Transcript
Episode 25. Jamie Taylor
00:01.15
Krystle Edwards
On this episode of Gritty is the New Pretty, we have Jamie, who went from interior design major to CEO of Confetti Balloons.
00:12.32
Jamie Taylor
you I know. I did not help you with that, did I?
00:15.09
Krystle Edwards
I feel like it just ends abruptly there, but a small business, Confetti, that's been super successful, and I'm really excited to get into what it's all about. So, Jamie, why don't you tell us about yourself?
00:27.56
Jamie Taylor
Yeah, and I think that's totally my fault, but as I, like, confuse you before we get started. so...
00:33.60
Krystle Edwards
It's easily done. Easily done.
00:36.49
Jamie Taylor
yeah so um You said, tell me more about myself. I'm sorry.
00:41.04
Krystle Edwards
Yeah.
00:41.08
Jamie Taylor
I'm like,
00:41.47
Krystle Edwards
ah Tell me about you. What do you want us to know? Tell us your story.
00:46.27
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. I mean, i started my business, gosh, eight years ago. And um it was funny. I just actually did an event where I had to kind of speak. And it was um i was trying it was for a Women's International Day.
01:00.67
Jamie Taylor
And I was trying to give... it was kind of like, what am I wanting to like say to other women that are in the audience?
01:04.53
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
01:05.84
Jamie Taylor
It was funny. It was like my dream really started out incredibly simple. It was like, I really just wanted the freedom and flexibility to work for myself and to be able to take my son to school and to his activities without feeling like I had to make the, you know, hard decisions that a lot of people have to make between the two. And that's really what caused me to, um, want to start my own business.
01:33.66
Krystle Edwards
And so tell us about your business. Tell us about confetti.
01:38.66
Jamie Taylor
Yeah, so we launched in 2017. And actually, when we first ah originally started, we were shipping ah celebratory gift boxes across the US. And the whole concept and idea was that for people who aren't very good at putting that stuff together, like we would be able to do that and have these Instagrammable parties.
01:58.03
Jamie Taylor
And so when we first launched that at the same time, i had done, um, basically kind of a pilot of that program, uh, for my niece's graduation, I had done a balloon garland and I was one of the crazy people who was like, I'm going to quit my job and start this business and just like go full into it. i was very confident in like the fact that I was going to make money.
02:23.54
Jamie Taylor
like immediately. and so ah quit my job to do that. And so um when I had done my niece's graduation, i had put up a balloon garland and this was eight years ago before like organic balloon garlands were really a thing.
02:36.22
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
02:36.57
Jamie Taylor
Anybody really knew much about them. And somebody, I had happened to post it and somebody messaged me and was like, Hey, like how much would you charge to come and put that up for me? And do you do that?
02:48.09
Jamie Taylor
And at the time, like I had quit my job. So it's like, absolutely. Like i was, you know, you find any way to make money. And um that is what started the journey on the balloon side of our business.
03:00.72
Jamie Taylor
And honestly, like was not at all a part of the plan and all a part of the process, but it literally just like was wildfire and it took off And I always say this and it's even on our website, but I'm like, it blew up like pun intended.
03:15.97
Jamie Taylor
Like it literally blew up and it was kind of, um, crazy.
03:16.00
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
03:22.38
Jamie Taylor
And I just kind of like rolled with it and we kept kind of going. And I was still at the same time pushing, um our gift boxes and trying to like get that out. And we're at this, at the time there were more party boxes.
03:35.50
Jamie Taylor
And then if you fast forward 2020, um,
03:40.22
Jamie Taylor
Um, at that time, as that year came up, we were so busy with all these installations. And I was like, how should we even do this like box business anymore?
03:50.02
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
03:50.11
Jamie Taylor
Like I'm still buying product and we're doing these, uh, photo shoots and, um, marketing. This business is very different. Like where the balloons were very much like visual and word of mouth.
04:00.72
Jamie Taylor
Um, and so ah we were talking about in June and I say, we, at the time I had, three employees,
04:00.77
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
04:07.71
Jamie Taylor
And i was like, you know, come June, if we don't see an uptick in these party boxes, like maybe we just get rid of it and we don't do it anymore. um And we just focus on doing balloon installations in and events.
04:21.38
Jamie Taylor
And then, of course, March of 2020 happened. And everything came to a screeching halt and we're having a meeting and it was like, ah what can we do
04:33.77
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
04:34.05
Jamie Taylor
What do we do? And, you know, we had a lot of like different, like funny ideas. We had these, we were shipping out these no boredom balloon bags. It's just funny when I think about it. So we were literally sending people just like healing, like, or not healing, but just balloons to inflate so that their kids could like toss them around and have fun with them. And, yeah,
04:54.26
Jamie Taylor
One of the things that we ended up doing was on our party box page. We kind of went back to that and we're like, what can we do with this? And the entire time we had the box business, there was a custom box option and somebody had filled out a form on our website that was like, Hey, I, my coworker is having a baby and we can't do her baby shower anymore. Like, are you able to put together a virtual party box? Um,
05:19.79
Jamie Taylor
And that we can all like hop on and celebrate together. so it was like, of course we can. We had all these party supplies, like we were set up for this. And so we went through and kind of created a program of like what these party boxes would look like. And um eventually then put that virtual party box on our website.
