This week's guest, Morgan Sandlin is founder of the ever-popular ATL Girl Gang here in Atlanta. The Girl Gang is a networking and social club for Atlanta women, and boy has it caught it on!

Boasting an impressive 17k instagram following in 1 year and more than 500 members in 6 months, Morgan Sandlin knows something about running a community or two!

She speaks candidly with us about:

- The beginning of her career and how she managed lighting-speed success - The evolution of the Gang throughout the first year - How to ask for collaborations and leveraging partnerships - Her biggest worries as a business owner - The best investments she's ever made in her business - Her advice for new entrepreneurs - What the future looks like for ATL Girl Gang

Learn more about Morgan Sandlin and ATL Girl Gang:

ATL Girl Gang | Instagram MoSocial | Instagram

Mentions and Shoutouts: @shelbyraephotographs @lucys_market @verycavallari @industrioushq @laterr

Melissa Cassell on Running a Dropshipping Business, Making Lemons Out of Lemonade, & Being Taken Seriously As An Entrepreneur

Melissa Cassell runs not one but three successful businesses and is venturing into a fourth! From a job at a grocery store where she was basically told her age and gender would forever hinder her potential for success to venturing into the world of entrepreneurship, Melissa knows a thing or two about working to be taken seriously. She candidly shares the behind the scenes of her business and life and willingly provides advice and insight for her fellow female entrepreneurs. Whether you're interested in drop shipping, battle with yourself or others not taking you seriously, or are just in the mood to listen in on two girls chatting business and life - this episode is for you! @greekeyedskies @parkhoppersupply @fleekstreetstudios

www.melissacassell.com 

https://parkhoppersupply.com 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/themarylandshop

Cassandra McClure is a California beauty tycoon serving high end, luxury clients and grooming other beauty experts to succeed in their own rights (pun intended).

She embodies the idea of community over competition, and provides tons of insight on:

-Running a business -Managing a team -Empowering women to stand on their own -How to not get taken advantage of when providing free work at the start of your business -Finding your natural strengths and capitalizing on them

Listen in as she pours out advice and lets us in to her world.

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www.cassandramcclure.com

www.sustainableproject.org

@bayareastyledshoots

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Cocktails & Connections

Our guest this week is Marla Lisman of Big Shots Photography! She is an award-winning senior photographer, budiour photographer, and educator. I was excited to talk to Marla for several reasons, one of which was to ask her how her business has survived so many industry changes. She talks to us not only about that, but about how she believes her business and others can survive in the changes still ahead of us. We talk failures, successes, lessons learned, and the current state of affairs in the entrepreneur world, and I know yall will get a lot out of it. Here are my biggest takeaways: -How she was able to adapt to industry changes (think film to digital and the introduction of social media) and how we can learn from it -The idea of outsourcing - everyone's telling you to do it, but is it actually right for you? -How to listen to advice and guidance from others without it derailing you from what's actually best for YOU. -The future of digital photography as a profession -Her 2 biggest pieces of advice for entrepreneurs of all kinds who are looking for longevity in their business. Big Shots PhotographyFlirtFoto ​​​​​​​

Welcome back with season TWO of The Merrily Show! After listening to my audience and learning more about the podcast world, we're shifting to an interview-only style that will take you not only behind the scenes of successful and intelligent business women, but will discuss all things entrepreneurship and the lessons they have learned along the way.

We're getting the season kicked off with Amanda Freeman of Mixie Media, her design company for adventurous brands. I was drawn to Amanda not only by her genuine voice and message, but by her story. She switched career paths later in life than most and has a great perspective on all things entrepreneurship. We talk about everything from finding your passion to the idea of community over competition to the top ways she helps her clients when she’s designing their brands. _____________________

Mixie Media

Merrily Creative Company

Let's be honest - running a side hustle AND working a corporate job is no joke and can really take a toll on our personal lives. Enter Kris McPeak - together we discuss the conundrum of time management, the myth of balance, and the enigma of "having it all".

Whether you're working towards taking your business full-time or you're fine with it just staying a successful side-gig, Kris McPeak breaks down time management tips as well as tools and advice for finding fulfillment in your career. _________________________________

Buy her book -  https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=kris+mcpeak

Check out her website - http://silverpeakdevelopment.com/ 

Be honest with me... do you ignore your bookkeeping and finances because you're intimidated by them or you're afraid of what they may tell you?

Because that was totally the case with me before I got to speak with Katherine Pomerantz of The Bookkeeping Artist.

Not only is she a natural at easing your mind and talking you through money, but she specializes in helping creative entrepreneurs with our bookkeeping, so she knows exactly what we need and what we're going through. 

In this episode we tackle mindsets around finances and how to get over the intimidation of everything, all the way to actionable steps you can take to setting up a well-oiled bookkeeping system. 

Listen, if she was able to get ME excited about finances, I know you'll be excited about them at the end, too!

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Katherine Pomerantz of The Bookkeeping Artist:

http://www.bookkeepingartist.com

Apply for a FREE on-air coaching call with me!

https://hello.dubsado.com:443/public/form/view/5a930bf8bf1cf541652c047f 

Are you undermining your own credibility without realizing it? Is your behavior, use of language, or appearance negatively impacting people's perception of you, and ultimately your business? You may be! Listen to today's episode to hear how and why these small things have huge negative impact, and a few ways to turn it around. 

Remember - your brand is not what you think it is, your brand is what your audience thinks it is.

Coaching Call - www.merrilycreativecompany.com

Networking events can be intimidating, but if approached the right way, can be instrumental to growing your network, and ultimately, career.

Tune in as I stress the importance of leveraging your current networking and how to leverage networking events to your advantage. I share my best tips for attending networking events and making connections that will last.

Cocktails & Connections

You've heard people from all industries talking about niching down, and for good reason. Whether you're burnt out working with your current clients, or you want to be considered an industry expert, niching down is the way to go. Female entrepreneurs of all industries and businesses will get a lot out of today's interview episode! Sam of S Photography and I talk about how to get past the fear of narrowing down your market, and what it can do for your business. She tells us her journey in niching, and tips and tricks you can use when it's time for you to do so as well.

S Photography Website S Photography Instagram S Photography Facebook