Courage to Color Outside the Lines - Champion your Authenticity

Join us on Marketers Unleashed as we sit down with Elle, the CEO of Power Station Studios, to explore the importance of authenticity and vulnerability in the digital age. In this episode, Elle shares her personal journey of overcoming redundancy, going viral with a 'hire me in crayon' post on LinkedIn, and the emotional challenges that come with putting yourself out there online. Key topics include navigating negative feedback, setting personal boundaries, overcoming gender biases in senior leadership roles, and balancing a thriving career with motherhood. Elle also offers valuable advice for those looking to build their personal brand while staying true to themselves.

Social Media Links:

Kathryn Strachan - linkedin.com/in/kathryn-strachan

Elle Lacey - linkedin.com/in/elle-lacey-990951204

Website - sorrelfoundry.co.uk

Transcript

Kathryn: 0:01

Welcome to Marketers Unleashed, the podcast where marketers break free from the noise and dive deep into the raw truths of the marketing world. We're here to go beyond best practices and uncover the bold ideas, untold stories, and hard lessons that shape real marketing success. From dissecting daring campaigns to confronting the challenges keeping us awake at night. We're unleashing honest, unfiltered conversations to inspire, educate, and challenge you to think differently. Get ready to conquer the untamed side of marketing. I'm your host, Catherine Strachan, and this is Marketers Unleashed, where we're not just talking marketing, we're redefining it for anyone who doesn't know me yet. I'm Catherine Strachan, author of Scaling Success, Building Brands that Break Barriers, international keynote speaker, and fractional CMO for cutting edge brands. I've spent years navigating the ever changing world of marketing, and I've seen it all. As your podcast host, I bring my expertise and curiosity to the table, diving deep into honest conversations with industry leaders to uncover the insights Challenges and bold ideas shaping our industry. Let's get started. Welcome. Today I'm joined by Elle, who is going to be talking a bit about putting yourself out there, being vulnerable online, and how you can like really embrace being authentic and being, you know, your full self. So, welcome. I'm really excited to have you here with me today. Me too. Yeah, I'm really excited. Thank you. Kick us off a little bit by telling our listeners a little

Elle: 1:38

bit about yourself and you know, who you are. Yeah, absolutely So my name is Elle. I am currently the CEO of power station studios. It's a creative agency We work for a lot of the biggest brands in the world. It's a really exciting role. I'm a mom I have two children who I absolutely adore when I have my son. He changed my whole world So my children and my family are a really big part of my life. I'm very passionate about women in leadership Being authentic being yourself and standing up for yourself as well. So a little bit about me.

Kathryn: 2:12

Yeah. Thank you So I hadn't met you previously, but I had seen your content on LinkedIn and one of the things that like really Caught my attention and caught my interest was, you know, your story of putting yourself out there and writing in CRAN. And that's something that, like, you've embraced into your headline and, like, into your brand is this, this, these CRANs and writing in CRAN. Can you tell me that story?

Elle: 2:41

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So I lived in Australia for about 14 years and I moved back to the UK and I took a role. I moved my whole family, my two kids, it was a really, really big life decision. And I got made redundant from the role that I had. And it was really quite shocking for me. It was a, it was a quite difficult time in my life. I'd never been made redundant before. And I remember coming down the stairs and feeling really, really sorry for myself. I drove to my parents house, had a bit of a sob. And then in usual L form, I realized that feeling sorry for myself is just not going to get me anywhere and it wasn't going to help me. So I decided to do what I do best and just tell my story. So I downloaded LinkedIn and I put out a post that said, hire me in crayon. And the reason that I chose crayon was because that was all that I had at the house at the time. There was no pens or anything, but my son had a single gray crayon and I wrote hire me on it. And it went totally viral, I think. I had about 10 million impressions, 32, 000 likes, and sometimes I still get the odd like on there, so it's still floating around there somewhere. And then crayons just became part of me, and I started to write messages through crayons, and they changed my life, so they sort of have like a personal attachment to me, and I also think that they represent that anything is possible. When we were children, and a lot of people probably, you know, relate to this, that used crayons to create, you know, colorful pictures and make dreams possible. And I think they have that connotation to them, and they definitely do to me. So that single gray crayon really started my career and, and totally changed my life in so many amazing ways.

