March 20, 2025 • 37 mins
How do you know when it’s time to pivot—really pivot? And more importantly, how do you navigate the fear and uncertainty that comes with it?
In this episode, I sit down with Lisa Simone Richards, co-founder and CEO of Pearl Spark Pages, a luxury stationery brand designed to help female founders push past imposter syndrome and build self-trust through mindful self-reflection.
Lisa spent two decades as a top publicist helping women-led startups gain visibility—until she found herself facing the same imposter syndrome her clients battled.
Instead of letting it hold her back, she built something completely new: A journaling framework designed for high-achieving women entrepreneurs who are constantly pushing for more, yet rarely pause to recognize their own brilliance.
We get real about:
✨ The moment Lisa realized she couldn’t keep pushing the same boulder uphill
✨ Why even the most seasoned entrepreneurs feel like frauds (and how to break the cycle)
✨ The small daily habit that shifts you from self-doubt to self-leadership
If you’ve ever felt resistance around what’s next in your business, this episode will challenge you to trust yourself in bigger ways.
Get your copy of Lisa’s new journal + free 7-day sample at: www.femalefoundersjournal.com
Follow Lisa: @lisasimonerichards
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Lisa (00:01):
It's just like being in the middle of a movie.
You know you can't just skipand fast forward to the end.
I want to.
I would love to just hit ahundred, Like I read the book on
how to crowdfund, or like tryand get your 100% on day one,
like didn't happen.
So I would love to fast forwardto the end, but, like you know,
thinking about six months fromnow, a year from now, like
there's a story that I'm goingto want to tell.
Sheila (00:27):
But the story was I got everything I wanted on day one.
Like it's kind of a boringstory.
Hi, welcome to the connect withSheila Botello podcast.
I'm thrilled to have you today.
I have a special guest on andwe're talking about reinvention.
Her name is Lisa SimoneRichards, the co-founder and CEO
of Pearl Spark Pages, a luxurystationery brand designed to
help female founders push pastimposter syndrome, increase
(00:51):
self-confidence and buildthriving businesses through
mindful self-reflection.
After two decades as apublicist helping women-led
startups gain visibility, lisafound herself grappling with the
very challenge she had coachedso many founders through
imposter syndrome.
Even with years of experience,she recognized how deeply our
(01:12):
inner dialogue shapes ourreality, influencing how we show
up in business and in life.
Determined to shift thatnarrative, she developed a
journaling framework to helpwomen entrepreneurs cultivate
confidence, self-trust andauthenticity.
This became the foundation ofPearl Spark Pages.
Through beautifully designedpaper products, lisa's mission
(01:35):
is to empower female founders toembrace their true potential,
one page at a time.
Lisa, welcome to the show.
Lisa (01:46):
Thank you so much for having me.
Oh, my gosh, that soundedreally cool on paper.
I love it.
Sheila (01:50):
Well, what's really cool is, as I was listening to
myself say the introduction, Iwas recalling my experience as
one of your beta testers goingthrough what you've created and
we can allude to this a littlelater on in our conversation.
But what you're doing is reallytransformative and I'm thrilled
to have you share your story.
(02:13):
And just side note everyone wemet at a High Vibe Women event
last fall and I was immediatelydrawn to your energy, lisa, your
depth of experience andpublicity and like the
heart-centered way that youapproach your work, but how you
approach people.
I got to see you interactingwith many different people and
(02:33):
you drop right in and I lovethat.
And then I learned the secondday of this event I learned that
you were pivoting.
I think I may have learned itright before you went on stage
to give a talk, so that wasreally cool.
So I would love for you toshare a bit about where you were
before this pivot came, becauseyou've had quite a background
(02:55):
in the publicity space, helpingothers get seen, and now here
you are amplifying your ownvoice and seeking out people to
help you amplify your voice,which is really beautiful, tell
us the story and it's such anhonor to be on your show and
sharing this transformation atthis specific time, because this
is my second time doing apodcast interview, not talking
about PR, so I'm kind of like afish out of the water playing
(03:17):
with my new conversation.
Lisa (03:18):
But both you and the other show that I won were people who
attended the same event andit's so funny that you're
somebody who met me like the dayof transformation.
It's like how I met my husbandliterally the day before I went
for a leadership training.
So I was like you've literallynever even knew who I was before
.
Like it's so crazy.
So it's so funny to have thisconversation at this specific
time because absolutely thatweekend was very
(03:40):
transformational for me.
So a little bit of background.
I have been a publicist for 20years.
When I was 18 and I was infirst year university at Western
, I had just joined a sororitysomebody in fourth year.
She was about to graduate.
She and I went for lunch youknow first year, we're looking
up to fourth year and she sharedwith me that she was going to
Humber College for PR.
(04:01):
Back in 2002, sex and the Citywas in its heyday, samantha
Jones did PR and she was alwaysat these cool parties and had
access to these exclusive thingsand I was like that is it, I'm
going to do that.
So, from 18 years old, myidentity was PR.
I volunteered in variousorganizations.
I took on a VP role indifferent groups and then I
interned, worked in an agency,eventually had my own agency.
(04:25):
So that was such a key corepart of my identity.
2021, I remember you know I wasdoing online coaching.
I was having such a great timeteaching clients how to do the
things that I had learned overthe last 20 years.
I remember one of my likesuperstar clients.
She had never been featured inthe media before.
Remember one of my likesuperstar clients.
She had never been featured inthe media before and by the end
(04:46):
of like one, two I can'tremember if it was two or three
years with me, she had gottenfeatured in over 60 segments on
one specific news station andthey told her you know, we've
just had your face on for likethis much amount of time.
We need to bring in a newexpert.
So she moved on to otherplatforms, but she did that all
by herself, without me everpitching for her.
So it was really, reallypowerful and very, very
(05:06):
rewarding.
However, I can also acknowledgethe 2021 moving onward.
I wasn't having as much funanymore.
I wasn't getting the resultsthat I was typically used to
getting for my clients and thatdidn't feel good for me.
That didn't feel great for myclients.
I noticed the industry wasshifting, you know.
Obviously influencer marketingwas on the rise.
(05:28):
Traditional media, like I mean,I don't own.
I have a cable subscription.
I don't buy magazines at thegrocery store anymore, like it's
just a reality of transition intime, and some publicists have
absolutely ridden that wave andI just wasn't having that same
experience.
So I had been spending the lastthree years pivoting, like
maybe I want to do an agency,maybe I want to shift markets
(05:48):
and move from fitness tolifestyle.
Okay, maybe I want to work indoctors.
So I was trying on a fewdifferent hats to really find
where I would fit into the worldof PR, you know, post 2020.
And so when we met at thatconference, I had, I was okay.
So this conference happened inOctober.
Back in September, my husbandand I were at our local Indigo
(06:10):
chapters so for the Americanslistening, that's our Barnes and
Noble and we were looking inthe journal section.
I have been a journal planninggirly since I was like a kid.
I can go into my mom's basement, find my high school agendas,
my pin coach agenda from my 20s.
I remember my first diary fromwhen I was about seven years old
.
It was purple, it had a lockand two gray kittens on it
(06:30):
because I always knew I wantedcats.
I have two cats now.
They are orange.
Back to the main topic.
We were looking at journals inIndigo and I was looking for
something aroundentrepreneurship.
Maybe some of you may gatherfrom listening so far I'm super
type A, I'm driven, I'm fastpaced.
So when I was looking atjournals, I found a lot of stuff
(06:51):
that was like what's yourvision, what's your mission,
what are the strategies, whatare the analytics, and I totally
vibe with that stuff.
But it was a little moreaggressive than I wanted to go.
On the other hand of thespectrum, I saw a lot of like
how would you like to feel leaninto your feminine, and that's
all good too I love me a goodcrystal but like I needed
something a little more tangiblethan that.
So I was starting to think okay, I think there's an opportunity
(07:12):
here, based on what I've seenfrom working with women
entrepreneurs and what I'mpersonally looking for.
My husband was looking for ajournal.
I got.
Every time I say I have to getthis part of the story right.
It was either for recipes, itwas for travel or something for
the books he was reading.
But he was looking for a guidedjournal too, and we were both
like you know, maybe there's anopportunity here, cause, like,
journals used to be like a smallsection in the store.
(07:34):
Now they're an entire wall withits own title card.
So that was where the ideastarted brewing Facebook,
Facebook and I started gettingads for like do this free,
create your journal plannerchallenge, and I was like okay,
let's do that.
The person who ran thatchallenge happened to post the
name of her manufacturer.
It only flashed for a second.
(07:54):
I'm sure she didn't need to dothat, but I ran onto LinkedIn,
found this person.
Before you knew it, I had mymanufacturer, I started creating
the content, finding the rightinfluencers that I could learn
from.
