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Investing in your business is important for growth! I’m an advocate for continuing your education in order to move forward and improve yourself and your brand!

In this episode, four of my current mastermind students join me to discuss their experience with investing in a mastermind, what they’ve enjoyed, how they’ve found success, and even where they fell short.

If you’re ready to take the next step in your business by investing in a mastermind, learn more about the Laylee Emadi Mastermind and apply at layleeemadi.com/mastermind

Education & Masterminds in the Creative Industry (00:21)

Introducing Sarah, Emma, Haylee, and Julie (1:50)

Meet Sarah Erickson of Sarah Ann Design (2:34)

Investing in Education for Your Business (2:58)

What to Look for in Educational Offerings & Masterminds (4:21)
1. Size of Group
2. Educator & Past Students

Strength in Quality of Members (7:36)

Community of Like-Minded People (10:42)

Connect with Sarah:
sarahanndesign.co
instagram.com/sarahann_design

Meet Emma Christine of Emma Christine Photography (12:53)

Community & Support (13:00)

The Impact of Other Industries (14:37)

Hesitation in Investing Her Time (15:49)

Connect with Emma:
emmachristine.com
instagram.com/helloemmachristine

Meet Haylee Gaffin of Gaffin Creative (17:01)

Investing as a New Full-Time Entrepreneur (17:30)

Accountability in a Mastermind (18:13)

Follow-through in One-on-One’s & Hot Seats (20:12)

Connect with Haylee:
gaffincreative.com
instagram.com/hayleegaffin

Meet Julie Painter of Dallas Girl Friday (22:59)

Clarity & Support from the Mastermind (23:38)

The Importance in the Review of Mastermind Applications (29:14)

Overcoming Hesitations in Joining a Mastermind (30:29)

Don’t Invest if You Don’t Have the Funds (31:30)

Connect with Julie:
dallasgirlfriday.com
instagram.com/dallasgirlfriday

If you’re ready to make the educational investment in your business by joining a mastermind, you can find out more about the Laylee Emadi Mastermind and apply by heading to layleeemadi.com/mastermind.

Links
layleeemadi.com/mastermind

Review the transcript below!

Laylee Emadi 0:05
Welcome to so here’s the thing where we share candid conversations that lift the veil on what it takes to find success, even if that means sharing a few unpopular opinions. I’m your host, Laylee Emadi, grab some coffee or cocktail. And let’s get real.

Laylee Emadi 0:22
Hello friends welcome back to the show. Today, I thought it would be really fun to invite a few of my mastermind members onto the show to share their experience inside of my own mastermind, which makes me a little nervous, but mostly excited. This is definitely something that is new and exciting to the creative industry. Having these small group educational experiences. I feel like everywhere I turn, there’s another educator who is opening doors to their own masterminds. And I thought this could be helpful if you were considering either being a part of a mastermind or starting your own. Hopefully hearing the experiences that some of these amazing members have had will help you kind of solidify if it’s something that you’re interested in now at the time of this episode airing. So today, if you’re listening in on the first day, my applications for my own mastermind will still be open for the next week. So if you’re interested, head over to the show notes or delay Li Mahdi comm slash mastermind, and check it out. But honestly, even if you listen to this later on, and my applications are not open, there are like I mentioned so many great educators who offer this amazing experience. Now of course, you guys know I keep it real here not all educational experiences are created equal. So be really discerning in what you look at. But hopefully this episode will help you. So without talking your ear off anymore. I’m going to let you guys get into the episode and hear directly from some of the most amazing people I’ve had the chance to work with. In this episode you’ll be hearing from four of my seven current mastermind members, including Sarah of Sarah and design. She owns a brand and website design companies for creative entrepreneurs. You’re going to hear from Emma Emma Christine. She is a boudoir photographer and educator. She has courses and amazing education for boudoir photographers. You’re going to hear from Haylee Gaffin creative. She is a podcast producer and she’s phenomenal. And you’re also going to be hearing from Julie of Dallas girl Friday. She is a systems strategist and virtual assistant. These women along with the other three women inside of my mastermind are just phenomenal. And I cannot wait for you to hear from them about their experience inside the mastermind.

