Simply Designed Life | Business, Lifestyle Design, and Productivity Tips From Women Entrepreneurs and Gamechangers

Business and life are not linear at all. There are a lot of stops and starts in both. Trying something new will require a lot of courage as there’s a good chance you won’t get it right the first time. Mastering a new skill, a new habit, what have you will require that you leave the safety of your comfort zone and be open to learning something new. If you’re courageous and try something new, you’re going to learn that valuable lesson you’re supposed to learn, succeed or fail, swim or sink. If you learn in the process you need to pivot and change course, that’s okay because you’ve learned that valuable lesson along the way. That’s interesting because back in Episode 59 social media expert Sarah DeGeorge echoes when she talks about how to take a step back from your business and rebrand, get back on the bandwagon and put yourself out there again. The biggest takeaway from these conversations is, despite having a successful career, if there are other areas of your life that need attention, such as your health, it’s okay to take a step back and refocus your efforts. But don’t give up entirely, because if you do believe in your work, you should keep going because it is such a gift to the world and that persistence can help others who may feel doubt, who may not be as courageous, and who could use the lessons learned in their own growth. An example of this is with my conversations with married couple author Jennifer Miller and Entrepreneur Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Jason Pfifer. They discuss book and magazine publishing and the importance of not only producing great work but standing up for it. In this two-part conversation, Episode 57 and Episode 58 we learn about having the courage and confidence to stand up for your work, find the opportunity in every challenge that you encounter. Speaking of book publishing, we hear from McGraw Hill Editor, yoga instructor and lifestyle blogger Cheryl Ringer over on Episode 63 on how to get published, the importance of having a compelling hook and establishing a platform. She also dives into her productivity hacks for getting things done despite not drinking coffee which is amazing in my book! I love our conversation not only on book publishing but also her thoughts on yoga and meditation, which is great because I already feel relaxed talking about our conversation. Now if you’re feeling a little overwhelmed in that you probably love hearing all this great wisdom and getting the information to lead the best life you can, but you’ve got a busy work and family life, work and personal responsibilities, but still would like to implement digestible tips you could incorporate in your day to day to help you be more productive and set you up succeed, here are three tips. Listen to this episode to find out more! Resources Mentioned: Episode 57 057: Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer Part I: On Storytelling & How to Thrive as a Creative Episode 58 058: Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer Part II: On Opportunity Awareness + Work Life Blending Episode 59 059: Sarah DeGeorge: On How to Rebrand Your Business Episode 63 063: Cheryl Ringer on Traditional Book Publishing Other Listening Options: Individual player or full player view on website: http://lorirochino.com/podcast-2/

Cheryl Ringer is the creator of and voice behind personal and professional development site, With Cheryl. With Cheryl offers readers practical, fun, and applicable advice to boost their life and career from where they are now to where they want to be. Join Cheryl to gain practical insights and learn about topics including habits, goal setting, organization, mindfulness, productivity, and much, much more. Aside from a blogger, Cheryl is a business book editor, 200-Hour registered yoga teacher, dancer, avid reader, runner, productivity nerd, and constant learner. She lives in New York with her husband. Quotes from Cheryl Make sure that there is a hook, that there is something that differentiates your book from what's out there right now. Say you want to publish within the leadership category in business. There are tons of leadership books out there right now. What is it that's going to make someone say, 'Now that's the one I need to pick up, that's the thing that makes this different from XYZ books that were also published this year in the leadership space.' The second thing I would emphasize is platform. So the more you are getting content out into the world—whether it be through a podcast or writing on your blog, writing for HBR, Forbes, Inc.—any of those big outlets that you can get your content out there, make sure that content also relates to the topic of the book. That's going to be super helpful. (12:46) I'm definitely someone who likes to help other people—so being able to help these authors to get their word out to more people. And then, what I thrive on is to make sure their content is helping other people. So someone who picks up a book on a bookshelf, I want them to be able to transform their lives, and that's what I get excited about, the fact that what I'm doing can help someone to improve something that they're doing. (14:49) Remember that you are allowed to be your focus, without that being seen as selfish. At the end of each yoga class, from the teacher that I took my yoga teacher training from, she said something along the lines of, 'You are in this class and you're putting yourself first, so that you can be the best person for your child, your husband, your wife, your friends, your family, whoever that is. But by putting yourself first, you're allowing yourself to be the best version of you which is going to benefit everyone around you.' (16:30) Recently I'd been trying to figure out what helps me achieve that—put me first so I could be best for other people. There are things like bullet journaling that I absolutely love, writing in my journal each day, meditating, taking the time to wake up early, so I have time to myself before I get the day started—those things are really important for me. (18:45) What You Will Learn How she was able to turn failure to success How that setback led her to the work she truly loves The traditional publishing landscape The importance of self-care in everyday life Why she decided to start a blog Website: https://withcheryl.co/ Email: withcheryl.co@gmail.com Social Media + Resources: Instagram, Twitter Lori's Guest Post on Cheryl's Blog Other Listening Options: Individual player or full player view on website: http://lorirochino.com/podcast-2/

Looking for some zen in your life? Sign up to become a valued member of the Simply Designed Life tribe, over at LoriRochino.com and you’ll receive the free Simply Designed Life E-Course: A 4-Day Kickstarter to Zen-Like, Productive Habits. The 4-day audio course is designed to help you stress less and have more calm and clarity in just 5 minutes a day with short, actionable micro-tasks you could easily implement in your busy day. So how is this going to work? You will receive one email a day over the course of four days in which you will receive a five-minute, easy-to-do exercise on productivity, self-care and personal growth. Plus, you will also receive regular news updates, including the latest podcast episodes from inspiring women entrepreneurs, game changers and creatives. You’ll receive a newsletter in both email and audio form so you have the option to either read on the go or listen while you are commuting to and from work, doing errands or working out. So, if you aren’t part of the Simply Designed Life tribe, please head over to LoriRochino.com and subscribe to become a valued insider, and get the free Simply Designed Life E-Course: A 4-Day Kickstarter to Zen-Like, Productive Habits. Plus get the latest podcast episodes, updates + more! I had the good fortune of meeting Victoria Mavis—a professional magician— at Podcast Movement in Philadelphia last year. One of the things we had in common was having women entrepreneurs in our audience, so we decided then and there to go on each other's podcasts! I appeared as a guest on her show Pure Mind Magic Podcast, which if you’re interested, you can listen to the interview via the link on the show notes at LoriRochino.com/062). Now I’m thrilled to have Victoria over on my show at Simply Designed Podcast. Whether you’re a full-time entrepreneur, creative business owner or side hustler looking for tips on how to break through to your next level or get over those pesky mindset hurdles, you'll love this episode! Who is Victoria? Victoria Mavis a professional magician and motivational speaker. She is one of only a few professional female magicians worldwide. She started doing magic at the age of 4 and had her first stage show at the age of 7. She is also the creator and host of Pure Mind Magic Podcast. She believes that we each have a superpower with unique abilities. We just may not know how to access and harness it yet. And, there are ways to train your mind to work better—just like a muscle—to turn you into the mind magician of your own life! She believes you can create the reality you have always wanted. This podcast will inspire you to do just that! Pure Mind Magic Podcast also offers practical advice, fascinating stories, and amazing guest expert interviews from people all around the world putting the magic of the mind to work for them. Quotes from Victoria For sure, you have to have this clarity on your mind, and clarity is power, so you need to know the direction you’re heading and you need a plan to end up there. As I’ve said, when you have a strong “why,” you have this motivation as fuel and you’re well-prepared to go there but you need this action plan, and you all know that speed of implementation is really important so it doesn’t help when you hold all the information and read a ton of self-help books and business books, and have this all in your mind, but this doesn’t take you anywhere. You have to take action. You have to implement what you have learned. And this is the only way, with the right mindset, taking action, having a plan, how you will end up at the top of the mountain of your own business. (16:50) Illusions are really difficult when it comes for example to making a car appear on stage. There’s really some engineering required, and there’s also doing this reverse engineering like going back from the end result to the very beginning and it’s sometimes really tough because it really requires this thinking and this clear thi...

