309: Turning Pain Into Purpose: The Story Behind SupportNow

What happens when a business idea doesn't work—and you have the courage to pivot anyway?

In this episode of Call Me CEO, Camille sits down with Jordan, CEO and co-founder of SupportNow, a platform helping families navigate life's most challenging moments through community support, fundraising, meal coordination, volunteer scheduling, and updates—all in one place.

Today, SupportNow has supported more than 180,000 users and helped raise over $11 million for families in need. But the journey to get there wasn't straightforward.

Jordan shares the behind-the-scenes story of launching a completely different product, raising more than $1 million in funding, realizing it wasn't gaining traction, and making the difficult decision to pivot. That decision ultimately led to creating a platform that is making a meaningful difference for families facing cancer diagnoses, medical challenges, loss, special needs situations, and other major life events.

Together, Camille and Jordan discuss entrepreneurship, motherhood, resilience, community, and why learning how to receive support may be just as important as giving it.

One of the biggest lessons from this conversation is that success doesn't always come from getting it right the first time. Sometimes it comes from listening, adapting, and having the courage to change course.

Whether you're building a business, supporting a loved one, or navigating a difficult season yourself, this episode offers a powerful reminder that community matters.

Connect with Jordan:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordan-arogeti/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/supportnow_org
• Learn more about SupportNow : https://www.supportnow.org/
• Listen to the Moms Like Me podcast: https://www.momslikemepodcast.com/ 
• Follow Jordan for insights on entrepreneurship, motherhood, and community support

Connect with Camille:

• Instagram: @CamilleWalker.co
• Podcast: @CallMeCEOPodcast

Try the 5-minute routine tomorrow and tag @CallMeCEOPodcast on Instagram with your biggest takeaway.

Schedule a free discovery call with Camille!

https://calendly.com/callmeceopodcast/discovery-call-with-camille 

Transcript

Welcome To Call Me CEO

Camille 0:08

So you want to make an impact. You're thinking about starting a business, sharing your voice. How do women do it? Did it handle motherhood, family, and still chase after those dreams? Listen each week as we dive into the stories of women who know. This is Call Me CEO. Welcome back, everyone, to Call Me CEO. This is Camille Walker, your host, and I am thrilled that you are here because we, as always, are celebrating moms, building businesses, and changing lives. And today's episode is no exception to that. It is such a beautiful story to share. And I'm excited to share with you how Jordan Arroghetti is the CEO and co-founder of Support Now, which is an incredible platform that's changing the way families receive support during life's hardest moments. After experiencing loss in her own life, Jordan built a company that has now supported over 150,000 users and helped facilitate more than 10 million in donations for families navigating diagnosis, disability, and grief. And here's the part that will hit home for so many of you is that she's doing all of this while raising three kids under six and building a business alongside her husband, refinishing a kitchen and podcasting with a podcast called Moms Like Me, which is all about teaching supporters how to show up for others when they are going through the most difficult of life seasons and highlighting extraordinary, ordinary moms. And I love that approach. That's so relatable to me because that's what I want to do here too. So thank you so much, Jordan, for being on the show today. And I'm so excited to hear more about everything that you're doing.

SPEAKER_00 1:48

Thank you. It's always a pleasure to meet other like-minded moms and to share more about what we're what we're building over here.

The Pivot That Started Support Now

Camille 1:56

Yeah. So take us back what is happening in your life and what led you to create support now.

SPEAKER_00 2:02

Yeah. So the Support Now journey, I often categorize as the epitome of a pivot. So uh the backstory for me, I I my background is in sales. I was a technology sales rep for a B2B company here in Atlanta for seven years. I always say I got extraordinarily lucky. I'm the lucky one that found a company pre-Series A and rode that, really rode that kind of rise of that business for about seven and a half years. And then that company ended up selling for $2.3 billion back in 2021. Wow. And it was with that, you know, I was just, I became a sales rep. I was my first job with them was an SDR. My job was just a cold call all day long and set up meetings for account executives. Very sexy stuff. Um, and then I got promoted to an account executive and then rose the ranks at the sales organization from that point on. And it was in that chapter that I really developed uh an interest and an eye towards startups and entrepreneurship. It was quite revealing to me. I had was so blessed to work with the most incredible humans and exceptional leadership. Um, and I also learned that it was just everyday humans that believed in an idea, executed on that idea, and profited off that idea. And I remember having a lot of conversations with my husband, who is far more naturally entrepreneurial than I was, or am. Uh, and I said it really was quite, it was the most inspiring chapter of of my life. And he said, Well, we're gonna build something together one day. And I said, No, no, no, no. We we at the time, I think we had two kids. We had I wasn't yet pregnant with my third. And I was like, I think that's a little biting off a little bit too much for us. And we have a wonderful marriage, wonderful friendship, all the things. Um, but he persuaded me out elsewhere. So after I left this company in 22, we had built this concept of uh really wanting to help grievers, specifically people going through loss. And the idea was both to do a lot of what Support Now does, which is help rally community and support through money, meals, and volunteers, but also to have a pictures and stories, like a place for people that loved a person to deposit all their love in one place so that there would their memory would live on in perpetuity. And we did hours, I mean, truly months of research, had incredible feedback, raised over a million dollars in funding from angels.