Sarah Erickson 2:34
Hi, everyone, I am Sarah. I’m a brand and website designer for creatives. And I’m so thankful that I’ve been part of Les Lee’s mastermind for the past six months, I have learned so much. And I’m excited to share a little bit about my experience and answer any questions that lately might have that would help you guys determine if a mastermind is a good fit for you and what you should look for when you are choosing to invest in one yourself.

Laylee Emadi 2:58
Yay. I’m so excited to have you here. Sarah. I know for anybody who’s listening to this, Sarah has been on several episodes, she is my brand designer, I was insanely honored that Sara would even want to be a part of this group. And so I think honestly, my biggest and best question for you, Sarah, and I think would be the most helpful for our listeners is I know personally how many things you’ve invested in education wise, over the past several years that we have been friends and peers, and just going through the industry together over the past few years, you have made such amazing investments in your educational experiences. In fact, I think that you have found more value in the things that you’ve invested in than I have in the things I’ve invested in, which is I’m a little salty, but that’s okay. But because of that, I’d love to hear from you. Like, even within the masterminds that I’ve seen you be a part of whether it was mine or another educators, they all look really different. So how do you decide what it is that you want to invest in? And how do you make those hard decisions? Because I feel like for most people, once they’re committed to an educational experience, like it’s great for them, and they really go all in and once they make the decision to invest, they’re good. But for most of it is the in decisiveness leading up. That’s really difficult. So what are some of the things that you think through before investing?

Sarah Erickson 4:20
So many good questions to think about there? I guess First things first, I have been really grateful for the educational opportunities that I’ve invested in. I feel like I have been really lucky. I’ve not had a bad outcome. So far, I’ve gotten to work with some really amazing educators who have all put together very different educational programs, and they do all offer something a little bit different for each one. So some of the things that I think can look different are for one size, and I’ve been in a mastermind with 30 people and I’ve been in a much more intimate mastermind with you know, six to 12 people and those both have a very different feel, you know, and kind Different pros and cons. So that’s a big one that I think stands out as something to think about when you’re looking at what you want out of an educational experience. And of course, the educator that you’re choosing is going to have a huge effect in what that experience looks like. And I think there if you are looking to make a decision on that, it’s important to look not just at the educator and what you admire about them, but to look at their past students. So it’s not just about the educator, but it’s also about the students that they’ve taught and the transformations that those students have been seen in their lives and their businesses. I think it’s really easy to be attracted to an educator and like their personality and like what they’re doing in their own business. But if they can’t show that they can replicate that for other students, it may not necessarily be a great outcome for you at the end of the educational experience. So you can definitely take a look at their past student testimonials, or even reach out to people who have worked with them before and get a good feel for what that educator is going to be like. And that will really set the tone for the educational experience. As far as size goes. Like I said before, that can be a huge determining factor and what that educational experience looks like. I have enjoyed both sizes for different reasons. But the larger mastermind does, I think tend to have less of that personal field. So if you’re someone who does want a lot of one to one advice, you really want to connect with the peers in your group in a more intimate way you want people to know your business thoroughly and be able to pour into it. I think that’s definitely a reason to go for a smaller group. And you are going to get more individualized attention and have a great time connecting with people who can really understand your business, pinpoint your needs, and help you navigate all of your questions over the time that you’re working together. On the flip side, a larger group does have more people with more variety of experiences. So you do get to learn from more people. And that can be a great thing, too. It’s just not going to feel quite as intimate and personalized as far as the advice goes. So it’s just something to think about and decide, you know, what’s really a best fit for you.

Laylee Emadi 7:08
Oh, my gosh, that was so helpful. I love that. Thank you so much for sharing all of that amazing insight. I know that I kind of wish I had heard it back before my last big investment. But that’s fine. So I love that I would love to hear you know, now that you’ve kind of outlined a few of the differences within the things that you’ve invested in. Is there anything about our mastermind that we have been in for these past like six months together that has stood out to you or that you’ve really enjoyed or been surprised by?