We’re changing this up here. In the last episode, I mentioned this segment being more of a hybrid solo / mini-interview format and making this more of a bonus episode. In this episode, we’ll dive into the subject of coworking spaces, why one might need one, how one size does not fit all and some things to think about when considering using one. Whether you’re a full-time entrepreneur, creative business owner or side hustler on the lookout for dedicated space to work without breaking the bank, this episode will provide some insight on how to go about finding the right workspace for you. This special episode of Simply Designed Life Podcast will be broken down into three parts. In part I, I’ll be sharing my conversations with both my previous guests from Episode 60 with Kimi Morton and Pua Pakele + Cabot who planted the idea of choosing to work in a coworking space in the first place. They’re based out of Hawaii. In part II, we’ll bring on Katy Comber and Patty Kline Capaldo, the amazing founders of the Creative Light Factory outside of Philadelphia. In Part III, I’ll share my thoughts and insights on the coworking space experience, why one size doesn’t fit all, and what you could do to get started in coworking space journey if that’s what you choose to do for your creative project, side hustle or business at this time. Think of this as a short list of lessons learned and other insights you can take and put into place for your own situation. Who are Kim and Pua? Kimi Morton + Pua Pakele and Cabot are the founders of Best Life Ever and BLE Digital, and co-hosts of the Broke-ass to Badass podcast. They are fitness trainers turned corporate productivity coaches turned online business coaches. They are drawn together by a calling — a burning desire to help people fall (back) in love with their businesses and their lives! What started as a fun side hustle, Best Life Ever has grown into more than a business, it's a radical movement to empower people to follow their dreams and expand the way they think, work, and live in today’s modern world. At Best Life Ever, their mission is to support entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs ready to build and grow online businesses for more FREEDOM and FUN! Who are Katy & Patty? Katy Comber is a graduate of Eastern University with a M.Ed in Mulitcultural Education, a B.A. in English, and a minor in Communications with concentrations in Creative Writing and Theater. Comber founded the website affinitycolabpresents.org, an online arts and lit magazine, and has taught literature and writing for nine years. She recently completed a rough draft of her first novel and participated in her first NaNoWriMo with a different project in 2017. Her works can be found in Paragon Press’ Lagom Journal; Meat for Tea Literary Review, and a self-published collection of poems: 40 Portraits of a Family. Patty Kline-Capaldo earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and History from Indiana University and teacher certification from Ursinus College. She has hosted the Just Write Meetup for the past six years and also hosts an Artists Way group, Creative Light Circle. Working with these groups spawned the dream of a writer’s room that has manifested in Creative Light Factory. As a writer, teacher, and creativity coach, her passion is supporting writers and visual artists in their creative endeavors and seeing their creative dreams brought to fruition. Patty has been published in four anthologies and is perpetually working on her first novel. Patty lives in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Rich, and their three cats—Sarah, Splash, and Snapple. Motivational Monday Mastermind Strategy & Accountability Group Feeling overwhelmed with your projects and need help getting back on track? Want to FINALLY finish writing that book/ market your work to top media outlets/ fill-in-the-blank project?

So you know when you’re having a bad day, and you just need some motivational mojo or SOMETHING to get you going? I’ve got two guests who are able to bring their energy and enthusiasm for business and life. I’m really excited to share their story. We talk fight club, entrepreneurship, energy management, and why getting your first hater might actually be a good thing. Who are Kim and Pua? Kimi Morton + Pua Pakele and Cabot are the founders of Best Life Ever and BLE Digital, and co-hosts of the Broke-ass to Badass podcast. They are fitness trainers turned corporate productivity coaches turned online business coaches. They are drawn together by a calling — a burning desire to help people fall (back) in love with their businesses and their lives! What started as a fun side hustle, Best Life Ever has grown into more than a business, it's a radical movement to empower people to follow their dreams and expand the way they think, work, and live in today’s modern world. At Best Life Ever, their mission is to support entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs ready to build and grow online businesses for more FREEDOM and FUN! They serve with joy through their free Best Life Ever Tribe on Facebook, free Broke-ass to Badass weekly podcast, and signature 8-week program, Broke-ass to Badass, which is helping entrepreneurs around the world to create badass online businesses from a foundation of efficiency and productivity. Motivational Monday Mastermind Strategy & Accountability Group Feeling overwhelmed with your projects and need help getting back on track? Want to FINALLY finish writing that book/ market your work to top media outlets/ fill-in-the-blank project? Need support and a sounding board from a committed group of looking to “bring it” in 2019? Then this group is for you! Who This is Ideal For Writers, bloggers, authors, creatives, consultants, marketing professionals, heart-centric entrepreneurs who are a) committed to doing the work and following through b) need support in a particular area of business or creative process like actively marketing their creative work or figuring out what the next finished story/project looks like and WORKING it, c) ready to both provide support and receive support for their goals in a safe, positive space. WHERE: Greater Philadelphia Area & Online WHEN: Every 1st & 3rd Monday starting MARCH 4 / 1:00PM-2:00PM / March-May / $127 (group only) / $167 (group + full-day workshop party) / Facilitator: Lori Rochino Words of Wisdom We really coach people to own your schedule so that you are designing your best life ever and having people opt into your schedule rather than … it can be completely vulnerable and overwhelming to have us available be completely available at all times. Scheduling calls and creative work around the times that we have the most energy is a really great time to start. (10:30) The biggest shift I think in terms of listening to our intuition was moving from working with corporations to working with entrepreneurs because we really wanted to follow what really lit them on the inside. (20:17) The more authentic that you are. The more you that you are. The more you fully allow yourself to be yourself, it opens up the floodgates, for people to be attracted to that vibration and you living YOUR best life is exactly what magnetizes clients to you. We actually saw a big jump and expansion in our business when we shifted to becoming more ourselves. And that’s been at every shift that we’ve made in our business. (22:48) What You'll Learn How Kimi and Pua were able to transition from corporate training to entrepreneurship The importance of energy management in entrepreneurship How to rebrand your business along the journey How to create a life of freedom and fun Events + Resources:

Every new year brings great beginnings! While I’m not a big fan of resolutions or “new year, new you” themes, I’m a fan of shorter-term goals. I’m part of several mastermind and business strategy groups and we tend to follow a 12-week year model. Parkinson’s Law states that work expands to the time allotted, so rather than keep goals at an arbitrary time length with vague goals that is the typical full year, why not work in shorter sprints to get what you need done? In other words, we do our quarterly goals as though they were full years in order to get the most done in less time. The 12-week year is a productivity system created by Brian Moran and Michael Lennington in their book The 12 Week Year, where you, as the subtitle of the book states “get more done in 12 weeks than others do in 12 months." So it’s funny, in some ways our “new year” starts every quarter and we’re constantly setting new goals every 12 weeks. And what an opportunity for the changeup! Which is why I’m excited about our next guest. I had the opportunity to meet Sarah DeGeorge at the BlogConnect event in Philadelphia. Sarah is one of those people who you could sit down with a cup of coffee and have an authentic conversation with and easily lose track of time. I think the biggest takeaway from this conversation was, despite having a successful career, if there are other areas of your life that need attention, such as your health, it’s okay to take a step back and refocus your efforts. Without further ado, let’s get into the conversation. Podcasting is a lot of fun! You get to meet really awesome people and get to provide your audience with super useful content that can help them achieve their dreams. While it is fun, some also use podcasting as a business that brings in a full-time income. Imagine if you could make a full-time income just by interviewing one person each week or just doing a solo show. This is a vision that can turn into reality. But only with the right knowledge. So, that's why my friend Marc Guberti put together the ultimate virtual summit (<==affiliate link) for podcasters looking to launch, grow, and monetize their shows. Who is Marc Guberti exactly? He's a USA Today and WSJ bestselling author who hosts the Breakthrough Success Podcast which is over 300 episodes strong. I’m super excited and honored to be a part of Marc’s Podcasting Profit Summit (<==affiliate link) which starts next week from Tuesday through Friday, February 5-8! So, if you’ve ever thought of starting a podcast, this is a great opportunity to learn from twenty Podcasters and Influencers — including myself! Discover how you can launch, grow, and monetize your podcast. Get your FREE ticket to the virtual summit (<==affiliate link)! Furthermore, if you’re looking for extra 1:1 support, guidance, and accountability on how to create and launch that podcast THIS year, no excuses, I have a limited number of podcast coaching slots. Want to make this year the year you FINALLY launch that podcast? Message or email me at Lori@LoriRochino.com and mention this episode and we’ll set up a time for us to chat to see if now is the right time to work together. Who is Sarah? Sarah DeGeorge is a digital marketing strategist. In a very digital world, she believes we have become accustomed to communicating via social platforms, video calls, or email. She wants to bridge the gap between old and new school and uses the medium of digital marketing to create an authentic and sustainable dialogue between local small businesses and their ideal customer base. All large corporations were once a small business with a goal and a dream, so it's her passion to help begin the journey of business ownership through digital marketing. Words of Wisdom I realized that I had all these skills, why not just create my own entrepreneurial journey with all of this background I have which I guess can be s...

This episode continues the conversation with Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer. Just to recap to those brand new to Simply Designed Life Podcast just joining in, if you haven't listened to the previous episode, you may want to listen to it beforehand for context. That's episode 057: Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer Part I: On Storytelling & How to Thrive as a Creative. Here we cover their career paths and how they got to where they are today. In Part II, we continue the discussion on leadership and how to create opportunities out of challenges. Jason and Jennifer will also share their tips and insights on how they manage to be productive with work and personal life—especially in a busy, high-cost-of-living area like New York City. We also discuss their new book, MR. NICE GUY. Inspired by their own time dating and working in New York City media, married couple Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer have written MR. NICE GUY (St. Martin’s Griffin; October 16, 2018), a provocative rom-com set in the world of Manhattan publishing. Taking an insider look at the magazine industry, gender dynamics, and being young and ambitious in an ever-changing city, MR. NICE GUY is the perfect read paired with a bowl of movie popcorn, extra butter. Who are Jennifer and Jason? Jennifer Miller is a journalist and the author of three books. Her debut novel, The Year of the Gadfly (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), was called “a darkly comic romp” by The Washington Post and “entirely addictive” by Glamour. Jason Feifer is editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine, host of the podcasts Pessimists Archive and Problem Solvers, and has been an editor at Men’s Health, Maxim, Fast Company, and Boston magazine. Jason and Jen met on OkCupid. She said "yes" to a date because Jason used a semicolon correctly in his first message to her. Yes, they are super nerds, but hey, it got them featured in the vows column of the New York Times. They live in Brooklyn with their 3-year-old, who they hope will never read this book. Words of Wisdom From Jason: You can choose to see speedbumps and conflicts as opportunities to build trust and to prove yourself. In fact, you're kind of fortunate to have some kind of challenge to go through where you have to sit down with somebody in a position of authority and work through it together and in so doing so show yourself to be extremely trustworthy and valuable to them, and also, in the same way, prove your value to yourself. You should not hope for smooth sailing. What you should hope for are opportunities to prove yourself and to work together above and below you. (10:08) You work with the information and that opportunities that you have. And you can always, always, always find value in whatever's in front of you. It may not be in the original way that you intended, but it could be in something else. (13:51) You could always find some other avenue, it's just about not giving up. (14:28) You just have to start deciding what's really important, and to me, work and family and friends are important and I can get to the other stuff later. (16:06) Don't be afraid to take control, and see the opportunities in front of you as the opportunities that you can command, and that's how we built our careers and that's how we run our days and our families. Once you can internalize that and feel good about that, there's an endless bounty that awaits. (21:45) From Jennifer: I think taking risks is really important and it was definitely a risk for me to get on the phone. I think finding somebody to support you taking that risk is also really important. It doesn't have to be your husband, it could be a colleague, close friend, somebody to talk through how you're going to approach addressing your issue to your superior, whatever that issue that might be. And just BELIEVING in yourself, believing that you deserve to be respected for your hard work, and really not shying away from advocating yourself.

For those finishing up this year's Nanowrimo, we have a treat. To those not in the know, National Novel Writing Month is an annual creative writing project that takes place during the month of November where participants attempt to write a 50,000-word manuscript. I myself have completed the challenge about 5 years ago and attempted it again this year. In this episode, we have a novelist and top magazine editor who will share their wisdom insights on their career paths in media. Inspired by their own time dating and working in New York City media, married couple Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer have written MR. NICE GUY (St. Martin’s Griffin; October 16, 2018), a provocative rom-com set in the world of Manhattan publishing. Taking an insider look at the magazine industry, gender dynamics, and being young and ambitious in an ever-changing city, MR. NICE GUY is the perfect read paired with a bowl of movie popcorn, extra butter. Who are Jennifer and Jason? Jennifer Miller is a journalist and the author of three books. Her debut novel, The Year of the Gadfly (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), was called “a darkly comic romp” by The Washington Post and “entirely addictive” by Glamour. Jason Feifer is editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine, host of the podcasts Pessimists Archive and Problem Solvers, and has been an editor at Men’s Health, Maxim, Fast Company, and Boston magazine. Jason and Jen met on OkCupid. She said "yes" to a date because Jason used a semicolon correctly in his first message to her. Yes, they are super nerds, but hey, it got them featured in the vows column of the New York Times. They live in Brooklyn with their 3-year-old, who they hope will never read this book. Words of Wisdom From Jason: I think that it is great to have this job without the ambition of this job. I mean there was a time when I developed an ambition to be an editor-in-chief of a magazine. That wasn’t the original intention but I got there at some point. But life doesn’t move in a direct clear path. If you identify something hyper-specific that you wanna do, you will narrow yourself down and turn down all the amazing opportunities that can come along the way. (8:53) My perspective on work is that you should always be working your next job. So you come into a job and you get good at it and then you look around and say, ‘What opportunities might I have available to me that nobody’s actually asking me to do? What is not part of the role day-to-day and yet could be ultimately the thing that could be the bridge to what comes next?’ (11:42) From Jennifer: Immerse yourself in communities and worlds that are different from what you grew up in, different from the ones you feel you automatically gravitate towards. It just gives you a lot of perspective and it gives you a lot of material. As a journalist I've found that to be extremely helpful for my fiction writing because a lot of the reporting that I do has introduced me to people and communities I would never have encountered otherwise—things like motorcycle riding, Vietnam veterans or Native American medicine men who are at the forefront of new mental health treatments or teachers who are doing really innovative things in their classrooms with technologies, all these things I learned about as a reporter. In various ways I was able to put it into fiction, so I had just a broader menu of things I just felt comfortable writing about. (14:41) You're continually developing your voice and every book that you write has a different voice but searching for your voice and what is kind of unique about the perspective that you can bring and how you are communicating that perspective, that's actually a big theme in MR. NICE GUY. (16:33) In journalism, especially if you're writing in New York, the publications that tend to pay the best are women's publications, like the Cosmos, and the Glamours and the Marie Claires. You're actually gonna get generally more money writing for...

