Grow As We Go with Aubrey Shaffner & Emmalyn Casteris
EP 201: Aubrey Shaffner & Emmalyn Casteris
A Pastry Chef and an Administrative Assistant start a Podcast and…
In the Season 2 premiere, Aubrey is joined by her indispensable partner, Emmalyn, to reflect on the highs and lows from Season 1 and discuss the new features coming up this season! Join us in this new chapter filled with inspiring stories, meaningful engagement, and continuing growth.
EPISODE OUTLINE
[00:00:26] Emmalyn Joins the Conversation
[00:03:09] Favorite Episodes and Moments
[00:11:11] Influence, Wisdom, and Community Building
[00:27:12] Locals Supporting Local Support
[00:35:15] Learning from Season One to Grow Into Season Two
[00:41:32] What’s to Come in Season Two
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TRANSCRIPT
Music fades in…
[00:00:00] Aubrey: Hi, Sunshine, and welcome to the show. I'm your host, Aubrey, a hopeful romantic who's always loved getting to know others and learning what I don't know. Here I chat with kindhearted humans and insightful professionals sharing their stories to learn from each other's experiences in hope of going beyond the golden rule and collectively building a more kind and curious world for all. This is The Golden Approach. I'm so grateful you're here,
Music transitions…
Emmalyn Joins the Conversation
[00:00:26] Aubrey: I'm joined today by Emmalyn Casteris. She's an associate producer for the podcast, as well as content manager and guest service extraordinaire for the business overall. And since there quite literally wouldn't be this show without her, I couldn't imagine celebrating the start of season two with anyone else. We reflected on some favorite episodes and lessons learned in season one, as well as finally releasing specific details on all the expansion projects we've been teasing for the last few months. So without further
[00:01:00] Aubrey: ado, let's get to the good stuff.
Music fades out…
[00:01:04] Aubrey: Okay. So super exciting. Back for season two. I think it's important to mention just how far we've come. And to talk about all the exciting things to expect for season two. And to do such I have my lovely assistant and partner, Emmalyn to join me, who maybe some of you have heard me mention but have never actually gotten to meet or hear from. So Emmalyn, thank you so much for kicking off season two with me.
[00:01:31 ] Emmalyn: Hi, thanks for having me. This is really exciting and very fun.
[00:01:36] Aubrey: I'm so very grateful for you. We don't need to go through every single step that it took to get here, but just a little moment of recognition for all the ups and downs and twists and turns. For this to even exist, much less exist for a year.
[00:01:52] Emmalyn: Well because it's been a year publicly facing. But let's not neglect all of the time because you had been doing
[00:02:00] Emmalyn: this for years before I even came around. But then I finally showed up and we started in like 2022, I want to say?
[00:02:09] Aubrey: Maybe early 2023, but we had definitely started talking before. But yes, I also had started talking about this as an idea in 2020 and then started recording things in ‘21 and did not premiere an episode until ‘23 so there's that.
[00:02:24] Emmalyn: I was always here to rip off the band aid and get us out there. And we did it. We got through it. There were lots of learning opportunities. Lots of good moments as well I don't really know what we're calling that other than just like a high point tee-hee, but…
[00:02:40] Aubrey: Honestly, that works for me, especially if the “tee-hee” is included.
[00:02:43] Emmalyn: Yeah. We're really proud of it because we did it and doing thing is better than not having done it, even if it's not perfect. The whole theme of the first season.
[00:02:52] Aubrey: I want to be so clear. That really was the theme. I was telling myself that almost every episode.
[00:02:57] Emmalyn: And that gets frustrating after a while and so I am proud of us
[00:03:00] Emmalyn: for continuing to persevere. And I feel like actually make genuine progress as we did this and learned to be better at it. I would say, maybe I'm just toot my own horn here, but…
Favorite episodes and moments
[00:03:09] Aubrey: I think it's going to be interesting to break down some of the episodes we did like, and some of the episodes that we are calling learning curves, because you and I went back and we re-listened to the entire first season fresh for talking about this. And I was a little nervous, especially to go back to the original episodes was really wigging me out because I was like, Oh my God, I'm going to listen to these and realize just how awful they really were. And I can't believe anyone listened to this. And I was like, Oh, I actually stand by these. I'm not going to say that the audio was always great or the timing was always the way it should have been. Like there's a lot of technical difficulties and things to overcome. However, the statements made and the intentions done, I was like, Oh, this has aged well. So I think it'll be interesting as we [00:04:00] hash out, what we liked, what we want to do better for season two. But There is a lot to be really proud of considering pastry chef, linguistics expert slash, like administrative assistant to come together and build a podcast who has no clue what they're doing.
[00:04:17] Emmalyn: Yeah, ‘cause let's be real, like I'm just making up careers. We thought Meg was the career hopper but I've not even had a career to hop yet. I keep going into intro phases of everything and I'm like, wow, this is so cool and fun. And then I hopped to something else because, for the love of God, working can be boring.
[00:04:32] Aubrey: Good. So you're going to stick with me forever. Fair warning.
[00:04:36] Emmalyn: Yeah. Are you kidding me? This is the most fun. Why would I not?
[00:04:39] Aubrey: I agree.
[00:04:41] Emmalyn: As long as you'll have me.
[00:04:43] Aubrey: Uh, the feeling is mutual on that one. But yes, so let's get into the goods then on what we actually thought were the highlights.