05:40.17
Jamie Taylor
And that was the first time I really realized like the power of SEO and just like right timing. And like when people are searching for things, And that like just took off. And it was we were getting constant requests for virtual party boxes from fundraisers and people that really couldn't like get together anymore. like You still had a lot of nonprofits that needed to raise money, um but no longer could get together in person. And so they were figuring out different ways to like hold their events and still fundraise for their causes. and then
06:10.52
Jamie Taylor
But they just didn't want people to hop on ah Zoom call and it'd be boring. It was like, how do we bring the party to them?
06:14.76
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
06:16.41
Jamie Taylor
And that's kind of where the void that we started to fill. um And then we were lucky enough to get featured in the New York Times because we had done a graduation party box and they were writing a story about how people were celebrating during COVID and doing graduation. And so that was amazing.
06:36.40
Jamie Taylor
And I feel incredibly grateful that, um, that that happened during, you know, for us, like it was obviously during that time was very hard for a lot of people and everyone's just trying to figure out like what to do.
06:45.56
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
06:49.06
Jamie Taylor
And, um, and I do realize now that like we were at incredibly blessed to have some of these things that maybe felt lucky. um i think it just was right timing.
07:02.09
Jamie Taylor
And um anyway, so that kind of, that took off for a long time. And then Fast forward a little bit past COVID and now you have this mix of like, okay, installs started to come back from balloons or gift box. The party boxes were slowing because people were getting back to doing in person and we kind of shifted our party box business to a little bit more gift focused with a party flair. And I feel like even, I mean, majority of the time when people are sending out gift boxes, like
07:34.52
Jamie Taylor
there's something to be celebrated.
07:36.63
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
07:36.82
Jamie Taylor
And so was like, how do we make these more gift focused, but still kind of have a nod to like our party um heritage, I guess, or how we originally started. And so that's our business today. We kind of still have two businesses. We large scale luxury balloon installations.
07:54.04
Jamie Taylor
And then we also are shipping out gift boxes across the U S mainly kind of focusing on um corporate gifting.
08:03.70
Krystle Edwards
I think that you got to give yourself some more credit because it's not just luck. I mean, you had number one, a business that was fulfilling a need even before COVID hit that Then when COVID hit, you know, you took some time to think about how to pivot and you filled another need that was so huge in the community and and just in society to connect where we weren't able to connect.
08:26.33
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm.
08:36.99
Krystle Edwards
And you took advantage of that. And, you know, that's where a lot of businesses become successful is you solve a problem. ah problem that a lot of people have and you did. So I just want to say, i think it's more than luck. And I think um it's really clever. i love what you're doing. And um I am excited for the success that you've had on it.
09:01.00
Krystle Edwards
i mean, you were even on like New Day Northwest on TV. What was that like?
09:06.43
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. um So we've been on New Day Northwest twice now. And um it is a really, it's actually really interesting because it's super nerve wracking.
09:16.79
Jamie Taylor
And then you kind of get on, it's not in front of a live audience. So actually i tell people because I'm like, it actually makes things a little bit less nervous than if you're doing something in front of a live audience.
09:25.27
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
09:26.92
Jamie Taylor
But um honestly, it was it's a really... fun experience to be able to do to kind of see like how fast moving some of those like television shows are, and how it all is kind of laid out, but, um, definitely like incredibly grateful.
09:37.38
Krystle Edwards
sir
09:43.42
Jamie Taylor
The first time we were on there, um they had kind of contacted me out of the blue. And so that was definitely a very like unique experience. We were just on it again. And I decided to pitch them to come back on the show because we had launched our, our DIY balloon garland kits. And it it was like, okay, well, we haven't been on here in seven years. Like we kind of have some like new information to share. I thought it would be something like really fun for viewers that are viewing, that are watching it as something that they would be able to do.
10:15.65
Jamie Taylor
um But yeah, it's it's a really fun experience.
10:21.25
Krystle Edwards
I think that's awesome that you pitched it back to them later. And I think that's a good lesson for others to learn is when you have these connections and these opportunities to be on a magazine, be on a TV show,
10:38.24
Krystle Edwards
it doesn't necessarily have to be one and done. Like you can reach out to those groups again and say, Hey, I've got something super exciting.
10:42.32
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm.
10:47.22
Krystle Edwards
If your audience loved it before, do you want to update?
10:50.04
Jamie Taylor
What? Okay.
10:50.76
Krystle Edwards
I know i plan to do that with some of the Liz rock stuff. Um, when we get the wall launched is reaching out to all of the groups that put articles out and and Como even covered us. And I plan on reaching out and just saying, Hey,
11:04.83
Krystle Edwards
after 10 years, here's what we've done and we're finally doing it. Do you want to, you know, do a story on it? um So definitely want to share that message as don't like dismiss that as a one and only opportunity. Like you can reach out again. The worst they can say is no.
