Leah Melby Clinton: Calling Yourself an Entrepreneur & Creating Community

A career at Margaux, a growing community for female creatives, a social media following and three young children… how does Leah manage it all? 

This week, Nan sits down with her friend Leah Melby Clinton - a writer, brand storyteller and community builder. The two women chat about Leah’s multi-hyphenate life, why it took her years to call herself an entrepreneur, and her noteworthy tips for staying organized and connected. And, of course, they also chat all about fashion and shopping. 

Find links to everything mentioned on our Substack: https://nanphilip.substack.com/t/noteworthy-with-nan-podcast

Stay tuned for more Noteworthy with Nan episodes every Thursday!!

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Leah Melby Clinton

01:10 Astrology and Chart Reading

05:20 Working at Margaux Shoes 

06:23 Building the Diana Community

08:10 Brand Marketing and Substack

13:49 Commuting from the Suburbs

16:23 In Kind Magazine

18:57 Becoming an Entrepreneur

25:30 Working with an Executive Coach

30:48 Leah's Three Noteworthy Tips

42:54 Fashion and Shopping Favorites

Follow Leah

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leahmelbyclinton/

Substack: https://leahmelbyclinton.substack.com/

Diana: https://joindiana.com/

Follow Nan

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nan.philip/ 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nan_philip

Follow the podcast

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noteworthywithnan/ 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@noteworthywithnan 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NoteworthyWithNan 

Credits

Host: Nan Philip

Executive Producer: Julia Aubuchon

Technical Director: Drew Downing

Guest: Leah Melby Clinton

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:04

Hi everyone, welcome back to No Review with Nan. We are here with Leah Melby Clinton, and I'm so excited for you all to get to know her, or maybe you already do, and we'll dive into all of our topics. Leah, thanks for being here. I am deeply jazzed to be here. Oh my god, you're so cute. Okay. I'm sure that we have some overlapping followers, but for anyone who is new to you, will you give us a little elevator pitch on who you are?

SPEAKER_01 0:26

Yes, I am a writer, brand storyteller, and community builder.

SPEAKER_00 0:31

Oh, I like that. That's like a perfect little follow.

SPEAKER_01 0:33

I know you know Hitha Palipoo, and I feel like I am deeply like a student of how you introduce yourself when you feel like you do lots of things and you're multi-hygnate. So I really have workshopped this a lot.

SPEAKER_00 0:43

Okay, what's a good like little one-liner you did as well?

SPEAKER_01 0:46

So I'm all those things. Um, I worked in fashion and women's media for most of my career. Um, and I'm a north-central Florida native, but now I live in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, so suburb of New York City with three children and my husband and two dogs.

SPEAKER_00 1:02

And tell us sort of the various jobs that keep you busy right now. Uh I'm a multi-hephenite.

SPEAKER_01 1:09

I love having plates in the air, which I had my like astrological chart read, and the woman told me that is a thing for me. Oh. Which was if you haven't ever had your chart done, I think the best most freeing thing is people are like, this is you. What you're supposed to be doing. Thank God.

SPEAKER_00 1:22

Because I was like, is this crazy or like Tell everyone like what your sign is, or I don't do it, is it more what your sign is or what your rising sign is? I'm not great at that stuff.

SPEAKER_01 1:30

It comes in, it's like, you know, when you do it for me. I feel like I do a wine tasting you're like, I'm so smart, and then it's out of your head one minute later. So I honestly don't remember all the things. Okay. I'm a Gemini though.

SPEAKER_00 1:38

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 1:39

Which is I love my fellow gems, but we're like a little what's the birthdays for Gemini?

SPEAKER_00 1:43

Like what months?

SPEAKER_01 1:44

May 21 to June 21. Okay. So you're like the twins, so very like kind of all over the place. Um, but I don't remember all my other things. But it was a fascinating experience.

SPEAKER_00 1:54

I've had someone do it for me once, actually, Lil's McKenna's sister. I don't know if I should be plugging her. I don't know if she like still really does it, but her sister used to read charts and whatnot. And she did anything for me a few years ago, and it was so cool. And I wrote it all down and I want I should do it again. But I've actually recently downloaded Hitha Told Us on her episode, that Chawny app. Do you use that?

SPEAKER_01 2:13

No, but every I like listened to that episode while I was in transit or something. I was like, I need to stop and like write this down because there were so many things in there. I was like, I want that. Oh my god, I need to do that.

SPEAKER_00 2:21

There's so many things. Well, you can go to our Substack, subtle plug, and find the links to everything. What we're trying to do is like because so many things come up, I'm making a Substack post for each episode. So you can go back and find all the links. And I downloaded the Chani app and really like it. And now I'm paying for it.

SPEAKER_01 2:35

So got me hook. I could see myself doing the same thing. Um, and I feel like the thing about charts too, it's like you can go back again and again. Because that was kind of the question. So I studied journalism growing up, so I feel like I'm also very curious. So I ask questions constantly of everyone. So that chart reader was kind of like, is this something you do once that sets like a base level for like because your chart is your chart from when you were born into the planet world, whatever? Um, but you can go multiple times and she can they can overlay charts. So you could overlay your chart with a partner or your children. Oh, that's or and also I don't know if all chart people do this, but the lady that um read my chart said, like everything has a chart. So companies have a chart. Right. When I launched, people do it for companies, which is crazy. But when I launched Diana, did you when should I launch this? Yeah. And so I had to tell her like where I was and like the dates I was looking at and stuff. And she was like, do it on this day at 11:42 a.m. And I was like, okay. That's so cool. It's this. But I was like, why not? Did you do it in person with her or was it virtual? No, virtual. Okay, you might have to give us her insight. It she was, I got I was connected to her from um Natalie.

SPEAKER_00 3:38

The Nat Note. She's so cute.

SPEAKER_01 3:40

Because she we did an interview at some point, and she was telling me I'll just get her chart done to try to figure out when she's gonna leave her career as a corporate lawyer. And this lady, and I was like, don't be the lady who read your chart.

SPEAKER_00 3:50

So and I think maybe we need to have like an astrology person on. That would be fun.

SPEAKER_01 3:54

And to understand how you can use this woo-woo stuff in a non-woo-woo way. Yes, I think is really important.

SPEAKER_00 4:00

And like I like a little woo-woo. I'm not too crazy, but I like to like, it's nice to feel like you're on the right path and have someone, as you were saying, say, like, you can have a lot of balls in the air because that's sort of what you're doing. But you're not crazy.

SPEAKER_01 4:10

Because that's what I think kind of you ask. And I think that that's most people's experience when you're sort of like, Am I crazy? Or like, I should stop doing this. This is so stupid, Leah. Like, pick one lane and stare in it. And when someone's like, No, that is not how you're wired, it feels just incredibly comforting, honestly. Yeah. To be like, okay, I can keep doing this. Um, and I think sometimes too that the astro stuff, it like runs parallel with the non-astro-e thing. So people talk about midlife crisis and like organizational psychologists will say these are the ages that it happened, and then the astro people say the same thing of like the way the planets revolve, it's I get it wrong, but maybe 38 to 42, you're in this big transit. And so that midlife crisis that we think of is like men, blah, blah, blah. Okay. But for women, all those values you had that you've because I think that the way I'm like so making a mess of the case.

SPEAKER_00 4:55

Yeah, everyone take all of this as a grain of salt. But no, but I feel like exactly it was like because we only understand it a little bit. That's probably what most of our listeners are in the same place.

SPEAKER_01 5:02

So yes, take it with a grain of salt. That the way the planets were was like it happens in your early 20s and then it happens again in that midlife thing. So a lot of the values and stuff that you really cared about in your early 20s, they change. But you're kind of here being like, what is the matter with me? Why don't I care about these things anymore? And I'm focused on something else. So, anyways, that's my chart.

