The Playful Mompreneur Podcast
The Playful Mompreneur is a podcast by Shelley Tonkin Smith about how to run your own business, using the power of online connection, alongside parenthood and the joys and challenges of conscious family life. The key to making this rather tall order work, Shelley believes, is playfulness. Shelley interviews other mompreneurs who are juggling the double gig of business ownership and parenthood. So if you want to find out how other mompreneurs are making this work, then tune in. :)
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Submit your question for Shelley
Playful Mompreneurs, can you help me? I need your questions for Season 2 of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast!Record a question that you'd like me to answer on the show, using the big red "Start recording" button on the voice message recorder. I'll play your question on the podcast and then give you my best answer. I may even bring in a guest expert to weigh in. This is like free business coaching or a (very playful) strat session!I'm excited to get your questions on topics such as time management, creating digital products and online courses, sales pages, copywriting, website platforms, podcasting, homeschooling as a mompreneur... or any question that's popped into your mind as you've listened to a Playful Mompreneur episode so far.You're going to have to be as concise as possible because you've only got 90 seconds! But feel free to do a second recording if you'd like to ask another question. ;)
Popular Episodes
The Playful Mompreneur Podcast
Episode 1:
Becoming a Playful Mompreneur: An interview of Shelley Tonkin Smith by her inner-critic, Cruelette de Smithers
Want to find joy in being both a parent and a business owner? Then come and play with us here on the debut episode of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast!I’m your host, Shelley Tonkin Smith and I’m on a mission to help moms to start and grow their own businesses in a way that’s as simple and as fun as child’s play. Join me as I talk about building a special kind of business — a business that supports your desire to be a fully present parent and to have the time and space to truly connect with your kids.I've got a list of mompreneurs — and dadpreneurs — who are rocking this double gig of parenting and business ownership — with some of them even throwing homeschooling into the mix. But before I put my questions to them, I thought I'd answer them myself.And come on everyone, it would be crazy of me to interview myself. That's why I enlisted the help of my inner-critic, Crulette de Smithers (played by Yours Truly, of course) to interview me! Yip, that's way less crazy! :) Tune in for ideas on incorporating more playfulness into your business — with a side order of silliness!
Show Notes
In this episode, you can look forward to:- What's in store for you as a listener of The Playful Mompreneur Podcast.
- A guest appearance by Cruelette de Smithers, Shelley's inner critic. ;)
- Shelley's copywriting + website design business.
- How Shelley has set up support systems that help her to homeschool her kids and be a mompreneur.
- Why figuring out your Zone of Genius is so important — and how you can do that.
- How Shelley has embraced playfulness in both homeschooling and her business journey.
- How she has set up her typical week + her mompreneur productivity tips.
- Examples of how she incorporates play into her business.
- Business "rules" Shelley has broken to good effect — and why you should also be a rule breaker.
- Shelley's best advice to new mompreneurs
Episode 2:
Coaching Business + OT Job + Mom: How Wendy Ng does it all, JOYFULLY!
Wendy Ng is a Dance and Movement Coach for Moms, guiding them to become (or rediscover) a more joyful version of themselves. In addition to her coaching business and parenting her 3 kids, Wendy continues to practice as an Occupational Therapist for 4 days a week — so if you're looking to start a business alongside your current 9-5, then this one is definitely for you.Connect with Wendy on Instagram @simplynaturallywendy and give yourself the gift of her 5-Minute Morning Movement Routine at thewendyng.com — your body and mind will thank you AND your family will be grateful too!Also, are you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book...
Show Notes
In this episode, Wendy shares:
- 3:12 How she came up with the idea to start a business as a Dance and Movement Coach
- 5:35 About her family and current childcare and education arrangements — and how her kids inspire her in her business
- 8:29 Her business journey and how she balances motherhood, a traditional job, and her coaching business
- 14:44 Wendy's Zone of Genius (and how that helped get the creative juices flowing — and kept my jetlag at bay — during a retreat we were both on in 2019)
- 18:19 Wendy's typical schedule a.k.a. exactly how she manages her time
- 23:50 Productivity strategies that are working for her right now
- 26:24 How she embraces playfulness in her business
- 28:17 The "rules" she's broken in building her business and why she refuses to sacrifice sleep for so-called success!