[00:04:51] Emmalyn: So one of my favorites, and this is my thing that I have to like slightly antagonize you a little bit in, like, a hype girl way, is one of my favorite episodes of the whole
[00:05:00] Emmalyn: season was episode two. How the fuck did we get here? I get that that probably to, hello listener there, breaking down the fourth wall, but I get that probably sounds like a cop out, for me to be like, “Aubrey, oh my god, your episode was so good! That first one you did, all by yourself, that was a full real episode”, but, to that I say, go back and listen to it. Because I loved it, because I am an antagonist. If there's one thing I believe, it's that we should poke the bear because God damn it the bear deserves it. I, we were supposed to pick like favorite moments from the episodes, and I would go through so many different parts of that episode and be like, I love this. I love that. And that was one of the first episodes that we started trying to do like sound bites so I really spent a lot of time reading through that whole episode, not even just listening to it, which I listened to it a billion times also, and we're hitting on the origins of how a kitchen
[00:06:00] Emmalyn: functions and is organized. We're touching on the inherent misogyny and control and weird shit that happens in a kitchen that was, even in my minimal experience, icky as hell, to say the very least. And then we get into immigration and how people who are trying to obtain status in the United States are being taken advantage of in the workplace. We get into child labor laws and violations happening in a huge way and the food industry is, just like, a massive unspoken truth, to say the very least, an absolute mess.
[00:06:38] Aubrey: We just live in a really wild world.
[00:06:40] Emmalyn: Yeah, because again, let's get back to what we talked about in episode two, how all of this is super hyper structured and organized and hierarchical. Clearly, it feels to me, a little bit like a choice that we're making to be okay with this.
[00:06:54] Aubrey: A hundred percent. I stand by the episode. It actually makes me really grateful that people bring that [00:07:00] episode up as a favorite because one, I thought that was going to be one that really turned people off. That was going to be too aggressive. It was going to be too factual and whatever. But I put it out there and just see how it goes. I think those things absolutely need to be said. And like you said, it's not anything that I don't think people already know. But it's interesting because I feel like that is the episode, for me, that made me start realizing that I didn't want to just do a hospitality business podcast, and it has aged well in the most terrible way possible because it is still so incredibly accurate, if not worse, since it aired, which is really devastating. Just sort of like God damn there are so many issues and I feel obligated to do something bigger picture, you know, there are just real rooted issues that need to be discussed, need to be acknowledged, need to be dealt with. So a very impactful episode I think of the whole entire brand business show, whatever, not even just the season.
[00:07:57] Emmalyn: Well, absolutely. Because there's been so many
[00:08:00] Emmalyn: iterations of what this podcast was supposed to be and there's been a lot of like, finding ourselves, coming of age, what a drama. Because, at first, it was so critical, learning really tangible ways to help our business. And then as we went through both of our own journeys and had time to reflect on this project about the kind of horrors that we have experienced in past jobs, and then just being people who are particularly interested in understanding the sort of ripple effects to different choices and different patterns…
[00:08:39] Aubrey: Yeah, absolutely.
[00:08:41] Emmalyn: We just sat here and had to grow past the idea of “how do we make a business that's sustainable and ethical?” Because, let's not forget, not only am I a linguistics person, I'm also a women's and gender studies person. Because looking at all of these things, when we're looking at how a kitchen is run, when we're looking at the way
[00:09:00] Emmalyn: that we're behaving with each other in a workplace, when we're looking at like the labor laws in our country, child labor, labor of imprisoned people, labor of disabled folks, whatever the case is, we see people being taken advantage of systematically in the same way that we do when we're looking at like a patriarchal systems abuse of women and other minorities in general. Like it's just, it's simply a choice to say that this isn't a calculated thing that's happening because of the way our government is structured and the way we are systematically removing, any sort of accountability from the way we organize these things. This is a choice we're all making to just play silly. That's not an accident. This is a series of choices that are made by people who are benefiting from the system and not personally experiencing the negatives of said system. That's kind of screwed up and maybe a little bit pessimistic of me, but certainly you can't accuse me of this being too idealist and super cute and sweet and [00:10:00] pure.
[00:10:01] Aubrey: Amen to that. And that's, I think that's the reason why it was good that we started on this tone, because I don't think anyone can pretend that they didn't know what they were getting themselves into
[00:10:11] Emmalyn: And that's what I want.
[00:10:13] Aubrey: And don't get me wrong, I think your wish will come true because for better or worse, I have never been a, tame personality, however, full circle summary is I am still just the obnoxious, idealistic, optimistic, the-world's-so damn pretty person. So there's going to be balance. And it's all going to come back full circle.
[00:10:38] Emmalyn: Yeah, because it's not like either of us are particularly interested in just dwelling on how horrible everything is. Like that's not productive. That's not fun for anybody. What we want is to have some actual growth and improvement, and to be our most authentic selves, and do that without fear of repercussion, without causing harm to [00:11:00] anybody else.
[00:11:00] Aubrey: Exactly, and hopefully, someday when I'm no longer here, I will have at least done something to participate. That is my bare minimum.
Influence, Wisdom, and Community Building
[00:11:11] Emmalyn: Seriously, like I've always believed that one of the best things you can do in life, and we've bonded, again, outside of this episode right here and now, over this kind of shared belief in like the power of storytelling,
[00:11:26] Aubrey: That's humanity. That's the history of humanity.
[00:11:28] Emmalyn: Exactly. And there's something powerful. About sharing knowledge and sharing experiences. That's how every intelligent species grows and improves and learns, and we can't ever be better than what we're currently at. If we just get stuck in this circular logic of freaking out about one thing that's happened, calming down, taking a step back, finding out about another horrible
[00:12:00] Emmalyn: thing that's happened, taking a step back while we freak out. And like the cycle goes on and on. That's never going to lead to progress. We have to actually sit with the fact that this is horrible, and then instead of just waiting until something else horrible finds us, actually figure out how to deal with it, actually do something about it. And that's the whole point of this whole thing is to actually try and encourage the discussion and ideas and thoughts and conversations that will lead to actual solutions for all of this. It's not like our way or the highway. It's just like, maybe we could talk about this. Maybe there's a better way. I don't know. Call me crazy.
[00:12:37] Aubrey: The intention of the show was always to be bold. It was always to call out the bullshit, and it wasn't to stop there because that was one of my biggest pet peeves especially in the industry, there are plenty of outlets and especially podcast shows of people just bitching about how dumb and horrible it is. Like that niche is
[00:13:00] Aubrey: filled. I did not feel any obligation to add any kindling to that fire. there needed to be the next step; which I think carries well to my first favorite,
[00:13:05] Emmalyn: Spill. What's your favorite?
