Jessica Osborn [00:00:00]:
You're listening to she's the business podcast. If you're feeling like you're at a crossroads point and you're not sure which way you should go, do you continue on the path that you're on right now, or do you turn right or turn left and take one of the paths to the side? Well, today's episode is diving into that transition that what do you do in that moment of transition in order to actually step forward onto the right path for you? And how do you know which path is right for you? So this is a great episode with diving into a story, a personal story of my special guest and sharing those insights that she has and the tips and advice that she has for anybody navigating this point of the path in their life. So stay tuned. It's coming right up. Hi, I'm your host, Jessica Osborne. And in my 23 years of, of business and marketing, I've built many brands to become multi billion dollar companies. And just in the last ten years, I've built two online businesses of my own. From my dining room table with two little babies running around at my feet, I've made it my mission to inspire you to get out of your own way and become the successful business owner who's living the lifestyle you really desire without all the hustle.
Jessica Osborn [00:01:26]:
This is she's the business podcast made by women for women. This is your weekly dose of motivation and inspiration. My very special guest today is Julie Zaruba Fountain. She is a wellbeing specialist and change management expert with a real passion for empowering individuals to overcome challenges and take decisive action. Now, she holds an MBA, an advanced degrees in change and leadership, as well as health, nutrition, and exercise science. So through her work as a consultant, public speaker and facilitator, Julie helps to create a thriving world and professional environment for everybody, whether that is in your employee, in your role as an employee, or whether it is as a business owner as well. She has so much value to offer. So without further ado, let me play this interview for you.
Jessica Osborn [00:02:25]:
Awesome. So I'm here with Julie Zaruba Fountain, who is the founder of Empower Possible. Welcome, Julie. Thank you for joining me today.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:02:35]:
It's great to be here, Jessica.
Jessica Osborn [00:02:36]:
Yeah, amazing. Now, I am really looking forward to talking about career evolution and transition. Definitely. I think so many of us have a story in this. And before we dive into that, could you tell us a bit about what is your business? Who do you serve? What do you do?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:02:57]:
That's great. My business is empowered, possible. So I work with leaders and transforming their organization. I also work with individuals that are in points of transition, so we have a lot of barriers that we face when we're trying to make a change. And really, I focus on professional strategies and actionable tools to work through that process of change using the three empowerments of self, social, and systems, which is a method that really is a holistic approach to change. And that started from my own experiences of spending a decade going through behavior change models and getting my MBA in change in leadership and recognizing there are some gaps in how current consultants meets their clients. And so through this holistic approach, it really fines tunes those areas of growth that can occur in order for change to occur.
Jessica Osborn [00:04:00]:
Okay, amazing. So when we're talking about change, is this change in their career itself, like transitioning in an organization through restructures and that type of thing? Or is it more like an individual's career goals and planning and them wanting to change themselves to sort of move into different shoes?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:04:24]:
What I always say is, if you're asking yourself what's next? Then we'll be a good partner. It's all about the exploration, the exploration process. So it's a both and with those different situations because I have a systems level background, but I'm also able to meet the individual, too. So it's working through any change process is personal, even if it is on a system level, because we are all part of that system. And if you're working through in a system, sometimes you do start to ask yourself what's next when all of this change feels like it's happening to you. So it's helping organizations to prevent the people from feeling like this change is happening to me, which none of us like that, to inviting them into that conversation of making decisions with people. And then it's also for those individuals that are asking them themselves internally about the change that they want to happen and working with them.
