SPEAKER_00
Guys, I'm so excited to bring today's episode to you because I had the best conversation with Ariel Zella, who's the founder and designer behind Luderay Jewelry. And we were literally diving into the nitty gritty of what her business launch looks like. She's in launch phase, launch mode of her business.

We're talking about what that looks like, the lessons she's learned. It's such a powerful, genuine, authentic conversation. So I think you're going to love it and learn a lot from it.

So make sure you have your notebooks ready to go. My name is Robin Clark, and I'm obsessed with all things business and marketing. I'm a jewelry designer who left the corporate world and grew a successful jewelry business.

And now I help women just like you from around the world do the same. I'm the founder and CEO of the Jewelry Business Academy, the host of the Jewelry Business Academy podcast. And I'm here to help you scale your jewelry business to six figures and beyond without burning out.

Through my coaching program and podcast, I help you navigate the challenging seasons of business as well as teach you the secrets to building a sustainable business that makes you feel good. So grab a cup of tea and your notebook, get cozy and let's dive in. Welcome back guys.

It's so good to be here with you today. I'm really excited to share this conversation that I had with a new jewelry business owner who's kind of just going through the launch phase right now. And I think you're really going to enjoy this conversation.

You know, I've talked about this before. I've had a lot of guests who've been incredibly successful in business who are hitting incredible milestones, who've been in the industry for many, many years. But we have a lot of listeners who are at the early stages of their business.

And so I'm going to be bringing a huge variety of jewelry business owners onto the podcast so that you can hear the lessons that they're learning, the challenges that they're going through at all these different stages of business. And so today I'm having a really powerful conversation with Ariel Zella, who is the founder and designer behind Ludoree Jewelry. Ludoree is a jewelry brand that inspires you to really embrace your authentic self and to live life as play.

And this is an extra special episode as Ariel is a dear client of mine, and she's a member of the Jewelry Business Academy. So we're chatting about so much. We talked about how to launch your business in the most grounded way possible, how to deal with feelings of overwhelm, and we looked at learning versus doing and how that translates as a new business owner.

And we talked about embracing messy action. You guys know I'm a massive fan of that. Ariel also shared her experience with perfectionism and how it's held her back at certain times in her business and how she's working through that.

We talked about optimizing your launches, dealing with fear of showing up being the face of your brand, being on video, and how to build really strong connections with your community. And why Ariel chose to embrace support on this business building journey of hers. So we talked about so, so much.

I think you're really going to love this episode. And if you are feeling excited and inspired by it and you're feeling like, you know what, maybe I would love to know a little bit more about what my journey would look like if I had that support, if I had the systems in place, the strategy, the accountability. And if you like my eyes on your business every single week, then the Jory Business Academy is the place to do it.

You guys know it's the most expansive container for Jory business owners who are ready to scale their business with my support. And so if that feels exciting to you, if you're feeling ready for support, if you're feeling ready to up level your business and you're ready to implement strategy and systems and all the tools and knowledge that you need to actually take your business to the next level in a way that feels good, head to jorybusinessacademy.ca to learn more and you can go ahead and book in a call with my team.

But let's dive into this conversation. I'm super excited to share it with you and I hope you enjoy. Ariel, it's so good to have you on the Jory Business Academy podcast today.

Thanks so much for joining me. Yeah, thanks for having me. I'm excited to dive in.

Yeah, I'm looking forward to diving into this as well. And this is an extra special episode because you've been a part of the Jory Business Academy just for a couple of weeks. You're a newbie.

But you know, I was talking about this a few weeks ago. I'm excited to bring on and have conversations with people who have been in business for 15 years, but also people who are just starting out because I feel like those conversations are way more valuable for other people who are just getting started and hearing like the lessons you've learned, experiences you're going through, challenges you're going through, it just is gonna resonate so much more with other people in your position, which I'm sure you would have found the same, like super valuable. But before we dive into all of that, do you just wanna go ahead and introduce yourself to everyone, share who you are, what you do, what your brand's about and where you based, and then we'll go from there.

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, so I'm Ariel. I'm currently based in Denver, though I've moved around a lot, but this feels finally like a really good home base for me. And I'm excited to be here.

My brand is called Lutere, which the word means play. I built the entire brand around the idea of life should be lived as play, which to me means living in the moment, it's not, it's thinking more about the progress and the process of what's happening right now, versus thinking about like getting so stuck in your head as to making everything perfect. And it's more of like living life according to what's happening and going with the flow.

SPEAKER_00
I love that so much. I love the meaning and messaging behind your brand and behind your pieces and weaving that like feeling of play, which let's be honest, everybody needs more of in their life into your brand and into your pieces and letting them represent that is just so, so, so powerful. So I'm excited for you and for your brand.