So this was kind of starting toplay in my mind.
In September, october, october.
We're at the event.
I'm on stage and I'm about togo up and do a talk about how to
get visibility for yourbusiness Similar talk I've been
(08:17):
doing for the last like seven,10 years of entrepreneurship.
However, in that specificmoment, I was just feeling like,
honestly, absolute trashbecause I hadn't been collecting
results for clients who mightbe getting on stage here now to
talk to these 150 founders abouthow to get visibility.
I just felt like such anabsolute fraud in that moment,
(08:37):
knowing what was going on in theback end and I believe I had 10
minutes on stage to speak andI'm pretty confident I didn't
even last five minutes Justbecause I had so much of like,
so much cringe going on in theback of my head.
Like who am I to be talkingabout this?
Like I used to be really greatat it but it doesn't seem like I
am anymore.
Like, and I just had all thestories Like I'm sure you know
(08:59):
what I'm talking aboutEverybody's had them run through
their heads at one point.
So what was cool is it was areally great audience that I had
the opportunity to startconnecting with some of them the
night before and I could feelthe vibe of this crowd and I
allowed myself to ditchperfectionism.
I didn't do the hand talk thatI was planning on doing.
I got on stage.
I shared something a littlemore authentic and transparent,
and then I didn't.
(09:20):
And then I and then the funniestpart that I like really ground
into is, you know, as I was onstage, people were capturing
photos and videos and they sentme DMs so I could share it on
stories, which I did and one ofmy girlfriends from undergrad
commented oh my God, you're socool.
And I was like no, I'm not, I'msuch a fraud.
And I responded to her.
In that moment I didn't evenneed to think about it,
subconscious came right throughthe keyboard.
(09:42):
About it Subconscious cameright through the keyboard.
And that was kind of the momentthat I was like, okay, like I
mean can't keep pushing thisboulder up a hill for another
three years.
I think we need to listen to it, like.
And somebody else said to meyou know what, if it doesn't
work, you can always come back.
And that was as much permissionas I needed to play.
So that that was where thingsgot started from.
Sheila (10:00):
Oh, my goodness and see, I knew nothing about this.
Obviously, while you were onstage, I didn't know enough
about your story at that point,and you, I will say you shone on
stage, so you may have beenfeeling that inside of yourself,
but it wasn't being reflected.
And what this tells me is let'slook around us and see all of
(10:20):
the people doing their thing,doing their work, growing their
businesses, and how many of themmay be feeling that same way,
but we would never know unlessthey actually shared it.
And so I really applaud yourvulnerability in sharing that
story and also how that story islike a catalyst for this new
(10:43):
business that you've created,and how now more of us can maybe
be more authentic about wherewe're at and also understand,
like that is just part of thedeal, that imposter syndrome is
going to come up.
It's like really, at the end ofthe day, it's we've always said
it's like fear, with like amint coat and pearls on right,
like a fear of facing somethingnew, perhaps something that we
(11:07):
really want to be doing in ourlives.
And so, yeah, I just love thatstory and I would love to know
what happened next, like whenyou went home and you had that
conversation with your husband.
What was that?
Lisa (11:23):
like no-transcript.
(11:55):
Five years old and my parentswere shopping for bathroom tiles
or something equally boring toa five-year-old, and I was just
like wandering around doing mything and he gave me a little
like you know, you be inattendance, be proper, like, be
present, be a part of what'sgoing on, engage, so like.
That was a moment when Ilearned like to bring it
together and I've gotten thatcompliment throughout my entire
(12:17):
life.
You can be intimidating, youlook so confident, you have it
together and like Sheila, youwill never see me in an
intersection looking lost.
I will confidently walk in thewrong direction before I stand
there being like I'm not surewhere to go.
Like I just don't do that.
And in 2019, I was sitting witha business and leadership coach
over dinner or not dinner.
We were sitting at a fireplaceoutdoors having a glass of wine
(12:37):
and she looked at me and I waslike kind of waiting for a
compliment.
The way she looked at me, I'mlike go on, tell me what a great
job I did today.
And she was like she was likeyou know what, lisa, if you stop
trying to look so perfect allthe time, you would make so much
more money and like I've neverforgotten that and it's been an
interesting experiment in thelast few years to like slowly
(12:58):
drop the veil a little bit more,let people in, create a little
more connection and actuallytruly connect with people, and
there's just such a differencebetween that like projected
confidence and the real storygoing on inside your head and
the thing what you're reallyfeeling.
And part of me creating thisjournal has been to create that
authentic inner confidence, notthe stuff like you put on on the
(13:19):
outside so that everyone elsebelieves it.
Sheila (13:22):
Oh, my goodness.
And you know, paired with that,okay.
So now actually the question isI'm remembering now, cause my
short term memory can beinteresting.
Also is what was your husband'sresponse?
Like, well, first of all, whenyou came home from that event,
like, did you?
Were you kind of thinking about, okay, how, how am I going to
share this with my husband?
(13:42):
Um, or is he maybe already kindof seeing?
He's seen the journey you'vebeen on already, so you probably
know something's coming.
What was your thought process?
And then what was his responseto whatever you had to say when
you got home?
Lisa (13:55):
You know what the interesting thing is.
So my husband is my co-founderin Pearl Spark Pages and it
wasn't even his reaction thatwas any sort of worry.
It was my mom.
So here I am, at my age as agrown adult, being like I'm
scared to tell my mom.
So, in terms of telling myhusband, like we had this idea
brewing, so it was already there, he's behind the scenes with me
, he knows what the last threeyears have looked like and so he
(14:17):
wasn't surprised by it.
And the thing that I appreciatethe most is, as I was playing
with this idea, he was like no,I see an opportunity in it, I'll
be your first investor.
And I was like, oh, okay,you're going to eat those words,
babe.
And he had been the firstinvestor in the business and I'm
so, so grateful for hisconfidence in it.
So he was pretty much on boardfrom the get-go.
(14:40):
There was no convincing orenrolling to be done at all,
like we'd already startedplaying with the idea.
It was more my mom I wasconcerned about telling, because
she's 100% my best friend.
She's always been my biggestcheerleader Totally.
She's 100% my best friend.
She's always been my biggestcheerleader Totally.
Acknowledge she's put methrough school and I'm so
grateful for that All thoseunpaid internships I did for the
first year or so when I wasliving at home and I think
there's something maybe aboutlike millennials and Gen Z and
(15:03):
everyone else after that.
That's a little more fluid, butmy parents are from the boomer
generation where, like, you geta job and you stay in your job
and you work with the samecompany, like my dad was with
the same company from start tofinish.
My mom's always been with thegovernment, maybe different
branches.
So, like already, thisentrepreneurship thing is a
little bit kind of weird.
Nevermind, hey, guess what?
I'm switching industriesaltogether.
(15:25):
So coming home from that event,coming off of that stage feeling
like not the best, shall we say, I remember going to my mom's
house and I brought the programfor that event that showed me as
a gold sponsor and like all theathletes that had me feeling
like a complete fraud, and Ialso brought a copy of the five
minute journal with her becauseI knew I needed to bring a
little bit of proof that thisisn't like boo-boo stuff.
(15:46):
Take a look at the price ofthis thing, mom.
So I remember going to herhouse and sitting on the couch
and I was like this is the eventthat I was just at.
Take a look at the brochure.
And she's like look at you,you're a gold sponsor, you're on
stage.
That's fantastic.
And I was like, yeah, theyasked they brought me in to do
PR and I didn't get them asingle hit of coverage.
Like I did my best, I came upwith all these different angles.
(16:07):
They were on board with it.
I pitched my little heart outand do you know what it was like
for me to stand on stage when Ihad created absolutely nothing
for the event hosts?
And she was like, okay, yeah.
And I was like I, I, this can'tkeep going on.
This has to be a shift.
This has been the last threeyears of my life.
So I showed her the five minutejournal, I told her a little
bit about the history, I toldher a little bit about how much
the company makes, and she wastotally on board from the jump.
(16:32):
That was the one I was afraid of.
She was like you know what,lisa, whatever you put your mind
to, I know you'll be successfulwith and if this isn't it,
you'll try something else.
And I was like that was notwhat I was expecting.
I was waiting for the.
Are you sure about this?
Like maybe you should go backto school, maybe you should just
get a job again.
Like that was not the responseI expected.
So when I got that, it wasalmost like a permission.
(16:53):
Like it was like, oh, my mom'snot going to be disappointed in
me.
So it was almost like, okay,now I can full fledged go ahead
with it.
I'm a grown up.
Sheila (17:02):
Yeah, exactly.
Well, and it's interestingbecause I think a lot of us do.
