The Freelance Founders Podcast

As founders, we’re all familiar with the feeling of burnout. Overwhelmed, stressed, exhausted, emotionally drained... Unfortunately, it’s become the norm for so many of us to work in this state on a nearly constant basis. It might seem like there’s no way out of the perpetual stress cycle, but there are a few key steps that we can all take to start to mitigate burnout and be our most grounded selves.

Welcome to season two of the Freelance Founders podcast. Today, you’ll hear a masterclass on avoiding burnout from Sarita Walsh. Sarita is an entrepreneur and transformational coach working to empower leaders to fulfill their highest professional, personal, and social potential through mindset and behavior change.

In this episode, Sarita is sharing her top three tips for avoiding burnout, reducing stress, and ridding ourselves of habits that aren’t benefiting us—specifically for those of us who are high achieving, type A personalities who are prone to perfectionist tendencies and a reluctance to delegate tasks.

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• How burnout is defined (00:44)
• Many of us have habits that are so ingrained that we keep doing them even after they’re no longer benefiting us (02:21)
• The time-blocking method can be used to create a better work-life balance and space for ourselves (03:17)
• Sarita’s tip #1: Slowing down to speed up (05:35)
• Tip #2: Focus on your most important work (06:50)
• Tip #3: Make better, more informed decisions for your future self (08:57)

Connect with Sarita:

• Website
• Instagram

Resources mentioned:

• Time blocking visual template

Let’s Connect:

• Website
• Linkedin
• Instagram

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does it take to have a successful partnership? Mutual respect, a vision of the big picture, delegation, defined roles... to name just a few elements. But what about when your closest collaborator is also your twin?

Welcome to season two, episode five of the Freelance Founders podcast. We’re talking to Jen and Amy Hood, sisters and founders of Hoodzpah, a collaborative branding and type studio based out of Southern California.

Today, Amy and Jen are talking about the importance of mutual respect, succeeding without a four-year degree, and always keeping the big picture in mind.

Some Questions Asked:

• Can you take us through your careers? Where did you start and where are you now? (00:13)
• Do you have any tips on how to price out services for people just starting out in freelance? (14:12)
• What was the biggest challenge when you started Hoodzpah? (17:57)
• What’s the biggest challenge people face when they go full time freelance? (26:42)
• What are some boundaries you have set for yourself to maintain a healthy work/life balance? (36:42)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• What it’s like to be sisters and business partners (01:55)
• How Amy and Jen built such a major client roster (07:20)
• A bit about Amy and Jen’s course for freelancers (23:47)
• What advice Amy and Jen would offer their 20 year old selves (33:02)
• How Amy and Jen approached their financial strategy when they first started Hoodzpah (39:26)

Connect with Amy and Jen:

• Hoodzpah
• Hoodzpah on IG
• Freelance, and Business, and Stuff—the Course
• Freelance, and Business, and Stuff by Amy Hood & Jennifer Hood

Let’s Connect:

• Website
• Linkedin
• Instagram

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Becoming a founder is always going to be terrifying. Whether you have all the money in the world or a double digit bank balance, you’re never going to be as ready as you feel like you should be. But that’s the beauty of it all, right? There’s nothing scarier than leaping from the nest, and yet there are few things more beautiful than realizing you’re ready to fly.

Welcome to season two, episode six of the Freelance Founders podcast. We’re talking to Madison Utendahl, a two time Webby Award winning content director and founder of Utendahl Creative, a multi-disciplinary creative studio powered by female storytellers.

Today, Madison is telling us the biggest mistake that brands make with their social media, the importance of prioritizing yourself, and the power and difficulty in doing nothing.

Some Questions asked:

• Can you tell us about your career path and how you got where you are today? (00:27)
• How did it feel to win two Webby Awards and be featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 list? (09:50)
• Do you have any tips for the younger generation when they begin their careers in this industry? (14:31)
• What tips do you have for attracting dream clients? (20:21)
• How were you able to feel comfortable bringing on a full time team? (24:13)
• What advice would you give your 20 year old self? (35:16)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Madison got into social media and content production through her work at Refinery 29 (03:52)
• A little more about Madison’s all-female design company, Utendahl Creative (18:53)
• About Madison’s new side project, Her Name Is (29:13)
• How Madison got interested in investing in young companies (31:28)
• The boundaries Madison has had to set to achieve work/life balance (36:33)

Connect with Jenn:

• Instagram
• Utendahl Creative

Let’s Connect:

• Website
• Linkedin
• Instagram

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When we start out as freelancers, it can be incredibly easy to underestimate the value of our work. Most of us would probably admit to intentionally underselling ourselves because we’re lacking confidence or in order to placate clients. Only as we begin to establish ourselves in our chosen field do most of us gain the perspective and conviction to charge what we’re really worth.

Welcome to episode six of the Freelance Founders podcast. We’re talking to Savannah White, a stylist, creative consultant, and costume designer.

Today, we’re discussing with Savannah how she made the shift from Arkansas to New York, our mutual early experience with PR firms, and how she differentiated herself at the start of her career from others in her industry. We also chat about how she keeps her inspiration flowing and fresh, and the importance of staying flexible when it comes to building your business.

Some Questions asked:

• Do you feel like being part of the free internship era made it harder for you to know your worth when you first started out? (02:48)
• You’re from Arkansas, you came to the Big Apple. How did you get into all of this? And how did you decide, “I want to go do the styling route”? (06:51)
• What have been some of your favorite projects? (13:49)
• How has joining an agency helped your career so far? (26:34)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Why Savannah has low-balled herself for much of her career (01:46)
• Savannah didn’t even know how she could make a living from styling when she first began (11:09)
• How Savannah tries to hone in and connect with her clients (24:07)
• What Savannah is currently working on and how she measures her success (33:00)

Connect with Savannah:

• Website
• Instagram

Let’s Connect:

• Website
• Linkedin
• Instagram

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Freelancing, like any career path, comes with its highs and lows. It’s the personal nature of the work that can make those peaks and valleys more extreme than in any other industry. It’s when your first truly incredible opportunity comes and you know that you’ve created it for yourself that all of it—the good and the bad—pays off.

Welcome to episode five of the Freelance Founders podcast. We’re talking to Mark Clennon, a New York-based photographer who works toward capturing the Black experience.

Today, Mark is telling us all about how he got started as a freelance artist, what it was like to have his first-ever photography piece run in the Huffington Post, and how his personal projects keep him passionate.

Some Questions asked:

• Tell us a little bit about your career path, where did you start? (01:22)
• Has everything you’ve learned been self taught? (04:15)
• Was it intimidating for your first shoot to be with a major retail brand? (06:17)
• How did you navigate all of the huge requests and opportunities you received after your BLM protest photo went viral? (15:44)
• When you're on your own as a photographer, how do you measure success? (22:37)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• What Mark’s shooting schedule looked like when he first transitioned to freelance (03:20)
• How Mark got the opportunity to shoot his first big campaign with Footlocker (04:49)
• About the iconic image that Mark took at a Black Lives Matter protest in 2020 and how it came to be (09:05)
• How Mark deals with lack of inspiration and where he’s been finding it lately (19:15)
• Mark’s mantra as a freelance artist (24:34)

Connect with Mark:

• Website
• Instagram
• Twitter
• LinkedIn

Let’s Connect:

• Website
• Linkedin
• Instagram

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.