[00:13:07] Aubrey: Mine was number three, because Jackie's episode to me was hugely influential personally, as well as for the show. Because of the tone to say. Okay, we can call out the bullshit, however, we have to remember that people are involved in this. That it's not just facts. Not just abstract concepts that are unfixable things, that this is an everyday issue and that there are everyday solutions, no matter how small they are, that you can do, that you can implement and you can make a difference. Jackie implements them. Her business has taken off. We're a year later since that episode. She's opening two new locations within literally two weeks of each other. She has set a real high bar on what should be the bare minimum for your staff and the fact that she can make money. And I'm not saying it's easy for her. I'm not saying she hasn't made sacrifice
[00:14:00] Aubrey: along the way, but she proves the point that if it's what you want, it can happen. If you put the energy in, it can happen.
[00:14:08] Emmalyn: We really like the knock on effect around here, but that has for her business it's not like she's just making all of these sacrifices to do this because Jackie is just some perfect person. Jackie's very nice. Don't get me wrong. We live in a world where there's no perfect people, so we're not calling anybody perfect. We're just saying she is doing great things and that is having a clear, positive effect for her business. So even if you want to sit here and play some crazy, like business megalomaniac, like whatever, you still have to acknowledge that This is working in a professional focused/minded way. This works. This does good things, and so there's no reason to not. that's something that I appreciated hearing from her because I think that's something that like we skirt around a lot
[00:15:00] Emmalyn: when we're talking about these sorts of things because We don't want to like alienate people or make anyone feel bad. We want to bring everybody to the table and can all participate, but also the rule of having a seat at the table, is being willing to be honest. And if you're not willing with yourself with others, about whatever it is, like maybe you should sit back for a minute and listen to others until you're ready to truly open and honestly contribute. And I thought Jackie's episode, taught taking the time to slow down and acknowledge that part of it, where that’s where we're able to find actual solutions. And so that's what I really appreciate. It's like, let's find some solutions. Let's face this.
[00:15:50] Aubrey: I agree. And then listening to that episode so many times I take away something different from it every single time, because I'm in a different place every time I listen to it. And just the show in general, I hope people don't get too lost in the specifics of You know, I own a restaurant and this is what I do in my
[00:16:00] Aubrey: restaurant. Listen to what problems they're hitting and then how they're going about creating solutions and who they're working with to create those solutions. That to me is the bigger takeaway of this show. Cause we could all be in different scenarios. I don't know what scenario anyone listening to this is in. So go beyond the specifics. And I say this as a general life, tip when you're watching a movie or something. What is the baseline issue? What are the feelings being had? Do you resonate with it? And then what can you take away from that? What can it inspire thought on? What could you experiment with? Things of that nature. So I thought that this was a good episode personally but also again, I feel like it was starting to really set the tone for the show overall.
[00:16:46] Emmalyn: Absolutely. Which I feel like really says something about the, like the genuineness that you and Jackie share in this belief of being
[00:17:00] Emmalyn: able to do the right thing in your own lane. We're not trying to tell anybody else that you absolutely have to do X, Y, and the same thing, and the fact that you recorded this back in, like 2021 right?
[00:17:08] Aubrey: Or 22. Something like that.
[00:17:10] Emmalyn: At least two years old at this point. We're talking about something that still right now feels just as relevant as it did when you recorded it, when it was released, and I imagine we'll still feel just as relevant next year. The idea that people still need to be treated fairly and decently in the workplace and deserve that, and that makes them work better because they're happier to be there, and so they want it to do well. That's all going to still be true next year, another year from now, so on and so forth. It just is something that I think, again, deserves to be acknowledged. That this is not just some front because it sounds cool. And this is what will get the people talking and the pot stirring and whatever. It's actually important. And it's something that we actually care about and that actually works and is good for the world.
[00:18:00] Aubrey: Hundred percent. And then I just want to do like a final little shout out to Jackie, because I think Jackie is one of the top like promoters of this show. Every time I see her, she tells me about someone else she's told about the show too. Honestly, the people who've believed in this before I believed, not that I didn't believe in it, but like the confidence has been slowly building to everyone who believed and saw for what it was before I did, truly thank you, Jackie, from the bottom of my heart. And every single person who's been on the show deserves that thanks, forever grateful. Okay, so what was your second, then, on your list?
[00:18:36] Emmalyn: So the next one on my list, honestly, segues pretty nice from what we were talking about when we were discussing the idea of who has a seat at this table and like barriers to entry, because my next favorite episode was Amber's. Do It Scared.
[00:18:51] Aubrey: Yes, that was the second one on my list too.
[00:18:55] Emmalyn: Of course we have. I'm shocked, but this is the thing that happens all the time with us.
[00:19:00] Aubrey: I know.
[00:19:01] Emmalyn: But one of the things she said that personally resonated with me when this episode actually aired, but also is just something that looking back at all of these episodes. really kicked me in the teeth because this is a lesson that the universe is trying to teach me by force again and again, that I just refuse to get through my mind, and that's really when the universe comes out and gets you when you're just like refusing to learn something you need to learn. But what she said was that every opportunity isn't for you. And I love that because I am somebody who, in my own past wasn't necessarily always included. And I really had some severe FOMO by the time I, became an adult person. And I wanted a seat at every single table I could find. And, if I could tell my younger self anything, it would be to, calm down and to
[00:20:00] Emmalyn: just worry about one thing at a time. Because you just get so swept up in trying to be everywhere all at once and care about everything all at once. And fix everything all at once, learn everything all at once, that like you just can't do anything well and you're not doing anything to the fullest extent that you can and that's just what makes work suffer. And so this idea that every opportunity is not for you is something like I need to hear and I need to remember a lot because. By slowing down, we're able to do better. We're able to leave space for people who are better suited to things than you maybe would have been if you were occupying a seat at that table. There are lots of ways we can expand on this idea, that are super helpful. And so I just really loved that about her episode. And also again, like everybody who's been on podcast, excellent person doing excellent, cool things. Like if that were the standard for picking favorites that you would really be here going through all of the episodes. It would be like a twenty hour episode of the podcast.