We all carry things from ourchildhood patterning that,
frankly, I don't think ourparents intentionally may have,
you know, intended upon for us.
They, they have certainthoughts and feelings and they
certain ways to expressthemselves that sometimes come
across one way to us.
(17:24):
Meanwhile it was meant adifferent way perhaps, but you
actually alluded.
Meanwhile it was meant adifferent way perhaps, but you
actually alluded, I don't knowhow long ago in recent months on
Instagram, about an experiencewhen you realized why
perfectionism was something thatwas so close to your heart and
had to do with you telling yourmom about a test score.
And maybe you want to allude tothat because I think this could
(17:45):
perhaps unlock something forour listeners, because we all
have a story from our past.
Usually we're quite young andit could still be controlling us
to this day and we don't evenrealize it.
Lisa (17:57):
So I can't wait to listen to this podcast again six months
from now, because I'm relivingthat moment exactly in this
moment, right now.
So the story is I'm somebody,I'm a high achiever, I'm always
(18:25):
looking to.
You know, I don't know, I don.
It was out of 147 marks.
I studied my little heart outand when she passed it back, I
got 143 out of 147.
And I was so proud of myselfand I remember going home and
handing the test to my mom andbeing like guess what I got?
And she was like 147.
No 146.
No 145.
(18:45):
I'm getting more deflated.
We only have a few more numbersto go, but I'm already like the
message is you didn't doperfect, not good enough.
So since then, I have alwaysit's not good enough that I got
143 out of 147.
It's what are the four thingsthat I got wrong?
Because that was the firstquestion she asked me.
So fast forward now, likehowever many 30 years later it
is, I'm in the midst of doing acrowdfunding campaign and, of
(19:09):
course, in the book that I'mreading about crowdfunding,
they're like try and hit 100%funding on day one.
I'm not so lofty as to thinkit's necessarily going to be day
one, but I was hoping to hit itfaster.
So on day one she's like, how'dyou do?
I'm like we hit 34% in day oneshe's like, oh, and I could feel
the not at a hundred yet.
But like she knows she, I'vetold her this story about grade
(19:31):
school and she's like I'm reallysorry, I didn't mean to put
that on you so I can.
I know she's working on notrepeating it, but I can still.
I can still even feel so todaywe have one week to go in the
campaign and we're 78% fundedand she checks in every day.
She wants to know how it'sgoing.
She's my biggest cheerleader,such a supporter.
But I do feel thedisappointment at being like we
haven't hit a hundred yet.
We haven't hit a hundred yet.
So, hey, same seven-year-oldstory still running a 41 years
(19:55):
old.
I'm working on like doing thework around it, but I have the
awareness at least.
Sheila (19:59):
Well, I love that you have the awareness and that you
also shared that story with her.
So she has the awareness now andshe's working on it now and
it's like isn't it interestinghow much of a healing catalyst
entrepreneurship can be, rightLike we can go to therapy for
years and years, or we can starta business and all of our stuff
(20:20):
will get brought up and we'llbe forced to face it, because
burying it will just bring usdown and we'll never achieve our
goals.
This is what I've found in myown personal journey and so many
founders that I speak to, andone of the things you allude to
in this particular story is thatit really speaks to how so many
founders get stuck inperfectionism before they launch
something new.
(20:40):
And here you like, literally,you thought about it in
September, you already hadthings going, and then you were
on a stage the very next monthand then, moving through, here
you are like, not even sixmonths later you were getting
your beta testers.
So it's like really beautiful.
How did you navigate thetension between wanting this
journal to be perfect andknowing that at some point you
(21:03):
just had to get it out in theworld because timing you didn't
want it to be another threeyears.
Lisa (21:09):
I don't think I really felt that.
To be honest with you, like I'mso grateful that my husband
comes from a background as ajournalist, so he's the
professional editor in all ofthis.
I have friends in the spacethat I asked them to take a look
through it at first.
I have a designer I've beenworking with since 2017.
So you know, we did ourprototype and we had the first
copy come in and another one ofhis buddies third party removed.
(21:30):
I think we maybe found likeseven to 10 mistakes in a 200
page book Like that's not badfor, and now that we're going
into mass production, we fixedthem.
So there really hasn't been aton of like hesitation or
mistakes or perfectionism, likeperfectionism kind of one, but
in a really fast timeline.
So I'm good with that.
Sheila (21:50):
Oh, I love that and you know, on that note, like, just
as you've been sharing, as I'vebeen following the journey and
you're emailing and you're onstories and you're you're doing
your thing, you've beenincredibly transparent about
this process, sharing the wins,sharing the hurdles, sharing the
behind the scenes moments,which are super fun and I feel
like they're really endearing.
How has that openness impactedyour launch?
(22:13):
Like, has anything surprisedyou about how people have
responded?
Lisa (22:45):
no-transcript multiple journals.
Somebody on a call the otherday with 60 attendees or so,
piped up on my behalf and waslike hey guys, lisa's stuck at
70% and she has like 10 days togo.
Everyone here's the link go buyone.
(23:06):
And if you're not going to buyone, drop your coffee today and
do a pledge on her.
And I literally saw a bunch ofbackers come in like after that
call was over.
So it has been so cool to seelike, especially people who are
like reposting what I'm postingon LinkedIn and Instagram like
that.
It's not the intention withwhat I'm posting it, but to see
how many people really want tosee this succeed is incredibly
(23:27):
overwhelming, especially assomebody who's a complete lone
wolf.
Sheila (23:32):
Well I was just going to speak to I'm glad you spoke to
this isolation piece.
That can really be a big partof entrepreneurship because when
we look at historically and ofcourse, I think millennials and
Gen Z are like really bustingthrough the, the former way of
doing things in terms of, youknow, collaboration over
competition and celebrating eachother's wins.
(23:52):
And I'm a I'm a Gen Xer and youknow my husband's like just
like one year, like into Gen X,out of boomer land, and so I
come from an era wheredefinitely competition and
getting a leg up on yourcompetition was so important and
so focused on it.
So you want to keep yourstories and just keep things
(24:13):
close to you.
You don't want to show yourhand, and so I'm glad that you
expressed that because it can beso isolating.
Really, turning to communitycan be well, really it is
life-giving and I love that.
You're seeing that yourself andyou have examples of that.
And so many of our listeners arescaling businesses.
They're at various stages.
(24:33):
Some are like mid six figures,some seven, some beyond, and so
I would love to know, from thejournaling perspective, what
advice would you give a founderwho's deep in the weeds of
growth and may not feel likethey have time to add reflection
and journaling to their routine.
They feel like, hey man, I'malready habit stacking Like what
.
How do I do this?
Lisa (24:55):
Yeah.
So part of that's me too.
Like I mean, I wake up and Iwant to work out.
I want a fresh breakfast, Iwant a green juice.
I got to clean my house AfterI've taken a shower and done my
hair and makeup.
Do you know what time it is Ihave to get to work.
I don't have time for one morething.
So what's really helped for meis bookending my day.
So this journal, the FemaleFounders Journal, is designed as
a guided journal with a morningprompt and an evening prompt.
(25:17):
So the way I set it up, I leaveit on my laptop.
So before I can open the laptoplid, I have to open my journal
and I just take two seconds towork on a prompt.
That's really a morning prompt.
That's going to help affirm whoI am, something that might
allow me to recognize my pastsuccesses, something that might
allow me to hone in on my NorthStar and my vision.
So I don't just rush into theday responding to emails, but it
(25:38):
really allows me to groundmyself.
Remember okay, you can do hardthings.
Remember that thing youovercame once.
Like it just allows me to startmy day with my back a little
straighter and my shoulders alittle taller, whatever the
saying is, and then I end my daywith a journal.
So you know, as I'm shutting mylaptop lid down and getting
ready to head downstairs andfigure out what the dinner
(25:58):
situation is like, there's somany things I rush through every
day that I'm not taking asecond to be like.
You did a good job there.
Um, I was even thinking aboutlike let's, I'm totally surfing
on confidence and not cockiness,and I'm projecting this
Kickstarter campaign is going togo fantastically, but we're I
don't know that yet I still gotseven days to go.
God forbid that this doesn'tisn't successful because, for
(26:20):
those who don't know, it's a100% all or nothing platform.
If I hit 99% funding, it is notcategorized as a win.
I don't get to unlock the funds.
So, as we're riding into that,I'm like God forbid, this is a
fail.
Like was this project a fail?
And I'm like well, it's not,because you learned a ton of
things that you didn't knowbefore.
You can do it again.
Like there's so much richnessthat came from the experience.
(26:40):
Don't get me wrong.
I want this to be a home run.
I don't want any other ending,and I also recognize that there
were a lot of other good thingsthat I have learned that
wouldn't have otherwise happenedthrough this process.
