Erica Vander Sande on the top 4 percent email that made her furious, why she doesn't take business advice from men, and how to use Claude as your business's best friend.

Erica is back from a chaotic summer, kids just started school, and she is diving straight into something that has been sitting with her. She got a marketing email telling her that The Mina Company puts her in the top 4 percent of women in business by annual revenue. Instead of feeling proud, her first reaction was anger.

This episode is Erica unpacking that reaction. She talks about why business advice built around 60 hour work weeks and zero boundaries has never applied to her life as a mom who is also the housekeeper, the chauffeur, and the emotional thermostat for her whole family. She explains why the wage gap between men and women in business is not about ambition or ability, it is about how differently AI is being used on each side of that gap.

The back half of the episode is a genuinely practical breakdown of how Erica uses Claude day to day, from automating client intake with Zapier to getting a weekly team agenda delivered straight to Slack, and why she thinks a Claude subscription should be the last thing a broke entrepreneur cuts, not the first.

• The email that set her off. Erica breaks down the "top 4 percent" email that was meant to be celebratory and why it instead triggered a wave of frustration and self doubt.
• Seven years of low months and high months. A candid look at what it actually took to build Mina from a laptop and a newborn to a business with real profitability.
• Why she doesn't take advice from men in her industry. Erica explains the difference between founders who have a partner managing the household behind the scenes and founders who are doing both jobs at once.
• The thermometer, the chauffeur, the party planner. A real accounting of the invisible roles Erica carries on top of running a company, and why she doesn't outsource most of them.
• Why women's businesses stay small. Erica connects the high number of women owned businesses to the low average revenue those businesses generate, and lays out her theory on why.
• What her mom's side hustles taught her. A story about growing up watching her mom sell Mary Kay to cover gaps in the family budget, and why that pattern still shows up in how women build businesses today.
• Using AI like an expert, not a search bar. Erica explains the difference between asking AI to plan a birthday party and asking it to build you a business plan, a pricing model, or a public speaking career.
• Real automations she uses in her business. From a Zapier and Claude integration that handles client intake to a weekly Slack message that hands her team's agenda, Erica shares what her actual AI setup looks like.
• Claude versus ChatGPT. Why Erica uses both, but leans on Claude specifically for business decisions because it pushes back instead of just cheerleading.
• The real advice. If you can only afford one subscription right now, Erica says it should be Claude, before a coach, before a course, before anything else.

• Business inquiries: The Mina Company
• Personal connection and coaching: Erica Vander Sande

Conversations in the Dark podcast, Erica Vander Sande, women in business and AI, using Claude for business, top 4 percent women in business, gender gap in entrepreneurship, mompreneur burnout, AI for small business owners, The Mina Company, automating a small business

If this episode challenged how you think about AI and your business, leave a review or send it to a woman in your life who is still doing everything the hard way. New episodes of Conversations in the Dark are on the way. Subscribe so you don't miss what's next.

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A new podcast from Erica Vander Sande on grief, motherhood, business, and the conversations we usually only have in the dark.

Episode Summary

In this first episode of Conversations in the Dark, host Erica Vander Sande opens the mic on her brand-new show, the "grown-up" evolution of her former podcast, Breaking Through. Erica explains why she rebranded, what listeners can expect, and why she believes the most honest conversations happen when we're not looking each other in the eye.

Erica shares a bit about her life: she's a mom of two girls (ages 7 and 10), a wife, and a business owner who together with her husband, owns or co-owns nine businesses. She also runs The Mina Company, a full-service online marketing agency serving small and medium-sized businesses. Along the way, she talks candidly about ADHD, parenting, grief, faith, energy work, and the highs and lows of building a business.

This episode is less about answers and more about an invitation: to sit by the fire, skip the eye contact, and get honest about the stuff that's still hard.

What We Cover

• Why "Conversations in the Dark"? Erica explains the shift from Breaking Through to this new show, and why darkness literal and metaphorical, invites more vulnerability, honesty, and raw emotion than we usually allow ourselves.
• What to expect going forward. Grief, motherhood, ADHD family life, marriage, entrepreneurship, and spirituality are all on the table often all tangled together, the way real life actually works.
• Life as a mom of two. Erica reflects on parenting girls ages 7 and 10, moving out of the "little baby phase," and offers an encouraging word to parents still in the thick of early childhood.
• Marriage and a nine-business household. A candid look at what it's like to run a busy, sometimes chaotic family life while co-owning multiple businesses with her husband.
• Building The Mina Company. Erica talks about founding her marketing agency, the swings between rapid growth and painful setbacks, and where the business stands today with a team of seven.
• Faith, doubt, and energy work. Erica opens up about going to church weekly, questioning God, meditating, and practicing energy work, all while staying unapologetically, imperfectly human.
• An invitation, not a lecture. Erica shares why this podcast isn't built around a content calendar or audience research, it's built around showing up honestly and trusting the conversation to find the people who need it.

Memorable Moment

Erica describes the show's namesake image: sitting by a fire in the dark, looking at the flames instead of each other, because that's when people feel safe enough to be honest, to cry, to rage, and to say the hard things out loud.

Connect with Erica

• Business inquiries: The Mina Company
• Personal connection & coaching: Erica Vander Sande

Show Notes Keywords

Conversations in the Dark podcast, Erica Vander Sande, Breaking Through podcast, grief and motherhood podcast, ADHD parenting, small business marketing agency, The Mina Company, faith and entrepreneurship, women in business podcast, vulnerability and honesty podcast

Subscribe & Review

If this episode resonated with you, leave a review or share it with someone who needs to hear it tonight. New episodes of Conversations in the Dark drop soon subscribe so you don't miss what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever feel like life (or your business) is forcing you to slow down—whether you like it or not? In this refreshing and relatable episode, I’m sharing how embracing an intentional pause can actually make you more resilient, creative, and profitable in the long run.

I pull back the curtain on:

• The mindset shift it takes to choose to slow down—before burnout chooses for you
• How to prep your finances, your team, and your clients for a season of rest
• What it really looked like for me to pause this summer, honor my family, and refill my own cup
• How I protect my energy (and revenue) during slow seasons—without spiraling into scarcity
• My behind-the-scenes strategy for easing back in with fresh energy, warm leads, and aligned offers
• How to use intentional “off” seasons as a powerful momentum-builder for your next growth phase

This is your permission slip to rest, reset, and remember: your worth is not tied to your output.

• Pausing is a sign of wisdom, not weakness.
• Your business should support your life—not the other way around.
• Prepare for slow seasons with savings, flexible team structures, and creative planning.
• Use pauses to reconnect with what actually lights you up—then return with intentional momentum.
• Easing back in is just as important as stepping away.

If this episode hit home, share it with a friend who needs to hear it.

And if you’re craving more peace, profitability, and spaciousness, let’s connect.

https://theminacompany.com/

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