Episode 8 - It Takes an Ecosystem: Community, Passion and Building Small Businesses

Building a Business Ecosystem: Community, Passion & Small Business Growth

What does it actually look like to build a business that feels aligned, sustainable, and deeply connected to community?

In this episode, we unpack the concept of creating a business ecosystem - one that doesn’t rely solely on individual output, but is supported, strengthened and expanded through genuine relationships, collaboration, and shared values.

We explore the shift away from isolated business-building into something more interconnected - where community becomes both the foundation and the growth strategy.

This conversation moves through:

•  What a “business ecosystem” really means in practice 
•  The role of community in building sustainable, long-term success 
•  Navigating the tension between passion and practicality 
•  How small businesses can support each other rather than compete 
•  The importance of alignment, authenticity and staying grounded in your “why” 
•  Letting your work evolve while still trusting the process 

We also speak honestly about the less polished side - the uncertainty, the pivots, and the reality of building something meaningful from the ground up.

This is for anyone:

•  Growing a small business 
•  Wanting to feel less alone in the process 
•  Trying to build something that actually feels good as well as works

https://nudo.com.au/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome to Mood Swings, the potty for the good, the messy, and everything in between.

SPEAKER_01 0:04

Basically, it's just us, two friends, a naturopath and a nurse, oversharing stories, swapping insights, and chatting all things womanhood, motherhood, and the beautiful chaos of life. So let's get comfy, pull yourself a cupper or a mug, and let's get into it.

SPEAKER_00 0:47

It was definitely a learning experience. I didn't mind it. I definitely think there needs work to be done there.

SPEAKER_03 0:53

Yeah, and what happened?

SPEAKER_00 0:55

Well, having a conversation with yourself in front of a camera and not having someone who's there like just naturally prompting you to progress with the conversation. It's like fucking hard. Yeah, well, you just have to pretend like like you're having like someone's responding back to you. So that is like talking to the camera, like you're here with me, I'm here with you, we got this shit. Yeah. When it was just me, myself, and I.

SPEAKER_02 1:24

Oh honey, I felt so bad, but I was like, honestly, I was so sick last week.

SPEAKER_00 1:30

I think the thing is we are such advocates of like working out um like regulating our nervous system. And so, like, when we go and say, Oh, we're sick, but we're gonna grind, we're completely going against what we're preaching, yeah. So I just feel like when we need to, we need a rest, and like it's not the end of the world. We've waited what two weeks for an episode, and that's okay. It also does feel like ages, though. It does feel like ages.

SPEAKER_02 2:01

And your topic's an interesting one because I tell everyone, like, if you're even a little bit sick, you know me. Like, if you tell me that you feel a little bit off in the morning, I'm like, okay, we don't have to do it. Like, I'm always like rest, rest, rest. But when it's myself, I find it impossible to listen to that. Yeah. But I think I'm glad I did last Thursday because if I didn't, I have a feeling like the sickness could have lasted more than a week. Well, definitely.

SPEAKER_00 2:24

When your body is sick, it's your body's way of telling you like you need to rest and recover. Yeah, it's not you need to continue going. Yeah. I mean, we often do, yeah. And that's the thing. What is that we often continue to just keep pushing through the sickness and then we make ourselves even more sick.

SPEAKER_02 2:40

Yeah. So but I'm recovered. You're all good. I'm a bit flummy still today, but we move on. I'm taking all the herbs and all this up. So hopefully my voice works for the whole podcast today. Anywho, it's been an interesting two weeks to say the least. And I have excited. I have a little bit of a mixed mood swing to bring to the table today.

SPEAKER_00 3:05

Alright, well, let's let's start off with you then.

SPEAKER_02 3:08

Okay. I didn't even ask, you're like, I'm starting with me.

SPEAKER_04 3:12

Because I'm so excited to say it.

SPEAKER_02 3:14

Um, so I guess you always start, you always say start with the negative and then with the positive, which I'm gonna do, which in my head didn't make sense for a second there because I get so excited to say the positive news, but I want to start with the more negative first. Um but I guess like the last two weeks has just been like really quite heavy with my career. I've had a lot of um clients come to me with some, you know, quite complex health conditions, and navigating that with them has been like quite sad. So I think I'm just feeling sad at the moment for the women that go through the medical system and try and find answers, and they're just put up with all of this frustration because they're trying their best to feel better, and you know, some women are literally in 10 out of 10 pain every single day, and I think I start crying, but I just find it so hard to listen to it, you know, on the other side of the consult to not take that home with me and just think about it 24-7. Like, how can I do everything in my power to help them? Yeah, um, so that's been a little bit difficult for me for the last two weeks. Um but I know I'm gonna get them feeling better, and they're all trying their absolute best. Like, literally, these women they eat the most healthy diet, they do all the right things. They if I tell them to go and get an ultrasound, they go get an ultrasound. If I tell them to go get a blood test, they go and get a blood test. Like they are so on top of their health, which makes me feel so confident that we're going to get them to a place where they don't feel pain every day. Um, but it's just sad.

SPEAKER_00 5:04

It is, it's sad, it's such a journey, and I think you know, you're just such an empathetic soul, and sometimes empathy can really it's such a great trait to have, but if you're an emotional human who feeds off of other people's emotional energy like yourself, you are going to feel that. So I just think you need to learn how to navigate that definitely, yeah, and you'll get that with time. And I think, like, literally, weren't we talking about this a few weeks ago about burnout and about boundaries, you'll establish those, and I think the more you progress into people's um health and uh deep diving into what that really is like for them, you you're gonna open up things that maybe you didn't realize the ex like extent of it, yeah, and just how hard that is for them to navigate and and probably in a sense you can understand and resonate in a way, and that's why you feel like you carry that with you.