Sheila (26:51):
Absolutely, it's all a learning and I have complete
confidence that you are going toreach your goal.
And I believe this because,well, to be this far along in
such a short time is prettyincredible, and what I have
found with like, doing eventsand launches and things, a lot
of momentum happens like rightbefore the deadline, right
(27:12):
before the end, and so I mean,ask anyone who's done any promo
or events at like LA, right,they're like, oh my goodness,
it's like hours before.
Will anyone come?
And so, knowing that you havethis momentum going, you have
the support, regardless of whereyou're at.
I know this journal is going outinto the world, like it's
happening.
I can't wait to get my copiesbecause, like I have people
(27:33):
waiting, I'm like, okay, I havesomething for you.
I'm not telling you what it is.
It's a surprise, because I knowthat they would not maybe
potentially have that vision forthemselves, and I want to be
able to give them something thatthen they can go on and share
with their communities as well.
And one question I had,actually, is about the
Kickstarter campaign itself.
Crowdfunding is not for thefaint of heart, so what made you
(27:57):
choose this path instead of atraditional launch like getting
just VC funding, angel investing, et cetera, and what have you
learned about yourself in theprocess?
Lisa (28:07):
Great question.
I very likely will neverexplore outside funding because
only child syndrome I don't wantto share.
I don't want someone telling mewhat to do with my company
Absolutely not.
So that's so not it for me.
We can grow and do community insome ways, but in other ways, I
am who I am.
One of the things you talkedabout earlier was collaboration
(28:27):
over competition.
So I am so lucky that back inSeptember or early October, I
hopped on a call with a womannamed Cheryl Sutherland.
She's the CEO and founder of acompany called Please Notes
Goods and they make affirmationjournals and planners and
stationary and sticky notes.
She does the exact same thingas me.
I'm making the journal and Iwant to launch a planner and
(28:48):
sticky notes and all of thatstuff.
Granted, hers is affirmationfocused, mine is female founder
focused.
She's my mentor now.
Like she is a person who wascoaching me through this
business, giving me the names ofother manufacturers, looking
through my numbers, being likewe would tweak that.
So, anyways, where did the ideafor a Kickstarter campaign come
from?
From her?
We had a call in September,october, and she was like you
(29:09):
should consider doing aKickstarter and I was like ask
people for money to fund this.
Are you kidding me?
Like?
That sounds kind of tacky, justquite frankly.
And then I thought about it alittle more and more and I'm
like, well, why would I blowthrough a ton of money to order
a bunch of inventory that I'mnot sure that anybody wants?
And people have the option tovote with their dollars and say
(29:30):
yes, I'm into this or no, I'mnot, and then I can use that
money to fund the project.
So I definitely was a hard noat first.
I think I'm like that with alot of things, like I just need
a little time to marinate onsomething.
So the more and more I thoughtabout it, I was like this is a
good idea.
Sheila (29:46):
It really was.
And I remember when I saw howyou were launching it because of
course, I had heard you're like, oh, something's coming.
And then the way you werelaunching I'm like, oh
interesting.
I've not personally witnessed aKickstarter campaign before.
I've heard of them.
I've heard all the differentthings GoFundMe, crowdsourcing,
all those kinds of things and Ihave to say I never really
(30:06):
considered it for myself becauseI don't have a CPG product, so
it's not yet.
You're inspiring me, girl.
However, I never would havethought either was good or bad.
But I know some people have kindof ideas about things, Because
the one thing I've noticed inthe membership communities I've
been in and led and with mygroup, coaching programs,
(30:28):
crowdsourcing, ideas,crowdsourcing, network,
crowdsourcing everything is theway.
I mean, when I was expecting mykiddos and when I was wanting
to have a home birth and when Iwas wanting to do all these
things, what did I do?
I asked around for people whohad been where I wanted to be
and I got great ideas.
I didn't just try to likecompletely go it alone, and
(30:50):
that's been the case in mostareas of my life other than the
ones that I've tried to likelone wolf it along the way, and
then you know silently failingin the background, right, it's
like no one knows, but I didn'tget any traction either and I'm
like, oh so, so brilliant.
And then, of course, seeing howbeautifully put together your
crowdsourcing experience hasbeen shows me it actually like I
(31:15):
feel like it adds a layer ofprofessionalism to a startup
that some startups I've evenworked for did not have, like
everyone.
You're going to see the link inthe show notes, so I'm going to
tell you right now you can gocheck it out.
It's beautiful just to gothrough the process of being
able to decide which area offunding you want to start at.
(31:38):
Like one journal, five journals, 10, like what do you want,
what do you want to do, and so Iinvite you to go check that out
in the show notes.
You will see them there andthis has been so.
I've loved this.
I feel like we're going to haveanother conversation.
We need to have a post-launchconversation, like at some point
down the line, like I thinkthis is just going to happen,
and before we wrap up on thisnote, please let everyone know
(32:00):
where the best place for peopleto support you right now is.
Lisa (32:04):
So the Kickstarter campaign has a week to go.
It ends on March the 28th.
So for the time being, you know, if it happens just to come up
before then, head over towwwpearlsparkpagescom that's our
company URL that SEOstrategists are very mad at me
for just porting around towhatever I happen to be doing at
the time.
So once Kickstarter campaignwraps I'll start a Shopify store
(32:26):
.
I will stop moving it, butPearlSparkPagescom will likely
be pointing to the place you canbuy the journal.
And for anybody who's curiousat getting a sneak peek at it,
we do have a seven day freesample of the journal.
That's always going to beavailable at
wwwfemalefoundersjournalcom.
Sheila (32:45):
I love that.
So everybody go check it out.
It'll be in the show notes and,before we wrap up, I would love
to know and, of course, ourlisteners, who are here because
they're wanting to create a lifeof success and meaning and like
a big, beautiful life wherethey're chasing after their
dreams and they want to feelgood in the process.
They don't want to burn out,right.
(33:06):
So I would love to know whatself-care is lighting you up
right now, what's helping youfeel grounded during this very
pivotal season in your life?
Lisa (33:16):
So the interesting part about your question is what's
lighting you up right now?
And I'm such a consistentperson Like this has been my
routine for at least I've livedwith my husband for three years,
so three years.
My morning routine is soimportant to me.
I've noticed when I've gone toa few breakfasts and events
downtown in the last few daysand you know, I just have to
wake up and hop on the go trainto go downtown Like even if I
(33:38):
get home at 10, 30 AM, I'm justoff kilter for the day.
So waking up, going downstairsto do a workout with my husband
um, having like a freshbreakfast and a green juice like
those are just mandatory likemaking the bed in the morning,
vacuuming the floor I know it'sa little extreme for some people
, but I feel super grounded whenI've gotten my workout in a
(33:58):
good, healthy breakfast not likea coffee and coffee and a or
something and I've cleaned up mysurroundings and I'm like, okay
, now we can begin.
Sheila (34:07):
I love that, and you know I love a good clean
workspace.
I love a good clean house, andso, fortunately, I have other
people here.
My sons like to clean up afterthemselves, so it's like, great
I can.
If I don't have time, I I'moften delegating to them.
Um, and it's wonderful to havea partner like that as well, who
loves things clean and yourmind, like it, carries so much
(34:28):
right.
It carries so much through theday, and if you can release
whatever it is that wouldnormally take up too much real
estate in your brain, you canactually soar through the day
and get the things done that aremost important.
And what I love is you hadmentioned before we started
recording like that's yourmorning.
You're not taking meetingsbefore noon and then you have a
hard stop at a certain time, andso it's not like you're
grinding it out for 12 hours aday and it's probably far more
(34:52):
effective because you're likesuper grounded in who you are
while you're doing high-levelactivities.
Am I right?
Lisa (35:04):
Yes, and here's the funny thing that I forgot to mention,
in terms of self-care, that ifmy husband heard me right now,
he'd be like you forgot tomention one thing, okay, yes, I
also forgot to mention thatevery day, I probably take a nap
for at least an hour, like inthe middle of the day.
I just clock out, I'm going tohave me a nice night.
I get a full night's sleepevery night, but I just, if I
have the time, I'm going to takea nap and when I get up, I'm
going to keep grinding a littlebit more.
But yeah, no apologies for that.
Sheila (35:25):
Never, never apologize because, honestly, like, rest is
a revolution, and I'm so herefor it.
Lisa, it has been so inspiringto witness this journey of yours
, to meet you around the timethis idea was forming and now to
see you bringing it into theworld with so much clarity and
heart, and I love howtransparent you've been about
(35:46):
the highs and the challenges,because launching something new,
especially where you don't knowthe final outcome, it takes so
much courage, and I want you toknow that this is inspiring me
to really push my growth edges,and I know so many of our
listeners feel the same.