- 31:28 Advice for new mompreneurs and the importance of mentorship and community
Episode 3:
On creating the life & business you want at your own pace — Shelley’s reflections on her interview with Wendy Ng
In Episode 2, I interviewed Wendy Ng, a Dance and Movement Coach, Mama of three, and part-time Occupational Therapist. This mompreneur has a lot on her plate, but you know what’s cool? She’s CREATED it that way! And that makes all the difference between a frenetic, busy existence and a conscious and joyful life.Wendy had so many beautiful insights to share and so in this episode, I’m highlighting a few of my favourite takeaways (and adding my 2 cents-worth, of course!). Here are some of them:
- 2:38 It was so much fun and we laughed a lot! I want to do more of that in my business!
- 5:30 Find something to do JUST. FOR. YOU.
- 11:23 CREATING space for the things that light you up — for Wendy, this initially meant negotiating a job-share that gave her one day off a week for some “me time” and “adult admin time”. Later, she was able to use this time for building her own coaching business.
- 16:36 Embrace your own unique pacing on your business journey.
- 19:27 Seek out mentorship and a community of other entrepreneursConnect with Wendy on Instagram @simplynaturallywendy and give yourself the gift of her 5-Minute Morning Movement Routine at thewendyng.com — your body and mind will thank you AND your family will be grateful too!Also, are you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book...
Episode 4:
On the joys and lessons of taking "the hard way" in business with Rowena Mabbott
You may have heard the business advice, “Scratch your own itch.” As in, solve a problem that you’re having and then market the solution to other people. This is the route that Rowena Mabbott took — but then realised a few years into starting her business that she had taken “the hard way”. But who knows?! It might have just been the most perfect way for her — just like your way is perfect for you.Rowena pivoted the focus of her business from grief coaching to career and life confidence coaching — and she shares more about the journey leading up to that pivot in the podcast. In hindsight, she can see that all her training and life experience had been leading up to this point.Rowena also tells us about how becoming more playful and experimental in her business now has helped her to realise some great successes — the simple way, this time! — like booking out her Accountability Group, which involved minimal marketing and launching efforts!Rowena and I have become firm biz besties, despite the fact that she lives in Sydney, Australia and I in Joburg in South Africa. I first worked with her on the launch of one of her programmes back in 2018, and then last year, I was part of her Clarity and Confidence Collective — a programme that played a major role in getting me through the year that was 2020!! She's full of great mompreneur wisdom and an absolute gem of a human being.Resources we mention:
- Design Your Season Self-Led Workshop
- The Four Tendencies by Gretchen RubinConnect with Rowena on Instagram @rowenamabbott and get her free Daily Journal Prompts and pick up your copy of Design Your Season at rowenamabbott.com.Also, are you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book...
Episode 5:
How to develop a Minimum Viable Product/Offer to “do what you can, with what you have, where you are” — my reflections on Rowena Mabbott’s interview
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” That’s a Theodore Roosevelt quote, shared by Rowena Mabbott, my guest on last week’s episode of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast.At first, it sounds pretty obvious, simple even. But as I reflected on Rowena’s interview and on this quote, I realised that it has so many powerful implications for us as playful mompreneurs.Now for us mompreneurs, starting a business can feel scary — downright terrifying, even. And then running that business each day can feel overwhelming. And when we start comparing ourselves to other entrepreneurs and moms who seem like they’re totally rocking it, the self-doubt creeps up pretty quickly.In those moments, I’m going to (try to) remind myself: Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. And I’d encourage you to do the same.Because when you soak that in, then things get a whole lot clearer, you get perspective, and you start taking action, which builds your confidence (which incidentally is what Rowena helps her clients to do as a Career and Life Confidence Coach!).Now, Rowena shared a whole lot of examples of where she did what she could, with what she had, where she was at that time in her life and in this episode I’m going to be highlighting them for you. Because even if you have as little as 5 hours a week to work on your business right now, then that’s what you have. I’d love to help you come up with a plan to do what you can with the time, and also the resources, and energy, and experience, and support — that you have.Here the highlights of this episode:
- 00:00 Do what you can, where you are, with what you have.