11:22.70
Jamie Taylor
Well, and honestly, ah too, I think persistence comes into play because so much of it has to do with, you know, whether depending, it doesn't matter like what media you're reaching out to, but it's right timing for like what they're looking for and that, and it fits. And that's why like the New York times, right? Like it fit with what we had going on and what they were writing about. And so And when I say persistence is because I had actually pitched them probably about a year ago trying to do the same thing. Maybe it was a year or two ago and I heard nothing.
11:54.98
Jamie Taylor
And so I think it's like, and not taking that and being like, oh, they must not want me. It might just not have been right timing.
12:00.30
Krystle Edwards
Right. Mm-hmm.
12:01.97
Jamie Taylor
It might not have been the right like audience at that time. And so, And I think it's like when you have something to share, you have something new. It's just like you're kind of just like reminding people like, hey, this might be something that's of interest to your audience.
12:16.32
Jamie Taylor
And I am always like a big supporter of like mutually beneficial relationships. And, and that's really what it comes down to is like, is this something that is mutually beneficial, something that will work for your audience?
12:29.57
Jamie Taylor
um And do I have something to like provide to them that would be, you know, great. And obviously like getting in front of anybody, um you know, is good PR, but I've definitely been trying to like dabble more in like, how do you get more ever since New York times?
12:36.14
Krystle Edwards
who
12:43.63
Jamie Taylor
It was like, I saw the power of what something like that can do. And then it was like, okay, how do I manufacture more of this?
12:51.51
Krystle Edwards
Yeah. So when, after the New York times, like what happened, like, tell us about how that impact made you feel and how it affected your business.
13:05.86
Jamie Taylor
Yeah, I mean, what I learned was, it was ah really crazy because like literally when you, and I started really learning a lot about like, I don't want to go too far into like techie, but I learned so much about like backlinking and how important the weight of certain backlinks and how like just getting featured on the New York Times because of the weight of that of who they are jumps you up on Google.
13:20.16
Krystle Edwards
Oh.
13:30.50
Jamie Taylor
um So when people were searching for virtual party boxes, like we were number one.
13:30.75
Krystle Edwards
alone
13:36.25
Jamie Taylor
Um, because they had written about us and it was, and it was, and I knew that it was directly impacted by the New York times because every request that we were getting was coming from the East coast. Um, and so it was just a really interesting thing to kind of see that impact and how it like was directly, um, affecting like people finding our business.
13:58.14
Krystle Edwards
Yeah, I never thought of that, that that would put you at the Google. I mean, I assume you would get followers, you would get um references, people would, you know, come to you. But I didn't think that, oh, because they're so big and so well known that now you're at the top of the Google search. That's incredible.
14:18.73
Krystle Edwards
It's good information to have.
14:19.12
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. Yeah. I learned so much about like Google and backlinking and kind of looking at that. Cause I think that's a lot of like a big question that a lot of people try to, um, right. Like how do you get number one on the search engine? And there's lots of different ways that you can Um, but getting like free PR is probably the the biggest one. And I learned a lot of different ways of potentially how to get that. But then like, and then it's like, how do you get some of those bigger ones? And it's so funny because I think we're all get scared when you think of like New York times or Forbes or whatever, while all the people within those are just regular people and they're all looking for new content. I mean, when you think about the ah amount of content that's put out on a regular basis, like they're needing fresh new content, it just needs to match like with what you're doing with what they're trying to write about.
15:08.77
Krystle Edwards
Right. Like the timing and and whatnot, for sure.
15:11.98
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. And just some research to find out like who's writing these and how do I get in front of them?
15:15.38
Krystle Edwards
Yeah.
15:16.53
Jamie Taylor
And I mean, it's not necessarily easy, but, or what does Mel Robbins say? It's not hard, but it's simple.
15:23.50
Krystle Edwards
Right.
15:23.68
Jamie Taylor
No, I should say it is hard, but it's one of my favorite things.
15:25.25
Krystle Edwards
I mean, I don't know, but that makes sense.
15:29.68
Jamie Taylor
Cause it's so, it's so good. Cause it's literally like, it's not, it's not, it's, it's hard, but it's simple. Something that anyways.
15:38.29
Krystle Edwards
Let me see if I'm going to look it up.
15:38.59
Jamie Taylor
And it, all right.
15:42.64
Jamie Taylor
It's funny because I'm like, i love this song much, but I always love them.
15:42.78
Krystle Edwards
I'm going to Google it right now. I got to know. um Let's see if I can find it. Changing your life is simple, but it's not easy. Is that?
15:56.16
Jamie Taylor
Yes.
15:57.12
Krystle Edwards
Yeah.
15:58.06
Jamie Taylor
And she says that a lot with a lot of things, right? Like it's simple, but it's not easy. That's exactly what it is.
16:02.29
Krystle Edwards
hmm.
16:02.85
Jamie Taylor
So a lot of things right are simple, but it's just not, it's not necessarily easy um to do it because it talks like, you know, it's just a lot of like repetition and, um,
16:03.05
Krystle Edwards
Mm hmm.
16:13.29
Jamie Taylor
and persistence.
16:14.76
Krystle Edwards
Yeah. And not taking no response or no personally. Right.
