That's So On-Brand: The Podcast

Kristen Mann
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That's So On-Brand: The Podcast

Hey there and welcome to the That’s So On-Brand Podcast! I’m your host, Kristen Mann. I’m a graphic designer and business coach and I’m endlessly fascinated by other peoples’ passions. It’s our passions that make us unique, relatable, and people that others want to work with and get to know. I’m on a mission to get people thinking about their story and how their life experiences have molded them into the entrepreneur, athlete, or professional that they are today. You may not be for everyone… but you are most DEFINITELY a person that SOMEONE out there needs right now. So, join me every Wednesday to hear from aspiring entrepreneurs and other professionals to see just how unique, authentic, and inspiring each person’s journey truly is.

  1. 11/30/2022

    Episode 38: [Jill Rothenberg] "How are you feeling today?" Pilates & Mental Health

    Introducing Jill Rothenberg! Jill is a pilates instructor and the owner of Movement With Jill, a virtual/in-person pilates studio based in Boston, MA. She's also a mental health advocate and believes that the body and mind go hand in hand and work together. In this episode we talk about... how many people don't workout for aesthetics and that our fitness goals often change throughout our lives how finding a designer who knows your brand and shares your values makes for an even more positive experience how different instructors will be a better fit for you than others and why that's okay how a toxic studio environment and witnessing friends going off on their own inspired her to start her own business how social media makes it so difficult to not compare your body and life to other people how you should ask someone you may potentially work with what their credentials are before committing how the pandemic and quarantine have created many more unique issues for our bodies and that science is always evolving how she handles running a business and having a social media presence with anxiety (and as an introvert!) how depression and helplessness were at the root of her fitness journey, and how sharing her traumas with others has allowed her to build a supportive community and find like minded people how setting app time limits has been helpful in managing time and burnout You can follow Jill on Instagram @movementwith_jill - and if you resonate with her message, check out her on demand class membership on her website movementwithjill.com!

    1h 4m

  2. 11/16/2022

    Episode 37: [Mac Dingle] Content Creation, Infertility Struggles, & Spreading Positivity

    Welcoming Mac Dingle to the podcast! Mac is a content creator, content curator, and vlogger. Most recently she's been sharing her infertility journey so she can connect with and help others going through the same struggles. In this episode, we talk about... how her environment has a big impact on her content's visual aesthetic and how it's always evolving how burnout in the corporate world and poor mental health lead her to explore other career paths how the discovery of Twitch and Zoella's channel on YouTube inspired her to start her own lifestyle vlogging journey what it was like opening up to strangers on the internet for the first time how amazing it has been to connect with other like minded people on the internet and, on the flipside, how tough it can be to deal with negativity how she responds to trolls and "kills them with kindness" instead of starting fights with and wasting energy how important it is for content creators to be paid for the work and content that they make  how social media is always changing and how "hopping on trends" can be stressful but often is worth the experiment (her latest experiment being YouTube shorts) how going "viral" should never be the goal because it rarely connects you with ideal clients and so much more! We also reminisce about the good ol Facebook days (remember poking??), and our mutual love for the state of Maine. Mac is a breath of fresh air in this negative, chaotic world! I highly recommend connecting with her on her various channels: just search "Mac Dingle" on Instagram, Twitch, YouTube, and TikTok (she's the only one!)

    1h 10m

  3. 11/02/2022

    Episode 36: [Dr. Sara Gagne, DC, CertMDT] Research-Based Chiropractic Care

    Welcoming Dr. Sara Gagne, DC, CertMDT, to the podcast! Sara is a chiropractor and the owner of Boston Spine and Performance. She has special interest in disc injuries, extremity pain, athletic recovery, and empowering patients to become the best versions of themselves. In this episode we talk about: how she is proud to be a Bostonian and how she wanted to incorporate that pride into her visual brand. why she included "performance" in the name and how the visual branding process can be long and expensive, but is so worthwhile how burnout as a pre-med student led her to explore different healthcare career opportunities how her pandemic lay off caused her to self-reflect and pushed her to start her own practice how the chiropractic profession is super polarized between "straight" doctors who rely on adjustments only and "mixers" who mix modalities in their care the fact that there are philosophy-based schools and evidence-based schools, and why you should work with a professional who went to the latter how chiropractic schools often integrate learning entrepreneurial skills into their curriculum my own personal experience working with a chiropractor and how it kickstarted my healing from a chronic back injury how building a brand consists of every interaction you have: whether it's in-person or on social media the inherent healing quality of human touch how avoiding burnout as a solo entrepreneur is always a struggle and how outsourcing some of the admin work has been so helpful for her Be sure to connect with her on Instagram @bostonspine, and learn more about her business on her website at bostonspineperformance.com. If you're interested in working with Sara check out her office on Boylston Street!