One of the things that hold people back from reaching and achieving their goals is mindset. Shocker? Not really. If you’ve ever read Napoleon Hill’s book Think and Grow Rich which is a self-help bible of success there's this segment called “The Spur That Drives to Riches.” (If you don’t like reading books you could also watch the Think and Grow Rich legacy movie on YouTube that does a nice reenactment of some of the stories and concepts from the book. In that segment, in particular, a warrior faced a great army whose men had outnumbered his own, and he knew that if there was a way to retreat, his men would probably perish on the battlefield with an enemy much more powerful than they were. Courage in their hearts was needed and if there was no way for his men to retreat, they would fight like they had nothing to lose. So he ordered the boats to be burned and the men fought like they would win because they had to win otherwise they’d perish. (And of course, they won!) So bringing this back to everyday, modern life, while we don’t have the proverbial boats to burn, we do have a million distractions, from social media, text, mobile alerts, procrastination patterns and other things that we unconsciously allow us to retreat from those goals we set for ourselves. When you lose focus on what your intentions were, it could be a real uphill battle getting back on track. So I'm excited for Britny to share some words of wisdom on maybe not burning boats, but getting rid of those self-sabotaging beliefs and behaviors that keep us from getting what we want out of life. Listen in on the conversation. Feeling overwhelmed with business and life? Have bright shiny object syndrome and need help with focus? Introducing the Just Finish! Clarity Call for ending 2018 on a good note! For just $37 get 37 minutes of clarity coaching on one goal. As a productivity coach, I’m great at helping people simplify and organize their internal chaos so they can make room for the things that really matter. Imagine feeling more free and accomplished right before the new year! How does this work? 1) Email me at lori@lorirochino.com and in the headline write “I’m ready to finish!” 2) I’ll send you details on how we could work together for 37 minutes at $37 to hold your space. No pitch or gimmicks. We just work on your one thing to get you clear, focused and DONE! Offer good up until Friday, November 16, 2018. Have you ever thought of starting a podcast for your blog or business SOMEDAY? What if you had your podcast up and launched TODAY? Introducing the Simply Designed Podcast Launch for getting your show on the air! Ideal for mid-level content creators (authors, bloggers, coaches, consultants, and influencers) who want guidance and an action plan to get moving! 1) We’ll take 2 of your favorite blogs posts (or best pieces of content). 2) We transform them into your first 2 podcast episodes. 3) We’ll map out a basic podcast action plan with a framework and checklists so you or your team can continue to publish great episodes! Simply Designed Podcast Launch Investment: Original Price: $697 Sale Price: $497 You save $200! Offer good until Friday, November 16, 2018. How does this work? 1) Email me at lori@lorirochino.com and in the headline write “I’m ready to launch my podcast!” 2) I’ll send you details on how we could get this started! Sale price on the Simply Designed Podcast Launch is good up until Friday, November 16, 2018. Who is Britny? Britny West is a mindset coach & money block healer for women in business who want to make a ton of money doing what they love without self-sabotaging. She helps her clients get out of their own way so they can live a life that's even better than their vision boards. Britny has a bachelor's degree in psychology, a master's degree in public health, and is certified as an Energy Editing® Professional. Her work has been featured in The Huffington P...

As mentioned in the previous Episode 54 with Fadra Nally, I’m happy to say that we've hit a milestone and passed 50 episodes of Simply Designed Life Podcast which I'm excited about! A big thank you to all the guests who’ve participated in making it happen and a big thank you for future guests scheduled to come onto the show. In this particular episode, I will address some of the highlights, and do a sort of retrospective on the last 50 plus episodes, and what's in store for the future of Simply Designed Life Podcast. Who is Lori? Lori Rochino stumbled upon podcasting two years ago and has been hooked since. She created Simply Designed Life Podcast for entrepreneurs who want to simplify their busy lives in order to make room for the things that matter. She is a podcast & productivity coach with a corporate marketing background. She is the author of Fifty Shades of Simple: How to Prioritize in the Age of Information Overload. Her work has appeared in both national (SUCCESS, Huffington Post, YFS Magazine) and local (Philadelphia Style Magazine and Examiner) outlets. Why did I start this podcast? I had no big intention other than the fact that I was frustrated with the writing medium. I was an English Major with a Minor in Communications and women in business certifications at Chestnut Hill College, I've done marketing copywriting and editing for financial services and startups for about a decade both in-house and as a consultant and had all these communications skills, but I felt I needed something that felt more in alignment. Also, I didn’t feel connected when I did put my written work out there because there’s about 30 million active blogs by 2020, over 400K podcasts, and of course social media and other platforms, so it’s a very noisy distracting world out there in terms of getting any traction with connecting with people in general. The words I took time to craft were eyeball scanned on digital screens, praised here and there, then tossed aside. While feeling burnout from corporate writing, I learned that podcasting could actually complement the communications work that I was already doing. In the end, both podcasting and writing are mediums—one auditory, the other written—and both are necessary for reaching your audience or target market. In a way, podcasting changed me in seeing that perspective. I get to strategize on ways to take branding to the next level, simplify and educate on processes to those unfamiliar with the medium, or just find ways to be more productive to make time for it. You see, when I first started my podcast, Simply Designed Life, I wanted to take what Tim Ferriss said on lifestyle design in the Four Hour Workweek, and make it accessible to real-world people—whether that be busy parents, entrepreneurs, or 9-5’ers wanting more freedom in their lives. I wanted MY podcast to be an informational resource of great conversations about how to create a freedom lifestyle. That was MY mission, MY revolution, and the part of MY world I wanted to change. And the goal is to provide a framework—a simple one that is—where people can create their own version of a successful life that works for them, in whatever life category is the primary focus, whether that be for one's health, family, relationships, work, etc. That could be done by letting go of the things, relationships, situations that no longer work to make space for even better things to come! And so by interviewing amazing people on the show and developing some insights, thoughts, and ideas, I think we could all find ways to create more time, abundance, fulfillment and joy in many areas of life! Quotes from Lori Podcasting can take your branding to the next level in a lot of ways. These days my role now is to simplify the process because there are so many shiny objects out there. You know how it is. There's just so much noise out there as to what to use and I like to simplify things a little bit and also educate those not...