SPEAKER_00 5:19

And so tell everyone all the different jobs that you currently manage.

SPEAKER_01 5:23

So um, I work for Margot.

SPEAKER_00 5:26

I handle I love, you guys know I'm always wearing Margot shoes.

SPEAKER_01 5:29

I love Margot. Um, so I handle brand marketing or integrated marketing. Okay. So kind of we sit at the nexus of most departments, most teams. Um, I handle a lot of copy, so that's just kind of my background as a writer and editor, but really just thinking of when we think of fall and boots, kind of how do we collect the product that we have coming in, the images that we have, and how do we tell a story for a customer to have them come in, introduce new products, convince you that you need to buy something, help educate you on what size you want. And then after you've bought them, how do we kind of keep you in our world engaged, just falling like in love with the brand again? Um, so it's really great. I met the founders when I was an editor at L, just was at a market appointment with them, and they've been a great, great part of my life. Um, I also do some writing on the side, and then I am building a community called Diana, which is for women with creative women with an entrepreneurial spirit that's been amazing. It was something I wanted in my own life.

SPEAKER_00 6:23

I like have loved watching you build Diana and everything that you're doing with it. And I was a part of it for a bit and went to some of your events, and it's such a unique sort of offering, I feel like that doesn't really exist.

SPEAKER_01 6:34

That's yeah. I mean, I think that's why for me I wanted something like that so badly. A lot of entrepreneurial groups were really focused, I thought, on people who, you know, owned their own businesses. That was all they were doing. And so they had a lot of questions or needs or things that were different than if you're kind of dabbling in it or you're multi-hyphenite or whatnot. So um, it's been just really lovely. We kind of celebrated, I guess, our first, our official kind of second anniversary this summer.

unknown 6:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 6:56

But it just was nice. I think for me, I was really lonely, kind of in the suburbs, not where I was from, with young children. And I miss like when you live in New York, you're around creatives and people who are just as driven as you are all the time. And so it was almost like you need to find your tribe. And I think that can be harder. Totally.

SPEAKER_00 7:12

And I feel like you've kind of built it with Diana. Like it's sort of this texting group, and you have different emails and zooms, and it's a way for these women to come together and find friends and say, I mean, I feel like it was everything from should I buy this tote bag? to who, you know, does anyone have an accountant who can help me with my business? Like it's and something about children too. Like it runs the gamut.

SPEAKER_01 7:32

Oh absolutely. I was on, we have a private group chat. So I was on that this morning talking about Substack and like tips and tricks on what do people think. Someone else is asking, she's going to Seattle with her children. So it was like, does anyone have recommendations on where to stay, what to do? We have a member in Seattle. So I was like, y'all need to connect. Just ask her because she will know exactly everything you want to know. Um, but it really is everything. So it's been great and fun, and it just means all my days are busy. Busy and different.

SPEAKER_00 7:56

I just think of people like you or Hitha, and I'm like, oh my gosh, how I think my days are busy and yours must be so much busier. But some people can just manage it all somehow.

SPEAKER_01 8:04

Yeah. I think you just you make it work, and I think you can't be a perfectionist, probably.

SPEAKER_00 8:09

Yes, okay. I love that. So quickly back to Margot. You've had a few different roles there. And so I always just like you described it well, but like brand marketing just gets kind of like confusing to me. I feel like it can mean so many different things. So you're not doing as much of sort of the ShopMai affiliate stuff anymore.

SPEAKER_01 8:27

Um, I'm still involved with our ShopMai and thinking of really, I think for us, and this is maybe different for lots of people, we kind of have a brand content side, and then marketing for us sits on um like revenue or commerce. So it's really, I think for a lot of brands, it's this mixture of art and commerce, right? It's just building a brand is about sort of ethereal stuff that's hard to really define, it's hard to quantify, it's hard to measure, perhaps. And then commerce on the other side is so numbers and excels and you know spreadsheets.

SPEAKER_00 8:53

Is that something you're good at or is that stretch to your brain? Okay.

SPEAKER_01 8:57

I work really closely with um a colleague who she is very good at that. Okay. So I think we're very like you know, yangy kind of. I love that. So it's a blessing. Um but marketing to me, when when I worked in editorial, I never really understood what marketing was, which I feel like you do you struggle with that though? I feel like you're kind of like, I think that's what's hard.

SPEAKER_00 9:14

It's like everyone's like, I work in marketing, and like my brother had a marketing job in a tech company, like so different that was truly numbers and all these things. So I I just think it's this vague term that can mean so many different things depending on the company that someone is at.

SPEAKER_01 9:27

I think that is accurate, probably. I mean, for us, I guess to be in fashion and to be at a company ran by women for women and such, it's more maybe marketing, I think, is about brand world with the final purpose of making you buy shoes. Right. Like we say and it sounds kind of crass, but it's like that's kind of what it is.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

I mean, it's good to think about like it is a business, we want to make a profit. Like there's a real goal here. We can be community-oriented and all the things, but we're still trying to sell a profit.

SPEAKER_01 9:51

Exactly. So it's really just thinking about how that customer, I think, sees the world of Margot, steps into it, stays in it, how we want her to kind of keep growing with us.

SPEAKER_00 10:01

And I saw Margot's on Substack now, which is fun.

SPEAKER_01 10:03

Margo is on Substack right now. Um, it's been really cool, I think, to kind of expand what community is. And to me, I think to brand marketing, it's like you want to think of it as a 360 world and you want people to just love your world and come in and buy shoes and they need shoes and they're back because they need a new pair of boots or whatever, but also to just want to check in, which I think Substack probably is maybe one of the best examples of like you're not there because you're gonna go to checkout and buy a pair of shoes, but you want to just see what the brand's like.

SPEAKER_00 10:28

What do you think of now that you also because in addition to all these things you mentioned, you're also just sort of like the rest of us and sharing on Instagram? And I also sort of think of you as a creator, and maybe that's just your vehicle to then share that different things you're working on, but you're putting out reels, you're making content. I'm a nano, nano, nano creator. Yeah, we love nano creators. Those are like the only ones I want to follow. Thank you, Nan. So do you take that same brand marketing view to your own content? That's sometimes I think where I get stuck. I'm like, I am sure someone could look at the Nan Phillip world, the noteworthy of nan, whatever, and have so many edits to like the brand slash content I'm creating.

SPEAKER_01 11:05

Interesting.

SPEAKER_00 11:06

But I'm kind of just living in my own bubble, so I'm doing it the way I can.

SPEAKER_01 11:09

Interesting question. I think that I don't think either is probably right or wrong. I think for me a lot, it's sort of what's the purpose of this? Like, what are you trying to get out of it? You know, that there's some quote my husband told me where I think it was a Japanese business executive. I don't know if we need to look it up or not, where it was like, you should ask why five times. Okay. Kind of someone says it's like why? Answer, answer, why? And I think that that pillowing back of like layers, this is a really complicated answer to social media.

SPEAKER_00 11:39

No, but I'm intrigued by that because I think sometimes I put out content and it's like that's where it flopped, and maybe it flopped because it's fine too, right?

SPEAKER_01 11:46

If it's like I'm just living my life. But I think either if you're short on time or you do, you want to think about it as like kind of um a hyphen and your multi-hyphenate lifestyle, right? Yeah. It's like, what is the purpose of this? And it's been really interesting just to start dipping my toe and Instagram a little bit more to see what resonates with people. And then kind of it's like, oh, it's so clear, which is crazy to me too, how this is even happening in an algorithm of something that takes off and something that doesn't. And it's like, just do more of that if you want views and follows.

SPEAKER_00 12:12

And if you don't, that's I think where I get stuck sometimes. I'm like, I love just my little community, like my little corner of the internet, my followers, my people. I don't know if I need that many more followers. So I really just want to make the content I know that they're gonna like, which is like these are the three great white t-shirts or whatever it might be. I just don't know if the algorithm's gonna like that, but I don't really care.

