Embracing Creativity and Authenticity with Alexis Underwood

SPEAKERS

Rita Suzanne, Alexis Underwood

Rita Suzanne  00:01

Welcome to the Mom Owned and Operated Podcast, the podcast about moms and for moms, where we have candid conversations about running a business, raising a family, and remembering ourselves. I’m your host, Rita Suzanne, a single mom of four, digital strategist and provider of no nonsense business strategies and tactics.

Today I have my guest, Alexis Underwood, with me. Thank you so much for joining us, Alexis. I’m so excited to chat with you. Please tell everyone all about you, your family and your business.

Alexis Underwood: 0:42

Hi, thanks so much for having me. I’m so excited to be here. My name is Alexis Underwood. I own Alexis Underwood Design Studio. I am a brand strategist and a website designer, but I’m also, in the time that I’m not working, a mama to two and a wife and a little bit of a wanderer. We are a small RV living family right now. So that’s like a very quick snapshot about who I am and what we’re doing right now.

Rita Suzanne: 1:09

Yeah, I love it. It’s in, especially because you’re you’re unschooling, which I am so interested in. Like, what does that mean? How is that different from homeschooling? Like, what is that?

Alexis Underwood: 1:22

So I take a little bit more of a hands off approach with education. We still do a lot of learning my kids, but it’s a little bit more kid led. So if my kids want to learn numbers, today, we’re going to do math. If they want to bake, today, we’re going to bake and they’re getting hands-on experience. And they’re still they’re five and six, so they’re still really young but I’m kind of letting them take the initiative to, one, learn how to learn and two, to show me what they’re interested in doing.

Alexis Underwood: 1:48

I was homeschooled myself all growing up. I highly recommend it and I loved being homeschooled, but I spent a lot of time being nailed to my kitchen table and I just don’t necessarily feel like at this age, especially where my kids are at that there needs to be a lot of heavy curriculum time, totally, totally a time and place for that, depending on what you’re doing. But for us we just wanted something that was a little more flexible and also I’m running a business and so it’s a lot easier for me to do my work and kind of facilitate some playful learning, rather than that structured, school-like environment. Um, so it just it works really well for us right now. I’m enjoying it and so are the kids for the most part.

Rita Suzanne: 2:27

I could see. I could see how that would work um really well for those ages specifically. I could see how that would work really well for those ages specifically. Yeah, so tell us, how did you end up starting your business?

Alexis Underwood: 2:43

How did you get into design? So this actually is something that I stumbled upon while I was doing another business. I, like many women, started very, very early on in the selling different things affiliate MLM space, and we all start somewhere. I’m not totally proud of that moment, but from there I started to really dabble and investigate in other business models and other creative endeavors, and I was so inspired by all these women I saw online doing creative things that they actually love to do and they were making money doing it. And so when I became a mom for the first time, I decided to become a stay-at-home parent for the first time. I’d always worked in medicine in the past and I loved what I did, but I couldn’t really figure out how I was going to. It didn’t make sense in my mind to pay for my kids to be taken care of by somebody else, for me to gross maybe 10% of my paycheck per month, because I was paying all of it for kid care and I wanted to be home with my babies. So I decided to explore some things that I loved doing and in my time I started creating jewelry that had encouraging and inspiring phrases on it and my kids’ birthdays and things like that and I shared it online and that totally blew up really quickly and kind of became a business that I began to love. I realized there were a lot of people that were doing something similar to what I was doing and so I kind of began dabbling in breast milk jewelry and ash jewelry and things like that, which is a very unique, very niche industry. It kind of coincided with what I was doing already and so I could kind of continue to share that passion of creative jewelry making. But it was a lot more niche and it allowed me to serve a market of women that were kind of underserved. There’s not a lot of that kind of work being created. There are a few amazing jewelers, but it was. It was very niche. So it was easy for me to grow that way and I loved the business. I loved it.

