Brand & business strategic coaching for the passionate entrepreneur
 
The Brand Cure _white
 
 
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the branding + marketing podcast // for mission-driven entrepreneurs

available on iTunes, Google Play, and Spotify!

 
 
 
 
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Catch the latest episodes below:

 
 
 

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I'm an IMPOSTER. 👻 ✨ Last year, I had NO business showing up and positioning myself as an expert in my field. I had NO business teaching anyone how to build a brand. I had NO business pretending like I knew what I was doing. ✨ But... I did it ANYWAY! ✨ And looking back, I'm SO grateful I didn't let being an "imposter" hold me back. ✨ Instead, I showed up NERVOUS. I showed up SCARED... painfully aware that I was no authority yet... ✨ But I showed up. And I shared my voice. Shared my message. Taught what I knew. Spoke from the heart. I served the people I felt called to serve. ✨ If you wanna see some video evidence that I was in WAY over my head, go check the "New Stories" highlight in my profile. ✨ These were the FIRST stories I shared on Instagram, back when I was afraid to be on camera. 😬 ✨ And then catch the peptalk I shared today in my stories 🧡 ✨ Because if you KNOW it's time to get visible, show UP for your tribe, and SERVE your community COURAGEOUSLY... then this is your CALL TO ACTION! ✨ To: You / From: The Universe ✨ Don't let fear of being an imposter hold you back from making the DIFFERENCE you are here to make 🧡 ✨ The world NEEDS you to show up and shine that light only you can shine. ✨ I promise you... you do not need to FEEL ready to get started. ✨ And if you show up, ready or not, in just a few weeks you'll witness yourself stepping into more CONFIDENCE + comfort in front of your audience, ESPECIALLY on video and stories. ✨ No more waiting. Your future self will thank you 🙏🏼 you've got this, my friend... my fellow imposter 🧡 ✨ P.S. If you're READY to make this happen, come jam with us in Standout Stories in August! 🎉Members see more story views, profile visits, engagement, 1:1 connections, comfort + confidence on stories... after ONE week. // Doors close Friday! Let's do this friend! (DM me for the deets!) 🕙⚡️ ✨ So tell me friend... what are YOU making happen in August? Claim it in the comments, so I can cheer you on!! 👇🏼🎉🧡
Some things to let go of... Being perfect. Doing everything right. Knowing everything. Having it all figured out. Comparing yourself to other people. Following someone else's rules. ✨ Some things to commit to... Being kind to yourself. Being kind to others. Staying true to your values. Celebrating every win. Learning from every mistake. Getting back up. Figuring things out. ✨ So, my friend...what would you add to these lists? 👇🏼 ✨ (Photo taken at Rosemary Beach, FL some years ago)
Who's ready for a more RELAXED approach to business this summer (and... forever)? ✨ I've done the big launches. I've hustled to create gobs of content week after week. I've stressed TFO over my email list, follower count, and conversion rate. I've kicked myself for "wasting" time on things that didn't "work." ✨ It reminds me of my first few years at my old job, where EVERYTHING felt impossible. Everything felt like a BFD. ✨ Slowly I found my groove... I figured out what was IMPORTANT... and what wasn't. I found the "20% of effort that got 80% of the result." And I got to where nothing rattled me, everything felt easy. I knew the ropes, I got into flow. ✨ Then, like a certified crazy person, I walked away from a safe, cushy consulting job to hop onto this rollercoaster ride of running my own business... ✨ But now I'm seeing little glimmers of it again. Little signs that things are starting to get just a little bit easier. ✨ So I've been refocusing. Setting up systems + processes behind the scenes that can give me more FREEDOM, make a bigger IMPACT, and allow me to bring even MORE of myself + my potential to my clients. ✨ Translation: I'm letting go of some things that don't matter, and leaning into what does. ✨ If you're in the THICK of it, hang on friend. Even if it's by your damn FINGERNAILS sometimes. Things really do get easier. Trust the process. Trust YOURSELF. Every step brings you closer to your goals (even if you can't see exactly how today). ✨ Stop adding to your plate without taking anything off. Get in the habit of asking, "Is this actually getting me where I want to go?" and honoring your intuition. Let go of what isn't serving you, or feels like other people's priorities. LEARN TO SAY NO. ✨ Lastly, create time and space to rest. I know it feels like everything needs to happen RIGHT NOW, but it really doesn't. This is NOT A RACE. You can't bring your best if you're exhausted. ✨ This is your journey. YOUR life. Live it on YOUR terms, starting today. ✨ Tell me ONE THING you release👇🏼