Jessica Osborn [00:05:29]:
Yeah, exactly. Well, how did you get into this business? Because you just. You kind of alluded to just before that you'd studied your MBA. Have you been in an organization and then transitioned into entrepreneurship, or give us a bit of a background as to how this all came about for you?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:05:48]:
Absolutely. Empower possible started because I became burned out in my role. I was working in higher education for about a decade. I had gone back to school. I have a master's in health, nutrition, exercise science that I got right after undergrad. So I went from undergrad to graduate school, ended up in my dream job. Was fortunate to have that, and it was my dream job for about five years. And then after about five years, I outgrew the role and started on taking on bigger projects, started working on larger scale.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:06:21]:
But the role itself, my classification in the organization, and my pay never changed to match the level of intervention that I was doing. And I kept telling myself, you know, one day it will change. One day I'll be able to prove all of these things that I can do, and it will happen. And what ended up happening is the position I wanted was created, and it was given to someone else when I was told that the position could never be created. So not only was I told the position could never be created, and it was, it then wasn't given to me. And at that point, I really felt disheartened because it was such a large part of my identity and who I was, and I'd given ten years of my life to this institution. I'd worked hours upon hours of unpaid volunteer labor above and beyond my job, and then I felt personally rejected. I felt like I wasn't good enough when that happened.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:07:23]:
And that led to me then going into a stage of burnout in that role where I wasn't taking on extra projects. I was doing my job, but nothing else. And that wasn't the type of employee that I was before this. And I also was angry. I was angry about what happened. I was angry at myself that I invested so much of my time and energy, didn't listen to those that were telling me that I needed to move on, and that I was overqualified for the position that I was in. And so I started looking for work and didn't find those jobs that I thought I would find. And so empower possible became an LLC.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:08:05]:
And. And then that same month, I got an interview at the full time job that I have right now as a wellbeing specialist in the healthcare organization, so was able to grow in both of those roles, and now really enjoy how the work in my business informs the work that I'm doing within the healthcare organization and vice versa. So I really get the best of both worlds. I get to have this amazing, creative outlet within my business, and then I have the stability and the reassurance of that full time work. So empower possible became what I felt I needed when I was going through that transition. It's the courses, the keynotes, the workshops that I lead are from a place of wanting people to thrive where they're at, and helping people to discover their own sense of empowerment, and really helping people to never get a place where I was, because it is a very lonely and difficult, challenging place to be.
Jessica Osborn [00:09:16]:
Yeah, absolutely. I actually relate really strongly to that story. You know, you don't spend 20 years in the corporate world, I think, and probably go unmarked with those sort of experiences. I think especially as a woman, I don't know. I mean, I'm sure that there are, you know, that's not a rule and that there are men who experience it as well. But, you know, have seen, I've had myself, I've managed other women who I see going through the same things. And often it's like we kind of get taught to get your head down, work hard, and you'll get noticed and recognized.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:09:53]:
Absolutely.
Jessica Osborn [00:09:54]:
We do that. And I think this is like the schooling system, right? It's like you just have to do the work and then you get noticed and recognized. And I think I'd been ingrained into that. And so, yes, it kind of does work at times. You know, certainly when, you know, the first jobs that you're having when you at high school and into university, you know, you do get noticed as being a good employee. You do get sort of rewarded and you get elevated. And often the pay rises sort of come with that. But I kind of realized really early on, it's like, wow, if I'm not actually putting myself up for it, they're quite happy to keep paying me the exact same.
Jessica Osborn [00:10:38]:
They're quite happy to over more projects. They don't care how many hours I'm working. You know, they're like, great. They're not asking me to work the extra hours. But, you know, you're kind of almost thinking that by doing that, you're giving yourself more opportunity and look at funny, you know, for me, like, it was a few during the GFC. So I was working for the Royal bank of Scotland, which is a huge corporate bank, you know, and the whole thing got nationalized because it was one of the ones that really went under in a big way. So the UK government took it over and it was that moment, even though I wasn't one of the ones who got made redundant, they said to me, oh, great news, you've still got a job. And I'm like, okay.
Jessica Osborn [00:11:26]:
And they're like, yeah, it's this. And it's the same pain. And I'm like, that is essentially a demotion. Like, you are putting me back down to the bottom level of a team. I had been a manager of a team of the digital marketing team and they were like, here's your job. And it's, you know, in the team and I was like, that is not the same job. And they were looking at me like I was some sort of nutcase because I wasn't happy that I had a job. And I was like, sure, yeah, like, it's crazy.
