Alright, this is the second episode in a row that was totally unplanned, which should tell you a little something about how my brain works. Ha! As I’m recording this, it is Thursday, July 20, 2023, and we are closing in on the end of the first week of band camp for my husband, Thomas. I don’t remember if I’ve mentioned this on here or not, I know I have on Instagram so definitely go follow me there if you aren’t already @stephanieduke.co, but I am technically out of office this week and next week. By that, I basically mean I’m just not doing any client work or communication. Life is always hectic during band camp, if you were ever in marching band or have a kid that’s in the band, you know what I’m talking about. I’m not saying it’s crazier as a band director’s wife, but it kinda is. So to help myself stay as sane as possible during this time, I decided at the end of 2022 that I’m always going to take off work during camp. And so far, it has made this first week much more enjoyable!

I’ve been able to get some last-minute big projects done, like moving my office (which, btw, if this episode sounds a little different it’s because I’m recording in my new office and it’s much bigger) and our guest room, painting the guest room in preparation for a camp instructor staying with us next week, preserving a bunch of food from the garden, and working on my own business, including this podcast. Which, if you haven’t figured it out yet, is the topic of this episode.

The Homemakers in Business Podcast is not that old. This is only the 12 episode and I only had the idea for this podcast about 9 months ago. It took me a long time to plan out what I wanted to do with this podcast, how to structure it, design the brand identity for it, then finally outline and record the launch episodes. I knew from the time I launched it that my plans for it were not permanent. So with that in mind, I only planned episodes through July of this year. I knew as far back as March that I would be revisiting the podcast content and structure during band camp. And that’s exactly what I did this week.

While this episode won’t have any big actionable tips for you like I usually like to provide you with, I hope you can still learn something today. I personally love listening to business owners talk about changes in their businesses because it gives me ideas for my own business. Helps me see challenges I’m facing in a different light. And I hope this episode will help to normalize pivoting and trying new things and being open about those changes.

With all of that in mind, there are several things I want to cover today. I’ll explain why I’m making some changes to the podcast, what those changes will be, what you can expect from future episodes, and what my hope for the future of this podcast is. Okay, let’s dive in!

Why I’m making changes

As a homemaker in business myself, my life is very full. There’s a lot on my plate, and I have to be very mindful of my time. My first priorities are the Lord, my family, and my home. Those 3 things alone encompass a lot of different tasks, events, and responsibilities. Add in a business, and you’ve got chaos.

I want to steward my time wisely and keep my priorities in check. I love what I do for work so I can easily spend all my time working. My business in particular has a lot of facets. Broadly speaking I work with brand and website design clients, as well as create and sell my art in person and online. Then I also have to market both parts of my business. There are a million little things that go into those broader categories of work, not to mention the admin side of things.

As I said, I want to be a good steward of my time. It takes a lot of time to produce just one solo podcast episode. I have to brainstorm the idea, outline it, give it a title, record it, edit the recording, schedule it, write show notes, create the blog post, create all the graphics, and so on. It’s a lot of work. I enjoy the work, but there are periods of time when I’m not feeling super creative or motivated to speak on a topic that’s going to be helpful to you. And I don’t want to put out subpar content.

And that leads me into…

What’s going to change with the podcast

My solution is to introduce guest interviews to the show. This is not something I originally wanted to do with the podcast, however, it feels like the right move at this time. I did always intend to move to weekly episodes, and when I was dreaming about the future of the podcast earlier this week, I knew I wouldn’t have the capacity to do 4 solo episodes a month. It’s just not practically possible for me at this time. What is possible, is continuing my schedule of 2 solo episodes per month and adding in 2 guest interviews per month. This way, you continue to get the content from this show that you’ve come to expect – plus all the extra goodness that comes from having other homemakers in business sharing their experiences and expertise!

Once I got the idea to do this, I got really excited and already have a potential guest list that’s several dozen names long. So let’s chat a little more about the types of guests I’d like to have on the Homemakers in Business podcast and the topics I’d like for us to cover.

What you can expect from the Homemakers in Business podcast, 2.0

This podcast was always meant to be a marketing tool and free resource for clients, potential clients, and business friends that want to grow their businesses. But I also always wanted to talk about lifestyle stuff. I live in a bit of a juxtaposition, where my work life is very modern, digital, and online, and I spend a lot of time behind screens. But I am very much a traditional, romantic, dreamer if you will. I live a pretty natural, traditional lifestyle. I am a homemaker, a homesteader, a gardener, a cook, a baker, and a wife that loves her husband very much. I’m interested in natural wellness, food security, sustainability, Christian womanhood, thrifting, frugalness, and just simple living and enjoyment of life. Much of my values and interests in life are in direct contrast with the world as we know it. And I so very much want to have beautiful conversations with other women on those topics, especially with women that have successfully created businesses around those things.