Camille 4:36

Wow.

SPEAKER_00 4:37

And we launched, and no one came. No one. Uh, it was even to this day when I say it, it's like the biggest pit in my stomach. Because we had done the things. We had done the things people tell you to do. You know, go do your research, go talk to customers or future customers. And it was the harsh reality that it's very hard to get honest feedback when you're trying to build. Very hard. So I learned a lot of lessons through that. But in that launch and in the months that followed, where we realized we had a million dollars in the bank, we had no customers, we had a product, the product works.

Camille 5:16

And can I just take you back for a moment? Yeah. Why is it why was honest feedback so difficult? Was it people not wanting to hurt your feelings? Like what was it?

SPEAKER_00 5:25

I would say, I would say most business owners struggle to get honest feedback because people don't want to hurt your feelings.

Camille 5:31

Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_00 5:32

I think it's actually uh double that when the leader is a woman. Like, I think that people are really sensitive to not wanting to hurt a woman's feelings, a mom's feelings. I I I can't prove that. It's but it's something that I've felt like by by nature of like who we are, but we want to be supportive, we want to be empathetic. And so I think it's really difficult.

Camille 5:53

Well, and probably where your business is such a good purpose that that too, where people are like, oh, but this is such a good thing. I don't want to make them feel bad, or exactly.

SPEAKER_00 6:04

It worked against us, like we were trying to do something so good, and I'll add a third, which was is again specifically or unique to us, which was providing negative feedback to us through this concept in some way would be reflective of how they view a loved one. So it was like, how could they possibly be honest? So we would interview tons of people who had lost husbands, fathers, children. And for them not to be receptive to this idea would have been kind of it would have challenged their own way of how they are processing grief and how they think about that person.

Camille 6:44

And so which is a taboo topic anyway. If someone how someone grieves, how someone loses someone, the processing of that, I mean that's a really hard thing to discuss, period.

SPEAKER_00 6:55

Absolutely. So uh were there things I could have done differently to get clearer feedback? Yes. And do I think I could have ever predicted that the response would have been as silent as it was? No.

Camille 7:13

Yeah.

Why The First Launch Failed

Camille 7:14

You're pioneering, I mean, it's a very unknown territory, I would say. Correct. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:18

Correct. But in that, in those months where we, you know, saw the data, saw so few people coming through, we had a decision. And the decision was we could either refund all of our investors' money and call it a day, and I go back to a you know, a sales job, or we could take a look at what's seemed to have some traction and signals inside the current product. And what happened was really interesting. So, again, there was kind of two sides to the product. No one was doing anything with pictures and stories and memories. It was too hard for people. And that's really that was like the synopsis is that people loved it in theory, but in practice, especially in the early days of grief, they had no capacity, they had no space to add any more things that than were required of them. But on the support registry side, what was happening is we'd get people coming inbound saying, Hey, I have a friend who just got diagnosed with breast cancer, and I really like what you're doing here, but she's not gonna die. Or I have a sister whose house just burned down, but everyone lived. And there was just enough of these murmurs that gave us the belief that there could be an opportunity to lean fully into this side of the product, and that's what we chose to do. So within a couple of months, we rebranded, same cap table. So changed the name of the company, changed the look and feel of the product, same cap table, and we relaunched a support now in September of 23.

unknown 8:59

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 8:59

And in since then, uh it's a very different story, as you mentioned in the intro. Uh, actually, I think now it's probably closer to 180,000 users. We've already eclipsed 11 million, we're very close to 12 million dollars raised for families through our platform, and um, it turned out to be a very sound decision.

