Melissa Anzman (00:00): This is the launch yourself podcast with Melissa Anzman episode. Number two, featuring Emily Sandford.

Melissa Anzman (00:07): Hello, hello, and welcome to the launch yourself podcast, career, business, and brand advice to help you be seen, make an impact and deliver at your maximum potential. And now here's your host, Melissa. Anzman.

Melissa Anzman (00:27): This is the launch yourself podcast with Melissa Anzman. And today we're going to be chatting with Emily Sandford from authentically Emmie. She's been featured in ladies home journal it's outright now shape magazine, the New York post prevention magazine, the AP and many more. She's the owner of authentically social social media marketing consultancy for health and wellness, fashion, beauty, and lifestyle companies. She founded that in 2012, after spending eight years of traditional brand management and her results oriented, social media blogger outreach and community management plans have earned Emily clients across the U S. She was recently named the amazing woman of the year by stiletto woman of Forbes ranked a leadership centric lifestyle company for modern working business woman. She serves on the board of directors for both the junior league of Lexington and AAS at Lexington. She received her undergrad degree and MBA from the university of Kentucky.

Melissa Anzman (01:27): I'm so honored to have her here, please welcome Emily Sandford. Thanks for joining us today, Emily. Thanks so much for having me. I'm so excited. I'm so excited as well. What you guys don't know is Emily and I are actually friends. She was my first online friend who turned into real life friend that I ever had. And she's such an amazing inspiration to me from not only a business and blogging perspective, but also from a personal side. So I'm really glad to have you be introduced to my audience. And likewise, thank you. You helped me immensely ever since we've met. So I'm so glad to do this. And I know that I always get really excited and I talk loud. I talk fast whenever I'm talking with you, because I just get really inspired. So I'm just really excited to talk to you today about this.

Melissa Anzman (02:16): Awesome. So as we like to talk about it, launch yourself on the site and in our podcast, it's really about that specific point of decision. When you made a decision to take action to fulfill your maximum potential in your career business brand. And when Emily and I were talking about, you know, which ones stands out for her the most, which decision was the biggest launch of her career business brand. The one that she looked back at wasn't necessarily the most recent one, she's had a ton of launches, but it was one in which she decided to leave the corporate world behind and go out on her own. So, Emily, if you want to just talk to us a little bit about that decision, what was going on and how you made the decision that would be really helpful to get us started?

Emily Sandford (03:06): Well, growing up, I had a father who was a very company oriented guy. I was always told that you should kind of be an IBM or, you know, you should have that mentality of you work for a certain company and you earn your stripes and you get you and you have loyalty and you kind of grow up and whatever. So it was so funny after college and that I would, you know, sit in interviews and people are like, well, tell us why you really want this job. And I would always spat out, well, I really want to be a lifer. I want to be an IBM or I really want to grow with a company. And that's just the only mentality that I always had was that's how it was supposed to be. And I just kinda got stuck in that for so long.

Emily Sandford (03:44): And it finally got so point my breaking point, I guess, which thankfully it was probably one of the best things that happened to me ever. I remember I was, you know, I had a stressful job. I was director of marketing for a company. I had been in the corporate world for about eight years doing various brand and product management positions. And I just realized that I was so tired. I had been pursuing other passions on the side. So kind of my side hustle, like doing social media or blogging. And those were just kind of hobbies that started taking over my life. And then that meant that work, where I was supposed to be exerting my most effort. It just became like that was interfering with my fun stuff. And I remember that I was at my doctor cause I was just not feeling very well.

Emily Sandford (04:29): And she was just looking at me like you're exhausted. Your body is about to shut down. You need to make a decision, you need to prioritize things. And I remember that later that night I was fitting in, you know, working on my blog and I heard my phone buzz, meaning an email was coming through. And I, when I looked at the phone, I was like, Oh my God, it's an email. And I felt like I was going to have a panic attack. Cause I was worried it was my boss and that not that my boss was a bad person. It's just that kind of, I realized that was the point when work was taking over life. And I was kind of a light bulb. Like, it shouldn't be this way. Like I shouldn't get an anxiety attack because I'm getting emails from work at 10 o'clock at night.