Jessica Osborn [00:11:56]:
But in this moment, you realize I was like, you know what? I'm a number. Like, the people doing these plans, they are so far removed from any of the people, they've got no clue. I mean, even though in that organization, I'm sure that you're aware of how they work as well, where there was, like, a bell curve and, you know, everyone was sort of graded, so they knew that I was at the top end of the bell curve. And that's the whole thing is like, you are literally a number. It doesn't matter how good an employee you are. And in that moment, you know, I argued for redundancy, which they thought I was nuts, but I was like, you're not giving me the same job. You're just leaving my pay the same, which is fine, but then that means that I was underpaid in what I was doing before, so I'm even more right. And that, you know, like, it was good because I think when going through that, then I realized, well, this is where you.
Jessica Osborn [00:12:49]:
You are a number, and a business is there. Is there for the business, and as long as you're there and aligned to that, then. But they're not really there for your personal growth, for your personal goals. And if you're not supporting them yourself, then who is? You know, it's not up to the business. And that's so relevant, I think, in the story that you shared with how you got to that place and they literally created the role that you'd been asking for and then didn't put you in it. Like, whoa, is this a sign from the universe that it was like, hey, you actually need to start being there for yourself. And whether you're in a job or whether you go into entrepreneurship, either way, it's kind of the same message. Like, how are you supporting yourself and how are you delivering on those goals? That's so incredible.
Jessica Osborn [00:13:47]:
So, do you know? Sorry. And I've just told a massive, big story of my own, but I just don't love it.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:13:53]:
I think a lot of people will identify with that.
Jessica Osborn [00:13:57]:
Yeah, exactly. We all have them, right? And so, you know, when, say, if you were working with someone who has passed you and was in this place and you're like, oh, I'm just. I'm doing all these things and I'm. I'm working hard and I'm asking for this role and I'm just not getting it. You know, what are some of the kind of ways that you help somebody to move out of that space so they don't end up at the end that you ended up at?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:14:27]:
Great. The first place that I always start with, with any of the programs is looking at your level of self awareness about what are your own goals. So taking everyone else out of the picture, what are the things that you value? And is that current position in line with what you value? What are the stories that you are telling yourself about who you are? And what are the stories that you are being told within your organization about who you are? Because there's oftentimes, like you mentioned, there is a sort of gaslighting that happens within organizations where they, they think, well, you should be thankful. You should just want to show up and do your job. You should, you should, you should. And so think about the stories that you're being told. And are those stories supporting you? Are they encouraging you? Are they helping you reach and live into your values? And if not, it, it probably is time to move on. And it is tricky because sometimes when you're in that low spot, it's really hard to then advocate for yourself in an interview.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:15:46]:
So just start with small, small steps. Start in small ways, advocating for yourself and build up that self confidence. And even if it's, it sounds silly, but even if it's choosing what you want for dinner versus your family, choosing what they want for dinner, you know, thing, small things like that, advocate for yourself and your needs. Maybe it's giving up a chore and delegating it to someone else. You know, just those small ways to start thinking about one thing that you can do for yourself that makes a difference and then build on there and build that confidence up and look at how the decisions you're making in your job, like I said, if they match up with your values or, or not, because ultimately you're going to continue to be really not satisfied if you don't feel like you're living out what you're supposed to be doing in your life.
Jessica Osborn [00:16:39]:
Yeah, that's such good advice. And, you know, the last job that I had before I became and, you know, went full time, I would say became an entrepreneur because I did already have a business on the side at that time. But before I started this one, which is actually really, really my purpose, you know, in life, I had been in that place where, yeah, I was, it was not aligned with my values and it was so frustrating. And I had a colleague who is actually was already a friend of mine, but, you know, had, we'd met originally because I hired her and then we'd become friends and we'd both move back here to Australia, and then I hired her again. So it was like, it was cool because she was my friend, but she was also working with me, but she was, you know, she knew me really well. So she said to me, like, Jess, what are you even doing like this? You know, you're really not being able to reach your potential. They, you know, what you. And you're frustrated.