Camille 9:19

That's

What Support Now Actually Does

Camille 9:20

so neat. So, for those who are unfamiliar, because I didn't really give you an opportunity to say exactly what it is for people who are wanting to see and maybe be a user of your product right now. Give us a rundown of who is using your website, how are they using it, and what problem that it solves.

SPEAKER_00 9:35

Yeah. We've all been the recipient of that text message. The email, the Facebook notification that someone we love is going through something major. Cancer, loss, NICU baby, house fire. And everyone's first instinct after what happened is what can I do to help? And naturally there's a wave of overwhelm that happens because you have to decide between am I gonna send money? Am I gonna send meals? Can I volunteer? Where can I read updates? Support Now is the first and only family support platform that brings together raising money, organizing meals, coordinating volunteers, and sharing updates all together in one place. What's unique about Support Now is not only is it free, but it's also customizable. Meaning if you only want to fundraise, great. If you only want to organize meals, that's fine too. So you can use any combination of our features at any point in time. And families keep more of the money than they would on any other crowdfunding platform. So it's this really beautiful mosaic of the uh reactions that everyday people have when these things happen, but taking away the overwhelm both for the community that loves that family and certainly taking away the overwhelm of the family that is getting inundated with the text messages, well-intended text messages of what can I do to help?

Camille 11:03

Yeah, that's actually the question I was going to ask because that is a question of, well, if you need anything, is that is it do you have users that are using it preemptively in terms of like if something were to happen to them and they set one up for themselves, or is it only uh for people who in a way volunteer this family or or create a profile for them? Like, do you have people creating it both ways?

SPEAKER_00 11:26

The majority of people that create a support now are creating it for somebody else.

Camille 11:31

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 11:31

We call these people organizers. Yeah, I call them the maid of honor. Most of our customers are women, they're moms.

Camille 11:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:39

They're the people that naturally step up in their community when things happen. These are women that typically are involved in a house of worship, in a school, and in the in their in their community. And uh, so most of the time we see families, or excuse me, women setting up support now because someone they love is going through something and they're the person kind of charge leading the effort. So it isn't so overwhelming. However, anyone can create a support now. So uh it is not uncommon, certainly not uncommon for families to come in and raise money for maybe a child who needs a new piece of equipment or um, you know, a special needs situation is one of medically complex families, is something we see pretty frequently on our on support now. And in those situations, more often than not, we see that created by the family themselves.

Camille 12:29

Okay.

The Roundup Model And Transparency

Camille 12:30

Yeah, that's really neat. And you're so the way that you're making money as a business is that you keep a portion of the funds donated, like kind of like GoFundMe, but different, or how because I know it's nonprofit. So I'm how does it work?

SPEAKER_00 12:43

So we're a for-profit for good. So the way that it works and the way that we are able to keep the lights on and and continue to scale is we when we constructed support now, the goal was how could we differentiate from the GoFundMe's the world and not just by adding more features? How could we go head to head with the best crowdfunding platforms in the world? Well, the one way we could identify doing that is allowing families to keep more of the money. Most people don't realize that when you give to any crowdfunding platform, there is about a 3% transaction fee every time it happens, and then they they then you're prompted to give an optional tip. I often say, I have no problem with companies making money. None. But I want you to be transparent about it. Yeah. So what the the challenge I have with most crowdfunding platforms is when donors give, they have no idea that the family isn't keeping 100% of their money. And then when they tip, they don't realize that the the company has already made their money. They've already they've already taken a piece of that transaction, and then anything extra just goes straight to them. And again, that's fine, but it's not transparent. So what we did was we constructed a roundup model. So when supporters go to give a donation to one of our families, if money is turned on, because again, even having money turned on is an option, the donor gets a uh is prompted with a roundup. And if the person rounds up, it's not to the nearest dollar, it's a percentage. The family will keep 100% of the intended gift. And then the delta of that allows us to pay processing fees. Yeah. And then from there, that revenue is what we use to continue to grow and scale. So the incentive alignment is there with between us and the families. They want fee, they want their people to round up, which they very, very often do, strong majority of the time. And if they don't round up, that's fine. Our processing fees are still less than GoFundMe and other crowdfunding platforms. So either way, families keep more of the money, but more times than not, Camille, they keep 100%.

Camille 14:44

Wow, that's amazing. I'm so glad I'm learning about this because I feel like I have seen GoFundMe, I don't even think I've seen support now in that way. And especially with the fees involved, I know that fees are taken from that, but I know a lot of people don't know that part. So the fact that you're doing that differently and the right way, in my opinion, that is so awesome that you do that and provide so many services. So if people set up like a meal train or service hours, that's free. And then if they donate money, then a portion of that, of course, for you to keep your lights on is going towards your business.

