Episode 7. Simone McNish Transcript

Simone McNish (00:01):

And I'm in labor and selling these courses and I see notifications pop up as I'm like having this baby... And I'm all "Somebody else bought, somebody else bought!" And looking back on that I'm like, what was I thinking? Why did I need to have a launch while I was having a baby, like this doesn't make any sense...

Tianna Tye (00:26):

I'm Tianna Tye, first time mama, entrepreneur, and speaker. And if you're hearing this right now, I am so excited for you because you are officially a part of a community unlike anything that's ever existed before. Here we welcome the weird cravings, the constant napping, and the high achieving spirit that us business owners are known for. Here we are pulling back the curtain on what it's really like to grow a human while running a business at the same time. Now, let me be clear, I am not the expert here. Crazy words coming from an Enneagram five. I'm just a first time mama who did something that I'm extremely proud of. I asked for help. I tapped my network of powerful business owners, authors, and generally just incredible humans who have been there before. Whether they unexpectedly had their first kid just a year into business or started their family after their company hit seven figures plus, or maybe they were just in full planning mode trying to conceive, they are dishing it all. So get ready for real conversation in a look at these personal journeys that are going to leave you expecting not only a baby, but a powerful evolution of self. This is the Expecting CEO.

Tianna Tye (01:45):

All right. All right. So today we are joined by Simone McNish, who is an incredible person. I'm gonna let her talk all about herself. I'm not gonna spill the beans on all the things that have to do with Simone, but first of all, we have been friends on Instagram for some time, ma'am, and I was just telling her offline, I was like, Wait a second, you had your little girl a year ago. She just let me know that her, her second is now a year old. Time really flies. But I was keeping my eye on Simone when I found out that Simone was expecting her second just because we kind of ran in the same network. And I was like, Ooh. Cause it was already kinda on my mind. I was like, Mm, we're gonna start trying sometimes soon. Let me see, see what this looking like. So I'm so excited to finally get to talk to you, but before we talk all things motherhood and babies in business, just tell everybody kind the highlights. Like, who is Simone? What have you been doing in this world?

Simone McNish (02:38):

Oh goodness. Who is Simone? I feel like that is always the hardest question. Who am I? Right? Existential question. But I am Simone and I'm a mom of two amazing little girls. One is a year old and the other one is five and half. So they have a little bit of an but the five and a half year old's very helpful. So professionally, well, sorry, personally I'm also a wife. I also love reality tv. I love Trader Joe's. I'm pretty basic in a lot of ways, but I enjoy being, and professionally I am a diversity, equity and inclusion consultant. And I work with agencies, I work with entrepreneurs, I work with nonprofits, all on building their equitable and inclusive teams and making sure that their branding is inclusive and their marketing campaigns inclusive as well. So I do a lot and there's a lot of spinning things going on. I also do some business coaching on the side as well. So it's, there's a lot of different pots that are being stirred at all times and it's a lot. But I really enjoy time. I enjoy alone time when I can get it and yeah, I just, I love what I do. It's so, it makes it, it makes it pretty fun on most days. Yeah.

Tianna Tye (04:05):

Ooh, so my wheels are already turning cuz we don't have to talk about that whole alone time thing. Cause when you say entrepreneur and two kids, I'm not hearing alone time. So we're gonna have to get into that <laugh>. But I would love if you can actually share, I think it's really, really helpful to understand where you were in business when you were expecting your first versus if the business even existed versus where you were when you were expecting your second and kind of how all of that played together. Whether it played well or not so well. We just wanna know the truth. <Laugh>.

Simone McNish (04:37):

Oh my gosh, that's such a good question. We were chatting about this before and how so many different people are at different points. And so when I had my first daughter, she's five and a half and I always had this dream of entrepreneurship but it was literally just a seed. It was, I always wanted to do this but I didn't have anything on paper. So I kind dabbled back and forth beauty blogging and I tried to do nail art like I'm a creative person, don't look at my nails right now cause I look like mess <laugh>. There is so many different little things I dabbled with and I, so I had no business at all with her. And I just remember I struggle with post-partum depression and I just remember just all of the effort just going into just keeping tiny human alive for my first one.

Simone McNish (05:26):

And it was a really hard transition going back to work. So I was at a nine advertising and marketing that I came back and I was like, Isn't enough time ied myself with my baby? I want to have more time with this baby. I dunno how this is gonna work. And so the dream of entrepreneurship started scrubbing its little wings and I'm like, or its little seed seedlings and I just thought, how can I, how can I do this? And fast forward to a few years later, my daughter actually was I think three-ish. Yeah, she was about three when I started my business. Cause I've been in business now two and a half years. And she was a big catalyst into starting my business. And so I went and I started the business and it just, I started as a social media manager, moved into a business coach, did some DEI coaching, moved into consulting.