And so I know you just recently launched, how many weeks ago did you officially launch?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, so I officially launched in the second week of April after working on it for a full year. So I will say that it definitely was a really long journey. I had no background in jewelry before I got started.

So it was definitely a big learning process before I hit the we're live button. But I joined the business academy about two weeks after I launched. So it was like very immediately I was like, wait, because I've launched a few businesses before.

And I don't know, this already feels like the most grounding in the most stable that I've been in the business. And it feels like I'm really setting myself up for success just having like someone to guide me because it's so easy in those early phases. And now I've seen it over and over again to just get really overwhelmed.

And you just feel like I'm spinning my wheels or you're overwhelmed by option and overwhelmed by choice. And realizing right away, I was like, wait, I can't get into these same habits that I've built with these other businesses. How can I zero in on like effective strategies to feel grounded in what I'm doing and like I'm making the right choices rather than just living in this panic spiral overwhelm with the beginning because the beginning is just so tough.

SPEAKER_00
100%. The early, I think the first year or two of building a business is honestly the hardest. It's way harder than scaling because you're trying to prove a concept.

You're breaking down all these walls and barriers you have within yourself being like, oh, I can't do that. I can't do that. And you having to like constantly break all these walls down, you having to actually find out what works, what doesn't, like what's the plan, what's the strategy.

So thank you for sharing that. Cause you know what, I think there's a lot of, I don't want to say guilt. It's more like shame that comes along with that process when people think, well, I should know what I'm doing, especially you, you've had multiple businesses that have been a huge success.

And you've been an on-trap in here for many years, but even you sharing like, hey, I did this for a year. Like I know you were working on it for a year before officially launching. You launched and within two weeks, you came into the academy for like next level of support.

But like, I'd love to know your advice to someone who's listening to this is who's like, you know, we have a lot of listeners who are starting their jewelry business as their first ever business. So they don't even have the years of experience you have. What is your advice to them who are like trying to do this and they just getting started?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it's funny, I was actually just talking to a girl that was starting her own business, she's 24. I was talking to her yesterday and I like, was like right away, no one's really asking this question because I'm just such like a newbie at it, what feels like myself. But I was like, yes, oh, maybe I do have some experience now under my belt, but it's just, there's no amount of research and learning and thinking about it that consultative for doing.

And I think that you talk about this all the time, right? It's that idea of met the action. It's like, you can hypothesize and you can think and you can strategize, but the feedback loop from doing and then iterating on the doing versus planning and strategizing is just so much faster than, like I said, than the strategy part of it. So I would say my advice is to just like take the leap and jump and go rather than like having it honking about needing, like I said, needing it to be away, needing it to be perfect.

I got really hung up, especially in this business about the idea that you only get one first impression. And that was something that like stuck with me and held me into this. It's what made me take a year, honestly.

Because I was like, yeah, no, I need it to be perfect in air quotes when I launched because I only get this one first impression. And now I'm like, I don't think if I did it again, I would hold onto that so tightly. I'm proud of what I did.

And I do think it turned out really well because I was holding myself to such a high standard. But I think I would have learned a lot faster through just like kind of throwing some stuff out there and testing things along the way rather than meeting. It needs to be such a certain way before I jumped.

And the amount that I've learned since April to August, I can tell you is a lot more than I learned in a year of working on it behind the scenes, I would say. Because you get that feedback from being out in the world and like testing it as a real world business concept versus the planning stage.

SPEAKER_00
Yeah, I love that you shared this Ariel because I know we've chatted about this quite a bit as well. And this is one of the biggest mistakes I see business owners making. And it's funny that you bought this up because I was literally talking to someone about this yesterday who was like, oh, I want to start a business but I'm going to research for a few months.

And I was like, no, no, get your minimum viable product out to market as quickly as possible and start getting market feedback. You're going to learn so much, so much quicker than like getting in your head and getting overwhelmed with everything. And I know that you really did a good job setting your brand up for sure.

But definitely I know we've chatted about this. Like we could have started selling when you were just getting started and start building that customer base and start like building that excitement. But now we're doing it now.

And I love that you shared like you had that feeling like I only have one first impression and that's not true. And I say this all the time, a launch fails, you relaunch. You relaunch as many times as you need to do well.

You need to like, and people think like, oh, I only have one chance to launch this collection or launch like a sale or launch this. No, you can literally keep relaunching. There's no rules on launching.

We're going to relaunch as many times as needed to build that momentum in your business. And people can do soft launches then they can do hard launches. Like there's no limits then.

So it's so funny because we hold ourselves to this massive standard that everything has to be perfect. They only have one chance. Nobody else even knows that you launched.

If it was a fluff, the best thing is nobody knows. And you know?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah. I mean, that's just like an advice for life, I think. Like nobody's thinking about you as much as you think that they are.

