As doulas, we already know that words matter.

We help clients change the way they think and talk about birth. We use affirmations. We pay attention to the language being used in the birth room. We know that one seemingly innocent comment from a provider can completely change how someone experiences their labor.

But have you ever stopped to think about the language (via self-talk) and the deeply held beliefs you're bringing into your business?

In this episode, I'm joined by my friend Megan Blacksmith, NLP practitioner, business owner, and host of the Becoming Zesty podcast, for a fascinating conversation about the subconscious beliefs that may be influencing everything from how much you charge to how big you allow your business to become.

Because you can put "six-figure doula business" on your vision board and repeat the mantra, "I deserve to make more money."

But if somewhere underneath all of that you still believe that helpers & healers shouldn't make a lot of money, successful people are greedy, it isn't safe to be seen, or being bigger means hurting the people you love...

Your conscious goals and your subconscious beliefs are fighting each other.

Megan explains Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and how experiences from very early in our lives can create beliefs that continue influencing our decisions decades later.

We also talk about the other side of this conversation: how incredibly powerful this work can be for the families that doulas support.

Megan shares her own birth experience and how a single sentence from a provider changed what she believed about her ability to cope with labor. We talk about why women can carry words spoken during birth for decades, the importance of processing birth experiences afterward, and how those experiences can affect seemingly unrelated areas of our lives.

• What NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) actually is

• How subconscious beliefs can influence your business decisions

• Why affirmations don't always work when you don't actually believe what you're saying

• The connection between birth, language, emotion and subconscious beliefs

• Why doulas can struggle with beliefs around money, charging more and taking time off

• The surprising ways early experiences can show up in our businesses decades later

• Why changing a belief is only the first step—and you then have to act from the new belief

• How the words spoken during labor can have a lasting impact

• Why processing a birth experience matters even when "mom and baby are healthy"

• How NLP and other subconscious tools could potentially complement the work doulas already do

One of my biggest takeaways from this conversation?

Sometimes when we hit a wall in our businesses, we assume we're doing something wrong. We think we need another strategy, another certification or another marketing tactic.

But sometimes the strategy isn't the problem.

Sometimes we're up against a belief that's been driving the bus without us even realizing it.

Megan Blacksmith is a holistic health coach, Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner, speaker, NLP Trainer and mindset ninja. She is the co-founder of Zesty and the Becoming Zesty podcast. She trains coaches, practitioners and leaders with the tools for faster (inner) transformation without fighting themselves along the way through Functional NLP, a combination of the principles of NLP, functional medicine and compassionate coaching.

Check out her Ignite event in Virginia Beach in October here:

https://programs.blacksmithtrainingco.com/ignite-2026

Megan's website is:
https://blacksmithtrainingco.com/

Only Have 3 Hours to Market Your Doula Business? Do This

If you only had three hours a week to market your doula business, what should you do with them?

Should you batch 50 Instagram Reels? Post three times a day? Try to educate every pregnant person in your community about why they need a doula?

My answer is easy: work on your SEO.

In this episode, I'm explaining why search engine optimization, and now AI search optimization, is the number-one marketing strategy I recommend for doulas who are short on time and energy.

When your website ranks well on Google and your business appears in recommendations from ChatGPT and other AI tools, you can get your services in front of families who are already searching for a doula.

That means you don't have to work as hard to educate, convince or persuade them. You simply need to show up, look professional and help them decide whether you're the right doula for their family.

In this episode, I'm talking about:

• Why SEO is the best use of your limited marketing time

• What I would prioritize if I had only three hours a week

• Why attracting people already searching for a doula requires less energy

• How strong SEO can reduce your dependence on social media

• Why your website can keep bringing you inquiries long after an Instagram post disappears

• How Google SEO and AI search optimization work together

• Why your website platform matters

• How SEO can help you build a more sustainable doula business

Inside My Doula Village, I provide personalized website audits, doula-specific SEO guidance and training to help you become more visible on Google, ChatGPT and beyond.

Because you don't need a longer marketing to-do list.

You need to know which marketing work will give you the biggest return on your limited time and energy.

If working harder were the secret to making more money, the busiest doulas would also be the wealthiest.

But that's not what we're seeing.

Too many talented doulas are working 6 nights/week, attending birth after birth, squeezing in more clients, putting their own needs last and still struggling to make the numbers work.

And eventually, something has to give.

In this episode of The Doula Darcy Podcast, I'm challenging the idea that earning more has to mean working more.

I'm sharing six things that can help you build a doula business that supports your LIFE, not just earns you a living.

And most importantly, I'm talking about breaking out of the time-for-money trap.

Because maybe you don't want to attend eight births a month anymore.

Maybe seven overnights a week isn't something your body can, or should, keep doing.

Maybe you want to keep serving families for another 10 or 20 years, but you need your business to look very different in order to do it.

That doesn't mean you're done being a doula.

It means it's time to build the next version of your doula business.

I also share more about SUSTAIN: The Sustainable Doula Intensive, where I work closely with experienced doulas to look at what they've already built, identify the most profitable opportunities that don't require significantly more of their time, and create a clear plan for what to focus on next.

The next SUSTAIN cohort begins September 16th.

If you're listening to this thinking, "THIS is what I need," reach out to me. Let's talk about whether SUSTAIN is the right next step for you.

Check it out here:

https://darcy-sauers.mykajabi.com/offers/npzFoabG/checkout