Simone McNish (06:22):

And so it was this progression and as I was kinda moving from business coaching, TOI consulting, I got pregnant with my so excited about, I was like time, but I was at a nine to five job and I plan on milking every single minute of that maternity leave. But I got laid off and that was just a it was such an emotional traumatic blow because I thought I put in six years to this and I can't get my maternity leave that I worked so hard for. I loved working at the company. I have nothing bad to say about them, but it was just, I was in an industry that was really affected by. So I got laid off and I had a little bit of, took about a month off my business and came back with this passion to talk really about inclusion and really about some things that I had learned about a lot in college.

Simone McNish (07:22):

And when I got pregnant I was really dealing with some high levels of stress. There was the murder of George Floyd, there was all this flurry of just things going on. And so my whole pregnancy was actually kinda stressful. And when I did have the baby, I was like, I'm gonna gonna have this baby it out and just go into business and just really just go full force. Which I now look back on and I'm like, did I that? What was I trying to, what was trying to, to people cares if I'm going or if I'm going 10, 10% or 80% or 50%. But it was all to prove something to me and I dunno what I was trying to prove now I'm like no, it's tir. It's tir raising and having being time business.

Tianna Tye (08:14):

Oh my goodness. Yes. I mean literally when I think back and I'm like, okay, the year was 2020 <laugh> and you think about everything that happened in 2020 and then Miss Simone here is like expecting her second baby. And I'm just like, whoa. First of all, yeah, I'm really happy that you made it through with, with Sandy.

Tianna Tye (08:39):

Today's affirmation is that I am up for the challenge of taking on a new role. I am. And so are you my friend. You can get your hands on your own deck or gift it to the expecting CEO in your life by visiting www.theexpectingceo.com/affirmations. And fun bonus we're giving the podcast family 10% off. Just use the code e show and you can snag yours for 10% off today.

Tianna Tye (09:13):

But I'm super, super interested to hear, I guess as you were thinking through, cause I know you, you had already, you hadn't gone full time into like the business coach DEI consulting, but you were already actively doing it. Right? So I'm interested to hear what did you, you said you thought you were gonna pop out little miss ma'am and come back full floors, but what, what plans did you put in place, Did you think about maternity leave at that time? What did all of that thinking look like for you?

Simone McNish (09:43):

I have a funny story about this because I thought I would just go in. So my plan was my maternity leave plan was create a bank of and like push it out and sell, sell courses. So I had a group program that I actually turned into a course, like a just self-paced course that people could go through without any of my help. And so I was planning on, you know, pushing that out. I was in, so I, and up to a few weeks I had planned the launch and I'm in labor and selling these courses <laugh> and I see notifications pop up as I'm like having this baby <laugh>, I'm else bought, somebody bought. And I'm like looking back on that, I'm like, what was I like why I to a, I'm having baby like this doesn't, and cause I had that mindset that like, honestly that scarcity mindset of like, I have to be making money right now cause I'm having a baby I money for later.

Simone McNish (10:44):

And so I really honestly didn't have a maternity plan for I'm create content and, and I'll figure out the I hading engagements lined up. I had things that were materializing but I've always been a more kinda of relaxed entrepreneur <laugh>, which I'm working on the planning and the strategic side a little bit more now. But I really didn't have a plan other than like I'll just figure it out and I wish I had stuck more of a plan. And I wish around six, three to six months before the baby was born that I really sat down honestly with myself and assessed my energy levels and assessed how hard it was with the first one instead of just like saying I'll just go all in because I have all this time. You don't really have ton of free when you have a newborn baby. So I had lessons <laugh>,

Tianna Tye (11:39):

I'm over here giggling and I was talking to another CEO mom who has kind of been through it and is now out on the other side and she did give me a warning so I'm curious to hear what it was like for you, you in the third trimester. So basically to set the scene, she was telling me, you know, do the planning, get all your thoughts out cuz pregnancy brain fog is a real thing, especially postpartum and all of that stuff. But she was like, just be be aware. I'm not saying it's gonna happen to you, but be aware that third trimester I thought I was going to be batching content and doing this and doing that. And just the explosion of growth that happened took everything out of her physically to where all of that was just dropped. So I'm curious, what was third trimester like for you? <Laugh>

Simone McNish (12:27):

Third trimester was so rough. It was incredibly hard. It was, that was my, it mirrored my exact experience what you just said. I had plans to create content to batch to batch out for six weeks. I actually did create quite a bit of content but I ended up not posting it cause I was just like, I don't feel right and I don't even have the energy to respond to comments and things like that. If did, so I'm just gonna take a little breaky, a little breaky break. And so I, yes, third trimester is one of those ones where you wanna try as best as you can to just sit back and let the seed that you have planted just grow on their own. Like let your website work for you. Let your previous marketing work for you like previous podcasts or whatever content you've already created.