"Ugh!! Why can't everything be easy??" ✨ This used to be my default thought EVERY time I came up against a new problem! ✨ I'd mope around, wishing life were different. Asking why these things happened to me. Woe is me! ✨ Have you ever done this? No judgment! ✨ Looking back, I can see how EVERY challenge along the way (yep, even the painful ones) shaped me and helped me become who I am, and tell the story I need to tell! ✨ There's something you're struggling with today. A problem you're not sure how to solve. ✨ And hidden in that problem is something you need to see, a lesson you need to learn, an EXPERIENCE you need to have, for you to become who you're meant to be. ✨ Someday, you'll look back and realize what you learned. How you GREW. What you were able to do BECAUSE you are here, right now, dealing with this problem. ✨ So... that big challenge you're facing today. The one that keeps you up at night and makes you WISH you could fast forward past it... ✨ It's not just a problem in your way. It's your PATH! It's the road you need to walk, to get where you're meant to go. ✨ What do you need to LEARN from it? What do you need to KNOW... about yourself, about people, about the WORLD? What is the universe showing you? ✨ Maybe you already know, or maybe it'll take years to find out. But right here, right now, you are here for a reason! ✨ If you're committed to finding the lesson in the problem, claim it in the comments! Tell me one thing you're choosing to learn from your current situation 👇🏼
Where my awkward people at?? 🙋🏼 ✨ Yeaaaaaa raise the roof! 🙌🏼 Haha jk... just give me a sec to figure out what to do with my hands. ✨ I used to watch cool people and wish I could mirror their superhuman levels of coolness. They seemed so nonchalant, relaxed, and their body language was so EFFORTLESS. ✨ Social interaction seemed to take up 20% of their effort at most, while I was over here focusing 2000% on not saying something stupid. ✨ Until I realized that being awkward was kind of its own SUPERPOWER. It's disarming, relatable, and shows our human-ness. It activates people's empathy, puts them at ease, and gives them permission to OPEN UP. ✨ Showing your weaknesses and flaws (awkwardness or otherwise) makes you more LIKABLE, because of the Pratfall Effect. It's the way our brains work, it taps into our shared humanity! ✨ Suddenly I got out of my head and started showing up FOR people, instead of worrying SO much about what they thought. I started caring less about avoiding judgment, and more about CONNECTING. ✨ So the next time you say the wrong thing, or lose your balance while standing still, or fidget your hands during a conversation... just laugh it off. Ditch the idea that you need to be perfect. Focus on the CONNECTION. Know that I SEE you, and I appreciate + honor your human-ness! ✨ And if you're a naturally cool kid, I like that about you too. Keep being YOU, friend ✌🏼 ✨ Either way, high-five! (even if we'll probably both miss!) ✨ Anyone else feel a little AWKWARD sometimes? 👇🏼 (and Happy Friday fam!! 🧡)
"What if you took the afternoon off?”...I panicked. ✨ Before I could even come up with a single idea of something I'd LIKE to do, I was already thinking about all the things I COULDN’T get done if I took the day off. ✨ This was sometime last year, in a conversation with @_theskyinside_ that I’m still grateful for. ✨ I resisted, but I knew she was right. I took the afternoon off. I took Penny to the park, came home, relaxed in my room, read, journaled, burnt a candle, and took care of myself. ✨ And I came back the next day feeling more GRATEFUL for my business again, more FOCUSED on what mattered, and bringing my BEST self to my clients, my community, and my goals. ✨ This online space can be so wonderful + supportive... shout-out to all of you who bring so much LIGHT into my day. 🧡 I couldn’t do ANY of this without you! ✨ But you and I both know... the online space can also be noisy. It moves FAST. It never rests. It says “So-and-so is doing this over here… shouldn’t you be doing that too?” ✨ But humans need rest. We can't be going all the time. We can’t do everything. There are days when you're INSPIRED and making big moves… and there are days when you need to step back. ✨ Days when you need to look at that bottomless to do list and say, "Not today. You can wait. Today, I'm going to fill myself back up." ✨ If you can't remember the last time you gave yourself permission to rest, I want you to know something… ✨ Your business is important. Your business deserves your BEST. And you can ONLY bring your best if you are taking time to rest your brain + FILL your soul. ✨ If you could take a whole day to do ANYTHING you want, what would it be? A beautiful hike? Exploring downtown? Lounging in bed with a good book? Spa day?👇🏼...When are you going to do it?👇🏼