Alexis Underwood: 4:33

But I slowly started to realize that I wanted to be doing my website stuff and sending people emails and designing postcards and doing all of the backend stuff in my business, rather than actually doing the jewelry creating anymore. And I tried to push through it and I realized you know what, like, my creativity needs to be creative. I can’t fulfill orders and get my creativity from there and I’m not able to pour in that same energy into what I had originally started and what I was able to do in the past. So when we went to sell our very big house and move into 280 square feet of RV, I realized that there was absolutely no way that business was going to fit into my tiny RV because I had a whole studio of workspace for this jewelry company. So I took the push and I just said you know what? We’re going to pivot, we’re going to try this.

Alexis Underwood: 5:22

I am completely self-taught, but I love helping people figure out how to find their unique space in the industry, in their industry, how to put their own unique spin on their business, how to let their personality shine, how to connect with people that they actually enjoy connecting with in business, so that they’re not feeling like it’s a drain to interact with people all the time. They’re actually enlivened and excited to interact with their clients and to talk to their customers and things like that. And so I made the pivot and I announced and I think I um, I got a client within like the first week of announcing that I was switching my business and I just kind of was like all right, this is, this is where we’re going, and it’s kind of. I’ve just kind of pivoted and taken off from there.

Rita Suzanne: 6:05

I love it. I love it. So this episode is about finding the joy in your business. So tell us more, a little bit more about that. Like, how do you feel like people can find the joy in their business? Because I think that a lot of times, you know, the effort is really focused on. I always say, all the time people start businesses because they want to have time and financial freedom typically right. So obviously, if we could find joy in our business, that would be a nice side effect as well.

Alexis Underwood: 6:37

Absolutely. I fully believe that there are so many opportunities for entrepreneurship out there. If you’re doing something you enjoy, that’s amazing, and if you’re not, there’s room to pivot and either dramatically and drastically or just make those little pivots in a way that allows you to feel like you’re more aligned, make you feel more energized and more excited to show up in your business. Obviously it’s work, but it’s something that, if you can find whatever about it, lights you up and focus on that and then hands the other things off, outsource the other things or choose not to do the things that are draining to you.

Alexis Underwood: 7:12

For me, I’m an introvert you would never know because I show up on social media very excitedly and I’m very excited when I talk with my clients, and that is genuine.

Alexis Underwood: 7:20

However, I very much need my time to step away and so, for me, I don’t do a lot of live videos unless they’re in my courses, and I don’t do a lot of reels because, to me, video is just very draining for me energetically, and so I choose to post and I choose to send emails and I choose to be in the DMs and I will voice message somebody for two and a half hours in the middle of the daytime if they want to ping pong back and forth and talk, but I will not show up on video and that’s just something that I’ve learned to create a boundary for myself.

Alexis Underwood: 7:49

I know that that’s not something that I, that I feel excited to do and that really drains me and affects and ripples the rest of my business and the way that I’m able to show up everywhere else. And so I think, finding your boundaries of what feels good for you and finding the boundaries of what doesn’t, and kind of drawing those lines and then just leaning into what works, because there’s a million people out there looking for something that somebody has to offer, for what you have to offer, like whatever, whatever you’re doing in your business, there’s somebody that needs you and there’s somebody that aligns similarly to who you are and how you’re comfortable showing up authentically. So if it doesn’t feel good, don’t force it because somebody else is out there doing something that feels good to them. That’s, that’s different. Does that make sense?

Rita Suzanne: 8:33

No, it does, and I love that you say you know, using the video as an example, because a lot of people are, you know, will share, like you have to be on video in order to promote your business and as long as you’re promoting your business and whatever you’re doing is working for you, I think that that’s you know, that that’s. That’s good enough, right? Because a lot of times people, especially introverted females, are afraid to actually promote themselves online and that doesn’t mean that they have to do it by video, right?

Rita Suzanne: 9:10

It just means that you need to do some type of promotion. It doesn’t matter if it’s on video, you just need to do something. And I love that you use that as an example, because if I’m saying like, put yourself out there, that doesn’t necessarily mean get out there on a million videos and live stream till your heart’s content. So I love that example. So, because you have your little ones with you and I remember back when I started doing my business and I had my littles they were, I think, four and six and it was. You know, I was doing design back then and I just remember how challenging it was trying to design a website or a brand with my with me. So how do you juggle that, in addition to being in such a confined space?

