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Prompts Used

Prompt 1: Context Setup

You are an expert data extractor tasked with analyzing a podcast transcript. 
I will provide you with part 1 of 1 from a podcast transcript. 
I will then ask you to extract different types of information from this content in subsequent messages. Please confirm you have received and understood the transcript content.

Transcript section:
[00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:00.960] Welcome back.
[00:00:00.960 --> 00:00:03.840] Here are the six quick questions.
[00:00:12.560 --> 00:00:15.360] So, question number one is: What's your why?
[00:00:15.360 --> 00:00:18.160] Why are you doing this every single day?
[00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:24.800] It's because I want to love what I do and connect with people on, you know, like a more personal level.
[00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:30.240] So, in you know, commercial real estate, I never felt really connected to the end product or consumer.
[00:00:30.240 --> 00:00:40.560] And with Bloom, I feel like we're really influencing change in how people are like addiction to coffee and how they treat themselves and how they're able to take moments of self-care.
[00:00:40.560 --> 00:00:45.120] And that's something that really lights me up and gets me excited to get out of bed.
[00:00:45.520 --> 00:00:46.160] I love that.
[00:00:46.160 --> 00:00:47.200] That's so cool.
[00:00:47.200 --> 00:00:52.560] Question number two is: What has been your favorite marketing moment so far?
[00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:57.920] I'm super proud of the co-branded product that we did with Sasha Exeter, who's based in Toronto.
[00:00:57.920 --> 00:01:07.520] It was something that led to like a $40,000 sales day and you know, adding so many people to our email list and to our community.
[00:01:07.520 --> 00:01:10.240] So, it was definitely like a labor of love.
[00:01:10.240 --> 00:01:18.080] And that's like a marketing moment that I didn't know what it would be like going into it, but that I was super proud of how it was executed in the end.
[00:01:18.080 --> 00:01:24.160] We need to pause so you can just break down how this came about because this is kind of crazy.
[00:01:24.160 --> 00:01:32.080] Like, was this like a really organic like meeting of the minds and being like, let's do something together, or did you pitch Sasha or vice versa?
[00:01:32.080 --> 00:01:33.920] And, like, how did this come together?
[00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:35.920] Like, what is the blueprint for this?
[00:01:35.920 --> 00:01:48.240] Well, we had been, you know, with Facebook iOS changes, we had been thinking about how you grow awareness and reach like in a more organic way, anyways, like where it's with aligned uh community.
[00:01:48.240 --> 00:01:55.440] And so, Sasha was on this hit like top dream list of influencer that we could work with.
[00:01:55.440 --> 00:01:59.040] And so, she had shared about the products before, so she had tried them.
[00:01:59.040 --> 00:03:31.520] And so, we reached out and just kind of pitched what we were thinking and and um it came together really quickly like i think we had the paperwork signed at the end of like november december 2021 and it was launched by june 2022 so we just worked so hard together to bring it to life and with like what supply chain is it was it was really you know a bit of a special it was definitely a bit of like a special project and that's why i'm so proud of it because everyone just like really rallied for it like from operations to marketing to you know our co-branded partner we just like really dug deep into it and she did so many you know customer surveys on her side about like people wanting something that was for beauty for digestion and and it was like really built by community so we launched it with a wait list where you could sign up to with an email list to to basically get early access to the product and we generated thousands of emails that way both through her community and our community and so it led to this really successful launch because we had all these emails that were generated from really like high intent customers who like either loved bloom loved the function that we were building for because it was like from their suggestions or loved the influencer sasha and so yeah it led to like a really exciting launch and and bloom is typically a really seasonal product so it was also a way for us to it was also like this like really exciting exciting way to add interest to to summer months when we're typically more fall winter oh that is so cool, so exciting.