So thank you so much for beinghere.
I can't wait to get my hand onmy, on my, the journal that is
(36:08):
waiting with my name on it.
Lisa (36:11):
It's been a joy to share.
Thank you so much for invitingme to come and share this with
your audience, so everyone who'sbeen listening.
Sheila (36:16):
please go, follow along, support this incredible project
and get your own journal at thelink in the show notes.
And now, lisa, and I would loveto hear from you what part of
this conversation resonated themost.
Tag us on social media, send usa message, let us know and
thank you for listening.
Have a beautiful rest of yourday.
(36:37):
Big blessings, thank you.
It's just like being in the middle of a movie.
You know you can't just skipand fast forward to the end.
I want to.
I would love to just hit ahundred, Like I read the book on
how to crowdfund, or like tryand get your 100% on day one,
like didn't happen.
So I would love to fast forwardto the end, but, like you know,
thinking about six months fromnow, a year from now, like
there's a story that I'm goingto want to tell.
Sheila (00:27):
But the story was I got everything I wanted on day one.
Like it's kind of a boringstory.
Hi, welcome to the connect withSheila Botello podcast.
I'm thrilled to have you today.
I have a special guest on andwe're talking about reinvention.
Her name is Lisa SimoneRichards, the co-founder and CEO
of Pearl Spark Pages, a luxurystationery brand designed to
help female founders push pastimposter syndrome, increase
(00:51):
self-confidence and buildthriving businesses through
mindful self-reflection.
After two decades as apublicist helping women-led
startups gain visibility, lisafound herself grappling with the
very challenge she had coachedso many founders through
imposter syndrome.
Even with years of experience,she recognized how deeply our
(01:12):
inner dialogue shapes ourreality, influencing how we show
up in business and in life.
Determined to shift thatnarrative, she developed a
journaling framework to helpwomen entrepreneurs cultivate
confidence, self-trust andauthenticity.
This became the foundation ofPearl Spark Pages.
Through beautifully designedpaper products, lisa's mission
(01:35):
is to empower female founders toembrace their true potential,
one page at a time.
Lisa, welcome to the show.
Lisa (01:46):
Thank you so much for having me.
Oh, my gosh, that soundedreally cool on paper.
I love it.
Sheila (01:50):
Well, what's really cool is, as I was listening to
myself say the introduction, Iwas recalling my experience as
one of your beta testers goingthrough what you've created and
we can allude to this a littlelater on in our conversation.
But what you're doing is reallytransformative and I'm thrilled
to have you share your story.
(02:13):
And just side note everyone wemet at a High Vibe Women event
last fall and I was immediatelydrawn to your energy, lisa, your
depth of experience andpublicity and like the
heart-centered way that youapproach your work, but how you
approach people.
I got to see you interactingwith many different people and
(02:33):
you drop right in and I lovethat.
And then I learned the secondday of this event I learned that
you were pivoting.
I think I may have learned itright before you went on stage
to give a talk, so that wasreally cool.
So I would love for you toshare a bit about where you were
before this pivot came, becauseyou've had quite a background
(02:55):
in the publicity space, helpingothers get seen, and now here
you are amplifying your ownvoice and seeking out people to
help you amplify your voice,which is really beautiful, tell
us the story and it's such anhonor to be on your show and
sharing this transformation atthis specific time, because this
is my second time doing apodcast interview, not talking
about PR, so I'm kind of like afish out of the water playing
(03:17):
with my new conversation.
Lisa (03:18):
But both you and the other show that I won were people who
attended the same event andit's so funny that you're
somebody who met me like the dayof transformation.
It's like how I met my husbandliterally the day before I went
for a leadership training.
So I was like you've literallynever even knew who I was before
.
Like it's so crazy.
So it's so funny to have thisconversation at this specific
time because absolutely thatweekend was very
(03:40):
transformational for me.
So a little bit of background.
I have been a publicist for 20years.
When I was 18 and I was infirst year university at Western
, I had just joined a sororitysomebody in fourth year.
She was about to graduate.
She and I went for lunch youknow first year, we're looking
up to fourth year and she sharedwith me that she was going to
Humber College for PR.
(04:01):
Back in 2002, sex and the Citywas in its heyday, samantha
Jones did PR and she was alwaysat these cool parties and had
access to these exclusive thingsand I was like that is it, I'm
going to do that.
So, from 18 years old, myidentity was PR.
I volunteered in variousorganizations.
I took on a VP role indifferent groups and then I
interned, worked in an agency,eventually had my own agency.
(04:25):
So that was such a key corepart of my identity.
2021, I remember you know I wasdoing online coaching.
I was having such a great timeteaching clients how to do the
things that I had learned overthe last 20 years.
I remember one of my likesuperstar clients.
She had never been featured inthe media before.
Remember one of my likesuperstar clients.
She had never been featured inthe media before and by the end
(04:46):
of like one, two I can'tremember if it was two or three
years with me, she had gottenfeatured in over 60 segments on
one specific news station andthey told her you know, we've
just had your face on for likethis much amount of time.
We need to bring in a newexpert.
So she moved on to otherplatforms, but she did that all
by herself, without me everpitching for her.
So it was really, reallypowerful and very, very
(05:06):
rewarding.
However, I can also acknowledgethe 2021 moving onward.
I wasn't having as much funanymore.
I wasn't getting the resultsthat I was typically used to
getting for my clients and thatdidn't feel good for me.
That didn't feel great for myclients.
I noticed the industry wasshifting, you know.
Obviously influencer marketingwas on the rise.
(05:28):
Traditional media, like I mean,I don't own.
I have a cable subscription.
I don't buy magazines at thegrocery store anymore, like it's
just a reality of transition intime, and some publicists have
absolutely ridden that wave andI just wasn't having that same
experience.
So I had been spending the lastthree years pivoting, like
maybe I want to do an agency,maybe I want to shift markets
(05:48):
and move from fitness tolifestyle.
Okay, maybe I want to work indoctors.
So I was trying on a fewdifferent hats to really find
where I would fit into the worldof PR, you know, post 2020.
And so when we met at thatconference, I had, I was okay.
So this conference happened inOctober.
Back in September, my husbandand I were at our local Indigo
(06:10):
chapters so for the Americanslistening, that's our Barnes and
Noble and we were looking inthe journal section.
I have been a journal planninggirly since I was like a kid.
I can go into my mom's basement, find my high school agendas,
my pin coach agenda from my 20s.
I remember my first diary fromwhen I was about seven years old
.
It was purple, it had a lockand two gray kittens on it
(06:30):
because I always knew I wantedcats.
I have two cats now.
They are orange.
Back to the main topic.
We were looking at journals inIndigo and I was looking for
something aroundentrepreneurship.
Maybe some of you may gatherfrom listening so far I'm super
type A, I'm driven, I'm fastpaced.
So when I was looking atjournals, I found a lot of stuff
(06:51):
that was like what's yourvision, what's your mission,
what are the strategies, whatare the analytics, and I totally
vibe with that stuff.
But it was a little moreaggressive than I wanted to go.
On the other hand of thespectrum, I saw a lot of like
how would you like to feel leaninto your feminine, and that's
all good too I love me a goodcrystal but like I needed
something a little more tangiblethan that.
So I was starting to think okay, I think there's an opportunity
(07:12):
here, based on what I've seenfrom working with women
entrepreneurs and what I'mpersonally looking for.
My husband was looking for ajournal.
I got.
Every time I say I have to getthis part of the story right.
It was either for recipes, itwas for travel or something for
the books he was reading.
But he was looking for a guidedjournal too, and we were both
like you know, maybe there's anopportunity here, cause, like,
journals used to be like a smallsection in the store.
(07:34):
Now they're an entire wall withits own title card.
So that was where the ideastarted brewing Facebook,
Facebook and I started gettingads for like do this free,
create your journal plannerchallenge, and I was like okay,
let's do that.
The person who ran thatchallenge happened to post the
name of her manufacturer.
It only flashed for a second.
(07:54):
I'm sure she didn't need to dothat, but I ran onto LinkedIn,
found this person.
Before you knew it, I had mymanufacturer, I started creating
the content, finding the rightinfluencers that I could learn
from.
So this was kind of starting toplay in my mind.
In September, october, october.
We're at the event.
I'm on stage and I'm about togo up and do a talk about how to
get visibility for yourbusiness Similar talk I've been
(08:17):
doing for the last like seven,10 years of entrepreneurship.
However, in that specificmoment, I was just feeling like,
honestly, absolute trashbecause I hadn't been collecting
results for clients who mightbe getting on stage here now to
talk to these 150 founders abouthow to get visibility.