How can I stand out and get noticed? ✨ As someone who spent a LONG time running away from who I am... let me promise you that everything will flow when you look within, embrace who you are, and then be YOU on purpose! ✨ The beauty of BEING YOU is that it's not all about what you do... it's about WHO YOU ARE when you do whatever you do. ✨ Maybe you're showing up on live video this week. Maybe you're working 1:1 with clients. Maybe you're creating new content. Maybe you're attending a retreat. Maybe you're going out on a limb. Maybe you're taking a big leap. Maybe you're pushing yourself. Maybe you're doing something scary. Maybe you're working quietly behind the scenes. Maybe you're taking a break because you deserve it. ✨ Whatever you're doing, do it as YOU. Do it in the YOU-iest way possible. Really experience + appreciate your YOU-ness. ✨ Be proud of who you are Bring your whole self to the table Lean into those strengths Celebrate + share your gifts Be gentle with yourself, because everyone has weaknesses ✨ When you do this, you invite others to do the same - to be wholly themselves! What a crazy awesome gift 🧡 ✨ From a branding perspective, you're also CLAIMING SPACE. ✨ Because this thing you're doing today, no one else can do it like you... No one! Out of 7.3 billion people, not a one... except for you. Because no one else can be you. ✨ When you show up and own it... you become unstoppable 🧡 ✨ Not sure what makes YOU one-of-a-kind, or how to own it online? ⁣✨ Brand your Brilliance starts in JUNE! No more hiding + dimming your light... your tribe is waiting. We need your voice, and your message! Space is limited, DM me for the details 🧡
"I wish none of this had happened..." ✨ "So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." - Gandalf the Grey 🧙‍♂️ ✨ You don't get to choose where you start. And you don't get to choose where you end up... in the end, NEITHER of them is up to you to decide! ✨ You only need to decide what to do with the time given to you, TODAY. To say YES to the callings of your heart, in this moment. ✨ There is a path calling out YOUR name, right now. ✨ And when you answer that call, even when it's scary -- ESPECIALLY when it's scary -- the most amazing things happen. But it all begins with taking those very first steps, when the future feels uncertain. ✨ What's one thing calling your name today, that you know you need to take action to do, even if you don't know the outcome? ✨ One of mine is public speaking... I don't get to decide how naturally gifted I am at it. I don't get to decide exactly how it turns out. But I can decide what to do with the time I have, by pursuing opportunities, and preparing my message. ✨ Tell me what is calling YOUR name, and what your are going to do with the time you have!!👇🏼 ✨ Bonus points if you remember the scene at the top! 🧡
Friday Introductions! I haven't done one of these in a while, so I'll share something kinda fun :) ✨ Hi, I'm Ashley! And I love people who are different. The weirdos and the underdogs. The people who have always felt a little (or a lot) out of place. The ones who know what it's like to feel unaccepted, or looked at funny, or just a little (or a lot) outside the lines of what's considered "normal." ✨ Maybe it's obvious that you're different, and sometimes you wish you could blend into a crowd and go unnoticed. ✨ Or maybe you look, talk, and act like everyone else, so your difference has the burdensome weight of an isolating secret. ✨ But listen... it is GOOD NEWS for the world that you're here, being your unique self. Please be MORE of you. ✨ Because you see things a little differently. You've experienced things none of us will ever witness. You're rare and unique, and you have so much to teach us. ✨ Here's the real secret: We are all total weirdos. We're all utterly one-of-a-kind. We all have inner depths that run so deep it's scary to peer down into them. We all have an inner light that can shine more brightly than we can even imagine. ✨ If you're a weirdo (I know you are), then welcome - you're in good company, and you always are. ✨ When I get embarrassed, my whole upper body turns beet red. I love movies about the end of the world. I compulsively make up stupid songs about my cat, my dog, my husband, a tree, whatever is in front of me. I spend a shameful amount of time playing video games. I love crystals, zombies, yoga, french fries, and pretending to understand quantum physics. ✨ And it's not just me...there are 7.53 billion other weirdos out there to meet. ✨ The weirdo in me bows to the weirdo in you. Namaste. ✨ Tell me ONE weird thing about you! 😜👇🏼
