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May 30, 2025 34 mins

Are you ready to break free from societal norms and embrace your entrepreneurial spirit? In Episode 71 of Plus Fitness with Tara, I sit down with my regular guest, Danielle Melanson, to explore the unique challenges women face in business while juggling multiple responsibilities. We dive into our personal journeys, sharing how societal expectations and family influences shaped our paths. I reveal my unconventional leap from environmental science to entrepreneurship, driven by a desire for flexibility and control, while Danielle recounts her transformation from healthcare pressures to a thriving salon owner and online sales guru.

We tackle the mindset shift from employee to entrepreneur, emphasizing perseverance, adaptability, and the importance of confidence in overcoming impostor syndrome. Danielle also shares her passion for mental wellness through Amare, highlighting the impact of building relationships in business. Whether you're contemplating a career change or seeking inspiration, this episode is a must-listen for anyone ready to pursue their passions and redefine success. Tune in and let’s get inspired together!

Connect with us:
- Tara's Instagram: @TaraCMacDonaldInc
- Danielle's Instagram: @DaniMCameron


For more info and helpful tips visit my website at taraCmacdonald.com

Connect with me and my growing community on Facebook and Instagram!

Yours in health, 
Tara

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Tara (00:01):
This is the EWN Podcast Network. Hi. I'm Tara from Plus
Fitness with Tara. I'm a curvy,fun, body positive coach and
personal trainer. I lovebusiness and fitness.
Do you have the tools you needto be a rock star in fitness? A
healthy love of yourself andhelp from me in sifting through
health news will do that. I'vegot fitness topics and guests.

(00:21):
Rock stars aren't born. They'rebred in experience and fire.
Let's do this together. Welcometo Plus Fitness with Tara, the
podcast. Today, I have myregular guest on, Danielle
Melonson, with her membershipsite in the know and freaking
amazing consultant for Amari.So, Danielle, thanks for coming
on today.

Danielle Melanson (00:40):
I love, love talking with you, Tara. So
thanks for having me. And thankyou guys for listening to me
again. I hope I hope this keepsyou guys coming back, this
little banter that Tara and Ihave.

Tara (00:52):
Yeah. I sure will. So today, the topic guys that we're
gonna talk about is, what itmeans to be a woman in business
while doing all the things. Allthe things. Right?
I mean, we've been all beingthere. We try to juggle
everything. We try to tell somewe're multitasking, and we're
told multitasking isn't the wordto use. And then we're told, you
know, to basically, you know,not do stuff we shouldn't be
doing, but who's gonna do thedishes if we don't. Do you know

(01:14):
what I mean?
Like, it's just like like, youstill at the end of the day, no
matter how many, you know,things you do in the world or
how much money you make, youstill gotta do the dishes. You
gotta clean the house. You gottado the whole thing, take care of
the kids, the whole and, youknow, and even just that, find
time for your friends if you'renot married and find time for,
like, other activities and walkthe dogs and do the whole like,
you just have so much up in theair. Do know what I mean? And

(01:34):
we're gonna talk about it, aboutour experiences doing all the
things and what works for us.

Danielle Melanson (01:40):
Awesome. Love this topic.

Tara (01:42):
And Danielle can be found on Instagram at Danielle, let's
just say it. You may spell itout for us.

Danielle Melanson (01:47):
M d a n I m Cameron, c a m e r o n, on
Instagram.

Tara (01:52):
Perfect. And I'm Teracy McDonald Inc. Okay. So let's
talk so, Danielle, I'm justgonna bring you back a bit.
We're not gonna age yourselvestotally in this in this section,
but but back when I was a goodgirl doing school, because that
was my job according to myparents, was to do school, was
to get your education for doingany kind of business.
You weren't even allowed at inmy level to to like, no matter

(02:15):
how many a's I got to even thinkof starting a business, just had
to do school and get a job, andthat was what you're supposed to
do.

Danielle Melanson (02:20):
Yeah. Like an employee mindset. Yeah. Employee
mindset. Absolutely.

Tara (02:24):
Yeah. Yeah. So, of course, what was crazy is my dad was an
entrepreneur of three companiesin oil, mining, and gas. And,
like, he never wanted me to dowhat he did, but he got me to
help him do what he did so thatI would earn my allowance. Do
know what I mean?
So, like, he taught me how to doit without teaching me. Do you
know what I mean? Like, he wasjust He raised you as

Danielle Melanson (02:44):
an entrepreneur and then told you
not to be one. Yeah.

Tara (02:48):
%. Hundred %. And and what and what it taught me was that
you could set your own hours,find the time freedom and the
money freedom that you want anddetermine things. But I did try
the employee thing for six yearsand it almost broke me. And
that's because I was such a goodworker bee from 8AM to 8PM
weekdays that I barely sawanybody in Toronto, barely did
anything, and ended up, you knowyou know, having a mental class.