Emily Sandford (05:11): So that kind of was the big turning point. And so I just thought, okay, how do I take what I really like to do? Social media blogging, that sort of thing, and translated into a real job, not, you know, a real job, just meaning something that's sustainable that has income that I can count on every month. And the thought of it at first terrified me. But then I don't know what happened. I just, I don't know if it was a combination of just being sick and run down and then hearing a doctor say, you need to prioritize then me just being kind of at my breaking point. But I decided to leave. So I left my job and it was the best decision I ever made.

Melissa Anzman (05:49): That's so awesome. We've all had that moment of why is someone emailing me? And I know that for me I don't even, I still, to this day, can't check email on my phone because I get so angry thinking it's going to be work mail. So I totally understand that being the anxiety point. So after making the decision, which it sounds like everything sort of aligned and clicked for you, that this is what you needed to do, how did you then plan for the launch? What actions did you take to say, this is where I am and that's where I want to be. How did you get there?

Emily Sandford (06:23): Yeah. well, I, you know, it was a lot of, you know, my traditional business school background is you make plans, you make project plans, you make pros and cons, which you try to make spreadsheets and figure out the outcomes. And it was so funny it's cause I'm a super risk averse person. I need to know, I have this much money coming in. I need to know I have this house over my head and or this roof over my head that I have all these things going on, that everything is okay and that the rug won't get pulled out from under me and making the leap to kind of be self-employed was completely opposite of my normal inclination. And I don't know what happened. I mean, I wish I could pinpoint one certain thing, but it was like, you know, just doing my passion and following my passion and my side hustle, doing social media and blogging.

Emily Sandford (07:09): I got approached by different companies that I loved that were like, Hey, can you do some of this for us? And it was like, Hey, that's a pathway. That's one choice that I could make if I want to let go of my corporate job and my, you know, nine to five or as it ended up being, you know, 7:30 to 7:00 PM or whatever every day and on the weekends when I emailed her coming in. So I think that just, you know, by following the passions I had kind of on the side. So it was every time, you know, it was, and it was a good while I was probably six months of nights and weekends just doing things that I enjoy for clients that started kind of building my name in that space. So I think that kind of helped me transition from the terrifying, Oh my God, I'm going to leave my job and not have a salary to actually, okay, well, you know, this is going to actually provide an income for me.

Emily Sandford (08:01): It might not be as much as I was making at first, but it may be an know cashed up. And so I think just the you know, the time that I spent kind of cultivating what I really enjoy doing, even if it meant having my job as a cushion, I think that really kind of helped me make a pivot at some point and go, okay, this might actually be something that's sustainable that I can grow. And that was really a great turning point for me. And, and the, you know, I like to always say, people are like, Oh, you're so lucky to work for yourself or your son lucky to work for those brands. And I'm like, you know, love has some of it to do with it. But I think a lot of it is just setting out that intention. So saying, you know, Oh, this is what I really do want to do.

Emily Sandford (08:38): And then following your passion because your energy will come from that. And it sounds really woo. And I'm like the least woo person ever, you know, just following the energy, follow your energy where it, where it goes. So if my energy at work was just like, I felt like I was going to fall asleep at my desk, or if I had to sit through another meeting, I was just going to bang my head against the desk. And people are going to look at me versus me staying up until, you know, one or two in the morning working on stuff that I loved, that kind of was the shift of, I can make a choice to do things that I really am not quite sure that I really enjoy and, or doing things that I get passion from. And that was a huge mind shift for me.

Melissa Anzman (09:16): I love that. And I think what's really interesting is your path to owning your own business. And my path are so different because you really went the, the, the, you know, the quote unquote right way, you created a side hustle, you earn income on the side, you really figured it out while you have some support and income happening. And then you took the launch and I love that approach. That's how I would usually recommend my clients to do it. Obviously I didn't take that same way and it worked out okay, which is great, but I love that you said, you know, this was my launch point of the decision, but the launch takeoff wasn't until, you know, six months down the road, when you worked out some of the kinks and had had something running. So I like pointing that out to people that it's not always overnight, you make the decision and then it's great.