I just felt like such anabsolute fraud in that moment,
(08:37):
knowing what was going on in theback end and I believe I had 10
minutes on stage to speak andI'm pretty confident I didn't
even last five minutes Justbecause I had so much of like,
so much cringe going on in theback of my head.
Like who am I to be talkingabout this?
Like I used to be really greatat it but it doesn't seem like I
am anymore.
Like, and I just had all thestories Like I'm sure you know
(08:59):
what I'm talking aboutEverybody's had them run through
their heads at one point.
So what was cool is it was areally great audience that I had
the opportunity to startconnecting with some of them the
night before and I could feelthe vibe of this crowd and I
allowed myself to ditchperfectionism.
I didn't do the hand talk thatI was planning on doing.
I got on stage.
I shared something a littlemore authentic and transparent,
and then I didn't.
(09:20):
And then I and then the funniestpart that I like really ground
into is, you know, as I was onstage, people were capturing
photos and videos and they sentme DMs so I could share it on
stories, which I did and one ofmy girlfriends from undergrad
commented oh my God, you're socool.
And I was like no, I'm not, I'msuch a fraud.
And I responded to her.
In that moment I didn't evenneed to think about it,
subconscious came right throughthe keyboard.
(09:42):
About it Subconscious cameright through the keyboard.
And that was kind of the momentthat I was like, okay, like I
mean can't keep pushing thisboulder up a hill for another
three years.
I think we need to listen to it, like.
And somebody else said to meyou know what, if it doesn't
work, you can always come back.
And that was as much permissionas I needed to play.
So that that was where thingsgot started from.
Sheila (10:00):
Oh, my goodness and see, I knew nothing about this.
Obviously, while you were onstage, I didn't know enough
about your story at that point,and you, I will say you shone on
stage, so you may have beenfeeling that inside of yourself,
but it wasn't being reflected.
And what this tells me is let'slook around us and see all of
(10:20):
the people doing their thing,doing their work, growing their
businesses, and how many of themmay be feeling that same way,
but we would never know unlessthey actually shared it.
And so I really applaud yourvulnerability in sharing that
story and also how that story islike a catalyst for this new
(10:43):
business that you've created,and how now more of us can maybe
be more authentic about wherewe're at and also understand,
like that is just part of thedeal, that imposter syndrome is
going to come up.
It's like really, at the end ofthe day, it's we've always said
it's like fear, with like amint coat and pearls on right,
like a fear of facing somethingnew, perhaps something that we
(11:07):
really want to be doing in ourlives.
And so, yeah, I just love thatstory and I would love to know
what happened next, like whenyou went home and you had that
conversation with your husband.
What was that?
Lisa (11:23):
like no-transcript.
(11:55):
Five years old and my parentswere shopping for bathroom tiles
or something equally boring toa five-year-old, and I was just
like wandering around doing mything and he gave me a little
like you know, you be inattendance, be proper, like, be
present, be a part of what'sgoing on, engage, so like.
That was a moment when Ilearned like to bring it
together and I've gotten thatcompliment throughout my entire
(12:17):
life.
You can be intimidating, youlook so confident, you have it
together and like Sheila, youwill never see me in an
intersection looking lost.
I will confidently walk in thewrong direction before I stand
there being like I'm not surewhere to go.
Like I just don't do that.
And in 2019, I was sitting witha business and leadership coach
over dinner or not dinner.
We were sitting at a fireplaceoutdoors having a glass of wine
(12:37):
and she looked at me and I waslike kind of waiting for a
compliment.
The way she looked at me, I'mlike go on, tell me what a great
job I did today.
And she was like she was likeyou know what, lisa, if you stop
trying to look so perfect allthe time, you would make so much
more money and like I've neverforgotten that and it's been an
interesting experiment in thelast few years to like slowly
(12:58):
drop the veil a little bit more,let people in, create a little
more connection and actuallytruly connect with people, and
there's just such a differencebetween that like projected
confidence and the real storygoing on inside your head and
the thing what you're reallyfeeling.
And part of me creating thisjournal has been to create that
authentic inner confidence, notthe stuff like you put on on the
(13:19):
outside so that everyone elsebelieves it.
Sheila (13:22):
Oh, my goodness.
And you know, paired with that,okay.
So now actually the question isI'm remembering now, cause my
short term memory can beinteresting.
Also is what was your husband'sresponse?
Like, well, first of all, whenyou came home from that event,
like, did you?
Were you kind of thinking about, okay, how, how am I going to
share this with my husband?
(13:42):
Um, or is he maybe already kindof seeing?
He's seen the journey you'vebeen on already, so you probably
know something's coming.
What was your thought process?
And then what was his responseto whatever you had to say when
you got home?
Lisa (13:55):
You know what the interesting thing is.
So my husband is my co-founderin Pearl Spark Pages and it
wasn't even his reaction thatwas any sort of worry.
It was my mom.
So here I am, at my age as agrown adult, being like I'm
scared to tell my mom.
So, in terms of telling myhusband, like we had this idea
brewing, so it was already there, he's behind the scenes with me
, he knows what the last threeyears have looked like and so he
(14:17):
wasn't surprised by it.
And the thing that I appreciatethe most is, as I was playing
with this idea, he was like no,I see an opportunity in it, I'll
be your first investor.
And I was like, oh, okay,you're going to eat those words,
babe.
And he had been the firstinvestor in the business and I'm
so, so grateful for hisconfidence in it.
So he was pretty much on boardfrom the get-go.
(14:40):
There was no convincing orenrolling to be done at all,
like we'd already startedplaying with the idea.
It was more my mom I wasconcerned about telling, because
she's 100% my best friend.
She's always been my biggestcheerleader Totally.
She's 100% my best friend.
She's always been my biggestcheerleader Totally.
Acknowledge she's put methrough school and I'm so
grateful for that All thoseunpaid internships I did for the
first year or so when I wasliving at home and I think
there's something maybe aboutlike millennials and Gen Z and
(15:03):
everyone else after that.
That's a little more fluid, butmy parents are from the boomer
generation where, like, you geta job and you stay in your job
and you work with the samecompany, like my dad was with
the same company from start tofinish.
My mom's always been with thegovernment, maybe different
branches.
So, like already, thisentrepreneurship thing is a
little bit kind of weird.
Nevermind, hey, guess what?
I'm switching industriesaltogether.
(15:25):
So coming home from that event,coming off of that stage feeling
like not the best, shall we say, I remember going to my mom's
house and I brought the programfor that event that showed me as
a gold sponsor and like all theathletes that had me feeling
like a complete fraud, and Ialso brought a copy of the five
minute journal with her becauseI knew I needed to bring a
little bit of proof that thisisn't like boo-boo stuff.
(15:46):
Take a look at the price ofthis thing, mom.
So I remember going to herhouse and sitting on the couch
and I was like this is the eventthat I was just at.
Take a look at the brochure.
And she's like look at you,you're a gold sponsor, you're on
stage.
That's fantastic.
And I was like, yeah, theyasked they brought me in to do
PR and I didn't get them asingle hit of coverage.
Like I did my best, I came upwith all these different angles.
(16:07):
They were on board with it.
I pitched my little heart outand do you know what it was like
for me to stand on stage when Ihad created absolutely nothing
for the event hosts?
And she was like, okay, yeah.
And I was like I, I, this can'tkeep going on.
This has to be a shift.
This has been the last threeyears of my life.
So I showed her the five minutejournal, I told her a little
bit about the history, I toldher a little bit about how much
the company makes, and she wastotally on board from the jump.
(16:32):
That was the one I was afraid of.
She was like you know what,lisa, whatever you put your mind
to, I know you'll be successfulwith and if this isn't it,
you'll try something else.
And I was like that was notwhat I was expecting.
I was waiting for the.
Are you sure about this?
Like maybe you should go backto school, maybe you should just
get a job again.
Like that was not the responseI expected.
So when I got that, it wasalmost like a permission.
(16:53):
Like it was like, oh, my mom'snot going to be disappointed in
me.
So it was almost like, okay,now I can full fledged go ahead
with it.
I'm a grown up.
Sheila (17:02):
Yeah, exactly.
Well, and it's interestingbecause I think a lot of us do.
We all carry things from ourchildhood patterning that,
frankly, I don't think ourparents intentionally may have,
you know, intended upon for us.
They, they have certainthoughts and feelings and they
certain ways to expressthemselves that sometimes come
across one way to us.
(17:24):
Meanwhile it was meant adifferent way perhaps, but you
actually alluded.
Meanwhile it was meant adifferent way perhaps, but you
actually alluded, I don't knowhow long ago in recent months on
Instagram, about an experiencewhen you realized why
perfectionism was something thatwas so close to your heart and
had to do with you telling yourmom about a test score.
And maybe you want to allude tothat because I think this could
(17:45):
perhaps unlock something forour listeners, because we all
have a story from our past.