SPEAKER_01 12:33

I don't think it matters for yeah, I mean, I don't think it matters period doesn't.

SPEAKER_00 12:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:38

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 12:39

But I get caught up in it sometimes, you know. Yeah. Because you want your you want like what you're putting out there and putting work into to perform. Yeah. But you also want it to be fun. What do you find are your like personal Instagram content and reels that perform the best?

SPEAKER_01 12:52

Um I had my like boat can firestorm jaunt of oh, I don't did I miss that? Did you miss the boat can?

SPEAKER_00 13:00

Oh no, I totally didn't. Yes, I know exactly what you're talking about. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 13:02

Which now that is cooled down, but that was my first thing of being like.

SPEAKER_00 13:05

You were quoted in the New York Times. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 13:07

I told my husband that and he was like not as impressed.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

Oh my god, that I mean you could die tomorrow.

SPEAKER_01 13:12

I think that's so cool. I went out and bought a copy of the physical one that I was quoted in.

SPEAKER_00 13:17

I hope you frame it in your closet office. It should be on the wall.

SPEAKER_01 13:20

I was like, this is the crowning moment of my career. Um, that was a fascinating one, but I think now it feels a little probably the most is my commuting stuff does well of like kind of city life. And then um, I think clothing style stuff that's about like authentic get dressed sort of stuff.

SPEAKER_00 13:37

And I think you do a good job of leaning into sort of the suburban mom. If you're like, I'm the suburban mom who still wants to put on a beautiful dress, have a great handbag. Yeah. You're not gonna see me in leggings all the time, like here's what I'm wearing.

SPEAKER_01 13:46

Yeah, because I think there's a you know, there's a hole for that.

SPEAKER_00 13:48

Totally. And like you do it so well. So I love that. Tell us how often, because I was trying to figure it out if you only do it a few days a month, or how often do you commute into the city?

SPEAKER_01 13:57

Uh, just a couple days a month.

SPEAKER_00 13:58

Okay. Because at first I was like, oh, maybe she does it a few times a week. And I was like, oh, I don't think that's the case. Okay. I don't know. So that's nice. That's not it's amazing. How long is your commute though? Take us through it because I did see you say something that's like a car, a train, a subway, there's lots of.

SPEAKER_01 14:11

So I grew up in Florida. Okay. So it's crazy to me that I live in Pennsylvania, then I go to New Jersey, then I'm in New York. So it's like three states as a Floridian. You're just like, that's bonkers. Right. Um, it's not that bad though. It's similar to where we moved out of Manhattan and we're in Jersey for a little bit. Um, so I take about door to like parking lot to train tracks, probably like 30 minutes. Okay. So that's not that bad. And then the train is like an hour 25-ish. I'd say on average, unless you can kind of nab an express. And then the subway, it's like 15 minutes. Okay. So maybe two hours kind of round trip door to door. Um, but it's really not bad. And I think again, the caveat of having young children is that's like your quiet, lovely time.

SPEAKER_00 14:52

I know that's so like to me, I'm like living my own little life, and I'm like, oh, that seems so long. Cause I barely I don't have a commute, whatever, but I can understand how it's like, oh, maybe that's your time to listen to the podcast, to have a breather.

SPEAKER_01 15:02

I will like look at the train time sometimes and be like, okay, this is the faster one, this one's an extra 15 minutes. I'm like, I'll take the 15 minutes. Yeah. Just like it's longer to watch my TV show or my movie or whatever going home. So it's not that bad. Um, but I think every day it would be a slog with that distance for sure.

SPEAKER_00 15:18

Yeah. And so you have three children, and I know you have a recent baby, but walk us through the ages of your kids.

SPEAKER_01 15:23

My daughter is six and a half, so she'll be a first grader. And then I have a my son will almost four.

SPEAKER_00 15:29

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

And then my youngest is seven months right now. Seven months, okay.

SPEAKER_00 15:34

And how are you managing the child care of it all? Do the older two are they sort of in school?

SPEAKER_01 15:38

I mean, it's the summer now, but yep, they go to full-time school with you know, aftercare and all that good jazz. Um, and my in-laws live close, and so they help us a lot.

SPEAKER_00 15:46

That's huge. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:47

Across the board, and then with the baby, they're helping a lot too right now.

SPEAKER_00 15:50

And does your husband commute into the city or does he also?

SPEAKER_01 15:52

He's the same ish. He's really at home and then probably goes into the city a couple times a month. He travels for work, but his office is at our house.

SPEAKER_00 15:58

Do you try to sort of balance like if you're coming in one day, is that a day that he's not coming in?

SPEAKER_01 16:02

Or um for no real reason, other than it feels kind of like if something was to happen. Although I do have my in-laws local, um, but we try not to. And I also, if we did, I think my husband would be like, What train are you taking? And I'd be like, I don't know. You're messing with my time. Yeah, if you dare to encroach on my commute, I would not be happy about it at all.

SPEAKER_00 16:22

So let's chat for a second about In Kind, which is another project that you've had, and I feel like that's sort of how we maybe connected more to make sense. Yeah, which was just I want you to describe it because I don't know if I'll describe it the perfect way, but it was a beautiful magazine that Leah created that maybe was it out of COVID? Like your first one was sort of just a passion project.

SPEAKER_01 16:40

Yeah, it was a um biannual print magazine that started in COVID. Um, I so I told you most of my career was an editorial. I'd moved over to Margot, so I was on the brand side of things and just really missed interviewing women and writing. Like I in my core, I'm a writer.

SPEAKER_02 16:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 16:55

Um, I'd had my first daughter, so it was just kind of your identity shifts so much when you have children and was like, oh, I miss editorial work. And then just kind of was like, well, I should just do it. Like, why not? Um, I made a zine. Okay. Which if some people don't know it is zine.

SPEAKER_00 17:11

I feel like some of our audience won't know it.

SPEAKER_01 17:12

It's all people were like, what is that? I'm like, oh, it's short for a magazine. Um, and I think I should probably look this up. I feel like it's heyday, at least was kind of in like the punk rocky, like a very grassrooty sort of thing, like stapled together, photocopied. Um, so my first zine, I called it the Leah zine, and I built it on Photoshop. Oh, maybe it looked extremely wonky. It's okay. Um, and I sent it to friends and like I think also former colleagues kind of to be like, I still got it. Like, you know, there's an editorial role. Like, I'm still around, I haven't lost my touch or whatever. And then people on the internet were kind of like, Are you selling this? And like, oh my goodness. How cool weird, and like, you don't want to buy this. Like, I built it on Photoshop. Um, and it just kind of built from there. So I had a former colleague who I think is a gorgeous writer named Hannah. So I love her work too and love following her and her style, all of it. She's based in San Francisco, so she's also a mom, a very stylish mom. Um, and I reach out to her and I said, Do you want to kind of do this together? And so we just sort of I think there's a lot of those stories. Kind of you start with the passion project and you don't really mean it to become a business.

SPEAKER_00 18:14

And then it kind of falls in your lap.

SPEAKER_01 18:16

Yeah, and you just sort of like roll with it, yeah, and figure it out. Um, so it was incredibly wonderful and special, and I learned a lot um about myself, about work, about I mean, the amazing woman we got to interview. I feel like we probably interviewed you a few times for it.

SPEAKER_00 18:31

Great. I loved it. I was always so flattered and I loved, I subscribed. I loved getting in the mail. I loved your newsletter.

SPEAKER_01 18:36

There's such, I think, the tactile stuff of getting things in the mail. Like, Diana, we send out a letter every month. I think to get something in a mail in the mail is incredibly special. Um, and I just think that there's for me, probably was the biggest lesson. I think we're kind of wrapping it up now, and the biggest lesson was probably that like I can be an entrepreneur because for me that was oddly hard.