Emily Sandford (10:07): Yeah. So it's like, as you say that, and that this might be maybe a desired way to do it for some people, but for me, I'm almost thinking, Oh my God, that was six months. I wasted, you know, that I wasn't doing something active that I did, that I wore myself out. So there's pros and cons to each way of doing it for me, just being super risk averse and having a mortgage and a car payment needing health insurance. And, you know, all of those random like ruin up things, but you have to have, that is one thing where I was like, okay, financially, I have to be able to like, pay my minimum payments on all sites responsibilities that I have, or I'm not going to be able to do this so that it got me to a point where it was okay for me to pivot. And that was really important to me. But, you know, hindsight, you're like, man, I could have, what if I had done it earlier, but you can't do it that way. You can't look at life that way.

Melissa Anzman (10:56): Oh no. So other than, you know, the fear of money and having the roof over your head, which I think is a really really strong driver in what we do and how we make decisions. But other than the fear, so let's, let's put the fear of the money aside. Could you talk a little bit about what were some of the things that you thought in the moment were holding you back or were scary to you during sort of that brainstorming prelaunch period?

Emily Sandford (11:23): And what's so funny is that, you know, I wanted to be in corporate America so bad. And then I ended up getting these panic attacks over emails or meetings and things like that. And I really think that those kind of, those sorts of that environment of being managed all the time really created an anxiety in a trepidation in me to do things that I thought were worth pursuing or ideas that I came up with on my own that I didn't get checked from 5 billion people on a committee before I could implement. So I think that that almost blocked me was that kind of fear. And it's nothing to do about money. It's just having confidence in your own ideas and being able to implement them without having gatekeepers and people looking over you. I mean, I was always in that traditional corporate structure where I had checks and balances and to have ideas and to try to do your own thing without having those people to sound off with, or without having people kind of reigning you in it's, you know, on one hand, it's horrible because you limit yourself and you're not dreaming big enough.

Emily Sandford (12:25): And you kind of restrain yourself without meaning to, you're not living to your full potential, but it also just really created a fear. And it was funny because I had an, I had a, like a performance review, right. Sort of close to when I decided I was going to kind of leave corporate America. And one of the comments that stuck out from my boss and that, that stuck out to me to these days, I mean, even to this day was you need to have more confidence. And I'm like, I, at one point did have confidence, but something in the structure of how I'm working has removed that from me. So, you know, that was something that really was a huge something I had to overcome and it's still something I deal with. And I think we all have that self doubt and insecurity, but just really having confidence in your ideas and what you're presenting to people and how you're, you know, creating your own business. It doesn't have to run the way everybody else runs their business. I mean, it doesn't. And so I think trying to come up with your own path, it's a little messy and a little bit scary, but once you get a little bit of positive reinforcement and, you know, by way of success or kudos, or, you know, more clients coming and then that sort of alleviates itself, but it's still kind of sits in the back of my mind.

Melissa Anzman (13:37): Yeah. You know, that was, that leads to my next question of sort of from that launch and that experience and those decisions you made. Are there any, any remaining things that sort of pop its head out every now and then that make you think back to that time period?

Emily Sandford (13:55): I think every time, you know, I, it's funny because we're talking on a day where I've sat in meetings on Google Hangouts or Skype for the past four hours. And it's funny that I look back at it and I was thinking about this halfway during one of the meetings. Cause it was just, it was very collaborative and it was very energizing and it was just such a paradigm shift for me and the kind of a aha moment that these kinds of meetings with doing work that you love and with clients that you love and products you love, those sorts of things should be energizing and not draining. And so it's so funny is because, you know, I just remember having that fear and dread of going into a meeting before and now it's like a it's fun. Like I, I get, so I got so much energy from these meetings, like it just pulling in and being able to share ideas and collaborate without that kind of fear or insecurity because you know that what you're doing is good you, and that, that kind of has been a huge shift, but it is still something that and I'm glad I have their perspective now that that meetings can be fun or readings can be energizing, but I still look back to those days and just go, man.

Emily Sandford (15:04): You know, I really dreaded that. And I spent a lot of time kind of in fear or, you know, kind of hiding my head or not really almost like dulling my shine, I guess you could call it because I just didn't feel like I fit in that space.