[00:21:00] Aubrey: I know. maybe it's the Jew in me, but I'm feeling so much guilt about having even pulled out certain people because I don't want the people that we don't to think that like their episodes weren't as valuable. Because honest to God, in the end, every single person that came on the show was the right person at the right time. However, since we're on Amber's episode to hone in on that, I agree with everything you're saying. That's why it was also on my list. Again, selfishly, this was another one of those interviews that just hit me deep in my soul, exactly where I need to be hit with the reminder I needed at that time. And has been an episode that I can again, go back to multiple times and get appropriate reminders of things that I just personally need. I need that same reminder that I don't need to be good at everything. I'm assuming it's the people pleaser perfectionist in me, which is unrealistic and exhausting. There's also a quote that I'm going to misquote it, but
[00:22:00] Aubrey: the intention is the same that “there's time to take your time and be intentional, but there is not time to waste your life”, and so I really hold onto that a lot. So that was a big one. The whole, dreaming part was another thing from her episode that was really impactful for me because no one gives that advice. It's just one of those things people don't remind you to do. Because that doesn't make money, or that doesn't, produce something tangible directly in that moment, or whatever it is that people believe
[00:22:23] Emmalyn: We're breaking out of the propaganda cycle right now. We're doing it. We're doing it right here in this episode.
[00:22:27] Aubrey: Yes, exactly. Again, just a very solid episode to help you, stop, pause, reflect, and check yourself on what is working, what isn't working. why do you do things the way you do them? Do you do them because that's what you truly believe is in your best interest, your business’ best interests, your family's best interest, Or is it because it's what society has convinced you is in their best interest, which ironically is typically in none of our best interests. And then also her reminder that whatever you need is accessible. Sometimes you got to do a little extra digging, but if you need it
[00:23:00] Aubrey: and you're willing to go looking for it, you can find it. Yes things are annoying. Yes sometimes things are more complicated. There's always reasons why things aren't perfect, but if you really want it, there's a way to make it happen.
[00:23:13] Emmalyn: Absolutely. I feel like, first of all, Amber is incredibly wise. And I feel like her episode to me was the most full of like general life wisdom. Which I just, I want to give her all of the credit because the amount of like leg work it takes to figure all of these things out and to to have the energy still to be putting in this work to continue to educate people and to talk to people about these things being important, even though these are things as you said, isn't how we're making money like this, it goes against the status quo to be talking about this thing, and to continue to do that, is incredibly respectable.
[00:23:55] Aubrey: And I do want to give a shout out to her too, because I'm so lucky to be friends with all these very talented people that she has had all these amazing expansion projects since she recorded her
[00:24:00] Aubrey: episode as well. So she has a new endeavor called Beye Beignets. So we'll make sure to also link that So you guys can check that out. Congrats to her and her partner. Very excited for them both. so many lovely things happening. Okay so, Joe is my third. I was so torn because there were so many good ideas between the two. Cause the first one is more driven about like his background and, being raised by the women in his life and the impact that had and how he translates that into his business and his like version of hospitality, whereas the second episode was so much community building. It was all about how he got where he was because the community participated cheerlead-ed behind him and made sure that he had the support necessary, but not only that, that he also gave it back. That it's so reciprocated between all the ones involved. And I honest to God could not choose between either of those concepts to be a favorite. So just like Joe overall is a favorite. And also this guy, I cannot make it
[00:25:00] Aubrey: any clearer that he is a teddy bear like, not in a sappy, like you can push them around kind of way. He's still a chef, but he's one of the few chefs I know that just. ooze happiness and like joy and kindness
[00:25:16] Emmalyn: Kindness and support. And it's just infectious. I love it.
[00:25:20] Aubrey: Exactly. Exactly. And the whole team he has there, they've got obviously a lot of interconnectedness, but it says a lot that they can all be family as well as business partners. I could just literally go on forever about how much I think Joe is an incredible human being. And again, just very grateful that he said yes, that he thinks it's a big deal to be on the show. Every time someone says to me, something like, oh, I'm so grateful you asked, or, wow, this is so cool. I've never been on a podcast before. Oh, I'm so glad I could do that for you, but really, I'm just grateful that you said yes.
[00:25:54] Emmalyn: Absolutely, and the thing that stuck out to me the most about his episode, cause I specifically really liked Rooted in Reciprocity.
[00:26:00] Emmalyn: Don't get me wrong. I loved his second episode it was absolutely adorable to just listen to this man gush about how fantastic and supportive his wife is. Like, that's the dream. That's what all the men should be doing, but I really liked the part in Rooted Reciprocity where he's talking about the effects that opening his restaurant has had on his community and the responses that he's gotten from people, because that's magical. Like we're talking about, how to fix things and what to actually do and how to have bigger effects than just running our own personal businesses and lives in an ethical way. He's like actually taking it a step further by being so incredibly local and supporting and uplifting an entire community of people, and in return, getting that back to him as well. And having that also then benefit his business the same way
[00:27:00] Emmalyn: Jackie treating all of these employees so wonderfully and making sure her business is set up to support people. He's doing these same kinds of things and just expanding it out to the entire community so that they're all getting all the support. That's it. That's the community building. That's how we get out of this cycle where we're all just stuck complaining about the mega-corps because the mega-corps do whatever they want.
Locals Supporting Local Support
[00:27:12] Aubrey: A hundred percent agreeing with everything you're saying. I think this is a really important point, and this really brings us full circle to talking about episode two. Where it's like, I know Baltimore has a reputation. I know what people think when I tell them I live here, but the difference is Like I could live in suburbia, I would have more grass and that would be really cool, however I get to live and work in my community. I get to be friends and supporters of the people who own businesses in my communities. You can very easily walk into a business and introduce yourself and quickly become friends with the people who own that business. And you're going to make more impact financially. You're going to make more impact in the emotional level of participation that people want to have in their communities when they know people by name. Jackie talked about in her episode too, for kitsch, that, they all know people's names. When they walk in, they know their birthdays.