Nobody is like, hang on, it's called attention to you. Like this is my whole life. This is my whole world and I'm so invested in it.

But there's just like a lot of ways to be putting out content, putting out messaging and like letting it go. Letting everything go in life. Like I said, I mean, why even created the business around the idea of life should be lived as by breaking your authenticity is because this was such a hold up for me.

Like I was obsessed with the idea that, you know, I need to micromanage myself and the way that I am in this world is like somehow wrong or bad or that I need to like censor it because I'm always trying to like give people what I think is like the right thing. And I think that what's been helpful through going through this process is just like why I created a brand to mean that thing so that I'm everyday absorbed in this same messaging of what I'm trying to tell other people is it's okay to show up as like your messy self. It's okay to like show the process and the behind the scenes and just to like, I don't know, real life is a lot messier than I, than I wanted it to be or not even that I wanted to be that people project I think.

And so if I'm like living that through my business and through this ethos and trying to spread it with other people, I'm like absorbing it myself and reminding myself every day like, no, it's okay. To like show up as your messy self and like do things like this, which, you know, Robin knows that I'm nervous to talk on camera. I'm nervous to like go live at all.

And, but I'm like forced like forcing myself through it because after I've done it, I'll do it next time and it won't feel as bad. And I think that like, I don't know, wrapping it all together with what I've made my business about and then trying to live in that way is hopefully gonna come together. Yeah, that makes sense.

And in a way that like resonates with people.

SPEAKER_00
And you know what? You're so not alone in experiencing those feelings of like, oh, well, I'm building this brand around like revolving around like integrating clay into your life and all of that. And I'm here hustling or whatever. And you know, you sometimes feel like, oh, well, is there a disconnect? Yeah.

And no, that's exactly why what you're doing is so valuable because you know, as a human being, how challenging it is when you have a lot going on in your life, how hard it is to integrate clay into your life. And so you know how important it is to have these pieces that really represent that, that you can be reminded of. And so again, as you said, life is messy.

Real life is messy, real people are messy. And that actually allows us to like relax in the way we show up on social media, relax in the way we engage with our community because people aren't looking for you to be professional. Professional, super boring.

They're just looking for a real human being who's flawed, who has challenges. I shared this in a few posts ago, like script writers, when they want somebody, an audience not to like people, they'll make them perfect. And we always think that we have to be perfect for people to buy from us and that's not the case.

So, you know, sharing like, oh yeah, I'm really struggling with this or oh, I forgot to like integrate clay into my life or you know what, if you're doing this, you're not alone, that's gonna make people feel seen. That's gonna make them feel heard. That's gonna make them feel like you're also human.

It's gonna resonate so much more. So, I really, really love that you shared that and that you've come live because I know again, this is way outside of your comfort zone. I think when we started, even video, am I right? Like showing up on video was a challenge.

How did you feel then? Sure.

SPEAKER_01
I mean, I guess I still feel very uncomfortable with speaking. That's the challenge for me because, and especially speaking live, like I just want to be able to edit myself. It's just that I was a dancer growing up and so I feel really comfortable in my body and I don't feel uncomfortable showing up on camera for say, but it really is about using my voice.

And I do feel like I have so much to say and I'm a really confident writer, but I'm just not a confident speaker live. I actually am doing a really scary thing because I'm just now I'm really embracing the do it scared. And that's how you get to the other side.

I'm doing an improv comedy class. Like I was like the scariest thing I could think of doing, which is like getting out of my head and figuring out how can I just like speak live without doing mental feedback, that mental loop and doing stuff like this. And I'm like, that's what I've realized throughout this journey is like the way that I'm getting over a lot of these fears is just by doing it anyway.

And then the next time it's okay. So I'm like, wait, what is the scariest thing I can think about doing for someone that's afraid to speak and always likes to censor and wants to, to make the perfect narrative just do. And I'm having fun with it.

I mean, I only did my second class, but it's fun and it's not as scary as I thought it would be. And I don't, I mean, I'm not want to be like an improv comedy person, but I was just like, what is like a skill that I need to work on? And it's using my voice in a way that feels good and authentic and true and not scary, intimate and censored.

SPEAKER_00
That's powerful. Oh my gosh, Ariel, I'm obsessed with this because you know what? This, like that is directly gonna help your business directly. And I speak about this all the time.

Finding your voice as an individual is gonna be one of the most powerful things you can do in helping your build whatever business you have, especially jewelry businesses. People think, oh, I'm just selling jewelry. No, you're selling so much more.

You're selling your mission, your values, your beliefs. You're selling this huge, like so many more layers than people recognize. And when you actually start talking about it and using your voice and sharing those stories, that's when people connect to you and your brand at just another level.

And you build those super strong relationships and it's super powerful. So I'm so glad that you're putting yourself out there in those uncomfortable situations, feeling the fear, taking action anyway. You know, I say that all the time.