Jessica Osborn [00:17:35]:
We can see that you're frustrated. And I kind of had that moment of like, oh, my goodness, you're so right. I've been frustrated for a long time. And I keep on just telling myself this is where I meant to be because it's like I had the job I thought I wanted on paper. I was the head of marketing and comms. I was, like, running the whole marketing comms department. Love it. This is where I want to be.
Jessica Osborn [00:17:55]:
You know, my job title, it could change to chief marketing officer, but essentially it's the same thing as what I'm doing right now. Like, it wouldn't, you know, there was nowhere else really to go except maybe into a different company or wherever. But, you know, I thought that that was what I wanted. And when she said that to me, I think that started off the realization or waking up to, like you say, the awareness of, like, this is out of alignment with my values because even though I've got this so called job title and everything that I thought I wanted is really what paid, and there is no reason on paper to not be happy here, I was not happy there. And it was the environment, it was the opportunity. And the lack of opportunity, I think, is probably the main thing. Because even though you think that if you're head of the department, you've got a fair amount of leeway to make decisions and to be leading the way, and that actually was not the case. You know, in a public company, there's shareholders, there's board members, there's you getting told by lots of people what's happening.
Jessica Osborn [00:18:58]:
And I was like, oh, I'm just, you know, it was very frustrating. And so for me, that was the moment to be like, right, well, I'm going to go out and I'm going to have everything that I want and do it for myself because why not? What was it? I'm interested because you kind of got to that point and you started a business and you also got a different job. So you kind of went in both directions. And I'm really interested to hear what was the moment, because that told you, hey, I think I should actually start a business, because it's a different mindset to, hey, I'm in this place, and I'm not enjoying it, and, yes, I've got to leave. Getting a job that is actually aligned. Well done for doing that. Thanks. I'm just.
Jessica Osborn [00:19:41]:
Yeah, I'm just interested as to what was that sort of what for you was the reason why you're like, well, I really want to start a business and actually grow that, because it isn't an easy thing. It's not like you just start a business, and then overnight it's like this successful thing, like, you know, you're in for a marathon. It's a. It is the long haul, but it's very. If you stick it out, right?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:20:06]:
Absolutely. Absolutely. But I had already had clients. I was already working with people, so I was already doing consulting. I was already doing keynote presentations. I was already delivering workshops. I just didn't have a formal llc. So my burnout was what motivated me to become a formal business and say, I was asking myself what would happen if I actually tried to get clients and I tried to work with people, because people were just coming to me without me, even marketing, they would just.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:20:45]:
I would just be doing my job, and they would hear about the work that I was doing. They were interested, and they say, oh, can you come to my organization? Can you come to my church group? Can you come to my bank? Can you come to my club and give your talk? And then from the organizational perspective.
Jessica Osborn [00:21:07]:
Some.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:21:07]:
Of my former colleague would. They would leave the institution and go somewhere else, and they would say, can you come to our organization and do what you did? And so I was having these. I didn't even set up contracts. I was not very good. That was not good. But once I started my business, I started making contracts. Yeah. Because I can think of myself as a business person.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:21:28]:
I just thought, you know, my friends asked me to do something. You know, this person reached out on LinkedIn, and I didn't. I didn't think about it that way until I started my business. And I thought, well, I already am. It was actually a colleague of mine that said, well, you already are a consultant. And then kind of, as your story went, your friend had to kind of call you out. And when my friend called me out, I thought, oh, yeah, I am. And I thought, I need to.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:21:54]:
I want to formalize this to let people know that I am serious about empower possible and I am dedicated. And. And I started when I started my business a week later is when I got a phone call saying about my job interview. So it did start. There was about a week in time where I was solely a business owner. And then I got the interview and then the job. It really came very naturally because it was already things and relation built off of relationships that I formerly had.