Kathryn: 4:23

Was it scary to do that? I mean, because it sounds like quite a brave thing and sounds like you didn't even have LinkedIn before you did that post. I mean, to go viral off of like your very first post is, you know, it almost never happens. Normally it takes something like that and like, you know, getting to know stuff. But I mean, was it scary

Elle: 4:45

to do that? Absolutely. It was terrifying. I remember writing it. And then second guessing myself and thinking, nobody's, nobody's going to, you know, comment on this if I reach like a few people and I get a job out of it. Brilliant. I didn't ever expect it to go as far as it did. And it was mind blowing. I remember watching my phone and it was just. It was just constant notifications coming in and once it got to a thousand and then it was ten thousand and it was more and I had all these, I had hundreds of messages from people. What was really amazing about it was the community on LinkedIn. I think social media does get quite a bad rap sometimes. But for me, it's connected me to so many amazing people that I would have never met if I hadn't have posted that. My life would never have gone in a different way, but the path that it took would never have happened if I hadn't written that post. But it was terrifying. I remember being worried, anxious, heart in the throat type moment.

Kathryn: 5:53

Yeah, I mean, because like I, I recently have gotten a lot more vulnerable with my content, but it's taken like five years to get to the place where like, really saying some pretty brave or vulnerable things online. And you know, it's quite, it's quite scary because you're like, well, what if people don't like me? What if people like say mean things about this or like, What if you get like a response that you don't necessarily want to get? I mean, you continue to be really brave with your content. You know, I've seen, I've seen your more recent stuff as well. And you continue to like really put yourself out there and talk about things that are really personal and sometimes. things that like people would say, well, LinkedIn gets that rap, doesn't it? Like LinkedIn's not Facebook, but you know, those personal posts obviously perform better. So, I mean, how do you continue to like put your, put yourself out there? Do you ever have like doubts about the content that you're creating or do you always just like, just go for it?

Elle: 6:49

Yeah, I absolutely. I think that for me, it's really about being your authentic self and to connect with people on a deeper level, but also. Whatever I share online is authentic to me and aligns with my goals and who I am as a person. And although I am vulnerable, I do have boundaries around it. There are things that I will not share about my life, particularly related to my family, for example, and my children. It's not something that I'm willing to share, and that's my boundary. But I think, absolutely, it is scary. I go through fits and starts of it, actually. I don't think I've ever got to a place where I'm not afraid to post. I'm not there yet. I still have deleted posts. I've overthought things. And I have second guessed myself. And I think it's because It's very difficult to not get into the trap of associating the numbers with how good you are because social media is built for that. It's built to make us feel and get that dopamine hit where we get all the likes and then we get a post that only has 20 likes and you go, oh, that wasn't very good. But that's actually not true. LinkedIn and social media does not define our posts and our thoughts and who we are as people, but it's still very difficult to not fall into that trap. And I felt, fell into it many times. I'll continue to probably throughout my life, particularly some of the posts I share around anxiety and endometriosis, which is a condition that I have. I share it because I want to help people. I want people to see that it's possible to be Successful, or be happy, or have a family, or whatever you want to do, particularly around endometriosis. But it's okay to talk about it because it's such a taboo subject, particularly women's health and to see people react to that and send me messages and one of my posts where I talked about endometriosis went quite viral and I had so many messages of people asking me about it, asking me, you know, their wife had it, how did I navigate it? I think that's amazing that I'm able to do that and able to help people.

Kathryn: 9:01

Yeah, I mean, I try to put in that perspective as well. So, like, when I share things that are really personal, I'm not normally doing it just because, like, I want to talk about it, but because I think that by doing it, it will help somebody else who maybe, you know, doesn't know how to talk about it or is going through something, but, like, doesn't have anybody else to look up to. Like, one of the things that I shared was about, like, my abortion that I had 15 years ago, but so a long time ago. But, you know, by sharing that story, when I had that, I, you know, really needed somebody that I could look up to. I was inspired by Pregnant and Scrooge, founder, and thought, you know, if I share my story, then maybe somebody who is going through that right now, or somebody who's like, You know, might go through that in the future has somebody that they can then look up to and I'm sure it's the same with with your content. I mean, if we are lucky enough to have platforms and we also kind of have a responsibility to share our personal experiences and our struggles to showcase and set an example for people who are maybe coming up behind us. But, you know, one of the pushbacks that you always get with LinkedIn is like how personal is. You said that you have boundaries around your kids, which a lot of people do, especially online, but like, how personal is too personal?