(03:10):
But the thing is, like, I cameback home to do things
differently, and I did anundergraduate in business. And
my dad once again stepped up andand helped me out. He was
instrumental on the wholeprocess. And but he was also
confounded because he was like,okay. Tara did the job.
She got the education. She didthe job. He's like, it didn't
work. I wonder what we'll do.Well, maybe this business will
be different, she'll get anotherjob.

(03:31):
And so I followed that again fora while. But I knew when I was
on Alberta that it wasn't forme. When I was like before my
months before my dad died, whenI moved to Alberta in April 2006
and I came back in November 2006when my dad passed, I was about
to tell him that I was donetrying to be an employee worker,
and I was thinking of setting upa gas station, like, just

Danielle Melanson (03:49):
to Okay.

Tara (03:50):
Just to take my investments, my portfolio, and,
like, roll it in and start out.You know? Something, anything.
You know? I even floated theidea back in behind him when he
came by my birthday in Octoberthat year that, you know, he and
I could go into businesstogether because he was thinking
of retiring.
And I and he actually enjoyedthe idea, but he was like, I
don't know what we do. I go, wecould do anything. Do you know
what I mean? Like and he wasjust, like, blown away by that

(04:12):
perspective. You know?
But what what what was yourexperience, Danielle? What did
you

Danielle Melanson (04:17):
Well, very similar. Like, I grew up in a
household where my parents wereboth in health care. So and they
they fifty odd years, both ofthem, their health care career.
I have my older sister. Today'sher birthday, actually, and she
is in health care, and she isrun ragged.
She is literally the head of thenutrition at the kitchens for

(04:38):
five different hospitals in NovaScotia here, raising like with
three kids, and all theresponsibilities. And I have
another younger sister who wentinto the kind of medical field,
but with animals. And then mybrother and I were more
tradespeople. So we saw mybrother's, you know, by trade,

(05:03):
like an ironworker, a welder.Yeah.
But he's a foreman now in amine, out in BC. So I was I went
to university, same thing,because I was told to. That's
what good girls did. Went touniversity. My parents broke
their back to, like, kind of payfor us because there was all of
these there's multiple kids atthe same time in university, yet

(05:23):
they made like, we didn't getstudent loans.
Right? So there was so muchpressure to do well. There was
so much pressure to do all thethings, and I did great in
school, Tara. Like, was ininternational baccalaureate
program, like, IB calculus. Iwas smart, smart, smart, but
when I went to university, Ijust wasn't interested in
anything they were teaching.
I was like, been there, donethat. I would if they had the

(05:47):
community college then back in1998 that they have now, I would
have been there. In therestudying for a trade, a career,
like those are career degrees inthose community colleges, right?
And I went, I hopped around totwo different universities,
university in Cape Breton, andto Mount Saint Vincent. I did

(06:08):
and I started with science.
I then I did an arts degree.Like, some of sometimes I was
switching halfway through theyear, public relations, and I
actually my last year was abusiness degree, and I went
straight to hair school. I wentstraight to hair school, and my
mother was like, oh my gosh.This is not gonna this is not

(06:29):
gonna set you up with a pension.This is not gonna set you up
with success.
Oh my goodness. I won't evenrepeat some of the things she
said to me because it was justsort of concern and frustration.
Because remember, she wasfooting the bill, and my father
looked at me, he took me down tothe Royal Bank in Sydney. And he
said, I am getting this loan foryou. And back then, was $10 for

(06:51):
a year, and that was a lot in1998.
'10 grand for a year. And hegoes, this is your last kick in
the can. I'm almost divorcedover this, he said, because I'm
doing this for you. You can'tmess this one up. And I remember
messaging him in, like, day fourof hair school and being like,
dad, I am loving every minute ofit.

(07:11):
I cannot wait to get on the busto get downtown to my school. I
love learning about things I'minterested in every day, and I
ended up graduating to top of myclass there, got any job I
wanted, and within a year and ahalf, busted through the comp
plan at the head shop, because Imaxed out the comp plan, which
took some people eight, nineyears to do, and I opened up a

(07:34):
salon of my own under my house,because I realized that if I
wanted to make money and havethat, like you said, time,
flexibility, and freedom, that Iwas gonna have to do that
underneath my own roof as abusiness owner, and I own my own
salon from like 02/2017 to02/2014 when I retired to do
online sales full time. So I'vealways had that entrepreneur

(07:56):
spirit, but I had to fightagainst it. I had to fight
against Deterra because it wasnot ingrained. And it was only a
couple of it's only been for acouple of years now that my
family doesn't look at me asthat weirdo alien who has her
own business.
Like, what aren't you thinkingabout your future? You know? You
get it.

