What happens when you follow your curiosity down an unexpected rabbit hole…and it leads to massive business success? Marie Poulin started as a freelance designer, but her obsession with systems thinking and digital organization evolved into something much bigger. In this candid conversation, she reveals how a side project teaching Notion exploded into a thriving business, and the hard choices and major pivots it took to get there. For anyone who's ever wondered if their niche fascination could become their whole career, this is a must-listen episode.

• The lucky break that taught Marie everything about running a creative business
• “Just because you can doesn't mean you should”: How Marie learned to stop being everything to everyone
• “What have I done?”: How Marie navigated the shock of transitioning from client work to course creation
• The unexpected way Marie still leans on the Ideal Week calendar that went viral in 2017
• The super-simple “living room strategy” Marie used to sell her course before she built a thing
• The surprising connection Marie makes between permaculture and business systems
• The hidden danger of building a business around someone else's software (and Marie's clever strategy to future-proof her work)
• Why being multi-passionate can be a superpower—if you know how to harness it

Marie Poulin is a designer, systems thinker, and co-founder of Oki Doki. She's the creator of Notion Mastery, a course and community that helps entrepreneurs and small teams build sustainable, customized systems for work and life. Through her work, Marie helps people rethink how they work, from workflow to knowledge management, focusing on building more human and neurodivergent-friendly ways of organizing digital lives.

• Find Marie on Blue Sky @MariePoulin
• YouTube: @mariepoulin
• Website: notionmastery.com
• Company website: weareokidoki.com

What happens to your business when you take an extended break from social media? Will it fall apart? Wither on the vine?

What if the answer is…not much?

Meg Casebolt is an SEO expert and the founder of Love at First Search, an agency that helps online businesses get found in search results, and to turn new readers into leads, subscribers and sales.

Meg’s business used to be super active on social media, until a few years ago when she took a 100-day social media break. Kind of by accident. That’s when Meg discovered that even though social media had been taking up a ton of her time, it wasn’t contributing much to her sales.

In this episode, we discuss Meg’s new book, Social Slowdown, which examines the intersection of entrepreneurship, social media, and mental health, and explore creative new ways to engage with your audience and find clients without relying on social media.

• Meg explains the difference between social media and SEO. (As well as answering the question, what is SEO, actually?)
• Brownies vs. Painkillers: How to determine what problem your work solves.
• The pro and cons of using social media for your marketing.
• How to set healthy boundaries around your social media usage.
• What are some effective networking strategies for introverts?

Meg Casebolt is a digital marketing strategist, SEO specialist, boy mom, productivity nerd, and bibliophile. Meg’s been helping business owners create beautiful, search-friendly websites and strategic content for the past 6 years.

https://loveatfirstsearch.com/

https://www.socialslowdown.com/

Social Slowdown: Take a social media break,... by Casebolt, Meg (amazon.com)

Do you struggle to figure out how to price your work so that it’s actually profitable for you…and then to actually say that price out loud, without mumbling or undercutting yourself?

Do you find yourself rushing to offer a discount BEFORE anyone even asks?

On this episode, I’m joined by Rauni Higson, one of Britain’s leading silversmiths. When I first met Rauni, she was chronically undercharging for her work, experiencing major feast or famine cycles, and generally running herself ragged teaching and taking on low-end work.

Discover how Rauni learned to price her work for a profit, and effectively communicate the value of her work to clients without feeling like she had to put on airs. And how that higher pricing helped her break the cycle of needing to fill her income gap by taking on tons of other low-margin work.

• How pricing your work goes beyond numbers, and plays a crucial role in helping people truly appreciate your work
• How having the words to talk about your work unlocks your ability to have fun connecting with clients
• The key differences between selling a product-based offer vs. a service offer
• Why we should “stay out of other people's wallets,” and what ethical practice and consent during the sales process looks like
• The power of networking with fellow creatives and nurturing relationships with past clients
• How to say “no” to commissions…for any reason

Rauni Higson is one of Britain’s leading silversmiths. Originally trained in Finland, her studio is located in the dramatic landscape of Snowdonia, a rich backdrop of mountainous crags and rugged coastline that inform her work. All her pieces are made by hand and by hammer, using her contemporary interpretation of traditional skills.

Home - Rauni Higson

Jessica Abel on Creative Mornings

How to find (and actually talk to) your ideal clients, with Sarah Marie Lacy - Jessica Abel