July 13, 2025 • 42 mins
Today I’m thrilled to be joined by the brilliantly creative and hugely talented Audrey Elizabeth, a creative marketing mentor with a big heart, a big mission, and a refreshing take on business growth.
We talk about the messy magic of building a brand from the inside out, the kind that starts with trusting your truth, not just chasing goals.
In this episode, we go deep on:
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What it really means to be visible when your brand is personal
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How to stay resilient when business isn’t quite going according to plan
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Why joy and creativity aren’t distractions, they’re fuel
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And how to keep evolving without losing yourself in the process
If you’ve ever second-guessed how you show up, feared being judged, or wondered if you're “doing it right” this one’s going to feel like a pep talk from your big sister, and a strategy session all in one.
NOTES:
Follow Audrey on Instagram
Book your free 15 minute Visibility & Brand Audit With Amanda
Visit Amanda’s website and join Amanda on Instagram
Join the Grow Your Brand With Amanda Facebook Community
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
Welcome to the Grow Your Brandwith Amanda podcast, helping
you become a powerhouse brandwith bullseye messaging,
targeted visibility and scrollstopping content. I'm Amanda
Jane and I want to helpbusinesses like yours showcase
more of you so you're nothiding behind your logo, And
your audience gets to see thereal, authentic personality
(00:21):
behind your brand. Myphilosophy is the only way to
be comfortable in thespotlight is to truly believe
you belong there. And thattakes a little bit of work for
most business owners becausewe're not all naturals in
front of the camera ormicrophone. On this podcast,
I'm going to share lots ofactionable tips and advice to
enable you to grow your brandin a way that's comfortable
(00:42):
for you. I'll also befeaturing special guests who
will share their amazingjourneys with us. It's time to
grow your brand with Amanda,so let's get started.
Hello everyone and welcome toGrow Your Brand with Amanda
and today on my podcast I havethe amazing Audrey Elizabeth.
(01:05):
Hello Audrey. Hi, I'm so happyto be here. Thank you so much
for joining me and we've beentrying to get this in the
diary for literally months. SoAudrey is a creative marketing
and business mentor and we'reboth Irish. What could
possibly go wrong? It's beenlike four hours long. We'll be
chatting and chatting and I'mso thrilled to get Audrey on
(01:28):
my podcast because the firsttime I encountered you was on
someone else's podcast andyeah that is true story and I
was just like oh wow she's sointeresting and what you were
talking about was fascinatingso and I know some of your
story which is why thispodcast is just going to be so
Absolutely amazing and so fullof Audrey goodness because
(01:51):
there's nothing that you don'tknow about social media,
marketing and content creationso I'm really looking forward
to peeling back the layers ofAudrey so I'm so grateful
you're here Audrey. Oh, thankyou so much. I honestly like
just love everything I do andlove getting to come into
spaces like this and justshare it from my lens and
before we even get into it,it's not about this is right,
(02:14):
this is wrong. It's just weall have our own lenses. So
I'm really appreciative to behere and share it from my
lens. Fantastic. Yeah. And youare one of the most creative
people I know and you alwaysencourage other people to be
creative. I like to becreative as well. So let's
just see. So we're going tobegin with my three questions
(02:34):
to get to know a little bitabout your personality. So do
you have a favoritemotivational song? Do you know
what, I think this is going tobe the hardest question of
them all because I'm thebiggest music fan ever, like I
run a theatre school as well,so my whole life revolves
around dance and choreography,so this one I was really like
oh what will I choose, likebecause it does depend on the
(02:55):
mood, but I've gone with GetOn The Floor by JLo because
every time I hear it like I amlike ready for whatever's
coming at me. Yeah, I lovethat. And you use a lot of
music in your content as well,but I love that. I love that
song too. And that's veryenergetic and gets you up and
moving. Yeah, good choice.That will go on the Spotify
(03:16):
list that accompanies thispodcast, which is designed to
be motivational to geteverybody sort of ready and
full of creativity and moving.And do you have a motivational
quote? I do, but...Interestingly, literally this
only happened last week. It'sgoing to come from one of my
clients and she had said, whenyou trust your truth, other
people will feel that too. AndI was just like, it was
(03:39):
something she had taken awayfrom an activity we'd done.
And when she said that as thetakeaway, I was just like,
What else do we need? Trustyour truth and other people
will feel that too. That's sogood. Did she just come out
with it? Because I love thiswhen people just speak it. It
was in our telegram support. Iwas like, what was your... So
(03:59):
I do these creative activationsessions where we create that
space and it's... It's notjust about business, it's
about the identity of who youare and shifting any of the
blocks and stuff and we haddone one of these, it was the
very first time I had donethis session and in our
telegram group I was like I'dlove to know like what you
thought, what you took awayfrom it and that's what she
took away from that moment andit was just so like... Yeah,
(04:21):
it's really profound isn't itand you know you have to stop
and think actually yeah thatis really good, wow. Yeah,
that's the depth and this iswhere we're going to go. We're
going deep, I've no doubtabout it. Yeah, definitely.
Yeah, that will sit with mefor a while, that one will.
And I'm nosy with the books.Do you read? I do, but I
(04:45):
struggle. So I struggle withconcentration when I'm reading
and the book that I've pickedis Good Vibes, Good Life by
Bex King. Have you ever readit? No, but I will. I'll have
it to my list. So good. It'ssuch an easy read because the
chapters are quite short. Butit was the very, very first
book I read aroundtransformation. It's all about
(05:06):
the law of vibration andgratitude, but it's the...
It's still the only book thatI've read where I'm like I can
resonate with every singlepage here like I can see
myself I can see why I behavethat way I can like I just
resonate with every page is sogood. Oh I love the sound of
that yeah I definitelydefinitely gonna get that one
(05:27):
and you you know knowing youpersonally that that's how you
are you know you you just livein in that kind of I don't
want to say manifestation, butyou just expect these things
to happen and they do. Yeah,yeah. Like, I remember someone
saying that to me before. Theywere like, everything just
lands on your lap. And I waskind of like, I wouldn't say
(05:50):
that. I work very hard, but Ialso like know that the energy
I'm putting out is the energyI'm going to receive and I
protect my energy. I protectmy boundaries. It's taken a
long, long time to get here,but I like, I've always kind
of had that though. I'vealways had quite a positive
outlook on life and Even likecoming from like shitty times,
(06:13):
am I allowed to spare in thispodcast? I'm sure it's my
show. Coming from shittytimes, like building up that
resilience to have that like Iknow I can get through
anything because I've gotthrough some of the worst
things already. You know thatkind of way? Yeah. And I think
rather than saying things fallin your lap easily, it's
(06:34):
creating with intention. Youknow, I want this to happen so
I will aim for that and I willdo everything it takes to get
to there. And because no oneis in your head, no one fully
knows your journey. On theoutside, it looks like
everything comes easy, but itdoesn't, it doesn't, I don't
think nothing comes easy toanyone, you know, maybe there
are a few, but, and I knowexactly what you're saying,
(06:57):
and, you know, people justsay, oh, she's so lucky, oh,
she always could do things shewants, but no, she worked
bloody hard for it, and it'sblood, sweat and tears. But
it's with intention ratherthan look. I love that. I love
that, like phrasing that waywith intention and it kind of
gets to a point where it'slike there's no way this can't
(07:18):
work because I've done so muchnow to get here and I've
always kind of led with thatlike I've been a business
owner since I left school,like over 20 years and I know
there's ups and downs, I knowthere's challenges and
something that I've learnedactually is like with every
challenge that I've gonethrough actually gives me a
fire in my belly to overcomeit and like I'm not taking
(07:40):
away how hard it feels at thetime but it's like knowing
that after that, After that islike when you can pull the
lessons from that, you becomea better business owner or a
better leader or a betterwhatever it is you do because
of the challenges. You don'tbecome a leader or the top of
your industry by sailingthrough because you don't
(08:00):
learn any lessons. No, no. Anddo you ever find that when
you're in a difficulty now,you can reflect on previously
what you learned to help younavigate the now? And I would
like to naturally say yes, butsome things have repeated
themselves and it's taken thatpart and show up a few times
(08:23):
for me to be really like,okay, what is the lesson here?
What do I keep allowing tohappen? And it does come down
to probably... Oh, I don'tknow. I'm still trying to
figure out that lesson, but Iactually went to this... God,
we're going all over the placenow, but... As we knew we
would. It's this medium. She'sactually Irish, but we've done
it online because I'm based inthe UK and we were talking
(08:46):
about a situation I had gonethrough in my other business
and she was like, you need tofind this lesson because this
pattern has shown up so manytimes in different ways. But a
very similar thing is justlike you need to find out the
lesson and what I've come towhen I've journaled on it, I
think the lesson has alwaysbeen to trust the process,
that the magic is actually inthe process because this was
(09:09):
for my theatre school when wewere competing and it's like
everything is aimed againstthis one end product. And we
got there, we got to the topof that, like we reached our
goal but the shit that cameafter that I was not prepared
for and it's given me thislesson throughout life that
it's not actually the goal andyou know you hear that loads
(09:29):
of time, it's the process,enjoy the journey but I feel
like I lived the lesson of notenjoying the journey and that
has changed how I approachbusiness and life. It's just
to enjoy the process of itmore. Enjoy being a beginner.