Alexis Underwood: 10:03

You know that looks like something different every day for me. There are small sacrifices that I’m making now to continue to grow my business, that I know that probably won’t be something that I do for the long haul, but I get up super, super early in the morning. My husband leaves or he gets up at 4am and I get up at 4am and my kids sleep till 7. And so I mean, do I love it? No, am I a morning person? No, do I still get up and do some work in the morning, cause it’s the only uninterrupted time I’m going to get all day. Yeah, and you know, in the evening sometimes we put a family movie on and I will totally sit down and hang out and snuggle, but I might be messaging somebody or I might be on Pinterest, scrolling on my phone coming up with an idea for a strategy for a client or something like that. So I kind of try to fit it in where I’m able to. And then, um, you know I multitask a lot, but, uh, you know I try to carve out as much time as I can.

Alexis Underwood: 10:57

My husband has been amazing and he started to, as he’s noticed, like some substantial growth in my business. He started to be more, not that he wasn’t before, but he’s more of a team player now. He’s like, oh, you need some time to work. Okay, go go to a coffee shop for a couple hours in the morning on Saturday. And I’m like, okay. So you know, just it’s, it’s a family dynamic, it’s a team effort. Everybody knows my kids are out there watching a movie right now and I told them hey, I’m going to be on an important phone call. This is the only phone call I have today. You need to not interrupt me for a little bit of time. They have snacks, movie, movie, and you know we just it’s, it’s a whole, it’s a team effort, like the whole family kind of plays, plays their role and I do what I can to keep it as minimally affecting them as possible, and then you know we all kind of work together on it, I guess yeah, I love that.

Rita Suzanne: 11:42

I remember, um, my ex-husband. He would always say, like, okay, we’re gonna pick a day and you can go to the library or you can go to the coffee shop or wherever, and I’ll watch, you know, I’ll be here with them and you can just go. And it was so great because I just remember the freedom in that and just and just feeling like I could actually, you know, do things without having a million requests at the same time, like, can I have juice? Or you know, because even if he would, be there, they would still come to me as the default.

Rita Suzanne: 12:21

Yeah, that’s, you know, I guess, the thing. So let’s talk a little bit about branding, you know, because obviously that’s one of my favorite things to talk about and it seems like it’s one of your favorite things to talk about as well. What is? What do you feel like is one of the most important factors for a business as far as a brand goes?

Alexis Underwood: 12:43

I think I typically work with personal brands or somebody that is a solopreneur behind the face of a brand like a business name, and in my opinion, one of the most important things to do to actually create a long lasting brand that’s successful is to show up in a way that feels aligned with who you are as a person and is authentic to who you are For me. I am an RV mom. I am a casual mama. Yes, I have professional photos because I absolutely believe in putting myself out there professionally and my business is aesthetic based, so I want my photos to look nice. But if you hop into my DMs, I’m going to voice message you and my kid might be asking for a snack in the background and that’s just like. That’s just the way it is and I’m not going to fight it and I’m not going to get mad about it and that’s just authentically who I am.

Alexis Underwood: 13:31

I serve other moms and typically my clients are. You know I serve a lot of women, but typically my clients are moms and so they understand and that’s okay. And I’ve been able to create a brand that is successful because I like that is real for me and I don’t have to fight it continually, day in and day out, and that’s also allowing me to attract the type of people that are totally cool with that kind of I don’t know the way that I the way that I do business. So I always recommend to all of my clients if it feels right for you, great.

Alexis Underwood: 14:00

If this is authentic for you and you are like thriving in this, let’s like move that way, because there are people that want that, that, that part of you and that are looking for that in a business. And if it doesn’t fill a line, please don’t force it because it’ll, it’ll. It’s like pulling teeth. It’s like, if you don’t like to show up on reels, it’s like showing up on reels every day and you’re just like I hate this and you don’t. You don’t want, you don’t want to feel that way about your business because everybody will pick up on it. It affects your energy, it affects how you show up, it affects everything and it’s a ripple effect. And yeah, that’s what I would say, just being real.

Rita Suzanne: 14:36

Yeah, it reminds me of when you say that. It made me think okay, so my business, I’ve been in business. I just celebrated like 10 years last week, the beginning of this month, and so one thing that it reminds me of is when I first started, and for the longest time before COVID.

