Shannon is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Investment Manager (CIM), media personality, personal finance expert, financial literacy advocate and founder of the New School of Finance. Shannon is a best-selling author of the two books:

-- Worry Free Money

-- Living Debt Free

0:18 -- Intro with Shannon Simmons

2:15 -- What is your money history story? We explore how money is talked about within the household, and how families can reflect shame and secrecy around finances. It's time to get open about your finances!

5:40 -- Do you talk about how your business is doing, whether it's good or bad? We talk about all the feelings that people have when talking about and handling money.

8:35 -- Are you passionate about what you do, but scared to see if it's actually profitable? We dig into the emotional layer of taking a hard look at whether your business is actually profitable.

9:55 -- Why Shannon chose to work Freelancers and how she made a niche for herself.

11:48 -- TAXES! This is what you've been waiting for. How to organize your taxes and what you need to do when you're just starting off. How to wrap your head around income tax.

15:50 -- EXPENSES! What are they? What's a write-off, and how to organize the money that is going OUT of your business. How do you know if something is a an expense? Find out here.

23:25 -- What are some things that are not allowed to be expensed, and what in Shannon's experience has been the most bizarre expense attempts.

26:00 -- How do media personalities and influencers determine expenses? We discuss how the landscape has changed since the emergence of all these new careers.

27:20 -- We talk CRA and how they are a great resource for entrepreneurs. It's not a big bad agency who's out to get your money. We talk all about the role of Revenue Canada.

31:30 -- What is the difference between income tax and sales tax? Let's clear up some muddy waters about GST/HST, sales tax and income tax.

37:25 -- Where can you find Shannon, and what resources she has to offer.

Resources

Here's where you can find Shannon

Financial Services:

http://www.newschooloffinance.com/

http://www.shannonleesimmons.com/

Books:

https://worryfreemoneybook.com/

Social:

https://www.instagram.com/shanleesimmons/

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I'm super stoked to have my good friend Irina Leoni join me, she's a super talented photographer, brand strategist, and visual branding icon.

Let's dive in to all things visual branding!

1:00 -- Irina intro and how she started with photography and why she got into it

3:30 -- How as a photographer does Irina make her subject feel comfortable, and how to make the most of the awkwardness of a photoshoot

6:05 -- How Irina prepares her subjects for ALL the places photos will be used. Making sure you have pics not only for your website, but Instagram, Facebook, Twitter ADS and other people's website.

10:30 -- The questions you need to ask photographers before you hire them t take your branding photos. Make sure they are specific to BRANDING!

12:55 -- Is there value in mixing a combination of professional photos with candid shots? Yes! But, there is a time and a place.

15:00 -- Smartphone photography, and how to make the most of the camera in your pocket

16:20 -- When to upgrade to a professional camera, and how to not get overwhelmed by technology. Is a smartphone enough to start with?

23:45 -- Start small with the equipment you have, and scale up when you outgrow your equipment. Not the other way around.

Find Irina Here:

https://www.instagram.com/iamirinaleoni/

https://www.irinaleoni.com/

https://www.power-portraits.com/

https://www.visualbrandmastery.com/

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I am so happy to introduce two good friends of mine. Marie Poulin, and Ben Borowski.

Marie and Ben are co-founders of Oki Doki, as well as life partners.

About Ben:

Ben is a product designer and software developer with a fine arts background. After many years in agency-land, he started his own shop in 2010, and, after immigrating to Canada in 2014, founded Oki Doki with Marie. In his spare time he collects vinyl, pets shibas, and is a volunteer firefighter.

About Marie:

Marie helps small business owners bring their digital product & service ideas to life. She is a product and service strategist, and a master digital strategist. As if that isn’t enough, she’s an amazing designer and developer, as well and a permaculture enthusiast in her spare time.

1:15: -- Current life situation and how Marie and Ben became life partners and business partners

3:45 -- Finding out who has dominant skills in each area, and how to decide who takes the lead on what projects

4:25 -- What were Ben and Marie doing before they joined forces.

7:45 -- Check out Ben's journey on his immigration to Canada, taxes and all that's involved when moving a business across borders

11:10 -- What it's like diving into the build not only of a digital product (SaaS), but structuring a full business with your partner at the same time.

14:00 -- Why they choose to sell software as a subscription model, and how they came to solve the issue of the complexity of online courses.

15:45 -- Here we dive in to the value that they provide as a boutique operation, supplying a premium customer experience, and scaling the unscalable.

31:00 -- How a low cost of entry can lead into lifetime clients spending tens of thousands of dollars for further custom strategy and web experiences. 

40:00 -- Creating more impactful work, scaling your happiness, flexibility, freedom and building a business on your terms

44:00 -- How communication is when you work and live together. What routines and rituals do Marie and Ben abide by to keep on track, and how to handle disputes both inside and outside of the relationship

47:00 -- Carrying over organizational techniques from the business into personal life, and vice versa. Work/life integration

48:45 -- Routines, entrepreneurship, and setting up your daily routines.