So I'm so glad that you're doing that. And you'll, like as you said, you're ready on your second class and it's already not as bad as you thought. We always build things up in our head.

And even the live, you're probably gonna forget that we're live sometime soon. And you'll be like, oh yeah, what's happening? And like, as I was saying, it doesn't matter if things go wrong. People love when things go wrong.

Like if we made a hot mess here and we said something we shouldn't have said, that's when people are like, ooh, this is fun. So you know, we think that's gonna be the end of the world. People are actually gonna find that way more interesting than if this just goes with the flow.

So it's really interesting to think about that. But you know, you've been in the Jory Business Academy for a couple of months now. Is it April you joined?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, I think so. So we're moving at the same time too.

SPEAKER_00
Yeah, you were just moving. So you've been in just for a couple of months. I'd love to know how you were feeling before you joined.

Like how are you feeling? What was your like aha moment for you, you know, thinking, I need support?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, I mean, it really was like I was saying in the beginning, like that recognizing that when things get overwhelming or things get scary or I start to have a lot of self doubt, I will back off or like I'll pivot or I'll just like be in a rut. I can't even explain it. I just know that because I've been through this so many times that if things are not like immediately successful, which nothing ever is, or you have to go through that grind period, the beginning is just so hard.

And honestly, it feels like, yes, there were so many like systems and things that I'm learning. And I think a real benefit, I think you talked about this on your podcast too, is like every business is different. Even if you're selling a product online, which I was selling a product online, jewelry specific is its own thing.

So learning like the systems that someone else has come before you, firstly, it can shrink time. Like you can find all those things out and you would learn them on your own if you persevered, but you can learn from someone else and be able to shrink time in that way. But also you're learning from other people that are doing it alongside you.

And that to me is like the most grounding thing. Entrepreneurship is super lonely. That's one of my least favorite things about it.

I was working entirely alone full of remote, even before I started this business. And it just, it can be like a grind where you're just in it by yourself. You can really get in your head.

You don't have someone to bounce ideas off of. I know you talked about this too. Like I was like, I really wish I had a business partner.

Like I think about that all the time, just like someone that can, I can bounce ideas off of someone that we're in this together and working towards. But having the jewelry business academy and having like all of these people working alongside me feels like it's filling that need for me where it's like, okay, no, I'm learning from what they're doing. We're pushing each other together.

You know, I really do like the business buddy program. Like we're like in it together. And that feels really nice.

It honestly feels like I like connecting with other people that are doing the same thing is I think an invaluable part of business. I, my husband is a dentist and he has in so many groups and he's like up the entire networks. He's, he's one of those people that's like out there in it.

And where I thought I was hiding in my room. But I see like the benefit that he was getting from being parts of groups and learning from people better than him, learning from people at the same stage from him. I was like, no, I need this for myself too, in my business.

And so it was something I was seeking and really grateful that I found the right fit.

SPEAKER_00
Oh, amazing. Yeah, I'm grateful to have you in the Academy as well. And I love that you shared about your, your husband being a dentist.

And I think it's so normalized in like normal jobs or the corporate world, whatever, to have all these support systems and have be part of all these networks. And then when we come in on drop in here, we think, oh, I have to do this on my own. I have to prove I can make it on my own.

And the mindset shift changes. And so, you know, I totally understand where you're coming from when you're like, it's lonely being on your own all the time and having to be the one to pep talk yourself up to showing up and all of that. You can only do that for so long sustainably without it.

I mean, technically you could keep doing it, but it's not fun. It's not fun. And so I'm so glad that you're loving the community and the biz buddies and all of that.

And I'd love to know how you're feeling now. You're still at the beginning stages. You're still going through the program, but how are you feeling now? Has your confidence changed? Do you feel excited about the path you're on? And how do you feel?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, I definitely feel so much more confident. Well, I would say I felt really, I went building it over that year was a roller coaster where I felt like, wow, look at what I'm achieving. Oh my gosh, I can't believe what I'm doing.

This is the scariest thing. Why did I take such a big risk and such a big jump? Because I manufactured my products. I worked with a team to get them made versus making them myself.

I designed them. So it was a really big upfront investment and push on a lot of learning all at once. And then when I launched, that first maybe two weeks before I even joined the Academy, and then even once I first started, I was like, this is a nightmare.

I just can't believe what I've done. It was just so scary. And now I just feel so much more confident.

I'm confident in the journey. I'm confident in the little actions that I'm taking day by day, watching the little winds add up over time. And it's like, yes, this is gonna take a long time.

Like it's not an overnight thing. And not that I thought it would be, but I had another business that kind of was an overnight thing. And so it's like, it's really just feeling like the choices that I'm making day to day are the right for me in this moment choices.