16:20.32
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
16:20.33
Krystle Edwards
Like, OK, great. um Maybe next time I'll reach out in the future or let me know if you change your mind or if something comes up. You just never know. um And I think sometimes, you know, we can get wrapped up in that rejection a little bit.
16:30.13
Jamie Taylor
Yep.
16:34.78
Krystle Edwards
But, um you know, it is what it is.
16:38.50
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. Yeah.
16:41.09
Krystle Edwards
It'll happen.
16:42.47
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
16:44.04
Krystle Edwards
So in your business, you ended up going from almost bankruptcy to earning almost over 300K.
16:44.05
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
16:53.12
Krystle Edwards
Tell us about that experience and how you did that.
16:59.04
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. So mine mine hit
17:04.72
Jamie Taylor
2022 was definitely like a very hard year. I think all around financially, it was very hard and it was ah year of, it was almost like you, we had I'd made it through COVID. I'd made it through all of that.
17:18.66
Jamie Taylor
And I feel like it was two things. Like financially, it was kind of a hard year. And then two, I completely hit burnout.
17:28.84
Krystle Edwards
hmm
17:28.97
Jamie Taylor
And And I think like when I was talking to you earlier about it was like, we had done boxes then we had done balloons and it was kind of like, and now we were doing both. And it felt like a lot, a lot of managing because they're two very different businesses and very different in terms of how you market them. And the balloons require a lot of labor. And um and so i definitely was ah mix of burnout. And then you add on like during COVID, we had taken out an idle loan to stay afloat.
17:58.49
Jamie Taylor
and um ah we had gotten, because the boxes were doing so well, it was like, we need a warehouse. We're going to like move into this space. I signed this five-year lease and moved in, and then all of a sudden, it was like the beginning of 2022, I believe it was. It was like all of a sudden, boxes like kind of came to almost a stop. It felt like and the balloons were still kind of going, but not great. And it was just, it was a moment of like, so we just talked about all that stuff that happened to me.
18:28.85
Jamie Taylor
i felt like all that happened, but I didn't really know what I did to get it.
18:33.35
Krystle Edwards
And this was after your exposure on the New York Times and the New Day.
18:33.61
Jamie Taylor
Exactly.
18:39.17
Jamie Taylor
Yep.
18:40.11
Krystle Edwards
So this is, you know, you kind of went way up and now you hit this lull. Okay. Yeah.
18:46.19
Jamie Taylor
Yep. And really what was happening was the market shifted. The market shifted and people were not doing virtual party boxes anymore. and now we're in a gift box um world where it's there's a little there's more competition within that.
19:00.80
Jamie Taylor
And, and then right, like visibility was almost like nobody was searching for virtual party boxes anymore. And so it was really just learning um really like how one, how do you get that back?
19:06.19
Krystle Edwards
Right.
19:13.79
Jamie Taylor
Like, what are some systems and processes to put in a place? What does marketing look like? Um, but honestly, it felt like I had ran a marathon, like just staying afloat. And so that's when I really felt like I had hit burnout.
19:25.46
Jamie Taylor
All of a sudden it was like, we were really high and then getting this warehouse, doing this stuff. And then it was like, everything came to a stop and it's amazing how quick debt can like a rack up.
19:36.69
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
19:37.86
Jamie Taylor
so fast. And i remember it feeling just like heavy. And I was like, I cannot, I was like, I cannot have this debt. It felt too constricting. And I but had a battle with that. Cause I'm like, plenty of businesses have debt, but it was like, but it's not for me.
19:54.43
Jamie Taylor
i was like, I need a breather. Cause I felt very like, um, like I was doing things that I didn't necessarily want to do, but I did them because I financially needed them. Um, but I do feel like a lot of good came through that time because it was really interesting. Like i was telling, like, I wanted to run away from my life so bad. I was like, I told my husband, like, let's sell our house.
20:18.28
Jamie Taylor
I can pay off all the debt. We can just get out of here and I can be done with it.
20:20.20
Krystle Edwards
Thank you.
20:22.52
Jamie Taylor
And, but I also knew that that wasn't really an option. And it wasn't going to solve anything. And I had even thought about going back and getting a job. Like, is this worth it? Do i you know, like building a business is really tough.
20:37.02
Jamie Taylor
ah There's a lot more behind the scenes that people don't necessarily see. um it looks like it's all like fun and glamour, especially like installs, right? Like it looks like for fun, and we're just like partying the whole time.
20:50.80
Jamie Taylor
um But there's definitely a lot of like keeping that going. And how do you continue to get business? and Um, and so when that all happened, i it was interesting because I wanted to get a job, but I knew i could like feel it inside. It was like, not, nothing is going, that's not going to change your problems. and And that's not going to make you any happier. And I remember thinking like, you just need to sit in this uncomfort and, and figure this out and not, and not just run.
21:24.94
Jamie Taylor
which is what we all naturally want to do when we're uncomfortable, right?