- 03:23 Takeaway #1: You can start your own business journey by working for someone else
- 06:57 Takeaway #2: Sometimes taking the hard way is the right way
- 13:10 Takeaway #3:Take the pressure off and get answers quickly with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
- 18:33 Takeaway #4: Seasonal planning and living. Get your copy of Design Your Season Self-Guided Workshop and get my course, Sales Page Superhero in the buttons further down this page.
- 23:09 Reflection Question: What resource might you already have — on your computer or in your brain — that you could easily turn into a digital product? Share your ideas with me @shelleysmithcreative on Instagram or email [email protected]
- 23:33 Takeaway #5: Just Start!Are you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 6:
On stepping up as CEO of your business, unapologetically — with Brandy Mabra
What does being a CEO mean to you? Managing a corporation of hundreds or thousands of employees? Super important board meetings? And the power suit — you’ve gotta have the power suit!But in this new world of business, the definition of being a CEO has changed. And as a business owner, or aspiring business owner, you are a CEO — the power suit is optional!And if you’re thinking: “I’m just a one-lady shop — I’m not a CEO,” then my guest on this week’s episode of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast, Business and Leadership Coach Brandy Mabra, would beg to disagree! Today, she’s going to tell us a bit more about why you absolutely MUST claim the title of CEO — unapologetically.This lady totally OWNS her role as CEO of her business, Savvy Clover Coaching and Consulting and she equips her clients to show up unapologetically savvy and build their businesses to 6 or even 7-figures. And today, she’s going to be sharing how you too can step up into your role as CEO of your business — even if you’re just getting started.What I loved about my interview with Brandy is that she’s brought all the good parts of the corporate world into running a small business. She’s ditched a lot of the stuffiness of business but used the structures and processes from her corporate life to create plenty of space for play in her own business today. Testament to this are her regular CEO Breaks and playing along with her basketball-obsessed family.Connect with Brandy on Instagram @savvyclovercoaching and at savvyclover.comAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 7:
On being bold and taking breaks for brainpower — my reflections on my interview with Brandy Mabra
Being an entrepreneur, especially a mompreneur requires boldness. And last week’s guest, Brandy Mabra is a shining example of what it means to be bold in business and in life.In this episode, I reflect on my interview with Brandy and how her boldness comes from a place of playfulness. Her confidence in stepping up as the CEO of her business also has a playful edge to it. And I love how she’s using the best parts of her corporate skill set to not only build a very healthy business of her own but also to teach and mentor other mompreneurs and female business owners.Now when it comes to building a business and stepping into your role as CEO, the question of hiring invariably comes up. So in this episode, I add my thoughts to what Brandy shared about her hiring journey (hint: she hired early!).I also chat a bit more about the importance of finding your people — something that both Brandy and I have been intentionally working on lately, and which I think is an ongoing project for all of us.And the final point that I’ve highlighted is possibly the most important. It’s the most fun, but probably the one we don’t pay enough attention to, and that is: taking regular breaks away from work. Ideally, take a holiday or vacation for 4-7 days, but if that’s not possible, then plan a staycation at home, but do something out of the ordinary — your brain will thank you for the downtime and reward you with some great ideas and clarity.Here the highlights of this episode:
- 03:01 Takeaway #1: Be bold and move forward with confidence — be unapologetically bold!
- 05:37 Takeaway #2: Bring the best parts of your previous (corporate) experience into your own business and ditch the rest.