Elle: 10:18

Yeah, that's a really good question. I think for me personally, As a person, nothing is off limits. I think that, you know, it's my right to share what I want to share. And if somebody doesn't like that, that's okay. They're entitled to that opinion, but I'm not going to take it on board and it doesn't change the way I think about myself and my own values and my own confidence in what I want to say. So I don't think I have any limits on that, but I think it's important that. Anybody that wants to share online is comfortable doing so. If something makes you uncomfortable, you probably shouldn't be saying it. I think there is a lot of push to be vulnerable and share your story and, and follow certain messes on LinkedIn to, you know, build a platform. But I don't think that there is a set secret source or way that you should do that. I think it's really dependent on each individual person and, you know, I think it is important to make sure that if people do want to share online that they're happy to do that and they feel comfortable in doing that because it should never sacrifice your own mental health or well being in posting. Like if you don't want to post, just don't post. And I go through the same thing. Like I haven't posted for the last month when I said I would. Because I've had other things going on in my life, but that's okay. You know, it doesn't really matter. I'll come back to it when I feel ready.

Kathryn: 11:45

Yeah, and it can be difficult if you're not in the right headspace to create content, even when you are somebody who creates content on the regular. You know, if I'm really stressed out about something, or have stuff going on in my personal life, or like, I'm just not in the right headspace, it's 10 times harder to do the content. It's a bit like going to the gym. Like, you know, when you're really stressed out or like not in a great place, going to the gym is like, sometimes the last thing you want to do, even though, you know, the gym might actually help. Social's probably not going to help, but the gym might actually help. So yeah, I can definitely understand that. You mentioned a little bit, but like, have you ever had any like negative experiences with people commenting on posts? I mean, I've gotten it a little bit more recently. But yeah, I mean, have you had any negative, like, pushback or reactions to the stories that you've shared?

Elle: 12:34

Yeah, I have. Actually, in my post where I said, hire me in crayon, I had one person say that I was desperate and that I was begging, and it's never good to beg. And I had then had so many comments from other people saying, you know, supporting me and that and, and, you know, being kind, but when I first read it, I did take it to heart. I thought, Oh, do I come across like that? And then I was like, no, I don't. And that's, you know, that wasn't my intention. I was putting myself out there in a vulnerable time of my life. But yes, I have. I've also had comments about my appearance. So, but I don't take it personally because it hasn't happened very much, but I can imagine if it happened quite regularly that it, it would probably have an effect on me. I think it's, it's difficult not to take things to heart, even though it's from somebody that you don't know online that you have nothing to do with. I think that we're all human beings. And we all feel emotions and it's okay to feel upset about it. I think that's important. It's okay to have an emotion around it and you don't just need to brush it off. You can process it and then move forward with it.

Kathryn: 13:46

Yeah. I mean, I think it's difficult when you're putting yourself out there, you're gonna attract, you know, negative negativity. I mean, the majority is going to be positive, but there's always going to be, you know, that one or two naysayers who, you know, don't agree with what you're saying or don't like that you're saying it or don't like that a woman is saying it. You get a lot of as well, but I mean, you kind of have to, I don't know, I think maybe even get into a. It's a place where like you don't really care what other people think of you, especially when you're being vulnerable online. I mean, like you said earlier, if you're comfortable talking about this and if this is your viewpoint, then you know, if other people disagree with you or don't like that you're saying it, then you know, that's fine. Kind of their problem and not your problem, but I mean it does take it is hard to get there and it is hard to not let it affect you as well because I mean we Nobody wants to be trolled or have negative criticism or like any of these sorts of things, but I think it's almost Unavoidable when you're reaching that sort of numbers and when you have that sort of audience but it's really difficult one to navigate for anybody who's like listening who maybe isn't as active on social yet, or like is only ramping up their personal brand. I mean, what kind of advice would you have for them about how to navigate creating the online presence while being vulnerable, while also kind of navigating the risk of potentially having people who don't support you?