Tara (08:16):
You get it. Totally relate because, like, I started out,
like, with gung ho to doenvironmental science and law.
That was my track, and dadagreed to it. And he was like, I
was part of the environmentalcommittee in high school. Like,
I ran it for the last year, didall the stuff, was totally into
it.
Got into first year ofuniversity. I decided to do the
science track instead of thearts track. I should've done the

(08:37):
arts track if I wanna stay intoit. But I went through the first
year environmental scienceprogram that everybody had to
take, and I got 49. Yeah.
You have to get a 50 to pass. Icouldn't pass the multiple
choice test. And so you only getso many d's at university before
they try to kick you out. Yeah.The other problem I had was
organic chemistry.
I could I could do all the work,the theory, everything, but I

(08:59):
would get into the lab, and theTA would sit beside me because
he thought I was gonna blow upthe lab or kill myself, cutting
myself on the glassware. Or,like, I would come out of the
sulfuric acid burns all over myhands, which I'll probably pay
for with my health later. Like,it was just like it was just it
was like I was just I was on atrain wreck. No one wanted to
work with me. All my friendsquietly moved away from me in

(09:20):
the lab.
No one wanted to be my labpartner. The TA had to be with
me the whole time, so I didn'ttake any he tried to pass me,
and I just I would flunk everytime. Like, it's just like,
you're supposed to get 2% yield.I would be a 20% yield. Do know
what mean?
Like, on a powder. Like, I justcooked it. Like, it was it was
not good. And so I switched to,like, an English degree after a
lot of arguing with theadministration at the
university. They let me in.

(09:41):
They said, yeah. If you do this,we'll graduate you. I do summer
classes so I could graduate infour years with my friends
because that was important tome. So I did that, but I loved
English literature. Like, Icould have done that, like, day
in and day out.
It was it was so cool. But mydad, when I graduated, god love
him, I came across that stagewith that degree and came down
and was talking to themafterwards. And my dad was like,

(10:02):
well, I'm really proud of you,but, you know, you're gonna die
a starving artist if you're awriter.

Danielle Melanson (10:07):
I know. Right? The things

Tara (10:09):
they

Danielle Melanson (10:09):
say proud of you.

Tara (10:11):
Things they say. Like and I was like, oh my god. And my
mother was there, and she had aswipe at me too, but she's, you
know, always did. But I had tolaugh because, like, oh my god.
Like, it was so, and so then andso then I went traveling on the
Kentucky bus tour to ignore himfor a summer because I was just
like, no.
Like, I need to get I need toget away from this. Like, that's
not what I need to be around. Imoved to Toronto, pulled up. He

(10:31):
helped me out with that, but hewould only help me pay rent
until I got a job, and he gaveme a deadline of six months. So
I went to work at the publishingcompany, and then what I made
there was a secretarial positionbecause they brought me in
because I had no real jobexperience other than
telemarketing for the universityannual fund.
Do know what I mean? Yeah. Sothey paid me a secretarial
thing. What I didn't realize wasthey slot at the time in the
nineties. They just slot youinto that, and you can only go

(10:53):
up a pay scale so far.
Do you know what I mean? So,like, then my boss gave me
business cards that saidcoordinator, but, like, I was
assistant. Do you know what Imean? Like and she gave me three
business cards because I wasdoing three different jobs for
her because she kept takingstuff on. It was her and I
against the world.
And then I tried to find someoneto come in. I brought in
finagled a guy to come in, aformer friend of mine, and, oh

(11:16):
my god, he he did well in theindustry because he knew how to
deal with it. I was done. Ididn't wanna schmooze. I didn't
wanna kiss ass.
I didn't wanna do it all thehard work. Didn't wanna do it
all of my life, and I was I wasdone. And I was completely
exhausted and mentally drainedand depressed and sad and, oh,
it was terrible. But I have totell you, what I learned from
all that is that it's okay to dothe hard crazy things that your

(11:38):
family says you can't do becauseyou might be really good at it.

Danielle Melanson (11:41):
Absolutely. Yeah. And you were sick of
treating somebody else'sbusiness as your own.

Tara (11:48):
Yeah. For for nothing. I wasn't even getting paid eight
until eight, Danielle. I wasgetting paid eight until five.
Those three extra hours I nevergot paid for.
Yeah. But I had to do them tomake the department survive. And
then the business after I left,like, had so many problems that
two years later, I was out ofbusiness anyway. Do know what I
mean? Like, it's just like itshows it goes.
But I told you at one point,wanna talk about quickly, the
community college back then.

Danielle Melanson (12:08):
Yeah.