[00:28:00] Aubrey: They know their dog's names. They know their favorite drinks. Small business owners want to know you and you should want to know them. And when you need support, you're going to know who to go to, because trust me, They're going to be ones who donate to the cause. They're going to be the ones who allow you to post something for your whatever. go befriend people who have small businesses. Figure out how you can support them, be a part of your community. Because if I, again, I lived in suburbia, maybe I'd have the grass, but I'm going to be shopping in a lot of big rock stores because that's what you have access to. And it's no shame. I'm not blaming anyone, I just think there's a lot of really important takeaways in this episode that aren't as much, so like tips and tricks of go do this thing, or I tried this thing and this is what worked like, this was a very different type of conversation and a very different type of takeaway, which is why I wanted to share this episode This was one you could just get more lost in the story, lost in the feeling, in his personality,
[00:29:00] Aubrey: but you could still take away that energy of oh wow, what a lovely human. I want to be near more lovely humans like that.
[00:29:08] Emmalyn: That's been one of the highlights to this whole project for me. Also it's like, I don't, you know, I'm a little antisocial. I don't really take to people super fast and I'm not really like a chatter amongst strangers, but being able to get some idea of who of all these people are like, listen, do I think that most of these people would recognize me in a lineup? Absolutely not. Obviously to all of these people. I'm just another random consumer, but I, like as even just a random consumer, I can go support this business and it's like actually cool people doing actually cool things, actually treating employees well. Like this isn't just some random convenience-thing, and actually they're terrible and I just have to make my peace with the fact that like the way we get a smartphone in our pocket is like horrific and horrendous to many more people than will ever benefit from that one cell phone being created. And it just is such a load off to
[00:30:00] Emmalyn: just be able to relax and not worry about it. And so being able to just justify it to myself is it like the best financial choice? Probably not, but also I'm not a finance person. Don't listen to me. What do I know? And quite frankly, it's very easy to tell myself that it is, when I know that it's going to Joe, or it's going to Jackie, or it's going to Amber, or it's going to Zach, or it's going to whoever. we can go on and on down the line of all these people, and I'm like, you know what, quite frankly, yeah, I'll give you 20-25 bucks. For a little sneaky snack. Why wouldn't I? I'm helping to contribute to all of the employment of all of these people. Look at me, personally saving the economy, I say. /sarc/
[00:30:45] Aubrey: No, I'm with you. And look, I know I do a lot of shout-outs on how much I hate Amazon, and I'm not afraid to keep saying it till the day I die. So before you go do some Amazon-haul, or some Target-haul, or whatever it is that you do, go spend the $20 on a, yeah, a CBD coffee and a sandwich or whatever from Kitsch, or go get some beignets and a drink or whatever from Amber.
[00:31:00] Aubrey: I agree because you know what? You're actually going to make impact. You can feel good that you supported a business and you got a snacky snack through it. So win all around good people, good food, good communities. The point is to just support your local people because that's going to impact everything more than going to these bigger corporations. It's not personal. It's reality.
[00:31:22] Emmalyn: And selfishly, it's almost like that doesn't count as an irresponsible decision anymore because of the knock on effect that your purchase is having within your community. We can talk about how just for yourself. It's nice to be able to justify your guilty pleasure purposes because you're like, it's not for me. It's for the economy.
[00:31:39] Aubrey: Okay. so glad we're on the same page per usual, Emmalyn, that's why we work so well together, is typically on the same page.
[00:31:45] Emmalyn: Honestly, I'm shocked and thrilled that we had even one that was different. And I'm glad for that.
[00:31:52] Aubrey: Actually, I am too. I would have been almost a little sad if they'd all been the same.
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[00:31:58] Aubrey: Maybe you've noticed,
[00:32:00] Aubrey: there's no commercials on this show, and that's because currently, we don't have sponsors. And while maybe, I don't know, someday that's going to happen, for now, this show is totally funded by yours truly, and thankfully, the incredible support of you, the listener. So if you like the show and want to make sure it continues to exist and grow, we would super appreciate your support. Just go check out our merch link in the show notes. And, in case you didn't know, every person we interview gets to choose a cause of choice. We then create a custom episode merch piece and donate five dollars for every piece sold, and I would say that's a real win-win. So head to the show notes and check out all this season's custom merch. Thank you so much, we couldn't do this without you.
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[00:32:46] Aubrey: So what were our learning curve ones and for what reason? What's the first one that you chose?
[00:32:54] Emmalyn: First learning curve one, you know it before I've even said it. This was an audio issue. So it's absolutely not about him. Love him. I love what he does. I liked his episode. But oh my lord, the audio in Zach's episode, I believe it ended up being episode five? It was not the crispest and I'm no audio engineer. So this is just my lay-person take, but it was…
[00:33:20] Aubrey: Yeah, no. I'm with you. I'm not going to lie. When I listened back to it, I was really nervous to listen to that episode because I had built it up in my head and I was like, I just, I know how bad the audio is, and trust me, my dad who also works in sound was not afraid to tell me multiple times how rough it was, however, when I did go back and relisten, I will say, I didn't think it was as bad as I remembered it being. I think I had really built it up in my head, but it definitely was not good.
[00:33:44] Emmalyn: To me, there were just a few spots that were like particularly hard to hear and as always happens, of course it cuts out right as they're getting to the most important critical part of whatever they're saying, I felt like that, it's just, that's how it goes, it's just one of those things and you're like,
[00:34:00] Emmalyn: man, I really wish I had heard that. It would have been cool.
[00:34:04] Aubrey: I'm with you wholeheartedly. And that was really sad too, because getting him on the show was such a big deal. That was such a moment of, Oh, if Zach is willing to do this, because like I said in the show, he does not do PR kind of things, just willy nilly. I know he did that out of the kindness of his heart because he knew me and thought it had some merit. So with that being said though, because the audio sucked, I felt even worse about it because I was like, Oh my God, I finally got this person that I admire so much, and really want to know this show and then it sounded awful. But I hope people will look past it. I really hope that they'll focus on what he was saying and not how it sounded because there were, again, some really good takeaways in that episode, some really good suggestions on how to rethink things, why he does what he does. So if you do go back and you listen to it, or if you haven't heard it, Just please, we acknowledge here and now that there's a serious learning curve on the technology, but don't get
Aubrey: [00:35:00] distracted by the technical issues, just try to focus on Zach and all the amazing things that he was offering, to you, the listener.