SPEAKER_02 18:56

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 18:57

I don't know if you felt that way at all. Were you just sort of like, I love corporate life. I No, I've never had a corporate job.

SPEAKER_00 19:02

I'm like the opposite. Do you like rules? I do really like rules, but I don't, I do, but I really don't like red tape. Like I think I'm a very Oh interesting. Like creative, out-of-the-box thinker. I don't really go from like point A to point B in a straight line. One time someone told me, I don't know if this is true, that I'm dyslexic.

SPEAKER_01 19:23

So they like when I was getting- You are dyslexic, or they told you you were dyslexic. No, I am dyslexic.

SPEAKER_00 19:28

And when I was being like when you're you get tested to figure that out in high school, when I was doing the test with this like professional who tests you to figure out what learning disability you have, they said that it sort of makes sense about the things that I was passionate about and my personality, because they said basically you've had to like come up with your own pathways to get good grades in school or to figure out how to like get the reading done in time. You've had to sort of be more think on your feet and be more creative of how to get to point B from A because it's a lot harder for you to figure out the letters on the page or whatever. So I think my brain just doesn't like someone saying no does not work for me. Like red tape, I really don't like. Like I no is never the answer. Like I'm always gonna find a way around it. So I think I would have had a very hard time at a corporate very corporate job because I'm like, but why? Sort of to your point. Like, why do you think that's why you're not? But you like rules? Yes, I like things to be black and white at the same time. So it's a little complicated.

SPEAKER_01 20:22

It's complicated.

SPEAKER_00 20:23

I think I like people maybe the part where I like rules is more like I like people to do the right thing.

SPEAKER_01 20:29

And like, yeah, okay, I like the do you think are you somebody who like I could never have a boss?

SPEAKER_00 20:36

I miss having a boss sometimes. I don't know if I was a great employee, but I do think the hardest part of sort of being self-employed and all that is like the lack of feedback and the lack of a different type of professional development. Like my version of professional development is usually just like trying things and seeing what works and putting myself out on a limb, starting a podcast, doing whatever, seeing what parts of it don't work and then figuring it out from there. Where sometimes I think it would be nice to have some feedback from higher up. Yeah, you know, some mentor I don't have to have more of mentorship or someone to be like, we see that you do XYZ really well, Nan. You don't do this well. Let's help you practice that or whatever it would be. Um, but I've had a few bosses, but I always pretty quickly have found my own thing. But I like had an Etsy shop when I was in high school. I was telling my friend Diana that I um had before even that, I had a business that I was selling like gross grain ribbon belts, maybe in more so elementary school. Like I've always had some sort of business. Oh, see, so and then you would never have struggled with this like I'm not an entrepreneur.

SPEAKER_01 21:35

Yeah, so that's just like stuff.

SPEAKER_00 21:36

I'm like, I can do whatever I want, I can figure it out.

SPEAKER_01 21:38

Nah, I think because for me, so I'm not like that. And I think it was I was working with a coach at the time, and it was just so I was like, I love having a boss, I love rules. I've never been, I think there's also this period, maybe it dovetailed some with COVID, of so many people were like, I couldn't work for anybody but myself. And I was like, I could, that's not how I feel. Like that's not. Well it's like nice to have someone to tell you what to do. Yeah. And I, and so even talking about. With her, where it was kind of, I was like, I but I'm not an entrepreneur, and she's like, stop, stop saying that there are so many different kinds of entrepreneurs because I think we also saw so many like girl bosses and people who like were raising money and bootstrapping, you're like, I love security, right? I'm risk averse. Like, yeah, and so that to me was grained of there is one type of entrepreneur, and it was saying it was hard is a like sounds a little bit I don't know, it's an exaggeration, but it was a weird journey to be like, oh, you can be an entrepreneur and still and still have your other jobs, have a corporate job, whatever.

SPEAKER_00 22:30

I think that is it's different for everybody. I think, yeah, that's intriguing. But I like that it sort of let let you flex that muscle.

SPEAKER_01 22:37

Yeah, and it was and even I think to live the idea, and I don't know if you've also seen this, of kind of within kind. I remember talking to this coach about it, and it was like, my I don't even know if I said stupid or not, but like my stupid little magazine idea. And then it would kind of it was like a chart, you know, of like my little magazine project, my magazine project, my thing, and you know, she it was just say it. Like it's not stupid, it's not little, it's a thing. And I think that even was really interesting. I think about that a lot sometimes.

SPEAKER_00 23:01

I stupid, I mean that happens to me all the time. I'm like, oh, I'm a content creator, like I don't want to say, I don't really know what to say my current job is and I definitely downplay it. And I'm like, no, I'm making money, I'm working hard, like I can own it. Yeah, but it there is something that feels harder about that, maybe when it is that you're working for yourself or you don't have the big brand name that people recognize.

SPEAKER_01 23:20

Totally. And I don't think it's imposter syndrome. I think it has to be some other like probably related thing. But people sometimes like it's imposter syndrome. I was like, I don't think it's that.

SPEAKER_00 23:28

I think it's almost just I feel like imposter syndrome to me means like, oh, you didn't deserve it. And I'm like, no, no, I work hard. Like I think I deserve what I'm getting, you know, what's happening. So it's not that for me that doesn't, it's not imposter syndrome, it's more like the lack of confidence in the title of what I'm saying that I do, or people not fully understanding what it the work that goes into it. I think.

SPEAKER_01 23:50

I'm I feel like for creators that is Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:52

And I don't even know if I'm like a technical creator. I mean, I think the creator thing maybe is also hard because I'm like someone's like, oh, if you're a content creator, you must have 500,000 followers. And I'm like, that is not me at all. You're an excellent content creator. Oh, that's very kind. I'm I'm working on it, you know. We're rolling with it.

SPEAKER_01 24:08

You're very good at it.

SPEAKER_00 24:09

To that vein, with all the different things you do, what is something that's like hardest in your work life? It could be in any one of your jobs, but what's something that you sort of struggle with but have to do anyways?

SPEAKER_01 24:20

Well, so I think for me it's follow-through in a way, which maybe as a Gemini, or I just feel like your brain is so sparky and you have ideas, and then kind of I'll get it started, and then I get distracted by something else or busy, and just that's I think hard, and not hard in the sense of like the business part of some of it is hard and annoying. You have to do it anyway. But that I think across the board sometimes is difficult. You'll have a really exciting idea and then like keeping the gas steady is something I'm always working on.

SPEAKER_00 24:48

I like have so many ideas of what I could do, this X, Y, or Z, but actually make letting that happen, or like realizing, yeah, that could be a good idea, but you've got to finish your current ideas.

SPEAKER_01 24:58

And you know, I don't know if this will resonate with you. I talked about this also with an executive coach recently. And it was interesting, she kind of put the spin on of it like, well, do you think that's a little bit of a negative, like your negative self-talk, telling you it's a bad idea, so you shouldn't pursue it. And I was kind of I thought that was really interesting because I hadn't, I was more like I'm too just scattery, like and then I was kind of you're like, maybe it is at least partly that, where you can do it and if somewhere very quietly, it's like this isn't gonna work, or other people are gonna think this is stupid, so you don't follow it through. Right. So that's also been kind of in my brain while trying to How did you?

SPEAKER_00 25:30

I'm intrigued that you have an executive coach, or do you still have one? Tell us about that because like maybe I need that. Like, maybe that's a good idea.