Sarah Erickson 7:36
Yes, I’ve enjoyed every minute of it one. But two, I think one of the strengths of this particular mastermind, is the quality of people that layli attracts to the group and brings together a mastermind in in my mind. And I know layli would agree is meant to be peer to peer focused. So layli is definitely there. As an incredible educator, she lends great wisdom and advice when needed. But you are also learning from the people in the group. And that’s one of the things that is really magical about a mastermind. And so with this group in particular, she brought together some really incredible people. And I think that will happen time and time again, for any educational offering that laylee puts together because she does attract really fantastic people who are just really smart in their businesses and always dreaming big and thinking up new ideas. So just to be surrounded by people who have that kind of creative energy and drive, it really makes all the difference in the everyday of your own business to have those peers that you can learn from feel comfortable asking questions, you know, and just be inspired by so I’ve really appreciated that aspect of it.

Laylee Emadi 8:47
Thank you make me sound so good. But honestly, you guys are the reason that the group has gone as as amazingly well as it has it, you know, having the right fit of personality of experience level, a variety of industries, all those things are really important to me. And even important to me when I’m looking to find something to invest in. So, again, I know that like my mastermind applications are open, you know, for the next like week and a half. But in general I think finding something to invest in is so difficult and that is something that I have found has either made or you know it can make or break an experience is Who else is involved? And are they being selected in a really discerning way or people are the leaders involved just kind of making empty promises and saying oh, we filtered through applications very carefully, but we all know that they probably don’t. So that means a lot to me and I’m really glad that it’s reflected in our group and I’ve just seen so much success with it. So thank you. Alright, Sara, I would love to hear because I am super excited for you. What are some of the big tangible takeaways and wins that you’ve experienced through our time together

Sarah Erickson 9:57
these past six months? I have definitely experienced some good transformations over the past couple of months. Most tangibly, the girls in this group encouraged me to raise my prices in a way that has really been a huge help to my family and me during this time, we’re, we’re about to embark on a cross country move and being able to raise those prices just in time for a lot of big transitions in business has really meant the world to me, I don’t think that I would have made that leap on my own. But having people who are not necessarily in my business every day step in and take a look at my services and encouraged me to make that leap has just been a world of difference. And I’m so grateful for it. That’s, that’s been huge. I think as far as intangibles, I’m grateful to just have the community I’m sure other girls have mentioned that as well. But it’s just helpful to have creative people that you can connect to and pop in and say hello to literally gives us a lot of great ways to communicate with each other. So I love hearing their voices or seeing their faces, especially in a year where I’m trying really hard to work on mental health and just stay in a good place where I can best serve my business, my clients, my family, and myself, it’s been really great to have those people to lean on whether things are going right or wrong. It’s nice to have a community that can understand where we are and and continue to build each other up.

Laylee Emadi 11:20
Yeah, I love that. And I think it’s really important to note here that while you raise your prices, and it was such a good move for you. What I love about this group is that we as a group are not encouraging one another just to raise prices, just to raise prices, we’re encouraging it when the value warrants it when the work level warrants it. And I think that that’s when people see success. This is just me getting on a soapbox here, y’all. But like, I really cannot stand when educators give blanket advice, and just rinse and repeat advice. And I, you know, I wouldn’t necessarily go through to all seven members of the mastermind and say, you should definitely raise your prices by this much. Just to tell them to do something to call a win. It’s only a win if you can back it up by booking. And you totally could. And I love that for you. And I’m so glad that that we were able to come together and encourage you in that way. And by encourage you, I mean, really just force your hand. Well, we were all sitting around making you watching you raise your prices on your website. But that makes me so happy. It was exactly what I needed.

Sarah Erickson 12:24
And that’s exactly why it’s so important, I think to have that community and have a mastermind. And that’s why the smaller group was a good fit for me at this time. Because it was people who could really take a deep dive into my business, look at my services, look at my offerings and make sure that that was the right move. For me. I think in a larger group, maybe something like that could have gotten lost. But for this particular group, it was exactly what I needed, so that we could make that decision with confidence and, and really be able to move forward with it and feel good about it.

Emma Christine 12:52
Hey, I’m Emma, of Emma Christine photography. And I joined the mastermind, because I wanted to a community of like minded women that were wanting to move forward in their businesses and grow together. And I’m walking away with the best Sisterhood of people that can actually see those things that need improvement in my business that I can’t see, because I’m so focused on moving forward all the time that I kind of missed those pieces that I dropped along the way.