SPEAKER_00 15:20

Effectively. You know, we when you round up, we are able to provide our services at no cost. If you don't round up, we actually lose money when people don't round up. Interesting it's worth it to us in the long term. You know, it's it's it's there's a balance, right? You have to manage your burn and manage your runway, but while also managing the longevity of a brand and what we're trying to, what we're trying to represent and what and who we are. Yeah so there's a balance in that. But um I'm I'm always very pleased to look at our roundup percentages week over week to see it's healthy, people understand what we're trying to do. And I think similar to what you just said, when people actually realize what this market, how this market actually capitalizes, it's a it's very much an aha moment. And you know, the number one challenge of any startup is, or maybe, maybe not every, but for our for us, it's just brand awareness. So it's I'm never surprised when people say, I haven't heard of you. It's like, yeah, we've been around for two years competing against the 800-pound gorilla in the space. And what's incredibly intoxicating about support now is that these things never stop. Like there's no the total addressable market is so huge. People don't stop getting diagnosed or having car accidents or having it never ends. So I have such a strong conviction and such such a heavy belief that ultimately the people that win stay true to who they are. And once people, once we can communicate that to the masses, um, there's no, there is nothing stopping us from serving a hundred million families.

Camille 16:54

Yeah,

A Family Story That Proved It Works

Camille 16:55

that's amazing. Can you share with us a story of a family that deeply impacted you or something that you went through that changed your life for the better? I mean, what a fun job. And I'm sure you have many, numerous that you can't even name at this point. But is there one that sticks out that you'd like to share?

SPEAKER_00 17:13

Oh my gosh, there's so many. The best part of my job is you get to wake up and serve people and provide for your family. Like there's just nothing better in the world. And that's like an alignment that I I feel like I have dreamt of my entire life. Um, and what's kind of people find this unique. I don't have a sad story. I don't have a dramatic loss in my life. I don't have one of those moments that where my life just changed, like knock on wood, I like it that way. Um, this whole concept was birthed in COVID when I was on the receiving end of the text messages, the emails, the phone calls that people I loved were going through really difficult things. And the challenge that I kept running into, or really what I was observing, is that we lived in a culture of cash and casseroles, and I didn't understand it. I didn't understand why support had been so siloed to be money or meals, and that's it. When I knew when I was actually communicating with friends and family members that they needed so much more. So, kind of like generally, there's not, I don't have like this really beautiful story to share. I will say what's really special about Support Now and a family that has affected probably probably me the most was the first family we ever served at Support Now. And it's the the the Toby Lewis family. This man was a Marine, three children, and he died in a very fluke helicopter accident one weekend. It leaves behind a just the most beautiful family. And they were the first family to ever use Support Now, and they used everything. They raised money, they organized meals, they used our volunteer um Linda Hand feature for everything from taking out the trash to prayer. And it was and is still to me one of the most beautiful illustrations of what we do. And they had no shortage of community. They had, I mean, there was thousands of people that were trying to help them, but we got to be the shield for this widow as she processed it, processed the idea of living her life without her her husband. And um it sticks with me, it sticks with me every year when it comes around. Um, because I'm so grateful that they gave us a chance, and it was just the most beautiful thing to just see this theory that people wanted to do more, doing more.

Camille 19:51

Yeah. Oh, I love the way that you said that, a shield for the widow to process, because that is such a real thing where people want to help, but they don't want to be annoying, but they also don't know what you need, but they also don't want to be in your way. And so it is, it's a push and a pull for the receiver and the people who want to give. And so the fact that you have a way to facilitate that where it makes it seamless and beautiful for people wanting to serve and give and the receiver, that is amazing. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 20:23

Thank you.

Why People Fear Asking For Help

Camille 20:24

Yeah. Is there anything that you are wanting to change or that you I guess you shared with us learning something the hard way was, you know, having people respond to you and getting that feedback. But is there are there any other lessons that you've learned since building this that maybe are ways that people want to be served or loved when they're struggling and people don't know it or don't understand it? Is there something like that that you've learned in these last few years with that?

SPEAKER_00 20:52

The it's it's interesting. I think about this question a lot. And outside of uh brand awareness, the biggest challenge to our business is that most people are deathly afraid of asking for help.

