52: What's Happening Is Too Big to Ignore: Speaking Out & Still Launching Amid a Crisis

Sometimes the hardest thing is to keep showing up when the world feels like it's falling apart. In this unedited (literally) episode of The Creative Bodega, I'm processing in real time what it means to stay visible in your business when everything outside your door feels completely wrong. I'm talking about the Minneapolis ICE raids, the fear people are experiencing, and why I'm moving forward with the launch of The Visual Edit even though it feels weird and uncomfortable. If you've ever struggled with whether to speak up, stay silent, or keep working when the world is heavy—this one's for you.

Check out the full show notes for this episode HERE.

Things I cover inside this episode:

• Why I've historically stayed silent on social media and how being an Enneagram 9 has shaped my need to avoid conflict
• The moment I decided I couldn't stay quiet anymore—even knowing I'd lose followers and face criticism
• How to hold space for heartbreak AND still show up for your business when you're the main provider
• What it means to find your people by saying the hard stuff, even when your voice shakes
• Why launching during difficult times doesn't mean you don't care—and how to navigate that tension with integrity

Resources & Links mentioned in the episode:

• The Visual Edit DOORS ARE OPEN—my 6-week high-touch experience for creating a cohesive visual identity (doors open now with $300 off for the first 48 hours ONLY - soooo until Wednesday, Jan 28th @ 6 am EST). Only 30 spots available!
• Episode 49: Interview with The Visual Edit alumni, Emily—hear exactly how hands-on support transformed her business and confidence