[00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:33.440] I have one more question just before i continue.
[00:03:33.440 --> 00:03:34.720] So sorry.
[00:03:35.040 --> 00:03:37.600] I'm the person that always has just one more question.
[00:03:37.920 --> 00:03:49.360] When you're working on an influencer partnership like that, is it, hey, let's pay you up front to work together or is it a rev share model or is it a blend of both in this particular scenario?
[00:03:49.360 --> 00:03:53.040] It really varies from partnership to partnership is what I found.
[00:03:53.040 --> 00:03:57.280] And in this case, we wanted it to be, it was our first time doing something like this.
[00:03:57.280 --> 00:03:59.040] We wanted it to be really authentic.
[00:03:59.040 --> 00:04:09.280] So we did like a year-long partnership where it was a blend of, you know, her sharing the products, her story with the product, which was like kind of like a base fee.
[00:04:09.280 --> 00:04:14.480] And then there was also like a revenue participation component for the actual product.
[00:04:14.480 --> 00:04:25.680] So I think it's really important that whoever your partner is is like incentivized as well and should participate in the upside because their name is on the package and everything like that.
[00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:32.800] So, you know, everyone is like everyone's interests need to be aligned to make a partnership really be successful.
[00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:36.320] So I actually think the revenue share component is really, really important.
[00:04:36.320 --> 00:04:42.400] And it was a way to keep like also the base fees down because we were at the time, you know, bootstrapped and scrappy.
[00:04:42.400 --> 00:04:46.720] We leaned more heavily into the revenue share component than we did in the base fees.
[00:04:46.720 --> 00:04:47.040] Yeah.
[00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:47.280] Yeah.
[00:04:47.280 --> 00:04:58.240] I agree that it's, I think the performance incentive piece of the puzzle is so key to also keep people interested over that long kind of period of time and keep sharing and things like that.
[00:04:58.240 --> 00:04:58.800] Wow.
[00:04:58.800 --> 00:04:59.760] So interesting.
[00:04:59.760 --> 00:05:02.000] Thank you so much for telling me about that.
[00:05:02.000 --> 00:05:04.160] Question number three, back to it.
[00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:14.960] What is your go-to business resource when you think about things like a book that changed your life or a podcast that you listen to often or a newsletter that's packed with the good stuff?
[00:05:14.960 --> 00:05:16.720] Well, I love the how I built this.
[00:05:16.720 --> 00:05:26.480] I feel like I'm probably not the first to say that, but that's something that I've listened to since, like since before I started out on this journey and have always found it really inspirational.
[00:05:26.480 --> 00:05:29.560] I think it's like really nice to know that people make it to the end.
[00:05:29.560 --> 00:05:31.960] And that's what how I built this does really well.
[00:05:31.960 --> 00:05:36.600] But I also, there's a book called Good to Great that I've recently read that I loved.
[00:05:36.600 --> 00:05:47.960] And it's kind of a playbook on most common mistakes for founders and how you can think about your business to really get scale and get efficiency.
[00:05:47.960 --> 00:05:51.880] So when I was reading that book, I was like, oh man, I definitely do that.
[00:05:52.040 --> 00:05:53.400] Definitely do that.
[00:05:53.400 --> 00:05:57.640] So it was like, that one's really resonating with me right now.
[00:05:57.640 --> 00:05:58.120] Amazing.
[00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:02.280] I'm going to link it in the show notes for anyone who wants to check it out.
[00:06:02.280 --> 00:06:05.080] Question number four is, how do you win the day?
[00:06:05.080 --> 00:06:12.520] What are your AM or PM rituals and habits that keep you feeling happy and successful and motivated?
[00:06:12.520 --> 00:06:15.640] So I obsessively write to-do lists on paper.
[00:06:15.640 --> 00:06:21.640] Like no matter what programs come out, like a Santa or whatever, I'm always writing it down on paper.
[00:06:21.640 --> 00:06:22.840] I was just looking.
[00:06:23.160 --> 00:06:25.320] I have a million to-do lists on paper.
[00:06:25.320 --> 00:06:26.760] I was looking around to show you one.
[00:06:26.760 --> 00:06:28.040] And of course, there's not one right now.
[00:06:31.080 --> 00:06:38.040] And what I do is like in the morning, I always write, like, you know, I'll have one from the previous day, but I rewrite it.
[00:06:38.040 --> 00:06:41.000] It's like sort of like intention setting or something like that.