Elle: 15:19

I think I would say that you Should enjoy posting online if there ever becomes a point where you aren't enjoying it Or you feel like you're pushing yourself into posting and writing content and you feel a lot of pressure then Recognize that take a step back take a break and then come back to it I think if you push yourself and you don't honor and respect your own feelings, you can then burn yourself out and then actually become quite resentful about social media. And I say this because I've done it. I used to have Instagram. I had my own agency for a few years and I posted all the time. I was on my phone for about 14 hours a day. And I was creating content, content, content, stories all the time, all day, because that was my whole brand and people bought into that. I, I loved it for about six months and then I hit a wall and I ignored all the other feelings that led up to that of starting to become a little bit resentful and pushing myself and getting myself to push out more and more content. And then I just could not post at all for about six weeks because I was completely burnt out. So I think that's important and advice I would give to anybody that's just starting to build up their own brand, but also to not get absorbed in other people's success or the way that other people post because everybody's individual and people might like your content because they relate to it or they. Relate to you as a person and, but they might relate to somebody else better. That doesn't matter. You should just be focused on your own story and don't get too wrapped up into trying to be somebody else or post in a way that somebody else has done because they've got loads of followers and loads of likes because their story is entirely different to yours.

Kathryn: 17:09

Yeah, I think that that's a really easy trap to fall into, especially on social, you know, and I think we all do it. I mean, I do it. I look at people, I'm like, oh my god, like they've got so many followers and like, you know, their content's so on point. Maybe I should change my content in this way or do that thing. It's really difficult to not, because I think social, like you were saying earlier, is kind of like, also programmed to get you to, like, feel FOMO. Um, so even when you have a good following base, you feel FOMO because there's always going to be somebody who has a bigger following base. There's always going to be somebody who has better performing content. And you're always kind of like, especially if, you know, you have any sort of competitiveness in your whatsoever, you're always going to be a bit like, Oh, that should be me. I should be doing that. And it's a really difficult like one to avoid, but I mean, your content works because it's you. So yeah, you kind of have to stay away from trying to be somebody that you're not, or, you know, trying to be like somebody who, you know, has a different style and a different type of content because, you know, your audience is, is different.

Elle: 18:40

Yeah. And I think it's also just in general, I think I was talking to somebody about this the other day. That we're always chasing the next thing, especially if you are a competitive, ambitious person. You're always wanting to get to that next step. And so you're constantly chasing and then you forget how far you've come. But you're also not content because you're always chasing that next goal, that next thing, that next title, that next job. And then when you get there, sometimes it's a bit disappointing because you're like, Oh, okay. So now I'll chase the next thing instead of actually just being content and happy with where you are, whether that's a job, whether that's a following, whether that's a brand, whatever that is, it's good to take a pause and recognize how far you've come. But also realize that by chasing something constantly. you'll never actually be happy and content. It's nice to recognize where you are.

Kathryn: 19:39

Yeah, one of the books that I really follow is called The Art of Not Giving a Fuck. And it's a documentary on Netflix as well, definitely worth watching. But it talks about that concept, about that fallacy of constantly chasing more, and also like not seeing things in perspective. So there's a story of like, the one of the lead singers from a rock band gets kicked out from the rock band and like that rock band becomes like the number one in the world and he sets up a different rock band and becomes like number two but because he's always comparing himself to that that number one even though they're selling out stadiums with like hundreds of thousands of people, you know, obviously very successful in many people's eyes, because it was always kind of in the shadow of that and always chasing that, you know, he never really fully enjoyed that success. And I think, you know, a lot of the times these things as well, like aren't put in the context of, you know, one day we're all going to die. One of the big like, minutes of that book is like, a lot of the things that we are upset about or care about, don't actually matter. You know, when we are dead and gone, how many followers you had on social is, is totally, completely irrelevant. And it's not going to matter. But we give too many fucks about things that we shouldn't give any fucks about. Kind of fall into this trap of, of happiness. And that's not how you get to being happy. Absolutely. Obviously, there's like the downside of social, which we talked about a little bit, but tell me about some of like the opportunities that have come via, you know, your personal brand and some of the things that have like happened as a result of perhaps that post where, you know, you wrote hire me and Grey Cram, but like also just being present and putting yourself out there.

