark side (entrepreneurship, that is). Nourish had an exclusive contract with Iron Tribe Fitness for a while, which provided the opportunity to work out the kinks before they went out on their own. Mary tells us about the more challenging aspects of owning a food business: shipping, logistics, and, of course, training staff (we’re starting to notice a theme throughout the episodes …). Mary and Carrie then talk about scaling a business, the woes of using new technologies, and the value of designing your products around meeting customers where they are. We wrap up the conversation with how Nourish advertises, a blessing in disguise involving the health department, and what Nourish has in store for expanding their offerings in 2020. 

Mentioned in this Episode: 

Nourish Foods Co.  

Nourish Foods on Instagram

Blue Apron 

Freshly

Better Kombucha

Iron Tribe Fitness

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Southern Progress 

Southern Living

Cooking Light Magazine 

Meredith Corporation

WordPress

Shopify

SquareSpace

Taziki’s

Tomato Pie from Black Sheep Kitchen

On this week’s episode of The Localist, Carrie is joined by Michelle Phillips. Michelle is usually behind the scenes as the showrunner for The Localist, but the tables are turned and Michelle interviews Carrie! Carrie and Michelle dive into entrepreneurship and Carrie tells us where her entrepreneurial spirit came from. Carrie never thought she would start a business (even though she started a newspaper in third grade!) bus as a chronically curious person who likes learning about businesses it was bound to happen at some point. Carrie tells us how she learned how to manage people, how she was plunged into learning a whole new side of business after a promotion, and names some of her favorite resources that she’s found along the way. Carrie delves into how she met her former business partner and how Church Street Coffee and Books came to be, what it was like managing a coffee shop versus a bookshop, and just how tricky managing pastry can be (books behave way more predictably than baking in large quantities!). Michelle and Carrie wrap up the episode with what Michelle learned while working at Church Street, and of course they talk about books since they can’t have a conversation without mentioning books at least a little bit! 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Carrie Rollwagen Instagram 

Michelle Phillips Instagram 

Sri Koduri Instagram 

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Jonathan Benton Bookseller

Infomedia 

Weight Watchers

Brene Brown 

Rising Strong by Brene Brown 

Daring Greatly by Brene Brown 

Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink

Scale: Seven Proven Principles to Grow Your Business and Get Your Life Back

Tim Ferris podcast

Second Life Podcast 

Pop Fashion Podcast 

Driven podcast 

Carrigan’s Public House

Brat Brot

Cary Norton 

Rojo Birmingham

John Yam on Instagram

Twilight 

Harry Potter 

The Magicians 

The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Paul Bryant joins Carrie on this week’s episode of the The Localist. Paul, along with his wife Courtney, own and run Kinora Films, a premier videography and production company based in Birmingham, AL. Paul and Carrie start off with what a timelapse actually is, the technology he uses to create timelapse videos, and how long a timelapse shot usually takes (hint: bring snacks!). Paul then tells us how he got his start with weddings, how he carved out a niche combining film and digital, and just how terrifying it can be to shoot with film on a wedding day. Paul and Carrie then talk about the pros and cons of working with your spouse, how they manage work/life balance as creative entrepreneurs, and why they ultimately stopped shooting weddings (it turns out actually getting to enjoy your weekend is pretty nice!). Paul and Carrie wrap up the conversation with how Paul found mentors and formed friendships with local photographers, dealing with imposter syndrome, and how everything he’s learned along this journey feeds into creativity even if it doesn’t make sense at the time. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Kinora Films 

Kinora Films on Instagram

The Timelapse Guy 

 Vulcan 

Vulcan trail 

Haystack Rock in Oregon

Railroad Park 

Rotary Trail

Sloss Furnace

Bryan Johnson

Cary Norton 

Rob Culpepper 

Stephen DeVries

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Matthew Mayfield

Dreamers Supply Co.

Revelator Coffee in Uptown (Octane)

Morgan Mondy, owner of the cozy and welcoming hair salon Mae Studio, joins Carrie on The Localist this week. Morgan and Carrie dive in with what it’s like to almost simultaneously open a new business and sell a business (it’s not for the faint of heart!). Morgan tells us what she envisioned for Mae, the client experience she wanted to create, and how “the Rachel” made victims of us all. Morgan and Carrie then discuss how Morgan got into cosmetology, how college isn’t for everyone, and how a passion for learning is one of the keys to success. Morgan describes the early days of her first salon and how it differs from Mae, and the importance of company culture. Morgan and Carrie then get into the operations of a business: supporting staff members, finding locations, building out a new space, and the inevitable delays associated with any construction project. We wrap up the conversation with how Morgan selects the products and merchandise available at Mae (perfect for the local-minded and eco-conscious folks!), and the events that are held there (Galentine’s Day — need we say more?). 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Mae Studio  

Mae Studio on Instagram

Morgan Ashley Salon

Darling Magazine

Church Street Coffee and Books 

Santa Fe Day Spa 

Railroad Park

Bumble and Bumble

Kevin Murphy

Dreamer’s Supply Co

Daughters Baking

Brat Brot