[00:06:41.000 --> 00:06:45.000] And I highlight kind of like the three things that I need to do to feel good.
[00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:55.000] And if those three things are done at the end of the day, then, you know, even though there's going to be like 10 other things on that to-do list, it's kind of like I did what I set out to today.
[00:06:55.000 --> 00:06:59.000] So definitely obsessed with the to-do list and the sticky note reminders.
[00:06:59.000 --> 00:07:06.680] Like if I showed you what my office looks like right now, it's just like, you know, like inspirational quotes and to-do list things.
[00:07:06.680 --> 00:07:18.480] And like, so I think like writing things down, like journaling about like what your intention is, but also how you feel about it is so important to just getting in the right frame of mind to be really productive.
[00:07:18.800 --> 00:07:26.080] And I think today it's so easy to get sucked into like Zoom meetings and Google Meets and all those types of things.
[00:07:26.080 --> 00:07:36.400] And they really take away from, like, for me, anyways, like they take away from really having time to work, you know, to do like the work that like moves things forward.
[00:07:36.400 --> 00:07:49.120] So I've gotten in the habit of blocking out mornings where I auto-deny like invite requests just to save space in my calendar for, and maybe I just need to go for a walk or like, you know, sit outside with my dog or something like that.
[00:07:49.120 --> 00:07:54.880] But I think it's really important that we don't get into the cycle of like working around the clock constantly.
[00:07:54.880 --> 00:08:04.080] So there's no like creative space and like the love of the job is gets hit because you need to keep all that energy really high because it's a marathon, not a sprint, you know.
[00:08:04.080 --> 00:08:05.520] I mean, 100%.
[00:08:05.520 --> 00:08:12.160] I felt like last year I was just packing in so many calls at any time of the day.
[00:08:12.160 --> 00:08:13.920] I was doing recordings all over the shop.
[00:08:13.920 --> 00:08:27.040] And this year I really switched to be like, I need days that are like clear without these like broken up calls all throughout my day so that I can just be creative, create content, do what I need to do.
[00:08:27.040 --> 00:08:47.360] And it made such a big difference just scheduling like only certain windows of time when I would take recordings or calls and just kind of like packing them in like sardines back to back and doing like shorter calls as well, like 20 minute calls instead of like half an hour to an hour long calls where you're like, oh, this could have been done in 10 minutes kind of thing.
[00:08:47.360 --> 00:08:48.400] Yeah, totally.
[00:08:48.400 --> 00:08:57.760] I think there's a difference between busy and productive and that we that we all need to kind of like realize what the what the difference is there and i'm i'm trying to do it.
[00:08:57.760 --> 00:08:58.160] It's hard.
[00:08:58.160 --> 00:08:58.880] It is hard.
[00:08:58.880 --> 00:10:31.600] It's it's hard to say no because you the thing is you want to do these things too like you sometimes you have to say no to things you want to do but it's it's like hacking your schedule or hacking your hacking your calendar and i'm i'm working on it not perfect work in progress question number five is what's been the worst money mistake you've made and how much did it cost you well that's a really good question one of the worst money mistakes i had was bringing in a product for a retailer so it was basically like a retailer had requested a specific product and so we did it to appease a retailer versus doing it to align with like our our values and our strategic mission and in the end you know it probably cost us 15 20 000 something like that and and maybe you know like not enough to tank the business but enough to be like why did i you know it's it's like making choices that are short-term versus long-term and so i think that it's really easy like at least i feel really tempted by low-hanging fruit sometimes you know to private label or to you know things that would like bring money in the door today but you have to or what i'm trying to learn is to like really like step back and think about like what are the things i really need to focus on to reach the end goal and make sure that all the because we're so limited on time because we're so limited on resources that everything that you do should be tracking towards that versus you know all these shiny objects that are along the way.