Usually we're quite young andit could still be controlling us
to this day and we don't evenrealize it.
Lisa (17:57):
So I can't wait to listen to this podcast again six months
from now, because I'm relivingthat moment exactly in this
moment, right now.
So the story is I'm somebody,I'm a high achiever, I'm always
(18:25):
looking to.
You know, I don't know, I don.
It was out of 147 marks.
I studied my little heart outand when she passed it back, I
got 143 out of 147.
And I was so proud of myselfand I remember going home and
handing the test to my mom andbeing like guess what I got?
And she was like 147.
No 146.
No 145.
(18:45):
I'm getting more deflated.
We only have a few more numbersto go, but I'm already like the
message is you didn't doperfect, not good enough.
So since then, I have alwaysit's not good enough that I got
143 out of 147.
It's what are the four thingsthat I got wrong?
Because that was the firstquestion she asked me.
So fast forward now, likehowever many 30 years later it
is, I'm in the midst of doing acrowdfunding campaign and, of
(19:09):
course, in the book that I'mreading about crowdfunding,
they're like try and hit 100%funding on day one.
I'm not so lofty as to thinkit's necessarily going to be day
one, but I was hoping to hit itfaster.
So on day one she's like, how'dyou do?
I'm like we hit 34% in day oneshe's like, oh, and I could feel
the not at a hundred yet.
But like she knows she, I'vetold her this story about grade
(19:31):
school and she's like I'm reallysorry, I didn't mean to put
that on you so I can.
I know she's working on notrepeating it, but I can still.
I can still even feel so todaywe have one week to go in the
campaign and we're 78% fundedand she checks in every day.
She wants to know how it'sgoing.
She's my biggest cheerleader,such a supporter.
But I do feel thedisappointment at being like we
haven't hit a hundred yet.
We haven't hit a hundred yet.
So, hey, same seven-year-oldstory still running a 41 years
(19:55):
old.
I'm working on like doing thework around it, but I have the
awareness at least.
Sheila (19:59):
Well, I love that you have the awareness and that you
also shared that story with her.
So she has the awareness now andshe's working on it now and
it's like isn't it interestinghow much of a healing catalyst
entrepreneurship can be, rightLike we can go to therapy for
years and years, or we can starta business and all of our stuff
(20:20):
will get brought up and we'llbe forced to face it, because
burying it will just bring usdown and we'll never achieve our
goals.
This is what I've found in myown personal journey and so many
founders that I speak to, andone of the things you allude to
in this particular story is thatit really speaks to how so many
founders get stuck inperfectionism before they launch
something new.
(20:40):
And here you like, literally,you thought about it in
September, you already hadthings going, and then you were
on a stage the very next monthand then, moving through, here
you are like, not even sixmonths later you were getting
your beta testers.
So it's like really beautiful.
How did you navigate thetension between wanting this
journal to be perfect andknowing that at some point you
(21:03):
just had to get it out in theworld because timing you didn't
want it to be another threeyears.
Lisa (21:09):
I don't think I really felt that.
To be honest with you, like I'mso grateful that my husband
comes from a background as ajournalist, so he's the
professional editor in all ofthis.
I have friends in the spacethat I asked them to take a look
through it at first.
I have a designer I've beenworking with since 2017.
So you know, we did ourprototype and we had the first
copy come in and another one ofhis buddies third party removed.
(21:30):
I think we maybe found likeseven to 10 mistakes in a 200
page book Like that's not badfor, and now that we're going
into mass production, we fixedthem.
So there really hasn't been aton of like hesitation or
mistakes or perfectionism, likeperfectionism kind of one, but
in a really fast timeline.
So I'm good with that.
Sheila (21:50):
Oh, I love that and you know, on that note, like, just
as you've been sharing, as I'vebeen following the journey and
you're emailing and you're onstories and you're you're doing
your thing, you've beenincredibly transparent about
this process, sharing the wins,sharing the hurdles, sharing the
behind the scenes moments,which are super fun and I feel
like they're really endearing.
How has that openness impactedyour launch?
(22:13):
Like, has anything surprisedyou about how people have
responded?
Lisa (22:45):
no-transcript multiple journals.
Somebody on a call the otherday with 60 attendees or so,
piped up on my behalf and waslike hey guys, lisa's stuck at
70% and she has like 10 days togo.
Everyone here's the link go buyone.
(23:06):
And if you're not going to buyone, drop your coffee today and
do a pledge on her.
And I literally saw a bunch ofbackers come in like after that
call was over.
So it has been so cool to seelike, especially people who are
like reposting what I'm postingon LinkedIn and Instagram like
that.
It's not the intention withwhat I'm posting it, but to see
how many people really want tosee this succeed is incredibly
(23:27):
overwhelming, especially assomebody who's a complete lone
wolf.
Sheila (23:32):
Well I was just going to speak to I'm glad you spoke to
this isolation piece.
That can really be a big partof entrepreneurship because when
we look at historically and ofcourse, I think millennials and
Gen Z are like really bustingthrough the, the former way of
doing things in terms of, youknow, collaboration over
competition and celebrating eachother's wins.
(23:52):
And I'm a I'm a Gen Xer and youknow my husband's like just
like one year, like into Gen X,out of boomer land, and so I
come from an era wheredefinitely competition and
getting a leg up on yourcompetition was so important and
so focused on it.
So you want to keep yourstories and just keep things
(24:13):
close to you.
You don't want to show yourhand, and so I'm glad that you
expressed that because it can beso isolating.
Really, turning to communitycan be well, really it is
life-giving and I love that.
You're seeing that yourself andyou have examples of that.
And so many of our listeners arescaling businesses.
They're at various stages.
(24:33):
Some are like mid six figures,some seven, some beyond, and so
I would love to know, from thejournaling perspective, what
advice would you give a founderwho's deep in the weeds of
growth and may not feel likethey have time to add reflection
and journaling to their routine.
They feel like, hey man, I'malready habit stacking Like what
.
How do I do this?
Lisa (24:55):
Yeah.
So part of that's me too.
Like I mean, I wake up and Iwant to work out.
I want a fresh breakfast, Iwant a green juice.
I got to clean my house AfterI've taken a shower and done my
hair and makeup.
Do you know what time it is Ihave to get to work.
I don't have time for one morething.
So what's really helped for meis bookending my day.
So this journal, the FemaleFounders Journal, is designed as
a guided journal with a morningprompt and an evening prompt.
(25:17):
So the way I set it up, I leaveit on my laptop.
So before I can open the laptoplid, I have to open my journal
and I just take two seconds towork on a prompt.
That's really a morning prompt.
That's going to help affirm whoI am, something that might
allow me to recognize my pastsuccesses, something that might
allow me to hone in on my NorthStar and my vision.
So I don't just rush into theday responding to emails, but it
(25:38):
really allows me to groundmyself.
Remember okay, you can do hardthings.
Remember that thing youovercame once.
Like it just allows me to startmy day with my back a little
straighter and my shoulders alittle taller, whatever the
saying is, and then I end my daywith a journal.
So you know, as I'm shutting mylaptop lid down and getting
ready to head downstairs andfigure out what the dinner
(25:58):
situation is like, there's somany things I rush through every
day that I'm not taking asecond to be like.
You did a good job there.
Um, I was even thinking aboutlike let's, I'm totally surfing
on confidence and not cockiness,and I'm projecting this
Kickstarter campaign is going togo fantastically, but we're I
don't know that yet I still gotseven days to go.
God forbid that this doesn'tisn't successful because, for
(26:20):
those who don't know, it's a100% all or nothing platform.
If I hit 99% funding, it is notcategorized as a win.
I don't get to unlock the funds.
So, as we're riding into that,I'm like God forbid, this is a
fail.
Like was this project a fail?
And I'm like well, it's not,because you learned a ton of
things that you didn't knowbefore.
You can do it again.
Like there's so much richnessthat came from the experience.
(26:40):
Don't get me wrong.
I want this to be a home run.
I don't want any other ending,and I also recognize that there
were a lot of other good thingsthat I have learned that
wouldn't have otherwise happenedthrough this process.
Sheila (26:51):
Absolutely, it's all a learning and I have complete
confidence that you are going toreach your goal.
And I believe this because,well, to be this far along in
such a short time is prettyincredible, and what I have
found with like, doing eventsand launches and things, a lot
of momentum happens like rightbefore the deadline, right
(27:12):
before the end, and so I mean,ask anyone who's done any promo
or events at like LA, right,they're like, oh my goodness,
it's like hours before.
Will anyone come?
And so, knowing that you havethis momentum going, you have
the support, regardless of whereyou're at.
I know this journal is going outinto the world, like it's
happening.