Not that I even dissect that, but there's not really a right choice. There's just the choice that I'm making and it will add up over time. And the right thing will fall into place.

It feels like I'm in a much more grounded place personally, feeling like it will be what will happen will happen. It'll take the time it takes. And all I can do is show up every day and do the hard work, work to my best of my abilities, knowing what I know now and learning as I go.

And I just feel like I'm not in such a manic rush anymore, which is how it felt in the beginning. I was like, wow, I put all this time and investment into this and I have to make it work immediately. And everything that was like, it just felt like a lot, a lot of pressure.

And now I feel, nothing's like, I mean, things are going better. And like I said, it's little wins because I'm right at the beginning. It's not like a massive success or anything, but it's like, I can see that my efforts over time, I can almost see it better than I could before.

And I'm more okay with the time that it's gonna take.

SPEAKER_00
And I love that you shared that because I think some newer business owners expect like, oh, I'm gonna launch an overnight be some huge success. And when they aren't, they feel so down and they get so like, what's wrong with me? It's very rare for businesses to be an overnight success. But what you, like from what I understand from what you're sharing, you are very tier now after going through, like being part of the program on the systems that you need in place.

And the tasks you need to be doing on a daily basis that we know are gonna move you towards your goals, whether you hit them a little bit early, whether you hit them a little bit later, we know these are going to move you towards your goals. Yeah, we might pivot things, we might tweak things, we might change things. But when you're working on these tasks each day, you're very confident you're not wasting time on like, the 80% of fluff tasks, you're working on the 20% of revenue driving growth tasks.

And actually the key things that are going to move you towards your goals, whatever that timeline may be. So yeah.

SPEAKER_01
Absolutely, I think that that's true. And I think that I like wouldn't have, I could have been lost in like the sea of like, what should I do for a really long time? But it's like having that focus direction to be like, no, these are my actions. And then the accountability too, because like you were saying, there is a lot of information.

Like I could go get the information, but it's like the program specifically is great about like implementing and making sure that you're implementing and staying on target, which I think is great because like, there are a lot of programs that will sell to business owners. Like that's what I've noticed too. Once I launched my business, I was like, wow, I'm being sold too, a lot.

Yeah. I think that like, what's great about this program is like not only like the information, but like the accountability along the way, the systems and the group mindset of like, we're all in this together, I think are specifically unique to this and what I really value.

SPEAKER_00
Amazing. I love that. And you know what? It's true.

That's what I saw. There's no shortage of information. There's an abundance of information.

But even once you have the information, it's like the implementation is where everyone gets stuck. And that's why we developed the program in the way we did so that we can actually like, kind of handhold you through, give you all these layers of accountability, business, all of these things that are gonna actually help you take action. Cause the only way that you're gonna get anywhere in your business is by taking that action, doing the implementation.

So I'm really happy to hear that. Ariel, I know we're like close to our end, but do you have 10 minutes to go over? Or do you want us to?

SPEAKER_01
Oh yeah, no, I'm fine. You do?

SPEAKER_00
Perfect, perfect. Cause we're having such a good conversation and I can feel so sad to end it now. So yeah, do you want to share like, some of the wins that you have experienced and celebrated since being part of the jewelry business academy, I know you've had some like great events and.

..

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it's so funny. That's another thing too. Like when I was first launching or when I was thinking about this business, I was like, I didn't think about it as doing events at all.

Like not at least at the type of events that I ended up doing. I was like, no, is this too high price for that? That's just like not my audience. I don't think that's gonna be the great thing for me.

I'm gonna try to find a way to do it without that. Cause I was like, I didn't know that I could sell these items at events in the way that I am. And right away you were like, no, you're doing events.

How you're gonna hit your goal is like going out there and doing events. And I was like, okay, I guess I'll see how that works. And yeah, that's been obviously the biggest revenue driver for my business is the events for sure.

And it's just, I think it's maybe, it might be like a 2023 thing. I've like had this discussion with other business owners. It's like the way to build, and I don't know because I haven't launched a business, this specific type of thing before this, but it's just so hard to build like an authentic real online presence right now.

Like in the same way that you can in person, just like going out there and meeting people in my community, getting to know who my customers are. Also the invaluable feedback that you get from watching people interact with your pieces live. Like no amount of hiding behind my computer screen was ever gonna teach me as much as quickly as going out and doing as many events as I already have.

And I've like stacked my entire fall for full of events. And then I'm doing a full time, like I have my own stable pop up all through like six weeks of a Christmas, seven days a week. Because I'm like, no, I'm all in on a menu show.

Just because I think as a new business owner, there's firstly, you know, I'm not very comfortable with sales. Like that was always like my downfall. I don't feel comfortable selling.

The way you get comfortable selling is selling. And it's selling in person. And it's like, I wanna sit out there for all of those days in the cold in December and Denver and meet the customers and interact with them and learn what's working and what's not working.