[00:10:31.600 --> 00:10:47.680] So, I don't, I think that's one that i like regret, not just from like a financial perspective, but because it shows kind of like like that was a moment of lack of focus and going for the low-hanging fruit when i need to be like staying focused on kind of what we're really trying to build.
[00:10:47.680 --> 00:10:48.240] 100%.
[00:10:48.240 --> 00:10:51.680] Focus is like a real superpower to master.
[00:10:51.680 --> 00:11:01.600] I find like I actively try and do this every day, but it's still one of those things where I can go off on a tangent and like work on something that I'm like, damn, shouldn't have done that.
[00:11:01.600 --> 00:11:09.920] Last question, question number six: What is just a crazy story you can share from the business, good or bad?
[00:11:10.240 --> 00:11:19.520] Well, I actually started this business with a co-founder, and so this is something that I get asked a lot too: is kind of like, you know, what happened there sort of thing.
[00:11:19.520 --> 00:11:24.960] And a lot of people start with co-founders and maybe have different visions, maybe it works out great.
[00:11:24.960 --> 00:11:27.360] You know, it varies so much from time to time.
[00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:34.080] And so, I would just say that, like, that's like a choice that needs to be like really carefully considered.
[00:11:34.080 --> 00:11:40.800] I think, like, in the beginning, when we started Bloom as like a side project, it was like a fun thing between friends sort of thing.
[00:11:40.800 --> 00:11:57.360] But just that when you're bringing in investors, partners, you know, even like senior level, like team members, just it's better to go slow and to make sure that all the values, all the visions are aligned than jumping on first opportunities.
[00:11:57.360 --> 00:12:12.800] Like, it's better to, some projects aren't going to get done because you don't have people, but to take the time to find the right people because I think that's something that I could have done better in the past and would just encourage anyone to just be really thoughtful about.
[00:12:12.800 --> 00:12:14.800] Yeah, that's a really key point.
[00:12:14.800 --> 00:12:21.360] How does it work in that scenario where two people in a co-founder relationship decide to go different ways?
[00:12:21.360 --> 00:12:27.760] Did you have to buy her out, or does she still have equity in the business and just doesn't work on the day-to-day?
[00:12:27.760 --> 00:12:29.440] So, I bought her out in the end.
[00:12:29.520 --> 00:12:35.080] I bought her out in March 2020, which was like right when COVID hit and like the business really shifted.
[00:12:29.920 --> 00:12:36.600] So, a bit of a scary time.
[00:12:36.840 --> 00:12:43.480] And I was really lucky, like, she, you know, she agreed that it wasn't working and she wanted to pursue her own things.
[00:12:43.480 --> 00:12:45.240] And I wanted to pursue my own things.
[00:12:45.240 --> 00:12:47.720] But you hear stories where it's not that way too.
[00:12:47.720 --> 00:12:58.680] So, that's why I say that it's just like better to be thoughtful and like really clear and upfront about what expectations are at the beginning versus having those uncomfortable conversations later on.
[00:12:58.680 --> 00:12:59.960] 100%.
[00:12:59.960 --> 00:13:01.080] 100%.
[00:13:01.080 --> 00:13:07.400] Karen, thank you so much for taking the time to come on the show today and share your journey with Bloom.
[00:13:07.400 --> 00:13:08.680] It's been so cool talking to you.
[00:13:08.680 --> 00:13:14.440] I'm so excited to see all these new things that are coming up for you this year and what you achieve.
[00:13:14.440 --> 00:13:15.560] Thank you so much for having me.
[00:13:15.560 --> 00:13:16.600] It was such a great chat.
[00:13:16.600 --> 00:13:18.600] I really appreciate it.
[00:13:23.720 --> 00:13:25.800] Hey, it's June here.
[00:13:25.800 --> 00:13:30.600] Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast.
[00:13:30.600 --> 00:13:39.960] If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter.
[00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:48.200] We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D2C, and interesting business resources.
[00:13:48.200 --> 00:13:59.000] And if you're a founder building an e-commerce brand, you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called Hype Club at femalestartupclub.com forward slash hypeclub.
[00:13:59.000 --> 00:14:10.680] We have guests from the show joining us for intimate ask-me-anythings, expert workshops, and a group of totally amazing, like-minded women building the future of D2C brands.
[00:14:10.680 --> 00:14:16.800] As always, please do subscribe, rate, and review the show, and post your favorite episodes to Instagram stories.
[00:14:14.840 --> 00:14:19.680] I am beyond grateful when you do that.