We're all beginners, that'ssomething throughout. We're
always learning, alwaysevolving and enjoy that part
and I always think as well theparts of your business that
(09:51):
are going really well, I thinkwe should be celebrating that
like a beginner because westart getting used to the
sales coming in or theengagements on social media or
whatever it is and you forgetwhat that felt like in the
beginning stages. So I alwayslike try to remind myself to
celebrate like the beginner Iwas when I would have done
anything to have what I havenow. Yeah, yeah. No, that's so
(10:15):
interesting. And you do, youforget the things that you
take for granted now that youdidn't know then. And I mean,
I remember when I was startingout, I'd done different types
of websites, but for example,I'd never used WordPress. And
I was just like, And now I'mgoing in, I'm setting up
pages, I'm doing all this. Andit was just this morning
(10:35):
actually I thought, when did Isuddenly know to do this? But
you're right about trustingthe process because it can't
just all be about that onewin. After X amount of years
because what's the point youknow if that if that's all it
is and I love the way you'vedescribed that and you know
you just have to learn thelesson because if if you don't
(10:58):
and you're and you'rerepeating it it you know
you're going to lose yourmotivation aren't you and it's
going to it'll wound you toomuch and that you'll think
what's the point so thecelebration of the little wins
are what's going to come in inthe big big win and to keep us
going keep us motivated keepus fresh You've got to
surround yourself with theright people, the right
situations to keep that allsort of stimulated, because I
(11:20):
think the very nature ofrunning your own business, we
are a different breed, it'sanother podcast, but I think
we need that, don't we, weneed that kind of adrenaline
and whatever it is that drivesus, but anyway, back to the
programme. So let's let's goback to your business and so
(11:43):
what inspired you to startyour business because you said
you started very young and howhas your personal story shaped
your brand? So the firstbusiness I set up I was like
17, 18 was theatre schools anddance classes and I moved
country that like 10 years agoI've moved over to Wales and I
(12:03):
set up a business over here,two businesses over here and
lockdown happened then and Iwas in a position where I was
like Figuring and realizingthat they weren't actually
businesses like they were butI was just paying myself a
wage like I didn't design itas a business I basically
created a job for myself and Iwas so happy I was in my
(12:23):
bubble I was doing all thethings but when I found the
online space something likelit up inside of me and really
like was like I have all theseskills and all from running
theatre skills like all thedifferent tech side of it,
creative side of all of thosethings and I was like Some of
(12:44):
the stuff that comes so easyto me, I'm seeing people like
earn so much money from,that's what I want and because
I always had this like, I'mnot a business owner, my
friends would say oh she's anentrepreneur and like she'd be
so proud saying and I used tolike kind of cringe a bit
because I'm like no I'm notlike don't say that you know
and one thing like I knowwe'll probably get into a
little bit more is about likehow much As an online business
(13:08):
owner, how much we have totrust ourselves, you know, and
I think that has shaped mybrand into trusting your
weirdness, your creativity,like, you know, I put out
content that calls in thecreative weirdos, like, I'm
like, are you a creativeweirdo? Come on in, because we
all are around here andtrusting those ideas and a big
part for me was like, I'mpiecing a lot together in real
(13:31):
time right now is that I usedto have no fear about putting
these wild ideas out there forother people's businesses like
when I was social mediamanager when I was head of
digital all these things andI'd be like this is insane
like this would be so good andthey were like delighted with
it and when it came to doingit for my business I noticed I
wasn't putting them out thereI was being safe follow the
(13:53):
strategy fit in the box. Youknow, what I remember you had
said, feel like you belong,like look like you, but I was
trying to look like I belongedand it took me a long time to
really Shape and have thecourage just to be bolder and
bolder and bolder, you know,and I see a lot of times
people say fake it till youmake it and I feel like that's
(14:17):
not right because I feel likewe have the skill already in
the online space like you'retaking the skills that you
have so you've already got it,it's not faking it, it's
learning how to actually ownthat and communicate what you
already know. I don't know ifthat answers the question. No,
no, I totally get it and it'ssafe to hide behind someone
(14:41):
else's logo, but the minuteit's your own identity, it's
your own thing and you're morevulnerable, if you get judged,
it's a direct judgment of yourthing, but it's okay if they
judge the employer. You know,because they made me do it,
you know, it's that and Ithink many business owners can
relate to that because, youknow, I've done the same
(15:03):
myself, you know, you know Ihave, but it's like oh well
this is my thing and that'sthat thing that they pay me to
do but I'm going to do it thisway, you know, because there's
nowhere to hide, there's noone to point at and it's all
you, it's 100% you. So thatvulnerability you know not
everybody experiences that rawvulnerability except the
(15:25):
weirdos like us that putourselves out there but I
think it's a it's aself-acceptance thing you've
got to first of all acceptthat you're going to do it
spend some time in that spacethinking okay I'm actually
going to do it and maybe noteverybody does but then those
that do you've got to be allin because you can't you
cannot Do half of it. It hasto be all in. That is exactly
(15:47):
what you're describing. Onceyou're in, you've got to go
for it and then you might geta taste of success and then
you think, haha, this is whatthis is the goal. This is what
it's like. And then I thinkit's, it's, you know, then you
carry on. But I think thoselittle steps, those early
steps are when people give itup. It's too much. They feel
too vulnerable. They don'twant to show themselves. And
(16:09):
they maybe don't reach thatfirst sort of bit of success.
And I think maybe that's whenthe businesses fall away. But
that's hard. That's thehardest bit, putting yourself
out there. I think for that,if anybody is listening and in
that moment right now, and Ithink it's important to look
at, it's like, well, whatmakes it feel like a success?
Like, are you looking outsidefor the validation? Because I
(16:31):
think that was a big part. Youknow, people aren't liking the
content or you're not gettingDMs or whatever it may be,
even though you know it'sleading into something bigger,
you're waiting on thatvalidation first and it's
like, no, you have to movefirst, you have to bring
yourself back to why you setit up and, you know, what the
mission is, what the impact isand getting so clear and like
(16:53):
it's all the things peopletalk about, like your why,
your values, your idealclient, these are so
important, but I don't thinkpeople go into them deep
enough To really understandand have that clarity because
confidence and convictioncomes from the clarity of that
first and I don't think, Ithink people are a bit short
on how deep they're going intothose foundations, first of
(17:16):
all, but I think like reallywhat inspired me then and I
feel like the inspiration hasalways been there, it's the
impact that it has because Thevery, very first video I ever
put out there, terrified,like, and this comes up quite
a lot. I'm not going toimagine you're terrified, I'm
laughing and I don't want toinvalidate your terror, but
(17:36):
I'm just saying, because younow, you're just like, there's
nothing you don't know, butyou obviously had to go
through that, so tell me aboutit. So much, and it wasn't
even for business, it wasactually, I will get into it,
okay, so a bit of a triggerwarning around infertility
here, but I had been goingthrough this not alone with my
husband but we hadn't toldmany other people and I was
(17:57):
fed up with people asking melike when are you going to
have a baby, when are yougoing to have a baby and I was
just like I can't just keephaving this conversation, it's
so raw, so vulnerable, I waslike I just want everyone to
know that we're struggling andlike just answer all the
questions and won't go, so Icreated a video like what the
hell, I don't even know how Igot the courage, I had never
really spoken on camera, alittle bit. Very little bit
(18:18):
but this video I obviouslyspoke to my husband first and
I spoke to my mom and theywere like I don't know why
you'd want to do that but likeLike we were on board, like,
you know, feel free becauseit's not just my story, it's
his story, too. And I createdthis video and the power that
came from that video withinme, like the healing, it
(18:40):
helped me process things likeso much, but also the impact
it had on people listening andnot even people just also
going through a similarsituation. People who knew
other people who didn't knowhow to communicate with them.
And this was like a threeminute video. I just remember
feeling like somethingactivated within me and I feel
(19:01):
like I've always created fromthat space like always having
that it's a deeper meaninglike I've never it's never
been just a surface levellet's go viral like it's it's
never really been my intentionand obviously like it was
nothing about my business itwasn't even on my business
page it's on my personal pagethat I posted it and I think I
think that's the difference isthat like People think with a
(19:24):
theatre school background thatI would like be on camera like
so yay let's go but like I didnot trust my own voice like I
was terrified and at everystage of business like
speaking to the cameraterrified going live oh my god
terrified and then when Ifinally got to the point of
being paid to speak on stage Ihad tears in my eyes I was so
(19:44):
terrified like absolutelyterrified and I remember
somebody said to me at thatwhen I spoke on stage not the
first time the second time Shehad said to me it was actually
nice to see you a bit nervousbecause you come across so
confident online and that hasstuck with me that is like I
need to share my message loudand clear that this didn't
just happen naturally I'veworked hard and it took a lot
(20:07):
to overcome and keep flexingthat muscle and practice and
practice and you knoweventually get to the space
where I'm like I don't youknow I can just come on and
talk you know I have a messageto share even though I've
always had the message toshare I didn't fully trust I
was the person to share it.Gosh Audrey what a story
that's just incredible and Ijust I'm trying to imagine
(20:31):
what that must have been likeyou know that's such a raw
thing to have done and thenbut but what drove you to do
it you know just basicallyit's for everyone to say just
just stop this is this is itjust stop and then you know
because I know yeah I'm justthinking that must have taken
some some guts and you knowand and I know that everyone
(20:52):
thinks I was really confidentbut You know it's like the
swan or with the little eggsand the gliding and I love
that just you said thatbecause I don't think that
there's anyone on the planetthat can just rock up and not
have that nerves and everybodydoes and you need that little
bit of nerves to fuel you andyou know there's some big
(21:14):
players in our world andthey're nervous and when
someone does that and says ohI'm really nervous but I'm
going to do it anyway and thenI'm listening for the For the
clues, you know, what do theydo beforehand? What is it
that, you know, fuels them?Because we need to hear that.