Camille 21:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 21:08

Asking for help is I would I would put it up there with fear of public speaking, snakes, fear of dying. Like it's it's right up there. It's I would say it's more prominent in our country. We have somehow crept into this uh society and culture that asking for help is a sign of weakness. Yes. That like I'm not capable. I think social media has a lot to do with it. I think the way that we physically live has a lot to do with it. Like, we didn't, we weren't always like this. We've evolved into this. Um, so one of the things my biggest piece of advice to people is just do it. Because and what I mean by that is when you see or hear the news that someone you love is going through something and you're like, uh, I don't know. I don't know if they do they Need money. I don't know if they want meals. If you are the person that's like kept up at night wondering what they need, chances are you are the person that is meant to organize support because most families are very, very reluctant to accepting help. And most families are so grateful when they actually have it. Most of the people on my podcast that come on, they say, you know, someone created a support now for me or someone created this thing for me. And I don't know what I would have done without it, but I'm so glad they did it because if they would have asked me, I would have said no.

Camille 22:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:38

And so it's the it's the inaction that is my biggest uh, I would say, like, plea to people is like, don't let the fear of doing it wrong get in the way of doing something. Because when families, particularly those related to loss, are going through grief, they go through something called decision fatigue. Yes. And that decision fatigue makes it such that if you are asking any sort of open-ended question, let alone even a closed-ended question, but an open, you are not going to get a response. But that does not mean they don't need support. It just means that they don't have capacity to think straight. And there is a, there typically is a very unique window to galvanize and to create momentum across a community. Doesn't mean it can't happen months or weeks later. But typically, when news breaks, that is the best time to step in. It's how our brain processes um reacting to major events. It's like I want to do something now. So the longer that goes, the more that desire begins to fade. And so someone has to step in. And again, the fear of doing it wrong or being too much, the worst thing that happens is they say, Thank you. I know you meant the best, but we really don't want this right now. But guess what? They're not mad at you for doing it. In fact, they're grateful that they have someone in their lives that's willing to actually put forth the effort and the time and the care to do it. What hurts families much more is not having the capacity to ask, and no one does anything. And then they're questioning friendships, relationships. Oh yeah. And that's where that isolation really sets in. And the mental health uh really like really, really sets in for families and questioning um, you know, where they are and who they are and what they're gonna need moving forward.

Camille 24:41

Yeah. Would you say or agree with what people really need on top of everything is connection, where just feeling like people are aware, people care. And so even if it is, you know, you're not doing it perfectly, but maybe you show up with something or you offer to serve or you show up at the door. You know, I live in a pretty tight community, and a lot of us are in a in a similar religious belief, which helps in a community aspect because we keep each other aware of needs more often. And we discuss things like this quite a bit of like how do we show up and give support? And one of the number one lessons I've learned over and over again is it's the people that show up at the door and they say, I'm here and I have three hours open. The it's dedicated just for you. What can I do for you? Or I'm coming in and I'm, or they don't even ask. They say, I'm coming in and I'm doing your dishes, or I'm I'm gonna do your laundry. If you need anything else while I'm here, let me know. Or it's just sitting with them. And it so I love that your call is to support now is to action because imperfect action is immediate connection. And I think that that's what people are is what they're really wanting and needing.

SPEAKER_00 25:56

I couldn't say it better. I really couldn't say it better.

Support Languages And Real Connection

SPEAKER_00 25:59

I also am from a small uh religious community. I'm Jewish, and so by nature, we're just extremely tribal, right? We we have our traditions, we have our customs, and so it's it's an interesting thing where I feel like I've infused my own experience supporting people within, you know, my my faith into a product that can be used by anybody. And it's it's really like it's such a beautiful thing to be a part of a community that is tends to be more tribal because you you don't second guess. Whereas I think when you're part of a large majority and you're it there's less structure, that's when there's a lot of doubt and question marks. And of course, through Support Now and through the experiences that we've witnessed through our platform, the thousands of families, not millions of people we've helped so far, you learn so much about how you can abuse like what people are actually doing and then making that features into your product. Like it is the best of human connection. I actually was fortunate enough to give a TEDx talk in February of 25, and it was on the concept of support languages. We all know our love language. What's your support language? What's the natural way that you look to give help in a time of need? And there's eight different support languages. But the thesis of the talk is just what you said, Camille. Ultimately, it's about making sure families don't feel alone. It's about getting back to that connective tissue inside of all of us because humans by nature are designed to be helpful to one another. We've just crept into these bad habits through, again, a series of things, some in our some in our control and some that aren't. So what's really unique about our mission is we're taking a digital internet product, but using it to bring people back together in the most human way, which I think in this wave of AI and this wave of technology, that is actually what people are craving the most. A hundred percent. And so it's again, it's such a it's such an honor and a privilege to be able to not just serve families in this way, but to feel like we're truly being a part of a movement that is changing the way that people both ask and receive help that ultimately creates stronger relationships for our communities.