SPEAKER_01 25:35

I was gonna say when I'm not a boss, I was like, Do you have a coach? No, you should have a coach. Okay, absolutely. Um, Margot was working with a coach, so I worked with them some recently, and then in the past, I interviewed her. Her name is Martella Kelson. I interviewed her a lot for in kind as well. We'll have to link her. She was my coach for years, and it was just wonderful. Because I think coaches, to me, again, grain of salt, this is my definition. They're very therapist-y, but kind of are more like there's homework, or I think they get to know you in that way. Of probably they maybe can take more of a stance. I think therapist often is kind of like interesting. Tell me you know, right, I think.

SPEAKER_00 26:07

Which is great. This is the skeptic in me. Like a coach feels a little to our earlier comment, woo-woo, or I kind of feel like sometimes they're a scam. I'm sure this woman is not, totally. But like I'm not sure.

SPEAKER_01 26:19

But don't say life coach. I think if you say executive coach, executive coach, okay. That already, right? Don't you feel like you're like, okay, this is legitimate now?

SPEAKER_00 26:26

Yeah, and maybe they have some legitimate credentials to get there.

SPEAKER_01 26:29

I think you can get like certified as a life coach, but also I think there's a lot of life coaches who have their like whatever the acronym for therapist-y stuff is, or they're a social worker or they've gotten their master's in XYZ. So I would make sure it's somebody who like has some higher education and isn't just billing themselves as a life coach because I give great advice, kind of thing.

SPEAKER_00 26:45

And did you go when you worked with her one-on-one, did you go to her with specific goals or sort of just treated it more like a therapist that you talked to her at a certain cadence? Okay, the latter, really. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 26:55

And it was just very helpful. Yeah. Oh, I'm gonna look into that. It's really, it's really nice to I think talk to anybody, right? And then kind of even just the minute, and I think there's something similar to the chart reading when you say your stuff out loud to someone, even just saying it.

SPEAKER_00 27:08

I think sometimes that's what I feel like therapy. It's like I just need to get these things off my chest so I don't say it to the person in my life who's bothering me, you know. Like I just need someone else to hear it or whatever. Oh, I'm intrigued by that.

SPEAKER_01 27:18

And I think it's important for everybody, like if everyone had a coach. But I think to a wonderful solopreneur is kind of like you, if it's so nice, because you're right, if you don't have any, like if it's hard to get a feedback loop, I then you can ask clients, but that's right, and that's different or very specific. But I think it would be immeasurably helpful for someone.

SPEAKER_00 27:35

Let's switch gears slightly. And I just want to ask you a lot of this podcast is really about work, but also all the different things that fall into our life. So our family, our friends, all of that. To me, I'm like, oh my gosh, she must just be so busy with taking care of her children with all these jobs. Like, do you have time to see your friends or how are you making time for them right now? What about like personal hobbies? What else is going on in the world of Leah?

SPEAKER_01 27:57

I know. Um, personal hobbies, uh A. So I look at I looked up the definition of hobby because this question had me thinking a little bit. And I wonder if for a lot of us now in our modern world, hobbies, it's like we become so enmeshed with everything we're doing. It's less of like, you know, we were like, what hobby is it? Because it's all closed together, you know? So it's like I love writing, I love journaling, I love like culture.

SPEAKER_00 28:20

Do you want a journal, like your own personal journal?

SPEAKER_01 28:23

Did you keep a journal that has a lot of scrapbooky collage stuff pasted into it? I like um pressing leaves and framing them. I don't, but it's like, I don't think I should call it a hobby per se. But then, no, that's like a creative act. Yeah, that I like to. And then I like um Pilates and working out. And so I think when if if you do fitness, I think not for like health or just fitness fitness reasons, then I think it's also fair to kind of be like, that's a hobby now.

SPEAKER_00 28:48

Totally. You're I think it's a hobby of yeah. Well, what did the dictionary say?

SPEAKER_01 28:52

It was just like a activity taken on for pleasure. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 28:54

Which then you're like, well, that could be so many things, which is great.

SPEAKER_01 28:57

And I thought it could definitely be Pilates.

SPEAKER_00 28:58

Yeah. Um I mean, I thought for you it could be shopping. I know we both love to shop.

SPEAKER_01 29:02

We have to put that to the side.

SPEAKER_00 29:04

We're gonna talk about that later.

SPEAKER_01 29:06

Okay. Um, and then friends, I think a lot of my friend stuff has been Diana, I think, has helped kind of give me people that I think are my day-to-day friends. Um, then I have a few Pennsylvania friends, so I think you try to really make time to go and see.

SPEAKER_00 29:19

Has it been a little bit odd for you to have this Diana community that you've built? And in a sense, maybe they're sort of your clients because you're building this community, but then they've become your friends too.

SPEAKER_01 29:29

It's very tricky. Yeah. It's an interesting, it's interesting because I think either partly a community that's about entrepreneurship, you're sort of in it with them. And I've talked to members even too. Like, I don't know the answers, and I don't want to feel like I'm a mess, guys.

SPEAKER_00 29:43

No, you are so sort of like transparent in a refreshing way. I found I liked the way you did that, where you're like, I'm figuring this out too, or like look, and it opens the door for someone else to equally say, Me too.

SPEAKER_01 29:53

Good. I feel like in a way, and with Diana, it almost felt like a co-op to me, kind of. Yeah. You know, like I'm just guided, like here to tour guide, sort of. But like I don't know what's going on either. Um, but it is interesting. I was, did you listen to Beth's Dead, the podcast?

SPEAKER_00 30:08

No.

SPEAKER_01 30:08

It's very good. Well, if you like narrative. I'll totally. I'll listen to anything. It's amazing.

SPEAKER_00 30:12

And it just Beth is dead.

SPEAKER_01 30:14

Beth's Dead. It's from Monica Padman from Armchair expert, yeah. EPing or whatever. Um, it's really good. But they were talking sort of just about the idea of boundaries. And I thought that was interesting. We were like, at what point not with my Diana crew who I love so deeply, but it you're like, do I share too much? Or at what point does ito?

SPEAKER_00 30:31

I need to be sitting here having a podcast for I know. I am such an oversharer.

SPEAKER_01 30:35

Same. Um, so anyways, you just I think that little bit of like at what point, yeah, do you have to be professional? But I don't know. I think it is.

SPEAKER_00 30:44

I like the messy middle of it all, you know.

SPEAKER_01 30:45

Like, it is hard to read by being authentic and just talking.

SPEAKER_00 30:48

Yeah. Okay, well, let's jump into your noteworthy tips because I know you prepared a few and let's hear about voice notes because I know you're a voice note. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 30:55

I love voice notes.

SPEAKER_00 30:56

Where do before I explain, where do you stand on voice notes? I'm a mixed bag. I would like to use them more, but I don't actively use them until I'm like walking my dog and I'm like, ooh, maybe I could respond with a one-minute voice note.

SPEAKER_01 31:09

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 31:10

I don't always love listening to them.

SPEAKER_01 31:12

Totally.

SPEAKER_00 31:13

So um, like I'm thinking of a friend who sends uh Julia, who's been on the podcast, Julia Lynch. Um, she sends a lot of voice notes, and sometimes I'm like, oh, I can't listen to this right now, and I don't really want to read the whole transcript. Yeah. Love her dearly, but like she's a chatter box, you know, she can share all the details. So I have mixed thoughts. But I love I do love hearing someone's voice, and it feels like such a good like step in between a text and a phone call. Like, if you can't get someone on the phone, it is there's whatever you're hearing in their voice feels that much closer to like a personal interaction. Totally. I think that's a big part of it.

SPEAKER_01 31:47

So I like to also know sometimes with my friends who is a voice note person and who's not. So to that point, they're like, I hate getting them that you try to restrict.

SPEAKER_00 31:53

I hate getting them. I think I'm just not so used to it. I don't have a friend, like someone that I'm actively texting who's always using voice notes.

SPEAKER_01 31:59

Well, so did you watch Felicity, or you're too young to watch Felicity?