SPEAKER_02 6:12

100%, yeah. And I just want to click my fingers. I said last night to one of my clients, I just want to click my fingers so badly and take the pain away. Like almost a part of me just wants to take it from her and like have it myself, yeah. Um, so yeah, navigating that at the moment, but I'm so lucky that I have such a beautiful naturopathic community around me, and I have you, and you see the medical side of it, you know, in nursing, and we really do live in a beautiful time of medicine and you know naturopathic care now where women are able to get much better support than they've previously been able to get.

SPEAKER_00 6:50

Yeah, um, for sure, but it's still like such a long road to go. I think the healthcare system has many flaws. Yeah. But the thing is that helps people have a little bit of hope is the people behind that and the emotion behind it.

SPEAKER_02 7:13

And I think that is ultimately what uh continues to shine through in all of these things is like the people who have uh dedicated their time and energy in learning uh how uh you know uh reproductive uh health works and why we experience pain in the way we do, and how can we navigate that to help ease it, and what other steps we can take to help prevent it from becoming so exacerbated that it debilitates someone's life and the love and the passion that comes behind the person that's giving the the service, I think really helps women who are going through those hard times, and I think that's you, yeah, and you and like because we've been there, you know, and we've been on the other side as well. Like, obviously, not to experience the exact thing that another person has been experiencing, but yeah, when you have that personal experience and you've kind of had to do it all yourself when someone comes to you in so much pain or so much hurt, you want to make sure that they're not doing it by themselves.

SPEAKER_00 8:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:25

Mo just checked my mic.

SPEAKER_00 8:27

No, okay, I always do it now. I don't know why.

SPEAKER_04 8:30

Well, obviously, you know why, because I always fucking forget to turn it on.

SPEAKER_02 8:34

Um, but yeah, that's kind of been my it's not like it is a negative. It is a negative of this week, but I'm working through it and I just yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:43

I don't think it's a like a a super negative negative trait. I think it's more we need to you just need to finesse that skill of being able to still feel compassion and empathy towards your clients, but being able to not let that seep into your life. Yeah. Because you know, but personally when I've experienced that, it's ended up causing me uh it's almost I've had to take a really big step back because then it does, it affects you because you really just you your heart bleeds for these people and you just want them to be in such a better place, and you know yourself that you alone can't do that, you can't move mountains, we can't we can't eliminate pain like a magic fairy. But what we can do is what we do now, which is provide support, show compassion, show empathy, provide resources, give education, use every tool we have. Yeah, that's all we can do in that moment, and it's just it's hard to watch that process, but I think you gotta look at you've done the best you can do in that moment, and you continue to try and do the best you can do for your clients. So that's enough.

SPEAKER_02 10:07

It's an interesting one, isn't it? Like um, I guess this bleeds into all parts of our life, just being again being women and showing empathy and being caring. Like this would even bleed into you being, you know, a mum and a part uh wife and you know, holding up a household. It's like yeah, when does it flowing too much on one side? Yeah, yeah. But thank you for your advice there. You're always so good um with that kind of stuff, and I think, yeah, you're you always give the perfect advice. Thank you. You're like, I didn't want it. No, I did, no, I did. I know it's important, it's important, and yeah, I do carry a lot, a lot for every single person that comes and sees.

SPEAKER_00 10:53

Well, it just shows that you're you're you're truly and deeply passionate about your clients and their honestly, and all I think about. And that is all essentially is gonna set you apart from other people, because they're really gonna see that you wholeheartedly are invested in their health just as much as they are, and that is super, super important, especially in this current like stage of women's lives. Yeah, yeah, it's just something that is incomparable, like you can't, yeah, yeah. Like it's honestly, I don't have to say anymore there. Yeah, thank you, Mo.

SPEAKER_02 11:34

Um but on like the flip side of that, also career focused for me at the moment. I've had this beautiful opportunity arise to start working. Gingham was so excited. Start working out of a clinic, um, a really, really um beautiful clinic here in Brisbane. Amazing. Um, it's owned by a naturopath called Shannon, and she is fucking amazing. Like, oh my god.

SPEAKER_00 12:04

Fangirl, fangirl, fangir, fangirl. She's insane. When I saw the um content stuff that you guys all did the other day, I was just like the aura in that that room felt like it seemed like it was just energetic.

SPEAKER_02 12:18

It was crazy. Like it was, you know me. I can't.

SPEAKER_00 12:21

I wasn't even in the room.

SPEAKER_03 12:22

I'm like the aura in the room. I wanted you in the room so hard. I was like, no, come on.

SPEAKER_00 12:28

I would have just been the hype girl in the corner.

SPEAKER_02 12:31

Well, then it's actually next to a hairdresser, and this hairdresser just opened up her um what do you call it? Is it a clinic as well? A hairdressing salon. It's a salon. And she literally was there being our hype girl. Like she was amazing. She was with the iPhone, she was getting in on all angles. She was like, Yeah, girls, yeah, girls. It was so good. And all of the girls at work there, like I'm quite a shy person when you first meet me, and I just did not feel shy at all because they were so warm, they were so welcoming, and we love warm, so warm and like bubbly, but also just really real. Like there was no really real, really real, no mask, there was nothing. It was like you just show up 100% as who you are, and that's the person that is going to be accepted. Yeah. And I just literally, anything that was in my brain was just coming out of my mouth, and I just felt so at home, like with my people. It was amazing. I'm so excited to start.