Elle: 21:20

Yeah, I've had absolutely amazing opportunities from LinkedIn. Like I said, I was made redundant, it's about four years ago now, I think. And I got my dream job working for a FinTech. I really wanted to work for a FinTech at the time and I got, I got that role. I actually tripled my salary with that role. And then I ended up working for a tech company. I got promoted to a COO, but I'm now CEO in that time. And I'm really proud of that because I'm a woman, I'm 34, and statistically, the chances of me being in this position, the statistics don't actually exist, but the closest I could get to it would be a lot less than 1%. So. I, I am very proud of myself for, for doing that, but also to show that it's possible because it is very difficult, especially in a senior leadership position, being a young woman is not easy. You face a lot of criticism. It's more difficult to be heard. It is still a very male dominated world. And before I entered into corporate, because I worked for myself for years. And before I entered this world, I never quite realized how close it actually is to like watch a movie, you know, where you see like suits and succession. It's very similar. And I didn't appreciate how much bias there is towards being in a male dominated workplace. I don't want to make it about gender, but it's just reality. I've walked into rooms where it's just a room full of men and I'm the only woman. And it's very difficult to not feel intimidated by that. And when you want to share your ideas. People don't hear you. So you really have to work 10 times harder to be heard and be recognized as well. So, I think that it does take a lot of strength. And also, you know, a lot of courage to sit in those rooms and speak up and be heard and not think that you don't have anything valuable to share. I know that took a bit of a tangent in your question.

Kathryn: 23:25

Oh, it's very, like, important. Point. I mean, how have you navigated that? Cause it is quite difficult. I mean, if you work for yourself, like you don't necessarily have like somebody who's raining on your parade or like shooting down your ideas or not listening to you. So I mean, how did you navigate going into that role and going into that workplace where like you were, you know, the only woman in the room and you had to convince the room, even though they wouldn't listen to you, that, you know, your idea was right. I mean, how do you, how do you find your voice? Yeah. Yeah. How do you find your voice offline in those sorts of situations?

Elle: 24:02

Yeah, so I think when I first sort of entered into a more of a senior role, I was definitely a lot more emotional. I took things to heart more. I questioned myself and I didn't always speak up enough, as enough as I would have liked. And over time, I've become more intentional with what I share and what I say. I think there's a lot of power in the pause. And so, for example, if something happens to me in the workplace or something happens, I won't react to it immediately. I will take time away to think about how I'm going to respond to that. Or even if I'm speaking to somebody, you know, in a meeting, I'll take time to share. my opinions, but I'll also, if someone interrupts me, I'll say, sorry, I haven't finished. Now, Elle of five years ago would never have done that. She would have allowed somebody to talk over her. And if I don't agree with something, I'll say it. So I think it's about having confidence and Being a bit more assertive in making sure that your opinion and the way you feel is expressed in the right way, in a respectful way, but that it's not, you know, kept in and not shared.

Kathryn: 25:19

I mean,

Elle: 25:19

I have

Kathryn: 25:20

this challenge because, like, I'm a very much a hard on myself. So, and, you know, I care a lot about the work that I do. So it's really difficult if somebody, like, doesn't like the idea or, like, doesn't listen to it to not take it personally. And I almost have to, like, mentally separate myself and do it manually because, like, uh, it doesn't happen automatically for me. So how do you not take everything to heart and how do you like protect yourself and give yourself that pause when you're feeling like perhaps a little defensive or you've been hurt a little bit?

Elle: 25:55

Yeah, so I think I definitely take more time out. So like I was saying before that power in the pause. So say for example, you know, someone sends an email or says something disrespectful over email or something like that. Ella five years ago would have instantly responded with a big message of stuff. And now I, sometimes I don't respond. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. But sometimes now I just don't respond and I'll leave it and then I'll respond when I'm ready to, and I'm in a better place. And that's powerful. I've realized that that is actually A very powerful and not an easy thing to do because it takes a lot of discipline and a lot of restraint to be able to keep your emotions in and be able to express yourself when you're in a better place. So I would say that I do that a lot. I also, if I wanna speak about something, I do it in person. I don't do it over email, I, I won't message back. I'll actually say. Let's talk about this on the phone or let's speak about this in person and sometimes I've had it where someone will Continually come back and I say as I've said I'll speak about this in person or on the phone. That's my boundary. I'm not being brought into this.

Kathryn: 27:10

And like people can be keyboard warriors sometimes and like are really comfortable hiding behind their keyboard but would never actually like say it to your face. Yes. So whether it's actually like on a call or like actually in person, you know, they wouldn't actually say it because they know that it's rude, but it's much easier to write something rude than to say it to somebody. I mean, and realizing that, you know, We may all work super fast, you know, and I'm sure you're probably like me in this where, like, you know, you do work really fast, but most people, you know, 24 hour window is normal response time for an email, so, like, you don't have to respond to that email. There's not even an expectation to respond to that email immediately. I mean, emails you have at least 24 hours, if not more. I mean, sometimes I'll respond to emails for like three to five days if I'm like waiting for additional information or something like this. I think we live in this world and social doesn't help where, you know, it's an immediacy, you know, we feel like we have to respond, react, like engage immediately with something, but with the power of the pause, like also comes an understanding that like, We don't actually need to respond immediately. We don't need to respond to that email the second it comes through. You know, we can sleep on it. So, like, one of the things that I often do is, like, literally, if something is upsetting me, I will sleep on it or I will go to a spin class and then deal with it because I know that if I get it. Some endorphins going, like, by a spin, or if I sleep, I'm going to feel 10 million times better about whatever is upsetting me than I was before. And yeah, I mean, getting on a call is a really good tactic as well, because that often helps defuse it as well. But yeah, I mean, it's kind of, you learn these things when you're in the workplace, and like, when you're dealing with people who are maybe more difficult to do, who don't want to listen to you.

