Running a business with huge dreams and big goals is amazing. If someone would’ve told me 13 years ago I’d be coaching small business owners and creators from all over the world how to build their OWN dream businesses, I think I’d say, “NO WAY,” but also do a little happy dance inside counting down the days til this moment came true. 

But focusing on my own dreams, while helping others achieve theirs, and trying to be a present mom can really take a toll on my own health- physically and mentally if I’m not careful. 

And to be completely honest, I’ve struggled in that area. Throughout the year I’ve gone through lots of ups and downs with my physical health. I’ve felt self conscious, I’ve felt like no matter what I do I can’t lose weight and I just feel like my body is changing and I don’t know what to do to figure it out. 

On the flip side, I’ve struggled with my mental health. Being a business coach and a mentor, I don’t get to hang out in an office with my team talking about ever...

MOST business owners I work with have previously NEVER taken a business course in their life.

And that’s because they never thought they’d wind up starting something of their own, from scratch, and making that their primary source of income. 

But the MOMENT you put a price tag on your stuff, you’ve got to start INVESTING in your BUSINESS SKILLS just as much as you’re investing in your products and services.  

Why? Because becoming the BEST baker, artist, creator, or freelancer you can be isn’t going to do sh*t if you can’t SELL what you’re creating. 

And if you’re not bringing in sales, you’re not really running a business. You’re running a NON-PROFIT organization! 

Get ready for some TOUGH love, sis: It’s NO ONE else’s responsibility to invest in your skills. And if you don’t show up for yourself and do the WORK, your business, and bank account are gonna suffer!

And if THAT’S not enough to convince you to stop sleeping on your growth and start INVESTING in your business, here ar...

When it comes to MARKETING your business, I’ve often heard people say, “It’s all about spreading the word to AS MANY PEOPLE as you can.”

And to be honest, everytime I hear this, I roll my eyes. And this is why… 

One of the most important things about running a business is getting the word out there. You have to talk about your business, you have to get out into your community, you have to reach different audiences. 

And yes, you SHOULD be using hashtags on social media and talking about what you do when you meet new potential customers.

But if you think that marketing your business just means talking about your business, posting whatever content you want, with no idea who you’re speaking too and what you can do for them, consider this blog post a long-overdue INTERVENTION. Because sis, this is exactly why your SALES suck! 

To reach (and attract) the right customers, you need to focus on reaching the RIGHT people first. These are the people who will be HAPPY to pay YOUR PRICE for y...

Pop quiz: What’s a super simple, powerful and inexpensive AF way to GRAB people’s attention, establish your brand’s IDENTITY, and make sure you’re not boring and totally forgettable?

The answer – Your BRAND LOGO.

Your logo is the FACE of your business.

A great logo visually communicates your brand’s personality. It builds recognition, gets people to trust you, AND helps you STAND OUT in the crowd.

Basically, it makes you UNIQUE and lets everyone know who you are and what you’re about. 

Now that you know that your logo adds a sh*t ton of value to your brand, you’re probably thinking – OKAY Janelle, but how the hell do I create a great logo with ZERO design skills?! And NO MONEY to pay for a graphic designer??? 

Want my hot take? 

Use Canva.

Canva is a FREE design tool where you can design practically ANY KIND of visual content.

I swear by it because it’s SUPER easy to use and comes with TONS of templates that you can customize to match your UNIQUE brand. 

Check out my top 5 ti...

Sooooo many of you are AFRAID to fail, that you refuse to even try. 

But guess what? If you don’t try, you’ve ALREADY FAILED. 

Failure is JUST an EXPERIMENT. Nothing more, nothing LESS. 

The same goes for rejection. 

No one likes to be told NO. No one likes to feel unwanted. No one likes to feel not good enough. 

But the thing we all forget is being told NO is never personal.  

Now real talk: I KNOW it’s hard. Believe me. 

BUT if you can get out of your own head, put your ego aside, REJECTION can be a GIFT. 

Y’all meet Jia Jiang. 

He’s an author and entrepreneur, and like a lot of us, rejection scared the sh*t outta him. 

So he decided to confront it. 

He went out and asked people for the WILDEST, WEIRDEST, UNCONVENTIONAL things that he KNEW would result in a No: 

Like asking for a “burger refill” or asking to plant flowers in a neighbor’s garden(!?)

100 days of STRAIGHT UP rejection to get used to being told NO. 

AND more importantly, to get used to being out of his COMF...

(And what I learned along the way)

Starting a business is HARD AF. I’m not gonna sugarcoat it… (I tell it like it is.)