21:25.29
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
21:27.63
Jamie Taylor
It's just like, I need to do something else. Like whether it's like start a new business or like go back and maybe change your career. And there was just something inside of me that was like, just sit here and, and wait. And so,
21:38.81
Jamie Taylor
it felt like dragging myself literally every day, but I got out of bed every day. I did work. i actually started cold calling like past people, like, do you need installs? Like just trying to figure out how to drum up the business again. And like, what do I need to do for the boxes? And, um so that was kind of did, I felt like I was literally dragging myself, um,
22:03.87
Jamie Taylor
And then things started to like slowly, but surely kind of come back. I also learned during that time, I did not have very good boundary set. I worked all the time and it didn't matter. And I, and I just finally realized that I was no longer doing things that brought me joy, which is why I was feeling a lot of burnout,
22:24.48
Jamie Taylor
Uh, and I needed to just cut off work at a certain time and just disconnect from it. And so that was what I ended up kind of diving into. was like, I want to do more things and even installations that like brought me joy.
22:39.24
Jamie Taylor
And it wasn't just waiting for, balloon jobs that other people wanted me to do because innately, like I love creating and designing and doing all of that. And so i kind of started diving into that a little bit, doing small projects around the house and like decorating. And it almost, it was interesting. It, it really like, I felt like brought me back to life.
23:03.53
Jamie Taylor
Um, and then one of the things that you and I had like talked about earlier on was like how I mentioned like, um, anxiety is good. Um, we, uh, during that time, like my heart would be like all day long. I was like on the verge of crying every day.
23:23.21
Jamie Taylor
um I had so much, like my heart was like racing all the time. And I remember being like, I need to go for a run. i was like, I have to run because was like, if my heart is going to feel like this, it needs to be because I did something and not just because like I sat here, but I had a lot of like angst that I needed to get out.
23:40.70
Krystle Edwards
Thank
23:41.22
Jamie Taylor
And so through all of that, like i ended up really... adding like more consistency into my life. So I started like exercising a lot more.
23:51.66
Jamie Taylor
um i started meditating, which I think actually was a huge, that was actually a huge way of like quieting my brain, quieting some of the negative thoughts. um I started to journal every day and writing out like what I was grateful for, the things that were going well, because I was focusing so much on what wasn't going well, but I wasn't really paying attention to all the good things that actually were happening.
24:13.49
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
24:15.27
Jamie Taylor
And we're still happening during that time. And so it was just really amazing to see like how powerful your brain can be. Because it was funny when I looked back, and I think I'd mentioned like, it felt like financially, we hadn't had a great year. and And it wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was.
24:32.15
Jamie Taylor
ah And so all of these things kind of became a lot bigger in my mind than what they actually were.
24:38.39
Krystle Edwards
who
24:38.60
Jamie Taylor
And so starting that morning routine, starting to work out and all of all of that was due to anxiety and finding ways to like mitigate it and get control of it.
24:46.55
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
24:49.99
Jamie Taylor
And um and that was one of the other things I learned, too, was like, stop trying to actually control it, like just let yourself feel the anxiety and then it actually will pass through a lot faster than you like constricting it and holding on to it.
25:04.33
Krystle Edwards
Yeah, I used to run before I had kids. um And I did find that on this entrepreneurial journey and small business journey, there are so many stressors, there's, you know, things that are on your mind, and it's easy to get caught up in it because it is like, I say, it's your baby, you know, it is, it's
25:27.39
Jamie Taylor
Hmm.
25:28.57
Krystle Edwards
It is your baby. And I noticed that even in my normal job to issues at work or whatever, when I would run, i would be thinking about it, of course, because it's on my mind. I'm thinking about it all the time. I'm thinking about it when I go to bed.
25:45.93
Krystle Edwards
But there's something about when I would be running and I'd be thinking about it and kind of getting those endorphins to where people By the time I was done with my run, I was just like, i could take a breath and I'm like, it's not that big of a deal.
26:03.32
Krystle Edwards
it's not that big of a deal.
26:03.51
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
26:04.64
Krystle Edwards
Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to let it go. I was able to really physically kind of release it through the exercise. And it's something for me and everybody has their thing, meditation, yoga, whatever works for you to get that release can be so valuable.
26:21.96
Krystle Edwards
i mean, I definitely, after I have this baby, i want to start running, you know, build myself up to do that because it is such a good stress reliever.
26:22.63
Jamie Taylor
yeah
26:31.75
Krystle Edwards
It's good for you mentally. I feel like I could, I could think clearly too.
26:36.09
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm.
26:36.21
Krystle Edwards
it was very strange. um So I do see the value in that um trying to get us get through, especially as a small business owner, some of the challenges that you face.
26:47.81
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. and And I think like you said too, it's like finding something that is yours that you enjoy doing. And I think that meditation, I think a lot of people think of meditation as it sit down and close your eyes, but meditation can actually be, is working, can be working out for a lot of people, right?
27:05.06
Jamie Taylor
It's just when you kind of get a place where like you can shut your brain off and you can focus and you kind of come inward.
27:05.11
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
27:10.48
Krystle Edwards
Yep.
27:12.85
Jamie Taylor
And that I think is, um, something that you're right. Like we all kind of forget to do that, especially when you're like hyped up, you're starting something and it's like, I don't care. I'll work all hours of the day.