I'm happy to say that we've hit a milestone and passed 50 episodes of Simply Designed Life Podcast which I'm excited about! The last couple of months, I've been attending conferences, learning the latest in the podcasting, blogging, social media marketing and the publishing world. There's so much that's gone on, I'd been able to deep dive topics and connect with people in the industry which is particularly exciting! To update on the PMX Competition from Podcast Movement went pretty well, then on to BlogHer for some networking and educational opportunities and then off to MAPCon or Mid-Atlantic Podcast Conference where I had the opportunity to present as a spotlight speaker and got to connect with new faces and reconnect with old friends, also while having the opportunity to have family come with me. So been pretty busy. If you're interested you can check out the Instagram Feed to see some coverage of the events. Who is Fadra? Fadra Nally started her blog, All Things Fadra, in 2009 as a way to showcase her writing and land a "real job." She soon discovered that life behind a keyboard beats a corner window office any day of the week. Since that time, she's built partner relationships with brands like Nintendo, National Geographic, Toyota, Disney, Fandango, and Netflix. Her work has been featured on The Stir, Working Mother, J&J Parents, and even inspired Chapter 10 of the well-known marketing book, Groundswell. In addition to her lifestyle blog, Fadra is also a Founding Contributor at ShesOnTheGo.com, a women’s travel website, and co-hosts a light-hearted entertainment podcast, Stinger, which focuses on TV and movies. Quotes from Fadra I love that I get to have flexibility for my family and I love that flexibility gives me the opportunity to experience things I never thought I would. To go on trips, to meet people, and just have experiences I would not otherwise be able to do. (12:23) I don't know if it's the right way, but I still believe there's something to be said for working hard, working honestly, and supporting your peers and that's what I continue to do. My numbers aren't as big as other people. I still haven't been offered a job on HGTV although I'm open to it. But I still believe in the path and the method by which I am achieving my own success and I stand by that. (15:48) And you look at some of these people who are highly successful and you know the millions of followers on Instagram, I mean it's almost like a modeling shoot. It's not what the platform started out as. You'll find a lot of those people crash and burn because they're tired of their life being posed and on display, and I'm not saying that's true for everybody, but even those people who reach those traditional levels of success find that they weren't finding what they were looking for. (20:18) Don't look at someone else's life based on what they're posting on Facebook or what someone's posting on Instagram because everybody has challenges, everybody is going through personal struggle, personal crisis and also celebrating successes that you may not be aware of so the biggest thing is just to focus on what makes you happy and what works for your family. (31:44) What You’ll Learn How she realized her side hustle can become a full-time career The importance of resourcefulness in online business How she decided to launch a new podcast The pros and cons of owning a business Tips on how to manage work-life balance Websites: https://allthingsfadra.com/ https://stingeruniverse.com/ Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter Other Listening Options: Individual player or full player view on website: http://lorirochino.com/podcast-2/

This episode continues the conversation with Annett Bone. If you haven't heard the first part, please listen to Episode 052: Annett Bone Pt. I: A Dancepreneur's Inner Journey to complete the full story. In the first part, we discussed her entrepreneurship journey and how following her intuition was critical to getting into alignment with her goals. In the second part, we talk about strategic learning. In this day and age of distraction, shiny object syndrome and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). She gives some great tips on how to get focused enough to stay the course. Before we dig in, if you haven't already done so, please subscribe to the show! 1) You'll be able to easily access the first part of the conversation and 2) you'll continue to receive the latest episodes-- all from the convenience of your mobile phone! Just hit the Podcast App on your phone, search for "Simply Designed Life Podcast" or "Lori Rochino" and press "subscribe" to receive the second part and more great episodes to come! Who is Annett? Annett Bone is the founder and host of The DancePreneuring Studio Podcast where she guides her listeners on a journey of transformation inspired by dance, life, and business. The podcast is a reflection of all the lessons learned upon returning to dance after a 20-year hiatus. Because she returned to her passion for dance after giving it up for 20-plus years, she is constantly putting herself in uncomfortable situations where she can grow. She has a Bachelors Degree in Dance from the University of California Irvine, which at the time was ranked third in the nation for dance programs, behind Julliard and New York University. When she's not creating content or doing online marketing work, she can be found practicing yoga or checking out coffee shops other than Starbucks. Fun facts: 1) Korean is her first language. 2) She was once a fan club president for Puerto Rican boy band Menudo—popular back in the '80s. Quotes from Annett It's really interesting, this whole entrepreneurial journey and the educational conferences that are available, which I'm really thankful for now because there's so much to choose from and you can get from it what you want to get out of it. (11:00) I'm all for women empowerment, but more than that, I'm all for human people empowerment because we're all the same. (15:59) Again, there's that balance of being proud, knowing your value and who you are and where you come from and honoring the amazing cultural backgrounds that people come from, but at the same time, not using that as a crutch. (19:10) You need to be thankful for the lessons that you learned, and you'll find that as you become more thankful and have gratitude for the things you have learned—the good things that have come out of situations—things will change. It might not change overnight. It might be apparent to you as quickly as you want, but just deciding to make that switch of 'I'm not gonna be a victim anymore, I'm going to decide to make these changes whatever it is.' (20:17) What You’ll Learn How doing the uncomfortable tasks can allow for the most growth in one's personal development journey How to find that line between taking a strategic approach and getting out of one's comfort zone The importance of conferences for continuing education for one's entrepreneurial journey Personal branding, styles of marketing oneself, especially as a woman, and finding that middle ground between self-promotion, valuing oneself, yet not being overly aggressive How she overcame the whole "victim" mentality in order to get the kind of results that she wanted Productivity habits and rituals that keep her going Websites: annettbone.com Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter Other Listening Options: Individual player or full player view on website: http://lorirochino.com/podcast-2/

The last month and a half have been filled with adventures and much learning. I'd gotten out of my comfort zone by participating in the PMx Competition at Podcast Movement, which is a Tedx style talk with a podcast focus. A big shout out to the organizers and participants I got to meet! While competitive, it was definitely more collaborative and I'm super thankful for both the opportunity and chance to connect with cool people! There's so much to share, and quite honestly I am currently figuring out how to break down all this goodness without the overwhelm. More details to come in another episode! In the meantime, I'm excited to introduce the next guest to Simply Designed Life Podcast, Annett Bone. My conversation with Annett is broken down into two parts. In the first part, we discuss her entrepreneurship journey and how following her intuition was critical to getting into alignment with her goals. In the second part, we talk about strategic learning, which I'm particularly excited about! Shiny object syndrome and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) are very real in this age of distraction. She gives some great tips on how to get focused enough to stay the course. Before we dig in, if you haven't done so already, please subscribe to the show. 1) You'll be able to easily access the second part of the conversation once it goes live. 2) You'll continue to receive the latest episodes--all from the convenience of your mobile phone! Just select the Podcast App on your mobile phone, search for "Simply Designed Life Podcast" or "Lori Rochino" and press "subscribe" to receive the second part and more great episodes to come! Who is Annett? Annett Bone is the founder and host of The DancePreneuring Studio Podcast where she guides her listeners on a journey of transformation inspired by dance, life, and business. The podcast is a reflection of all the lessons learned after returning to dance after a 20-year hiatus. Because she returned to her passion for dance after giving it up for 20-plus years, she is constantly putting herself in uncomfortable situations where she can grow. She has a Bachelors Degree in Dance from the University of California Irvine, which at the time was ranked third in the nation for dance programs, behind Julliard and New York University. When she's not creating content or doing online marketing work, she can be found practicing yoga or checking out coffee shops other than Starbucks. Fun facts: 1) Korean is her first language. 2) She was once a fan club president for Puerto Rican boy band Menudo—popular back in the '80s. Quotes from Annett Not every business model is for everyone and for someone to try to fit you into their box is not honoring to you and not honoring to them because everybody has a different path. (5:37) In terms of the entrepreneurial journey, I didn't honor the signals within myself, of what felt right, what didn't feel right, what didn't agree with my internal compass, and that's one of the biggest mistakes I did. (6:18) For me, that's when things really started to change when I started to change on the inside, and things on the outside started to change—when I started focusing more on that. (12:57) I just never thought that this audio thing would open up opportunities and also help me grow—like you said speaking in front of people and the immediate feedback—you're like 'Wow, I actually made a difference to this person.' I don't know what it was but it's very gratifying knowing that you can have a positive effect on someone by just expressing what has gone on in your life and hopefully giving them something they could implement as well and I think that's what it's all about. (29:35) What You’ll Learn Annett's background growing up with an entrepreneurial family who encouraged her to take the traditional route—go to college, get a job—which didn't resonate with her. It's okay not to fit into other people's idea of an entrepreneurial journey.