Rita Suzanne: 14:55

Okay, so the thing was is everybody knew that you’re here running your business with your kids, right, but nobody, you’re not supposed to make it seem like you’re here running your business with your kids. It was very much don’t, don’t, don’t make a noise, don’t let anybody know that you, because then it wouldn’t appear professional, right, you wanted people to take you more professional, but after COVID and after everybody became more aware of you know, like people are working from home, this is how it is. It was more acceptable and now it’s more people are coming out and it’s I, and that is the one thing, probably the main thing that came of that to me that it was like now we can be more, you know, acceptable, you know accepted and embraced by, um, you know, being being able to work at home with our kids and and, and I love that aspect of the whole thing, yeah.

Alexis Underwood: 15:55

I think that that actually is a selling point to a lot of people, especially in if you are an entrepreneur and you’re in kind of this alternative lifestyle space, whatever that might look like for you, whether that is just I want freedom to work for myself, or you’re doing something like me, where you’re like really living, like wildly off the grid and outside of the normal beat, we’re drawn to that. That’s what we want, like we aren’t doing this so that we can be plugged back into corporate settings. So, trying to behave like a corporate business, we’re not going to compete. One because corporates have the monopoly in that industry. And two, because if somebody like why does anybody want that? We don’t want that. If we want that, we’ll go there. If I want target, I’ll go to target and I do. But if I want bespoke and I want, you know, boutique kind of stuff, I’m going to go to a small shop. So like don’t, you don’t have to act like target if you’re going to be that smaller business. You know what I mean.

Rita Suzanne: 16:46

No, I like, I like all of that. So I’ve been hearing a lot about this current market. Let me ask you, as an entrepreneur, what are your feelings about this current market? Are you feeling like it’s a little bit overly saturated? What are your feelings about what’s going on in the market?

Alexis Underwood: 17:08

You know it’s so interesting because I personally just subscribe to the mindset that there’s room for everybody. I honestly feel like there is room for all of us and I think the reason why is because each of us has a unique story, a unique approach to things, a unique strategy to how we do things or to the you know, the products that we’re creating or whatever that might look like. I think there’s room. I do think that online, though, it looks like there’s way too many people because it’s kind of a whoever screams the loudest gets the most attention kind of situation right now. And yes, that may set us up for depending on you know who’s who’s getting the attention that immediate, quick growth. But I think that if you are in it for the long haul and you want to grow a business consistently it’s intimate, one-on-one relationships you don’t need to get massive viewership. You don’t need to have incredible like interaction on your social media. It’s not like unplug unplug from that space and go elsewhere.

Alexis Underwood: 18:09

I’ve started hosting networking events. I have maybe 35 people on my email list. The amount of money that I have created from those 35 people is substantial and I started these relationships in January and that was a brand new thing that I’ve started doing because I don’t love being online on social media, like. Like. I love the one-on-one relationships If you want to DM me, fine, but I don’t want to post and have to compete with all these other people that are all posting, because it becomes like a giant ad wall on social media. Nobody wants that and that’s why it’s so hard to get traction.

Alexis Underwood: 18:41

So I think that the online space, yes, feels very saturated. I don’t think it is. I think it’s just saturated on for us to serve individually and larger groups of people. But I think that it just takes a little bit of a different mindset and a different approach and you have to really be dialed into your brand and who you are as an entrepreneur and how you serve people and what you offer and how you feel comfortable showing up, so that you can kind of really dial that in.

Rita Suzanne: 19:21

Yeah, I completely agree. I’ve been telling my clients, and pretty much everyone else too, that I feel like there needs to be a more well-rounded approach to your marketing strategy. Right, it needs to be. You need to be networking locally as social media, your website and all of your you know, your email marketing and your, you know business, your Google, my Business, all of that stuff needs to kind of work in a more well-rounded approach.

Rita Suzanne: 19:56

And I started, you know, it’s like I feel like sometimes when you work at home, it becomes really hard to do, or we feel like it’s hard to do local networking because now we have to leave, right, and it feels like it’s such a you know, it’s such a burden to actually like do all these things.