Jessica Osborn [00:22:28]:
Yeah, that's brilliant. So if you could go back and give yourself like a piece of advice, what would it be?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:22:34]:
For me, what I would tell myself is to lean into your power and know that what you're doing is it's okay. It's okay not to have the answers, but the answers are within you. And you have the power within you to live the life that you want to live.
Jessica Osborn [00:22:58]:
Very good piece of advice. And, you know, I think it can feel easy to say it and people are like, yeah, but how do I actually do it? Because you're kind of down in bogging down in all of the details. So if you were to say, well, this is the first step to getting there, what would that be?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:23:17]:
I would say, think about the ways that you place me. What are the ways that you shrink yourself and what are the ways, what are the stories that you are telling yourself about why you're not good enough? What are your would have should have in life? And write those out journal about the things that you wish you would have done, the times that you said, oh, I should have done this. And you'll start to see a pattern of when I'm in a certain situation, I play, I don't speak up. When I am in a certain situation, I make disparaging comments about myself. When I'm in a certain situation, my self talk gets pretty negative and you'll see those patterns. And once you write them out and don't get trapped in that, there's a reason, there's hope. And write what could be. Write then your list of stories of strengths and your successes.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:24:12]:
When are times where you did step into an uncomfortable situation and when are times that you did lead into your values? What are times where you said yes and you were excited about it, you were ready to take on whatever it was and you couldn't wait to get started. Write those down too and see the patterns in that. And then once you see what you want to avoid those negatives and you see those positive, think about where is one area in your life where you can get excited about saying yes about. And maybe it's your professional life, maybe it's your personal life. You know, you have the wellness wheel of all sorts of intellectual, social, financial, emotional, spiritual. Pick one of those areas and think about something that you can do that gets you excited about that. Maybe for you it would be taking a market. Well, you don't need a marketing class, I bet.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:25:04]:
But maybe about AI and marketing, because that's kind of a new and fresh, you know, maybe it's something like that where you want to grow in your professional development. If you're thinking about being an entrepreneur, maybe it's having a coffee date with someone that's in the business and say, how did you get started? If you're thinking about physical wellness, maybe it's deciding, okay, every day I'm going to get out and go for a walk. Just think about one action you can take related to those positive stories that gets you excited and that's going to help you build your confidence and say, you know, I can take this small step. That means I can probably take another small step. And you keep working towards those steps. And I would say the biggest hurdle that most people face is they keep saying, one day, one day I'm going to do this, one day I'm going to do that. So the bottom line is change that one day to day one and determine today is my day one and this is what I'm going to do.
Jessica Osborn [00:26:02]:
I love that. So true. One day, someday it becomes never right. How often do you have that where it just doesn't happen? So I love that day one. Yeah. What can you do? Love it. Now I was just interested to ask, you know, because you, you really shared there's such a difference between where you were when you were in that place and experienced burnout and realized that you were in the wrong place and something needed to change to now where you have your business and your job. What do you think is the thing that at the core of it all is so different? Like, why is now feeling great for you? And, you know, you're obviously really busy, so you're not in burnout, you're running a business and you have a job.
Jessica Osborn [00:26:55]:
You know, what is that difference? Do you think that between the two places, if you could boil it down.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:27:00]:
To something, there's two things. The first is I no longer let my job title define me, so I don't feel tied. A success at work is wonderful, but that doesn't mean that I am more successful as a human being. Yeah, failure at work happens. That doesn't mean that I am a failure as a human being. So separating, that is the first biggest thing that I did is the success and failures that I experience in my life do not reflect the core of who I am. And I am enough, no matter what happens. So that was, um, a process to get to that point.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:27:45]:
And the second is when I started my job, I sat down and I thought, I need to set some boundaries for myself. I need to set boundaries around my working hours. I need to set boundaries about how quickly I respond to email. I need to set boundaries on when I'm sending email, how many I'm sending. I need to set boundaries on how many projects I'm going to start. Because what led to my, one of the things that led to my burnout is I love organizing systems. I love making things more efficient. And what happens when you become more efficient? You do more work unless you set boundaries.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:28:23]:
So I had to say, I'm going to create these new systems in my new job. And once those systems of efficiencies are established, I'm not going to fill them with more. I'm going to work with my supervisor, establish those goals, and that is going to be the bencher of my work. So I had to, and it's still a challenge, but I really had to be firm with myself and say, this is what, how much time I want to spend on this. This is how many projects I want to do. These are the areas of growth I want. And I did that before I dove into the work. It takes having the right manager to be able to have that conversation.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:29:00]:
But that's how I knew I was in the right place because I was able to have that conversation very early on in my work. So it was really important to me. I didn't explain the backstory of why it was so important at that time, but I just said, you know, we're in the area of well being. Like, occupational well being includes having these things. Like, let's have a conversation about that. And she was open to it. So those were the two things. The identity piece, being clear on who I am outside of work, and boundaries.