And like that actually really excites me. And that's what I love about doing events. And you can get like that real life feedback.

It was almost like I waited just for a long time and I had kind of loved that. And this feels almost very similar to that. I know it's like so different, but I have someone that then worked in that all alone on my computer for years and years and years.

I'm like, wait, no, I actually like being out with people. And I like interacting and being able to like have that in-person connection that is just so different than like the entire digital ecosystem I've built for myself over the last six years. And so plunging myself into that, I think is huge.

And it's building my confidence. And it's making me speak better here today on this. Whereas, you know, it's all of these things.

So yes, going out and having events and selling in person was a huge confidence booster. It gave me that proof of confidence in the business in general, just like seeing those, okay, wait, no, people really are resonating with this. I didn't make a huge mistake.

I might as well maybe all good. And like stuff like that that I just was not getting from hiding behind my computer. And like another big win is I'm finally getting into my full-fledged strategy and pitching to stores.

And that's already going really well. Yeah, and I mean, I can see like, you know, it's a little bit chipping away at it day by day. I'm only one person working entirely alone.

So I can see the limitations of my time. But that's where it starts. And then it's my dream to like grow a team.

It's my dream to have my own storefront. And I can see that, you know, those things will happen.

SPEAKER_00
No, it's so exciting. And you know, I think when you're talking about the events, I see this all the time. People get pushed back when it comes to events.

And in some situations, I don't always recommend events. But you know, where you're at in your business, what you're wanting to do, the goals you're having, the pace at which you're wanting to scale your business, you're perfectly set up for doing events. And especially when it comes to building your confidence, getting that market feedback, it's all, it will scale your business at such a much faster pace when we're looking at, like you've been really strategic in choosing the locations, the way your display is set up.

Like it's been done very intentionally. So somebody who's listening to this being like, oh, I've done events and they were just an absolute hot mess. You know, there's a lot of things that play into it being successful.

And one thing to keep in mind is, yeah, you're doing a ton now. Like you've booked yourself up. But you're at the starting stage of business and you're going to shift from the majority of like sales being in person to shifting that to majority online and wholesale.

And it's just a matter of doing that in a sustainable way. Because otherwise what I see business owners doing is they're like, oh, I'm only going to do online right from the get go. And yeah, some people blow up online.

But if you just go like super stubborn saying, I'm just going to do that, you're missing out on the market feedback, you're missing out on the confidence building, you're missing out on the vocabulary that your customers like hearing and like navigating your messaging and all of that, building those relationships and potentially burning out before you actually build that momentum. So I'm really glad that you shared that. And I'm excited for your wholesale.

I know we were chatting about that earlier. Super exciting to like I'm sure when we bring you on, we'll bring you on when your actual Christmas markets because you'll have a physical store. And maybe you can give us a quick tour as well.

And then we'll also hear all your updates when it comes to wholesale because I'm excited for that for sure, Ariel. So what would you say to somebody who's listening to this who's like, I'm not too sure about the Jory Business Academy. What would your advice be to somebody who's like thinking of joining and getting that support and getting the systems and structure and accountability and all of that?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah, I think there's really no substitute for having that versus not having it. I mean, I just think it's even if you think about it from just like a mental health standpoint, which I know it's like a crazy thing to do. Yes, there's systems that you can learn.

And all of that is like wonderful and important. And I think you can get so much value on the business side of things. But it is just like having a community, having a support system, knowing that if you feel overwhelmed or if you have a specific question, you can come to someone for help.

I just can't. There's not even a value you can place on that. Like I'm not, you know what I also, I should say, I was working with another coach before this.

I was doing a coach that I paid hourly for their time. I actually loved her. I thought she was great.

She had a lot of great things to say. But being part of a full program in a full community is a difference maker. It's different than like me thinking like, did I reach out to her or I'm going to have to pay blah, blah, blah for that amount of time? Like that just, it was helpful when it was helpful, but it wasn't the same thing as being in a full immersive program with a full community with someone that I know is watching my journey as it goes rather than being like, should I spend X amount of dollars to get this advice? And I just think that the way you've structured the program in that way makes it like an extra value set rather than like other consultants and other avenues you can go down.

So I think the value of being part of a group and being part of like a structured program is very different than just like seeking the information on your own and seeking it like as needed, I should say. Yeah, I would say definitely don't hesitate. I have nothing but great things to say.

And I think that I don't think that I'd, whether I'd be where I am today, who knows whether I'd feel as good as I do today, I know first start and I would not.

SPEAKER_00
Well, thank you for sharing that Ariel. I honestly love hearing that feedback and it's always interesting for me to hear as well. And I totally agree when it comes to the mental health side of it because I'm in a group literally the same for coaches because I've seen the value and I'm like, I've seen how that structure is just unbelievably supportive.

