When Mary Williams, founder of Sasquatch Media and self-described "business dinosaur", interviewed me for her final season of School of Moxie, she dropped the mic before we even hit record.
“People think business is unusually hard right now. I’d argue this is normal. The early 2020s were the anomaly.” 🎤🔥
Those words have been in the back of my mind all summer, whether I’m working on copywriting projects, hosting IRL gatherings, or chatting with fellow biz owners, but mostly when I hear any variation of:
“It’s so hard to get clients.”
“My inquiries have dipped.”
“Nothing is working anymore.”
“We’re in a trust recession.”
If you find yourself thinking this, or in a place where this is the only narrative, then you need to listen – nay, binge – all ten episodes of this season.
It’s candid conversations with ten women (including yours truly) who said “my business pays for my life” and have the receipts to back it up.
Not someday.
Not "in theory once things pick up."
It’s right now – no safety net, no spouse covering the mortgage, no side hustle that’s disguised as a hobby. Every guest this season shares the realities of running a business that fully supports her real life.
We talk about health insurance premiums (spoiler: they're all over the map and none of them are fun 👎), what happens the day you lose 50% of your revenue, what nobody warns you about, and the bill each of us is weirdly proud to pay.
These episodes might trigger you. They might inspire you. Or…you may realize you’re closer to "my business pays for my life" than you think.
Most importantly, you’ll hear from ten business owners who know “It’s so hard to get clients” can’t be the final stop.
🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast app
📺 Watch us on YouTube
If you’re not sure which episode to start with, hit reply. I’ve got a collection of spicy one-sentence soundbites that’ll help.
xo, Ari
P.S. My brain naturally thinks about value: what your clients will actually pay for, what keeps their attention, and what makes something feel worth buying. That’s the lens I bring to every copywriting project. ’Cause I know the economics of self-employment and the reality that no one’s coming to save your cash flow but you. I’ve also done the money mindset work, including the tedious, unsexy side of paying off $80k in student loan debt - every dollar from my business.
Your business can support you, and I know a thing or two about words that help make that happen. Wanna team up?