Kim Fischer is the founder of 13 Emeralds Marketing with an MA in digital marketing. She helps business owners optimize their SEO so they can achieve long-term results with ease. Kim’s goal is to help business owners gain more clients, grow their businesses, and give them the ease of having leads come to them. In this episode, you will hear: Kim’s course of her entrepreneurial journey SEO tips for both local and global leads How you can optimize your website today "Being able to help small businesses make big changes is the biggest win to me,” said Kim. Kim is passionate about making SEO accessible for everyone, and she walks her clients through ​​balancing intuition with data to make data-driven decisions in their business. She believes in community over competition and emphasizes the importance of finding your people in the business landscape. Learn more about Kim on her website, 13emeraldsmarketing.com, and on Instagram @13emeraldsmarketing. Follow us for more inspiration to take your business to the next level at: Instagram: ⁠@velacreativeco⁠ | ⁠@laythecoursepodcast⁠ Facebook: ⁠Vela Creative Co.⁠ | ⁠Lay the Course Podcast⁠ Website: ⁠www.velacreativeco.com⁠ Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: ⁠Vela Creative Co.⁠ Credits: Production & Editing by Kelsey Stine, Sarah Miller, and Trevor Stine

Shara Ruffin is an independently licensed clinical social worker, a board-certified tele-mental health provider, and a former psychotherapist from Philadelphia, PA. She specializes in grief, personality disorders, family trauma, compassion fatigue, military counseling, mindfulness meditation, ADHD, and anxiety. Joined by our host Kelsey Stine, Shara discusses what fostering mental health in the workplace looks like for business owners today.  In this episode, you will hear: Shara’s mental health advice for business owners Techniques for mitigating burnout The human aspect of reaching and achieving goals “When you aren’t pouring into yourself–you can’t pour into others what you don’t have,” said Shara.   Shara is the Founder and CEO of a consulting company called Journey To Licensure—combining wellness, clinical supervision, and professional development coaching to support social workers through licensure examinations. To learn more about Shara's work, you can find her on most social media platforms. Follow us for more Inspiration at: Facebook: ⁠Vela Creative Co.⁠ Instagram: ⁠@velacreativeco⁠ Website: ⁠www.velacreativeco.com⁠ Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Sarah Miller, Kelsey Stine, and Trevor Stine

Quinn Driscoll, CPA/ABV is a money management coach for small business owners. As the founder of Value Gal, she teaches successful business owners how to follow a money management system so they can stop feeling confused, anxious, or broke. In this episode, you will hear: The peace of mind that comes with having a clear view of your finances Balancing your growing business and paying yourself Quinn’s C.L.E.A.R. strategy “Wherever you are, you can have a great grasp on your finances, and that’s going to take you so far,” said Quinn as she talked about the range of clients she works with, both big and small. Prior to Value Gal, Quinn spent more than a decade as a sought-after financial expert witness who worked in the high stakes world of litigation consulting. She is a frequent speaker and guest expert on financial topics including building a valuable business, money mindset, and goal setting for business owners. Accidental entrepreneurs, creatives, and former 9-to-5ers love Quinn’s calming presence and simple methods that empower them to replace money guilt and dread with clarity and confidence. Learn more about Quinn at www.thevaluegal.com. Download and utilize Quin's free planner here! Follow us for more Inspiration at: Facebook: ⁠Vela Creative Co.⁠ Instagram: ⁠@velacreativeco⁠ Website: ⁠www.velacreativeco.com⁠ Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Sarah Miller, Kelsey Stine, and Trevor Stine

Yong-Soo Chung is a serial entrepreneur bootstrapping his business from $0 to $20m in just over 8 years. Now, he's on a mission to help founders & creators build an audience, create irresistible product offers, and grow their businesses sustainably. In this episode, you will hear: A successful mindset behind a career shift Clear steps to mapping your success  Yong-Soo’s journey to becoming an entrepreneur  “Every single experience you’ve had in the past shapes who you are in this present moment,” said Yong-Soo, touching on the fear of changing careers.  After establishing a career in finance, Yong-Soo bought a one-way ticket to San Francisco to try his hand at a start-up and see if the life of an entrepreneur was the right path for him. He found success in not just one but two businesses. Now, he is the host of a newly launched podcast on a mission to share his strategy and see other entrepreneurs succeed.   Learn more about Yong-Soo and the First Class Founders podcast. Follow us for more Inspiration at: Facebook: ⁠Vela Creative Co.⁠ Instagram: ⁠@velacreativeco⁠ Website: ⁠www.velacreativeco.com⁠ Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Sarah Miller, Kelsey Stine, and Trevor Stine

Lizzie Mattson left the human services field in 2018 in search of better boundaries and a healthier work-life balance. Today, she is the founder of Wildfeather Co., a boutique Instagram marketing agency that focuses on intentional strategy and beautifully designed organic content. In this episode, you will hear: How a process can help build consistency in your content creation Important pillars of social media strategy What set Lizzie on the path to starting Wildfeather Co. “People are hungry for more thoughtful engagement,” shared Lizzie as she touched on showing up authentically on social media versus worrying about your follower count. With her team by her side, Lizzie serves women in the online business space who desire freedom from their social media to-do list. Outside of work, Lizzie is passionate about fiber art, sweater weather, and the perfect cup of chai. In her downtime, she spends as much time with her family and friends as she can. Learn more about Lizzie on her website and you can find her on Instagram.