This episode is a continuation of my conversation with Joe Pardo. Last time, Joe discussed childhood dreams and business building over at Episode 50. This week’s we continue the conversation with Joe's inspiration for the Mid-Atlantic Podcast Conference (otherwise known as MAPCon) where he gives the nuts and bolts of starting and running an event. But before we dive into the conversation, if you happen to be in the Philadelphia area, both Joe Pardo and I will be speaking over at Podcast Movement which will be held over at the Marriott in center city Philly July 23-26. I'll be speaking over at PMx, the Tedx style talk with a podcast focus that Monday, July 23rd. What is PMX exactly? PMx is an adaptation of TEDx talks with a competitive spin. PMx will be on Monday, July 23d from 9am – 3pm EST at the Marriott in Philadelphia, PA. A big Shout out to Cypress Resources who will be sponsoring the competition. Joe will lead a session during the event, so please come out for this awesome event if you're in the area as we'd love to connect! Who is Super Joe Pardo? Super Joe Pardo is a New Jersey-based, sixth generation award-winning business owner who works with businesses and owners to help them grow by focusing on their team, offer and process. In 2014, Joe left his family’s $100 million business to start his own. Founding the award-winning show, The Business Podcast, his platform helps owners pursue the business and lifestyle of their dreams. Just recently, Super Joe released the much-anticipated Sales Won’t Save Your Business to further help business owners, managers, sales teams and aspiring leaders grow their business by focusing on the acronym TOP (Team, Offer and Process). Quotes from Joe This is what I love about doing the conference the way we do it. Everyone is in the same room the entire time. That's where you build the jokes. That's where the running jokes come into play—inside jokes—that's where people get to rub elbows with the people that, like the Dave Jacksons, the Rob Greenlees, I don't want to name too many names because I'm going to forget... Mark Asquith, Harry Duran of Podcast Junkies, Jessica Kupferman She Podcasts... now I'm going to have to rattle off everyone's names because I'm going to forget someone and I'll feel bad because I'll forget someone, but they're in the room with you all day. (17:49) Be willing to 'Just do it!' like Nike says. If you don't know how to run speakers, how to put together a website and stuff, find people that do because there are people out there that will get involved and will donate their time, or be willing to invest your time to be willing to do those things. (19:59) Don't be afraid to take action and make mistakes. Everything I've done has not been perfect. We've run into different issues year after year and we tackle them one at a time. Again it goes back to being a professional problem solver. (20:54) Figure out what it really is that you really love and then do more of it—and just keep doing more of it. Don't let those things hold you back like 'I don't know this, I don't know that'—and you're right. Most people that end up owning businesses and running businesses, they don't know either! I know that if you ask them, they were figuring it out too. Again, it goes back to, 'Am I willing to solve problems for a living?' (26:40) What You’ll Learn Joe's passion for running in-person events stemmed from his childhood experience of attending his family business' vendor nights to coordinating video game parties and discovering his love for bringing like-minded people together. The pros and cons, as well as dynamics between the bigger conferences versus smaller conferences. Joe's insight and experiences on getting sponsors, attendees, costs, space, keeping things simple to start and then growing the event each year as you get some successes going on. For those either aspiring to start or are starting an event,

This month, we’re featuring dads who rock at life on both the home and business front. Last week, Andy Shaw of Instafather shared precious moments on and how he and his wife skillfully manage family life with a kindergartner and 3-year old twins at Episode 49. On this week’s episode, Super Joe Pardo, founder of the Mid-Atlantic Podcast Conference and father of two—including a newborn—discuss his entrepreneurial journey and how he manages business and life. So with Joe Pardo, our conversation is broken down into two parts. This week, we'll discuss his childhood dreams and what led him to where he is today. In part two, we'll discuss his inspiration for MAPCon (again the Mid-Atlantic Podcast Conference). But before we dive into the conversation, if you happen to be in the Philadelphia area, both Joe Pardo and I will be speaking over at Podcast Movement which will be held over at the Marriott in center city Philly July 23-26. I'll be speaking over at PMx, the Tedx style talk with a podcast focus that Monday, July 23rd. What is PMX exactly? PMx is an adaptation of TEDx talks with a competitive spin. PMx will be on Monday, July 23d from 9am – 3pm EST at the Marriott in Philadelphia, PA. A big Shout out to Cypress Resources who will be sponsoring the competition. Joe will lead a session during the event, so please come out for this awesome event if you're in the area as we'd love to connect! Who is Super Joe Pardo? Super Joe Pardo is a New Jersey-based, sixth generation award-winning business owner who works with businesses and owners to help them grow by focusing on their team, offer and process. In 2014, Joe left his family’s $100 million business to start his own. Founding the award-winning show, The Business Podcast, his platform helps owners pursue the business and lifestyle of their dreams. Just recently, Super Joe released the much-anticipated Sales Won’t Save Your Business to further help business owners, managers, sales teams and aspiring leaders grow their business by focusing on the acronym TOP (Team, Offer and Process). Quotes from Joe On Discovering What You're Passionate About The people that are most inspired are the people doing some form of what they wanted to do when they were a kid. (6:56) For connecting the dots though, you have to figure out not just what you’re passionate about, and what’s gonna make a difference as far as like if I’m gonna start a business or career. That’s why I always asked the question on the show, ’What was your childhood dream?’ Go back to that. (14:01) Always be checking in that you're happy, and that what you're doing is fulfilling your or that need inside of you saying, Hey, remember when you were a kid when you wanted to be a child psychologist? Well you're not doing that now, right? But when I was a kid there was no such thing as a podcast. When I was a kid, I didn't know I could write books and change people's lives. Like I had a limited view of the world at that point. So that's why I want you to get back to that childhood dream frame of mind and just figure out what is the root of what it is you really want to do? (15:18) What You’ll Learn How Joe had a calling to help children as a child psychologist at just 7-years old The steps Joe took to transition from family business building to following his dreams The importance of owning your own dreams and visions and what it will take for you to realize them How an intentional approach to time helps get the most important things done Websites: https://superjoepardo.com/ Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter Resource Mentioned: Event Mentioned: PMX COMPETITION ON JULY 23, 2018, 9am - 3pm Marriott, Philadelphia, PA http://pmx.podcastmovement.com/ Podcast Movement July 23-26, 2018 Marriott, Philadelphia, PA https://podcastmovement.com/ Other Listening Options:

Here at Simply Designed Life Podcast, we've mostly discussed work-life balance from the female perspective, but what about the male perspective? I think it was around Episode 10 with Jennifer Ghymn on Writing and the Interculture Life around the 14-minute time mark that we wondered how men juggled work-life balance. To follow up on that conversation, and in honor of the Father's Day weekend, our next couple episodes will be dedicated to the male perspective of productivity within the context of work and family life. First up, we have comedian Andy Shaw of Instafather, and then next week it's Super Joe Pardo, who's the founder of the Mid-Atlantic Podcast Conference and host of The Business Podcast. We'll hear these "Super Men" discuss their journeys and hacks for getting it all done. At any rate, I'm stoked to introduce our next guest whom I had the pleasure of meeting at the fabulous Blog Connect Conference in Philly, hosted by the amazing Chrystina Cappello and team ;). But before that, I wanted to announce that I am excited and honored to be competing in this year's Podcast Movement's PMx Competition. What is PMX exactly? PMx is an adaptation of TEDx talks with a competitive spin. I will have 15 minutes to give my talk in front of four judges, competing with 11 other contestants for the chance to receive the PMX championship belt, be recognized by the Academy of Podcasters Hall of Fame, and be automatically selected to speak at Podcast Movement 2019. PMx will be on Monday, July 23d from 9am – 3pm EST at the Marriott in Philadelphia, PA. Less than 40 days until I take the PMx stage at @PodcastMovement - no pressure right? A big Shout out to Cypress Resources who will be sponsoring the competition. According to a Communications Research Study, people fear public speaking more than death, and so for me, this should be an interesting challenge to see whether or not I could rise to occasion, own it, or "Bring it On" like in that cheesy, but feel-good, 2000 rom-com with Kirsten Dunst, but most of all, impact those who share the same fears as myself but take courageous action and speak out in spite of those fears. Anyway, enough about the competition and me, let's get into the conversation with Andy Shaw. Who is Andy? Andy Shaw is a full-time college admissions marketing director, a father of twin 3-year-old girls and a 5-year-old boy, an improv comedian with The Oxymorons, a social media consultant, and an avid fan of Black Mirror on Netflix even though it is terrifying. He's made a goal of helping new dads gain confidence with Instather.com, sharing his own stories and practical advice on fatherhood. He's the upcoming author of The New Mom's Guide to New Dads, a book based on helping moms figure out what dads are thinking and how to get them more involved by raising expectations. While all of these jobs and roles may seem like a lot, Andy has watched his incredible wife give birth to twins so he's just gonna keep quiet. Quotes from Andy On Parenting If I accidentally yell in the heat of the moment, my kids are gonna take that a lot more personally than if I just yelled at a stranger who just cut me off on a highway, right? My kids, I have to see them every day, they just don't disappear right down the highway. (13:17) On Tackling Most Important Things (MIT'S): So Pomodoro, 25 minutes on, 5 minutes off, but also priorities so I can list out my priorities for the day, whether it's for career or at home and I always do them in chunks so I always make sure I'm tackling my biggest priorities for the day. So at the end of the day and the week, I know no matter even if the kids are crazy or everything falls apart, I got some of my biggest tasks done. (16:58) Know Thyself You can't be the best at everything. If you’re trying to be the best at everything, you’re probably the best at nothing. Pick a couple things... The more aware you are of what you like and don’t like, know what your strengths are,

You know the old saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"? That's exactly what my next guest did in transitioning from social work to entrepreneurship. Frustrated with the bureaucracy of the system, she decided to strike out on her own, and the rest, as they say, is history! Not an overnight success for sure and NONE of my previous podcast guests were overnight successes. If they were, they probably wouldn't be on the show. What I really like was the honest break down on the kind of habits and productivity hacks she put into practice regularly to get to where she is today. But, before we get into the conversation, we would love to hear from you! We plan on mixing up the show format within the next few months, to address your frequently asked questions, as well as any tips or tricks you may have implemented from the show that's worked well for you. So yes, we'd also LOVE to air your success stories or questions that would help the Simply Designed Life community. Connect with us over at LoriRochino.com where you could find the link to the Simply Designed Life Facebook page or direct message us your questions or success stories relevant to the show. Who is Nicole? Nicole Liloia provides strategy and mentorship to women entrepreneurs who want to scale their business and income through multiple income streams. After suffering severe burnout in the non-profit world and refusing to ever return to a 9-5, she took time to travel and volunteer in South America. She started her first business in 2013 and has been helping women stop wasting time and start making more money since then. Nicole got her master's in Social Work at Columbia University and has written for Forbes, Huffington Post, and MindBodyGreen. She's obsessed with entrepreneurship, women becoming wealthy, Apothic wine, and never misses a Taco Tuesday. A former city girl (NYC to be exact), she knows what it’s like to live a hectic, go-go-go lifestyle and feel like you’re not truly alive. When you feel “busy” all the time, you can’t really enjoy life. So, she's made her mission to help women like you slow down, reclaim their lives and fill them up with things that truly matter. Quotes from Nicole On Delegating: I think a lot of women really struggle trying to take too much on and feel like they need to learn how to do everything if they have a business. And as a result, they get really stuck and they can't grow. And they honestly get very overwhelmed and that's where the burnout comes in. Because there are so many things in my business that I love but there are so many things in my business that I don't love either and I'm not good at and I don't think I need to become good at. There are people who are much better at it than me and I don't need to be the best in all areas (8:04). On Goal Chunking: I have a very unique strategy and I actually use this with my clients as well as with my masterminds and programs. It works really well. I get very clear on the goals. I start with goal chunking. So I have a big goal for the year. Usually a big income goal. And then I chunk it down by the different programs and services I want to sell and work on throughout the year, and then based on that I have an overall focus for each month. So maybe it's new client sign-ups, maybe it's new list growth because I'm working on visibility and things like that. I get motivated by numbers so I do it that way. And then I use the overall smaller monthly goal to create my 3-5 most important action tasks for the week. So those are the things that I know that are gonna help me hit my goal and help my business grow, so I make sure to make those a priority at the start of the week. (14:01) #1 Biggest Takeaway Do the stuff that scares you. Do the tasks that are at constantly at the bottom of your 'to do' list that you're writing over and over again. You know, reach out for the podcast interviews, submit the guest blogs, ask people to work with you.