Tara (12:09):
Over the years, they have stepped up their game because
their trade program, their,like, energy to with film
program, which they have sometop notch instructors at those
schools, and they're doing suchgood work. And I wish I had
known that because what peopledid that I knew of from my
friends from Trent University,they went to a college after
that for, like, travel ortourism or hairstyling like you

(12:29):
did or electrical like you youknow, like, a realtor. Do know
what mean? The whole thing, theydid that so they could get a
trade certification on top ofthe degree and move into the
trade they wanted to be in, buthave the degree as a backup for
future and in case they wannaactually, like, pay scaled and
go up. Yep.
Do right? So Absolutely. So I'mreally impressed by yes. NSCC
now compared to what it was inmy in the eighties. Oh my god.

Danielle Melanson (12:51):
Incredible. And, like, some of these some of
these kids are coming out withthese viable trades, and they're
making, you know, close to$6,000,000. Yeah. With so much
growth. And and now all of thisdebt of, like, multiple,
multiple degrees if they have topay for themselves or

Tara (13:06):
have

Danielle Melanson (13:06):
to And, like, some of these people are coming
out with trades that they'remaking doctors' wages with, with
oh, you know what I mean,without eight years of medical
school. So it's absolutelythere's so many options out
there, which is great, but we'retalking about being an
entrepreneur.

Tara (13:22):
Yeah. I know.

Danielle Melanson (13:24):
Doing all these things. And it's so funny,
because the one thing I wantedto say is that, you know, it's
different when you work manyhours, and you don't see when
it's your own business versusnot your own business. Like,
when you told us that storyabout working basically three
jobs, we were wearing threehats, getting paid like a lower
wage with not a lot of room togrow in this company. And that's

(13:48):
different than being anentrepreneur, because I think a
lot of the times people thinkthat they now my husband has an
entrepreneur not I'm sorry. Anemployee mindset, and I have an
entrepreneur mindset.
And let me tell you, sometimesthose two heads collide, because
I get so frustrated with him,because he treats everybody's
business like his own, gives andgives and gives. I say to him

(14:09):
all the time, this is not theMick Meloncin charity. You don't
get to work for free when you'reworking for somebody else. I'm
the one who works for freebecause I'm an entrepreneur
working for myself. And I thinka lot of times when people who
are have that employee mindsetand move into any sort of small
business, know, brick and mortarbusiness, or, you know, like

(14:29):
online business, they don'trealize that you have to take
the dollar amount per hour outof the equation.
And realize that, you know, youmay get paid a lump sum. It's
not a break breakdown of hours.A lot of times as an
entrepreneur, we're working waymore than forty hours a week,
but we're working on our ownbusiness, our own project, our

(14:53):
own passion, something that isours. And that's the difference.
It will pay back.
It always pays itself back. Butwe you know, oftentimes, for
anybody who's ever thinkingabout being an entrepreneur, if
they're used to being on thatemployee track, that is the
number one thing that they haveto kind of reprogram in their
brain.

Tara (15:13):
Yeah. And I totally agree with that. When I started the
film and video productioncompany that I had for six years
and then also the fit club thatI had for four years or five
years. So, like, the thing was Ifollowed a blueprint that I had
learned at university and, youknow, did my MBA in entrepreneur
management through AustralianInstitute of Business. But I I
know exactly so you what youhave to understand is an
entrepreneur is allencompassing, like you just

(15:34):
said.
Do you know mean? You don'tclock off at 05:00. Do know
mean? You're still thinkingabout your work. However, your
also ability to to crunch thattime schedule because, you know,
when your peak hours are, youknow, when you want to get done
every day.
I mean, I survive by stickynotes and, like, and, like, to
do list. Do you know what Imean? Like, that is my world.
And that's just how I work.Like, I've tried planners.
They're too big to carry around,and I lose them. But, like,

(15:55):
sticky notes and little notesand, like, in the Google
Calendar saved my life. Like, doknow I mean? Like, it just it it
works. These are all tools youcan have, but it's definitely a
mindset because you have to havethe ability to believe in
yourself when things are so downthat there's no money coming in.
And when the money does come in,to know that what you're doing,
to take note of what makes thecash register ring at that time
for the markets and the trends,but to also know how much you're

(16:16):
worth compared to how muchyou're actually coming in. It's
like sales versus revenue. Doyou know what I mean? Like, you
have to know the differencebetween the two. You can have a
lot of sales but have no revenuecome in, and that's terrible.
But as an entrepreneur, you alsodon't see revenue until year
three or year five. Like, soyou've got to have a backup of
some kind of money coming in orsomething, to be honest, before
you float your entrepreneurshipwhere you want. Do you know what

(16:37):
I mean?