Rita Suzanne: 20:23

But I feel like if you just do one day a week, one day, you know, do one event a week, then it’s great and it’s not too overwhelming and even as an introvert, it’s not that bad to get out there and you know, and just put yourself out there and the relationships, like you said, the relationships that you build will be a lot more substantial. And I’ve started doing not even just local networking, but I’m, in May, going to do like more virtual networking as well, because I feel, like like you, that these relationships are way more important than the vanity metrics of do I have 100k followers like that to me? Or is my email list, you know, 100,000, whatever, that’s not important. I don’t really care about any of that stuff. I’m really more focused on the one on one relationships and how to make an impact with more people versus who’s following me like I could care less, right.

Alexis Underwood: 21:25

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I think that you, that’s really it and you nailed it and that’s one of the phrases that he uses If you want more impact and income, because we’re talking about actually connecting with people. Like the whole point of what many of us, especially in business to business, are doing is trying to actually influence and benefit and grow other people. So if we pull back from the like number count and we focus on the actual people that we’re connecting with, it makes things so much easier and, like you said, getting out once a week, that’s like it’s so energizing.

Alexis Underwood: 21:54

Honestly, even as an introvert, like it sucks to get up and get ready and have to go out.

Alexis Underwood: 21:58

Like I totally get the whole anxiety of like I’m meeting new people thing. Like I don’t like that grab a wingman, but like you never know who you’re gonna meet. Like you might meet your business bestie and this might be somebody that you’re in completely different areas of the industry or of industries or whatever. But you talk every day and you’re all of a sudden you have these new relationships that encourage you and inspire you and like are just a positive influence in your life and you know when you go to those events and you leave and you’re just like I’m so excited, I’m so on fire, I have all these ideas, you know, when you go to those events and you leave and you’re just like I’m so excited, I’m so on fire, I have all these ideas, you know. It allows you to offer that to other people from your own, like amazing, unique, you know abilities, but it also allows you to get that from other people as well, so it’s just like it’s a win-win for everybody.

Rita Suzanne: 22:40

Yeah, and I think like the number one tip that I can give people for networking in general, regardless if it’s virtual or in person, is just go in there to make friends with people. Don’t go in there and like sell something right away, cause I really I really like that’s my biggest pet peeve is like when somebody is like hey, I own this thing and like coming by for me and you know right away you’re going to just be put off, like just go in there, very nonchalant, just you know right away you’re going to just be put off, like just go in there, very nonchalant, just you know. Just try to make relationships is the number one priority, and I think that’s where you’re going to see the biggest growth for any of your things. Regardless of where you’re, you know you’re focusing.

Rita Suzanne: 23:23

So yeah, and like I said, I I remember when I got my first, very first client, it was through local networking. I have went through a you know, so you can get clients through these groups. Plus, you can make friends locally, and that’s always nice. Um to to make people who you know, make friends with people who are like-minded and have, you know, similar goals as you, I think is really important. So, yeah, yeah, so super. And, by the way, your website is gorgeous. I love it. I love the vibe. Everything is is very beautiful. So not only do you have the done for you services on there, but you have a course on there and you have some DIY stuff coming soon for people as well.

Alexis Underwood: 24:10

Yep, yeah, so I do. I do the high ticket, like the very bespoke hand illustrated brands, which there’s absolutely time and place for, and those are my favorite. I absolutely love doing them. But I also realized that there’s a place that I wish I was served better as an earlier entrepreneur, where I was like I know that I need something more than like the Canva logo, but I’m not ready to spend $6,000. Like what, like why? Why that I need something more than like the Canva logo but I’m not ready to spend $6,000. Like what, like why? Like there’s something missing in the middle here, like I just need something, like somewhere to like bridge the gap for the next year while I continue to grow. And so I remember wanting that so desperately. And so many of the people that I talked to are moms that, like since COVID, have started business, they’re still figuring out they might be pivoting, they might be, you know, just trying to dabble in it a couple of days a week, so it’s sort of a side gig for them still, even though they would like to and aspire to create that into a full-time thing down the road, and they’re not ready to dive into this like huge project. But they need some sort of support beyond.