Elle: 29:04

Yeah, and you also, I don't know if you found this, but how you feel about it after you've slept on it is very different to how you felt about it when you first received it.

Kathryn: 29:13

There's a really great saying as well, like, don't make any important life decisions after 9pm at night, ever. Doesn't matter, work, personal, do not make important life decisions after 9pm at night, just don't do it. Definitely true. At least for me, because I'm really terrible if I don't sleep. Nothing important needs to get done after 9pm ever. That's, that's like a cut off for me as well. But yeah, I mean, it's not easy to be a woman and to be front and center or to be a woman and to be in a male dominated place or to even be a woman online. And, you know, to make that even harder is, you know, being being a mother as well. I mean, how is motherhood kind of influenced your lived experiences in the workplace or, you know, online?

Elle: 30:03

I mean, my son completely changed my life. So when he was born, that's when I decided to quit my job. I was a real estate agent at the time and start my first business. I used to drive around with him in his little baby seat in the back and see clients and He, yeah, he gave me that purpose that I needed to be able to do that, but being a mum has completely changed me. I'm a lot more patient. When you're a mom, you have to, you have to be patient, but they also, they give me so much inspiration. They're like my fuel for everything that I do. I want to make them proud. I, I want to show them that anything's possible. So, yeah, my children are everything to me, but also being a mom does come with, you know, particularly being a working mom and having a career. I've had a lot of backlash from people I know, also people online. about being a mom and having a career that you're not a good parent and you wouldn't have the time and how could you possibly be a good mom and have a job? So I definitely think those traditional views still exist, and my partner actually is a sort of a stay at home dad. He has a sort of business that he does for himself, but he takes the kids to school and he picks them up. And there's a lot of interesting opinions around that, and people are very surprised. Like, whenever we meet people, they always ask him what he does first, and then they ask me. And then they realize that I'm the person that's the breadwinner, so to speak. And they're always really shocked. So that, those traditional values and views definitely, definitely exist still in this world.

Kathryn: 31:42

Yeah, it can be really like difficult, even when you are comfortable with your life decisions and even when you're confident in like who you are. It can be really difficult to have society saying one thing, you know, you shouldn't be working so much or you shouldn't be the breadwinner or you shouldn't be, you know, for me, it's often traveling with work. You shouldn't be traveling with work. You shouldn't be doing these things, you know, living apart or being away for a long time and also be a mom. I mean, I don't know that the other side is any better either. I mean, just being a stay at home mom and not setting that example. I mean, I like to bring my daughter to my speaking events so that she can See an example of, you know, what, what a working, you know, successful career woman looks like. Cause it's not something that I had growing up. So I mean, I don't know that the other way is any better, but it's really difficult when you've got society telling you, even when you have a strong mental identity, when you have society telling you that you should be one thing or that you should behave in a certain way, you know. Breaking against that mold can be really difficult. What advice would you have for people who are listening who maybe, like, don't want to fit in that mold or feel like they don't fit in that mold? How do you, like, fortify yourself against it and continue to do what you're doing and what makes you happy?