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Transcript

0:00

Hello, you guys. Um, I wasn't planning to record today. Uh, today is Sunday, January 25th and this podcast is gonna come out tomorrow, January 26th. Monday. It is off the cuff. I clearly do not have time to send it to my editor. There is no intro music. Uh, and this just is what it is. Tomorrow is also the launch day for my visual edit and everything just feels weird and off. Because of what is happening in the United States and specifically in Minneapolis, and I can't not say something, um, I'm horrified. I'm heartbroken, I'm scared. I'm scared for everyone. And, and I know that so many of you are feeling the same way, even if you haven't found the words yet, and I don't even know that I have. Um. I, I'm sitting in my house. You may even hear the sleet. You know, again, I'm not getting this episode edited, so it is sleeting here. We have had 15 inches of snow in less than an an hour, um, less than 24 hours, and now it's sleeting on top of it. I don't know how long I'm gonna have power, so I'm just gonna do this. I'm gonna try and get as much as this done and, and talk about this and just like get this out there. Um. It's This episode is clearly not about strategy. It's not about Instagram. It's not about content planning. It's just about being human and processing out loud, real time. If you know me at all, which you probably do if you're listening to this podcast. I don't talk about politics on my Instagram. I don't even acknowledge holidays. I literally joke about that sometimes, but it's honestly the truth. I don't even acknowledge holidays. I, I don't say anything because I know someone will comfort me in a bad way. In a negative way. They'll come at me and I'm not combative. I am literally an Enneagram nine. If you don't know what that is, it's the peacemaker. I avoid conflict at all costs. It is how I have always kept myself safe. Who knows if this is how I would've been if my parents hadn't gotten divorced when I was very little, and I was surrounded by a lot of chaos and uncertainty. And so being quiet kept me safe, flying under the radar, being perfect, being good, and I've just continued that my whole life. I'm also an empath. I physically cannot take in all the pain and suffering and heartbreak that I see online. I don't watch the news. I I truly cannot tell you the last time I watched the news not 'cause I wanna be ignorant. Not 'cause I don't care furthest thing from the truth. It's because if I did, I don't know if I'd be able to function day in and day out. Um, and, and if you're like that too, like I, I want you to know you're not alone. I know many, many women and friends and family who feel the same way. But this weekend, um, with the murder of another US citizen, um, by ICE in Minneapolis. I just can't be quiet anymore. Like it's, it's actually gotten completely, completely, completely out of control. And I shared a reel in my stories the first time I've even acknowledged what is happening. It was someone else's reel, and somebody immediately replied, I'm not even kidding. First person, please don't do this. Don't turn your business account into this kind of commentary. And I sat there on the couch and I was like, oh my God, this is why I don't do this. You know, this is why I don't do this. And my husband's like, what? And I was like, like I, you know, I shared something of real, and my story is about Minneapolis. And he was like, em, like, why are you doing that right now? Right before a launch? You know? And I was like. You know what? Like, because seriously, you know that that would scare me. That used to scare me. But this time I thought, you know what? If it upsets this woman, she can leave. I don't even know her. I've never even had a conversation with her in my dms. You know? That's what I immediately checked. Is this someone I know? Is this someone I go back and forth with? Because you guys, I go back and forth in my dms with thousands of people. Thousands and. Never had I ever talked to her. So that made me feel immediately better. 'cause I'm like, okay, this is not someone I respect and I have a friendship with because what's happening is not normal and pretending it's not happening feels completely wrong. For me, launching and pretending that it's not happening feels insane, and I follow so many female creatives. Solopreneurs who live in Minneapolis, it's actually insane. It must be just like a, you know, a hub of incredibly driven cool people, to be honest. Creatives, parents, small business owners, you name it. Um, and the fear that they're expressing in their in everywhere. Stories feed wherever, emails. It is palpable. You know, they don't feel safe taking their kids to school. They, they're scared they're gonna get pulled over. They're, you know, they're, they're afraid ICE is gonna show up at their job or at their kids' school or at sporting events. Like, and this is the United States. Like, that's what I, I keep feeling like I'm living in an alternative world. This is the United States. We're supposed to be like the land of the free and the home of the brave, right? Like. Woo. This just doesn't, this just doesn't feel like that. And at the same time that all of this is happening, I have to work, you know, like I have to work. Yeah, and I think maybe because I'm a solopreneur and I work from home, people think that I can just stop working and you know, because this is all happening. I can just like not launch and not do not do what I'm, I've planned out to do for the last year. But I'm the main provider for my family. I support us. And I thought about that, you know, like everyone is listening to this news and consuming this and they still have to go to work and. And that sucks. It really does. But that sort of is our, our reality, right? Like that really is my reality. And so I am continuing to go forward with the launch of the visual edit today. The doors are open today. I've talked about it so much leading up to this day. I hope that, you know, I'm not gonna get a number of women to sign up because I'm not talking about it in depth today. I really hope that's not the case. I hope that I've done my job well and bread crumbed it and talked about it in all these weeks since early December, to be honest. That I don't have to launch into it today 'cause it just doesn't feel right to sit here and talk about it. It feels weird. It feel feels weird to, to talk about scroll, stopping visuals and coming up with a posting plan that gets you results and doing it all fast, whatever. When people are like fearing for their lives. But I also know that I can be heartbroken and scared and empathetic, and I can still go to work and do my job and do it well. You can speak out for what you feel is right and you can still sell your offers and, and you can care and you can keep finding a way to show up. If you want to. If you want to. Okay. Like anyone who's just feeling like I have to step back, I have to pause. You have that option and that feels right for you. You do that. You know, the Enneagram nine, which is what I am. It's also the person that sees all sides. Okay? I'm not really seeing all sides in this situation. I am really not. And, and, and you know, and the truth is that I teach people how to show up in their stories. Like they're talking to coworkers when they get in first thing in the morning. 9:00 AM best time of day tho That was my favorite time of day with my coworkers. When I had a nine to five sit around with my girls. We had our coffee and we would be like. Oh my God, what is happening? And we would talk about it and like let it out and like, I don't have that anymore. So I go to my stories and I talk about it. That's where I'm gonna talk about it. This is what I would've talked about in my nine to five. That's how I teach women to show open stories. That's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna sit here and say. WTF is going on because if it were 2016 and I still have my interior design job and worked in an office, I would absolutely be talking about this. So why am I not talking about it in my stories now? Well, I mean, I guess the answer is now I am. Right. I've, I've, I've opened the floodgates. I'm not an activist. That's never been like my role, right. A, a a a position that I feel comfortable with. This is going to lose me followers. I mean, it is, I'm, I'm gonna get messages that tell me to stay in my lane, right? But the people who are Harding my stories and the people who are replying to my, you know, replying to my stories with dms and saying like. We know you, um, we know this is uncomfortable and we're proud of you and saying, thank you. You have a larger platform. Thank you for talking about this and sharing it. Like those, those are my people, and that's the community that I've built. I freaking love them. Anyone who feels differently can truly leave and find someone else who is spreading the message of hate. That is not me. We find our people when we say the hard shit and when we risk being misunderstood or being combat, you know, when we speak, even if our voice shakes a little bit, maybe silence doesn't always have to be the way we stay safe. You know, maybe sometimes we say something, even if it's messy and too late. Uh, you know, and, and that, that's actually how I feel. I feel like I'm a little too late and I apologize for that. Again, it's not a place I feel comfortable being a rule I feel comfortable taking on. Um, and so I've stayed quiet, but you know what the, this is me saying something. And before I go, like literally you guys, I want to say as tenderly as I can because yeah, this is really complicated. Today does kick off the launch of the visual edit. The really great news, and clearly I did not plan this, is that we don't start for three weeks. The doors are open for two solid weeks, and then I go on vacation with my family and then I come back and it's go time and. Um, yeah, that's a happy blessing. I think because I've had to start tomorrow or the next day, or even next week, I think that might be hard, but today the door's open. This is my signature program, and so I need to talk about it, right? It, it literally supports my family and it makes up about a quarter of my income every year. So for me to just sit back and say, because of what's happening, I can't, it's just not an option. Right. I, I need to talk about it, but I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna talk about it long. I'm not gonna talk about it aggressively. I'm just gonna be honest. If you're a service-based female solopreneur, and you're ready to feel really proud of how your brand shows up, or if you've been piecing together your content and and hating the way it looks, or it's not landing with people the way that you want it to, or if you just want more confidence. In your visuals and how you actually fo like show up on social media and this program is truly built for you, and it's open right now, but only for a short window. Here's what you need to know, and, and this is it. I'm getting off of here. In 10 seconds, you can get up to $300 off if you sign up in the first 48 hours. That means this Wednesday at 6:00 AM the 28th that ends, there are 30 spots available. And while I don't expect for them to sell out in 48 hours. Stranger things have happened and my last messaging edit in the fall sold out in 26 hours. So if this is something you've been thinking about, you know it is the time. The time sucks, and I apologize for that. And I so wish that this were a different episode that I could put out right now, but it's not. And if it's not the time for you, that's okay. You're being here, you're listening, you're showing up, and that means everything to me. So thank you for holding this, you know, messy, emotional, completely imperfect, unscripted, um, unedited episode for me. I'm so grateful for you all.