Natasha (00:00)
Hello everyone and welcome back to another season of the Aspirant Podcast. I am so grateful that you're here today.
Last year I celebrated my first year of the podcast. I can hardly believe it. And so many amazing guests. I've really enjoyed learning just everything about podcasting and talking to so many different people. It's really, truly inspiring. Even if people don't have a large audience, everyone has something unique to share. And you might've noticed this aspirant podcast got a little quiet towards the end of the year and I had to step away for some personal reasons. So I am back this year with weekly episodes.
So that's really exciting. So expect me weekly. and we're going to be diving into a few of the shifts and changes. But first I want to start with a few recaps of 2025 and
I really tried to think of a favorite episode and that was challenging. So I'll just highlight a few of the top episodes. So one of them was how to break the fear cycle and build resilience as an entrepreneur with Anissa Cordova. She's a mental health professional. And that was a really popular episode. And I know why, because so many business owners are working through mindset and, ⁓ you know, even things like depression, anxiety in their business, let alone, ⁓ just the state of the world.
normal life, right? Everyone's in need of a little mental health support, but as an entrepreneur, you know the ins and outs of all of those things that are even holding you back these mindsets. So that was an excellent one. That's one you can check out if you didn't before. So those are all still obviously available to you. And then another one was finding the courage to write and publish your first book with Kelly Sewell, my friend and publisher over at Red Cliff. And this was another one, just finding that
inspiration to actually sit down and start writing that first book because I know from talking to you many of you have a story that's waiting to be told and I'm actually guilty of this too. I'm someone who wants to write a book and I know the right time is out there it just hasn't come up yet.
I am a published author, but it was in a ⁓ co-author series. So I'm one chapter of many, and that was exciting. And I shouldn't even say that I'm totally a published author. wrote a book in college, but the book that I'm dreaming of writing is still on the way. Isn't it funny how even though we might be something and have done something, we hold out this other standard of, well, I'll become an author when my book that I've been dreaming of writing is going to happen. And then we forget all of the things that we've actually done.
So what a good example, just me even talking on here about that. And then another episode I really enjoyed was from Stuck to Standout, How to Rebrand, Recharge and Reinvent Your Business with Topaz Hooper. Topaz is absolutely amazing. She really walked us through when things are feeling a little bit different in your business and when it's time to just change it up and really change that energy. know, you know, the world has been changing so much.
that is COVID or AI or just all of the things we live in really unprecedented times, I guess is the word that comes up that might be triggering for some people, but it's true. We live in unprecedented times. Things are changing all the time and that means your business might need to evolve. So if you haven't listened to either of those episodes, go ahead and look back and there's plenty of other guest episodes from last year that are still super relevant if you missed any of them. So one of the other things I wanted to
just
chat about is this pain point that keeps coming up. And I know many listeners are struggling with the same thing. And that is how to create meaningful visibility in your business without the burnout, right? Especially if you're a solo printer and there's just so much noise and everything is so noisy and it's downright exhausting and you're spinning your wheels. You're trying to create more, just more, right? We're trying to create
more and find the thing that works. But often we're missing the few simple things that can really exponentially grow our business. And so we're doing more and more and more, but not seeing the meaningful and exponential growth that we're really looking for. How do you get her to make the impact that you want without shouting into that void? How do you make sure you aren't wasting time on efforts that aren't bearing meaningful growth and visibility? Because visibility really isn't just that you're heard and seen. It's that thing that generates the
quality audience where you can sell what you want to sell, make the income you desire and with these things visibility and income guess what that equals? It equals impact and you can have more impact where it matters to you. Now this can mean a lot of things right? It can mean
an income level that actually lets you give back to your community in a financial way, supporting a nonprofit that does amazing work in the community, or maybe it gives you time. You have an income level where you have the time to volunteer somewhere where you can be meaningful. It can be having more time with your family because you have the freedom and flexibility in your business to actually be present. It might be bringing attention to important causes with your visibility work and you're actually commanding a stage where you get
the attention for real change. So these aren't vanity metrics. What we're doing really allows you to exercise your impact in the world when you have these tools at your disposal. And that's really why I am so passionate and it's what my work is all about. How do you create a business that feels good? It doesn't just earn an income, although we love that part, right? Gotta have it. And that allows a lot of freedom, right? With that certain income.