Simone McNish (13:16):

Like let that be repurposed if you have a team or something. Because creating new stuff in that state of body and state of mind is really hard if you're growing physically and you're also starting to get that nesting phase and then you're starting to like, what's my life gonna look like in three months when this baby's here? And it can feel very overwhelming to layer on like content creation and like launching new offers and things like that. So I always tell people when they come to with advice who are bes, say, hey, just like launch what you already have, like do already works. Because if you try to layer on something it might, it might be a little overwhelming at this point.

Tianna Tye (13:57):

<Laugh>. Mm-Hmm. <Affirmative>, I I was giggling when you talked about launching that course. First of all, the fact that you were getting notifications as you're in labor is both hilarious. And as someone said to me earlier about something, the most entrepreneurial thing I've ever heard <laugh>,

Simone McNish (14:13):

It was concerning <laugh>, what's wrong with me?

Tianna Tye (14:18):

But I do get it. And so that, that sort of planning has been very much on my mind because at this time of recording I'm second trimester I'm one of my 24 weeks. And so with that in mind I have been thinking like, okay, I have this course, but I'm taking your advice. I'm definitely not launching it. It has been transferred over into Evergreen land, so I'm just gonna like make sure those funnels are tight and what sell is gonna sell and that's gonna be it for that. But I love, I love the transparency so let's keep it going. What was, hmm, what was either surprisingly challenging throughout that journey or like you knew it was coming and it was just as challenging as you thought it was gonna be? I wanna hear some some real for you.

Simone McNish (15:05):

I think the hardest, the challenge for me was me having all of these goals on paper and not being able to execute these goals. Cause I was struggling in my own right. I was actually healing from physically having a baby. I was mentally up and down with postpartum depression and then I had, you know, bills to pay and things to do as well. So not properly planning. Really surprised me how I wasn't able to have the energy to pull an offer outta here or there or you know, make this change and pivot because everything had to be planned a little bit stronger and also had to be like, it took me a lot longer to complete things cause I had this little tiny human and I didn't have childcare until she was six months old. So I, and it was the pandemic too. So I relied on family who was in my bubble to come and watch here and there for calls and things. But I just wish that challenge wise I had really had some foresight to think about, like really what, what do I want things to look like instead of being reactive but being a little bit more proactive. That was the hardest part for me. Definitely.

Tianna Tye (16:19):

Ooh, so okay, you're on the other side of this now.

Simone McNish (16:23):

Mm-Hmm.

Tianna Tye (16:24):

<Affirmative> for someone who's like, wait a second, Simone's on something, I'm, I'm setting myself up to be very reactive right now. What sorts of questions would you be asking yourself if you could kind of go back to last year?

Simone McNish (16:38):

I would ask myself you know, what are the things like how much free do schedule? Because I had a point where I was like really working like how do I want on my schedule? What is the actual energy that I have and also, you know, what is the impact that I wanna make? Because a lot of things that I was doing, I was just kinda of reacting to the inquiries and the referrals and the things that I, and I wasn't actually trying to make the impact that I wanna was just kind of reacting. Cause I'm like, well I have this baby, it's hard to market myself and oh you know, I'll just take whatever. But instead just really being mindful about like what is the impact? What is the message that I wanna put out? What is the work that I wanna contribute to?

Simone McNish (17:28):

And being okay saying no to things as well and not being that scarcity like I gotta say yes to it's podcasts, I've say yes backwards little 2020. I said yes to every, that came my way <laugh> and I was so tired, burnt out while pregnant. I was pregnant for the entire 20. I found out I was pregnant in like the end of January and then I had the baby in October so I was basically pregnant. The hmm. And in between that time I wish I had could go back and tell myself like, you don't to of these opportunities, they're not all right for you. Please vet them. Please take care of, please take care of yourself cause your baby needs that. Your baby needs mom to take care of herself.

Tianna Tye (18:14):

Ooh, a word your baby needs mom to take care of herself. And let me just, I have literally the perfect example actually cuz this is something that I'm trying to get through my head. As you know, as entrepreneurs we tend to be kind of high achieving. We don't like to say no too much. So I believe in a boundary when something's not aligned. But this has been an interesting season of still pushing forward my boundaries for opportunities that are actually very aligned with what I want with the impact that I wanna make. But like you said, energy wise I'm like, and and so that's, and so that's been very different for me where I'm like, oh, but what happens when it's something that I kind of wanna do but I don't think I should be doing it at the time. So a really simple example is someone reached out, you know those course bundles, right?