27:23.96
Jamie Taylor
This is so exciting.
27:24.26
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
27:25.01
Jamie Taylor
And then like, eventually it's like, but it's not sustainable long-term. And if you can kind of set those boundaries earlier on, you're better off. It's more sustainable in the long run, if you can do that. And i really realized, cause it was almost, you get excited whenever you get like a customer or,
27:43.42
Jamie Taylor
somebody wants to buy from you or somebody wants to do something and you want to drop everything you're doing and and intend to that.
27:43.88
Krystle Edwards
Mm
27:49.45
Jamie Taylor
And I've finally kind of gotten out of that scarcity mindset and been like, okay, these clients will still be here. i will answer them in an appropriate amount of time, but I don't have to, it's not a fire that needs to be addressed at this particular moment.
27:58.15
Krystle Edwards
her
28:03.18
Jamie Taylor
And knowing that, and I literally have to like have some of those conversations that it's like, this can wait until the next day. um and it's definitely added all so much more sanity back to my life. And i and I like, it's so funny. i used to like love I was like, I never, i kind of felt like I missed out on like just those random, like walks through target that I felt like I used to do when you had, right, like nothing else to do.
28:28.71
Jamie Taylor
And I, you and I, so I, it's so funny. I started like doing some of that stuff where it was, it was just needing like time, like time to like not be going through a to-do list or doing anything.
28:36.05
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
28:39.99
Jamie Taylor
And, um, so now that I add that in, like all of that seems like it's meditation on some level.
28:47.16
Krystle Edwards
Yeah, doing stuff for yourself and taking that space. And sometimes, you know, sometimes I go to HomeGoods.
28:58.61
Jamie Taylor
Yes, it is so therapeutic.
28:58.99
Krystle Edwards
And i I'm like, do I even need anything? And I'm like, well, I certainly always need some candles. So ah at least I walk out with a scented candle.
29:07.11
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
29:11.47
Krystle Edwards
But, you know, just, yeah, having that time to sort of do... ah you know so I guess you could call it self-care, but to focus on something different or not focus on anything at all.
29:22.88
Krystle Edwards
you know Just walk through.
29:23.32
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
29:25.72
Krystle Edwards
and also like getting outdoors is really great for that too. you know When you're busting your butt up a hike, like the only thing you can think about is either walking what was I thinking doing this hike?
29:36.43
Krystle Edwards
It's so hard. Or I can't wait to get to the top to see the view and eat my sandwich.
29:41.39
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
29:42.45
Krystle Edwards
So that's really important.
29:42.78
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
29:44.06
Krystle Edwards
And, you know, with the phones, it's so hard because you get a ding and you get an email and you look at it and you're like, OK, I'm not going to respond right now.
29:54.83
Krystle Edwards
But then you have to remember to respond when you go back and you start working again.
29:57.31
Jamie Taylor
yeah
29:59.13
Krystle Edwards
So it's like it's almost like you just got to no, I'm not checking my emails. I'm not doing this. I'm not even going to look until it's time to look.
30:09.50
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. I have actually turned off all notifications on my phone, ah but I do have an email sickness. Like I have like incessantly like checking my email and I've been trying to be better at that, especially like, like I said, after six o'clock, don't look at it.
30:26.79
Jamie Taylor
Um, and even like mail, like sometimes you'll get like, I don't know if you check your mail and then it's like, you get something from like the IRS or the social security. And I like learned very quickly, like you open that tomorrow. Yeah.
30:39.66
Jamie Taylor
Because like there's nothing you can do that night about whatever it is that they're like messaging you about. And like you might as well just like leave that for the next day. And so it's funny.
30:49.94
Jamie Taylor
I even like do that with any like work mail. Like tomorrow we can when I check in like we can do that.
30:53.57
Krystle Edwards
the
30:56.39
Jamie Taylor
So
30:57.54
Krystle Edwards
Yeah, I think that's really healthy to do. I've started doing that too. Just, okay, this conversation is still businessy and it happens. you know I'll be talking to people um at five, six, seven o'clock at night and I'm super excited about what we're talking about or the partnership.
31:16.74
Krystle Edwards
And then at some point I'm like, all right, You're going to look at this and you're going to respond tomorrow because you're getting tired, first of all, and you don't want to say something stupid. and You want to be very clear about your response. And um yeah, especially when you have a family, too. I don't know if you have any kids or anything, but um it's hard to just even stay focused sometimes because you got other things going on.
31:44.04
Jamie Taylor
Yeah, you know, my son is 16 he actually just, it's been interesting because feel like in a way we're like are living parallel lives in terms of going after things. And I'm kind of learning a lot about self but personal growth and just like the power of like your brain and like really realizing that like you do have control over your life and where you want to go and those things.
32:09.85
Jamie Taylor
And so he actually, at 14 years old moved to Minnesota to play hockey. And so he lives there and then he flies.
32:17.07
Krystle Edwards
Oh.