We need to know what drivesthem, what soothes them, what
motivates them and, you know,for you to tell that personal
(21:36):
story, I didn't know thatAudrey, by the way, and I'm
just like, oh, but thank youfor sharing it because it's
like, you know, that It's notall about business, is it?
It's about us as human beingsand then the business is a
secondary thing and you knowthere's going to be people
listening thinking oh wow sonot only is it hard to show up
(21:59):
as a business it's hard toshow up as a human being when
you know we've all got stuffgoing on in our day-to-day
lives and we come on to youknow to do the job and There
is a million and one thingsgoing on in everybody's lives
and that brings us to theonline space, people can be
bloody mean, really mean andeveryone's afraid of being
judged and I always say to myclients and anybody that works
(22:21):
with me, judge away but youdon't pay my bills so I got to
do what I got to do and youcan scroll on or you can
unfollow, you've got loads ofchoices, you don't have to
listen to me, so thatvulnerability and that
personal brand It's not justabout the business it's about
the human what makes them tickwhat you know what moves them
(22:44):
what kind of person they arewhat's going on in their lives
and that every stepping stoneof that journey is what brings
you to the here and now andit's not always about the
business and you know it'sabout the human. No and I
think like something that I'vealways kind of led with is
like we get to yes it's apersonal brand and we need to
(23:05):
share more of the human behindthe brand but we also get to
share which paths like it'snot a case of you have to go
in and share like you arguedwith your husband last night
or whatever it may be I callthem scenes like pick scenes
out of your life that helpshape the person you are and
what you're willing to shareand anchor into them and and
you know It doesn't have to beeverything and I think that
(23:28):
that can be a sticky point forpeople like I a lot of times
people like say to me Iactually don't know what to
say or what to share I don'tknow what part is interested
and it's important to notethat sometimes people want to
be able to relate to you aswell it's not always about
being inspirational it's alsobeing relatable too and you
may notice it when maybeyou've followed somebody who
was on their way up and youyou resonated and you related
(23:50):
and you were on board likebecause I experienced this
where I got to a point whereit's like I am I actually
don't relate to her anymorelike she's too far gone now
like you know I don't find itas relatable and I also don't
really find it in inspirationsthey're not doing anything bad
it's just where I'm at andwhere they're at and then yeah
so I think there's always apart of it that share the
mundane like share the day today of what you're doing in
(24:11):
your business and that's goingto build your personal brand
alone just by sharing this iswhat I'm up to this is what
I'm doing for my businesstoday you know and Taking
people on that journey, likewe said, it's all about the
journey and the more you canlet people into that and if
you're listening to this, youprobably are a creative as
well because you probablyattract creative people too.
(24:32):
Creativity is something that alot of creatives take for
granted and it's a skill thatyou have that other people can
look at and be like, how doesshe come up with these ideas?
How is she doing that? That'sthat's your moneymaker like
let people into that, letpeople see your processes like
you know when we're sayingtake them in on the journey
(24:52):
but how you take an idea toexecution like show that
process because that's whatpeople want to see it's
highlighting your skill setbut it's also being an
embodiment of your work likeyou're not trying to sell more
polish you're not trying toget the perfect hook you're
actually just living in theunique skill that you have.
(25:13):
And yeah, I mean, for me, Ijust love I love creativity
and I describe myself as acreative and I've seen you on
your videos on the floor withyour markers and you're doing
this and I just think thatthat's what people need to see
because creativity manifestsin so many different ways for
me I'll be sat on my bed withdigital notebook paper pen
(25:34):
laptop iPad I will have everyevery implement that you can
think of and because my brainfires off so many times I have
to be able to write Differentthings down or different, you
know, different times. Andthen there'll be music going
and my family, oh they'reamazing. But I describe myself
as, you know, the madprofessor in the basement. And
(25:56):
then I'll come out likelooking for food. And if I was
there, I should really filmmyself. Because it's just, it
is madness. It's like lettingpeople in, like what a way for
potential clients, I and youwhoop to see, is this the
right person for me to investin and they see your process,
(26:17):
they'll just be like, and theywill resonate with that,
they'd be like, yes, like, youknow, you have seen me do
stuff like that and be like,yes, like, Audrey is someone
who I can connect with, youknow, that kind of way, so
it's definitely share that,that's your challenge for your
next reel. It has to be, but Ican never escape this image of
the mad professor. But yeah, Imean, the creativity is just,
(26:42):
it's such a gift, isn't it?And I never dispose of
anything. I keep every note,every word, every... What do
you call that? Spider diagram.Mind map. Everything. It's all
kept there. And then when yourevisit it, you just think,
oh, you know, that idea wasn'tright then, but it's going to
be right now. So what advicewould you give to someone
(27:07):
who's at the beginning oftheir journey and they're
listening to us talking aboutbeing a bit wacky and they're
thinking that they don't wantto be visible, but they know
they have to be. What advicewould you give them? I would
say... Okay, I did have adifferent answer for this, but
I'm gonna change it in myhead. I would say it's okay to
(27:29):
do the past that feels safefirst. So I've actually
released like this docu-seriesreally telling the stories of
how I started and in that I'mtalking about the very first
group offer I put out therewas in collaboration because I
didn't have the balls to do itby myself. To be honest, I
needed someone to do it withme. I reached out to somebody
who I thought would be a goodfit and we said let's do this
(27:50):
together and we've done ittogether the first time and
we've done it together on thesecond time and it went really
really well and then we wereplanning to do it the third
time and I had to say no Ineed to do this by myself, not
that exact program like I waslike no I need to go and... So
I think my advice would be notthat you have to go and collab
to get started. That's not theadvice. The advice is to, it's
(28:12):
okay to start off with whatfeels safe. I think there's a
lot of noise online and I willsay as well, you need to feel
the fear and do it. You needto declare what you're here to
do and take the actionstowards it. But I also think
like, It's okay to start withsmall steps like just just
start but it's okay to startwith small steps so that would
be my advice for somebody newgetting visible and things
(28:34):
that helped me with that waslike actually just speaking
out loud even if I I used torecord videos knowing that
they would never go anywherelike I was I knew I was never
posting it but I would justrecord myself or even if I was
just cooking dinner I wouldjust like practice like
talking out loud because youhave it all in your brain and
sometimes the problem is justlike What if I forget what to
say? What if somebody asked mea question and I don't know
(28:56):
what to answer? They're thekind of normal things that are
coming up for people. So justpracticing. If someone asked
me this, this is what I wouldsay. And yeah, I think it just
comes down to practice andbeing okay with taking small
steps. Because do you knowwhat's weird for me, right? I
was terrified. Obviously, Imade that video about
fertility and stuff, but whenI start like coming on to
stories and just chatting, Iactually was terrified and
(29:20):
then grew to love it. And Isay that to my clients as
well. I'm like, you're goingto start enjoying this. Once
you start feeling comfortable,it's really enjoyable. I don't
know if I'm just the only one.Amanda, you're nodding. You
probably enjoy it. No, you do.You do because you just think,
oh, this will be really goodand then you'll do it. And
people always say everythingis content and it is content.