SPEAKER_00 13:28

We love we love feeling at home with our people.

SPEAKER_02 13:30

Yeah, it was.

SPEAKER_00 13:31

When we can let our freak flag out.

SPEAKER_02 13:33

I literally was. I was saying penis, penis, penis.

SPEAKER_03 13:36

We all were from one of the first episodes, penis, penis, penis. And when we were taking photos, and we're just saying penis, like to try and loosen us up. Um, do penises loosen you up? Well, I don't know. Maybe sometimes they get me all tense. You know what I mean? They always get me a bit tense.

SPEAKER_02 13:57

Um but no, it was so cool. And it's just it actually feeds really awesomely into what we're talking about today, like creating an ecosystem. Yeah. Just to have a community of other naturopaths and nutritionists to like you know me.

SPEAKER_00 14:10

I'm a little sleuth. I had a little look, and I was like, oh my god, love, love the space. All of these women have like their own little sections within the clinic. So we all have really um different niches. Obviously, you're a naturopath, and then there's a nutritionist, diet. Two nutritionists. Is it a dietitian or a nutritionist?

SPEAKER_02 14:32

Two nutritionists, um, two naturopaths. So yeah, so cool. And yeah, the energy was quite literally 10 out of 10. Like, I feel like the universe. I've been doing a lot of manifesting work this year.

SPEAKER_00 14:46

No, sis, you've been doing manifesting your whole life.

SPEAKER_02 14:49

Yeah, like extra this year. Like, I've really been, I'm surprised I didn't do it with a full moon last night, but like the previous full moons, new moons. I know you're not supposed to manifest in a full moon, but I've been sending stuff into the universe and I've been doing it anyway. Um, like who makes the rules? We don't know. Um, and I've been really being quite outlandish with what I've been putting into the universe.

SPEAKER_00 15:13

Okay, can I just that's your word of the day today? You've already said outlandish, I reckon, like 15 times. Yes. Oh my god, okay. I love it.

SPEAKER_02 15:21

Okay. It's very outlandish. Pop that one in. But I've been saying like crazy things, thinking, oh, maybe they might pop up in June or July. And then all of a sudden they've been popping up like a week later. And my friend Abby that I work with, she's like, Morgan, can you tell me what you've been doing?

SPEAKER_03 15:37

Because I want to start doing it.

SPEAKER_00 15:39

You're like, I'm actually in my bed. I've got a little like a bunch of cards. I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 15:45

Like, I don't. It's super witchy, it's super witchy.

SPEAKER_02 15:51

But yeah, I think it's been working. Also, obviously, I work quite hard, but um, yeah, so that's so beautiful. And I start there next week.

SPEAKER_00 16:00

Oh my god, I'm so excited.

SPEAKER_02 16:02

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 16:03

I feel like from the very beginning of our journey, that's always what we've wanted. Like we've we've literally said we want to see each other like grow within our own worlds, and it's just so nice to see because I think back even back last year in what September or August when we started, like you know, started the ball rolling with what we wanted to do um in terms of merging our little businesses and the ecosystem we're creating, and where you were am I on? No, I thought you were off, I couldn't see the light.

SPEAKER_04 16:36

I was like, Yeah, you're fucking kidding, it's a you didn't do it.

SPEAKER_00 16:40

The light isn't very fucking bright, that's why.

SPEAKER_02 16:43

Yeah, it tricks us.

SPEAKER_00 16:45

Um, but yes, you were still like not having um heaps of client consults, but even in the progression from back then to now, like it's amplified so much and like triples fucking good to see. Triple. And my mum actually asked me about that last week, and I was like, she's doing so well, yeah, yeah. Um, but I think that just goes to show that growth can look so interesting and different in so many ways, but then when you reflect back, you're like, wow, that actually was growth. Like I've grown so much as a person and in my business. And now look at you, you're now in a beautiful um practice. Yeah, and I know like it's just the world's changing for you.

SPEAKER_02 17:36

I could not be more happy, really.

SPEAKER_00 17:38

Like, I could not be more happy for you.

SPEAKER_02 17:40

Bursting from the seams. It's been an emotional roller coaster these last two weeks, but like in I think a positive way. So totally, yeah, it's been good. I've been very excited to announce that news because I when I found out I was like, oh my god, I literally started crying. I was like, um, so yeah, they're my mood swings for the week.

SPEAKER_00 18:00

Love it, love your mood swings. Well, my mood swings are not nearly as exciting as yours, but um always exciting.

SPEAKER_02 18:08

Always exciting.

SPEAKER_00 18:09

But I got my car back.

SPEAKER_02 18:11

Oh my god, we still have the car. So last remember, last episode you you had a positive, but then we haven't spoken about the negative again, I don't think. Because remember, you had the breakdown. I had the breakdown and then you and then it was only $400. Well, look. So then what happened after that?

SPEAKER_00 18:29

I didn't get I was meant to only not have my car for like four days. It was two weeks.

SPEAKER_02 18:35

Oh my god. And I finally See, I didn't actually know this, you haven't told me this.

SPEAKER_00 18:38

Yeah, no, I finally got it. What have you been doing? Walking to work. Oh, I've been using the the bush basher. It's Cam's parents. They've got like this Prado, it's it's literally been through it.

SPEAKER_02 18:54

I thought you were gonna say the bus then. I was like, for some reason I just can't pitch you on a bus. I don't know why.