SPEAKER_00 32:02

I've heard of it, but I've never seen it.

SPEAKER_01 32:04

So Felicity, as an elder millennial, I feel like the premise, I guess, or how they kicked it off was in she went to NYU and would send um cassettes to her friend back home. I don't remember actually who this lady was in her life, but would record a like hold a little thingy, walking on, record a letter, put this cassette in a padded envelope, and send it off. And I think in a way it feels, I think about that a lot, where I think voice notes to friends for me almost, it's kind of like a letter where also it doesn't have the urgency of a text where you think I might get it and I can't listen now, so I'll like save it to listen later. So I think that's lovely. Um, I'm bad at phone calls for lots of reasons. I think, especially with young children, there's just never a good time. Yeah. So you can kind of shoot them off whenever. I think hearing people's voices are so nice. It's a great way to stay in touch. I like also, I think on WhatsApp, maybe you can fool with the speed. So I have people's up a little bit higher. Oh, that's nice. Um, I do long voice notes.

SPEAKER_00 32:54

I think I'm one of those who I want to love it. I don't want to say I don't like it. I think I just need to get more used to it.

SPEAKER_01 32:59

You just have to do it. I found that friends who are kind of like, what? I think everyone likes it. You just sort of like have to kind of figure out do it. Yeah. Um, so for staying in touch with people, I think they're amazing. And then also just almost like the power of audio. I know I think you and Hitha talked about too, talking to Claude or whatever your AI of choices.

SPEAKER_00 33:18

Give there's more information somehow. I think it's it's easier, yeah, honestly.

SPEAKER_01 33:22

And I think when you're very busy to just do it quickly, it's one thing of just about efficiency and doing it speedily. But I think also when you talk, you're able to kind of just dump. And I mean, I've said that too, kind of it's like I'm working on X, I just want to dump my thoughts, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Totally. In a way that write you self-edit, or you don't do it because you're kind of not in a place that you can actually write out fully what you're trying to say. So I just think voice and I she recommended a um talk to text kind of tool that I would have. Yeah. I used Whisper for a while. I think those even make it better. And then when you have a really good tool like that, if it's a blog post or an email or something you want to compose, it's just quicker.

SPEAKER_00 34:00

I want to start using it for like my Substack posts and whatnot. And of course, then I would still edit them, but just to get, I mean, I'm not a great writer, so let's get the thoughts on paper. When are you sending most of your voice notes and when are you listening to the ones people send you back?

SPEAKER_01 34:13

I probably send them most during the day when my kids aren't at home or I'm not like in charge of children. And I probably, I guess I listen to them almost in the same. And often I think you know someone's right there. Right. So it can be and you could phone call them, but it's just kind of it feels whether I guess if you're not used to phone calling, it feels a little bit invasive, or you're just in a place of I don't want to commit to an hour-long phone call or something. Um, but yeah, I would say in the middle of the day. And I have one good friend who moved back to Australia, and it's like that's how we've stayed in touch, and they're so kind of lovely.

SPEAKER_00 34:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:43

So those are weird times.

SPEAKER_00 34:45

Okay, I love that. To the topic of monologue and all of that. Are you like an AI girl? Where do you fall in?

SPEAKER_01 34:51

I'm really trying to be better. I think we all are trying to adapt to it. You too. It just changed so quickly that I think I'm a bit of a like a winter with it. My husband works kind of in that field, and I think he's probably tired of me being like, Well, it can't do this. And he's like, it couldn't, you know, a month ago and now it can. And like, ugh. So I'm really, really trying. Okay. Um, we talk about this a lot in Diana too. And I think it's interesting how I don't know where you stand on this. I think there's a weird feeling of guilt too, of either. You don't want to have the heart and soul of your business and brand taken away. Totally. We had a nice talk about, I get nervous about like the data centers and killing the planet.

SPEAKER_00 35:29

Right. And like people are kind of talking about that, but not quite enough. Like, we're talking about every new app, even here on Noteworthy with Man. We're talking about all of it, but like I am becoming or I am the person, the NIMBY person who doesn't want the data center in my backyard. It's all right, it's just like I want maybe want to use it, but I don't want to support the huge data centers that are taking away people's land and view and nature.

SPEAKER_01 35:48

That makes me anxious. And then we had this very interesting talk too about like what AI, how I think entry-level jobs, like people you know who are graduate from college right now, how tricky that is. And it was like, what do you it? It was almost this fascinating kind of philosophical talk of like if you say, I'm not gonna use it, you're not, you're just hurting yourself or your business or your growth. Really. Yeah. So we kind of it ended. I thought it's like, okay, well, use it for your stuff, but almost how can you like carbon offset a mission, right? Of like reach out to someone and help like talk to a recent grad about your career, whatever. And that's it. Oh, I see.

SPEAKER_00 36:20

Like mentally somehow find a way to balance it out. Like, yes, use AI to help yourself, but also do something else to sort of push back against AI. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:27

Oh, I like that. Kind of, okay. I'm not I'm not sure exactly how it would work, but it just so that felt like such a bummer. You're like, man, we're making it even, we're contributing to how hard this will be for others.

SPEAKER_00 36:36

Right, and it's already hard to find a job. And how I actually also think that I sort of want to stay up to date in AI because what if I need to go back to work? You know, what if I need to go back to a corporate job at some point? I don't want to fall so behind working for myself, working in my silo that I maybe don't know how to use the channel. And I think you have to.

SPEAKER_01 36:51

I think for young people too, it's like figure it out. I've talked to a recent grad recently, even where I was like, if you could come in and say, I know how to like claw to do that. So that's put you so far ahead than any sort of fear of this is taking your job. Okay. So I think young people coming in, but also when you're older, it's like the fear of it is worse than if you can present yourself as a candidate who says, like, I know how to use it for all of these things. So I mean, it's just work life. I think trying to, I've done a lot of trying to train it for some of my work at Margot. And I think that that's it's crazy on the face of it, but I think also if you can understand, that's only gonna then open you up for more efficiencies in other places.

SPEAKER_00 37:27

Exactly. Like the data of it all, I think there's so many ways it could help me help any of us in whatever niche you want it to do and still find other ways to be creative.

SPEAKER_01 37:34

And I think you have to also, I don't know if you changed yours where you're kind of like, don't be too like fawning. Yeah. Like everyone's kind of grow up, like our generation gets made fun of, but like people using this now, where it's like, that was an amazing idea, Leah. Like your instincts are spot on. Like you can stop telling me that.

SPEAKER_00 37:48

Yes. I think it's cool how you can train it to do all that stuff and you can say what different words you don't want it to use or to use to sound like you or never use. I mean, there's so many elements of it. So I'm trying, I'm trying with Claude. That's sort of where I'm at.

SPEAKER_01 38:00

I think you just have to try. That's it. But it's almost like just do it. Like the other day, I've thinking about a Substack thing, and I was talking to my husband who's in this space, and I was like, I don't know if I should ask it, or it's gonna give me some garbly gook internet thing, and I need to talk to a human. He's like, people say that all the time. Just ask it.

SPEAKER_00 38:15

And like and you can decide if you want to take a fair answer. You're like, oh, okay, that's fair.

SPEAKER_01 38:18

Yeah, you know, and to just like that felt like so obvious, but it felt um important to remember, kind of. And then it almost just gets you to a place down the line. Yeah, it gives you a different idea.

SPEAKER_00 38:28

Oh, okay. On the it feels very opposite to AI is using a whiteboard.

SPEAKER_01 38:33

I love a whiteboard.

SPEAKER_00 38:34

So tell us more about that.