Melissa Anzman (15:18): Yeah. I love how I love that. Dulling your shine. I love that. Not that you felt that way, but

Emily Sandford (15:24): I did. I, he had, Say these certain things. I mean, in seriously, like the corporate cultures I worked in were great. Like there was nothing that negative that I would say about them to this day. It was just the way that it was set up. I'm not, I'm not sure what it was, but something about it, wasn't clicking with me and my work style. So, you know, having to changing that and working in a different way, it's really helped me flip that kind of perspective on a Ted, which I'm thankful for. Cause that was pretty miserable.

Melissa Anzman (15:51): Absolutely. So in that flip, I mean it is off the beaten path. I mean, still for us, the idea is to get a stable corporate job or to work in one place or, you know, bust our butts for somebody else, whatever that mentality is, that's how most of us were raised. So with that in your mind, as one of the things going into the conversation of wanting to be a lifer at IBM, I love that. How did you get the support you needed from the people around you? How did they respond to you? Basically going off the reservation and saying, I, this doesn't fit me. I need to do something that fits me better.

Emily Sandford (16:30): Well, it's funny you asked that because I still it's. It's funny now that I, you know, I'm a couple of years into this, it's, it's funny because my husband who is just a very supportive person in general, but didn't really understand like what, you're not getting a paycheck every two weeks. You're not getting like, I don't understand how this is going to work. Like, am I going to have to support you? It's funny now. Cause he'll go and check the mail and he'll see that checks that he now knows what a check looks like in the mail. And he's like, Oh my God, well, you got paid. And I'm like, of course I get paid. I don't sit on Facebook all day for fun. Like, it is fun to me, but that's not what I'm doing. I am actually doing work. So he was, he was a good help and just, you know, that, that was important to me to know that he was okay with it.

Emily Sandford (17:12): And it was a level of trust that I had to get from him. I didn't tell, you know, it's funny. I didn't tell my family until way after it happened. I want to get a lecture like, yeah, you paid a lot to go to school. You paid a lot to do this, but now you're just going to leave it. And I it's, it's funny now because even like my dad who was always like, you need to, you know, be a worker bee and be really good and keep your head down and do your best. You know, now he's like, man, I wish I had done that earlier in my life. And it's like, how, you know, it's funny that you get that. And I, I mean, I had friends and you were one of them that you were around during this decision point.

Emily Sandford (17:51): And it was just a lot of going and talking through fear and talking through the, what ifs and talking to her that it's going to be okay, is that really did help me go, okay. I just need to push go. Because the lingering moments between, you know, in, I guess the moments during an indecision are the most uncomfortable times ever. And so you either need to come at one way or another. And I think it doesn't got down to that point and there were enough people around me. Like I know we did make shit happen with Jenny Blake. That's where, you know, I had a good amount of support to kind of like, Oh, I'm not crazy. All my other friends are identifies. Like I'm not the only one who wants to do something different and other people have been successful. So I think just seeing other people's success and they went off the beaten path. So to say, even though now I think it's becoming a more common path. So I think that's great. But I think that that really helped. And then, you know, this having a little bit of familial support around me too, and just my husband being like, okay, it's all right. If you jump then it's okay. And that really helped.

Melissa Anzman (18:54): That's great. That's so awesome. One of the things that you and I talk about a lot and that I think is not talked about enough. So I'd love to get your opinion on this publicly. So don't be upset by that, but is, you know, some of these myths about owning your own business and going to work for yourself, there's, you know, the same people out there saying, Oh, just write Epic shit is what I was writing talking about earlier this week. Just do that and you're going to be famous and you're going to make a lot of money and it's going to be easy and being your own boss is so easy. Can you talk about maybe, you know, one, just take one example of what you think is one of the biggest myths out there and give us some insight or public hurtin back on what reality is for you and your successful.

