For so many of us, growth is not our driving metric. There are 30 million small business owners in the U.S. who have no full-time employees. We are deliberately keeping operations small to optimize instead for sanity, freedom, and abundance. Elaine has spent the last several years studying the “Olympic athletes of one-person million-dollar businesses,” people who tend to value their time more than money. In 2019, 40,000 “non-employer firms” brought in $1 million to $2.5 million. 585,000 non-employer firms brought in $250K to $500K in revenue, and 2 million non-employer firms earned at least six figures.

After splitting with his business partners of 11 years and hundreds of episodes, Jordan Harbinger needed to start over, from scratch, and stat. But there were many strengths he could take with him: his skills, whip smarts, interviewing experience, team members, and his hard-won systems for “going pro” with podcasting. I know you’ll love this conversation on how Jordan differentiates himself and adds unique value (so as not to be a commodity), why he doesn’t do much on social media, and how he learned to delegate increasingly more to free himself up to do what he — and only he — can do.

My friend Adam describes Emily Heyward as a “genius brand strategist and brilliant badass.” I agree! She is the co-founder and Chief Brand Officer at Red Antler, the leading brand company for startups and new ventures. In this conversation, Emily shares why “messaging rooted in mission means you're more under the microscope,” and why there’s not only room for joy right now, but a need for it. Emily shares why she believes brand has to be seen as an investment, not a cost — and when is the right time for even cash-strapped start-ups to invest in brand strategy.

Antonio’s energy is as contagious as his smile, matched only by his courage in sharing his story as a speaker, author, and father (of twins!). Through his new book, Stop Living On Autopilot, and today’s conversation, Antonio shares how he overcame fears of being too vulnerable (therefore “unhireable” by companies and speaking clients) by connecting to his deepest truth, right down to the clothes he wears onstage. We also get into how he structures his team, and “what happens when the spirit calls him to go deeper.”

"I never serve from my reserves" is just one of countless gems from one of my wisest friends, Christine Arylo. It is time for us to unhook from the over-culture operating system that produces burnout. Christine teaches us how to lead from the heart with a “pace of grace” by changing our relationship to time, energy, and flow (focus + fluidity).

“Stab the Hydra in the heart.” Cal Newport is not pulling any punches with his latest treatise on how we can combat Hyperactive Hive Mind with smarter systems for communication. Email has become a constant source of guilt and stress for so many of us — listen in for strategies to reclaim your peace and focus.

Gulp! Here we go — all-in on a new podcast (that will run in parallel to the Pivot podcast), and I’m thrilled to have you here for the kick-off! Welcome to Free Time: your new home for Heart-Based Business.

In this inaugural episode I’m sharing what inspired me to start this show, how I’m handling the Imposter Monster sitting right next to me, and what’s next for Jenny Blake Enterprises. A pivot for Pivot, if you will :)