Alexis Underwood: 25:08

I whipped up a logo on Canva because that’s not my area of expertise and I’m not a visual person and like this is annoying and I don’t want to do this. So I’ve created a space called the Greenhouse Academy and it is pretty much an opportunity to come into my space for lifetime access and you get access to everything that I create. You get behind the scenes of my business. You get behind the scenes of my email marketing. You get behind the scenes of everything I do. You get access to my like clarity blueprint, which is what I take every single client through, which is essentially everything you need to do that you don’t know that you need to do before you do the visuals of your business. You know getting to know who your ideal client is, figuring out what you want your business to actually look like, what your values are where, how you want to position yourself in the industry so that you actually get traction, and you know how to market yourself against your competitors and I believe in community over competition.

Alexis Underwood: 25:58

But you can’t get attention if you don’t know what you do well and what your areas aren’t your forte. So I have essentially it’s just like a massive, growing vault of resources and courses and behind the scenes and support with a group component, so that you don’t feel like you’re just getting another giant vault of like videos. You actually get the help and the support in the community to help you implement and figure out how to actually take what you’re learning and make it actually help you be successful in your business. So that is Greenhouse Academy that I just launched recently and I’m super excited about it and the women that are in there are absolutely loving it so far and it’s been really fun. And I will be launching some semi-custom brand kits where I’ve already curated an aesthetic. So if you know your style and your vibe and you just want somebody to do the graphic adaptations of a look that you already have fallen in love with, then that’ll be an option as well.

Rita Suzanne: 26:55

So, yeah, yeah, I love that. I think that that’s super smart and I think that it’s kind of serving everybody wherever they are at a certain point. So the Greenhouse Academy is that just website and branding stuff, or is it like more online business related Cause you’d mentioned email as well?

Alexis Underwood: 27:15

So it’s geared towards an online business owner.

Alexis Underwood: 27:19

Of course, my primary focus is on branding and website design, so there’s going to be how to create your own website, how to do copywriting, things like that.

Alexis Underwood: 27:26

But I also am planning to bring in experts, and I have some people that are on my schedule who talk more about mindset and who do talk about SEO, which is not I mean, I know how to do it, but it’s not my forte, and so I want to bring somebody in that can give that as a little bit more meaty version of it and so kind of creating a space where I will definitely pour into you my story, my expertise, what I’m doing, if you want to see the systems and strategies which I wish I could have seen from the people that I was inspired by.

Alexis Underwood: 27:53

I was like can I just like be a fly on the wall in your business? So that’s what I’m opening this space up as, but then I also will be bringing in experts who can share more about email marketing in a more technical, like a more official capacity and who can talk about some of these other things, and so maybe a product specialist who talks about product pricing and how to actually make money in your industry when you’re selling products, and how to price competitively but still actually make sure that it’s worth your time and energy things like that.

Rita Suzanne: 28:23

Love it, I love that. And who’s this? Who, would you say, is the perfect person for this? I don’t want to call it. What is it like? A membership site? What is it? How do you classify it?

Alexis Underwood: 28:35

It’s, it’s a lifetime membership, but, yes, um, it’s. I don’t know if it’s my, it’s my signature thing, I don’t know. I just don’t have a name. It’s like a group. It’s like it’s like a group. Yeah, it’s a big group plus a vault.

Alexis Underwood: 28:50

Um, this is perfect for the entrepreneur. It’s mostly women’s space, obviously, and this is perfect for somebody that is either still figuring it out and just is trying to figure out what do I need to know that I don’t know yet. Somebody that wants that friendship and that camaraderie and just some other ideas and to have some inspiration, kind of a long-term mastermind where they can get encouragement and support and brainstorming and then also continue to kind of learn and expand as they continue to grow. Anybody that’s like I want to be in an entrepreneur space. I don’t even really know what I’m doing yet, but I kind of like to research ahead of time.

Alexis Underwood: 29:27

Even that kind of person would be perfect in this, because it is a low priced item.