- 06:54 Brandy’s 6 Pillars of Business Excellence
- 10:02 Takeaway #3: Ask for and accept help in your business and consider hiring
- 13:05 Takeaway #4: Find your people and be generous to them
- 23:33 Takeaway #5: Take regular “CEO Breaks” where you switch off from work completely — and make sure they’re in the schedule, way in advanceConnect with Brandy on Instagram @savvyclovercoaching and at savvyclover.comAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 8:
Playfully structured weeks and no-rules-weekends — with Lynne Huysamen
Lynne Huysamen a mompreneureur blogger. She has successfully turned her blog into a business that provides her with a full-time income by working weekday mornings only. In the afternoons, she’s in full mom-mode. And on the weekends, she goes into what she calls “sloth mode.”Lynne claims to be a bit of a “hot mess mom,” but that makes her productivity advice all the more relatable. She’s a great example of how we as moms can use structure and routine as a way to bring more freedom into our lives, rather than less.I felt lighter, happier, and more playful about life and business after I recorded and edited this episode. Maybe it’s because of Lynne’s great energy and bubbly personality. Or, talking of bubbles — she had me in stitches telling me about how she couldn’t have a decent bubble bath when her kids were home. Listen to the show to find out why... Or, maybe as a proud South African, it was so great to hear from another Mzanzi Mompreneur who is totally rocking it on her playful mompreneur journey.But it hasn't all been easy. Her business journey has involved a bookkeeping business, starting and running an online store, and only then full-time blogging. Not only has she had to navigate the challenges of being a full-time mom and business owner at the same time, but she is also in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction (now in her 13th year) and she lives with mental illness.Lynne has met these challenges with determination and resilience — and she brought a lightness to our interview that brightened my day. I know she’s going to encourage and inspire you too.P.S. Tune in next week for a mini-lesson on how to monetise your blog. Lynne shared so much great information that I decided it deserved its own episode!Here's what we cover:- 3:45 How Lynne went from bookkeeping to running an online store to blogging as a business
- 8:10 Why Lynne made the change from an online store to blogging.
Tune in to next week’s episode to find out how Lynne monetises her blog and earns a full-time income doing work that she loves.
- 13:00 How Lynne divides her time between “Work Mode” and “Mom Mode” — and how this helps her to avoid the all-nighters she used to pull in the past, and ensures the housework gets done in its timeslot.
- 19:35 What to do when things don’t go to plan and when to know it’s time to just quit and go out for ice cream.
- 23:59 How Lynne has discovered her Zone of Genius in audience research and diving deep into the mysteries of search engine optimisation (SEO)
- 25:34 No-rules weekends (and why her husband thought Lynne was a sloth…)
- 28:54 How Lynne consciously manages her energy flow to be productive and also to build self-care into her day. This has been essential for both her addiction recovery journey and living with mental illness.
- 33:31 Don’t add another thing to the day’s to-do list — instead, reward yourself with a midday bubble bath!
- 36:09 The rules Lynne has broken on her business journey and why she thinks she’s get fired if she worked for a boss (other than herself!)
- 39:02 Advice for new mompreneurs (and I think this applies to all of us) on starting a business and dealing with the inevitable negative feedback that will come your way.Connect with Lynne and the Kaboutjie Community
Kaboutjie Parenting Community on Facebook
Kaboutjie Website
Kaboutjie on InstagramAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 9:
How to turn your blog into a business — a blog monetisation lesson with Lynne Huysamen
What’s a topic that you could talk about for hours? Someone asks you a question about [insert topic here] and the next thing you know, you need a drink of water because you’ve been talking so much!For Lynn Huysamen, that topic could be filled in with: monetising a blog. (And, to be clear, it was in the best possible way — I’m not talking about regretting asking cousin Sally about her genealogy research or great uncle Pete about his shipbuilding in bottles!).You can catch my full interview with Lynne in Episode 8 (the episode prior to this one), where she talks about her business journey and managing her time and energy as a mompreneur. But in this episode, she's giving us a blogging mini-lesson and sharing how she makes a full-time income through blogging and related services.Lynne’s enthusiasm about monetising a blog was infectious and the strategies she shared will be very empowering for current bloggers, or moms who are considering blogging as a business.So, in this episode, Lynne tells us:
- The most surprising way she’s made money from her blog (which may have gone too well!)
- Why Google Ads work really well for her and bring her in a passive residual income.
- Why she doesn’t choose to use banner ads.
- Why she loves affiliate marketing.