Emily Sandford (19:44): Yeah. I think, you know, plenty of, cause that's when you say that, like right. Ethics shit like that just makes me, it makes me laugh so hard. Like on the, I read that earlier this week and it just makes me laugh so hard because it's so far from the truth of what the reality is for most people, you have those outliers who, you know, can write a few great posts and then they get syndicated by HuffPost. And then it's just crazy. They get all this traffic and then it just leads to speaking endorsements and all of these things. And that's just not how it happens. There are so many talented people putting out so much awesome shit that in order to break through that noise, I mean, it's, it's really difficult. So I think that that's, it just, it just makes me laugh. You know, I'd make one thing, this it's hard to pinpoint one specific example, but I know that when I left my, I don't know, even know if this answers your question, but when I left my job and was starting to do my own, you know, formed authentically social, and this is my company and this is whatever, you know, I thought, okay, I'm to work and I'm going to meet people and I'm going to do all this stuff.

Emily Sandford (20:49): And then I'm going to hire people under me. And then they're going to end up with a, manage them and do all this stuff. Cause I was used to managing people most of my career. And it's funny because like that, even that I was still stuck in that perspective of that's how it had to go in order to be successful. And you see people, they have virtual assistants, they have all these, you know, they have a team under them. They have project managers, they have these things and you think, Oh, if I don't have that, I'm not successful. And you know, they have 10 contributors to their site and they have this and that. And I think that that is totally a misnomer that a lot of people might get caught up in. I know I did, at least I thought if I wasn't managing people, then it wasn't really a business.

Emily Sandford (21:25): Or if I wasn't, I didn't have my big team, then it wasn't really successful, but that doesn't work for me. Like I know that I prefer to manage myself. I prefer to do all the projects myself. I am a control freak and being that way is okay because it's how I tell my clients trust me. And it's how I get word of mouth. So, I mean, I don't even know if that's a good example, but just, I mean, I think that that's, that's important as your success doesn't have to be defined by anybody else's and there are so many different ways that you have to, like, I, it's so funny because I'm like, all right, I'm going to wake up tomorrow morning and I got gotta hustle. Meaning I'd need to foster my relationships. I need to go out here and touch all these people.

Emily Sandford (22:05): And it goes back to people who say, Oh, well, you know, the people who make it are just lucky and I'm like, luck does have something to do with it. But I think it's really is like people who work a long time and foster relationships continue to prove themselves and continue to, even when they have one success or another success continue to push forward because that's success can be fleeting. It can go away in a second. But I think that's something that people it's a lot of hard work that people don't see. They just think, Oh, well, that person just got lucky. Or that person wrote one Epic post and it, it made them successful. And I think that doesn't give enough credit to the people who are successful, but then also, you know, you don't have to do things that way in order to be, become successful.

Melissa Anzman (22:47): Love it. Yes. That was great. I'm so glad you used that example. I was hoping you, and I didn't want to push you in that, in that realm. But yeah, I mean, I think that's really good information for everybody to know, just like there isn't one way to climb a corporate ladder. You don't sort of realize that until you're in the mix and in your own business, that there isn't one way to be a successful entrepreneur and what others do doesn't mean it's going to work for you. So I love that. With that, I want to go back to the fear for a minute. And mainly because I know that you and I have very different fears, so it's always interesting to me to hear what yours are, because you helped me so much with mine. And so, you know, what do you think right now in your business today as it is? So post-launch right. And maybe many launches along the way. What do you think is the one thing that just is kind of that thing hanging over you as fear on a consistent basis?

Emily Sandford (23:50): And this is, this is funny because it's, I'm starting to over like overcome this fear, but it is always in the back of my head is saying no to things that I don't think fit. I get a lot of, you know, if I, and I'm lucky if I get people inquiring everyday about my services or about doing this or that, or working with this brand or that brand and you know, every day I get something like that. And I'm like, wow, I was thankful. That's awesome. But in the end, in the back of my head, I go, Oh, if it causes that moment of dread of, Oh, I'm not sure about this, or, Oh, I'm not quite, you know, I don't know. It's okay to say no, it's okay. It'd be like, yeah, I'm not a good fit for this. Let me send you to someone else.