Prompt 2: Key Takeaways

Now please extract the key takeaways from the transcript content I provided.

Extract the most important key takeaways from this part of the conversation. Use a single sentence statement (the key takeaway) rather than milquetoast descriptions like "the hosts discuss...". 

Limit the key takeaways to a maximum of 3. The key takeaways should be insightful and knowledge-additive. 

IMPORTANT: Return ONLY valid JSON, no explanations or markdown. Ensure:
- All strings are properly quoted and escaped
- No trailing commas
- All braces and brackets are balanced
Format: {"key_takeaways": ["takeaway 1", "takeaway 2"]}

Prompt 3: Segments

Now identify 2-4 distinct topical segments from this part of the conversation.

For each segment, identify:
- Descriptive title (3-6 words)  
- START timestamp when this topic begins (HH:MM:SS format)
- Double check that the timestamp is accurate - a timestamp will NEVER be greater than the total length of the audio
- Most important Key takeaway from that segment. Key takeaway must be specific and knowledge-additive.
- Brief summary of the discussion

IMPORTANT: The timestamp should mark when the topic/segment STARTS, not a range. Look for topic transitions and conversation shifts.

Return ONLY valid JSON. Ensure all strings are properly quoted, no trailing commas:
{
  "segments": [
    {
      "segment_title": "Topic Discussion", 
      "timestamp": "01:15:30",
      "key_takeaway": "main point from this segment",
      "segment_summary": "brief description of what was discussed"
    }
  ]
}

Timestamp format: HH:MM:SS (e.g., 00:05:30, 01:22:45) marking the START of each segment.

Prompt 4: Media Mentions

Now scan the transcript content I provided for ACTUAL mentions of specific media titles:

Find explicit mentions of:
- Books (with specific titles)
- Movies (with specific titles)  
- TV Shows (with specific titles)
- Music/Songs (with specific titles)

DO NOT include:
- Websites, URLs, or web services
- Other podcasts or podcast names

IMPORTANT: 
- Only include items explicitly mentioned by name. Do not invent titles.
- Valid categories are: "Book", "Movie", "TV Show", "Music"
- Include the exact phrase where each item was mentioned
- Find the nearest proximate timestamp where it appears in the conversation
- THE TIMESTAMP OF THE MEDIA MENTION IS IMPORTANT - DO NOT INVENT TIMESTAMPS AND DO NOT MISATTRIBUTE TIMESTAMPS
- Double check that the timestamp is accurate - a timestamp will NEVER be greater than the total length of the audio
- Timestamps are given as ranges, e.g. 01:13:42.520 --> 01:13:46.720. Use the EARLIER of the 2 timestamps in the range.

Return ONLY valid JSON. Ensure all strings are properly quoted and escaped, no trailing commas:
{
  "media_mentions": [
    {
      "title": "Exact Title as Mentioned",
      "category": "Book",
      "author_artist": "N/A",
      "context": "Brief context of why it was mentioned",
      "context_phrase": "The exact sentence or phrase where it was mentioned",
      "timestamp": "estimated time like 01:15:30"
    }
  ]
}