(29:40):
And when I was on one of yourcourses, what was it called
again? Yeah and we were alwaysleaving voice messages and I
can remember you did this sortof every couple of days, well
I'm just here stirring themints but Amanda if you do
that Butit was so good and then and I
(30:02):
was like well yeah I'm justdoing the dinner but yeah
Audrey that's great but butthe thing was because we were
so because we were so absorbedin what we were doing and the
content that we were creatingand that's what I love about
people in our world thosethings that wasn't abnormal
it's just what we did. Likehonestly, like some of this
(30:26):
stuff is just hilarious. Myfriends, like one of my
business friends always saysto me like, are you boiling
your eggs? Because I seem toalways say to her in the
mornings with her message, I'mjust boiling some eggs. I
don't know why I tell peoplethat part. That's so funny
that you've said that. But youknow what, that's what I love
because I'm not sat here in myplush London suite with my
(30:49):
secretary. It does not get anymore real than this. This is
coming from my home and it'snot a studio, it's the same
for you. And that's just whatit's all about. We love what
we do. So creative and it'sjust it's just real and you
know and oh we have the bestfun along the way don't we and
that's the thing you said youstart to enjoy it if you're
(31:11):
feeling at the minute that youdon't want to go visible it's
you may be feeling isolatedand it can be lonely and we
were talking earlier about youneed to surround yourself with
good people you need tosurround yourself with
positive people creativepeople and you also need
someone that you can bounceideas off and but it can be
lonely at the start so I wouldjoin good groups. You
(31:32):
definitely do need goodcoaches. Find someone and plug
those gaps that you have. Butover time that will definitely
grow. But I can honestly say Ihave had the best fun since I
started my business. You willdefinitely find like minded
people because your familydon't get it, your friends
(31:54):
don't get it, although theywant to, but really you could
pick up the phone to one ofyour business besties and you
can say, well I'm thinking ofdoing this thing and it could
be way out there and yourbusiness besties will go, well
yeah, well if you add this,you add this and you know,
that's the thing, but that'swhy you need good people in
this world to kind of help youalong. yeah definitely like
(32:15):
visibility is so importantit's the one thing that
everybody needs to always dolike we always need to be
bringing in a new audience andit's like I'm trying to like
going back to like the veryvery start I was showing up on
Instagram and I was on videobut it felt real robotic and
(32:36):
where I kind of got my breakIf that's what it's called, it
was on TikTok and I can workit out now that I went on to
TikTok knowing none of myfamily or friends or whatever
was going to see it. So I letmy guard down and I was a lot
more me and I was just a lotmore documenting rather than
creating content. It was likejust very much chatty. And
(32:56):
that went wild and that grewmy confidence over there
because I, so it just comesback down to that fear of
judgment, like the fear ofjudgment was removed so then I
was able to get comfortableand then I was able to bring
that personality over toInstagram and still now if my,
like a couple of my auntieslike follow me and it's lovely
and supportive but sometimeswhen I'm sharing something
(33:17):
that might be like very niche.I do be like, oh God, they're
going to be like, is she okay?But that's okay, like it's
learning to be okay with thatbecause anyone who's not
supportive of you, just removethem, like unfollow, unblock
them, mute them, whatever youneed to do to get your
business moving. And just knowlike the real thing I want to
(33:42):
take away about visibility isthat it doesn't come easy for
anybody like it's not anatural thing to talk to your
phone with nobody coming back.Actually, I'll share a quick
story. When I got so used tobeing on camera and stories
and Zoom rooms when everyoneis on mute except for me
talking that the very firsttime I spoke on stage and I
said a little joke because I'mhilarious. When I heard people
(34:06):
laughing back, I got a bit ofa fright because I'd been on
Zoom for two years and like Iwasn't getting it so I was
like, oh my god, this feels soweird to actually get beat.
Yeah, yeah. So like thatshould be the normal thing and
but yeah, it's just aboutgetting like just knowing
that. It's nothing wrong withyou like it's actually all of
(34:28):
us feel uncomfortable gettingstarted and it's just about
pushing through that and Ialways say the why when the
why is bigger than the fear ifyou take my fertility story I
was terrified but the why wasso much stronger than the fear
of someone judging me for thatand like I mean with a sense
of topic like that or judgingme I'd be like you're not my
(34:49):
person anyway but when the whyis bigger than the fear You
can do anything. Absolutely.And you know what, if you
strip it back even further,for anybody to put themselves
out there to do that, the onlyconclusion is, oh my God,
that's really brave. And anyother comment is jealousy. It
(35:10):
really is because you can'tnegatively judge someone for
putting themselves out thereand over time they're only
going to get better and it isreally brave. And you know,
TikTok is, I describe it asthe wild west, it's mad over
there. I use it to kind oftest myself a little bit and
see what happens and but I'mmore comfortable on Instagram
(35:31):
but I am sort of spreadmowings a little bit over
TikTok because I know thevisibility is it can be huge
but it's I can see why youwould have felt comfortable
over there because it's likeanother world it is another
world but yeah it's you knowit is this extremely brave and
if people are judging you youreally do not want them in
your world so do you have anyrituals or confidence tricks
(35:51):
before you get yourself pumpedin and out there? Yeah,
definitely music all the time.Music, put on a song, dance
around and get into that songand that music will change all
the time. Mostly musicaltheatre and I'll literally
think I'm on Broadway and thenI'm like the Zoom call doesn't
feel so scary now because I'vejust given a Broadway show in
the kitchen. But also as well,at times where I'm doubting
(36:15):
myself, I'll watch maybe atraining from somebody I've
worked with that, you know,really inspired me, so I will
go back to a place where Ifelt inspired previously and
kind of tap back into that, ormaybe it's like if someone's
inspiration, maybe I just needto go onto their social media
page and watch a bit of theircontent and be like, I just...
(36:35):
I'm so inspired by you likelet's go the mission is clear
again you know that kind ofway so music definitely to get
me in a good state ofconfidence and then when it
comes to like moreinspirational or if I'm
doubting myself I will plugback into something that
inspires me. Yeah that's agood idea and if you're not
feeling great and you turn thecamera on you're not going to
perform either so youdefinitely need something to
(36:56):
kind of So, Audrey, we'realmost at the end. Do you know
what? I always know it's agood one when I forget I'm
recording and I'mleaning in going up. The first
thing that I always say, justfollowing on what you said
when you first turn the cameraon and you get going. I do
(37:18):
have a rule for myself whenI'm creating video content is
that I will never just createone video. Like it's just not
happening. It's a rule becausethat first video, yeah, you
can use it. It can go out. Butonce you're warmed up, it
might take you However long,don't use this number as a
frame that you should befollowing, but if it takes you
10 minutes to record a video,the next one will take five
(37:38):
minutes, the next one willtake three minutes and there
you have, in that like say 20minutes you can get three
videos done, where if it'staking you 10 minutes like
each time, that's terriblemaths, but you know what I
mean, you get so much moredone. If you do that, so I
always kind of give a littlerule, even if it is only two,
if I only got time to recordtwo, I will get two done and I
have one to go and one savedand that's how you can start
(38:00):
building up that bulk ofcontent to go out then. Keep
all your outtakes of when yougot it wrong and you don't
ever have to use them, butthere will come a time where
you want to show your journeyand you want to say, oh, well,
when I was doing this, thatthis is what and and I love
that because when you when youarrive on someone new and you
(38:20):
think, oh, you know, they'repolished, they're doing and
they weren't always like that.And I think it's so brave to
show yourself. You know fromearly on and like my podcast I
keep all my early episodes andI will keep them there but
even though I cringe insidebecause I didn't start a
podcast being an expertpodcaster and I'm not an
expert podcaster now but Iknow a bit more what I'm doing
(38:41):
but always keep the earlystuff because you've always
got to show your journey andnone of us are perfect and
everyone learns every day butwhen people do the sort of
outtakes of their videos itjust cracks me up because I
just think it's so What's theword I'm looking for? You
just, you just, you've got nowords or graces, have you?
Just like, yeah, this is meand you know, I'm better now,
but yeah, wasn't I funny? Somany things, I share mine
(39:04):
quite a lot, like one of thefirst videos is like, it's, my
voice is different. I'm like,hey everybody, I just want,
like so timid and soft andlike, you know me, like I'm
like quite loud, quite likeexpressionally with my hands
and I'm like, that is not me.And then actually the first
few Instagram stories, Ididn't realize at the time,
but when I looked back on myarchive, in the dark, filters
(39:25):
on, like I was actually likejust so hiding, but like
trying to come out, but likestill hiding and it's just
like, oh, like I just, I justwant to hug her like because
she's, you know, and I reallythink that's the message home
is that If I can do whatanyone can, I really want to
get across how difficult andhow much I kind of had to
(39:46):
overcome in my own mind to getto where I got to. And that's
the key, just watch people,learn what you can. People
always have stuff to teach andyou know from me working with
you, I was trained to read thenews. So having to take shape
of all that formality and youknow that that doesn't work on
(40:08):
social media and I speak withmy hands so I try to move as
much as possible I try to beas chatty as possible and
early on in my podcast days Iused to edit out all the ums
and ahs because I thought Ihad to speak know perfectly
but now I just I just turn upas myself I speak I don't
script I just speak. But allthose things, it doesn't
matter, but I really had tounlearn so much of my
(40:31):
corporate behaviour. And youknow what? I probably will
always have to be consciouslynot doing those things because
it was so ingrained and I'vedone it for so many years. But
that's just part of my journeyand you know, I'm more
comfortable talking to otherpeople than I am sat talking
to myself. But you'reabsolutely right, do the bad
content, do what you can. Tryand be as creative as you can
(40:54):
and just keep at it, keep atit, keep at it. So, amazing
Audrey. So where can we findout more about you online? The
best place to find me is onInstagram, Audrey underscore
the social coach. And I'm onTikTok as well, but if you
want to swing into Instagramfor a DM, I'm more than happy
to chat or let me know thatyou've listened. Yeah, I'd
(41:17):
love to connect to you over onInstagram. TikTok is the same
handle as well. Amazing. Thankyou so much. I will put those
in the show notes. Audrey,it's been an absolute
pleasure. I have lovedchatting with you and I'm so
thrilled I got you on mypodcast and thank you so much.