- Sponsored posts: the high ticket offer for bloggers.
- How bloggers can offer services related to the skills they’ve picked up on the blogging journey.
- That bloggers can create digital products.
- How blogging offers flexibility, an outlet for creativity, fulfilment, and even therapy, as Lynne has discovered in her addiction recovery journey.
- Lynne’s own online course on setting up and monetising a blog, which she has in the works.Connect with Lynne and the Kaboutjie Community
Kaboutjie Parenting Community on Facebook
Kaboutjie Website
Kaboutjie on Instagram
Lynne Huysamen on InstagramAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 10:
TPM#10 On simplifying, prioritising, and going with your (energetic) flow — my reflections on Lynne’s interview
OK Playful Mompreneurs, it’s time for us to rewrite the rules of business. I’m talking about the rules of big business and corporate institutions. I’m also talking about the hustle mentality of the startup world. And yes, I’m even talking about some of the rules within the small business and indie entrepreneur world that are simply not vibing with you and your mom-infused life.Are you with me?My interview with Lynne Huysamen (Episode #8) got me all fired up about how we as mom business owners have a unique opportunity to blaze a new trail. In fact, it’s a trend I’m starting to see with all the other mompreneurs I’ve interviewed so far.Here are the five key takeaways from Lynne’s interview:
- Always be on the lookout for opportunities to simplify your business. In Lynne’s case, this meant pivoting her business from an online store to a blog.
- How can you prove your business concept in the simplest way possible? (You know I’m going to come back to MVP — Minimum Viable Product here, don’t you!). And on a deeper level: Your proof of (business) concept has nothing to do with proving yourself as a person or validating your self-worth. You don’t need to prove anything. You are awesome.
- What exactly is your energetic flow and why is it so important? Nature isn’t in production mode all year round and we don’t need to be either.
- Priorities over productivity. It’s one of the new rules for business that I’ve got queued up for a whole section of my upcoming book. For a long time, I’ve felt like I’m not a productive person because it’s very rare that I complete my to-do list for a day. But I’m realising the problem is not me, it’s what’s on the to-do list i.e. my priorities. That’s what needs fixing.
- You’ve got this! Sure, there are challenges along the business owner journey, but you are not only capable, but you’re in control of exactly how you want your business to run.Connect with Lynne and the Kaboutjie Community
Kaboutjie Parenting Community on Facebook
Kaboutjie Website
Kaboutjie on Instagram
Lynne Huysamen on InstagramAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club? Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 11:
Seriously playful — how Ashley Becker-Nunley infuses play into the serious business of mompreneurship
I get it: kids can be playful. But how can I be playful? I’m an adult. A businessperson. A parent. They’re all pretty serious gigs, right?!If you’re asking these questions, then my guest on this week’s episode of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast, Ashley Becker-Nunley, a.k.a. the Joyful Mama Mentor has some answers for you. She’s one of the most playful mompreneurs I know and — maybe ironically, but maybe not — she also takes her mission and her clients very seriously.Ashley is a play professional. She is an occupational therapist who works in several schools and she has her own parent coaching business. As you'll hear on the episode, play is most certainly Ashley’s zone of genius. And it infuses every aspect of her work, not just when she's working with the kids, but also while she's working with parents and running her own business.Ashley has been building in her parent coaching business for the last few years — so she knows what it takes to do the work of business building, while still keeping her energy light and playful. So, if you've been wondering what it really looks like to be playful as an entrepreneur, then this episode is for you.Oh, and no prizes for guessing Ashley’s word of the year. Yip: PLAY.Here's what we cover in the episodes with timestamps for your convenience :)
- 00:50 Join Ashley’s FREE Screentime Challenge to create a digital wellness plan — perfect for your family, May 24th to 26th in her Facebook Group, the Joyful Mama Mentor
- 05:14 How Ashley — who was very reluctant about social media — now posts in her Facebook Group three (yes 3) times a day. Listen in to find out why…
- 10:13 Ashley’s family (both human, furry, and feathery…). Including her challenges with hybrid schooling and why she’s chosen to hang up her “Teacher Hat”
- 18:18 Ashley’s business journey (which someone might need to turn into a movie). And why Ashley decided to add parent coaching to her OT practice with kids.
