Carrying On When It Feels Like Everything Is Falling Apart

Swearing By It

Swearing By It
Carrying On When It Feels Like Everything Is Falling Apart
May 14, 2025 Episode 12
Audrina & Sydney

How would you handle a debt of a million dollars?

In this week’s episode, Sydney bravely dives deep into how she managed a million dollars in debt while building businesses, struggling with a difficult business partner, handling a rough pregnancy, and having a husband unable to work while he navigated applying for a green card... It was a lot. But she learned SO much.

Audrina and Sydney talk about the importance of relationships and why you shouldn’t burn bridges when you don’t have to. As Audrina neatly puts it, “Don’t set fire to the house you might want to come back to.” Relationships are a key foundation in business, not just with your employees and investors, but also your friends and family. Communicating when you can (almost to the point of overcommunicating) is so important.  

As business owners, whatever happens in your business goes into your personal life, and it can feel like there’s no real separation between. So, if you’re going through a similar situation to Sydney—such as navigating business debt or breaking up with a difficult business partner—the best advice is to really dig into self-care. Feeling stressed won’t make the outcome and results any better, so remember to look after yourself and give yourself grace.

In This Conversation:

  • Sydney discusses what happened with her previous business partner who decided to close the business, leaving her with no cash and no business to run—just a literal landing page and almost a million dollars in debt.
  • Audrina asks what business owners can do to protect their business name after Sydney came face to face with the issue. (Listen out for Sydney’s simple tips!)
  • Sydney talks about her own personal values and how that meant paying the debt off was all on her… and how she actually did it.
  • Audrina and Sydney discuss why you *shouldn’t* hire your spouse to work under you. (Hint: it’s just not worth it!)

For more unfiltered conversations about entrepreneurship, family life, and managing the daily demands of “doing it all”, click the Follow button so you don’t miss an episode! 

If anything we talked about resonated with you, we’d love to hear about it! Always feel free to reach out with questions, comments, or future topics you want to hear.

Connect with us:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swearingbyit/ 

LinkedIn:
Audrina: https://www.linkedin.com/in/audrinablackburn/
Sydney: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydneymsherman/

Episode Artwork Carrying On When It Feels Like Everything Is Falling Apart 37:06 Episode Artwork Pivoting and Managing Your Mindset: A Deep Dive into The Hive 58:38 Episode Artwork Pivoting: The Importance of Staying Curious and Asking Questions 48:51 Episode Artwork Aging: The Highs, the Lows, and How It’s All Relative 37:29 Episode Artwork Getting Reflective and Being Deeply Honest: Why We Need to Open Up 20:18 Episode Artwork The Power of a Healthy Mindset: Finding Balance in Entrepreneurial Life 42:01 Episode Artwork A Day in the Life – What It Actually Looks Like to be an Entrepreneur 38:38 Episode Artwork Is Entrepreneurship Worth It? 47:07 Episode Artwork Sydney's Story: Entrepreneurship | It Runs In The Family 42:17 Episode Artwork Audrina's Story: From Ballroom Dancing to Entrepreneurship (with a Layoff in between) 25:42 Episode Artwork Learning To Trust Yourself: How Intuition Plays A Vital Role In Our Growth 36:18 Episode Artwork Doing It Anyways: Overcoming Doubt and Pursuing Your Passion 26:18