Thank you so much, Amanda.Have to see you Thank you so
(41:38):
much for spending time with metoday. If you have enjoyed
this episode, please leave areview and share it with a
business bestie who might alsofind it useful. You have been
listening to the Grow YourBrand with Amanda podcast. If
you want to know more abouthow I can help you grow your
brand, then visit my websiteamandajane.co.uk or come and
say hi on Instagram atCoachAmandaJane. Bye for now.
Welcome to the Grow Your Brandwith Amanda podcast, helping
you become a powerhouse brandwith bullseye messaging,
targeted visibility and scrollstopping content. I'm Amanda
Jane and I want to helpbusinesses like yours showcase
more of you so you're nothiding behind your logo, And
your audience gets to see thereal, authentic personality
(00:21):
behind your brand. Myphilosophy is the only way to
be comfortable in thespotlight is to truly believe
you belong there. And thattakes a little bit of work for
most business owners becausewe're not all naturals in
front of the camera ormicrophone. On this podcast,
I'm going to share lots ofactionable tips and advice to
enable you to grow your brandin a way that's comfortable
(00:42):
for you. I'll also befeaturing special guests who
will share their amazingjourneys with us. It's time to
grow your brand with Amanda,so let's get started.
Hello everyone and welcome toGrow Your Brand with Amanda
and today on my podcast I havethe amazing Audrey Elizabeth.
(01:05):
Hello Audrey. Hi, I'm so happyto be here. Thank you so much
for joining me and we've beentrying to get this in the
diary for literally months. SoAudrey is a creative marketing
and business mentor and we'reboth Irish. What could
possibly go wrong? It's beenlike four hours long. We'll be
chatting and chatting and I'mso thrilled to get Audrey on
(01:28):
my podcast because the firsttime I encountered you was on
someone else's podcast andyeah that is true story and I
was just like oh wow she's sointeresting and what you were
talking about was fascinatingso and I know some of your
story which is why thispodcast is just going to be so
Absolutely amazing and so fullof Audrey goodness because
(01:51):
there's nothing that you don'tknow about social media,
marketing and content creationso I'm really looking forward
to peeling back the layers ofAudrey so I'm so grateful
you're here Audrey. Oh, thankyou so much. I honestly like
just love everything I do andlove getting to come into
spaces like this and justshare it from my lens and
before we even get into it,it's not about this is right,
(02:14):
this is wrong. It's just weall have our own lenses. So
I'm really appreciative to behere and share it from my
lens. Fantastic. Yeah. And youare one of the most creative
people I know and you alwaysencourage other people to be
creative. I like to becreative as well. So let's
just see. So we're going tobegin with my three questions
(02:34):
to get to know a little bitabout your personality. So do
you have a favoritemotivational song? Do you know
what, I think this is going tobe the hardest question of
them all because I'm thebiggest music fan ever, like I
run a theatre school as well,so my whole life revolves
around dance and choreography,so this one I was really like
oh what will I choose, likebecause it does depend on the
(02:55):
mood, but I've gone with GetOn The Floor by JLo because
every time I hear it like I amlike ready for whatever's
coming at me. Yeah, I lovethat. And you use a lot of
music in your content as well,but I love that. I love that
song too. And that's veryenergetic and gets you up and
moving. Yeah, good choice.That will go on the Spotify
(03:16):
list that accompanies thispodcast, which is designed to
be motivational to geteverybody sort of ready and
full of creativity and moving.And do you have a motivational
quote? I do, but...Interestingly, literally this
only happened last week. It'sgoing to come from one of my
clients and she had said, whenyou trust your truth, other
people will feel that too. AndI was just like, it was
(03:39):
something she had taken awayfrom an activity we'd done.
And when she said that as thetakeaway, I was just like,
What else do we need? Trustyour truth and other people
will feel that too. That's sogood. Did she just come out
with it? Because I love thiswhen people just speak it. It
was in our telegram support. Iwas like, what was your... So
(03:59):
I do these creative activationsessions where we create that
space and it's... It's notjust about business, it's
about the identity of who youare and shifting any of the
blocks and stuff and we haddone one of these, it was the
very first time I had donethis session and in our
telegram group I was like I'dlove to know like what you
thought, what you took awayfrom it and that's what she
took away from that moment andit was just so like... Yeah,
(04:21):
it's really profound isn't itand you know you have to stop
and think actually yeah thatis really good, wow. Yeah,
that's the depth and this iswhere we're going to go. We're
going deep, I've no doubtabout it. Yeah, definitely.
Yeah, that will sit with mefor a while, that one will.
And I'm nosy with the books.Do you read? I do, but I
(04:45):
struggle. So I struggle withconcentration when I'm reading
and the book that I've pickedis Good Vibes, Good Life by
Bex King. Have you ever readit? No, but I will. I'll have
it to my list. So good. It'ssuch an easy read because the
chapters are quite short. Butit was the very, very first
book I read aroundtransformation. It's all about
(05:06):
the law of vibration andgratitude, but it's the...
It's still the only book thatI've read where I'm like I can
resonate with every singlepage here like I can see
myself I can see why I behavethat way I can like I just
resonate with every page is sogood. Oh I love the sound of
that yeah I definitelydefinitely gonna get that one
(05:27):
and you you know knowing youpersonally that that's how you
are you know you you just livein in that kind of I don't
want to say manifestation, butyou just expect these things
to happen and they do. Yeah,yeah. Like, I remember someone
saying that to me before. Theywere like, everything just
lands on your lap. And I waskind of like, I wouldn't say
(05:50):
that. I work very hard, but Ialso like know that the energy
I'm putting out is the energyI'm going to receive and I
protect my energy. I protectmy boundaries. It's taken a
long, long time to get here,but I like, I've always kind
of had that though. I'vealways had quite a positive
outlook on life and Even likecoming from like shitty times,
(06:13):
am I allowed to spare in thispodcast? I'm sure it's my
show. Coming from shittytimes, like building up that
resilience to have that like Iknow I can get through
anything because I've gotthrough some of the worst
things already. You know thatkind of way? Yeah. And I think
rather than saying things fallin your lap easily, it's
(06:34):
creating with intention. Youknow, I want this to happen so
I will aim for that and I willdo everything it takes to get
to there. And because no oneis in your head, no one fully
knows your journey. On theoutside, it looks like
everything comes easy, but itdoesn't, it doesn't, I don't
think nothing comes easy toanyone, you know, maybe there
are a few, but, and I knowexactly what you're saying,
(06:57):
and, you know, people justsay, oh, she's so lucky, oh,
she always could do things shewants, but no, she worked
bloody hard for it, and it'sblood, sweat and tears. But
it's with intention ratherthan look. I love that. I love
that, like phrasing that waywith intention and it kind of
gets to a point where it'slike there's no way this can't
(07:18):
work because I've done so muchnow to get here and I've
always kind of led with thatlike I've been a business
owner since I left school,like over 20 years and I know
there's ups and downs, I knowthere's challenges and
something that I've learnedactually is like with every
challenge that I've gonethrough actually gives me a
fire in my belly to overcomeit and like I'm not taking
(07:40):
away how hard it feels at thetime but it's like knowing
that after that, After that islike when you can pull the
lessons from that, you becomea better business owner or a
better leader or a betterwhatever it is you do because
of the challenges. You don'tbecome a leader or the top of
your industry by sailingthrough because you don't
(08:00):
learn any lessons. No, no. Anddo you ever find that when
you're in a difficulty now,you can reflect on previously
what you learned to help younavigate the now? And I would
like to naturally say yes, butsome things have repeated
themselves and it's taken thatpart and show up a few times
(08:23):
for me to be really like,okay, what is the lesson here?
What do I keep allowing tohappen? And it does come down
to probably... Oh, I don'tknow. I'm still trying to
figure out that lesson, but Iactually went to this... God,
we're going all over the placenow, but... As we knew we
would. It's this medium. She'sactually Irish, but we've done
it online because I'm based inthe UK and we were talking
(08:46):
about a situation I had gonethrough in my other business
and she was like, you need tofind this lesson because this
pattern has shown up so manytimes in different ways. But a
very similar thing is justlike you need to find out the
lesson and what I've come towhen I've journaled on it, I
think the lesson has alwaysbeen to trust the process,
that the magic is actually inthe process because this was
(09:09):
for my theatre school when wewere competing and it's like
everything is aimed againstthis one end product. And we
got there, we got to the topof that, like we reached our
goal but the shit that cameafter that I was not prepared
for and it's given me thislesson throughout life that
it's not actually the goal andyou know you hear that loads
(09:29):
of time, it's the process,enjoy the journey but I feel
like I lived the lesson of notenjoying the journey and that
has changed how I approachbusiness and life. It's just
to enjoy the process of itmore. Enjoy being a beginner.