I got to thinking about the name of this podcast, Homemakers in Business. Very strategically named for SEO purposes. This is a business podcast targeting women that identify as homemakers. Pretty simple and straightforward. Now, let me read you something interesting. I asked the Ai chatbot, ChatGPT, how it would define a homemaker in business. This is what it wrote:

“A homemaker in business is a multi-faceted individual who skillfully balances the roles of a homemaker and a businesswoman. They are often millennial women, typically mothers, who combine their passion for creating a nurturing home environment with their entrepreneurial spirit. These driven individuals embrace a lifestyle-first business model, where their values of simplicity, authenticity, and ethical practices guide their professional decisions. They may engage in activities such as homesteading, natural wellness practices, gardening, food security, sustainability, and frugality while actively pursuing their business goals. With a tech-savvy mindset and a commitment to community-oriented efforts, homemakers in business seek growth and success both personally and professionally, making an impact in their lives and the lives of others.”

Like, whaaaaat! I couldn’t have said it better myself. This flawlessly defines who I want to align myself with in business and this definition is totally going on my website. Whether you identify as a homemaker, a businesswoman, or both, this 2.0 version of the podcast welcomes you to a community that values growth, genuineness, and creating a nurturing home environment while pursuing entrepreneurial dreams.

As far as the actual guests go, I am not limiting myself to a particular industry niche. I want to have conversations with homemakers in business doing all kinds of things. But you know I love to give examples, so here’s a short list of professionals I’d love to have on:

• Travel advisor
• Chiropractor
• Etiquette instructor
• Art educator
• Doula
• Midwife
• Nutritionist
• Homestead educator
• Copywriter
• Photographer
• Accountant
• Blogger
• Business coach
• Farmer
• Functional medicine doctor
• Restaurant owner
• Interior designer

Y’all, I have a huge list of specific business types I’d love to talk to so this is literally a very small sampling. There are so many ways women are out there making money, I couldn’t possibly name all of them. I am just so excited to bring you more stories, tips, tricks, advice, and connections.

If YOU would like to be a guest on the show, please fill out the contact form on my website. I’ll include the link in the show notes, but it’s simply stephanieduke.co/contact. If you don’t want to be a guest, but have someone in mind that you’d like to hear me interview, you can also fill out the contact form and provide me a link to that person’s information, whether that’s their website, Instagram, YouTube channel, or other means.

My hope for the future of the HB pod

…is to introduce my audience to other professionals that they can learn from and potentially hire or purchase from. I want to connect like-minded women in business so that we can support each other in our desire to be at home. I like to dream big, and I foresee this little podcast turning into a larger community with a Facebook group, in-person meetups, merchandise, a directory, and so much more. If there’s anything specific you’d like to see from me or the Homemakers in Business podcast, please let me know. You can shoot me a DM on Instagram @stephanieduke.co or email me at hello@stephanieduke.co.

In Closing…

With this new era of the podcast, I plan to do another big launch with another giveaway, hopefully including some goodies from my first few guests. I’ll be spending all of next week making plans and getting things ready for the reboot, so this will be the last episode for a little bit. If you’re new to the show, I’d encourage you to go back to episode 1 and binge the last 11 episodes. There’s a lot of great content and actionable advice in those episodes to help you with your website, your brand identity, and your time as a homemaker in business.

I don’t currently have a launch date in mind, so I’d like to ask a couple of favors from you. First, if you aren’t already following the podcast on Apple or Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts, please do so now so you will be notified when the next episode airs. I’d also like to ask you to follow me on Instagram because I post to my Stories pretty much daily with behind-the-scenes content and updates, so if for some reason you don’t see the next episode notification on your podcast app – you’ll see the announcement on Instagram. And lastly, I’d love to have you join my email list community. This is something that’s going to be getting a huge upgrade alongside the podcast. I mentioned earlier that I want to have a Facebook group and other things for the podcast, however, that’s going to be pretty far down the line. In the meantime, my email list is going to be where it’s at. Friends on the list will be the first to receive announcements, exclusive offers, and extra content. As the world of social media becomes more and more squirrely, I want to ensure we stay in touch, and email is the best way to do that. The link to join the list is in the show notes, along with links to my website and Instagram, and other social media platforms.

Okay y’all, I believe that is all I wanted to cover in this update episode. I can’t explain how much I appreciate you tuning in and listening all the way to the end. You are so loved and valued here. I hope everything is going great in your life and your business. I’ll be back soon with the new era of the Homemakers in Business podcast. Bye, friend!