Laylee Emadi 13:22
Yeah, I love that. I feel like am I You are such a mover and shaker like you’re constantly coming out new things or like in the fifth month. And right away, you were like cutting services out that no longer fit the needs of your business and transitioning. And you launched a course in the middle. And so it’s been really fun to see like the group be that community for you that you can really be a part of. But I also love that you said like you joined for community. And you got out of it exactly what you wanted to you got out of it a group that’s just very, like loyal to you and dedicated to you and I, I see how well you give what you want. So like you have given so much to our community. And I love hearing that you’re able to like take that away as well.

Emma Christine 14:08
Yeah, I really do value the people that I’ve met through the mastermind, and I just feel like they’re all people that I’m going to be able to come back to in years and be proud of what they’ve done. And they’ll be proud of me and stuff like that. So I just think it’s awesome.

Laylee Emadi 14:23
I love that. Is there anything that really surprised you about the experience as a whole or about the group? Is there anything that you were like, oh, it wasn’t I didn’t think this would be like something that happened inside of this mastermind. Oh, yeah.

Emma Christine 14:38
Honestly, um, even just the people that were inside of it. We’re not just photographers. And coming into this as a photographer, I’m in so many groups that it’s just photographers. So it was really interesting to be able to connect with different people of different backgrounds. Some have come from like the corporate world and some you know are doing like timing management and podcast services and things like that. And they’re not just a photographer, they, you know, so it’s really cool to actually talk with people that are creative entrepreneurs, rather than photographers to kind of expand my horizons a little bit.

Laylee Emadi 15:15
I love that. Yeah, I think it’s super important to have a variety of industries represented, because I know, coming from photography myself, I did feel like, we just kind of stay in our little bubble and all are doing the same things. But it’s so cool to be able to take something that another industry leader is doing and apply it into our industry. So I think that’s amazing. If you had a hesitation before joining the mastermind, what was it and like now that you’re kind of coming to a close in the time together, did your experience negate that hesitation.

Emma Christine 15:49
So I guess when I came into the mastermind, or when I was applying for it, I was a little bit nervous that I wasn’t going to be able to give it my full attention and my full time and just be present for every single meeting, maybe I wouldn’t be able to make, you know, each time work. But so far, I actually have been and everything’s been working out really well with my schedule at the studio and everything. So that part is good. But also keeping up with the extra curricular communication that happens in our Marco Polo chat or like in Facebook and things like that, I just want to make sure that I’m able to give as much as I receive from the other girls in the mastermind. So I want to make sure that I’m able to be present and help them as much as they help me.

Laylee Emadi 16:37
Oh, my goodness, yes, I love that. I feel like we have such an active group. And they kind of I feel like because we’ve all gotten so close, it’s really cool to see that we want to really like step up and be there for one another and we want to like pour into one another and give our time so generously. I’ve loved seeing everybody just be really open with their time. I think that’s amazing.

Haylee Gaffin 17:01
Hey, I’m Haylee Gaffin of Gaffin. Creative. I’m a podcast producer and photographer based out of Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Laylee Emadi 17:09
Hey, Haley, I am so honored that you were part of this mastermind. Also, I was just shocked that you would want to invest in this in this way. Because you are also my podcast editor. So I look up to you so much. And it has been such a joy having you as part of our group, this first six months of this year. It’s been amazing. So thanks for being here.

Haylee Gaffin 17:30
Thank you. No, I could not have imagined a better. first big investment in my business, especially going like full time in my business this year.

Laylee Emadi 17:40
Yeah, it’s been really, really great having you as part of the group. And also just seeing you go full time, we’ve seen your take on amazing other podcast clients and just building out your services and your offerings and really kind of deciding what direction to take everything. So I’d love to hear Haley like, how has it gone for you? Do you feel like making this investment was the right move for you at the time that you similarly to all the other people in the group, not only were you wanting to scale your current offerings, but you were also bringing in new income new revenue streams and really building out your offerings. So

Haylee Gaffin 18:14
for my business, I definitely wanted to scale and I wanted to create some kind of passive income. And passive is such a thrown around word. But I needed the accountability to actually creating the content and the products to drive sales to those resources. And for me, the accountability was such a huge aspect of why I felt like a mastermind was the right direction. But also because I’d never done any of these things myself before, I had always focused on client to client services and one on one services and never scaled to a bigger audience like that, to where I could create revenue that didn’t require my time and trading my time for money. But at the same time, I also wanted to focus on those one on one clients and how I could serve them better and how I could create an experience that did set me apart, especially going full time in this business. Because for so long. This was kind of a side hustle thing that I didn’t give it my all I didn’t give it 100% and now I’m in a space where I can and having people who have gone through this transition of taking their creative side hustle full time going along with me on this journey has just been really, really valuable.