We're all beginners, that'ssomething throughout. We're
always learning, alwaysevolving and enjoy that part
and I always think as well theparts of your business that
(09:51):
are going really well, I thinkwe should be celebrating that
like a beginner because westart getting used to the
sales coming in or theengagements on social media or
whatever it is and you forgetwhat that felt like in the
beginning stages. So I alwayslike try to remind myself to
celebrate like the beginner Iwas when I would have done
anything to have what I havenow. Yeah, yeah. No, that's so
(10:15):
interesting. And you do, youforget the things that you
take for granted now that youdidn't know then. And I mean,
I remember when I was startingout, I'd done different types
of websites, but for example,I'd never used WordPress. And
I was just like, And now I'mgoing in, I'm setting up
pages, I'm doing all this. Andit was just this morning
(10:35):
actually I thought, when did Isuddenly know to do this? But
you're right about trustingthe process because it can't
just all be about that onewin. After X amount of years
because what's the point youknow if that if that's all it
is and I love the way you'vedescribed that and you know
you just have to learn thelesson because if if you don't
(10:58):
and you're and you'rerepeating it it you know
you're going to lose yourmotivation aren't you and it's
going to it'll wound you toomuch and that you'll think
what's the point so thecelebration of the little wins
are what's going to come in inthe big big win and to keep us
going keep us motivated keepus fresh You've got to
surround yourself with theright people, the right
situations to keep that allsort of stimulated, because I
(11:20):
think the very nature ofrunning your own business, we
are a different breed, it'sanother podcast, but I think
we need that, don't we, weneed that kind of adrenaline
and whatever it is that drivesus, but anyway, back to the
programme. So let's let's goback to your business and so
(11:43):
what inspired you to startyour business because you said
you started very young and howhas your personal story shaped
your brand? So the firstbusiness I set up I was like
17, 18 was theatre schools anddance classes and I moved
country that like 10 years agoI've moved over to Wales and I
(12:03):
set up a business over here,two businesses over here and
lockdown happened then and Iwas in a position where I was
like Figuring and realizingthat they weren't actually
businesses like they were butI was just paying myself a
wage like I didn't design itas a business I basically
created a job for myself and Iwas so happy I was in my
(12:23):
bubble I was doing all thethings but when I found the
online space something likelit up inside of me and really
like was like I have all theseskills and all from running
theatre skills like all thedifferent tech side of it,
creative side of all of thosethings and I was like Some of
(12:44):
the stuff that comes so easyto me, I'm seeing people like
earn so much money from,that's what I want and because
I always had this like, I'mnot a business owner, my
friends would say oh she's anentrepreneur and like she'd be
so proud saying and I used tolike kind of cringe a bit
because I'm like no I'm notlike don't say that you know
and one thing like I knowwe'll probably get into a
little bit more is about likehow much As an online business
(13:08):
owner, how much we have totrust ourselves, you know, and
I think that has shaped mybrand into trusting your
weirdness, your creativity,like, you know, I put out
content that calls in thecreative weirdos, like, I'm
like, are you a creativeweirdo? Come on in, because we
all are around here andtrusting those ideas and a big
part for me was like, I'mpiecing a lot together in real
(13:31):
time right now is that I usedto have no fear about putting
these wild ideas out there forother people's businesses like
when I was social mediamanager when I was head of
digital all these things andI'd be like this is insane
like this would be so good andthey were like delighted with
it and when it came to doingit for my business I noticed I
wasn't putting them out thereI was being safe follow the
(13:53):
strategy fit in the box. Youknow, what I remember you had
said, feel like you belong,like look like you, but I was
trying to look like I belongedand it took me a long time to
really Shape and have thecourage just to be bolder and
bolder and bolder, you know,and I see a lot of times
people say fake it till youmake it and I feel like that's
(14:17):
not right because I feel likewe have the skill already in
the online space like you'retaking the skills that you
have so you've already got it,it's not faking it, it's
learning how to actually ownthat and communicate what you
already know. I don't know ifthat answers the question. No,
no, I totally get it and it'ssafe to hide behind someone
(14:41):
else's logo, but the minuteit's your own identity, it's
your own thing and you're morevulnerable, if you get judged,
it's a direct judgment of yourthing, but it's okay if they
judge the employer. You know,because they made me do it,
you know, it's that and Ithink many business owners can
relate to that because, youknow, I've done the same
(15:03):
myself, you know, you know Ihave, but it's like oh well
this is my thing and that'sthat thing that they pay me to
do but I'm going to do it thisway, you know, because there's
nowhere to hide, there's noone to point at and it's all
you, it's 100% you. So thatvulnerability you know not
everybody experiences that rawvulnerability except the
(15:25):
weirdos like us that putourselves out there but I
think it's a it's aself-acceptance thing you've
got to first of all acceptthat you're going to do it
spend some time in that spacethinking okay I'm actually
going to do it and maybe noteverybody does but then those
that do you've got to be allin because you can't you
cannot Do half of it. It hasto be all in. That is exactly
(15:47):
what you're describing. Onceyou're in, you've got to go
for it and then you might geta taste of success and then
you think, haha, this is whatthis is the goal. This is what
it's like. And then I thinkit's, it's, you know, then you
carry on. But I think thoselittle steps, those early
steps are when people give itup. It's too much. They feel
too vulnerable. They don'twant to show themselves. And
(16:09):
they maybe don't reach thatfirst sort of bit of success.
And I think maybe that's whenthe businesses fall away. But
that's hard. That's thehardest bit, putting yourself
out there. I think for that,if anybody is listening and in
that moment right now, and Ithink it's important to look
at, it's like, well, whatmakes it feel like a success?
Like, are you looking outsidefor the validation? Because I
(16:31):
think that was a big part. Youknow, people aren't liking the
content or you're not gettingDMs or whatever it may be,
even though you know it'sleading into something bigger,
you're waiting on thatvalidation first and it's
like, no, you have to movefirst, you have to bring
yourself back to why you setit up and, you know, what the
mission is, what the impact isand getting so clear and like
(16:53):
it's all the things peopletalk about, like your why,
your values, your idealclient, these are so
important, but I don't thinkpeople go into them deep
enough To really understandand have that clarity because
confidence and convictioncomes from the clarity of that
first and I don't think, Ithink people are a bit short
on how deep they're going intothose foundations, first of
(17:16):
all, but I think like reallywhat inspired me then and I
feel like the inspiration hasalways been there, it's the
impact that it has because Thevery, very first video I ever
put out there, terrified,like, and this comes up quite
a lot. I'm not going toimagine you're terrified, I'm
laughing and I don't want toinvalidate your terror, but
(17:36):
I'm just saying, because younow, you're just like, there's
nothing you don't know, butyou obviously had to go
through that, so tell me aboutit. So much, and it wasn't
even for business, it wasactually, I will get into it,
okay, so a bit of a triggerwarning around infertility
here, but I had been goingthrough this not alone with my
husband but we hadn't toldmany other people and I was
(17:57):
fed up with people asking melike when are you going to
have a baby, when are yougoing to have a baby and I was
just like I can't just keephaving this conversation, it's
so raw, so vulnerable, I waslike I just want everyone to
know that we're struggling andlike just answer all the
questions and won't go, so Icreated a video like what the
hell, I don't even know how Igot the courage, I had never
really spoken on camera, alittle bit. Very little bit
(18:18):
but this video I obviouslyspoke to my husband first and
I spoke to my mom and theywere like I don't know why
you'd want to do that but likeLike we were on board, like,
you know, feel free becauseit's not just my story, it's
his story, too. And I createdthis video and the power that
came from that video withinme, like the healing, it
(18:40):
helped me process things likeso much, but also the impact
it had on people listening andnot even people just also
going through a similarsituation. People who knew
other people who didn't knowhow to communicate with them.
And this was like a threeminute video. I just remember
feeling like somethingactivated within me and I feel
(19:01):
like I've always created fromthat space like always having
that it's a deeper meaninglike I've never it's never
been just a surface levellet's go viral like it's it's
never really been my intentionand obviously like it was
nothing about my business itwasn't even on my business
page it's on my personal pagethat I posted it and I think I
think that's the difference isthat like People think with a
(19:24):
theatre school background thatI would like be on camera like
so yay let's go but like I didnot trust my own voice like I
was terrified and at everystage of business like
speaking to the cameraterrified going live oh my god
terrified and then when Ifinally got to the point of
being paid to speak on stage Ihad tears in my eyes I was so
(19:44):
terrified like absolutelyterrified and I remember
somebody said to me at thatwhen I spoke on stage not the
first time the second time Shehad said to me it was actually
nice to see you a bit nervousbecause you come across so
confident online and that hasstuck with me that is like I
need to share my message loudand clear that this didn't
just happen naturally I'veworked hard and it took a lot
(20:07):
to overcome and keep flexingthat muscle and practice and
practice and you knoweventually get to the space
where I'm like I don't youknow I can just come on and
talk you know I have a messageto share even though I've
always had the message toshare I didn't fully trust I
was the person to share it.Gosh Audrey what a story
that's just incredible and Ijust I'm trying to imagine
(20:31):
what that must have been likeyou know that's such a raw
thing to have done and thenbut but what drove you to do
it you know just basicallyit's for everyone to say just
just stop this is this is itjust stop and then you know
because I know yeah I'm justthinking that must have taken
some some guts and you knowand and I know that everyone
(20:52):
thinks I was really confidentbut You know it's like the
swan or with the little eggsand the gliding and I love
that just you said thatbecause I don't think that
there's anyone on the planetthat can just rock up and not
have that nerves and everybodydoes and you need that little
bit of nerves to fuel you andyou know there's some big
(21:14):
players in our world andthey're nervous and when
someone does that and says ohI'm really nervous but I'm
going to do it anyway and thenI'm listening for the For the
clues, you know, what do theydo beforehand? What is it
that, you know, fuels them?Because we need to hear that.