And when it comes to business building, your mental health like is super important, super important along with the strategy and support and accountability, but your mental health comes first in my opinion as well. And everything else will flow so much better when you feel good, when you're feeling supported, when you feel like you're not alone. So I really love that.

I wanna make sure that I just wanna see if anybody has a question for Ariel, you're welcome to pop it in here. I just wanna make sure I didn't miss any questions. Otherwise, Ariel, I would love to know what would be one piece of advice you'd give to somebody who's listening, who's started their business, who is lacking confidence of being the face of their business.

And the reason I'm asking you this is that you had this gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous like layout of your Instagram when we started working together. And I don't think you were featured in any of the pictures. And I was like, no, no, we need to bring you in.

We need to like embrace being the face. And I know you kind of bought this for a while. What would you want to advice me?

SPEAKER_01
It's so funny. Like I was actually thinking about this the other day because I was determined to not be. I was so because I started other businesses that use my name specifically.

And like so many designers use their name. And I was like, no, I'm gonna completely reject that. Like I want another name.

I wanted to be about this thing. It has nothing to do with me. Like I really wanted to completely start my make and not be the face of it at all because I got the ick honestly because I got the ick with posting on social media.

I didn't want to promote myself. I didn't want to like have this be about me at all. If it just didn't feel good.

And right away, we just like, no, you gotta stop. And so I was like, and it was like a friction for me in the beginning where I was like, wait, I really didn't want to do this this time. Like I really wanted this to not be about me.

And then ultimately I had to go back to being like, well, you literally created this business about embracing your authenticity. And there's no greater way to do that than to show up as you are and just make that part of it. Like this, there was no reason I could have, because I have like a lot of like design and background, I could have hid behind it for a long time.

I could have projected that this was a big company that had nothing to do with me probably for a while. But that again, is not authentic. It's not what's going on.

Like that's even like showing up a lot like this. I'm like, do I really want to feel like the current as to like what I'm doing? And I'm like, you know what? I don't care anymore. Like this is what's happening.

I am at one woman show running this entire business doing everything like from soup to nuts. And there's no reason to like hide what's going on. If anything I think like you're saying, it's endearing when I find out that it's just like, who's running the business, who's behind the show? I feel more connected to that business and those products.

And so I've just like been like, you know what? I'm going to dive in and I'm going to peel back all those layers and just embrace that this is what's happening and this is where the phase of the business is right now. And there's no reason to like project something that it's not. And that's made me feel more comfortable like showing up and showing what's actually going on.

And it's still a scary, like it still doesn't feel good. Social media still is like a little bit of a friction point with me. But again, I know the only way out is through.

So I've just been doing it, doing it scared and doing it anyway. And I don't like tie so much value as to the outcomes of social media anymore, which like I used to for sure. I was like, oh my gosh, I worked X amount of time on this post and it only did such and such well.

And that used to like make me upset. And so that was like a feedback loop that was really discouraging. And now I just really don't care.

I just like put stuff out and it does well or it doesn't. And like tomorrow is another day. And like it just doesn't matter.

It's more about just like consistently doing it. And I do think I like take more time on the post and I probably should. So there is still an element of caring.

I'm not sure I can like really break through that. But I, it's better. It's getting better.

I would say that the advice is the original question you asked. The advice is to just do it anyway and people will connect to you. And if they don't, they were a mentally or people.

I think that's another thing too. It's like you're not going to please everyone and not everyone's going to like you. And that was like a hold up thing for me.

I was like, everyone needs to like me. I don't care about that anymore either. Like my people will find me and if people are turned off by what I'm saying or how I am or how I'm showing up, they were not meant to be.

And that's okay too.

SPEAKER_00
I think this is actually such an important message that you've shared Ariel because this is massive in business. When you say, I just don't care anymore and you're detached from your results, that detachment is going to be the reason you're going to be so successful. And people think and I've had conversations with new business owners and somebody said to me a few weeks ago, she's like, I just feel like I'm not attached to my results enough.

So I'm not caring enough. And I was like, no, no, we don't, like your self-worth and your identity must not be attached to your business. It's a very, it's a pre-slope and people think that's how it should be.

And so what you're doing, you're detaching and it's actually super healthy. It's actually why you're going to do well in your business because you're not connecting your self-worth to your sales or to how many likes your post got or to how many views it got. You're just saying, I know where I want to be.

I know what my goals are. I know the steps I need to take. And I'm going to keep taking them till I get there.

Yeah, we'll look at things, we'll tweak, we'll refine. But I'm going to keep showing it up. And I'm not going to let one bad day stop me from showing up the next day because I'm down because that happened because then it's a roller coaster.

So I think that's incredibly valuable that you shared that. And yeah, when it comes to being authentic and showing up online, it actually, it gets easier. You'll wake up one day and you're like, oh, yeah, I don't even think about it.