We all know this, but it's about building a business that supports your life and it creates the impact you want to see in the world. Because I know the business owners that I interact with and you have met many of them as guests on this show. They are making the world a better place with their services. They're interacting with their community. They are giving back and they transform lives.
Enough of the hype doc, but really, you know, this is why I'm passionate about this work because I truly believe in it. And after working entrepreneurship and with small businesses for over decade, like it is so important to our world and our communities.
All right.
Now, with all that said, I want to jump into where we're going this year of the podcast. And the big shift that I'm making is that I'll be doing more solo episodes. still be doing the guest episodes, interviewing the amazing entrepreneurs that you've seen and others as we really build this network. And as I find content that resonates and I think will be helpful to you, I think I did 30 guest episodes last year. So those aren't going anywhere, but you're to be getting a lot more one-on-one time with me.
And for those of you who don't know me, I guess I'll do a little reintroduction here. And welcome, of course, if you're here for the first time. I'm so glad you're here. I'm Natasha Claussen. I'm a brand and marketing strategist, speaker and educator. And I work with entrepreneurs and small businesses who are really ready to step into that next level of authority. My work sits at the intersection of brand visibility and systems, helping people turn what they already know and do well into that real credibility opportunity.
and income without burning themselves out. My friend Jen lovingly refers to me as the business owner's Swiss army knife. Thank you for that Jen. And I've had the privilege of working alongside several multi-million dollar CEOs as an integrator, bridging their vision into execution and impact. And that's what I help other business owners do. Sometimes it's been hard.
for even me to put the finger on all the things that I do because it really is an integration of multiple things. But I think if you listen to that brand, Visibility and Systems, they all plug in to how we can build a business for you where you're to get more of the visibility and authority that you're looking for this year. So who is it for?
This podcast is of course for entrepreneurs, small business owners and speakers who are really ready to step into that next level of authority. And what that can help you with is really connecting with your audience, having people trust you and refer you and invite you into bigger opportunities. Most of you are actually really good at this already, but you're doing it in your personal networks and you're not leveraging it in a bigger way, using your voice on social media or using it in a way that doesn't just
burn you out because you're trying to get a bunch of social posts out, you're not using good systems and software, or maybe you're at the point where you need to hire a VA. So it's not that you're not good at this, most of you are excellent at this, but you're struggling to get beyond that in-person networking and have that bigger impact and scale that you're looking for. And I know that many of you have just been waiting for this moment to truly be recognized for all of the hard work you've put in because it's been a lot. I know I've been
I'm there with you, I've sat with you. I see you, I do, and I've been there too. And you are waiting for the seeds that you have been sowing to come into bloom and finally harvest. And that's what it's all about here. Because you are already smart and talented enough. You just want the visibility and income to finally come in and pay off all that hard work and really reflect the reality of what you feel inside.
So I'm here for you on that journey. And this year, some of the content that's going to help you, we're going to be looking at how to use your voice and brand to clearly position you as the authority people remember and refer to, and how to take that unique thought leadership and really leverage it with systems and software to maximize your time. So think.
like a podcast is a great example. How do you take that and then make it into content, posts, blogs, et cetera, using systems? And then lastly, of course, is the philosophy of my business. How do you grow your business without burning out so that it actually feels good to run? And that connects actually back into the systems and software because so much of how our business
feels is how organized it is and that underlying foundation and so many people are missing this and they don't even realize it. So that's where we're going this year. This is a short episode today and next episode I'll be excited to bring you through spending some time talking about the new year. Taking some intentional time for yourself and your business to celebrate the growth and achievements from last year. Even if you're just hanging in there I know you have some successes but if you just blast into the new year without really taking time to reflect
reflect
on that, I can guarantee you that you have a
of how your year was because
One thing I noticed consistently with entrepreneurs is we're always running onto the next shiny thing. Have you actually taken some intentional time to sit down and look at what was working and what wasn't before you just make these gut decisions? We want to look at the data. So we're to spend a little bit of time on that next episode. I've got a great exercise for this. So if you have not spent the last week planning for the new year, don't worry. Many people and even large businesses, I know them, multi-million.
dollar businesses are doing their planning in January. So you're not behind, you're just in time. So I will see you back for that. And if you've made it to the end here with me, please do me a favor and hit the subscribe button. It will help me reach more people. And I'm really on a mission to make big change for folks in 2026. So I hope you'll join me and until next time.