Jessica Osborn [00:29:34]:
Yeah, I think that's such a great thing to think about, especially the boundaries. It's kind of setting expectations. And whether you're setting expectations with a boss because you're working for somebody or with clients or even with yourself, how can we apply this in all aspects, even in our own business? Something that I think people struggle with, and I definitely see it a lot with clients who I coach. High achievers have high expectations of themselves.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:30:07]:
Absolutely.
Jessica Osborn [00:30:08]:
Yeah. And like, they don't actually kind of put the boundaries in place for themselves. And they always feel like they're behind. They always feel like, you know, they're not doing enough because they've got all these things that they want to do. And I'm like, you just need to stop and actually just pay attention to what you are doing. And who are you disappointing if you don't meet that deadline you gave yourself? Well, guess what? It's you, right? Like, there is nobody else. You're the boss. You're going to own business.
Jessica Osborn [00:30:36]:
And how are you being a nice boss to yourself? Or are you giving yourself like, stacked on pond stacked of expectations and never letting yourself have a moment's rest? You know, where are you getting the pat on the back? Because that's one of the beautiful things about being an employee, is that you can get a pat on the back from a boss. You can get some kind of external recognition. You know, you don't often get that when you are your own boss unless you decide to give it to yourself and really acknowledge it. And I can't remember where I saw this once, but I thought I'd share it because it's funny. A guy who is in an entrepreneur circle, we're talking about, how do you acknowledge yourself? And he says, I give myself a high five, so I call it a self five. So he like, basically claps his hands, but he high fives himself. He's like, yeah, like, when something good happens. And I was like, that is such a cool, funny thing because, you know, it literally takes a moment, but you can high five yourself.
Jessica Osborn [00:31:37]:
You can make like, yes, well done and give yourself that instead of, you know, just thinking about what's the next thing that you've got to do? And I put my hand up and say, I'm guilty of that because 100% high achiever, high expectations. You always know there's more and you're always sort of already onto the next thing probably by the time you finish the thing that you're working on. So, you know, I think that it's so good to set those expectations of like, well, this is what, this is what I'm going to do. These are the kind of boundaries around it. And this is, I'm setting the level of expectations so that I don't suddenly creep it up on myself and add more.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:32:19]:
Yes, yes. That is absolutely. And I had to retrain myself and really utilize my calendar to block out work time, to block out friend, time, to block out family time, to block out my workout time, to block out everything that. And that's how I retrained my brain because I could see it color coded on my calendar of, like, well, I'm seeing a whole lot of work color and not a whole lot of anything else. And that's very fulfilling to me. I take a lot of joy in the work, and I didn't want to slip back into that burnout. And so having those conversations with myself, like you said, setting boundaries around my business and then also setting boundaries with my manager and having that conversation because it is. Especially when you enjoy, I mean, I love my work, so especially when you enjoy it because you think, well, I'm really enjoying this.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:33:16]:
Like, it's okay that I'm doing these things, and that's just one area of your life. So how can you look into those other areas and connect with people outside of. Outside of that work?