SPEAKER_01 38:35

I just I'm a pen and paper girl. Okay. So I love a notebook, I love like a daily planner, but I think the problem when sketching out ideas or thoughts or plans or lists of things is then it gets lost, right? Usually in the notebook. So I find whiteboards to be so good to just be front and center of. I mean, maybe I've used it occasionally for like a to-do list, but it's more like kind of a mapped out, you know, a quarterly view or like flow chart isn't right. But if it's kind of like I'm gonna do this and this and this, or and I have a clawfish, and in my claw office, I bought this.

SPEAKER_00 39:05

For everyone who doesn't know, that's like a closet office. A closet office.

SPEAKER_01 39:08

And I bought a huge whiteboard that's maybe like bigger than this, but not by a ton, but bigger than this.

SPEAKER_00 39:14

We're looking at our little bulletin. If you're not watching, if you're listening, switch over to YouTube. I don't know how uh like three feet by four, three by mine might be like four by six.

SPEAKER_01 39:25

Okay. That's big. I like that. It's big, and I have it vertical.

SPEAKER_02 39:28

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 39:29

And I just have loved like my bots. Margot said something about kind of my rule and how to think about it. And I wrote that down for a while. Right now, I have like, what is Diana? It's just almost like keep yourself like if you would do a post-it and put it on your computer monitor. It's that kind of stuff. And I think you can reference it all the time. Also, shopping-wise, though, I went on this dint of buying charms for my charm bracelet. Yeah. And so I wrote them on my whiteboard so I remember what I'd bought. Oh, okay. Now I'm ticking them off when they come in the mail. Okay. So I'll know when I have them all. But like, you know, not smart usage, but like it's right there. And it's been, I just love it. And it's nice to like it's so fun.

SPEAKER_00 40:03

I mean, a whiteboard really brings me back to elementary school or something. Like I don't even know if we used them in high school. It brings me back to school in a fun way.

SPEAKER_01 40:09

It's so fun to write on them with a paper waist marker. So, like a little bit of joy injected into you every day and keeping things front and center.

SPEAKER_00 40:15

I can't help but ask because I do know you're a journal girl, and I feel like I've seen you share Smithin. But what is your what are your journals and paper products of choice? Because I love all that stuff.

SPEAKER_01 40:24

My journal of choice is a Smithin, I think it's the Portobello, so it's the big one. Okay. Um, and I love it. I actually, and then my day journal, I've done SmithSin, and then right now I'm using an aspinol, and I love a data page. So, like, you know, one day, and I just write to-do list up and then I highlight them when they're done. Um, and to me, it was any of these things. My husband bought me one for Christmas one year, and he was like, I cannot believe how expensive this is. And you're like, but I use it every single day. Okay. Like what other accessory do you use? What would that be?

SPEAKER_00 40:53

Like the use, not cost per wear, but like use per wear. You're using that every day. It's totally worth it.

SPEAKER_01 40:57

All the time. Right. And you save them. Like, I think then also when they're nice, there's such a record of like life and what you're doing, both a journal and like a planner, like that. Um, and so the Smithson one though, it's big, and so it's been nice. I write stuff in it, but also like with little kids, you get all kinds of crap all the time. And so the stuff I want to keep, I just tape in there or like you know, you have a nice menu. Put it in there, so it's kind of a keyboard. And so it's nice to have big and a lot of pages.

SPEAKER_00 41:20

Oh, and you bring that into the city when you're coming and commuting and everything. Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 41:24

I'm a very streamlined commuter, so okay.

SPEAKER_00 41:26

You're not carrying that. That's right.

SPEAKER_01 41:27

Sometimes I travel with it if you're like, I want to journal when I'm traveling, but I mean it adds, and I'm a carry-on girl.

SPEAKER_00 41:31

So okay. What's your suitcase of choice?

SPEAKER_01 41:34

Um, I have a really old toomie right now, okay, but I mostly use that.

SPEAKER_00 41:38

Yeah. Thinking big picture. I love asking everyone if they have sort of a life motto.

SPEAKER_01 41:44

Oh, yeah. Um, I'm my life motto slash my family motto is Sicage, which is a Latin translation for just do it. Love. Thank you. I hope I'm saying that right. I don't know how to speak Latin, but I think it's that. Um, and I just I think it's my husband and I both, and then it's that's something I like to pass into my children. Like, if you have an idea, just do it. Yeah. And I think that you're kind of like that too. I mean, even this idea, if you want to have a podcast, like, okay, we can figure almost anything right now, like you can do. You can figure out how to do it. It doesn't have to start as a grand plan or a thing.

SPEAKER_00 42:14

And it just I mean, sometimes I think so many things you only can figure out as you're doing it. Like it's never gonna be terrible in the first iteration, but you've got to put something out there.

SPEAKER_01 42:22

Totally. And I think it's work, but also like personal life. Sometimes, like, I I think you get stuck sometimes too of like, oh, it'd be so nice to do this thing. And it's like, then just do it. Like, I'm very focused on um this probably this is timely, but like I really want to see the Odyssey. Okay. And I want to see it in IMAX, you know, and it's like, then just book the tickets. Right, make it open, add it to the calendar. We went and saw a play, I feel like last year, and I was telling my husband, he's like, then just do it. And you're like, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 42:47

Fun. We could all do that more. Yeah, like don't get caught up in all the thoughts about it. Just keep moving forward.

SPEAKER_01 42:52

Yeah, just yeah, do it.

SPEAKER_00 42:53

Okay, fun. We have to talk about fashion because we just both love clothes. I mean, I think one time you commented on my Instagram or vice versa, and you're like, Nan, I think you might be the one person who shops as much as I do. Like, I feel like we're always shopping. Yeah, always shopping. Have you always been a shopper, fashion girl? How you know, what's your sort of ethos about it?

SPEAKER_01 43:12

I think that being a fashion editor kicked it off for me.

SPEAKER_00 43:15

Okay. But how did you end up being a fashion editor? I saw you went to Boston University.

SPEAKER_01 43:19

I left all my degrees in journalism. I always wanted to be a magazine editor my whole life. Um, and I actually you I started, I kind of wanted to be like a there was used to be more like teen people and like girls' life and and you worked at a beauty magazine too, right? Yeah, and so I really wanted to kind of be an editor for content for like teenagers because I feel like that's such a tender, important age. Um, and then just kind of fell into being more beauty and fashion. But I think as an editor, it just you're bombarded with stuff all the time. Right. And you see that as a creator too. I think now that's what that's become, where you're just getting stuff all the time. And if you want something, it's kind of like, oh, this necklace is beautiful. Like, I'd love to send it to you. So I think it like created this bad loop of newness. Yeah. It's probably really. Where it started. Um, because I don't really remember before than that, like loving stuff per se. I've always loved like twirly skirts. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 44:08

I think of you as very sort of feminine style. Like girl. What would you sort of like? I don't totally do the three-word thing because I think Allison Bornstein does it in a certain way. Yeah. But how would you describe your style for someone who doesn't follow you?

SPEAKER_01 44:19

We ever talked about this? No. I think it's changed a little recently, but my moniker for a really long time was country aristocrat.

SPEAKER_00 44:25

I don't think we've talked about that. And I love that.

SPEAKER_01 44:27

I think it's still just adapting slightly because to me it meant like a really fancy dress, like no shoes.

SPEAKER_00 44:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 44:33

Or like kind of mussy hair, but like great jewelry, maybe. Great handbag love. Yeah. And like, you know, a good like parka.

SPEAKER_00 44:41

Yeah. Okay. Oh, I love that.

SPEAKER_01 44:43

Right? Like a mixed total. I feel like I'm I don't I know nothing about being a country aristocrat. Yeah. I think if I was one, it's like in the daytime you'd wear a lot of like muck boots and jeans and parkas, but then you'd like to dress for dinner.

SPEAKER_00 44:54

And that sounds amazing.