Danielle Melanson (16:38):
So, like,

Tara (16:38):
you know, like because otherwise, you're not gonna make
it, and you get depressed, andyou'll sink your business and
your house in love. Dogs won'tget fed. You know what I mean?
Like, all terrible things willhappen that your parents told
you that would happen. Do youknow what I mean?

Danielle Melanson (16:48):
All things. Right? All things. But it can be
done, and it's so rewarding. AndI know, like, we're both
entrepreneurs.
We have lots of different hatsin the ring. And that's the
thing. Like, you know, myhusband, you know, my husband,
as you know, you're a client ofhis, has a business, I remember
years and years and years ago.So he has a poop scooping

(17:09):
business. You heard that right,people.
Thirteen I think this isfourteenth year of having Scoopy
poo. Now, he works, you know,his shift work every week, and
he does one day a week now hisScooby Poo business, so he's
still floating that businessbecause that business pays the
mortgage. Right? So thatbusiness pays the mortgage, and
it gets him outside, and heloves dogs. He loves what he

(17:31):
does.
He's there right now as we'respeaking, and he literally is up
and gone and smiles on his faceand singing. He was singing
Whitney Houston this morning.Like, he loves that time, right?
He loves that time to his ownself, but this is the thing, is
that when you start a business,you have to realize that you've

(17:51):
gotta build it like we weretalking And it's that sort of
thing is you gotta havesomething different, something
else floating it, because it'snot just gonna pay all the bills
on month one or even year one oreven year five sometimes, like
you mentioned.

Tara (18:04):
And I think you can agree with this too. Social media
being for what it is, it's agreat tool. It's a fantastic
platform. But honestly, unlessyou're gonna make that viral
video, and even if you get amillion views, you might get one
sale. Do you know what I mean?

Danielle Melanson (18:16):
So the thing is, like, you

Tara (18:17):
gotta you gotta be constant and consistent and
persistent with it, but you alsogotta realize it's not the end
or be all that some people mighttry to sell you because they're
trying to sell you a program soyou so they can do your social
media for you. You know what Imean? Like, stuff like that.
Like, you know what mean? Like,you just like, you just you
gotta be aware about the sharksin the waters, but that try to
feed off an entrepreneurs.
But you also gotta realize toothat you might actually use them
when you get to a certain pointin revenue. Do you know what I

(18:38):
mean? So you might actually yes.I'm at a certain point right
now. I know what my targetmarket is.
I know what the trends are, andI know how to, like, you know,
pivot with them during timeslike such as COVID and so on.
And so what I can do is this,and I have x amount of dollars
to put back into the business sothat it has a future without
means. Do know what I mean? So

Danielle Melanson (18:57):
Absolutely. Yeah. Absolutely.

Tara (18:59):
I do. Let's let's quickly talk about impostor syndrome.
Yay or nay? Because I definitelyI have enough degrees to float
around a freaking farm.

Danielle Melanson (19:05):
Oh my god. Having decrees was the Olympics,
you would be

Tara (19:11):
I know. I know. And I'm still going, guys. I'm still I'm
working on PhD next year.

Danielle Melanson (19:15):
I love it. You're But learn.

Tara (19:18):
But I do it because it gets me out of trouble. Like,
I'm good at school. Like, it'sjust, like, despite, you know,
almost, like, dying on organicchemistry, I learned what I'm
good at. And if I'm not good atit, I just exit quietly before
academic admissions get involvedand say, we're gonna kick you
out of school. So, like, but thething is, like, it it may it
gives me the confidence to belike, okay.
I have all this time and energy.What do I wanna put it into? I

(19:40):
used to volunteer a lot, had alot of work with nonprofits. I
found that a lot of them canjust really want the cash or
fundraisers so that they can dowhat they need to do to get done
and hire the people they need tohave to help the people they're
helping. But I still love tovolunteer, but, you know, I'm
very careful about my time rightnow with all the stuff going on
with my personal family life.
But at the same time, impostorsyndrome, I just just to throw

(20:02):
it out there, guys, if youhaven't heard of her, Ilona
Mayer is a rugby player. She'son dancing with the stars. She's
been on sports illustrated covertwice. She is a what we consider
a plus size rugby player andmodel. I would say she's average
weight, I'm like, being moreplus size than that.
But I just have to say she wasasked about impostor syndrome,
and she said, I don't have that.What is that? And it just it

(20:23):
just shut down the interviewerso fast, and I was just like, oh
my god. I was just like that wasmy life goal. I said, however, I
have had impostor syndrome.
I keep going after the banana.Do you know what I mean? I'm
getting the certificate. Soyeah. Yeah.
What is

Danielle Melanson (20:36):
that? And so, like, what does impostor
syndrome look like or feel liketo you? Like, what would you
describe that as, Tara?