32:19.73
Jamie Taylor
He's actually home right now for spring break. So he comes home much just like a college student, just at 14. He's now 16. um And so it's funny though, because coming up to that, like we're like very early empty nesters, but I feel it was like once he ah the time was coming to an end, like seeing him every day, it was like all these things that I was like, so wrapped up in, in terms of business, it felt like I realized like the most important thing was the fact that I was a mom and that that time is very limited.
32:52.03
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
32:54.08
Jamie Taylor
Like, yes, I will always be his mom, but he's not always going to need me in the way that he was. And it was all of a sudden it was like, I wanted to like cherish all the time we had. And even so now it's funny because as he left, I set even more boundaries because it's like, he's home and I'm like, okay,
33:13.08
Jamie Taylor
I am working a little bit more limited hours trying to also maintain like focus when I am hanging out with them. He would totally probably disagree with that and thinks I'm always working, but I am actively trying to make sure that I'm like being as present as possible because the timing just like feels limited.
33:33.87
Jamie Taylor
um
33:34.39
Krystle Edwards
here
33:34.83
Jamie Taylor
but You know, and i realized like you, my business will always be here. Work will always be there.
33:38.46
Krystle Edwards
her
33:39.76
Jamie Taylor
It's never going to go anywhere. But that time that you have with your kids is so limited. And it's funny because I'm like, he was the whole reason but I like and out to do this.
33:47.59
Krystle Edwards
You did this.
33:49.35
Jamie Taylor
Yeah. Yeah.
33:51.17
Krystle Edwards
Yeah. And you know, you're the second person I've had on the show that has kind of had a similar story of starting their own business with their partner to have that kind of family balance.
34:03.24
Krystle Edwards
And um It's interesting how I've changed in my evolution of before I had kids, never thought I was going to get married, never thought I was going to have kids.
34:15.09
Krystle Edwards
And now I do. And I feel the same way. You know, I'm like, my son is a priority. My kids are a priority.
34:21.99
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm.
34:22.11
Krystle Edwards
um And I'm like, I would not have said that 10 years ago that I would be saying this.
34:22.27
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm.
34:26.96
Krystle Edwards
And now I work in a, in an industry that's mostly women. um I used to work with mostly men. Now it's mostly women. And And one of our icebreakers one day was, um what ah is your favorite role?
34:34.14
Jamie Taylor
o
34:40.82
Krystle Edwards
You know, we often wear many hats. What's your favorite role? being a mom, being a mom, being a mom, being a mom in the chat was like the number one thing. And then there were a few being a cat parent, but oh that was, that was hands down.
34:54.38
Jamie Taylor
ah
34:57.61
Krystle Edwards
And I was, I was, interesting I thought that was interesting too, because even, even if, you know,
35:01.27
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
35:05.90
Krystle Edwards
your kid is your priority. the fact that that was everybody's answer on top of all the hats that we wear, i think that is really powerful. And it does show just the struggles that parents and women, female parents can face when trying to balance work and, and having a family and all the emotions and the stress that comes along with it.
35:21.56
Jamie Taylor
no
35:26.80
Jamie Taylor
yeah
35:30.15
Krystle Edwards
Um, I know like, that's why I left my job.
35:31.22
Jamie Taylor
It is hard. Yeah. Yeah, it is. And I don't, and honestly, it's funny because it's like, you think you have more, you do. i don't want to act like you don't.
35:42.79
Jamie Taylor
You think that you have more balance but if you go to work for yourself because you have more freedom and flexibility
35:46.95
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm.
35:49.24
Jamie Taylor
But what happens is your day gets really elongated because it's not like I go to work during this time and then you turn it off and you you're off and this is what you do. Right now it's like, okay, yep. I'm going to take him here and then I'm do a little work here. And then I'm going like, then I have to go pick them up from here.
36:02.74
Jamie Taylor
There's so many like little bits of time. And and my son was very into hockey, which is why he moved to Minnesota. So we were spending four hours in the evening, like driving him to his hockey practice. It was like an hour North of us.
36:15.25
Jamie Taylor
And then he had practice for an hour or two and then it was an hour back. And so the time it was great because I did have the ability to like take him to school and pick him up and do that. But it actually caused more chaos. I feel like for me, because my day was just elongated and honestly up until he left because like his schedule got way more demanding and he didn't have a license. And it was like, I was like, he was essentially becoming like an adult and like needing to go to the gym and needing to go here and needing to do this. And I'm trying to work and I'm fitting all that in. And I felt like I can only work at like two hours at a time. So I and didn't feel like I could like dive into anything.
36:54.67
Jamie Taylor
And so actually when he had left, it was like, everyone kept asking me, they were like, how are you doing? And I was like, amazing.
37:01.07
Krystle Edwards
Right.
37:03.06
Jamie Taylor
i was like, I'm doing amazing. And I've actually felt like the worst mom for feeling that way.
37:06.30
Krystle Edwards
yeah
37:10.65
Jamie Taylor
But it was like, I felt like I could take a deep breath and I felt like I had time and like, I didn't have to rush around with like my head cut off, trying to make sure that everything was getting done.
37:19.92
Krystle Edwards
Right.