SPEAKER_01 44:55

What would be better? Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 44:56

Who doesn't want a beautiful gown to wear to dinner? Oh my god, how fun. What is your favorite handbag in your collection?

SPEAKER_01 45:02

I'm very into the row um Marlo right now.

SPEAKER_00 45:06

And but then what is the one you're using today? That's the park. I have that too. I have a smaller size of that.

SPEAKER_01 45:10

That big one is just it's huge in a great way. I really want it, I really, really, really, really wanted a bag to commute in with that I wouldn't have to bring a tote bag in a bag. And as you know, I think it has to fit over your shoulder or it's way too heavy. Obviously. And so that was, and if you do, I want something with stand up. I'm very particular about bags. And I think one strap. So that bag is one strap versus a two-shoulder strap. But your normal tote.

SPEAKER_00 45:33

Other one has two straps. It does. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 45:34

But I haven't used it to commute yet. Oh. I don't know if I will or not.

SPEAKER_00 45:37

Okay. Um, item you're wearing nonstop lately.

SPEAKER_01 45:41

Variant of this charm bracelet I mentioned to you.

SPEAKER_00 45:43

Yes, like tell us about that. Is that a new thing? I love a charm bracelet. I love charms. I love a charm bracelet. I wear more charm necklaces, but I love a charm.

SPEAKER_01 45:50

I yeah, I love a charm. I don't know. I had I started a charm bracelet years and years ago, and then I think a few Black Fridays ago upgraded to like a gold bracelet. Because it's like, you know, I think a lot of people, Nikki Yoganak and I would talk about this kind of thing. You start with like clothing, then you get into handbags, and then you get a little older and you're into jewelry. I could buy all I want is jewelry.

SPEAKER_00 46:08

Well in handbags still, but I want it all.

SPEAKER_01 46:10

But like, and then I think you got to a point of like jewelry where you're like, no, I want solid gold. So it does like that you'll you'll have it forever that you can wear it wherever. Um, so anyways, I think that my charm bracelet have been steadily upgrading.

SPEAKER_00 46:21

Um, where did you get the bracelet from?

SPEAKER_01 46:23

Any charm co?

SPEAKER_00 46:25

Yeah, I've got stuff from them too.

SPEAKER_01 46:26

I love Charm Co.

SPEAKER_00 46:27

They have the best charms, I think. Like I love their vintage charms, their new charms. They're really like the spot to go, I feel like, right now for anything charm-related.

SPEAKER_01 46:34

And that as a super shopper, I don't know if you're the same. When I want something, I get super focused. Yes. Which I keep saying, I wish I could find like a career to put this to better use than shopping, you know? Like hunting down criminals with FBI or like something useful, but instead it's just shopping. And so like I was like, what charms do I want? And I love grocery shopping. Okay. And so I was like, I want grocery a grocery cart charm. So I went deep and I found like a estate thing at a store in Connecticut. Okay. They sent that to me recently. Oh, how fun. Right?

SPEAKER_00 47:03

So I think that's what's fun about charms. Like they can be so like, I wouldn't have known you liked grocery shopping, but how cool if that was on your bracelet and I saw it and it sparks of a conversation. Like the stories that can go along with charm bracelets.

SPEAKER_01 47:13

And you can do nice charms with like handwriting, which is so nice too.

SPEAKER_00 47:18

Hand engraving is stunning.

SPEAKER_01 47:20

But I mean like handwriting.

SPEAKER_00 47:21

Oh, like with the writing from like your child or like your kids or something like that.

SPEAKER_01 47:25

Or like I did it with my dad, like what how what he would call me and wrote it. And so that's also so nice. So cute. So I think if I had a normal life, I'd be wearing that more often.

SPEAKER_00 47:32

Speaking of jewelry, I need to know about your ring, the big like color.

SPEAKER_01 47:35

This is my birthstone ring for my children.

SPEAKER_00 47:38

Oh, you've posted about that, but tell everyone who's listening or watching.

SPEAKER_01 47:41

Oh, I'm wearing, I'll describe it too. Uh this and it's two of it stacked.

SPEAKER_00 47:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 47:46

So my birthstone ring, I have three children. So we have Peridough for August for my son, and Aqua Marine for my daughter, and then Tanzanite for my son, who is December. Um, I started when I just had two, and it was just these two. And then I added the baby. I called my jeweler friend, I was like, we're having another baby. Let's go. I gotta add another stone. And it was, I love this ring. And um, there's so many birthstones. So two, I feel like I'll talk to it a lot. I'm like, well, you have to take a look at it.

SPEAKER_00 48:09

I think there's options, right? For most months, so you like to choose.

SPEAKER_01 48:12

Yes. So it was partly budget, partly like what colors were gonna look good together. Um, it was just really fun.

SPEAKER_00 48:18

And then it's stunning, it's just like so eye-catching.

SPEAKER_01 48:20

This gold one is like me, you know.

SPEAKER_00 48:22

Okay, well, I'm sort of thinking you might need to make a second one for you and your husband or something like that. Like he's kind of left out of the equation on the ring front.

SPEAKER_01 48:30

True.

SPEAKER_00 48:30

But maybe he has your other hand, right? You're engaging.

SPEAKER_01 48:33

I know, I guess that is my wedding ring and stuff, but you're right. But so yeah, it's been I really it's very special. And it's I remember when they were designing it, it's kind of like, is this too big to wear everything? I was like, no. I would love like I love like a cocktail-esque ring.

SPEAKER_00 48:45

Yeah, well, you rock it. I think it's so great. Okay, a few more quick fire fashion questions. Um, what's an item in your wardrobe or an area of your wardrobe to splurge on and an area to save?

SPEAKER_01 48:56

I think save is mostly denim. Okay. I love a Levi's 5010s. Great. A lot. I have some expensive jeans too, but I often feel like if if I was like grabbing one pair of jeans, it would probably be those.

SPEAKER_00 49:08

Like I think that's like a current version that you can buy right now, not a vintage 51.

SPEAKER_01 49:11

It's the 5010s. Okay. Okay. I feel like my I have one pair of vintage 501s and I don't actually think I like them as much. So the 90s are like a fab, fab, fab cut. Love. And splur, I think handbags. Or like Julie Rover was saying of like actually get gold.

SPEAKER_00 49:25

Is there a handbag on your wish list right now? Are you sort of set with it?

SPEAKER_01 49:30

No. Okay. Not really. I feel like I need to be set.

SPEAKER_00 49:33

Yeah. Like I, of course, have so many things on my wish list, but also a little uninspired right now. Maybe it's the changing of the seasons.

SPEAKER_01 49:39

I think regarding handbags.

SPEAKER_00 49:41

Just regarding everything. I'm not like usually there's something as you were saying, like on the top of my mind that I really want to buy.

SPEAKER_01 49:46

I've been, I I spent some of the subway ride over, well, actually the train ride over looking for a pair of sneakers I'm into.

SPEAKER_00 49:52

So what were those?

SPEAKER_01 49:54

I'm really into like uh white, like very 70s-esque kind of beat-up tennis-ish. Oh, okay. I love the Mew Mew ones, and then you're like, this is stupid. Right. So then I kind of fall down a rabbit hole of like what that sort of retro profile.

SPEAKER_00 50:09

Okay. Keep us posted if you find out.

SPEAKER_01 50:11

I know. I'll let you know.

SPEAKER_00 50:13

Well, I could ask you shopping questions all day, but we should probably wrap it up there so you can get back to your busy life. I know you're seeing Diana people tonight. So that's fun. Um, we will link to everything. Everyone go follow Leah, sign up for Diana, all the things. Um, thank you for being here. Thank you for having me, Nan. This is so fun. All right, we'll catch you next week. Thank you so much for listening to Noteworthy with Nan. To support the podcast, please subscribe and leave a comment on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcast. And as always, we will be back every Thursday with a new episode.