Tara (20:42):
Like You're never you're never fully satisfied with
whatever degree or certificateor education you've gotten that
you keep trying. But at the sametime, I think I like to
challenge myself intellectually,so I don't think it's
necessarily impostor syndrome.However, I do know that it does
give me credibility when I needit in certain rooms that I walk
into when I try to do any kindof business. So I can just
simply say, oh, yeah. I did thatat school too.

(21:02):
And someone would like, oh, yougot your MBA? I'm like, yeah. I
try not to advertise it exceptfor LinkedIn. Do you know what I
mean? Like, it's just, like,it's just like yeah.

Danielle Melanson (21:08):
I do.

Tara (21:09):
Have you ever felt that? Like, you know,

Danielle Melanson (21:11):
like, coming. Absolutely. Especially because
now anybody who's listening toif this is our your first
conversation with Tara and I orour first podcast that of Tara's
that you're listening to withme, I am a social media
influencer. So and I have beenfor thirteen years, guys. So
that's over a decade.
And that is my full time job.And so, you know, there's a lot

(21:32):
of opinions about that, Tara.And there's a lot of people who
are like, what do you mean? Sowhen I walk into rooms and I'm
dealing with, like, literally,like, you know, some of my
social some of my social circlesthat are here where I live, you
know, I'm walking into the roomwith big, big, big business
owners, big, big local businessowners, like people who own,
like, airlines, you know? Andthey're like, and what do you do

(21:55):
for business, or what's yourjob?
And I'm like, I I kinda just sayit if they don't know me at
first, I say I'm in I'm inonline sales. You know? Because
really, when I'm out beingsocial, unless it's a networking
event, let's not talk shop. Youknow? I wanna, like, I wanna
talk a little bit of shop ifit's something in common, but I
like to have fun.
Like, it's my time to step awayand that sort of thing. But, you

(22:18):
know, I was at line dancing theother night, and these girls
asked me. They were like, areyou a hairstylist? And I said,
no. But every Wednesday, I washmy hair.
So you are seeing my hair at itsbest. I used to be a salon
owner, and and then they came upto me afterwards. And they said,
so what do you do now? And Isaid, I'm one of those crazy
people who actually has abusiness online since 2034. And

(22:41):
I said I have a 6 figurebusiness, and this is my
family's main, like, source ofincome.
And their eyes just lit up, andthey're like, well, what do you
do? I said, I I educate women.I'm an advocate for women. I
said, I do sell supplements. AndI said, and I and and I'm just
out there spreading good,positive, real information, and

(23:05):
and real solutions to back upthose problems that people have.
I said, because it all came fromwhen I had my own issues and my
own solutions I needed to find.And so a lot of people don't
know what to do with that. Butit used to make me really
uncomfortable, Tara. I used toused to kind of do like a a
verbal diarrhea where I feltlike I had to overexplain what I

(23:27):
did or or defend. Defend what Idid.
And, you know, I've stoppedthat. And I'm like, yeah. And my
husband's really good for herbecause he'll be like, oh, yeah.
She's my she's my meal ticket orshe's my he's it's not. We've,
like, literally taken the sameamount of money.
But, like, you know, he'll belike, oh, yeah. She's I'm just
her, you know, her househusband.

Tara (23:47):
Boy. Yeah.

Danielle Melanson (23:49):
The paranoid. He kinda likes that, and then
people kinda look, you know,just kind of open up their eyes,
and I'm like, yeah. You know?And and I just kinda leave it at
that, and then they can kind ofbut I definitely used to. Now
that I'm 48, not so much.
But definitely, definitely usedto. And I really think, Tara,
you know, even business wise,education wise, kind of pushing

(24:12):
that all aside. I think it hasimpostor syndrome has a lot to
do with confidence. So thatamazing story about the rugby
player that you were telling meabout, like, that just sounds
like she has that confidence.And you were speaking to me
about this earlier, and she waslike, she's worked for
everything that she's gotten.
You know? And so so has everysingle entrepreneur out there.

Tara (24:33):
Yeah. Instead of saying, like, I feel like I need to do
more, she's just like, no. I'mdoing whatever I wanted to
because I work for it, and Iwanna do it. And she goes, you
know, it's it's reversing, like,the question, which almost puts
the onus on you like, oh, honey,do you feel like you have
impostor syndrome? Yeah.
You know, that tone of voice?You know, where you're just
like, I'm gonna go killsomething right now. I'll be
right back. Do know I mean?Like, we're just

Danielle Melanson (24:52):
like 10 out of 10? No. I know. I know. I
love it.
I love it.