[00:35:08] Emmalyn: and also, which, credit where credit's due, this was one of the first episodes to be recorded.
Learning from Season One to Grow Into Season Two
[00:35:15] Aubrey: And that's why, again, I just really hope people will look past the technicalities. So I'm just going to put it out there. I'm not afraid to admit it. So Jackie's, Amber's, Kieffer's, Zach's, and Brooke’s, the whole first half of the first season, those were all episodes recorded back when I was with this other partner KB for a slightly different show intention. And while the show concepts weren't that different, the point is that this was still way back when I had just first started exiting the industry, trying to reconnect with myself and building back this confidence of who I was, what I was capable of doing, so especially in Zach's episode, because of who he is, there was a lot of like personal pressure I put on myself to be as little of an inconvenience to him as possible
[00:36:00] Aubrey: because I did know how busy he was. I didn't take the extra time to ask him to test the audio in a different way. I didn't take the time to ask him to like, move to a new spot or to do a bunch of things because I just felt bad asking for them that I didn't want to ask any more because he was already just doing me a favor and so I should just be grateful. And so there was a big lesson to take away from that if you know something's wrong and it's not working, don't do it for the sake of doing it. There are kind ways you can ask people and I know that if I'd asked Zach, he would have done it. Because he was already willing to do this for me and so if I just communicated better and been more open and honest, that probably wouldn't have happened. And so now I'm going to have to listen to that audio as a reminder for the rest of my life that that's what happens when you're not open and honest about what you need. So there's just my little bonus takeaway for people.
[00:36:56] Emmalyn: I feel like Zach is also, if he ever wanted to, like top of the list to come back
[00:37:00] Emmalyn: on the podcast.
[00:37:02] Aubrey: Oh yeah, and anyone on season one that says they want to come back, like dead serious, just tell me, absolutely.
[00:37:09] Emmalyn: Absolutely. It's just hard out there, especially cause this was so early on and it's weird to try and tell people what to do when you're also still figuring out exactly how you need to do something and you don't really have a ton of background knowledge to stand on. You don't want to start bossing people around when you're still figuring things out. That just feels weird especially when it's somebody that you think so highly of. I certainly wouldn't, certainly some people would, because, there's always somebody who will do anything, but it, it was a great thing to learn from and grow on. So that's why if I had a magic wand, I would wave it over Zach's episode and make the audio not like it is.
[00:37:42] Aubrey: A hundred percent. Agree. And that carries me to my first one, which I feel very similarly about, which actually was the very first episode of Getting to Know The Golden Approach.
[00:38:00] Aubrey: The audio is rough. The editing. So rough. So many weird pauses. I went back and listened to it, and I realized that there were parts that I forgot to cut. But at this point, you know what? It's been out there for a year. I'm just gonna let it go. So if you go back and you listen to it, I acknowledge that there are times where, I'm repeating myself, like, restarting a sentence. It just lives there now. It's part of the episode. So there it is. honestly, I actually couldn't even pick three. My point just overall was recording and editing which of course, you know, in a podcast can't have any sound. So there's that.
[00:38:28] Emmalyn: I feel like we have made such progress on the editing of things. because neither one of us are audio engineers. We are not audio people. We are not graphic designers. Any of these things that are just like hats that we've had to put on all of a sudden because that's what this needs. And so the fact that we have it, obviously on the back end, I have fourth wall break yet again, you and I have made this system work in a way that like allows us to have lives and do things outside of just, “Oh God, I got to edit a podcast until four in the morning when it goes out”,
[00:39:00] Emmalyn: we're not having these kind of issues where it's like down to the wire, crazy, we post it, we realize there was something wrong, the music was messed up, or that one track wasn't in sync with the other, whatever the case may be. We realize these things are happening, and then we have to take down an episode and repost it after we fix it. That, oh God, do I hate that? And we're not doing that anymore, which, I love it. I love that. Look at this growth.
[00:39:30] Aubrey: Exactly, and that's what I try to really remind myself is like the growth from where the episodes were to start versus where they are now? It is night and day. So, I just always hope people will be interested in doing the journey, versus, again, me getting lost in the, presenting a perfect package kind of concept. So, yeah, hopefully. Fingers crossed.
[00:39:51] Emmalyn: I feel like people always say that, the world likes an underdog and, people like when you're vulnerable and when you make mistakes openly because it makes you more relatable and, you know,
[00:40:00] Emmalyn: this is my hope to the world that those things all ring true, and we get some of that benefit of the doubt from the greater internet and whoever is listening.
[00:40:10] Aubrey: Yeah, then every time when I do run into people, who's said to me, if they've recommended it to somebody, shared it with someone. And so hear those people and I can be like, okay, I'm getting lost in the technicalities. I'm getting lost in the audio. Those can't be forgotten about. These people are obviously seeing the intention. they're hearing the purpose. They're not getting lost in that, is another life lesson. I've really had to work on. So I think all the pieces luckily are starting to come together. There's not been a quote “mistake” yet, but hopefully season two will be filled with a heck of a lot less audio issues than season one.
[00:40:48] Emmalyn: Absolutely. That's the dream, is to just keep getting better.
[00:40:52] Aubrey: That is the dream.
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[00:40:54] Aubrey: Pardon one more quick selfless plug. Anyone who knows me knows I love books, [00:41:00] so we are affiliate partners of bookshop.org, an organization dedicated to keeping local bookstores alive and thriving, because those big corporations, they just don't need any more of our money. So head to the show notes where we've linked our bookshelf and bonus, we'd love if you sent us suggestions to add, you can do so by DMing us on Instagram @goldenapproachpod, or join our email subscriptions on our website, goldenapproachpodcast.com. Okay, let's dive back in.