Have you ever shunned certain social media platforms because they just seem like such a waste of time? You may have found yourself endlessly scrolling on your Facebook feed not realizing that a day's gone by and you've just wasted some hours of your life! While many may see social media as a complete time waster—and let's face it, it can be if we're not intentional about how we use it—others have managed to leverage it pretty well, using it as a tool for lead generation and a source of potential revenue. How do you use social media the "right" way? We'll find out from our latest guest Karen Yankovich. But, before we get into the conversation, if you happen to be in the Philadelphia area the last weekend of April, I would love to connect with you! I'm presenting at the BlogConnect event April 29. BlogConnect is a conference about blogging for mid-level bloggers who want to learn more about blogging and social media, connect with like-minded folks, and are looking for some inspiration & motivation in their lives. Registration details are at lorirochino.com/events. Who is Karen? Karen Yankovich is President of Uplevel Media, a social media marketing agency delivering profitable cutting-edge digital strategies. Karen is an internationally recognized LinkedIn Evangelist and Social Media Consultant who is an expert at helping businesses use LinkedIn and a range of other social spaces profitably. Her newest venture, Get Seen Be Heard, provides social media and do-it-yourself PR training to 1000’s of members. A popular trainer and international speaker, Karen’s social media advice and expertise can be found in guest contributions to DailyWorth.com, Huffington Post, Social Media Examiner and Career Talk Radio on Sirius XM. Quotes from Karen LinkedIn is the place to start with digital marketing because it's the place that you can tell the world what you want them to know about you. And people are searching, we don't buy a paper clip without looking for a review, right? (4:15) As a marketer, it's really important to understand what your niche is. And I do a lot of speaking on LinkedIn all over the world, which I absolutely adore. And if somebody said, 'Hey, I need a social media speaker,' 50,000 names would get raised. If someone said, 'Hey, I need a LinkedIn speaker,' 10 people say, 'Call Karen.' The more narrow you can keep your market, the more quickly you're going to build your expertise and your business. (4:38) When you're doing what you love to do, and you're doing what you know you're really good at, you've gotta tell people that because that's where you need to be and that's where a profitable business happens. (18:25) One of the reasons why I did this, why I wanted to work for myself and work from home was because my kids were pretty much grown, but I had grandchildren on the horizon and I really wanted to be around for them... I'm able to do the things that I designed this life to do. (21:22) What You’ll Learn Her entrepreneurial journey starting in technology and transition towards the online marketing and social media space The importance of having a specific niche for search and visibility purposes How women entrepreneurs could more confidently promote themselves and their businesses How she launched her new podcast and the mission behind it Productivity hacks and how she gets things done for work life balance Resources: Website: karenyankovich.com Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter Podcast: Good Girls Get Rich Event: Fast Track to Your Next Client with LinkedIn Other Listening Options: Individual player or full player view on website: http://lorirochino.com/podcast-2/

I, like everyone else can be prone to shiny object syndrome, especially when it comes to online courses and offerings that look so appealing and is bound to help me do great things in business or life, like become more productive, create the perfect sales funnel, have stellar content marketing so you could grow your business and live in the beach like what's portrayed in the Four Hour Workweek. Funny enough, I spotted a lady reading that book with its red and orange cover (must be the newer version) while at my son's basketball clinic. Living in the attention economy, a term coined by Matthew Crawford, time is not only a scarce resource but so is the attention from the person whose time you want. So how does go about minimizing the distractions and focusing on what truly matters? What's the return on investment for the attention that you give the product or service being promoted to you? Find out this and more on this episode of Simply Designed Life. But, before we get into the conversation, if you happen to be in the Philadelphia area the last weekend of April, I would love to connect with you! I'm presenting at the BlogConnect event April 29. Registration details are at lorirochino.com/events. Who is Prerna? Prerna Malik is the co-founder of Content Bistro where she serves up finger-licking conversion copy to time-starved entrepreneurs. She has mastered the recipe for copy that balances persuasion and personality with the powers of conversion science ensuring that you get high conversions and profitable launches easily and effortlessly. She's based in India where she lives with her family. Quotes from Prerna It makes a huge impact not just in terms of the money that they make which is great of course, but also the freedom that they have to focus on the things they really enjoy. The emails that I get that make me the happiest, 'Oh my gosh, I'm so glad I didn't have to spend the mental energy doing this.' I was so happy to hear that, it means that you are operating in your zone of genius and I'm making that possible, how great is that! (12:29) The one thing that's worked for us is ensuring that whenever we do a course or sign up to do a course, we know exactly what we want out of it, and then dedicating time to actually going through the course. (16:47) Evaluating ROI that you'll get from a course will be really helpful in guiding your courses future purchase decisions as well. (18:15) You just need to start. You just need to take that first step. It's scary, but doing it is just so worthwhile. If there's a project you've been thinking about, if there's a new business idea, if there's a course you want to launch, I think you need to just get out there and take action on that first step. And after that, getting momentum is so much easier. (25:05) What You’ll Learn Her business beginnings as a side hustle before turning it into a full-time gig How her husband's illness forced them to rethink their work situation How she avoids shiny object syndrome when it comes to courses The power of teamwork in juggling business and life Resources: Website: https://www.contentbistro.com/ Social Media: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter One Productivity Tool She Uses - Passion Planner: &lt;br /&gt; Other Listening Options: Individual player or full player view on website: http://lorirochino.com/podcast-2/

Where many businesses succeed, many more fail. That said, having sound principles and going back to the foundational—as well as having a little bit of luck and foresight—can make for a successful business. Let's face it, if it were that easy, everyone would start a business. What's great about this next guest is how she's entrepreneurial in every sense of the word as she was able to create opportunities in some of the most serendipitous moments. Before we get into the show, a couple announcements. First off, we're currently rebranding here at Simply Designed Life Podcast. While we're still providing interview style shows, we'll also be releasing short solo episodes by yours truly on my insights and lessons learned in different areas of business from my own entrepreneurial journey as well as answers to commonly asked questions from my audience. First topic of choice revolves mostly on the connection side of things both online and offline as I'm obsessed with this particular component of interpersonal networking. It's been said that it takes a village for anything good in life or business to occur, and these days the lines are blurred with everyday life we've taken for granted in the pre-cell phone days with the digital communities all across the board, whether it be social media, the latest gadget or app and much more. Think of this new component as a short but sweet deep dive into hot topic subjects. Stay tuned for more within the next month or so! Also, if you happen to be in the Philadelphia area the last weekend of April, I would love to connect with you! I'm speaking at the BlogConnect event April 29. Registration details are on my event page at lorirochino.com/events. Who is Pat? Pat Iyer, MSN RN LNCC is a legal nurse consultant, coach, author, ghostwriter and editor. She built a large and successful legal nurse consulting business which she sold in 2015. Pat is also a prolific author and has written, edited or coauthored more than 800 chapters, books, case studies, online courses or articles. Pat works with legal nurse consultants who want to skyrocket their careers. Through the LNC Academy.com, she provides coaching services for legal nurse consultants. Pat is a past president of the American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants and assists legal nurse consultants to grow their businesses. Pat is the host of Legal Nurse Podcast. Her weekly shows inform and entertain listeners. Quotes from Pat It's tempting tempting to think that business is going to fall into your lap but it requires effort on your part, connections, being persistent, knowing who to approach and taking the initiative, which is what I did. . (5:45) I think my vision changed two years after I started working as an expert witness. When an attorney called me and said I’d like you to review an emergency department case, I was not an emergency department nurse, I was a medical surgical nurse which were the general units of the hospital. But I had a great friend who was attractive, well-spoken, highly educated, and I connected her with the attorney, and I sat back and thought, ‘Maybe there’s a business referring other experts other than myself.’ It’s like a little lightbulb went shining off my head, ‘Hey Pat, pay attention to this.’ (6:15) And that turned into a multi-million dollar business because it was such a sound model. Other people were producing income from my company and we were consistently making over a million dollars a year over the last five years that I ran the business. (7:54) It was a lot of hard, steady work. I brought cases home as a legal nurse consultant and did those cases at home, at night and on the weekends. When I first started my business, I ran it out of my house, I worked a lot of hours, I had to give up things. I had to give up reading the Sunday New York Times, which I used to do until I found out got up from laying on the couch for two hours reading the Sunday New York Times more depressed than when ...