Shay and I have been doing this thing for years now; pick a conference, book the flights, convince ourselves it's a business expense, and every single time, we always overhear other attendees talking about “what’s the ROI of the event…”

What did they get out of it? Was it worth it? Did they get an leads/connections?

And TBH, we just don’t think about it like that.

Join us in this episode as we dive deeper into the retreats and recent conferences we’ve attended to hear our honest take about how we approach them, keep them fun, and why we KEEP prioritizing them in our budgets.

If you've ever justified (or talked yourself out of) buying that ticket, this one's for you. We get into how we actually choose what's worth our time and money, how to get something out of it once you're there, and why the "return" isn't always what you'd expect…

We hope you enjoy the episode 🥳

Included in this episode:

➡️ Our experiences with different levels of business events & conferences; retreats, intimate events, mid-sized conferences

➡️ What does “ROI” mean to us for events?

➡️ How we choose a conference or an event to go to

➡️ How to get the most out of the experience

➡️ The biggest takeaways we’ve had from previous events

➡️ Our different approach to making the event “worth it”

➡️ Why we keep prioritizing these, even though the costs can add up quickly

Thank you to this season’s sponsor; Adobe Acrobat.

Want an easy place to get access to this seasons information, resources, guests, and more? Check out Curiously Guided’s Season 6 PDF Space: https://go.curiouslyguided.com/s6e10

Play around, chat with AI Assistant, and get everything you need at your fingertips.

Additional Links & Resources Mentioned:

>> Buy us a coffee/support the podcast

Learn more about Curiously Guided:

Curiously Guided, the podcast for intentional business owners & curious minds. Where the outer work meets the inner work, so we can create a life, business, and career that feels deeply fulfilling & wildly aligned.

✨ Website: Curiouslyguided.com
✨ Instagram: Instagram.com/curiouslyguided

Connect with The hosts’ Shay + Mariah:

👉 Shay: saleswithshay.com | @saleswithshay

👉 Mariah: mariahmagazine.com | @mariahmagazineco

A lot of us learned young that we're worth exactly what we achieve...straight A's, gold stars, the next title, the next win. It's a hell of a drug, right up until it runs you into the ground.

That's exactly what happened to Rita Cidre, a marketer and educator (and Mariah's colleague over at Semrush Academy) who writes about preventing career burnout and swears by play as the way back. She's not preaching from the sidelines, either; she burned out hard at a job she genuinely loved, walked away, and spent a decade untangling what actually went wrong.

If you've ever tied your whole worth to your achievements, or lost track of the feeling that made work fun in the first place, this one's gonna hit. It's honest, it's funny, and we're all still figuring it out.

Let’s get to the episode! 😊

In this episode, we explore:

➡️ When the best job of your life becomes the one you have to quit

➡️ The Cinderella story we're all sold about loving our work

➡️ Why quitting to be your own boss didn't fix it for Rita (and sometimes made it worse)

➡️ Why being the honor-roll kid can set you up to crash later

➡️ Play as a mindset you can bring to almost anything

➡️ Learn the consultant mindset that helps overachievers stop taking work personally

➡️ How to study your own life for clues about what actually lights you up

Links & Resources Mentioned:

>> Rita’s website
>> Semrush
>> Buy us a coffee/support the podcast

About the Guest:

Rita Cidre is a marketing strategist, educator, and future of work thinker who has spent two decades leading marketing teams for brands like Zillow, NPR, TIME, and Qualtrics — and teaching at universities from Harvard to NYC to WU in Vienna. After experiencing burnout firsthand, she became obsessed with a single question: why do some people thrive creatively at work while others lose their spark? Today, as a podcaster, speaker, and Head of Customer Education and Community at Semrush, she helps ambitious professionals reconnect with the curiosity that makes work meaningful and fun.

Website: www.ritacidre.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/rita-cidre

Thank you to this season’s sponsor; Adobe Acrobat.

Want an easy place to get access to this seasons information, resources, guests, and more? Check out Curiously Guided’s Season 6 PDF Space: https://go.curiouslyguided.com/s6e9

Play around, chat with AI Assistant, and get everything you need at your fingertips.

Additional Links & Resources Mentioned:

>> Buy us a coffee/support the podcast

Learn more about Curiously Guided:

Curiously Guided, the podcast for intentional business owners & curious minds. Where the outer work meets the inner work, so we can create a life, business, and career that feels deeply fulfilling & wildly aligned.

✨ Website: Curiouslyguided.com
✨ Instagram: Instagram.com/curiouslyguided

Connect with The hosts’ Shay + Mariah:

👉 Shay: saleswithshay.com | @saleswithshay

👉 Mariah: mariahmagazine.com | @mariahmagazineco

Ever feel like you're running the same day on repeat, grinding at the exact same speed no matter what's happening outside your window, and wondering why you're so fried?

This is a conversation Shay's had simmering for years. We brought back our friend Sam, who's spent 13 seasons running a wedding and event venue on her family's 200-acre farm outside St. Louis, a business so tied to the weather that it forced her to build her whole life around the seasons. She's also been Shay's best friend for 25 years, so this one gets real, funny, and a little woo, fast.

If you've ever felt guilty for slowing down, or like your body just doesn't run on the go-go-go treadmill most of us got handed, consider this your permission slip to do it differently. Expect personal stories, a lot of laughing, and the reminder that we're not here to buy the island; we're here to build a life that feels good all year round.

Enjoy the episode! 😊

In this episode, we explore:

➡️ Why your real New Year might not even be in January

➡️ "Medieval peasant maxing" and what it looks like to actually live with the sun

➡️ The payment-schedule tweak that smoothed out Sam's seasonal cash-flow dips

➡️ Planning your work around your monthly cycle and the moon

➡️ Cheap dopamine vs. the kind you actually have to work for

➡️ Why "how are you?" deserves way more than a one-word answer

➡️ Giving yourself grace when your seasons collide, and honouring the one you're actually in

➡️ Surrender, trust, and Sam's tenth trip through "The Power of Now"

Links & Resources Mentioned:

>> Sam’s website
>> Buy us a coffee/support the podcast

About the Guest:

Samantha Williford is the owner and operating manager at Lost Hill Lake, a weddings and events venue on her family's 200-acre farm. She's dedicated to building an intentional business that prioritizes giving back to its team, their community, the natural environment, and turning a profit. Samantha is a mother to 2 young kids, an avid swimmer with a passion for growth and development work, and a travel enthusiast. You can usually catch Samantha dreaming up her next big idea or taking a nap. "Life's all about balance.”

Website: https://www.losthilllakeevents.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/losthilllakeevents

Thank you to this season’s sponsor; Adobe Acrobat.

Want an easy place to get access to this seasons information, resources, guests, and more? Check out Curiously Guided’s Season 6 PDF Space: https://go.curiouslyguided.com/s6e6

Play around, chat with AI Assistant, and get everything you need at your fingertips.

Additional Links & Resources Mentioned:

>> Buy us a coffee/support the podcast

Learn more about Curiously Guided:

Curiously Guided, the podcast for intentional business owners & curious minds. Where the outer work meets the inner work, so we can create a life, business, and career that feels deeply fulfilling & wildly aligned.

✨ Website: Curiouslyguided.com
✨ Instagram: Instagram.com/curiouslyguided

Connect with The hosts’ Shay + Mariah:

👉 Shay: saleswithshay.com | @saleswithshay

👉 Mariah: mariahmagazine.com | @mariahmagazineco