Jessica Osborn [00:33:30]:
Yeah. Yeah. Something someone said once was, like, when you say yes to something, you are saying no to something else. And so even though it feels like if I just keep going and I can actually complete it and knock it off, it can be, well, that's. That can be good. You want to tick it off. But if you are using those extra hours, then what is it that you're compromising? And is that compromise worth it to you? Because I think one of the things that's very true, probably most jobs, like, I know that it's easier in a job to sort of get your work done for the day, but in a business that does not exist, there is never nothing to do. You can have something to do.
Jessica Osborn [00:34:12]:
You could work 24 hours a day, seven days a week and not stop, and you will still always have something to do. Your work is never done because there's always something you can be doing. And I think that's a real shift, right, in actually just getting present to it and being okay with that and then also just being firm on, well, what are you prepared to compromise on or not compromise on? And like you say, you know, it's how you can succeed in having that fulfillment, not reaching into burnout when you're making time for yourself and time to the things that are important. And would you say that when you do that, it actually means that you tend to be more successful? Because instead of it just being an open ended bucket of time that you're spending on trying to fit anything into that, you're more intentional at the time.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:35:02]:
That you've blocked out absolutely two of the values that I have for empower possible. When I was thinking about the organization that I wanted to build, one is meaningful work and the second is joyful success. So I prioritize work that lives into the values that I want to live, and that is meaningful to me. And joyful success means I also needed to prioritize projects that will bring me and others joy. So that means finding sometimes saying no and sometimes analyzing what I'm looking at, what I'm doing, which can be hard as a business owner when you, when you have this scarcity mindset. But when I'm coming from it, from a place of I want that joyful success, I want that meaningful work, and I want to hold true to that value because that's something that's really important to me and that helps make my decisions for me.
Jessica Osborn [00:35:58]:
I have one last question. I think around, you know, this whole piece because we're talking a lot about career transition and wherever that may be for you. How do you know when it's time to move on versus time to just reset, maybe create boundaries in the place that you are? What are some of the signs, I guess, that you might see one we.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:36:23]:
Already talked about is that gaslighting that happens when you're saying, well, I thought we talked about this, and I thought if I worked on this project, then I would be able to have this extra salary or this bonus. And if that. You're remembering things and your supervisor is constantly saying, oh, no, we didn't do that, or that wasn't discussed, or that's not what I remember, and those things are coming up very frequently, and you're feeling like, am I making this thing up? Like those conversations that happen. First, try to get it in writing if you can. Certain agreements with your work, but that isn't always possible, especially for people that are really good at manipulating others. They're going to avoid those situations where they can get trapped. Then you also mentioned the job title and detach yourself from that and think about the work that you want to be doing regardless of what the job title is. And then think about how many of those tasks you're doing during the day, and it's never going to be 100%, 100% match.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:37:25]:
But what are the ones that are life giving to you? And you should have a better ratio of life giving than life sucking activities. If the life giving activities are still outweighing the other activities, then maybe you can work with your supervisor to job craft a little bit. See if they're open to those conversations about. Here are some things with skills that I've been working on that I've really started to develop. Be very specific about what it is. Maybe like you talk about digital marketing, maybe it's including a new strategy, come with a new plan and say, here are the skills that I'm going to use to implement this. Like, would you be okay if I take on this project? And what can I take off of my plate that I'm currently doing to work on this? If your supervisor is open to those types of conversations, my guess is that that's a place where you can stay because you'll be able to job craft. You'll be able to then work on those projects and talk about, about how you can move up the ladder, so to speak, if that's what you want.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:38:24]:
If your supervisor is not open to those conversations, if they're saying things like, well, you should just be happy you have a job, or they're saying, yes, but you still need to keep doing the work that you're already doing. You can do that, but you need to do that on your own time. Maybe it's time for you to look for another place that's going to appreciate the skill set that you bring.
