#275 Put Your Hand Up: Breath, Grounding and the Courage to Send the Email with Bart from Connections Interactive

#275 Put Your Hand Up: Breath, Grounding and the Courage to Send the Email with Bart from Connections Interactive

This episode is proof of what happens when you put your hand up. My guest today is Bart, and our journey together started with pure serendipity. His girlfriend couldn't make one of my speaking events, so he took her ticket. He sat in a room of 50 people, and when I asked if anyone had anything to share, he put his hand up. Voice shaking, nerves everywhere, but so much courage. And that one moment set off a chain of events that led him here, onto this podcast. Because here's the thing. Bart kept taking the next step. He came and spoke to me after the event. He sent the email. He joined the Rich Lady Revolution. He said yes to the podcast. That's inspired action in motion, and it's exactly what I teach in my ACTION framework. The N stands for Now. What do you know right now that can move you one step closer to your goal? In this episode, Bart shares the vision behind his business, Connections Interactive. He's building an inclusive, nourishing community for neurodiverse people, drawing on his own lived experience with the noise that comes from within and without. His mission is to help people quiet that noise, break complexity into simple micro steps, and rebuild healthy dopamine through real connection instead of doom scrolling. We chat about: 1. The moment Bart put his hand up in a room full of strangers, and why being seen and witnessed changes everything 2. Why courage and vulnerability are the foundations of creating any movement 3. Connections Interactive and Bart's vision for supporting the neurodiverse community 4. His three accessible grounding tools: breath, hydration and tactile grounding 5. The "minute of creation" and how micro habits create flow 6. Why profit without peace is pointless, and peace without profit is a hard way to live 7. Believing in yourself when life gets hard, and just taking the next little step Bart also walked me through his grounding practice live on air, and honestly, my shoulders dropped, my jaw released and I could suddenly hear the birds. The magic is available to all of us, every moment of every day. It costs nothing but the commitment to practise it daily. If you've ever felt the nudge to send the email, make the call or put your hand up, this episode is your sign. Want to learn more or connect with Bart? Check out all of his links, resources, and social media here: 👉 https://linktr.ee/SmoothOpurrator [https://linktr.ee/SmoothOpurrator] Connect with us: Follow Diane: @dianemckendrick [https://www.instagram.com/dianemckendrick/]on Instagram, Facebook: www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick [https://www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick/] LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/] We're ThoseSisters, and we run retreats for ambitious business women. Website: www.those2sisters.com [http://www.those2sisters.com] Ready to build your business with structure, strategy and spirituality, surrounded by women who get it? Join The Rich Lady Revolution Membership: https://www.those2sisters.au/membership [https://www.those2sisters.au/membership]

#274 Get Out of the Day-to-Day: Systems, Sanity and the Seven-Minute Unhinged Voice Note with Katie Kirsopp

Two minutes before I hit record on this episode, I got a call from the school sick bay. My son had hit his head, and there I was, mid-mum-mode, about to interview one of the most organised women I know. Honestly, it could not have been more fitting. Because this episode is all about building a serious business around real life. The kids, the school runs, the chaos, all of it. My guest today is Katie Kirsopp, a fractional COO who goes into the back end of businesses and finds the gaps you can't see because you're too deep in the day-to-day. I met Katie at our very first Top Shelf Entrepreneurs retreat, then reconnected at Curated Circle in Melbourne, and I knew I had to get her on the podcast. Katie's journey started when a client told her she was a terrible VA. Turns out she wasn't a doer, she was a visionary. Now she helps coaches, consultants and creatives streamline their systems, restructure their teams and reclaim their time, so the business runs without them glued to their phone. In this episode, we chat about: 1. What a fractional COO actually does, and how it differs from a VA or OBM 2. The automation that quietly stopped working for three months because it was nobody's job to notice 3. How Katie juggles multiple clients, kids' sport and solo parenting seasons (spoiler: there's no secret sauce, just radical acceptance) 4. The "seven-minute unhinged voice note" and why every leader needs a safe place to vent 5. Why leadership is lonely, and how the right support changes everything 6. Building systems around YOUR leadership style, not someone else's template 7. Why solid personal foundations matter more than any SOP Katie and I also get real about mum guilt, being terrible cooks (boiled eggs count as dinner, right?) and why you have to be okay with missing out sometimes. If you've built a successful business but you're still the one answering every message and checking your inbox seven times a day, this one's for you. Connect with Katie: Instagram: @katielkirsopp [https://www.instagram.com/katielkirsopp/] Website: www.katiekirsopp.com [www.katiekirsopp.com] Connect with us: Follow Diane: @dianemckendrick [https://www.instagram.com/dianemckendrick/] on Instagram, Facebook: www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick [www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick ] LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/] Website: www.those2sisters.com [http://www.those2sisters.com] Come to a retreat: they're filling fast, and women travel from all over the world to be in the room. Check the website for dates. Ready to go deeper? Join The Rich Lady Revolution Membership: https://www.those2sisters.au/membership [https://www.those2sisters.au/membership]