Tara (24:57):
But yeah. So, Danielle, what can people find you online
and and talk a little bit about,you know, you know, how much how
much love you put into Amari.Like, what what is it what does
it look like hours per week? Youknow?

Danielle Melanson (25:09):
You can find me online at on Instagram, d a n
I m c a m e r o n at danny mcameron. And that's my new
account. I was shut down lastyear. Was one of the the the the
so I'm rebuilding, so I'd love acouple of follows and, you know,
jump into my DMs and tell me hiif you've listened to this. I'd

(25:30):
love to connect.
And let's talk about that toojust for a little bit. I know we
need to keep this quiet. But,you know, when with Amari, it's
my second company. You know, Iwas with Body for eleven and a
half years. I shifted to Amaribefore, thankfully, before the
dissolve of what happened therewith Body.

(25:51):
Well, we could do 15 podcasts onthat, but we won't. Yay. But we
it was it was so good because inthat time, I I needed that
shift. Mental wellness is suchand so near and dear to my heart
and my family, with my husbandand I, my extended family. I
know it is for you too, Tara,with you and your family.

(26:11):
I don't think there's anybodythat mental wellness does not
affect in this world. And wewere the only mental wellness
company. It was just wonderful.It was a wonderful shift for me.
I started using their productsagain because I needed them,
fell in love with them, andinstantly found this incredible
company that allowed me a placeto feel secure, to feel non icky

(26:36):
in the online space, and to knowthat I was making a real
difference with these holisticnaturopathic grade supplements.
Right? And just the mission ofthis global company. I love that
it's like female female led, andall those sort of things that
really mean a lot to me. So, youknow, I really felt building

(27:00):
this business, this two yearsthis month in May that I've been
with Amari. And I'm telling you,building the business for the
second time, I had so much moreconfidence.
I had so much more drive. I knewwhere to go. I knew what not to
do. I've learned so so much, andI've I've just learned to find

(27:20):
that balance, and it's beenreally, really awesome. You
know?
It's been really awesome.

Tara (27:23):
Well, and what I'm impressed by when I follow your
stories in social media and,like, to tap in with you each
week is just to say, you know,they made a special visit to the
Maritimes to meet with theirreps. And that is something that
another direct selling marketingcompany, we shall not name, did
never did, not even to thesmallest communities it was in

(27:44):
because they were really aboutnumbers. Whereas what I love
about what I know friends haveseen with Amare is that they're
about people.

Danielle Melanson (27:52):
Yeah. And it's so funny because the global
CEO came to our little a littlemeeting of 25 people, and it was
the best. I mean, I've spoken onthe stage in Toronto for the
Canadian events for thiscompany, and I did a small
presentation on our hair careline, our fermented hair care
line for them, and I wasshoulder to shoulder with the

(28:15):
CEO in a chair in a in a littlehotel, you know, presentation
spot, and they came because ofthe Maritimes. They came because
they know here we are aboutbuilding relationships. We are
people people, and that is whatour company is all about.
So they really wanted torecognize that. They wanted to

(28:36):
recognize that we have 9% growthhere in the Maritimes, and, you
know, and and we're doing sowell. And they wanted to really
tap into that spirit of peopleconnecting with people and how
important that is now more thanever.

Tara (28:52):
Well, in the name of the game, like, we're talking about
what it means to be a woman inbusiness while doing all the
things really is about therelationships you make as you
move forward in your business,but also in your personal life.
And Yeah. One of the things Ilove about all of this is, like,
even as I delve into academicsand, you know, fight with people
over little things liketerminology or the use of, you
know, antidepressants for peoplewho are, you know, struggling

(29:14):
with mental health issues forfood issues and stuff. You know,
even as we debate that, youknow, we get to debate it, you
know, and talk about it and,like, feel like, you know, each
other has a valid idea and that,you know, the difference now for
women who are in high school isyou don't have to go to college
or get that diploma from thecommunity college. Like, you can

(29:35):
go and do your own businessright off the bat.
And we have young womenentrepreneurs starting at the
age of, like, 15 as, like, aproject in school developing
into something major and doinggreat things with it. And we
never really saw that when I wasgrowing up in my high school.
You know, I don't know aboutyours, but it was it's so what I
love about Amari is someone canjoin when they have that youth

(29:56):
going on and then developrelationships over the time. So
by the time they reach, quote,unquote, my age, I'm not gonna
date myself this year, but I ama little older than Danielle and
a little younger than DianaRoss. Here we go.
Is that is that is that I'mteasing her. Is that, you know,
we can we can we can startsomething new and, like, develop
into something big. You know?And what I love about being an

(30:19):
entrepreneur is that you havethe ability to make connections
with people who fit with yourmindset, your wellness, your
health, and that can create abusiness out of that. And that
can be your business, and it canbe the most flourishing thing
you can ever do.
Do you know what I mean?