Emily Sandford (24:29): It's not a failure and it's not being lazy if you turn down certain types of work. So I think that's been my biggest lesson this year is just, you know, you have to be able to swallow that fear and know that the work that you're choosing is going to be okay and will sustain you both financially, but also, you know, just mentally and, you know, with the right energy and the right perspective. And so I think saying no to things is the biggest thing that scares me, but also it's been the most empowering thing that has happened to me over this past year is being able to say no and being able to be like, that's not a good fit or this isn't exactly what I want to do. So I'm not going to take it on. It doesn't mean you're going to lose business.

Emily Sandford (25:09): It's not like nobody is ever going to approach you again because you say no. And that's one thing that it does every time I get it, an inquiry or someone, you know, submit something on my site. I'm like, Oh, you know, I'm giving away money or I'm turning away these things that if I don't take them, I'm not going to be successful, but really is if I take them, I'm going to resent it. And that's exactly why I tried to leave my corporate job in the first place. So I don't want to get back to that point.

Melissa Anzman (25:36): Love it. Love it. And final question for you. What is ahead? What's next? What's ahead. What sort of is your future launches or ideas that you're pondering that we can look forward to?

Emily Sandford (25:48): Gosh, so many it's funny because one it's like one making the one pivot and the one that we talked about in particular here, it makes you do one launch. So, you know, going and be self employed or whatever it has launched so many other ideas in my head. And it's exciting, exhausting, exhilarating. I'm not quite sure which ones, but I it's, it's like, I always, you know, you always want to say you're a multi-passionate entrepreneur. And I feel like that's kind of I'm in that right now. And that's not a description I would ever have said for myself, you know, five years ago. But my biggest, I guess, you know, I'm still trying to, to grow my business just with various specific clients. So just working within fashion or with health and beauty products, those things that I really get excited about. But I'm also working on developing a plus sized active wear line right now. I fashion and I love fitness and that's kind of what my blog was all about and stuff I can marry those two with a plus size active wear line for, you know, all sizes to get active and give awesome Stylish clothes to women of all sizes. That's, that's my next big thing. And that's kind of it's a big one, but it's a very exciting one.

Melissa Anzman (27:05): I know I'm excited for it. I remember you sort of having that idea way back when, so I'm so glad that the wheels are turning and you are in the process of bringing that brilliance to everybody. I can't wait for that long. It's going to be great. Awesome. So I think we've covered your, your launch quite in depth. I appreciate having you on the show. Why don't you tell everybody how they can reach you and where they can find you?

Emily Sandford (27:33): Sure. I am all over social media. So just search for authentically E M M I E authenticallyemmie.com authenticallysocial.com @authemmie on Twitter, AUT H E M M I E. And then also just pick up the December, January issue of ladies home journal, and I'm on page 58 through it's United sixties. There's a lot, it's a lot of pages.

Melissa Anzman (27:58): It is. It's a great article. I'm so proud of you. I totally geeked out for those of you listening. I totally geeked out when I found the ladies home journal at the Barnes and noble near me and may have taken a picture or two to share with the world. So

Emily Sandford (28:12): That's another big thing is to like, that's, I mean, another huge lesson that I've learned this past year is just, if you're excited about something you're doing, it's not bragging. It's okay to be excited and it's okay to talk about it. So I'm talking about it. That's, I'm excited.

Melissa Anzman (28:26): I love it. You should be excited and I'm excited that you came on our show and that you and I got to talk publicly. A little bit girl talk that we usually have. So I appreciate you coming. And I will put your information in the show notes so everybody can find Emily online. Again, that's at authenticallyemmie.com and also pick up the December, January edition of ladies home journal. All right. We will talk soon and thanks for joining us. All right, bye. Bye. I hope you enjoyed this episode with Emily Sandford. She's been so inspiring to me in my career, especially with my entrepreneurship and led to my own business. I am just so excited that she was able to chat with you about how she made her decision to leave the corporate world and stop being an IBM or, and how she actually made it happen since it's so different from my story, lots of great information and tidbits she shared. If you want the show notes for this episode, you can go to launchyourself.co/session2. Again, that's launchyourself.co/session2. And if you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe on iTunes or on Stitcher and leave a review until next time. Thank you.

Melissa Anzman (29:41): Thanks for listening to the launch yourself podcast. Join the conversation at www.launchyourself.co.