SPEAKER_00 18:58

Me on a bus. I used to I used to catch public transport. I just I don't know why. Not so much. I mean like I can't.

SPEAKER_04 19:07

Yeah, I'm not I'm not picturing.

SPEAKER_00 19:09

Because I don't want to, but because like if I have to pick up Lani, true, true, true, true. Oh sorry, I'm just gonna catch the bus. But who knows?

SPEAKER_02 19:15

It might be 45 minutes and then I'll just carry Lani home from Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_00 19:21

So bus is not an option for me, especially when I'm working till like midnight or doing a night shift and then having to get a bus at like six in the morning. No thanks.

SPEAKER_02 19:33

Not from South Brisbane all the way back here either.

SPEAKER_00 19:35

No, not a vibe. No, but yeah, it's finally fixed, and um I'm just so grateful. You know, my car's not nothing flash, it's it's like 12 years old, I think, but it just feels so much more like modern and new compared to the soprano because soprano had like no air comb. Oh my god, no music, oh my god, it's just like it's been through so many adventures, yeah. And it's just old. Yeah, it's done like 465,000 kilometres.

SPEAKER_02 20:11

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_00 20:12

Like it's it's gone places, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:16

She's been on journeys. Yeah, it's like is that the car that Cam grew up in, or not that old?

SPEAKER_00 20:21

Well, pretty much they had it they were they got it in 20 uh 2008.

SPEAKER_02 20:28

Oh yeah, so that would have been like yeah, primary school. Yeah. Yeah, okay, wow.

SPEAKER_00 20:31

So all the boys grew up in it in high school and it's gone to lots of footy games and it's had lots of love. See the world. Yeah, it's had lots of love. But um, it's just holding on. Like it's just you were glad to have your family member that isn't yeah, it's just like it's why do they still have it? Because it is actually a pretty good car, like it does the job, it goes places and it's a Prado. Prado's a really good, like Toyota is a great brand um in terms of like the the longevity of the car. So I think they're just gonna keep it until it's in the ground, pretty much.

SPEAKER_02 21:10

Nice, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 21:13

I honestly don't know what I would have done. Although it did, it broke down on me. It had a slat battery.

SPEAKER_03 21:20

Yeah, but I need to like get some car juju out of the system. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 21:26

What the fuck?

SPEAKER_03 21:27

Universe, what the fuck? No, okay.

SPEAKER_00 21:29

If it's car juju that I've got, that's fine. As long as it's nothing else, then I'm happy for the car juju. Like I'll cop that.

SPEAKER_04 21:37

Yeah. I'll cop that. I can deal with that.

SPEAKER_00 21:39

But um, I was working a night shift. I didn't finish till like midnight, got into the car, and for some reason I had this weird feeling. I texted Kim being like, Oh, not sure how I'm gonna go getting home before I even got in the car. And then I got in the car, tried to turn it on, didn't fucking turn on. Didn't turn on, and I'm like, Oh god damn it so I tried calling Oh god damn it he didn't answer Oh god damn it I tried calling him like three times he was like gone to the world he was having a great little snow so then I had to call my mum and I was like Mum you're gonna have to pick me up because I I needed to pick I needed to get to Lani because I came goes to work so early in the morning and if I couldn't get home I was like what am I gonna do? And so I got mum to pick me up. Thank you, Mum, you're the real MVP. Oh my god, mum's oh my god she picked me up at 12 30 at my work then I dropped her home then I drove to Asplay and then I and then I left here at like five in the morning I dropped mum's car back and then my nana bless her little cotton socks she came and picked me up from my mum's house and took Lani back here.

SPEAKER_02 22:53

Uh-huh, so you took Lani to your mum's house. Oh my gosh, Mo.

SPEAKER_00 22:57

And then I had to um get it was just a dead battery, but I had to get RACQ out to my. Do you have RACQ roadside assist? I'm probably asking. It was my in-laws. They have like gold, they're like gold members of RACQ, so I was like, oh my god, what a life saver.

SPEAKER_02 23:14

You RACQ, like golden tip, I'm not an adult y person. Like you know this, I'm not really up with what you should do as an adult, but RACQ has saved me that many times. So only $100 a year, it is so fucking worth it. Because they will come out, and if you are broken down for any reason, usually they'll be able to fix it on the spot.

SPEAKER_00 23:35

Well, there you go.

SPEAKER_02 23:35

Or they'll tow you for free.

SPEAKER_00 23:37

I think they can tow you up to 20 kilometers.

SPEAKER_02 23:39

Yes, yeah. So if you're like in central, like if you're in any of these areas, you'll be fine. Because you'd just go to the closest mechanic, wouldn't you?

SPEAKER_00 23:47

Yeah, well, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:49

I don't have a mechanic personally.

SPEAKER_00 23:50

But that was pretty much it, and I I I feel like I've got a win there. I've got my big win. You've got the little blue beast back. I've got the blue beast back. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:00

Oh well, I really hope that next week we're not still talking about your car because that would mean that something else has gone wrong.

SPEAKER_00 24:06

Yeah, look at it. Like this is this is the final piece. Yeah, okay. This is the final piece. So next podcast episode, I'm not gonna be telling you about my car. I'm gonna be telling you about greater things.

SPEAKER_02 24:17

I'm excited. Universe, listen to that.

SPEAKER_00 24:20

If anything else happens, how did you think our ecosystem began?

SPEAKER_02 24:24

I love that you just throw that on me.

SPEAKER_00 24:27

I'm just like, you know, too.