I can't wait to get my copiesbecause, like I have people
(27:33):
waiting, I'm like, okay, I havesomething for you.
I'm not telling you what it is.
It's a surprise, because I knowthat they would not maybe
potentially have that vision forthemselves, and I want to be
able to give them something thatthen they can go on and share
with their communities as well.
And one question I had,actually, is about the
Kickstarter campaign itself.
Crowdfunding is not for thefaint of heart, so what made you
(27:57):
choose this path instead of atraditional launch like getting
just VC funding, angel investing, et cetera, and what have you
learned about yourself in theprocess?
Lisa (28:07):
Great question.
I very likely will neverexplore outside funding because
only child syndrome I don't wantto share.
I don't want someone telling mewhat to do with my company
Absolutely not.
So that's so not it for me.
We can grow and do community insome ways, but in other ways, I
am who I am.
One of the things you talkedabout earlier was collaboration
(28:27):
over competition.
So I am so lucky that back inSeptember or early October, I
hopped on a call with a womannamed Cheryl Sutherland.
She's the CEO and founder of acompany called Please Notes
Goods and they make affirmationjournals and planners and
stationary and sticky notes.
She does the exact same thingas me.
I'm making the journal and Iwant to launch a planner and
(28:48):
sticky notes and all of thatstuff.
Granted, hers is affirmationfocused, mine is female founder
focused.
She's my mentor now.
Like she is a person who wascoaching me through this
business, giving me the names ofother manufacturers, looking
through my numbers, being likewe would tweak that.
So, anyways, where did the ideafor a Kickstarter campaign come
from?
From her?
We had a call in September,october, and she was like you
(29:09):
should consider doing aKickstarter and I was like ask
people for money to fund this.
Are you kidding me?
Like?
That sounds kind of tacky, justquite frankly.
And then I thought about it alittle more and more and I'm
like, well, why would I blowthrough a ton of money to order
a bunch of inventory that I'mnot sure that anybody wants?
And people have the option tovote with their dollars and say
(29:30):
yes, I'm into this or no, I'mnot, and then I can use that
money to fund the project.
So I definitely was a hard noat first.
I think I'm like that with alot of things, like I just need
a little time to marinate onsomething.
So the more and more I thoughtabout it, I was like this is a
good idea.
Sheila (29:46):
It really was.
And I remember when I saw howyou were launching it because of
course, I had heard you're like, oh, something's coming.
And then the way you werelaunching I'm like, oh
interesting.
I've not personally witnessed aKickstarter campaign before.
I've heard of them.
I've heard all the differentthings GoFundMe, crowdsourcing,
all those kinds of things and Ihave to say I never really
(30:06):
considered it for myself becauseI don't have a CPG product, so
it's not yet.
You're inspiring me, girl.
However, I never would havethought either was good or bad.
But I know some people have kindof ideas about things, Because
the one thing I've noticed inthe membership communities I've
been in and led and with mygroup, coaching programs,
(30:28):
crowdsourcing, ideas,crowdsourcing, network,
crowdsourcing everything is theway.
I mean, when I was expecting mykiddos and when I was wanting
to have a home birth and when Iwas wanting to do all these
things, what did I do?
I asked around for people whohad been where I wanted to be
and I got great ideas.
I didn't just try to likecompletely go it alone, and
(30:50):
that's been the case in mostareas of my life other than the
ones that I've tried to likelone wolf it along the way, and
then you know silently failingin the background, right, it's
like no one knows, but I didn'tget any traction either and I'm
like, oh so, so brilliant.
And then, of course, seeing howbeautifully put together your
crowdsourcing experience hasbeen shows me it actually like I
(31:15):
feel like it adds a layer ofprofessionalism to a startup
that some startups I've evenworked for did not have, like
everyone.
You're going to see the link inthe show notes, so I'm going to
tell you right now you can gocheck it out.
It's beautiful just to gothrough the process of being
able to decide which area offunding you want to start at.
(31:38):
Like one journal, five journals, 10, like what do you want,
what do you want to do, and so Iinvite you to go check that out
in the show notes.
You will see them there andthis has been so.
I've loved this.
I feel like we're going to haveanother conversation.
We need to have a post-launchconversation, like at some point
down the line, like I thinkthis is just going to happen,
and before we wrap up on thisnote, please let everyone know
(32:00):
where the best place for peopleto support you right now is.
Lisa (32:04):
So the Kickstarter campaign has a week to go.
It ends on March the 28th.
So for the time being, you know, if it happens just to come up
before then, head over towwwpearlsparkpagescom that's our
company URL that SEOstrategists are very mad at me
for just porting around towhatever I happen to be doing at
the time.
So once Kickstarter campaignwraps I'll start a Shopify store
(32:26):
.
I will stop moving it, butPearlSparkPagescom will likely
be pointing to the place you canbuy the journal.
And for anybody who's curiousat getting a sneak peek at it,
we do have a seven day freesample of the journal.
That's always going to beavailable at
wwwfemalefoundersjournalcom.
Sheila (32:45):
I love that.
So everybody go check it out.
It'll be in the show notes and,before we wrap up, I would love
to know and, of course, ourlisteners, who are here because
they're wanting to create a lifeof success and meaning and like
a big, beautiful life wherethey're chasing after their
dreams and they want to feelgood in the process.
They don't want to burn out,right.
(33:06):
So I would love to know whatself-care is lighting you up
right now, what's helping youfeel grounded during this very
pivotal season in your life?
Lisa (33:16):
So the interesting part about your question is what's
lighting you up right now?
And I'm such a consistentperson Like this has been my
routine for at least I've livedwith my husband for three years,
so three years.
My morning routine is soimportant to me.
I've noticed when I've gone toa few breakfasts and events
downtown in the last few daysand you know, I just have to
wake up and hop on the go trainto go downtown Like even if I
(33:38):
get home at 10, 30 AM, I'm justoff kilter for the day.
So waking up, going downstairsto do a workout with my husband
um, having like a freshbreakfast and a green juice like
those are just mandatory likemaking the bed in the morning,
vacuuming the floor I know it'sa little extreme for some people
, but I feel super grounded whenI've gotten my workout in a
(33:58):
good, healthy breakfast not likea coffee and coffee and a or
something and I've cleaned up mysurroundings and I'm like, okay
, now we can begin.
Sheila (34:07):
I love that, and you know I love a good clean
workspace.
I love a good clean house, andso, fortunately, I have other
people here.
My sons like to clean up afterthemselves, so it's like, great
I can.
If I don't have time, I I'moften delegating to them.
Um, and it's wonderful to havea partner like that as well, who
loves things clean and yourmind, like it, carries so much
(34:28):
right.
It carries so much through theday, and if you can release
whatever it is that wouldnormally take up too much real
estate in your brain, you canactually soar through the day
and get the things done that aremost important.
And what I love is you hadmentioned before we started
recording like that's yourmorning.
You're not taking meetingsbefore noon and then you have a
hard stop at a certain time, andso it's not like you're
grinding it out for 12 hours aday and it's probably far more
(34:52):
effective because you're likesuper grounded in who you are
while you're doing high-levelactivities.
Am I right?
Lisa (35:04):
Yes, and here's the funny thing that I forgot to mention,
in terms of self-care, that ifmy husband heard me right now,
he'd be like you forgot tomention one thing, okay, yes, I
also forgot to mention thatevery day, I probably take a nap
for at least an hour, like inthe middle of the day.
I just clock out, I'm going tohave me a nice night.
I get a full night's sleepevery night, but I just, if I
have the time, I'm going to takea nap and when I get up, I'm
going to keep grinding a littlebit more.
But yeah, no apologies for that.
Sheila (35:25):
Never, never apologize because, honestly, like, rest is
a revolution, and I'm so herefor it.
Lisa, it has been so inspiringto witness this journey of yours
, to meet you around the timethis idea was forming and now to
see you bringing it into theworld with so much clarity and
heart, and I love howtransparent you've been about
(35:46):
the highs and the challenges,because launching something new,
especially where you don't knowthe final outcome, it takes so
much courage, and I want you toknow that this is inspiring me
to really push my growth edges,and I know so many of our
listeners feel the same.
So thank you so much for beinghere.
I can't wait to get my hand onmy, on my, the journal that is
(36:08):
waiting with my name on it.
Lisa (36:11):
It's been a joy to share.
Thank you so much for invitingme to come and share this with
your audience, so everyone who'sbeen listening.
Sheila (36:16):
please go, follow along, support this incredible project
and get your own journal at thelink in the show notes.
And now, lisa, and I would loveto hear from you what part of
this conversation resonated themost.
Tag us on social media, send usa message, let us know and
thank you for listening.
Have a beautiful rest of yourday.
(36:37):
Big blessings, thank you.
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