After finding that her values in life didn't connect with the social media tech industry she was working in, Izzy Waite decided to ditch the normal 9-5 to pursue a passion-filled career aiming to help driven entrepreneurs get seen and heard. Izzy joined our host Kelsey Stine for a conversation diving into the details of her work as a brand designer. In this episode you will hear: The power of branding in today’s business landscape Showing up, front and center, in your brand Izzy’s passion for diving deep with her clients to bring their personalities to life “I love helping people make sure their personality shows up, front and center, in their branding,” said Izzy, sharing what brought her to work in branding.  By blending her graphic design and business degrees with her natural skill of seeing what makes people special – Izzy has been able to create strategic, stand-out brands that capture her clients’ souls, goals, and values. Izzy specializes getting to know her clients on a deeper level from the start so she can better understand their values and energy and make it shine through their branding and website. Learn more about Izzy on her website and find her on Instagram. Follow us for more Inspiration at: Facebook: ⁠Vela Creative Co.⁠ Instagram: ⁠@velacreativeco⁠ Website: ⁠www.velacreativeco.com⁠ Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Sarah Miller, Kelsey Stine, and Trevor Stine

With a decade of experience in People Operations within the corporate world, Kira La Forgia is no stranger to the sensitive issues involved in the human side of running a business. There’s a lot to learn from hiring, onboarding, training, and managing the performance of over 500 employees for a multimillion-dollar business. She joined host Kelsey Stine to discuss the strategy behind growing your team to grow your business. In this episode you will hear: Kira’s experience with burnout that led her to start her own company, Paradigm Advice for strategizing a holistic approach when hiring for your business The growth you gain from hiring your first employee “Your people are going to help get you to where you want to go, and it’s so much more fun to run a business with a functional team,” said Kira explaining the power of hiring for your overall goals to grow. Kira founded Paradigm to bridge the gap between corporate HR policies and the modern needs of entrepreneurs. Google might have almost all the answers, but it doesn’t have what your unique business needs. Learn more about Kira on her website and find her on Instagram. Follow us for more Inspiration at: Facebook: Vela Creative Co. Instagram: @velacreativeco Website: www.velacreativeco.com Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Sarah Miller, Kelsey Stine, and Trevor Stine

Ellen Pustejovsky is a Black Hills based entrepreneur, content creator, creative director, portrait specialist, and landscape artist who is passionate about sharing ways on building a lifestyle by design. She believes that a life lived simply is a life worth living, and she helps clients create simple yet effective high-quality branded content.  In this episode you will hear: Ellen’s path to becoming a full-time content creator Advice for pushing through barriers to grow in your field The power behind branded content for your business “You are showing up for your audience; you’re creating value for them, and that is what they are going to thank you for,” said Ellen as she disclosed that content creation can feel awkward in the beginning. She is an award winning photographer showcased in publications such as Outside Magazine. Through her 13 years of experience, she has produced content for big brands all around the nation including, Fabletics, Born Shoe, C4 Fabrication, and more. Her teachings and mindset derive from the concept that time is the most valuable thing as it is the only non-renewable asset. Since beginning her first business as a sophomore in high school, her long-term mission is to help other aspiring solo-pressures to achieve their goals in a fraction of the time. Learn more about Ellen’s work on her website and Instagram.

After spending 10 years in corporate America helping build multimillion-dollar businesses as the "go-to numbers girl," Octavia Connor decided to ditch the 9 to 5 in 2011 and build her dream business instead. Her passion led to the birth of Say Yes To Profits, a virtual CFO firm that helps businesses have more money, more profits, and pay less taxes. She joined host Kelsey Stine to talk about all things business. In this episode you will hear: Octavia’s strategy to get out of debt and achieve her goals, How to identify mindsets that may be holding you back, and the unique way she helps her clients see more profit in their businesses. “If you don’t tell your money where to go, it’s going to end up telling you where to go,” said Octavia, while sharing a story of client success. Octavia’s mission is to eradicate small business failure in North America and help businesses earn their first (or next) million dollars sooner than they think. Say Yes to Profits does this by offering a unique combination of offering their clients accounting services, as well as business and money coaching. You can learn more about Octavia and her work on her website here: www.sayyestoprofits.com/ Follow us for more inspiration to take your business to the next level at: Instagram: @velacreativeco | @laythecoursepodcast Facebook: Vela Creative Co. | Lay the Course Podcast Website: www.velacreativeco.com Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Kelsey Stine, Sarah Miller, and Trevor Stine

Sarah Greener is passionate about businesses – mostly small ones. For the  past 7 years, Sarah has been helping busy, stressed, and overworked business  owners transform their businesses and reignite the passion they had when they  started out. Sarah enjoys providing actionable insights to audiences of all sizes to help  them in immediate ways to strike a necessary balance and stop the feeling of being overwhelmed. In this episode you will hear: Sarah’s early career experience that put her on the path to coaching women in business Her experience with burnout, and how she found her way out of it And the steps Sarah encourages her clients to take to find clarity within their business  “Stop, and take a break! You’ve got permission,” said Sarah, talking about her experience navigating burnout. Sarah has developed a framework to help business owners based on her own entrepreneurial journey. The key she advocates for is working on their business rather than in their business. To connect with Sarah, you can visit her website at www.sarahgreener.com. Follow us for more inspiration to take your business to the next level at: Instagram: @velacreativeco | @laythecoursepodcast Facebook: Vela Creative Co. | Lay the Course Podcast Website: www.velacreativeco.com Host: Kelsey Stine Produced by: Vela Creative Co. Credits: Production & Editing by Kelsey Stine, Sarah Miller, and Trevor Stine