Camille 28:20

Yeah. And dare I say that that I would say the majority of people are starving for a connection because in a digital world, even with teenagers and young adults, the way that people are communicating and dating is so different and feels so much more disconnected in my viewpoint from what it was like when I was a kid, you know? And it just makes sense.

SPEAKER_00 28:43

So true.

Camille 28:44

That's your second product. How do you do that?

SPEAKER_00 28:47

Let me get let me get this one off the ground. No, but it it is true. Oh, again, I think a lot of people similar to like I felt like COVID was a time where everyone was wrestling with their why. Like, what's my purpose? Why am I here? I think that people are there's like another wave of that, maybe not as significant because we're not stuck in our houses, but there's that that next wave happening right now, too, with that with the crossroads of technology and AI, which is that this is making my life easier, but is it making my life better? Is it actually enriching me? And most of the times the answer is no. That doesn't mean that all of these things are bad, but it feels extremely um fulfilling to feel like we're being a part of the the good parts of technology while also bringing people closest together and that and the connection that we know matters most, which is that like I don't want to take away the hug. I don't want to take away some the walk. I actually want to facilitate more of that because I think somehow along the lines, we've gotten we've gotten removed from those important in-person moments because it's just so easy to send a donation or a gift card.

Camille 30:04

Yeah, as you're speaking, I just keep thinking it's like keeping us interweaving as a woven tapestry rather than like going just in our own direction, you know, in our little field and vision that can be this small when we have screens that keep us occupied and busy and purposeful in in ways that we're all busy and we're doing good things, but it's like that interwovenness that is missing.

SPEAKER_00 30:30

Well, and as as moms, like what's something I think about all the time is we moms talk about all the time how we you have to model behaviors for your kids. We have to model not just giving support, we have to model asking for help. Like if we want our kids to feel comfortable coming to us saying, I'm having a bad day, or I need help with this, or I'm not feeling right today. We as parents, and I think as moms, I take this this part very, we have to be able to model that to our kids. So these things matter. And that's where when I when people say, Well, how do you overcome the asking for help thing? It's like, well, you do it for your children because there was a generation of of parents and adults that never prioritized it. And and I think I believe we see that now. Like we see the repercussions of that. Yes. And I that's where it like what a gift to be a part of a generation of women that are more comfortable saying the things that there are that are difficult, saying the things they need help with. Now, I think we can take that a step step further. And again, support now itself won't solve all that, but we can certainly be a dramatic step in the right direction and provide an offering and a solution that feels far more approachable and realistic than a lot of the other tools that are out there that kind of feel like a handout. They make you feel like, ugh, I don't want that. So I'm not gonna ask for anything. It's like, no, but what if there's a better way of facilitating that that's actually in line with the humans that you know and the beliefs that we all share?

Camille 32:07

Yeah. Oh, I love

Boundaries As A Mom And Co-Founder

Camille 32:09

it. Okay, let's switch gears a little bit to being a busy mom, having these little children, and co-founding this with your husband. What are some boundaries or systems that you've put in place to be able to be successful in this? And I say that knowing there are days we struggle, of course. But what are some ideas or ways that you've been able to build boundaries or systems that make it work?

SPEAKER_00 32:32

Surprise, surprise, I'm gonna say having a support system. I could never ever do this without the help of my in-laws, my parents, even my my siblings and my sister-in-law and brother-in-law. I am so lucky. I live less than three miles from all of those people.

Camille 32:51

Amazing.

SPEAKER_00 32:52

I and it's part of why I'll never leave Atlanta. Like I always say, there's no amount of money that you could anyone can ever throw at me that would make me leave Atlanta. It is my home, like home in like the in the strongest sense of the word. And because of that support system, it allows me to do things that I think a lot of uh founders and entrepreneurs and CEOs struggle with, which is say no to things or setting boundaries. I've of course set them. But when I have a really exciting opportunity, or when I need to work late, or when something is on fire, I have people I can turn to and I'm not afraid to ask. And I think that for me, it was like the biggest unlock. It didn't really happen until my second was born in COVID, two under two, the whole thing. Oh my gosh. But once I realized that once I got over the fear that someone was gonna judge me because I was using my support system, I was able to move significantly faster. And again, set the example that I should be setting both for my children and frankly for the company that we're building.