Elle: 32:59

Yeah, I mean, I think you, you have to do what makes you happy and going back to the points we made earlier about, you know, we're all going to die, right? Hopefully not today. Not today. I want to get to Christmas at least. Um, but we've got four and a half thousand weeks, something like that. So other people's opinion does not define your worth and does not define who you are. That's the first thing. So. You know, everyone's entitled to an opinion. It doesn't mean it's a fact. That's why it's called an opinion. So you need to live your life, but also you can be a fantastic parent and have a job. I'm a fantastic parent to my kids. We have a great relationship. They're secure. They're happy. They're thriving. They're confident. And they love that mum has a job. And I take time to spend time with them. I have boundaries around that. I don't work on the weekends. I absolutely don't. I can tell you that now. I haven't done that in at least two years. I won't. It's my boundary. When I'm off on holiday, I do not work. And that would probably be surprising to people as a CEO. Oh, I'm always on the phone. No, that's my boundary. I'm off and I'm taking this time away for me to spend with my kids and my family. And if people didn't respect that, or didn't allow me to do that, then I wouldn't work for them. It's as simple as that. So I think you do have to have boundaries, and you do have to set those, especially if you are a working parent. Because otherwise it can consume you, and then you can neglect your kids, and your family, and neglect your own needs. But it's absolutely possible to do both. It's not easy. It's hard. It's exhausting. You don't get a lot of sleep. You're running around. But that's the reality of it. And that's the choice that you've made. It doesn't mean that it's not possible because it absolutely is. It definitely

Kathryn: 34:36

is. I think having a supportive partner, at least for me, I mean, I know single single moms, single parents who do do it. So I mean, it's not like a prerequisite that you have to have a supportive partner. But I know that for me, at least. It's like having a supportive partner who, you know, my husband's very similar in that like he's, he does a lot of the school pickups and a lot of like the cleaning and the cooking and like a lot of those sorts of things. And I know, you know, if I said to him tomorrow, you know, I, I've got an incredible opportunity in New York city. I've got to move to New York for six months. He'd be like, yeah, go, you know, I've got it. So, I mean, having a supportive partner who, you know, has your back and is on your side with that, I think, is, is massively important, but if you don't have a supportive partner, having a network, having, like, a parent or having, you know, even a friend, but, like, having somebody who can be, like, you go, I've got this, I think makes a massive difference as well. And, you know, maybe not enough attention is paid to the supportive background partners, you know, making sure that they've got their tooth fairy money, but, you know, who are doing all of the, all of the background stuff so that, you know, you can do all of the front running. But I think, I think not enough attention is sometimes paid to, you know, those. people in the background who, who are doing it. I mean, they're saying that it takes a village to raise, to raise a child. And I think that that is definitely true. I mean, the power is in the network. Absolutely.

Elle: 35:59

Yep.

Kathryn: 36:00

Yeah, yeah. So I mean, before we wrap up, I want to talk a little bit about what's next for you and kind of what you're thinking about going forward. What does next year hold for you?

Elle: 36:10

Currently, I'm the CEO of Power Station Studios, and we're going through quite a transformational journey at the moment in streamlining a lot of the operations and figuring out ways to deliver more value to our clients. So it's a big year. There's a lot to do. So I'm really focused on that. Personally, I need to start writing a book because I've talked about it a lot and I've wanted to do it for so long and I haven't. So I think next year is the day that I, or the year even, that I will put pen to paper and actually start doing it. And yeah, I'm excited for next year. I think this year has been a really tough year for so many people. I think a lot of people would be very pleased to see the back of it. But yeah, I think 2025 is going to be a good year.

Kathryn: 36:55

Yeah, I think 2024 people wanted it to be a better year because 2023 was a rough year for

Elle: 37:01

me

Kathryn: 37:01

as well. So I think everybody really wanted 2024 to be a better year and I mean it was better perhaps and there was some green shoots But like not enough of them. So yeah, I mean, it's been a really difficult year. I'm like glad to see the back I mean, I've got high hopes for 2025, but we're going to have to see what plays out, I think. Yeah. Yeah. Well, thank you for joining me on the show today. It's been really amazing to talk to you about all of these things, all these really personal things that I think all of us are kind of facing and feeling and dealing with and navigating. So thank you so much for sharing your story and, you know, giving us a bit of a glimpse into your life. in your world and the way that you think.

Elle: 37:44

Thank you so much. It's been amazing. Thank you. That's a wrap for this episode of Marketers Unleashed. Thank

Kathryn: 37:51

you for tuning in and diving deep with us into the unleashed world of marketing. We hope you're leaving with fresh insights, new ideas, and maybe even a few aha moments to feel your next big move. If you've enjoyed today's conversation, don't forget to hit that subscribe button so you never miss a new episode. And hey, we'd love to hear from you. Drop us a review or connect with us on LinkedIn to share your thoughts and join in the conversation. Until next time, keep thinking bold, challenging the norms, and unleashing your inner marketer. After all, once the worst all happen. I'm your host, Katherine Strachan, over and out.