51:10 -- Startup and shutdown rituals

54:55 -- Thinking about starting a business or project with a partner? Here's Marie's and Ben's tips for a successful relationship both inside and outside of the company.

Where you can find them online:

Marie:

https://mariepoulin.com/

https://twitter.com/mariepoulin

https://www.instagram.com/mariepoulin/

Ben:

https://www.typeoneerror.com/

https://twitter.com/typeoneerror

Resources Mentioned:

https://www.notion.so/

http://tanyageisler.com/ (Imposter Complex Coach)

https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits

http://www.calnewport.com/books/deep-work/

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Today we're all about motivation, mindset and mindfulness.

Is it tough for you to stay motivated as a freelancer? Are you always wondering when you're going to "make it". Surprise! There's no such thing.

Dive into this tiny gem all about changing your perspective, living in the moment and why living for the weekend means your s#!t is broken.

In the episode I give some resources for mindfulness and changing your perspective.

Eckhart Tolle

Louise Hay

Napoleon Hill

Tony Robbins

Richard Branson

James Clear

Meditation Apps

Headspace

Calm

Enjoy!

M

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Ah yes, the age old question. Is Freelancing reeeeaaaallly worth it?

Well, there's a lot of factors at play, and we're going to dive into all of them. In this episode, we'll explore what type of lifestyle freelancing is suited for, when you should quit your job, and is there a right a right way and a wrong way?

Find out.

1:30 -- Start with Why. Start with your guiding star, why do you want to freelance? Time to self reflect.

3:00 -- Auditing your family and person life. Is this the right decision based on your current situation, and moving into your desired situation. Children? Dependants? Debt? we cover all of it.

4:44 -- Knowing your numbers, your expenses, your debts, your responsibilities and how you are currently spending your time and money.

7:00 -- Do you like your current job? How long can you stay there while you build your side biz or do you need to quit ASAP?

7:30 -- It's just as important to take stock of your mental health. Do you need to leave your job for your own sanity, and how fast do you need to make the transition? These are all questions that you need to consider. This is why the decision is so personal, and without answering these, there's no way to know if going freelance is both smart and/or sustainable.

Be prepared to cut toxic relationships out, to be able to invest your time in thriving communities and supportive surroundings.

9:30 -- We dive into all the pros and cons of freelancing, starting with Pros

Pros:

-- Be your own boss

-- You get to make decisions

-- Flexibility of schedule

-- Flexibility of who you choose as clients

-- Unlimited earning potential

-- No commute

-- Pursue your passion

-- Work from anywhere

-- Choose your days off

-- No clothes required :)

-- Full control over niche and direction and scale of your business

-- Creative Freedom

Cons:

-- You need to make all the decisions

-- Every client is essentially your boss

-- Burnout while chasing $$$

-- Isolation

-- Travel while working can be expensive

-- No one to help you solve problems (this is where community becomes important)

-- You are responsible for all problems

-- Responsible for all less-glamorous aspects of business

-- No paid leave/mat leave/sick days/vacation days

-- No Healthcare/Benefits

-- Inconsistent income

-- Distractions

23:20 -- Jump to here if you want to know why I started Freelancing.

M

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Sometimes niching down can freak people out. I get it, it can feel like you're alienating a portion of your audience but today we're going to dive into how to do it right while building authority. Let's go!

Here's my 7 tips to niching down and building authority

3:10 -- 1. Honing in on your niche, and identifying who you serve? This includes an exercise where we explore where there is overlap between what you're good at and what potential clients need.

5:31 -- 2. Double your prices (or at least increase them). People tie money to value and expect to pay more for specialty services. You are now a specialty service!

6:55 -- 3. Don't do something you hate. Let's explore the golden area that intersects "what you're good at", "what the market dictates", and "what you love". Many people are scared to go here because they think it's TO GOOD TO BE TRUE. Repeat after me, nothing is too good to be true.

8:40 -- 4. Market Research. Who is out there in that niche? Can you connect to them? I've found that most people who do well in their specialty are happy to chat about it and answer questions. This combine with some preliminary Googling can help you get your footing when exploring your niche.

9:37 -- 5. Tell people about your niche! Make what you do part of your introduction. Get your niche down to 5 - 7 words so you can clarify what you excell in and make an impact in a short period of time.

10:57 -- 6. Paid Advertising. We dedicate most of time to organic growth, but don't dismiss ads. Analytics have come so far, and they're a relatively inexpensive way to reach an audience outside of your immediate circle.

12:46 -- 7. Show up constantly, and provide value. You can try all the tactics in the world, but nothing will get more traction than doing the work. Writing pitch letters, breaking down how-to's, and writing guest posts may not be the most glamorous work in the world, but it's the work that makes everything pay off in the long run.

Put in the work, and keep on going. You got this!

M

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