Then add in being a parent, having a sh*t ton of responsibilities, BILLS, and you’ve got yourself a RECIPE for overwhelm and chaos. 

Now, I’m all about being ON POINT with your finances and strategizing for your business. But that’s not how it all went down when Eddie and I started The Cake Mamas. 

At the time, 13,000 people in LA had lost their high-paying corporate jobs, and we were part of that group. Both Eddie and I worked in the same industry. So suddenly, we had zero income coming in to support our family of five. We were BROKE, had TONS of bills, and we had to file for BANKRUPTCY (it took us 10 YEARS just to build back our credit).

Going from corporate climber to stay-at-home mom made me feel like I was taking steps BACKWARDS in life. 

And then the idea of starting The Cake Mamas LITERALLY came to me in a dream. It’s a CRAZY story, and you can hear more a...

The FIRST Summer for the Cake Mamas was BY FAR  the MOST difficult season for us. 

I remember we had little to no FOOT TRAFFIC, our sales were dropping, and our revenue was at an all time LOW. 

I had NO clue what we were doing wrong and was low-key starting to panic because our business was suffering. 

Maybe you’re in the same place, friend? Maybe your sales are at an all-time low and your business is suffering? Maybe you’re a home baker and you’re struggling to attract customers? Or maybe this is your first year in your brick & mortar and have no idea what to offer to resurrect and save your business. 

If any of this resonates with you, READ ON because here’s exactly what I did to SUMMER-PROOF my business! 

Ready for it… 

I got RESOURCEFUL! This means you’re gonna have to step up, put your CEO pants on, get answers and find a way to make it through. 

First thing I did was speak to other local businesses in the community to try to get some answers and if they’ve experienced the ...

And it’s not exactly what you think… 

I’ve heard about a THOUSAND versions of the same story. 

People tell all the time about how they need to have the “PERFECT” product in order to get more customers and increase their sales. They work EXTRA HARD to make sure that everything they put out into the universe is PERFECT.  They’ve got all the TALENT in the world, and they spare no expense when it comes to the latest and greatest tools and classes. 

BUT…. (and by this point I’m already rolling my eyes because I know exactly what’s coming) they complain that they’re just not MAKING ANY MONEY.

And then, I say, “Yeah, no sh*t.”

Because, WHERE ARE YOUR NUMBERS, SIS? Where are the RECEIPTS? Where is the DATA? What are your FIGURES? 

Let’s be real for a sec: In our industry, it’s all rainbows and sunshine as long as we’re talking about CRAFT and the newest cake trends. Trust me, I get it. To us, BAKING CAKE IS LIKE EATING CAKE. It’s fun, it’s stress-free, and we’re freaking good at it ...

In the last few episodes, we’ve been talking about our amazing trip to Greece and all the sh*t that went wrong. 

Well today we decided to bring on our amazing friend, Brianna Glen, who was part of the reason this trip, even though sh*t went wrong,  was one of the MOST beautiful destinations we could have ever dreamed of visiting. 

REAL TALK... this beautiful experience was 💯 due to Brianna.

She is a luxury boutique travel agent and happens to own a boutique travel agency, called Milk + Honey Travels. 

She’s sharing with us her TOP REASONS for why travel should be a priority in your life and HOW to make it possible for you and your family. 

Here’s a breakdown of what Eddie and I discussed… 

What in the world! (03:03)

Turning your passion into a business

Vacation mode vs. Travel mode: what’s the difference

Top 7 reasons why people don’t travel (22:55)

The 5 reasons why everybody should experience travel (24:13)

Challenges of planning travel during a pandemic (36...

Don’t let Instagram fool you friends… 

It is just a highlight reel after all. 

If you’ve kept up with us on social media then you know that we’ve been on a dream vacation the last week celebrating and making memories as a family. 

The truth is, although this vacation honestly was a DREAM, there was also a lot of SHIT that went wrong… and we’re sharing all the tea on this week’s episode! 

Here’s a breakdown of what Eddie and I discussed…

• International travel logistics can be tricky (03:38)
• You don’t have tickets for your flight (13:25)
• The city of Athens vibes (23:39)
• Hiking the Acropolis in 105°F heat (32:16)
• The quicker you can let go, the better you can adapt (35:12)
• Greek people take their coffee very seriously (45:12)

Let this episode be a reminder that nothing you see on social media is the full story! There’s always a back story and we hope that by sharing ours with you that you’ll start to consume social media with a grain of salt. 

On my Instagram, I posted TO...