Laylee Emadi 19:33
Yeah, I love that. And I feel like a big piece that you mentioned is the accountability. And I think that is something that so many of us undervalue. I think that when you have a group of people who are not only in your corner not only cheering you on, but you have, you know a leader in the group who is following up with you and seeing like, Hey, where are you on the progress of these goals that you set out to accomplish and just that like gentle but Somewhat firm, like nudge to get things done, I think can be such a game changer for so many of us who work alone. I know I strive like to reach new heights when I have accountability to answer to.

Haylee Gaffin 20:13
Absolutely. And especially the fact that you reach out and are like, Where are you and we have those one on ones and we have our hot seats, because with a hot seat coming up for me, I know I have such a huge goal to hit before that hot seat like gets here. And I have to do the work to get there so that I can bring it to the table to say, look how much I got done since the last time y’all helped me. It’s not like, while I’m doing it for me, of course, I also have this need to present to everyone else in the group, like, yes, this investment is worth it for me. But y’all are encouraging me as well. And it’s kind of a win for them. I don’t know how to best describe it, but it feels like I owe it to everyone else in my group to be where I’m supposed to be. And where I said I was gonna be

Laylee Emadi 20:59
Yeah, for sure. You want to like follow through on the things that you’ve shared with the group, especially when you see each other winning, it’s like, once one person wins, it’s almost contagious, where you’re like, Oh, my gosh, look at the success that, you know, so and so hit Like, I can do it too. We’re all in this group together. And then it’s so beautiful to see like that cycle of winning start to like take place and to be able to cheer each other on, but also feel motivated to do it yourself.

Haylee Gaffin 21:23
Absolutely. And with that, I think that it’s one thing that I’ve really loved about the community aspect of it and doing it alongside other people, as far as mastermind goes, is that every time that I hear another person’s hot seat, and I see what they’re working on in their business, I take the concepts that they’re using and see where I can apply it to my own business, and what I can do in my business that they’re doing, that’s giving them growth, even though no one else in our mastermind is a Podcast Producer, but I can take things that they’re sharing and that everyone is giving them feedback on and put it on my own business in a way that I wouldn’t I can’t get that from podcast episodes that I’m listening to. It’s very intentional education.

Laylee Emadi 22:10
Oh my gosh, I’m like, that is such gold. Because I totally agree. And I think that that’s a benefit of having people outside your industry. Because you’re being able to not only apply new education and ideas to your business, but it’s going to be unique to you know, your competitors around you. And so I think that is so invaluable. I’m so glad you brought that up. Oh my gosh, there’s so many things I could talk about in this episode. It’s like stressing me out. Because I’m like, everybody needs to know that these are the benefits. And well, I can only take you know, six to eight people max per round of mastermind. I think there’s so much benefit in finding a group that works for you, no matter who it’s with. I just am such an advocate for finding actionable good education. And these are all things I think people can apply to finding their own. So that’s amazing.

Julie Painter 22:59
Hi, I’m Julie painter with Dallas girl Friday. And I am a system strategist for wedding professionals. And I joined the mastermind to help launch a few things that were the pipeline for me. I’ll be honest, I have not launched them yet. And that is a reflection 100% on me. And nothing to do with the mastermind I knew immediately when les Lee’s name was attached to it, that it was going to be worth the investment and it was an investment. And you get out of it what you put into it. And that’s a blessing every business owner needs to learn. But for me, definitely the biggest thing I’ve gotten out of it is some clarity on some projects, as well as just an incredible, supportive, kind, funny group of women that are in the same place as me that are in logic phases, hustle phases that are building their empires that are building their brands, and to be able to come together with these women, not just on the calls, but in our Facebook group on Instagram DMs, on Marco Polo. It’s just It’s incredible. The support, it’s it’s just incredible to be able to have gained those business best friends. That was something I was always lacking in this industry. And I feel like I haven’t.

Laylee Emadi 24:29
I love that so much. And I think that like we’re not even done with our time. So we may have to force launch one of those things for you before our six months is up. Because you were so close.