SPEAKER_02 24:29

So um, well, just to give a bit more context, today's podcast episode, we're going to be talking about like ecosystems, not like nature ecosystems, but business ecosystems, business ecosystems, brand ecosystems, friend, even personal ecosystems, family, they all bleed into each other, especially when you have a small business. Um, but how did our ecosystem start? Well, it was you. It was you, it was you, and like we touched on this briefly in the first episode, I remember, but I remember you followed me on Instagram with Love Lani, and first of all, I didn't actually realise what it was. It hadn't clicked in my brain, and that's my bad, stupid, like obviously. No, um how is that stupid for you? How are you meant to know what Love Lani is? Well, I should have known. Um, and you followed me on Instagram, and I remember you came to my birthday, and I remember you you were sitting across from me, and you're like, we need to get chatting. Like, I have all of these ideas, like you're and you're really excited.

SPEAKER_00 25:35

I know, I feel like I get I get in this excitable stage, and I'm like, I have to do it, I have to do it right now.

SPEAKER_02 25:43

I'm the same. I get so excited, and I start talking really fast, and I've got all of these ideas, and I'm jumping from here, here, here, here, here, and nothing's making sense. And probably the person listening to me is like, eh. But I think that's why we work so well because we kind of work in the same way. Yeah. And one in one of us is kind of, I might even call it manic. I don't know if it's quite manic. Ah, we can get it.

SPEAKER_00 26:01

Sometimes we do both of us get really manic and then it drops off.

SPEAKER_02 26:04

And then we get manic again, and then it drops off. But because we both work in that same way, I think it works well because we're quite forgiving of like the drop-off. We've also like talking about jumping around everywhere, we've also got a disco ball in here today, and the sun is shining off it.

SPEAKER_00 26:23

And we've just got a bunch of fairies around us.

SPEAKER_02 26:26

It looks so gorgeous. It's nice to have some sun because it was raining when I got here, and I hid in the car for 20 minutes so my hair wouldn't go crazy. But anywho, our ecosystem, draw it back. You reached out to me, we started chatting. At the start, I was a bit like hold your horses because I was already so stressed out of my brain, but had no one to talk to about it, so no one would have known how stressed I was. Literally no one, because from the outside, everything always looks fine. Um, so I kind of didn't really press it any further. And then I remember you were quite persisted, and thank fucking god you were. But again, I was so stressed at the time, I was like, I can't, I can't do this right now. But then we got our first, like, we chatted the first time, and I was like, hang on a second, this is making me feel way fucking better, one like way less stressed. And two, we could build something really beautiful here because we had the same vision, and I'd never spoken to someone yet that kind of had a vision similar to mine, so I could never communicate it to anyone, which was really lonely. Um, so thank thank you for being so persistent because I was actually being a little bit- You're like, oh my god, you're so annoying.

SPEAKER_00 27:38

Yeah, I never thought that off.

SPEAKER_03 27:40

I never thought you were annoying. I just thought, I can't. I just literally would put my hands in my hand, I'm like, oh my god, I just I'm like that dog that's relentless.

SPEAKER_00 27:47

No, it's like non-dogs a pat and you're like, I can't. Oh yeah, like the cute puppy.

SPEAKER_01 27:51

Yeah, the cute puppy.

SPEAKER_00 27:53

I keep coming up and like sitting on your back.

SPEAKER_02 27:59

But that's how it started, and then honestly, from there, it was the most organic process. Like it's literally been not almost a year now, but coming up to it. Yeah, kind of, not really. But we're on the way. We're on the way. It was August last year. Um, but everything that's happened since then has been such an organic progression, and honestly, every time I hang out with you, talk to you, leave you, I feel empowered, inspired, not stressed, just a more powerful person when we're together.

SPEAKER_00 28:32

I think as well, like the difference, like just to be very clear, Love Lani and ANERA are very separate businesses. Like, ANERA is your business and Lovelani is my business, but but merging those worlds together, what that allows is that allows us to create a connection to a wider base. Yeah. I think like and and creating um mood swings is like the it's like the part where you get the heart and soul, like you get to really understand like who Morgan is, who I am, what we're about, why we started what we started, and why we continue to go down this pathway. I think being able to have that context really helps.

SPEAKER_02 29:23

100%. You want to know the person getting together.

SPEAKER_00 29:25

It's like someone's getting to meet you and getting to know you and what an air is about without having to have that initial consult being like, ah, what's going on? Like they've already they already know and because we're not conventional, no.

SPEAKER_02 29:41

So, like, and I I think sometimes on Instagram it can come off as that because Instagram is a bit more curated. So if someone maybe came to meet me me or meet you, they might think, oh, they're a bit weird. But at least if like they Well, you know what you get. Yeah, exactly. You know what you get. Like, if you heard us on the podcast now, and well, a little bit on Instagram, but not as much, we'll get better at that. We'll get better at them.

SPEAKER_00 30:03

But that's a that's a challenge.

SPEAKER_02 30:05

That's a challenge, but we'll get there. Um, but yeah, like it's and also this is our therapy session, so totally. Welcome to the therapy session.