Camille 33:55

Right.

SPEAKER_00 33:55

With my husband, we have such a unique relationship. We started out as friends and we didn't start dating until years later. And so, what's so fun and unique about that is we have our communication style is such that we can be really direct with each other without ever hurting one another's feelings. So there's not this like eight o'clock at night, we stop working. No, like we're a super scrappy startup, like that doesn't not exist. But we do have a rule that whenever one person says, I'm done, like I'm checked out for the night, like I can't, it it stops. Now that can happen at 10 o'clock at night. That could also happen at seven o'clock at night. Um, so it just depends on the season. And I think, you know, one of, as I'm sure many of your guests have talked about before, the misconception of work-life balance. Like, yeah, not a thing. Work-life integration is certainly more of the realist, like real way of looking at it. But it's not, it's not pretty. It's not always pretty. It is messy. And as much as I wish I had this beautiful, you know, calendar of all, it doesn't work like that for us. We're too agile. And I personally, I'm it's a I'm a type A person, but a type B mom. So I like to keep my options open for the kids. So if the weather's beautiful, I want to be able to just go outside and play with them. But if it's not and I can throw on a movie, guess what? I'm gonna do that. So I've learned to just lower the bar of what I think it's supposed to be. Like, I felt like my early years of motherhood, I kept projecting, like, oh, this is what this is what moms do. This is what good moms look like, this is what good business leaders look like. And instead, I've just adjusted to who I actually am. And because of that, I think I'm a much better mom. And I'm a much better business leader because I'm not trying to fit within the confines of what people tell you entrepreneurship and leadership is supposed to look like.

Camille 35:54

Yeah. Ooh, I love that. That is all so beautiful. And how old is your oldest now?

SPEAKER_00 36:00

My oldest uh recently turned seven. So I have a seven-year-old, a six-year-old, and a three-year-old.

Camille 36:06

Okay. Well, the fact that you figured out that part so soon is fantastic because I feel like in the first few years of parenthood, we're like, okay, I gotta do everything right. And what am I doing? And it it should look like this. And how am I? And then it's I kind of think it's after the second kid, you take a deep breath and you're like, okay, well, that doesn't need to look exactly that way. And we're still here and they're having a good time, and it's more about the feeling in your home than it is it has to look a certain way, right? You want to come into your home and for your kids to know they're loved and that you're going to create safety and a place for them to grow and develop into their own unique selves. And that is where there's rest in that feeling. And I love that you're there.

SPEAKER_00 36:50

I I'm there. And again, there's hard days, no doubt. I mean, my I always say my my first wait till they turn 18.

Camille 36:56

Mind just. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 36:58

Wait until this. It's um, I know that I'm living the best years of my life right now. I know it. So I just try not to wish it away, even on the hard days. And and and you know, I had two under two in COVID, which was extremely difficult. I lost childcare for six months, you know, didn't have any of the like resources I thought we were able to get going to be able to use the second time around. Like when I was so excited, I'm like, oh, I've learned so much from my first, you know, all that. Um, and even so for me, getting out of the COVID years and getting my kids out of diapers, like that alone has just been such a massive unlock.

Camille 37:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:40

Because I know I do have a hard time remembering those early days. And so I try really hard not to wish the hard away because I know it's the hard that I will crave later on, even as support now is beginning to scale. I look at us and I look at what we're achieving on a day-to-day basis, a week-to-week basis, a quarterly basis, and I already look back at the hard thinking, well, that was kind of like the good old days. And so trying to keep myself really humble, humbled in the hard is very, very important.

Camille 38:14

Yeah,

Nonnegotiables Play And Finding Joy

Camille 38:15

that's beautiful. What is one non-negotiable in your daily routine? Do you have anything that is like, oh, this is a must for me? Other than coffee. It could be coffee.