Julie Painter 24:40
It’s just a matter of doing it. I have everything prepped. I just have to physically do it. And it’s I have no explanation for what’s holding me back other than every single day I feel like I am just in catch up mode between buying a house planning a wedding Getting married. Like, it’s, it’s been a crazy few months. And

Laylee Emadi 25:05
I like how you say you have no idea what and then you list all of these. Yeah. So, I mean, I will say, I’m glad you’re giving yourself a little bit of grace, a little bit of space to like, process all of these things. But also know I think this is a huge thing that people need to hear is that like, investing in educational, whatever experience a mastermind, a course anything for yourself? Yes, you get it, you get out of it, what you put in, but also like, our businesses are supposed to run as long as our lives. So we have to be able to give ourselves a little bit of breathing room and understand that not everything is going to be a magic wand that like we can just flip a switch and launch something in the first month you’re inside of a group. And I know that that’s a sometimes even in our group that’s so supportive and kind. We’re seeing we had one person lunch, of course, we had one person lunch, a shirt shop, we’ve had so many things happening, that it’s easy to say like, Oh, well, I haven’t launched my thing yet. But I love that you are a like, Okay, I’m aware that I’m taking my time. But I would love to encourage you to be even more forgiving of that. And like understand that, that is okay. And we are not even done with our time yet. So don’t feel like you’re behind. But I really appreciate you sharing that, especially because I think so many people need to hear that. I think we we tend to just be really hard on ourselves as business owners, especially ones who are so motivated that they do jump into high level investments. But yeah, I mean, I think that there has to be like a balance involved. And I think that that. I mean, I don’t want to put words in your mouth. But for me when I’m part of a group that is actually super helpful is to have people remind me of that, as I’m working to build out new offerings. Is there anything that really surprised you about being a part of the experience as a whole or like, anything that surprised you about this? This group? I know that it was really nice that you said that when my name was attached to it, you wanted to join it that makes me super, like wanna cry? But is there anything that really surprised you about it?

Julie Painter 27:08
Well, I mean, I just I’d never been in a mastermind before. So I just kind of didn’t really know what all to expect. No, I don’t know. I don’t think anything like surprised me, I Well, I do. And that’s not true, this is going to be really mean. But I kind of assumed there would be at least one dud. Because there’s always a dud in every group. But you picked the right people for the group so thoughtfully, and like carefully, like, you kind of like we’re making us as a group. And it’s just like every single person in the group, I feel like I connect with, like different ways. So just really special. Maybe that means I’m the dud. Oh, my gosh, no. Stop. I agree. I

Laylee Emadi 28:01
think that that is I don’t think that’s mean, I think that happens a lot. Because I think that most people and if you like once this comes out and is released on the podcast, like for our listeners out there. Like, if you’re an educator who’s thinking about creating a group, this is the thing that I think is a huge pitfall I teach this inside the Academy is that a lot of people will put out an offer and be like anybody who is willing to pay it can be in it. And I just don’t agree with that. Because you want the best transformation, you want the best experience for everybody in the group. And you’re not going to get that if you let anybody in any stage of business in any stage of life with any personality. join an intimate group. It just doesn’t make sense.

Julie Painter 28:44
100% Yeah, I was because I applied, I think relatively early on like, I wasn’t like waiting till the last minute. And I was like, I can’t believe I have to like wait weeks to find out have I even get in? Oh my gosh. But then like, now understanding like why we had to wait because you wanted to make sure to filter through every single person like it just it makes sense. And I’m glad that it was that way.

Laylee Emadi 29:07
I love hearing that. Because it’s very hard for me to make people wait. But it isn’t so worth it. Once we all get together. We’re like, Oh, this is why not everybody. And I think that you know, it is really hard for me to turn down people. I turned down a handful of people who applied and it was hard I’m sure for them to hear no. And it was hard for probably harder for me to say no. But I’m sure that looking at it now. I’m hopeful that they would see like, Oh, this is why she said no. Like it wasn’t really going to benefit me. I want to make sure that anybody who pays me and shows up and invest their time in something can walk away, feeling like they got out of it what they wanted. And if I just let everybody in who is willing to pay like there’s going to be people who won’t learn because they’re way far ahead or will learn So much they get overwhelmed, and they don’t do anything if they’re really far behind. And so I think it’s just really important to have everybody somewhat in the same headspace and also personality types, I think it’s really important to have a good mesh of that. Okay, my last question for you, Julie, is if somebody was hesitant to, like, join a mastermind or invest their time and resources, as you’re coming toward the end of our time together, you’ve dedicated like five months to this, what would you tell somebody who had that hesitation?