We need to know what drivesthem, what soothes them, what
motivates them and, you know,for you to tell that personal
(21:36):
story, I didn't know thatAudrey, by the way, and I'm
just like, oh, but thank youfor sharing it because it's
like, you know, that It's notall about business, is it?
It's about us as human beingsand then the business is a
secondary thing and you knowthere's going to be people
listening thinking oh wow sonot only is it hard to show up
(21:59):
as a business it's hard toshow up as a human being when
you know we've all got stuffgoing on in our day-to-day
lives and we come on to youknow to do the job and There
is a million and one thingsgoing on in everybody's lives
and that brings us to theonline space, people can be
bloody mean, really mean andeveryone's afraid of being
judged and I always say to myclients and anybody that works
(22:21):
with me, judge away but youdon't pay my bills so I got to
do what I got to do and youcan scroll on or you can
unfollow, you've got loads ofchoices, you don't have to
listen to me, so thatvulnerability and that
personal brand It's not justabout the business it's about
the human what makes them tickwhat you know what moves them
(22:44):
what kind of person they arewhat's going on in their lives
and that every stepping stoneof that journey is what brings
you to the here and now andit's not always about the
business and you know it'sabout the human. No and I
think like something that I'vealways kind of led with is
like we get to yes it's apersonal brand and we need to
(23:05):
share more of the human behindthe brand but we also get to
share which paths like it'snot a case of you have to go
in and share like you arguedwith your husband last night
or whatever it may be I callthem scenes like pick scenes
out of your life that helpshape the person you are and
what you're willing to shareand anchor into them and and
you know It doesn't have to beeverything and I think that
(23:28):
that can be a sticky point forpeople like I a lot of times
people like say to me Iactually don't know what to
say or what to share I don'tknow what part is interested
and it's important to notethat sometimes people want to
be able to relate to you aswell it's not always about
being inspirational it's alsobeing relatable too and you
may notice it when maybeyou've followed somebody who
was on their way up and youyou resonated and you related
(23:50):
and you were on board likebecause I experienced this
where I got to a point whereit's like I am I actually
don't relate to her anymorelike she's too far gone now
like you know I don't find itas relatable and I also don't
really find it in inspirationsthey're not doing anything bad
it's just where I'm at andwhere they're at and then yeah
so I think there's always apart of it that share the
mundane like share the day today of what you're doing in
(24:11):
your business and that's goingto build your personal brand
alone just by sharing this iswhat I'm up to this is what
I'm doing for my businesstoday you know and Taking
people on that journey, likewe said, it's all about the
journey and the more you canlet people into that and if
you're listening to this, youprobably are a creative as
well because you probablyattract creative people too.
(24:32):
Creativity is something that alot of creatives take for
granted and it's a skill thatyou have that other people can
look at and be like, how doesshe come up with these ideas?
How is she doing that? That'sthat's your moneymaker like
let people into that, letpeople see your processes like
you know when we're sayingtake them in on the journey
(24:52):
but how you take an idea toexecution like show that
process because that's whatpeople want to see it's
highlighting your skill setbut it's also being an
embodiment of your work likeyou're not trying to sell more
polish you're not trying toget the perfect hook you're
actually just living in theunique skill that you have.
(25:13):
And yeah, I mean, for me, Ijust love I love creativity
and I describe myself as acreative and I've seen you on
your videos on the floor withyour markers and you're doing
this and I just think thatthat's what people need to see
because creativity manifestsin so many different ways for
me I'll be sat on my bed withdigital notebook paper pen
(25:34):
laptop iPad I will have everyevery implement that you can
think of and because my brainfires off so many times I have
to be able to write Differentthings down or different, you
know, different times. Andthen there'll be music going
and my family, oh they'reamazing. But I describe myself
as, you know, the madprofessor in the basement. And
(25:56):
then I'll come out likelooking for food. And if I was
there, I should really filmmyself. Because it's just, it
is madness. It's like lettingpeople in, like what a way for
potential clients, I and youwhoop to see, is this the
right person for me to investin and they see your process,
(26:17):
they'll just be like, and theywill resonate with that,
they'd be like, yes, like, youknow, you have seen me do
stuff like that and be like,yes, like, Audrey is someone
who I can connect with, youknow, that kind of way, so
it's definitely share that,that's your challenge for your
next reel. It has to be, but Ican never escape this image of
the mad professor. But yeah, Imean, the creativity is just,
(26:42):
it's such a gift, isn't it?And I never dispose of
anything. I keep every note,every word, every... What do
you call that? Spider diagram.Mind map. Everything. It's all
kept there. And then when yourevisit it, you just think,
oh, you know, that idea wasn'tright then, but it's going to
be right now. So what advicewould you give to someone
(27:07):
who's at the beginning oftheir journey and they're
listening to us talking aboutbeing a bit wacky and they're
thinking that they don't wantto be visible, but they know
they have to be. What advicewould you give them? I would
say... Okay, I did have adifferent answer for this, but
I'm gonna change it in myhead. I would say it's okay to
(27:29):
do the past that feels safefirst. So I've actually
released like this docu-seriesreally telling the stories of
how I started and in that I'mtalking about the very first
group offer I put out therewas in collaboration because I
didn't have the balls to do itby myself. To be honest, I
needed someone to do it withme. I reached out to somebody
who I thought would be a goodfit and we said let's do this
(27:50):
together and we've done ittogether the first time and
we've done it together on thesecond time and it went really
really well and then we wereplanning to do it the third
time and I had to say no Ineed to do this by myself, not
that exact program like I waslike no I need to go and... So
I think my advice would be notthat you have to go and collab
to get started. That's not theadvice. The advice is to, it's
(28:12):
okay to start off with whatfeels safe. I think there's a
lot of noise online and I willsay as well, you need to feel
the fear and do it. You needto declare what you're here to
do and take the actionstowards it. But I also think
like, It's okay to start withsmall steps like just just
start but it's okay to startwith small steps so that would
be my advice for somebody newgetting visible and things
(28:34):
that helped me with that waslike actually just speaking
out loud even if I I used torecord videos knowing that
they would never go anywherelike I was I knew I was never
posting it but I would justrecord myself or even if I was
just cooking dinner I wouldjust like practice like
talking out loud because youhave it all in your brain and
sometimes the problem is justlike What if I forget what to
say? What if somebody asked mea question and I don't know
(28:56):
what to answer? They're thekind of normal things that are
coming up for people. So justpracticing. If someone asked
me this, this is what I wouldsay. And yeah, I think it just
comes down to practice andbeing okay with taking small
steps. Because do you knowwhat's weird for me, right? I
was terrified. Obviously, Imade that video about
fertility and stuff, but whenI start like coming on to
stories and just chatting, Iactually was terrified and
(29:20):
then grew to love it. And Isay that to my clients as
well. I'm like, you're goingto start enjoying this. Once
you start feeling comfortable,it's really enjoyable. I don't
know if I'm just the only one.Amanda, you're nodding. You
probably enjoy it. No, you do.You do because you just think,
oh, this will be really goodand then you'll do it. And
people always say everythingis content and it is content.