SPEAKER_00 30:15

If you get but it helps to link things together, I think. Oh 100% and I think the same for what her seasons will be. It's again, it's it's about that connection, but on a completely new scale, not just connecting through conversation, like you guys can't respond back to us. We wish you could, yeah. I know we wish you could be a part of our conversations. Also, that would be just so fun. There'd be so much chat, but you can't, yeah. So I guess the part of her seasons is being able to have that one-on-one connection with women and like face to face, and have I feel like like bringing it back to basics, like being able to like enjoy company of other women, talk about other shit that everyone's going through, experience life, all of that stuff. I think I by having all of that, we sort of are like dipping into all of these little spaces, and so then people aren't going, oh Love Lani is just another online business. People can actually relate and connect to why Love Lani has the products it has, yeah, or what uh the story is behind it because like they could just get any of the products that I sell exactly at uh the actual brands themselves, like directly, or through other websites or other stores, but they choose to come through Love Lani because of the story behind it, yeah, of the connection. They're like not just being connected to that product, but they're being connected to the story. I think that goes a massive way, and I think that's the same for Anera, like women are being able to hear how uh passionate you are about women's health and you know, like the menstrual cycle and how that can affect us in our like in our everyday and the amount of study that you do is just amazing. Like, I think people if if we didn't talk about it here, people wouldn't really understand that extent. But they are able to get a glimpse of what happens behind closed doors, and so then they for me, even like listening to you, because we listen, I listen to every single episode. Oh, yeah, I listen back, I listen to every single episode also because I'm like critiquing myself, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 32:43

Let's still do that, or let's never say that again, then I say it again.

SPEAKER_00 32:49

But I listened to Morgan and the way that she handles and navigates um neuropathy in and and talking about it, and it's just like so insightful, and you can really tell that you do put so much effort into um what you're learning so that you're giving the best advice to your clients, and that for me would help me differentiate whether or not I was going to go with you or with someone else as an atroph, because I think you want to know that what you're getting, because the services like let's be real, let's break it down for a minute. The services of neuropathy can be expensive, definitely, and I think you want to know that if you're investing in your health, which uh everyone should absolutely do, whether that looks like going down you know, uh neuropathy or going down like nutrition, all of that stuff, being able to understand the extent of what you're investing in, I think really helps a lot of people.

SPEAKER_02 33:54

100%, 100%. I could not agree more. And can I just take do one note though, one exciting note on the pricing? We just got private health rebates back. Oh my god, stop. Yeah, as of yesterday. So that might help some people that have private health in regards to the costing. Um, but yeah, it is an investment, like there's no lie there. It is, and um but I think it's 100% worth it. And yeah, the amount of study, and you know what? Not just me, like every single person I went to uni with, or every naturopath that I know personally, like I am telling you behind the scenes there is hours of work each week. Like hours, whether that's going back through textbooks, whether that's reading scientific studies, whether that's upskilling, using using your money that you're giving them to then put the money back into mentoring, into extra training, into extra study. Like the study that goes on behind the scenes is is pretty insane, but you know, we do it because we love it and we do it because 100% you have to. Science is updating by the second.

SPEAKER_00 35:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 35:13

And if you're not studying every week, you're not up to date, and you're not you're not being the best practitioner for your clients. So lucky we all love it. Like, I literally get high off it. Like I run out of my room a little bit medic every night because I'm like, oh my god, guess what?

SPEAKER_03 35:27

I just thought about the vagina packet. Like, let me tell you, let me tell you guess what herbs I can use now.

SPEAKER_00 35:35

Oh, so we love it, but yeah, there is it's like nursing, we have to keep up to date.

SPEAKER_03 35:40

Any medical working.

SPEAKER_00 35:41

So many things are changing. We actually have a requirement from ARPRA to have at least 20 hours of CPD each year. When we do our registration, we have to provide evidence that we have maintained our our um like recency of practice, being able to understand the um updating you know, medical practices that is continuously changing. Like, even I was talking because we've got a whole bunch of new grads that have come through, and it's good, it's a good refresher for us because it helps us like we have to be in the current no, yeah, otherwise it's like oh, we actually have to recheck ourselves.

SPEAKER_02 36:29

And they always say you actually learn more from the new practitioners because they're coming. You obviously have the clinical experience, but they're coming with the fresh eyes, the fresh eyes and the fresh spirits. Yeah, so you learn, you have equal to learn from each other. Yeah, that's why it's so important that you always get the freshies through because like we've all been in careers where you've got the people that have been in there for 50 years and they're just well, they're over it, aren't they?

SPEAKER_00 36:54

Oh, I call them dinosaurs. Yeah, and I know that's probably not a nice term, but it is.

SPEAKER_02 36:59

And we'll get there, maybe. No, I'll never get there. But like you can see how someone gets to that point. I've never haven't worked for 50 years, so I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 37:07

Um, but you need the fresh eyes to make sure that we I think I think sometimes, yeah, people who have been in the industry for uh for eons, for bloody eons. The bloody eons.

SPEAKER_03 37:19

Not the dinosaurs.

SPEAKER_00 37:22

I honestly I'm like, oh my god, they are, they're dinosaurs because they just they're very stuck in their ways and not happy to to change with with you know the modern um world of of healthcare. And so it's it's it's quite hard, especially when you are a younger nurse or a younger health practitioner, and you really are trying to um change that uh that sort of environment and that culture in the workplace, it's really really hard. So and over the years I've sort of seen like a divide sometimes like in the energy with the like workplace because you know, new practice versus old practice, what's right and what's wrong, and it's like you know, it's not to say that the new way is the wrong way or the the old way is the wrong way, it's just that there's multiple ways that we can we can target this. It's just about how we go about it and kind of incorporating a little bit from all of us. Like let's just be open-minded, please.

SPEAKER_02 38:26

Oh, can we just preach out to the whole fucking world? Can we preach out the to the whole fucking world right now? Like, sorry.

SPEAKER_00 38:32

I know. Oh, don't get me started.