Julie Painter 30:28
I think it would depend on the reason for their hesitation. But I would guess the most common hesitation would be like the investment like cost wise. And I would just say, I am First of all, always listen to Layla, when she talks about like, who should and should not be educating? Like, don’t sign up for a mastermind with like, a person who’s been in business for a month, maybe, you know, like, what are they going to teach you? Like, sign up and learn from people who know more than you? Do? You fear the smartest person in the room, find a new room. I just think as business owners, it’s not like we have corporate job, I mean, that people in corporate jobs don’t have to keep learning. But as business owners, we do have to keep learning and growing to push ourselves. And if you don’t take the time to make investments and learn new things, then all you’re doing is putting one foot in front of the other every day, and you can’t grow that way. There’s no chance.

Laylee Emadi 31:30
I totally agree. I mean, I think that it’s something that I am continually looking to invest in something new every year, I try to pick one or two things to invest in. And I feel like every single year that investment becomes bigger and bigger. And most people might think like, oh, it should, you should need to learn less as you gain more experience, but I think it’s the opposite. I love that you’re shaking your head. Yeah, I mean, I think it’s the opposite. I think that if we want to continue to grow and scale and add new things and make more money and have more time, like you’re going to have to learn new ways to do that. And, and I think the person who stops investing in themselves is the person who’s going to be stuck for a long time. So I appreciate you sharing that. Because I agree. I mean, I do also think that there’s something to be said, I know a lot of people who talked to me and who are interested in the mastermind, or in any educational experience, not just with me are always like, not always, but a lot of times they’ll say things like, Oh, I just can’t afford it. And there are a lot of coaches out there that will tell you like, Well, you’ve got to find a way to afford it. Like, let’s make it happen. I’m not one of those people, I think you need to have the money in order to spend the money. I don’t want anybody to to go into debt, because they want to get education. First you make some money, then you invest in education. And I want to make that really clear.

Julie Painter 32:46
Literally investing means taking money that you already have, stick it in yourself. Can’t like invest in the stock market with your credit card. Like, what can you call that be a horrible idea? I hope you can’t do that. Yeah, hopefully not. But yeah, seriously, like, because there’s been things I wanted to do before and I’ve just been like, it’s just not time like I just like, you know, paid off $1,000 on like my credit card or something. And so there’s been things I’ve said no to poor, and then there’s been a lot of things I’ve regretted investing.

Laylee Emadi 33:19
Oh, same 100%. Same. I think I’ve done podcast episodes about that already. But I do I think that that’s just something I really wanted to make clear is that like, if there is a coach out there who is trying to like push you to invest before you have the funds to do so that’s a red flag of major. Yeah, don’t do that. People are teaching that too. I mean, I think there’s a lot of educators for educators. That’s something that I mean, that’s what I do with my course with the Academy. And a lot of people who are kind of in the same sphere as me, they’re teaching their coaching students like, this is how you overcome people’s you know, like, inability to pay you, you get them on payment plans, you create, and I’m like, well, that’s fine. If they know they’re gonna make the money, but it’s not fine if you’re just encouraging people to go into debt. So that was a whole that’s a whole like tangent, but I do think it’s important.

Laylee Emadi 34:11
My friend, I hope you have loved listening in on this episode, I want to say a huge thank you to the mastermind members who gave us their time so graciously, and answered all of those questions. There were so many amazing insights that I’m hopeful will be helpful for you. I’m so huge thank you to Sarah, Julie, Emma and Haylee. And I would encourage you guys to go follow them along their entrepreneurial journey. You can find all their information listed in our show notes. Thanks again for listening. And I’ll see you guys next week.

Laylee Emadi 34:38
For show notes and resources mentioned on today’s episode, head to toe here’s the thing podcast.com and if you’re enjoying the podcast, I’d love to read your review on iTunes. Thanks so much for listening, and I’ll catch you in the next episode.