37:21.43
Jamie Taylor
And it's funny because he's now been gone for two years and The first year I literally enjoyed it. I was like, this is amazing. I miss him. i miss him in the house. I didn't miss running all of that around.
37:33.81
Jamie Taylor
And now the second year is funny. Now i'm like, oh my, I'm like, I really kind of miss like being a mom. Like I'm parenting from afar, but not totally. And he's definitely a little bit more of an adult, but I was like, kind of miss like being a mom. And I felt like super giddy when he was like kind of coming home, even though he's 16 and wants, he's getting to the point where it's like,
37:55.03
Jamie Taylor
loves his mom, but doesn't really, you know, want to like cuddle or love me or do any sort of thing to do when he was like a kid.
37:59.67
Krystle Edwards
Yeah.
38:01.96
Jamie Taylor
Right. So, um, so yeah, it's definitely an interesting like evolution, but I've definitely learned that if you have kids, like just enjoy the time that you have and your business will be there.
38:13.76
Krystle Edwards
he
38:15.63
Jamie Taylor
And one day all you'll have is time to spend on your business.
38:19.44
Krystle Edwards
Yeah. Yeah. My, one of my bosses before he retired at my old job, you know, we were talking and he said, the one thing I regret is working so much while my kids were young.
38:35.13
Krystle Edwards
And, um, because during that time, in that industry, ah they were working seven days a week, 12 hour shifts. And that was kind of the norm.
38:44.17
Jamie Taylor
Yep.
38:45.46
Krystle Edwards
um And it was good money, right? So like they're bringing home the bacon and he's just like, I wish I would have been home a lot more. and that's really stuck with me. You know, that was the one thing out of his really long career there that he told me is like, I just wish I would have been um with my kids more when they were young.
39:06.51
Krystle Edwards
Because now they're gone. you know Now they're moved away and they're adults. And he's like, you don't get that time back. So I thought that was pretty cool.
39:13.13
Jamie Taylor
him
39:14.26
Krystle Edwards
And I was like, all right, peace out.
39:14.56
Jamie Taylor
Yeah.
39:15.68
Krystle Edwards
I quit.
39:16.85
Jamie Taylor
You're right. I'm done.
39:18.55
Krystle Edwards
I mean, it didn't play out exactly that way. But you know that that stuck with me. And that is something that I think about when I make my decisions on what I'm going to do next. So absolutely.
39:28.26
Jamie Taylor
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
39:30.67
Krystle Edwards
Okay. Well, what is your best or most, I don't know, important piece of advice that you would offer grit City Women?
39:40.94
Jamie Taylor
Hmm. Um, I think actually, i mean, I really feel like what i have learned since starting, I'm going to give you two because I feel like I always do that. I'm like somebody who just can't give one.
39:53.88
Jamie Taylor
Um, the first one would be. That if you're starting out with any doing anything, it is going to take a feel like a lot of people like want things to start happening overnight.
40:05.80
Jamie Taylor
And I remember when I first started, it took probably a good eight months before I really started seeing like revenue coming in and like you really have to stick with it and stay consistent.
40:06.15
Krystle Edwards
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
40:15.31
Jamie Taylor
So that would be. my advice is like, just keep going. And like the hard work that you're doing will eventually like all of that. Somebody had given me the analogy. It's like, you're just like stretching a rubber band, like all the activities and all the things you're doing.
40:27.35
Jamie Taylor
And then one day that's going to snap and all of that work that you've done is going to come back.
40:29.19
Krystle Edwards
who
40:31.56
Jamie Taylor
And it was so true because there was a point where I was just like, man Am I going to catch any traction on this? Is anything going to get going? So that was kind of in the very beginning.
40:42.50
Jamie Taylor
And the next advice I would give is just follow the momentum where it goes. like You can't manufacture like the momentum. and And I think that that's what's kept me alive in my business is really seeing and realizing like what is working, what isn't working, like how do we pivot?
40:58.65
Jamie Taylor
and not being so set in like, this is my business and this is what it does. We don't do anything else. um Because I feel like we would be out of business by now had i not just followed the momentum where it's going.
41:12.07
Jamie Taylor
i do think that you can have intention with where you're wanting to go. And that's kind of, I feel like my next kind of phase is is okay, now we have these two businesses, what's this next phase and what is the intention and what does that look like and and going forward with some of those goals.
41:29.29
Jamie Taylor
um But I feel like you have to follow if you're in and if you're in anything, you have to follow like where the demand is.
41:32.72
Krystle Edwards
Mm hmm.
41:36.88
Krystle Edwards
Mm hmm. Yeah. Or you go to bankruptcy, right? I mean, you have to be making money to maintain the business.
41:45.13
Jamie Taylor
Or if you're not growing, right? If you're not growing, you're dying. so
41:48.91
Krystle Edwards
Mm hmm.
41:49.69
Jamie Taylor
if you're not making changes and you're not constantly getting better or developing new ah programs or um offerings or services, then eventually, you know, it's probably going to potentially die out.
42:04.13
Krystle Edwards
he Yeah. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story and your awesome advice. um was really great having you, Jamie.
42:14.75
Jamie Taylor
Oh, thank you so much. It was so fun to be on here.