If no media is mentioned, return: {"media_mentions": []}

Full Transcript

[00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:00.960] Welcome back.
[00:00:00.960 --> 00:00:03.840] Here are the six quick questions.
[00:00:12.560 --> 00:00:15.360] So, question number one is: What's your why?
[00:00:15.360 --> 00:00:18.160] Why are you doing this every single day?
[00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:24.800] It's because I want to love what I do and connect with people on, you know, like a more personal level.
[00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:30.240] So, in you know, commercial real estate, I never felt really connected to the end product or consumer.
[00:00:30.240 --> 00:00:40.560] And with Bloom, I feel like we're really influencing change in how people are like addiction to coffee and how they treat themselves and how they're able to take moments of self-care.
[00:00:40.560 --> 00:00:45.120] And that's something that really lights me up and gets me excited to get out of bed.
[00:00:45.520 --> 00:00:46.160] I love that.
[00:00:46.160 --> 00:00:47.200] That's so cool.
[00:00:47.200 --> 00:00:52.560] Question number two is: What has been your favorite marketing moment so far?
[00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:57.920] I'm super proud of the co-branded product that we did with Sasha Exeter, who's based in Toronto.
[00:00:57.920 --> 00:01:07.520] It was something that led to like a $40,000 sales day and you know, adding so many people to our email list and to our community.
[00:01:07.520 --> 00:01:10.240] So, it was definitely like a labor of love.
[00:01:10.240 --> 00:01:18.080] And that's like a marketing moment that I didn't know what it would be like going into it, but that I was super proud of how it was executed in the end.
[00:01:18.080 --> 00:01:24.160] We need to pause so you can just break down how this came about because this is kind of crazy.
[00:01:24.160 --> 00:01:32.080] Like, was this like a really organic like meeting of the minds and being like, let's do something together, or did you pitch Sasha or vice versa?
[00:01:32.080 --> 00:01:33.920] And, like, how did this come together?
[00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:35.920] Like, what is the blueprint for this?
[00:01:35.920 --> 00:01:48.240] Well, we had been, you know, with Facebook iOS changes, we had been thinking about how you grow awareness and reach like in a more organic way, anyways, like where it's with aligned uh community.
[00:01:48.240 --> 00:01:55.440] And so, Sasha was on this hit like top dream list of influencer that we could work with.
[00:01:55.440 --> 00:01:59.040] And so, she had shared about the products before, so she had tried them.
[00:01:59.040 --> 00:03:31.520] And so, we reached out and just kind of pitched what we were thinking and and um it came together really quickly like i think we had the paperwork signed at the end of like november december 2021 and it was launched by june 2022 so we just worked so hard together to bring it to life and with like what supply chain is it was it was really you know a bit of a special it was definitely a bit of like a special project and that's why i'm so proud of it because everyone just like really rallied for it like from operations to marketing to you know our co-branded partner we just like really dug deep into it and she did so many you know customer surveys on her side about like people wanting something that was for beauty for digestion and and it was like really built by community so we launched it with a wait list where you could sign up to with an email list to to basically get early access to the product and we generated thousands of emails that way both through her community and our community and so it led to this really successful launch because we had all these emails that were generated from really like high intent customers who like either loved bloom loved the function that we were building for because it was like from their suggestions or loved the influencer sasha and so yeah it led to like a really exciting launch and and bloom is typically a really seasonal product so it was also a way for us to it was also like this like really exciting exciting way to add interest to to summer months when we're typically more fall winter oh that is so cool, so exciting.
[00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:33.440] I have one more question just before i continue.
[00:03:33.440 --> 00:03:34.720] So sorry.
[00:03:35.040 --> 00:03:37.600] I'm the person that always has just one more question.
[00:03:37.920 --> 00:03:49.360] When you're working on an influencer partnership like that, is it, hey, let's pay you up front to work together or is it a rev share model or is it a blend of both in this particular scenario?
[00:03:49.360 --> 00:03:53.040] It really varies from partnership to partnership is what I found.
[00:03:53.040 --> 00:03:57.280] And in this case, we wanted it to be, it was our first time doing something like this.
[00:03:57.280 --> 00:03:59.040] We wanted it to be really authentic.
[00:03:59.040 --> 00:04:09.280] So we did like a year-long partnership where it was a blend of, you know, her sharing the products, her story with the product, which was like kind of like a base fee.
[00:04:09.280 --> 00:04:14.480] And then there was also like a revenue participation component for the actual product.
[00:04:14.480 --> 00:04:25.680] So I think it's really important that whoever your partner is is like incentivized as well and should participate in the upside because their name is on the package and everything like that.
[00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:32.800] So, you know, everyone is like everyone's interests need to be aligned to make a partnership really be successful.
[00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:36.320] So I actually think the revenue share component is really, really important.