- 23:59 How playfulness has helped Ashley to build her business — warning there’s a tangent into Captain Underpants here… Agh, Boy Moms can be so gross!
- 28:33 How playfulness brings all the clients to the yard — and makes being a business owner fun
- 31:02 More about Captain Underpants… (what are you like?)
- 31:34 Back on track: Ashley’s typical week
- 38:07 Ashley’s productivity tip (spoiler: it’s more of a self-care tip)
- 42:01 How Ashley breaks the old business rules
- 44:12 Ashley’s advice to new (and seasoned) mompreneurs. It comes down to my Playful Mompreneur Play: Focus over FOMO.
- 46:35 Why I’m creating much better artworks (please understand I’m not an artist at all) with watercolor pencil crayons and my own creativity than I could have with even the best paint-by-number. And what this has to do with business.
- 50:41 Please share this episode. Copy and paste this link and send it to your friends, or tell them to search the Playful Mompreneur wherever they listen to podcasts.Connect with Ashley and the Joyful Mama Mentor Community
Joyful Mama Mentor Group on Facebook
Joyful Mama Mentor Website
Joyful Mama Mentor on InstagramAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club?
Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 12:
How to handle FOMO and embrace focus as a mompreneur (reflecting on Ashley's interview)
📱Join Ashley’s FREE Screentime Challenge to create a digital wellness plan that's perfect for your family — May 24th to 26th in her Facebook Group, the Joyful Mama Mentor. 📺One of the plays from the Playful Mompreneur Playbook is: Focus over FOMO. This is a theme that came through very strongly in my interview with Ashley Becker-Nunley in last week's episode.So in this episode, I'm reflecting on our interview through the lens of "Focus over FOMO," highlighting the ways that Ashley has stayed focused — both as a mother and as an entrepreneur — even when it's been very tempting to give in to the Fear Of Missing Out.My key takeaways are:
- Tactics like being on particular social media channels or using the latest tools and tech can come from a place of FOMO and can lead to Shiny Object Syndrome or resentment that you "have to" use a particular tool or channel. However, Ashley has completely reframed her mindset around using social media (and Facebook in particular). She's now using social media to get hyper-focused on her people and her business goals. Who woulda thought, right?!
- As moms, we wear many hats and at the moment, one of those is that of "teacher." But Ashley has decided to hang up the "teacher hat" and only wear her "mom hat" with her son. In so doing, she's focusing on the mother-son relationship and letting his school teacher wear the "teacher hat."
- When we're operating from a place of FOMO, we've got this grippy, grasping energy. We are so attached to a particular outcome that there's very little room for playfulness or fun. Ironically, with more focus, there's more space to play!
- How Ashley needed to update her ideal calendar so that it was aligned with what she wanted for herself holistically. She realized she was working more hours than she had intended (yes, because she loves her work and is so playful about it), but she needed time to recharge her battery and for self-care.
- How Ashley keeps focused on her audience and niche by journaling about them and their needs every day. I love how this activity is both a self-care activity and a client-service activity! :)Connect with Ashley and the Joyful Mama Mentor Community
Joyful Mama Mentor Group on Facebook
Joyful Mama Mentor Website
Joyful Mama Mentor on InstagramAre you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club?
Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.
Episode 13:
What is play? And what does it mean for mompreneurs? (A Review of Stuart Brown's book, Play)
Are you a member of the Playful Mompreneur Club?
Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.After a dozen episodes of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast, I'm convinced that we're on to something when it comes to embracing playfulness in our own businesses. The mompreneurs I've interviewed so far have testified to the fact that when they've become more playful, there's been more ease in their businesses, and success (in all its forms!) has followed.But you may be left wondering:- What do play and playfulness really mean?
- Why should I embrace playfulness?
- What does play look like for me (as a responsible adult!)?