#273 Beyond Quick Fixes: Sustainable Marketing Strategies with Chantal Gerardy

In episode 273 of The Rich Lady Revolution, host Diane McKendrick interviews Chantal Gerardy, founder of Online Business Marketing (fractional marketing strategist), OBMHub (Go High Level), and host of The Meaningful Marketing Podcast. Chantal shares her journey from South Africa to Australia, building a six-figure business on the Gold Coast with three children under five, then teaching others after her health, wellness, and fitness center tenants struggled to get clients. She outlines how to choose a marketing expert (testimonials, proven results, no quick-fix promises) and explains a marketing “ecosystem” requiring 10–20 hours weekly across six areas: Google/analytics, website/SEO/funnels, social media (know-like-trust), lead generation, email marketing (automation and newsletters), and partnership marketing. They discuss using AI with a brand kit, disciplined time-blocking, and human editing, plus the importance of nervous system regulation because “state plus strategy equals success. Connect with Chantal: Website: https://onlinebusinessmarketing.com.au [https://onlinebusinessmarketing.com.au] Podcast: The Meaningful Marketing Podcast: https://onlinebusinessmarketing.com.au/podcasts/ [https://onlinebusinessmarketing.com.au/podcasts/] Connect with Diane: Website: www.those2sisters.com [https://www.those2sisters.com] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick/ [https://www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick/] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianemckendrick/ [https://www.instagram.com/dianemckendrick/] Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/] Join us in the Rich Lady Revolution Membership: https://www.those2sisters.au/membership [https://www.those2sisters.au/membership] Register to our Monthly Workshop: https://www.those2sisters.com/events [https://www.those2sisters.com/events]

#271 Values, Menopause, and Energy: Building a Business That Supports Your Life with Kathie Long

In this episode of The Rich Lady Revolution: Redefining Rich, host Diane McKendrick speaks with health and wellness coach, women’s-only gym franchisee, and certified menopause coach Kathie Long about women supporting women and building businesses that align with real life. Kathie shares insights from her menopause and business studies, including that many Australian startups were launched by women over 50, and explores menopause as a powerful transition where women back themselves and seek more purpose. Together they discuss seasons and cycles in life and business, value alignment as an antidote to burnout, and practical ways to spot misalignment by checking your calendar, identifying “time vampires,” and outsourcing tasks like cleaning. Kathie also highlights working with personal energy rhythms, scheduling for flow, and intentionally celebrating wins instead of constantly moving the goalposts. Connect with them online: Kathie Long Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kathie.long.92 [https://www.facebook.com/kathie.long.92] Website: www.those2sisters.com [https://www.those2sisters.com] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianemckendrick/ [https://www.instagram.com/dianemckendrick/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick/ [https://www.facebook.com/diane.mckendrick/] Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianemckendrick/] Join the Rich Lady Revolution Membership: https://www.those2sisters.au/membership [https://www.those2sisters.au/membership]

#270 From CFO to Founder: Redefining Wealth, Values & Profit with Sarah Petty

In this episode of The Rich Lady Revolution, I sit down with Sarah Petty, founder of Olive Business Partners and former corporate CFO, for a grounded, real conversation about what wealth actually looks like behind the scenes of business. Sarah shares her journey from nearly 20 years in corporate finance to building her own business supporting entrepreneurs to better understand and use their numbers with clarity and confidence. We talk about the shift that happens when you move from working inside someone else’s vision to building your own, and why values matter just as much as financial strategy when choosing the people you trust with your business. We also unpack something every business owner needs to hear: the four numbers that actually matter in your business - revenue, profit, cash in the bank, and what you pay yourself - and why these are the foundations of sustainable, stress-free growth. This is a conversation about removing shame from money, bringing calm into your decision-making, and learning to see your finances as data that supports your leadership, not something to fear. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by your business numbers or unsure if you’re on track, this episode will bring clarity, perspective, and a much-needed sense of peace. Sarah Petty / Olive Business Partners Olive Business Partners Website You can also connect with Sarah via: 1. Instagram: Olive Business Partners : https://www.instagram.com/olivebusinesspartners/ [https://www.instagram.com/olivebusinesspartners/] 2. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/olivebusinesspartners [https://www.linkedin.com/company/olivebusinesspartners] 3. Direct contact via website: https://olivebusinesspartners.com.au/ [https://olivebusinesspartners.com.au/] Join the Rich Lady Revolution Membership: https://www.those2sisters.au/membership [https://www.those2sisters.au/membership]