Jessica Osborn [00:38:42]:
Yeah, that's really great advice. Amazing. So if anybody's thinking they'd like to learn a bit more about you and about empower possible, whether they want to bring you into their business, to have a look at, you know, the leadership and that sort of culture, or, you know, maybe you're in a job and you're thinking, I'm not sure that I'm in the right place and I want some help navigating it. Where could they best connect with you, Julie?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:39:08]:
Absolutely. One stop you can go to is my website, so empower possible.com. And on there you'll see, you'll have a chance to sign up for my free newsletter, which I provide well being tips. And on topics like the ones that we're talking about today and lots of other things, you'll also, there's a career crossroads tab that you can go to. I'm on LinkedIn. As far as I know, I'm the only Julie Zerubba fountain that there is. So you'll be able to find me pretty easily on LinkedIn. Just type in my name.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:39:41]:
Then I'm also on social median power possible.
Jessica Osborn [00:39:45]:
Amazing. So we'll hook those up in the show notes so that it makes life easy. You can just dive in there and click on the links to go and find Julie, is there anything that you wanted to leave people with? A final piece that you would like to share before we say bye?
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:40:03]:
Yeah, absolutely. I would just encourage your listeners to just think about your calling and your sense of purpose and think about the gifts and values that you bring because you have them for a reason. And just think about that time where you have felt really satisfied in a project that you were doing and content, and think about how that made you feel and let that guide you into your next step of your journey so that you can incorporate that, because that's the true gift that you're going to be able to give the world. And when we're all leaning into those true gifts, the world can be a really great place.
Jessica Osborn [00:40:39]:
Yeah, I love that. Julie has shared quite a few things, I think, to journal on during this chat this morning. So if you've been listening while you're driving or you're out walking or something else, then maybe tune back in when you're at home and you've just got a moment and you've got a pen and paper, because she has asked some really great questions for us to ask ourselves. And I think you only really get the true answer when you actually just start writing and letting whatever is sort of in there come out without overthinking it. So thank you for sharing those, Julie, because I know that the self awareness and just awareness of where we are huge. It is so much value when we can kind of get present to what is actually really happening. And you're not just kind of walking around in a state of frustration or feeling like things aren't working and not knowing why. Like, the answer's probably there and the first step is starting to kind of figure out what you already know, which you might just not be present to right now, but definitely will be there in your brain.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:41:46]:
Our bodies don't lie. If you have lots of headaches, if you're feeling pain, you know it presents itself in all sorts of ways. If you're refusing to acknowledge it in your mind, it's going to come out in all sorts of different ways. So, yes, it builds up over time.
Jessica Osborn [00:42:01]:
Yeah. Oh, my goodness. That's so true and so easy and simple. So thank you so much, Julie. I really appreciated your time and thanks for joining us today. Loved hearing your story and learning a bit more about you. Yeah, thank you. I appreciate it.
Julie Zaruba Fountaine [00:42:17]:
Thanks for having me.
Jessica Osborn [00:42:19]:
Isn't it just so frustrating when you know that out there, there are so many people that actually need your help and there's many actively looking for somebody just like you, yet all you seem to attract are the odd tire kicker or really uncommitted client that's kind of dabbling and they don't light you up. They really, really don't get great results. And you're thinking, what does it actually take to attract clients who are committed, who are happy to pay proper prices for what it is that I do and that I can help to have really great results? What is it going to take? Well, it's not in the activity of what you're doing. Here's the thing. It's usually something else that's a bit deeper, and I'm sharing with you what that is in my training, it's called five keys to premium paying clients. And I'm going to share with you what are these five things that you need to have in your strategy so that no matter what tactic or activity you choose to do, it actually works like it works. You attract the right clients, the ones who are ready to work with you, the ones who are ready to pay and sign up. So get yourself over to my website now on jessicaosborne.com tmf.
Jessica Osborn [00:43:36]:
Register for this free class and let's dive right in. So once again, that's jessicaosborne.com TMF and the link is below in the show notes as well. I encourage you to register now. Allocate just over an hour of your time, maybe up to an hour and a half, so you can take some notes and really reflect on the things that I share with you in this class. And let's change your year this year. Let's make your business actually turn into your dream business together.