    45 min

  4. 10/19/2022

    Episode 35: [Lara Days] Dismantling Diet Culture

    Introducing Lara Days, a holistic health and life coach whose mission is to dismantle diet culture. She helps her clients feel empowered in their bodies and lives through education, support, and tons of unlearning. In this episode we talk about her musical and athletic background and about her business' transition from being solely nutrition-focused to more deep, holistic health coaching (and how selling intangible healing is not always easy!) We also talked about how doing CrossFit shifted her perspective on what healthy bodies look like, how frustrating it is that we are not taught accurate nutrition information in school, and the fact that people work out for other reasons other than to shrink their bodies and lose weight. So many people think that green smoothies and magic pills will help them feel good in their bodies, but ultimately, "mowing the lawn while your house is on fire" (i.e. doing the fancy/complicated things instead of focusing on good sleep/good nutrients/moving your body) won't heal your gut. She asked me an interesting question about the ethics behind running a business and making decisions that align with your core beliefs, and we discussed how it can be difficult to make a living while also keeping our integrity intact. Lara explains how it comes naturally for her to share her personal side on the 'gram and how it's been a fabulous way to meet and stay connected with people. She believes that if we want people to open up to us, we need to open up to them, and that vulnerability is hard but necessary for deep connections. We end our conversation on a positive note and talk about why she believes a shift is happening in regards to body diversity and acceptance (fingers crossed!) Oh, and we somehow got on the topic of our mutual pet peeve: when clients misspell or mispronounce our names (especially in emails!!! Come on people!!). Be sure to follow her on Instagram @lara.days and be on the lookout for details on her relaunched signature group coaching program called Nutrition Empowerment Project!

    56 min

  5. 10/05/2022

    Episode 34: [Erica Resha] FITISH: Where Fitness, Fashion, & Food Coexist

    Episode 34 is live! Introducing Erica Resha, owner and creator of FITISH Activewear! FITISH sells activewear, loungewear and tarnish-proof jewelry. I've had the pleasure of working with Erica to create some awesome, gorgeous products (that I actually get to wear!) It's been months in the making to get this busy woman on the podcast, and I am excited to finally share her contagious energy with the world! In this episode, we talked about why FITish was created, her blog beginnings, how COVID affected her personally and professionally, and why quality-testing all her products is of the utmost importance. We then dug into the fitness and fashion industries and how you can't tell how healthy someone is just by their appearance, her love for empowering women, and why representation is so important to have in the fashion industry. We talked about how self-reflection and working through her insecurities has helped her build resilience, her love/hate relationship with Instagram, and why it's so important to surround ourselves with supportive people. With the holiday season approaching we should all keep in mind the different ways we can support our friends' businesses without spending money! Follow her on Instagram @fitish_activewear and shop her products on Etsy at https://www.etsy.com/shop/FITISHactive. And stay tuned for her new website coming soon!

    59 min

  6. 09/21/2022

    Episode 33: [Lindsey Singleton] "Be curious, not critical"