SPEAKER_02 38:34

Don't get me started on the world, which is a sad, sad.

SPEAKER_00 38:38

It is sad, but that's sort of yeah, our ecosystem. So it it's sort of just flourished, I guess. And now here we are, we're making a podcast, and I don't see it stopping anytime soon. Never, it's never stopping. And we're about to trial our first event soon as well. So we're doing a private one for um a select amount of people that we've decided to do just to see whether or not it's something that we do truly want to continue going down, and I think it is.

SPEAKER_02 39:11

I think so.

SPEAKER_00 39:12

Well we we just like to test the waters before we dive in. Like with the podcast, we tested the waters for what how many months? Like September, October, November, December.

SPEAKER_02 39:22

So four, five months.

SPEAKER_00 39:23

Four or five months before we fully buckled down and said, nah, let's go.

SPEAKER_02 39:28

And because I when I do things, I do like as much as you can't predict the future when I commit to something, I'm such a loyal person to a fault. So, like, once I've committed, I'm like, there's no budge. So I like, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:40

This is the this is the the what what Morgan and I are navigating right now is that Morgan needs to only commit so far.

SPEAKER_02 39:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:52

Because yes, you are so loyal to a fault.

SPEAKER_02 39:55

Because once I commit, even if it's at my own detriment, I will always be there, which we yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:01

And I'm like such a forward planner. Like I'm like, let's plant months in advance, so like we've got we've got we've got a like a a process that we can just like keep rolling into, and you're like, okay, we'll work for a second and I'm a little bit more happier.

SPEAKER_02 40:19

But I think that is such a good dynamic because you need both. You do need I get in trouble sometimes because I don't plan too far, like uh far enough in advance. Yes. Um, and maybe I just ground you a little bit more into the moment, maybe.

SPEAKER_00 40:36

Well, I think yeah, in some parts you definitely do because I don't have a choice. Yeah. Like I'm like, okay, well, I don't want to, I don't want to you don't want me to start crying.

SPEAKER_04 40:51

Well, I'll start crying on you.

SPEAKER_00 40:53

And then I'll feel bad.

SPEAKER_02 40:56

And then we'll cry together. Yeah. But I am, but once I have found my footing in something, that's when I'm happy to start planning way in advance and like put things in calendars, you know, months in advance and have that rough plan for the year.

SPEAKER_00 41:09

Um I think Morgan just needs to see the success of this first um event to go, okay, yes, it's something we but you know what? It is gonna be successful because it's gonna be energy into trying to get um things sorted, and you know, it's it's been challenging navigating it, to be honest, for both of us, because it's something that we've been funding ourselves.

SPEAKER_02 41:32

Yes. And um with both small businesses still working part-time jobs, like you've got a family, like let's be honest, money ain't falling out of the trees just yet.

SPEAKER_00 41:44

No, we don't have money falling out of the trees. What we do have falling out of the trees is leaves.

SPEAKER_04 41:50

Yeah, yeah. Have you seen that TikTok when it's like Yeah, I'm just gonna move on from that one. Sorry. No, I love it. But have you seen that um reel going around and it's like from when in a small business do you get to actually keep the money? Yeah, and everyone's like, uh, you don't.

SPEAKER_00 42:13

There's nothing that's being put in, like the trees are still fucking there. Yeah, there's nothing that's going on.

SPEAKER_02 42:21

We're fertilizing the tree, yeah. So it gets bigger and bigger and bigger.

SPEAKER_00 42:24

Until it until it uh blossoms into apples millions, no trillions, no.

SPEAKER_03 42:32

But um, yeah, so we are funding it all ourselves.

SPEAKER_00 42:37

Um by Millie, who's the founder of Kame. She started her podcast at the same time as ours.

SPEAKER_02 42:42

Oh, is that the jewelry? Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 42:45

And I love it because she talks about insight into like businesses, new businesses, starting up, what she wished she knew when she was doing her business because she's obviously her jewelry brand is amazing. It's ended up going from like something that was literally in her best friend's um downstairs space to like they have their own warehouse now. She's got a team of employees, she is literally killing it in the game. Like, and she has actually been such a muse of mine throughout all of this journey. Like her clo Chloe Fisher, they are my two muses. I look at them and I'm like, you girls are fucking powerhouses and how can I be like that?

SPEAKER_02 43:31

It's so and see that's where when women like inspire each other, it pushes you to go further. It's so beautiful, yeah. It's so beautiful. Because without that to look up to, sometimes when it is hard and you've only got yourself to rely on, you're like, How the fuck can I do this? Yeah, and then you see them, you're like, No, no, no, I can do this.

SPEAKER_00 43:50

You just have to keep going, and I think she's she reminded me, and this is why I'm getting back into the the um the uncomfortable phase, is like. you have to continue to put yourself out there. You have no choice when you're a forward-facing brand. You just have to continue doing that. You have to show up. You've got to be in in front of the camera and get uncomfortable with feeling uncomfortable. Get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable. Like you can't just go, oh okay, well you can't be passive.

SPEAKER_02 44:19

No.

SPEAKER_00 44:20

Because where's that going to get you? Yeah. It's not going to get you very far.

SPEAKER_02 44:24

Yeah. And that's something I think I still need to learn. I think I'm so passive when it comes to that kind of stuff.

SPEAKER_00 44:30

No, I think both of us are still navigating that space and she's pretty spec in her really yeah no I think I could be better.

SPEAKER_02 44:38

Actually no you're very good.