[00:04:36.320 --> 00:04:42.400] And it was a way to keep like also the base fees down because we were at the time, you know, bootstrapped and scrappy.
[00:04:42.400 --> 00:04:46.720] We leaned more heavily into the revenue share component than we did in the base fees.
[00:04:46.720 --> 00:04:47.040] Yeah.
[00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:47.280] Yeah.
[00:04:47.280 --> 00:04:58.240] I agree that it's, I think the performance incentive piece of the puzzle is so key to also keep people interested over that long kind of period of time and keep sharing and things like that.
[00:04:58.240 --> 00:04:58.800] Wow.
[00:04:58.800 --> 00:04:59.760] So interesting.
[00:04:59.760 --> 00:05:02.000] Thank you so much for telling me about that.
[00:05:02.000 --> 00:05:04.160] Question number three, back to it.
[00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:14.960] What is your go-to business resource when you think about things like a book that changed your life or a podcast that you listen to often or a newsletter that's packed with the good stuff?
[00:05:14.960 --> 00:05:16.720] Well, I love the how I built this.
[00:05:16.720 --> 00:05:26.480] I feel like I'm probably not the first to say that, but that's something that I've listened to since, like since before I started out on this journey and have always found it really inspirational.
[00:05:26.480 --> 00:05:29.560] I think it's like really nice to know that people make it to the end.
[00:05:29.560 --> 00:05:31.960] And that's what how I built this does really well.
[00:05:31.960 --> 00:05:36.600] But I also, there's a book called Good to Great that I've recently read that I loved.
[00:05:36.600 --> 00:05:47.960] And it's kind of a playbook on most common mistakes for founders and how you can think about your business to really get scale and get efficiency.
[00:05:47.960 --> 00:05:51.880] So when I was reading that book, I was like, oh man, I definitely do that.
[00:05:52.040 --> 00:05:53.400] Definitely do that.
[00:05:53.400 --> 00:05:57.640] So it was like, that one's really resonating with me right now.
[00:05:57.640 --> 00:05:58.120] Amazing.
[00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:02.280] I'm going to link it in the show notes for anyone who wants to check it out.
[00:06:02.280 --> 00:06:05.080] Question number four is, how do you win the day?
[00:06:05.080 --> 00:06:12.520] What are your AM or PM rituals and habits that keep you feeling happy and successful and motivated?
[00:06:12.520 --> 00:06:15.640] So I obsessively write to-do lists on paper.
[00:06:15.640 --> 00:06:21.640] Like no matter what programs come out, like a Santa or whatever, I'm always writing it down on paper.
[00:06:21.640 --> 00:06:22.840] I was just looking.
[00:06:23.160 --> 00:06:25.320] I have a million to-do lists on paper.
[00:06:25.320 --> 00:06:26.760] I was looking around to show you one.
[00:06:26.760 --> 00:06:28.040] And of course, there's not one right now.
[00:06:31.080 --> 00:06:38.040] And what I do is like in the morning, I always write, like, you know, I'll have one from the previous day, but I rewrite it.
[00:06:38.040 --> 00:06:41.000] It's like sort of like intention setting or something like that.
[00:06:41.000 --> 00:06:45.000] And I highlight kind of like the three things that I need to do to feel good.
[00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:55.000] And if those three things are done at the end of the day, then, you know, even though there's going to be like 10 other things on that to-do list, it's kind of like I did what I set out to today.
[00:06:55.000 --> 00:06:59.000] So definitely obsessed with the to-do list and the sticky note reminders.
[00:06:59.000 --> 00:07:06.680] Like if I showed you what my office looks like right now, it's just like, you know, like inspirational quotes and to-do list things.
[00:07:06.680 --> 00:07:18.480] And like, so I think like writing things down, like journaling about like what your intention is, but also how you feel about it is so important to just getting in the right frame of mind to be really productive.
[00:07:18.800 --> 00:07:26.080] And I think today it's so easy to get sucked into like Zoom meetings and Google Meets and all those types of things.
[00:07:26.080 --> 00:07:36.400] And they really take away from, like, for me, anyways, like they take away from really having time to work, you know, to do like the work that like moves things forward.
[00:07:36.400 --> 00:07:49.120] So I've gotten in the habit of blocking out mornings where I auto-deny like invite requests just to save space in my calendar for, and maybe I just need to go for a walk or like, you know, sit outside with my dog or something like that.
[00:07:49.120 --> 00:07:54.880] But I think it's really important that we don't get into the cycle of like working around the clock constantly.
[00:07:54.880 --> 00:08:04.080] So there's no like creative space and like the love of the job is gets hit because you need to keep all that energy really high because it's a marathon, not a sprint, you know.
[00:08:04.080 --> 00:08:05.520] I mean, 100%.
[00:08:05.520 --> 00:08:12.160] I felt like last year I was just packing in so many calls at any time of the day.
[00:08:12.160 --> 00:08:13.920] I was doing recordings all over the shop.
[00:08:13.920 --> 00:08:27.040] And this year I really switched to be like, I need days that are like clear without these like broken up calls all throughout my day so that I can just be creative, create content, do what I need to do.
[00:08:27.040 --> 00:08:47.360] And it made such a big difference just scheduling like only certain windows of time when I would take recordings or calls and just kind of like packing them in like sardines back to back and doing like shorter calls as well, like 20 minute calls instead of like half an hour to an hour long calls where you're like, oh, this could have been done in 10 minutes kind of thing.
[00:08:47.360 --> 00:08:48.400] Yeah, totally.