    Introducing Lindsey Singleton! Lindsey is the owner of Lighthouse Coaching & Consulting, where she runs a mental health private practice and does coaching and public speaking! She uses her business as a platform to work with adolescents, adults, athletes, etc. through transitions (whether that's going into college, leaving college, athletes struggling with identity transitions as they leave their sport, and more) Prior to starting her own business, she spent 14 years as a director of a college counseling center. In this episode we talk about: The variety of reasons (such as COVID changing the college landscape) that caused her to pursue her own business  The importance of intervention AND prevention when it comes to many mental health struggles How MY transition into college was a tough one (and why finding my "people" was key) Creating spaces in higher education where you can authentically have conversations about hard sh*t while allowing individuals to own their struggles The idea that anyone can be a leader and how she aimed to create more mentors and leaders while working in higher education How we over-pathologize our symptoms and feelings and how that can be harmful to our mental health journey How we can build resilience and strengthen mental health "muscles" by dealing with our emotions The symbolism behind the Lighthouse brand and the enormous impact a previous program by the same name had on her life personally and professionally The fact that things will always change around you that are outside of your control - but you have the power to write your own story and create positivity out of it How designers need to give their clients permission to trust themselves even though they aren't a graphic designer and say "no, I don't like this" How it's difficult to break into the public speaking industry and how politics and money often make it difficult to get in front of populations that need the most help Why it's so difficult lately to find a therapist with openings (!!) Oh, and our mutual beef with meditation. Lindsey is SO passionate about what she does and I can speak from personal experience when I say she is an incredible speaker! Get in touch with her at lighthousecc.info and to learn more about her services (or to bring her on as a speaker!)

    1h 6m

  7. 09/07/2022

    Episode 32: [Courtney Schwabe] Contraire Studio: Brand Creation & Activation

    Everyone, meet Courtney Schwabe! Courtney is a Brand Designer and the owner of Contraire Studio, a branding studio based in Somerville, MA. Contraire helps clients with brand creation and identity for new businesses as well as brand activation: think websites, marketing materials, package design, and more. Contraire recently partnered with Selma Blair (!!) on a Guided Beauty campaign and Courtney loves working with consumer product brands. In this episode we talked about what it's like working for agencies and how a string of unhealthy work environments led her to start her own studio. We chatted about the branding process and how ultimately getting help from other creatives was key in establishing her own unique visual brand. We dove into our mutual struggles with the concept of work credit and how the right people rarely get the recognition that they deserve for the work they've done (lots of gray area in the age of social media - where are the guidelines for crediting?!)  Speaking of social media - we talked about how she's still figuring out how she wants to use her social platforms and the various questions she consistently asks herself, such as ""why am I creating? What is the reason for posting this? Am I just checking a box?"" Having a business definitely adds even more pressure for us to show up online, which can work against our personal needs and desires.  We also talked about doing what you truly want to do vs. what comes easy - and the dangers of saying yes to things that aren't the best fit.  It was so much fun to reconnect with Courtney (we went to high school together!) and talk about design and business. If you want to learn more about her studio go to contrairestudio.com (and be sure to follow her biz on the 'gram @contrairestudio! Her work is incredible!

    47 min

  8. 08/24/2022

    Episode 31: [Morgan Davis] Notably Vegan

    Introducing Morgan Davis! Morgan is the creator of Notably Vegan, a vegan and gluten free blog. Morgan and I worked together in 2021 to create her blog's visual brand, and it was SO much fun! In this episode we talked about the branding process and why we went in a direction that was less in-your-face shades of green and more elegant, natural, and earthy. We then discussed her vegan journey and her tips for starting the transition. As a vegan myself, we both agreed that taking it slow and partnering up with someone throughout the process will make it a much more successful endeavor. We also talked about her transition from the corporate world of burnout to a more aligned lifestyle where she is following her passions as well as doing "the thing" even though it's scary! The mental energy it takes to start a business and work through each obstacle is immense, but so worth it! Morgan and I also chatted about how social media has fit into her business and the comparison traps that we all fall into on Instagram. In the end, as long as we are serving our audience, providing value, and asking for feedback we are doing our job! Check out Morgan's amazing blog notablyvegan.com and be sure to follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest @notablyvegan !

    52 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
7 Ratings

About

Hey there and welcome to the That’s So On-Brand Podcast! I’m your host, Kristen Mann. I’m a graphic designer and business coach and I’m endlessly fascinated by other peoples’ passions. It’s our passions that make us unique, relatable, and people that others want to work with and get to know. I’m on a mission to get people thinking about their story and how their life experiences have molded them into the entrepreneur, athlete, or professional that they are today. You may not be for everyone… but you are most DEFINITELY a person that SOMEONE out there needs right now. So, join me every Wednesday to hear from aspiring entrepreneurs and other professionals to see just how unique, authentic, and inspiring each person’s journey truly is.

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