Tianna Tye (19:05):

Yeah. And so I have two programs. One of them is smaller than the other. So that one often gets picked up to be a part of these like larger bundles and whatnot, right? And someone reached out and they wanted me to participate in it. But the bundle runs in January, I am due in February. Oh yeah. And I have been told, you know, you may come at your due date, you may come before you do date, you may come two weeks late, right? Blah blah blah. And I've been warned about third trimester. So the boundary that I set, I was actually like, I really wanna participate, however, I'm not doing outbound marketing for this period. So if they want my program, they can include my program, but I'm not promising to send emails. I'm not promising to post on social media. I'm literally not promising to bring them a single customer.

Tianna Tye (19:52):

And so I was really scared to send that email, but I basically just outlined, I was like, look, I'm, I'm gonna be eight months pregnant at that time. This is what's gonna be going on with me and I cannot commit to any sort of marketing efforts. I can put my best foot forward and mention it if asked. But beyond that, no promises. And lo and behold, the person in charge of the bundle is a mother of two. She totally got it and she was like, absolutely don't even worry about it. So many other people will be pushing this forward. We just wanna make sure that this hiring thing is addressed in this bundle boundaries. Freaking ask y'all Simone. I

Simone McNish (20:27):

Love it. That's such a good story because I think that a lot of people think that everyone's gonna say no, but a lot of, a lot of the entrepreneurs that we interact we're the bubble a lot of understand what's a mom or they are a parent themselves. So when you ask and you set that boundary, usually people say okay, yes. And what I also learned was later is OK too. So a lot of time, I had a lot of inquiries through the end of my pregnancy actually and I said, Hey, I'm so, so, I'm so sorry I don't believe his name, sorry for being pregnant but <laugh>, you know, thank you so much for reaching out to me. I'm currently in my third trimester expecting ahmm and I've paused a lot of business activities. If you're interested, my team will reach out to you within 72 hours about the opportunity. But please note that I'm taking very, very limited speaking, engage bundle request, all of that kinda stuff. And people mostly understood. There were some people who were like, well we really, you be part of this free conference, we're not gonna pay you for I'm <laugh> maybe next year think that's. Yeah,

Tianna Tye (21:45):

Good point. Okay. So as we start to wrap up a little bit, I want to come, I always like to bring things full circle and really check in with people just about like what's going on professionally and personally. So if you could just share one thing that you're really grateful for in this season of your life, both professionally and personally, what would you share?

Simone McNish (22:07):

So professionally, I'm really grateful for having steady clients and also clients that are super aligned and that understand, yes, they understand me being sick when I get sick. They understand when I need to. I don't have childcare and I need to post call. They're flexible. So I really underst I really enjoy the clients that are aligned and so that's what I'm super grateful for right now. Personally, I'm just grateful for support. I have the support of my family. My husband is super supportive, My kids are curious. I mean, we'll kid cause the younger one can't talk. But <laugh>, she's really, you know, excited and always, you know, appreciative to spend time with me. So I just appreciate that amazing bond and support that I have with them. During this time. And also like my calendar, I'm pretty much taking off December for the part to just work on back end stuff in my business. And I'm like, yes. Like this is exactly what I need before the end of the year just to reset and get that alone time and just start thinking about bigger vision and bigger projects that I do wanna create in with time. Yeah.

Tianna Tye (23:19):

What what a full circle moment. Cause at the very beginning you talked about that alone time and so we brought it all the way back to fact that you have cleared that calendar and said not in December. Nope. <Laugh>

Simone McNish (23:30):

None of that.

Tianna Tye (23:31):

<Laugh> none of that. Oh I love it. Okay. So for the woman who is listening to this right now and just feels so connected, kind of like sees a little bit of herself in your reflection, what do you want to say to her her as she progresses through this journey? As an expecting ceo,

Simone McNish (23:49):

I want to tell her that it's OK to pause, it's OK to delegate. And that she does not have to do it all. So you don't have to do it all. And I'm not just talking from a place of like, you can just outsource everything. Cause that's not everybody's reality. I understand that. But truly you have the agency and the power to offload things and say, this is not the right time for this or I'm not gonna to able to cook dinner tonight. I'm have do takeout or laundry's just gonna sit on bed a because I can't do right. You don't have to do it all and you also don't have to do it all right now because a lot of people think that that's the only thing you can do. And so just that encouragement that, yeah, just, just give it time and be easy on yourself because you only get one of these seasons with your new sweet little squishy baby,

Tianna Tye (24:43):

Not the squishy baby. Oh my goodness. Yes. Okay, so we're gonna have all of your links and whatnot shared, but where do you primarily hang out so that people can find you?

Simone McNish (24:54):

I primarily hang out on Instagram and trying to be on LinkedIn too. So me on Instagram, it's Simone Simon. So yeah, that's where I content in my actual life that I, I talk about all the time. <Laugh>.