[00:08:48.400 --> 00:08:57.760] I think there's a difference between busy and productive and that we that we all need to kind of like realize what the what the difference is there and i'm i'm trying to do it.
[00:08:57.760 --> 00:08:58.160] It's hard.
[00:08:58.160 --> 00:08:58.880] It is hard.
[00:08:58.880 --> 00:10:31.600] It's it's hard to say no because you the thing is you want to do these things too like you sometimes you have to say no to things you want to do but it's it's like hacking your schedule or hacking your hacking your calendar and i'm i'm working on it not perfect work in progress question number five is what's been the worst money mistake you've made and how much did it cost you well that's a really good question one of the worst money mistakes i had was bringing in a product for a retailer so it was basically like a retailer had requested a specific product and so we did it to appease a retailer versus doing it to align with like our our values and our strategic mission and in the end you know it probably cost us 15 20 000 something like that and and maybe you know like not enough to tank the business but enough to be like why did i you know it's it's like making choices that are short-term versus long-term and so i think that it's really easy like at least i feel really tempted by low-hanging fruit sometimes you know to private label or to you know things that would like bring money in the door today but you have to or what i'm trying to learn is to like really like step back and think about like what are the things i really need to focus on to reach the end goal and make sure that all the because we're so limited on time because we're so limited on resources that everything that you do should be tracking towards that versus you know all these shiny objects that are along the way.
[00:10:31.600 --> 00:10:47.680] So, I don't, I think that's one that i like regret, not just from like a financial perspective, but because it shows kind of like like that was a moment of lack of focus and going for the low-hanging fruit when i need to be like staying focused on kind of what we're really trying to build.
[00:10:47.680 --> 00:10:48.240] 100%.
[00:10:48.240 --> 00:10:51.680] Focus is like a real superpower to master.
[00:10:51.680 --> 00:11:01.600] I find like I actively try and do this every day, but it's still one of those things where I can go off on a tangent and like work on something that I'm like, damn, shouldn't have done that.
[00:11:01.600 --> 00:11:09.920] Last question, question number six: What is just a crazy story you can share from the business, good or bad?
[00:11:10.240 --> 00:11:19.520] Well, I actually started this business with a co-founder, and so this is something that I get asked a lot too: is kind of like, you know, what happened there sort of thing.
[00:11:19.520 --> 00:11:24.960] And a lot of people start with co-founders and maybe have different visions, maybe it works out great.
[00:11:24.960 --> 00:11:27.360] You know, it varies so much from time to time.
[00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:34.080] And so, I would just say that, like, that's like a choice that needs to be like really carefully considered.
[00:11:34.080 --> 00:11:40.800] I think, like, in the beginning, when we started Bloom as like a side project, it was like a fun thing between friends sort of thing.
[00:11:40.800 --> 00:11:57.360] But just that when you're bringing in investors, partners, you know, even like senior level, like team members, just it's better to go slow and to make sure that all the values, all the visions are aligned than jumping on first opportunities.
[00:11:57.360 --> 00:12:12.800] Like, it's better to, some projects aren't going to get done because you don't have people, but to take the time to find the right people because I think that's something that I could have done better in the past and would just encourage anyone to just be really thoughtful about.
[00:12:12.800 --> 00:12:14.800] Yeah, that's a really key point.
[00:12:14.800 --> 00:12:21.360] How does it work in that scenario where two people in a co-founder relationship decide to go different ways?
[00:12:21.360 --> 00:12:27.760] Did you have to buy her out, or does she still have equity in the business and just doesn't work on the day-to-day?
[00:12:27.760 --> 00:12:29.440] So, I bought her out in the end.
[00:12:29.520 --> 00:12:35.080] I bought her out in March 2020, which was like right when COVID hit and like the business really shifted.
[00:12:29.920 --> 00:12:36.600] So, a bit of a scary time.
[00:12:36.840 --> 00:12:43.480] And I was really lucky, like, she, you know, she agreed that it wasn't working and she wanted to pursue her own things.
[00:12:43.480 --> 00:12:45.240] And I wanted to pursue my own things.
[00:12:45.240 --> 00:12:47.720] But you hear stories where it's not that way too.
[00:12:47.720 --> 00:12:58.680] So, that's why I say that it's just like better to be thoughtful and like really clear and upfront about what expectations are at the beginning versus having those uncomfortable conversations later on.
[00:12:58.680 --> 00:12:59.960] 100%.
[00:12:59.960 --> 00:13:01.080] 100%.
[00:13:01.080 --> 00:13:07.400] Karen, thank you so much for taking the time to come on the show today and share your journey with Bloom.
[00:13:07.400 --> 00:13:08.680] It's been so cool talking to you.
[00:13:08.680 --> 00:13:14.440] I'm so excited to see all these new things that are coming up for you this year and what you achieve.
[00:13:14.440 --> 00:13:15.560] Thank you so much for having me.
[00:13:15.560 --> 00:13:16.600] It was such a great chat.
[00:13:16.600 --> 00:13:18.600] I really appreciate it.
[00:13:23.720 --> 00:13:25.800] Hey, it's June here.
[00:13:25.800 --> 00:13:30.600] Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast.
[00:13:30.600 --> 00:13:39.960] If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter.
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