Like I never think about it. I never do multiple things. I just like, I just go on and it just starts to become easy and natural with practice.

So I love that. And I just want to say somebody had a question. Ristul's had a question.

How can you make a comeback to your email list when it's been a month since your last email? And this, I'm so glad that she asked that question. I'm not going to dive into email on this, but I will say, take messy action. But we've been saying, take messy action because when you've taken a break or like with Ariel, when you've taken a year to like get everything ready perfectly for your business before launching, then you're kind of like, you get yourself into freeze mode.

And messy action is the way out of it. Just take messy action, any action to start getting out of that loop. So most entrepreneurs, the thing that holds them back is getting into a spiral of indecision and inaction.

They start overthinking, stop taking action, overthinking, stop taking action. And it's really hard to get out of there. So just take whatever step like as Ariel shared, like taking that messy action, feeling the fear, doing it anyway, is going to help you get out of that.

It doesn't have to be perfect. First, we want to get over the fear, start taking action, and then we can go refine the strategy in that. That's easy once you've got over the first ball hurdle.

But Ariel, this has been so much fun. Thank you for joining me. I'd love to know if there has been any book that's really impacted you on your entrepreneurial journey so far that you'd recommend to others to read.

SPEAKER_01
Oh, man, I do read a lot of books. And I feel like I'm always consuming. I'm consuming a lot of entrepreneurial podcasts.

I'd love to listen to them. So I'm going to recommend. I'm still obsessed with how I built this by going on.

I was obsessed with that before I even had a business. I've been listening to Diary of the CEO. That's a good one.

SPEAKER_00
I love that one.

SPEAKER_01
It's one of my favorites. So good. Man, I can't think of it.

I'm on the spot. I can't think of a book right now. Oh, wait.

No, the E-myth Revisited is an entrepreneurial book. That's a really weird title. But trust me.

And that was one of the first books I read about being an entrepreneur that I was like, yeah. And it really is like, it talks about the overwhelm of this baker who just started baking cakes. And then all of a sudden she ran a business.

And just trust me on this. But it's about systems and strategy and implementing and building a long and sustainable business, rather than being the one that's making in your business, the one that's like your business is running, your business is your new boss, versus you building a sustainable business.

SPEAKER_00
Anyway, that's such a good recommendation. Because that's what happens to a lot of people is they stuck in the corporate world. So they're like, OK, I'm going to build a business and have the freedom.

And then they get stuck in. Their dream business locks them in. And they become a bit of a slave to it because they so determined to be on their own doing it.

The reality is, and I've struggled with this as well, is you have to have a team. You have to scale to the point of having a team down the line, even if it's a small, streamlined team, if you want to be able to step away and go on vacation and have a life outside your business again down the line. So I think that's such a good book recommendation.

We'll link it in the show notes for sure. Is there anything else you wanted to share before we go? Anything else you wanted to chat about?

SPEAKER_01
Just that I'm feeling a lot better now than I did a half hour ago. So amazing.

SPEAKER_00
The only way out is through. The only way out is through. I'm so happy to hear that.

And yeah, I'm thrilled. Is this your first live ever? Yeah. I wouldn't have been able to tell.

You're just a natural. But this has been so much fun, Ariel. So for anyone who's listening to the podcast version of this and they're feeling excited and inspired by your journey and they want to follow along as you scale, literate, jewelry, where can they find you and how can they support you?

SPEAKER_01
Yeah. Life is Luda Ray, L-U-D-E-R-E on Instagram.

SPEAKER_00
Perfect. And we will link your Instagram and your websites in the show notes. Anyone can go connect with Ariel on her journey.

And we're definitely going to bring you back in a couple of months. I think for your actual holiday markets in the store, we'll get a tour as well. We'll hear about all your updates.

And yeah, I'm excited for you. I'm excited for your business. And thanks so much for coming on here today, facing the fear, like facing your fears, and just showing up anyway and sharing.

So genuinely, like your lessons that you're going through and the challenges you're going through and the wins you're experiencing, I really appreciate it. And it's been really fun. Yeah. Thank you, Robin. Thank you so much for listening today.

And I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did. If this podcast is really uplifting you and inspiring you and making you feel motivated to show up in your jewelry business, then I'd love for you to take a second to screenshot the episode you're listening to and tag me on Instagram. It's Robin Clark coaching.

I love connecting with you on your entrepreneurial journey over on Instagram. And if you are also finding this podcast incredibly valuable, I really would appreciate you to take one minute to quickly leave us a five-star review on Apple podcasts. It really has a huge impact on helping us get the word out there so that we can support more and more jewelry business owners on their journey through our podcasts and through our content and program.

So thank you in advance for taking a moment to do that. And I'm looking forward to seeing you next week.