Danielle Melanson (30:33):
Like, it's just

Tara (30:34):
best thing you can do for yourself is, you know, become an
entrepreneur in a subject thatyou're passionate about that
will drive you a little crazysometimes, but also have such
huge rewards. You know?

Danielle Melanson (30:44):
A %.

Tara (30:45):
A

Danielle Melanson (30:45):
hundred And so so, like you said, it's so
rewarding. It's so much work.It's so rewarding. It's not for
the faint of heart, but you willget back tenfold what you put
into it, and you will put 10times into it. So you're gonna
get a % back, like, andabsolutely, and that's that's
the way it goes.
And and, you know, the otherthing is, like, my mother, I

(31:07):
went through a little Tanya, Iknow we need to wrap this up.
Went through my business, youknow, same sort of thing. I've
navigated I've navigatedthrough, like, pandemics,
through downshifts in inindustries, through all the
things, the economy. But thebiggest thing that has impacted
my business in thirteen years,it was a postal strike in
November. Oh, yeah.

(31:27):
It literally cut my business 75%in three weeks, and I didn't
know, and I'm still recoveringfrom it. And Yeah. My mother was
like, don't you think my mother,don't you think you should just
get a real job? Oh. You knowwhat mean?
Like, don't you

Tara (31:41):
I'm 48.

Danielle Melanson (31:42):
I'm 48. She she was, like, thinking of the
stress. She goes, this is somuch stress. Wouldn't it be
better if you had somethingreliable coming in? Like and and
she was, like, just thinking ofmy stress level, my mental
health, and she didn't wanna seeme struggling.
Yeah. And I looked at her and Isaid, you know, it kind of goes
back to how we opened up thiscall. And I said, mom, I'm an

(32:05):
entrepreneur. If I worked forsomebody else, it would not be
good. It would not be good.
I said, I'd be, like, halfwayoff the McDonald's Bridge. I'm
like, I'm telling you right now,I wouldn't last one month. I am
even when I worked in the salon,people would be like, how come
for somebody else? People werelike, how come Danielle gets

(32:25):
this vacation? How come Danielledoesn't have to ask for a
weekend off?
It's like, because Danielletakes in the most money for the
salon because she works worksworks like a horse. And if
somebody told me that I couldn'ttake a week vacation, I'd say,
see you later. Right? Yeah.Yeah.
That's what kind of personalityI am, and that's not a lot of
bosses wanna pull up with that.Right? No. So, you know, that's

(32:47):
the sort of thing. And so youkinda have to see where are you,
you know, where are you and whatare you willing to do, and what
are you willing not to do?

Tara (32:54):
Yeah. Well and aside source that before we wrap, it
was simply when I did work atthe publishing house. I was
getting really sick and tired ofthe pub board taking the junior
staff's ideas and thoughts andmotivations on markets and new
books coming in ideas on how tomark them and what to do with
the US department as their idea.I was get I was getting tired of

(33:15):
being sucked dry.

Danielle Melanson (33:16):
Do know what mean? Like that.

Tara (33:17):
Yeah. Yeah. And so now, as an entrepreneur, I have the
freedom to be, you know, incontrol of marketing, in control
of finance, in control of, like,sales and revenue and, you know,
you know, networking. I can goto whatever networking group I
have to go with the knowledgethat I don't necessarily need
their business, but I would liketo get to know people and see if

(33:37):
they'd like to introducethemselves and be on my podcast
and maybe develop a relationshipwith them and go from there. Do
you know what I mean?
Like, it's just like, it is thefreedom that you have. And, yes,
it may drive you a little wildsometimes, but it's such a
beautiful thing. But it's notfor everybody. And the other
thing is being an entrepreneurcan ruin you. You might not be
able to go back to work forsomebody else.
You know?

Danielle Melanson (33:57):
Yeah. So yeah. Prepared. Yeah. Alright.
Danielle, you could

Tara (34:01):
find her on Instagram, Danny m Cameron.

Danielle Melanson (34:04):
Is that correct? M Cameron.

Tara (34:07):
And Tara Singh's on Inc. And, yes. So this will be up
soon. And, for everybodylistening for the EWomen
Network, you know, networkingpodcasting platform, just know
that, Danielle's gonna be onagain so you get to know her
over the next few months. And,yeah, she's got availability for
any questions or any speakingyou wanna do or anything you

(34:28):
wanna do with her.
So hit her up on Instagram,follow her in socials, and,
yeah, see what she's up to.Yeah. Thanks so much, Taylor.

Danielle Melanson (34:34):
As always, it's always so much fun.

Tara (34:36):
Thanks, guys. Thanks for listening, everyone.
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