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What’s to Come in Season Two
[00:41:32] Aubrey: So I think that's a good transition for us to talk about all the lovely things to expect in season two. So you're still going to get the foundational things that we currently have. You're still going to get great episodes with great guests who have lovely stories and tangible offerings. None of that has changed. However, we're also, doing mini-sodes. So that's a new thing that we haven't done before of separating out the solo episodes and the interview episodes. So here,
[00:42:00] Aubrey: I'll let Emmalyn explain that to you.
[00:42:02] Emmalyn: So I'm excited about this because, again, one of my favorite episodes was a solo episode. Clearly, I'm a fan. However, I didn't feel like in season one we necessarily used them to their fullest possible potential. A lot of the times we did them before an episode. Like a prereq to a coming episode “hey, we're about to talk about this thing. This is why it's relevant. Just FYI.” And then two weeks would go by. And then you'd have an episode and I can hardly remember what I had for dinner two weeks ago, let alone, what podcast I was listening to. So going into the episode that was always like a bit ephemeral for me. And obviously it was important because like context is everything. But it didn't, it just didn't work. And so now what we're doing instead is we're going to do our episodes with guests, the same standard semi interview, being two people who
[00:43:00] Emmalyn: want to discuss how to make things cooler and how it worked, and then having a mini, solo episode after that to elaborate on specific ways we can use these skills we've discussed in this episode and to explain what stood out to us and why we were so excited that we had to have this person on the podcast and we had to talk to them about this really cool, exciting thing. And that's fun to me, because that's like a callback. We'll be able to pull examples from these episodes, we'll be able to chime in, a little quote, like if there's a specific thing that somebody said, we can throw it in there. We can do all sorts of editing magic.
[00:43:33] Aubrey: But the bonus is that you can have more content. So there's that.
[00:43:37] Emmalyn: But like, in an easy, in a more digestible way, it's more digestible content.
[00:43:43] Aubrey: Yeah, exactly. We're going to have mini-sodes, as needed. So you won't necessarily see one every single episode, as a pairing. However, if we feel like there's something that needs to be elaborated on, something that's helpful to expand upon, rather than doing just a separate solo episode that gets lost in the sauce, it's going to go on the opposite bi week as a bonus
[00:44:00] Aubrey: episode. So be sure to be keeping an eye out. If you're not already following us, now is a great time to remind you to follow us. So that way you always get a notification in your feed that there's a new episode. Which especially now considering we might have episodes at some point every week, you're going to want to follow to know if that's happening or not. So I'm very excited about this. I'm curious to see how people like it. As always, we're in very much of a learning curve. So if there's something we try that people don't like, just let us know, Which brings me to our next bonus, imagine a drum roll here. we're introducing kofi! So maybe you've heard of Patreon, or such things that podcasts do. Now is the time we're joining the club, but we're actually going to go through kofi. So similar concept with a few bonus features that work for us, but I'm super excited because one of the biggest things that's going to provide is direct ways for you, the listener, the person taking in the content to actually tell us what you liking, what you're not liking.
[00:45:00] Aubrey: So for example, we're going to have our discord group, so if you want to have direct communication, talk about the episodes, about what your favorite takeaways are, we'd love to hear! You're going to have an opportunity to interact not only with me, or Emmalyn, but with other listeners, possibly even with the people who are on the show. So it's a great way to start building out that community. We're going to have some more surveys. So Emmalyn, you've been doing so many surveys on our Instagram @GoldenApproachPod.
[00:45:28] Emmalyn: Yeah, we've been doing all of these surveys about what everybody thought of season one, what people want to see out of season two, what people would like in some sort of like mysterious membership offering that we, may have secretly had in the works for several months. That's for us to know and you to find out, but we wanted to hear from you guys, and we don't really hear from you guys a whole lot, which is fine. I like, try not to cry myself to sleep at night about it. It's cool, however, you could engage, you could tell us what you want, and then we could maybe do more of it. If we knew but we don't know because you don't want to talk to us,
[00:46:00] Emmalyn: I won't take it personally, but I'm just saying! So we're gonna have a lot of that in coffee for our members because if you're actually interested enough that you're going to help us support the podcast in this way. It is a democracy. There will be votes. This isn't some autocracy baloney.
[00:46:26] Aubrey: Yeah, we're going for more of the one team, one dream attitude, like, do I enjoy doing this? Yes, I do. But do I actually do it because I genuinely want to create something other people want to enjoy? Yes, also that. So instead of me continuing to just guess and throw things out to the ether, join Kofi and then you can tell me directly and I actually will take it into consideration. So we briefly just mentioned the membership. It is like Patreon. There are going to be different tiers of membership. There will also be options. One of the reasons we chose coffee was because we are listening to the feedback in the surveys. And one of the things that was put into the feedback form by a listener
[00:47:00] Aubrey: was that they wanted a way to support the show, but didn't necessarily want to subscribe to like a monthly membership thing. So we've specifically chosen kofi over Patreon because it allows for both. You can be a monthly member supporter. You get bonuses for being a monthly member supporter beyond just “thank you for helping me not pay for this show completely out of my pocket for the rest of my life. That would be uber freaking cool”,but if that's not your vibe and you don't want all the bonuses, you just want to do like a one off contribution, that's cool too. You can do that in Kofi. So there's a lot of flexibility for you to choose. I know money is tight. I feel guilty every time I ask someone for money because everyone's asking you for your money. but if you genuinely have enjoyed anything from this show, I would greatly appreciate any form of support, whether it be a one off or a long term that you are willing to put towards it is never not appreciated. So thank you from the bottom of my heart.
[00:47:54] Emmalyn: So one more thing I wanted to mention is an idea that we've tossed around, that maybe somebody might like and maybe this might spur somebody
[00:48:00] Emmalyn: to donate who otherwise wouldn't have, is basically like a coffee talk kind of moment where we have actual coffee from kofi and just gab and talk about what's been going on what we've been liking and what we've been working on what's been holding us up. What's been a problem. What's not, more of this kind of thing, if that's of any interest to anybody, and so if you think that might be of interest to you, absolutely check out kofi, buy us a coffee, do the whole thing becauseit's rough out there. We all know that. And so this is like an every little bit counts situation where, it's no one person's burden and we're all working together and trying to make this a thing that we can sustain. so check it out And if nothing else, you should check it out just to see what the perks exactly are, because maybe one will catch your eye, maybe one will make it absolutely worth it to you. Also, none of this is expensive.