- What does play look like in the world of business ownership and “work”?All great questions that require some expert answers. So, I’ve reached for Stuart Brown’s book, entitled Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination and Invigorates the Soul. Here's the Amazon link.In this week’s episode of the Playful Mompreneur Podcast, I review the book and reflect on how the theory and research have been borne out in my own mompreneur journey.Fun Fact: I recorded this episode a few months ago, as part of my research for my book. I’ve been waiting excitedly for the right time to air it. And I think that now that you’ve heard from several mompreneurs about how playfulness has transformed their business journeys, it’s time to learn some more about the concept of playfulness.Timestamps:- 05:42 Thanks to Cate Curley at My Little Poppies/Never Board Learning for recommending “Play” by Stuart Brown in her course, Gameschooling (affiliate link). I'm really enjoying Gameschooling and I highly recommend it to homeschooling moms who are looking to intentionally add a bit more play into their homeschool days.
- 07:39 Why is play important to us as adults?
- 10:37 Stuart Brown’s definition of “play”
- 17:36 What does play look like for adults (and specifically mompreneurs)?
- 27:06 Work and Play (and why I love the chapter title: “The Opposite of Play is not Work”)Follow me on Instagram and snap a selfie of you listening to the Playful Mompreneur Podcast! And make sure to SUBSCRIBE to the podcast wherever you listen to podcasts ;)
Episode 14:
Less stuff, less stress, more space and more time for what matters #shedtheshoulds with Amanda Jefferson
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Click here to sign up. I'll let you know when a new episode drops and share some bonus content with you too — like excerpts from my upcoming book.Today’s episode found its own hashtag, #shedtheshoulds. My super spunky guest Amanda Jefferson said it at the beginning of the interview and then it seemed to keep cropping up as a theme.If you’re feeling like you “should” be doing a whole lot of things — whether that’s in your business, in your parenting, or in life in general — then take some inspiration from Amanda.You don’t have to unschool your children, or completely change careers, or get a nose ring — not unless you want to — but Amanda’s journey is proof that you don’t have to stick to a path that’s not working or that’s going to lead you to burnout. Instead, she encourages us to choose the “fun and easy.”Amanda and I first met when I traveled to Philadelphia for a Mastermind Retreat and she gave a talk on organisation and simple living. She is the owner of Indigo Organizing and one of the world’s first KonMari consultants. She left an inspiring yet stressful 20-year career to start her own business because she felt frazzled with life and was on the point of burnout. Now, she helps people have less stuff, less stress, more space and more time for what matters.This is something that Amanda has modeled in her own life. 2020 was a challenging and painful year for her. Not only did she have to deal with the challenges brought about by the pandemic, but she also lost both her sister and her father to cancer — within two months of each other.Amanda shares about how this tragedy prompted her to let go of all the rules she thought she “should” be following, and instead do business and life her way. This has been another step in what Amanda calls her creative renaissance, which began several years ago when she decided to leave her job, start her own business and completely change careers!If you’re looking for some inspiration to face your own challenges, then tune in! Amanda is incredibly wise with a delightfully quirky sense of humour — I know you’re going to be fist pumping by the end of this episode.Here are some of the topics we cover in the interview (many of them mic drop moments, I might add…):
- Amanda’s creative renaissance (no, it was not a mid-life crisis!).
- The events that led her to choose unschooling as an education approach for her daughter.
- How she left what was in many respects a dream job — but in other respects a potential catalyst for burnout — to start her own business in a field that was relatively new to her.
- How clutter creates cognitive load and how Amanda helps her clients to win the war on external and internal clutter.
- How Amanda has carved out an ideal schedule that works for her — even while homeschooling/unschooling and dealing with the loss of two close family members in 2020. In fact, her schedule has even made it possible to consider spending the US winter in Chile, for their summer!
- Why Amanda has chosen to focus on the “fun and easy” and how this has changed everything for her.
- Lots of book recommendations from someone who is clearly a bookworm: Untamed, Playful Parenting, Minimalist Parenting, The Untethered Soul.
- How to deal with our inner critic and the shift that has enabled Amanda to take life and business less seriously.
- Why finding a community of like-minded individuals can be so powerful — but why is it also important to “keep your eyes on your own paper”!