(29:40):
And when I was on one of yourcourses, what was it called
again? Yeah and we were alwaysleaving voice messages and I
can remember you did this sortof every couple of days, well
I'm just here stirring themints but Amanda if you do
that Butit was so good and then and I
(30:02):
was like well yeah I'm justdoing the dinner but yeah
Audrey that's great but butthe thing was because we were
so because we were so absorbedin what we were doing and the
content that we were creatingand that's what I love about
people in our world thosethings that wasn't abnormal
it's just what we did. Likehonestly, like some of this
(30:26):
stuff is just hilarious. Myfriends, like one of my
business friends always saysto me like, are you boiling
your eggs? Because I seem toalways say to her in the
mornings with her message, I'mjust boiling some eggs. I
don't know why I tell peoplethat part. That's so funny
that you've said that. But youknow what, that's what I love
because I'm not sat here in myplush London suite with my
(30:49):
secretary. It does not get anymore real than this. This is
coming from my home and it'snot a studio, it's the same
for you. And that's just whatit's all about. We love what
we do. So creative and it'sjust it's just real and you
know and oh we have the bestfun along the way don't we and
that's the thing you said youstart to enjoy it if you're
(31:11):
feeling at the minute that youdon't want to go visible it's
you may be feeling isolatedand it can be lonely and we
were talking earlier about youneed to surround yourself with
good people you need tosurround yourself with
positive people creativepeople and you also need
someone that you can bounceideas off and but it can be
lonely at the start so I wouldjoin good groups. You
(31:32):
definitely do need goodcoaches. Find someone and plug
those gaps that you have. Butover time that will definitely
grow. But I can honestly say Ihave had the best fun since I
started my business. You willdefinitely find like minded
people because your familydon't get it, your friends
(31:54):
don't get it, although theywant to, but really you could
pick up the phone to one ofyour business besties and you
can say, well I'm thinking ofdoing this thing and it could
be way out there and yourbusiness besties will go, well
yeah, well if you add this,you add this and you know,
that's the thing, but that'swhy you need good people in
this world to kind of help youalong. yeah definitely like
(32:15):
visibility is so importantit's the one thing that
everybody needs to always dolike we always need to be
bringing in a new audience andit's like I'm trying to like
going back to like the veryvery start I was showing up on
Instagram and I was on videobut it felt real robotic and
(32:36):
where I kind of got my breakIf that's what it's called, it
was on TikTok and I can workit out now that I went on to
TikTok knowing none of myfamily or friends or whatever
was going to see it. So I letmy guard down and I was a lot
more me and I was just a lotmore documenting rather than
creating content. It was likejust very much chatty. And
(32:56):
that went wild and that grewmy confidence over there
because I, so it just comesback down to that fear of
judgment, like the fear ofjudgment was removed so then I
was able to get comfortableand then I was able to bring
that personality over toInstagram and still now if my,
like a couple of my auntieslike follow me and it's lovely
and supportive but sometimeswhen I'm sharing something
(33:17):
that might be like very niche.I do be like, oh God, they're
going to be like, is she okay?But that's okay, like it's
learning to be okay with thatbecause anyone who's not
supportive of you, just removethem, like unfollow, unblock
them, mute them, whatever youneed to do to get your
business moving. And just knowlike the real thing I want to
(33:42):
take away about visibility isthat it doesn't come easy for
anybody like it's not anatural thing to talk to your
phone with nobody coming back.Actually, I'll share a quick
story. When I got so used tobeing on camera and stories
and Zoom rooms when everyoneis on mute except for me
talking that the very firsttime I spoke on stage and I
said a little joke because I'mhilarious. When I heard people
(34:06):
laughing back, I got a bit ofa fright because I'd been on
Zoom for two years and like Iwasn't getting it so I was
like, oh my god, this feels soweird to actually get beat.
Yeah, yeah. So like thatshould be the normal thing and
but yeah, it's just aboutgetting like just knowing
that. It's nothing wrong withyou like it's actually all of
(34:28):
us feel uncomfortable gettingstarted and it's just about
pushing through that and Ialways say the why when the
why is bigger than the fear ifyou take my fertility story I
was terrified but the why wasso much stronger than the fear
of someone judging me for thatand like I mean with a sense
of topic like that or judgingme I'd be like you're not my
(34:49):
person anyway but when the whyis bigger than the fear You
can do anything. Absolutely.And you know what, if you
strip it back even further,for anybody to put themselves
out there to do that, the onlyconclusion is, oh my God,
that's really brave. And anyother comment is jealousy. It
(35:10):
really is because you can'tnegatively judge someone for
putting themselves out thereand over time they're only
going to get better and it isreally brave. And you know,
TikTok is, I describe it asthe wild west, it's mad over
there. I use it to kind oftest myself a little bit and
see what happens and but I'mmore comfortable on Instagram
(35:31):
but I am sort of spreadmowings a little bit over
TikTok because I know thevisibility is it can be huge
but it's I can see why youwould have felt comfortable
over there because it's likeanother world it is another
world but yeah it's you knowit is this extremely brave and
if people are judging you youreally do not want them in
your world so do you have anyrituals or confidence tricks
(35:51):
before you get yourself pumpedin and out there? Yeah,
definitely music all the time.Music, put on a song, dance
around and get into that songand that music will change all
the time. Mostly musicaltheatre and I'll literally
think I'm on Broadway and thenI'm like the Zoom call doesn't
feel so scary now because I'vejust given a Broadway show in
the kitchen. But also as well,at times where I'm doubting
(36:15):
myself, I'll watch maybe atraining from somebody I've
worked with that, you know,really inspired me, so I will
go back to a place where Ifelt inspired previously and
kind of tap back into that, ormaybe it's like if someone's
inspiration, maybe I just needto go onto their social media
page and watch a bit of theircontent and be like, I just...
(36:35):
I'm so inspired by you likelet's go the mission is clear
again you know that kind ofway so music definitely to get
me in a good state ofconfidence and then when it
comes to like moreinspirational or if I'm
doubting myself I will plugback into something that
inspires me. Yeah that's agood idea and if you're not
feeling great and you turn thecamera on you're not going to
perform either so youdefinitely need something to
(36:56):
kind of So, Audrey, we'realmost at the end. Do you know
what? I always know it's agood one when I forget I'm
recording and I'mleaning in going up. The first
thing that I always say, justfollowing on what you said
when you first turn the cameraon and you get going. I do
(37:18):
have a rule for myself whenI'm creating video content is
that I will never just createone video. Like it's just not
happening. It's a rule becausethat first video, yeah, you
can use it. It can go out. Butonce you're warmed up, it
might take you However long,don't use this number as a
frame that you should befollowing, but if it takes you
10 minutes to record a video,the next one will take five
(37:38):
minutes, the next one willtake three minutes and there
you have, in that like say 20minutes you can get three
videos done, where if it'staking you 10 minutes like
each time, that's terriblemaths, but you know what I
mean, you get so much moredone. If you do that, so I
always kind of give a littlerule, even if it is only two,
if I only got time to recordtwo, I will get two done and I
have one to go and one savedand that's how you can start
(38:00):
building up that bulk ofcontent to go out then. Keep
all your outtakes of when yougot it wrong and you don't
ever have to use them, butthere will come a time where
you want to show your journeyand you want to say, oh, well,
when I was doing this, thatthis is what and and I love
that because when you when youarrive on someone new and you
(38:20):
think, oh, you know, they'repolished, they're doing and
they weren't always like that.And I think it's so brave to
show yourself. You know fromearly on and like my podcast I
keep all my early episodes andI will keep them there but
even though I cringe insidebecause I didn't start a
podcast being an expertpodcaster and I'm not an
expert podcaster now but Iknow a bit more what I'm doing
(38:41):
but always keep the earlystuff because you've always
got to show your journey andnone of us are perfect and
everyone learns every day butwhen people do the sort of
outtakes of their videos itjust cracks me up because I
just think it's so What's theword I'm looking for? You
just, you just, you've got nowords or graces, have you?
Just like, yeah, this is meand you know, I'm better now,
but yeah, wasn't I funny? Somany things, I share mine
(39:04):
quite a lot, like one of thefirst videos is like, it's, my
voice is different. I'm like,hey everybody, I just want,
like so timid and soft andlike, you know me, like I'm
like quite loud, quite likeexpressionally with my hands
and I'm like, that is not me.And then actually the first
few Instagram stories, Ididn't realize at the time,
but when I looked back on myarchive, in the dark, filters
(39:25):
on, like I was actually likejust so hiding, but like
trying to come out, but likestill hiding and it's just
like, oh, like I just, I justwant to hug her like because
she's, you know, and I reallythink that's the message home
is that If I can do whatanyone can, I really want to
get across how difficult andhow much I kind of had to
(39:46):
overcome in my own mind to getto where I got to. And that's
the key, just watch people,learn what you can. People
always have stuff to teach andyou know from me working with
you, I was trained to read thenews. So having to take shape
of all that formality and youknow that that doesn't work on
(40:08):
social media and I speak withmy hands so I try to move as
much as possible I try to beas chatty as possible and
early on in my podcast days Iused to edit out all the ums
and ahs because I thought Ihad to speak know perfectly
but now I just I just turn upas myself I speak I don't
script I just speak. But allthose things, it doesn't
matter, but I really had tounlearn so much of my
(40:31):
corporate behaviour. And youknow what? I probably will
always have to be consciouslynot doing those things because
it was so ingrained and I'vedone it for so many years. But
that's just part of my journeyand you know, I'm more
comfortable talking to otherpeople than I am sat talking
to myself. But you'reabsolutely right, do the bad
content, do what you can. Tryand be as creative as you can
(40:54):
and just keep at it, keep atit, keep at it. So, amazing
Audrey. So where can we findout more about you online? The
best place to find me is onInstagram, Audrey underscore
the social coach. And I'm onTikTok as well, but if you
want to swing into Instagramfor a DM, I'm more than happy
to chat or let me know thatyou've listened. Yeah, I'd
(41:17):
love to connect to you over onInstagram. TikTok is the same
handle as well. Amazing. Thankyou so much. I will put those
in the show notes. Audrey,it's been an absolute
pleasure. I have lovedchatting with you and I'm so
thrilled I got you on mypodcast and thank you so much.
Thank you so much, Amanda.Have to see you Thank you so
(41:38):
much for spending time with metoday. If you have enjoyed
this episode, please leave areview and share it with a
business bestie who might alsofind it useful. You have been
listening to the Grow YourBrand with Amanda podcast. If
you want to know more abouthow I can help you grow your
brand, then visit my websiteamandajane.co.uk or come and
say hi on Instagram atCoachAmandaJane. Bye for now.
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