"Why is this happening to me?" Have you ever asked this question? ✨ Man, I know I have, SO MANY times! and tbh, sometimes I still do. 🙈 ✨ But those setbacks and failures aren't happening to you... they're happening FOR you, in some way, shape, or form. ✨ There's something there for you to learn or gain: a lesson buried in the struggle... and it's up to you to find it! ✨ Maybe it's an experience you need to have, in order to help OTHER people get through it too. ✨ Maybe it's a skill you need to learn, to PREPARE you for the next big challenge. ✨ Maybe it’s a lesson you need to LEARN, to become more of who you are meant to be. ✨ Maybe it's a reminder about something you've already learned, but have FORGOTTEN to apply. ✨ Maybe it's just a simple QUESTION from the universe: do you really want this? How much? ✨ I know sometimes these lessons can be painful.. but they contain value that's YOURS for the taking, if you dare to look for it! ✨ What lesson are YOU learning (or re-learning) this week? 👇🏼
If you're a creative, this one's for you. If you're not a creative, YES you are! ✨ You're alive = you're creative. You've made things, written things, scribbled things, hummed things, said things. You have "brought forth the treasures that are hidden within you" (as Liz Gilbert says) in one way or another. ✨ It's no easy thing! Even "the greats" are human: frail, flawed creatures, made of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium... grasping at, clumsily channeling the divine. ✨ Even “bad” art, the worst thing you’ve ever made, the thing that you’d be embarrassed for anyone to see, is a miracle. ✨ You're a MAGICAL being. You can CREATE. Take a dim, blurry idea that doesn’t even exist in any material way... and transmute it into space & time. ✨ INSPIRATION is your birthright - you can get inspired by anything. A smudge on the pantry door. A leaf caught in a bicycle wheel. A song you’ve heard a hundred times. ✨ Tune into it, channel it, transform the dim light into something - a song, a drawing, a photo, a blog, a course... an Instagram post! ✨ It doesn’t have to be great. It doesn’t even have to be good. It’s YOURS. And it would never exist if you weren’t here to create it. It’s a fossilized imprint of your heart, mind, and soul. It's proof that you are ALIVE. That you are CREATIVE. That you are YOU. That you are pure MAGIC. That you simply ARE. ✨ What do YOU create? What will YOU leave behind? ✨ ✨ ✨ 📸Unsplash
"I'm getting old!" I starting saying this every year on my birthday when I was 22. 22!! I was a baby, already afraid that I was running out of time to make my dream life happen. ✨ On Sunday I turned 33 (still a baby). This is the year I start CELEBRATING each year instead of complaining that I'm getting older. ✨ This is the year I APPRECIATE how far life has brought me, and the hard-earned lessons and experiences - good and bad - that have made me who I am, and prepared me to make the difference I want to make. ✨ Here are some of the lessons I'm GRATEFUL to have learned, that I would tell my younger self (and anyone else who needs it): ✨ Follow your fears, because they point the way to the life you truly want. If it scares you, do it. Always do the thing that scares you the most, and watch the life you want come to life. ✨ No one else knows better. Don't wait for someone else to give you permission or tell you what's okay to do. Start trusting yourself to create your own life and your own future. ✨ Don't dim your light. Don't hide away your gifts and your passions. It's always time to shine, because someone out there needs it. ✨ It's not about you. People who cause you pain (intentionally or not) are on their own journey that you'll never fully understand. Pay them no mind, or send them love from afar and move on. ✨ Be kind to yourself. Choose the words you repeat to yourself with compassion, caution, and intention. Because like it or not, you will believe the things you tell yourself. ✨ Someday never comes. Make happiness and gratitude a daily practice, because there are "good" and "bad" things in every day, including the BEST and WORST days of your life. Choose to focus on the positive, and you'll always have joy. ✨ Be patient with yourself. Good things take time. Big changes take time. Keep showing up, keep doing what is right in front of you, and learn to be happy with your progress and enjoy the process. ✨ What's one thing you'd tell your younger self? . . .
 
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