Alexis Underwood: 29:33

It is something that can be bit off. You know, I do have a monthly option and I have a like one-time payment option and the monthly is you pay for 12 months and then you’re paid in full and you’re in there for forever. And so I kind of want this to be an option where, like, if you’re envisioning six months down the road starting a new business and you just want to learn, like how to, how to do the website, like how to do the marketing, let me ask questions, let me see what everybody else is doing so I can figure out, kind of what I want to do. It’s still a place for you as well, and I mean honestly I don’t want to say there’s a place for everybody, but like I have six figure business earners in there too who are just like I just want to have, I want to learn more and I want to keep practicing and I want to tweak things and I just want, I want to have those friendships and relationships and I don’t know.

Rita Suzanne: 30:17

Yeah, I love that. I think you know it’s it depends on what they want to learn and they, and you know they want, and I’m sure that they love your style because it is so unique and it is, you know, so beautiful. You know the way that your, your aesthetic, is just very gorgeous, but also very simple at the same time. It’s and it’s not like overly, you know it’s not overdone, is my point. It’s, it’s very, it’s very nice. Okay, so let’s, let’s wrap things up and let’s talk about my favorite question of all time is always I like to ask about how are you able to do things for you. You know, outside of your business, outside of your family, what are you doing for yourself?

Alexis Underwood: 31:07

Oh boy. Well, that is a fantastic question. I feel like as a mom and a business owner, that’s one of those areas that often gets overlooked and it’s something that I have to repeatedly remember. But for me that looks like making little changes throughout the day or taking little moments throughout the day on a regular basis, more than I took a spa weekend or I go out once a week for a whole day by myself. That is just not attainable for my family in this moment.

Alexis Underwood: 31:36

So for me, getting up in the morning, spending the first 30, 45 minutes doing whatever I want that’s Bible study or working out or sipping a cup of coffee and just scrolling because I’m tired and I just want to chill, Like whatever that looks like for me in that morning, I give myself that space and that time in the morning Don’t necessarily want to be awake, like I said, but at least I get that me time that I wouldn’t necessarily get otherwise, and then just stepping away from the work, stepping away from the kids space.

Alexis Underwood: 32:05

I try to book extra time into my work projects so that if I do have a day that I’m just like I’m feeling overworked, I’m feeling spent, I’m feeling really harried and irritable and I just wish I could have the day off that I can do that to the extent that maybe that looks like my kids and I vegging TV and I just kind of have to make space for it’s okay if we’re all sitting on the couch watching TV today, like that’s fine and just kind of giving myself that permission. So it’s more a mental and like little actions thing for me and maybe some of those bigger, bigger actions that perhaps might look different for somebody else.

Rita Suzanne: 32:38

Yeah, I always um. When I first started this, I always um. Would use the example of you know, cause my kids were younger at the time. Now they’re all teenagers, so it’s, it’s things look a little bit different, um, but you know, sometimes it would be sitting in the car for a few minutes before coming home, or sitting in, you know, being in the bathroom by myself, you know.

Alexis Underwood: 33:02

I actually peed by myself today. It was great.

Rita Suzanne: 33:06

Literally locking myself in the bathroom just to have a few minutes of peace and quiet, you know. So it’s, I think it’s just really depends, and it can be, it can really just be anything that feeds you and makes you, you know, like, gives you that energy to, you know, let you move forward in any way, that’s, you know, that works for you. So where can everyone find you, alexis? Where are you at?

Alexis Underwood: 33:36

so, um, where can everyone find you, alexis, where are you at? So I’m on instagram at alexis underwood design studio and I’m also on my website, which is alexisunderwood.com. I have a blog and, um, you can find some other stuff. My little newsletter sign up is in there. You could take my quiz, things like that. Um, I’m also on facebook. You could find me probably through my instagram is the easiest way to do that, because my handle some funky little, it won’t let me change it for some reason. But yeah, that’s where you can find me.

Rita Suzanne: 34:01

Well, thank you so much. It’s been such a pleasure and I appreciate you know chatting with you. It’s been great.

Alexis Underwood: 34:08

Thank you so much for having me. It was wonderful to chat.

And there you have it. I want to encourage you to remember that being a mom who runs her own business is not easy. We all struggle, but just keep moving forward. And don’t forget to make time for yourself. As moms we are usually the first thing to go to the bottom of the list. If your business is overwhelming you and you need real solutions, not just some sugar coated suggestions apply to work with me at ritasuzanne.com/apply