[00:49:00] Emmalyn: And as somebody who has been like truly poor my whole life, I'm confident saying none of these are expensive. The most expensive tier is going to be $8 a month.
[00:49:12] Aubrey: We've put a lot into making sure that this was really accessible. That if we were asking for money, cause again, I know everyone is asking for your money and there's only so much money to go around these days. So this is meant to be as affordable as possible and is fair to all parties involved. We are going to post more information so you can tangibly see how much each tier costs, what is offered in each tier. If you're not interested in the monthly membership, which again is specifically why we chose kofi. You don't even have to make that commitment. If you just randomly are like, You know what? I like what they're doing. I can't really support you monthly, but I have a random $5 I can contribute to show you that I believe in this project. Honestly, that would mean the world to me because, we have the merch and I believe in the merch. I believe in the intention of being able to raise money for all the causes. chosen by the
[00:50:00] Aubrey: guests. But if you don't want to buy something like that, which I totally understand, this gives you a cheaper, more one off option if that's what you need. If you want to be a part of the community, then coffee is your option. So if any of that appeals to you, we'll keep posting things about this on our show notes, Instagram, website, head there, all will be linked for you so you can get the details. And the last thing I want to talk about real quick before we go, is our newsletter and email, that we're adding as well. So these are free things. Kofi is a paid for on all the levels, again, the most expensive thing is $8, but as some free things to stay in touch more often, rather than just bi-weekly, we're going to have some email check-ins. So go to our website, goldenapproachpodcast.com to sign up for email subscriptions, do you want to explain the general emails that we're going to send? And then I'll explain the newsletter.
[00:50:49] Emmalyn: Yeah, so basically we want to be reaching out to you guys in as many ways [00:51:00] as we can so that everybody is in the loop, in the know. So we're going to start sending out a little bit. It's like a news blast. one that is going to be about the episode, the guest, just a quick little overview summary to like, let you know what's going on. And then another one that we're going to do is going to be specifically about the merch, because we have gotten a heartbreaking amount of feedback from people that just say they have no idea that we even have merch. So go to the website. It's support the show that little section right there. And eventually that little section will also, like, have some links to kofi and stuff. So there'll be more ways to support the show now, which is beautiful, but we are trying to make sure that everybody knows that those things exist. as well as about the cause that the merch is supporting! Because all of our episodes specific merch, so anything that says episode. Whatever a portion of it is donated to a cause chosen by the guest of that episode. And we want to be able to
[00:53:00] Emmalyn: highlight those things so that not only do you know where your money is going, but also know about some causes that maybe you otherwise wouldn't have heard of. This is supposed to be about a community being built that is based in supporting each other and uplifting each other and sharing helpful resources and that's what we want to do.
[00:52:29] Aubrey: And for the record, not that this is a bad thing, we're starting from scratch. We've only thus far raised like $20 total for all the causes. That's how much merch we've sold. We've only raised about $20. So I know that this community can do better than that and I am going to challenge you that bare minimum, even if you're not going to purchase merch, check out the causes. Donate to them if they resonate with you. So that way we can bring attention to them and raise some money. So, the final thing that we're going to share with you is that newsletter, So you'll get those base emails that just basically keep you in the know. We're not trying to blow up your inbox. And we have agreed that they will not be more than five minutes to read either. So we
[00:53:00] Aubrey: are really trying to be conscious of, again, not being annoying but because I do want to provide some kind of actual content for you, that is free, that helps build upon the show and its intentions. We are going to have a bi-weekly newsletter that will be on the opposite week of the episodes premiere. So we can be more in touch. And that's just going to have a few little sections like, What is something that's resonating with me that I think is important worth sharing. And based on that, what is something that I can offer, just like in our episodes, something tangible that maybe might be of interest to you or might be helpful to you. So again, we're just trying to build out our abilities to stay in touch and provide you with support in whatever you have going on in life. This does set a tone for bigger versions again, inside kofi. So if you try the free newsletter and you like what's there, there is more of that content in kofi and I highly recommend that you give it a try. If you want to try it and then cancel it. Fine. I'll take no offense. I'd like to know why you didn't like it so I can fix it, but then I'll send you on your merry way and give you
[00:54:00] Aubrey: your money back. So I do hope that you guys will give this a try. Kofi is launching in September. So checking out all the outlets for all the information. And of course, there's always first and foremost, thank you. We greatly appreciate you listening. Literally wouldn't be a show without the listeners. So forever grateful. Is there anything you want to say before we finish the episode?
[00:54:25] Emmalyn: I just hope that everybody is excited for season two and everything else that we have going on. And we'll actually check it out, and be along for the next chapter of this goofy wild ride.
[00:54:42] Aubrey: Yeah, just putting one foot in front of the other and hoping everyone comes along for the journey. So, Go check out all the things There's so many new and exciting things to celebrate season two. Hopefully we'll see you there and yeah, just really appreciate you all.
[00:54:52] Emmalyn: Yeah, absolutely, come hang out.
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[00:54:55] Aubrey: Thank you for listening to The Golden Approach Podcast, which wouldn't be possible without the support of associate producer
[00:55:00] Aubrey: and content manager, Emmalyn with audio technology and support provided by barn swallow audio company. If you've liked this episode or any episode prior, be sure to follow so you never miss a new release. We greatly appreciate if you helped others find the show also by leaving a review wherever you're currently listening or directly sharing with friends and family. You can find resources, merch, and more in the show notes and website, GoldenApproachPodcast.com. And if you're looking for more content, join our Kofi community and follow on Insta @GoldenApproachPod. Until next time, let your hopeful romantic side shine always. Buh bye!
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