SPEAKER_00 44:40

No you are you are like you're like we'll park that we'll park that right she just gave me I am not picking up what you're putting down but she had her latest episode was with this um beautiful girl I'm I'm like I'm actually mental blanking here. Sorry so sorry. But we'll put it in the show notes. She has um she started her floristry business when she lived in Brisbane and then she moved to Melbourne and now she's a co-founder of um it's called Nudo or nudie events.

SPEAKER_02 45:16

Nudie events.

SPEAKER_00 45:17

Yeah okay I'm just fully I'm butchering this okay we'll look it up essentially seeing how that goes how that's like progressed and they in the beginning they were grinding they had family and friends invest in their business and that's sort of where we're at now um anyways they're such a big company now they do events and just like they've skyrocketed and she said you know you have to be really uncomfortable in that stage it's like the cringe phase like you gotta you gotta just grind in that uncomfortable stage until you get somewhere and then people all of a sudden start to notice and they're like oh how did you get there? Yeah well actually I I did all the work in the background leading up to it but you don't see that often see that because no one no one talks about that part of the journey yeah and I'm like that could not have hit home more for me because I feel like this is where we are right now. We're in that phase where we're trying to we're trying to get momentum we're trying to grow business we're trying to get a little bit more we are doing our own work owning our own business working our other jobs like you have two jobs I have one job well and then and a family yeah but like it's not we we don't have the luxury yet of being able to just say this is solely what we're committing to.

SPEAKER_02 46:47

No.

SPEAKER_00 46:48

But we will get there but it's like this is why we're creating the ecosystem because we are trying to get to a spot where we can say okay now we want to focus on just doing our things like imagine being a full-time podcaster so much fun so much fun and yeah it has I think like to talk about the importance of um yeah finding that community and maybe using a bit of Mo's persistence to find it you do you have to like Millie was talking about when she first started doing her handmade jewellery before Carme blew up to what it is today she would she would hit up so many businesses so many people and she would get nothing back in the beginning and I think it just goes to show persistence is key you need to be persistent and you need to show that you're willing to continue to show up to these people regardless of where you're at in terms of your scale and growth of your business and your brand because in the end all that's gonna pay off from that is that you're gonna end up forming a relationship with these people or you're not and you'll form relationships with other businesses and other people and you'll be able to grow in that way. I think persistence is key persistence is key that's why you and I show up time and time again to do our podcast because it's not gonna grow if we do not feed it.

SPEAKER_02 48:20

If we don't water the bad boy water water water and also when you find your people hold on to them tightly hold on to I don't know if I've gone on a tangent there but I'm just thinking as you're speaking and thank you for sharing all of that because it was very inspirational and I needed to hear it. I just got really passionate no I loved it I was like whoa this is this is really hitting um but also when you like find your people to grow these ecosystems and grow these businesses with hold on tight and as much as life gets busy and some weeks you can't put as much into the relationships as you want to you know whether that's me or you're my new clinic clinic I'm working in or whether it's our friends or whether it's your work friends you know some weeks you are time poor but like sometimes just a simple message to be like how's your week been goes or a quick little voice note or just a little check in or send someone a reel like reminding people that you're that you're thinking of them and they're in your mind.

SPEAKER_00 49:24

Yeah yeah water those water that ecosystem water those those relationships because that sounded weird relate those things because we get further when we're together hundred percent we get like the model of this whole episode is what I wanted to be in the very beginning of all of this journey and never ever want to feel like I'm competing with anyone because there is no competition. The only competition is myself literally I am literally competing with my own mind. Yeah and I don't want to fucking compete with anyone else who the fuck has time if you have time to be competing with someone else not enough competing with my own mind mate mate when you wake up in the morning too much competition in this world already like everyone ends up fucking fighting.

SPEAKER_02 50:17

It's just no it's it's icky yeah it's so icky and we're not about that we're we want to just change that around yeah there's room for everyone at the table everyone has a seat and if there isn't seats left we'll go and find more seat yeah we can fucking sit on mine or sit on my lap yeah there's room for everyone and the more people sitting on our laps the further we'll all get together and to be honest we'll just be happier and like more joyful and we'll just have more love and that's just going to make the world a better place in general. There we go. There we go that is all that is all is that all no probably not well that is all for this episode I think so I think we've touched on everything. Maybe actually just to tie in her seasons again I just want to keep touching on it um keep your eyes peeled for the future events um it's going to be we uploaded an Instagram post recently on the Her Seasons Instagram but it's to bring this mood swing mood swings community to bring the Love Lani community and to bring my beautiful clients and the Anera community or and tonic ho now. And tonic house new clinic that I'm working in make us like a real life space where we can all lay eyes on each other in the flesh and be like oh my gosh yeah we're together and then we'll leave and we'll be again let's have some unhinged conversations we want to talk about it all let's get a bit what's your word of the day again outlandish yeah let's get a bit outlandish let's just have a good time and get back to basics I feel like we lose touch of um like doing things with people sometimes especially right now like the world is so busy life is so busy there's lots going on going on in the world so we can be a safe place in the world for each other when there are fucking shit things going on.

SPEAKER_00 52:17

I am so excited I just don't know you know whether or not you guys understand what is going to like eventuate from this but we have some beautiful businesses that are already super keen to get involved um and I just women owned women owned like and I just can't wait to share those with you like it's not just gonna be like a you know women's circle and we're gonna talk about our emotions we're gonna have to we are gonna do that though well we will definitely but not a whole thing so many fun things there's gonna be other different points of interaction and um I just think yeah you you just have to come to see wait and see wait and see wait and see okay I love you bye we love you bye everyone have a good Easter