SPEAKER_00 38:26

I mean, that could be it, truly. Oh, gosh. I don't have anything like that, you know. I try to work out as much as I can, but I don't do that every day. I would say my one non-negotiable is getting outside. Like I have to get outside. I have to touch grass, I have to look up. That, um, whether I physically ground myself in the grass or not, I have found the days that I work outside a ton. Like most of my meetings I take on a patio or we have this really awesome swing on our balcony. I take most of my calls out there because that really does help reduce the noise and helps me single into like what is the thing that's actually needs my attention. So getting outside is huge. It doesn't all, you know, ideally I go for a walk. Rarely I go for a run, but most of the time I try to go for a walk. And that like little bit of pep in my step is very important. I will say something more recent that has been, I've I talk often to other women CEOs about like the struggle to find hobbies. I was I'm named for Michael Jordan. I'm a huge basketball fan. Like I'm I'm a sports person, like in my through and through. My parents begged me to do sports broadcasts as a kid, and I said no, because it felt like too much pressure, which is hilarious because now I feel like I'm actually in a very high pressure situation. But um, all that to say, I realized something that was missing from my routine was play. And so as of like three or four months ago, I found like a women's basketball league not long not far from my house. And so now I play basketball twice a week, and that has been a massive unlock for my endorphins and getting back to like who I like the child part of me. Uh, because as you know, when you're raising kids and running a business, it is very, very easy to get lost. And I'm not, I, you know, I've learned to play mahjong. I like it. It's it's not like the thing, you know, a girl, like every everyone and their mom is playing mahjong. Like, it's not enough for me to like really get me excited. I've got friends that play pickleball and tennis, and I love those things too. But finding the thing that really like sparks joy was going back into like the youngest part of myself, like the the part of me that I really was was who I was who I identified with for a really long time. So finding that outlet has been significant.

Camille 40:55

Oh, I love that so much. And enjoy it while you can. My husband was doing basketball when we had young kids, he doesn't play anymore because I know it's a young person too. Yeah, and he's like, I'm too old. I'm too old for basketball. And I'm like, no. So I'm glad that you're doing that because it really is.

SPEAKER_00 41:10

I don't do it until until my knees break or my back breaks. I mean, I'm I'm old out there. I'm playing with a whole bunch of 20-year-olds. Um, and I'm always like, you know, I'm I've become so like the girl that's like, I'm so proud of myself for keeping up, you know. Like if I could play a whole game and not need a stop, I'm like so happy. And I call my husband on the way home, like, I just had the most fun. And he knows like I need that hour. Like I need that hour so badly, and I don't sleep because I can't calm myself down at night. But it's but I'm I'm like giddy. I mean, yeah. And I that's that's a piece of advice for anyone, not just the CEO. Like, find the things that really spark joy for you, not the things you think that are gonna spark joy because it's easy to fall into what everyone else is doing, thinking, hoping, praying that that will be some massive unlock. Yeah, my husband gets to play golf, and like that does spark joy for him. But I really struggled for 10 years, maybe even longer, to find the thing that really made me feel alive. And so being able to tap back into that has been significant.

Where To Find Support Now And Closing

Camille 42:15

I love it. Jordan, this has been such a powerful conversation. And I know so many women listening right now are going to walk away feeling seen and also with real tangible ways of supporting other people. And through Support Now, this resource, I am so thrilled that I know about it. I'm gonna shout it from the rooftops, and I'm so excited that you've built something that is so tangible and easy to understand. So thank you truly for creating it.

SPEAKER_00 42:42

I appreciate the platform to share more and keep up all the incredible work you're doing to amplify more of these female voices.

Camille 42:49

Well, thank you. And tell everyone where they can connect with you, create an account. If I'm sure people listening right now are thinking, oh, I am thinking of this loved one. Yeah. I want to set one up right now. So please tell us where we can find that information.

SPEAKER_00 43:03

Yeah. So the the easiest way to create a support now is at our website, supportnow.org. Um, we also are extremely active on Instagram. So you can find us at supportnow underscore org where you can see me trying very hard to influence you. Um, and that's really you can DM us. I'm I'm pretty much run our socials at this point. I'm very active and engaged on all things marketing and go to market. So um, yeah, feel free to shoot me a message there if there's any opportunity to collapse. We oftentimes work with moms that again are involved in a PTA, PCO, involved in their church, or uh so you know, there's no shortage of opportunities to get plugged in with us. We just we want to be supportive in any way that we can.

Camille 43:44

Awesome. And if this conversation spoke to you, share it with a friend, take a screenshot and tag us. We love seeing what's reg resonates with you. And thank you for being here, leaving rating reviews. That is always helpful to us to help share more stories of mothers and women building businesses that are truly changing the world. Thank you so much for being here, and we'll see you next time. Hey CEOs, thank you so much for spending your time with me. If you found this episode inspiring or helpful, please let me know in a comment in a five star review. You could have the chance of being a featured review on an upcoming episode. Continue the conversation on Instagram at CallMe CEO Podcast, and remember that you are the boss.