Voted Least Likely

What I have Learned about Business from my Partner

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.
My partner Kyle, is also a business owner. He runs a local screen printing shop in Vancouver called Unimpressed Screen Printing. We've been together for over 14 years, and we've been running our businesses alongside each other for the last 7 (I think I did that math right?)Our businesses, like our personalities, are VERY different. I have had an inside look at how someone like Kyle, builds and runs a business and I am very lucky to have been able to watch him grow his brand, and apply what I can, to mine.Now, we can't all be naturally as smart, dedicated, or resilient as Kyle-- but I do believe we can adapt. This week on the Voted Least Likely Podcast I am running through the lessons I have learned from Kyle about business.Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

What I Learned After FAILING at Networking

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.
I registered Leah Yard Designs in 2013. That was eleven years ago. I always joke that I did everything wrong for the first half of my business journey, and what I really mean is that I barely told anyone about my business for the first half of my brand journey.I thought: if I build it, they will come. I also thought that if I kept it to myself I could avoid negative feedback or rejection. You won't be surprised to know that neither of those are true;)It is safe to say I was late to networking. But once I realized the power of community and connection, everything in my life changed. This week I am sharing how starting late hindered by business growth, and how I FAILED at networking once I got into it...Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

Three UNCONVENTIONAL Things I did to Re-motivate Myself in Business

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.
Sometimes thinking about the future and all the amazing goals you want to accomplish, isn't enough.I have gone through seasons of building my jewellery brand Leah Yard Designs where the only way to push forward was to change my way of thinking. This week I am sharing three highly unconventional tactics that helped me regain motivation in business.Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

Jumping into Entrepreneurship, Staying Curious & Finding Balance with Ria Renouf

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.This week on the Voted Least Likely Podcast I sat down with the wildly charismatic Ria Renouf. Ria is the owner of RenoufWrites, a marketing, writing and communications business that offers a la carte services. With a decade of experience in major market reporting, anchoring, and hosting, Ria first got her start at Global News 980/CKNW filing holiday stories as an intern.By early 2014, she was working as a fill-in reporter and was officially offered a job as a morning show news anchor; that was followed by the assignment editor chair just months later. She left the station in May 2018 to give traditional public relations a try but returned to radio a few months later, accepting a job at CityNews Vancouver. She anchored the station’s popular afternoon drive show for nearly three years. By 2021, she was reporting for CityNews Vancouver’s TV side, and went onto to launch and manage digital publication New West Anchor in May of 2022.The Anchor is a sister publication to the Georgia Straight and Vancouver Tech Journal. Known as New West’s “digital town crier,” Ria is best known for having broken a number of community stories, including one about a beleaguered New West school trustee who admitted to using a burner account over Twitter to harass people in New West and beyond.Ria is a seven-time nominated news anchor and reporter, winning two Edward R. Murrow awards and a Radio Television Digital National Award for her radio anchoring and writing at CityNews in Vancouver. Much of what she’s been nominated for highlights her calm and informative approach to breaking news, including Christy Clark’s resignation as the leader of the BC Liberal party, the fatal 2019 Peace Arch Border crash, first reports of the border closure in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the US Capitol.In her minuscule amounts of spare time you can find Ria exploring Metro Vancouver with her husband Jon, reading a book, journaling, or indulging in a video game.
Follow Ria here: https://www.instagram.com/riarenouf
Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

3 Things this Podcast Provides Me (spoiler alert: it isn't money)

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.
My podcast isn’t making me any money: let’s talk about it.
I take the podcast as seriously as my jewellery brand Leah Yard Designs, even though it doesn't support me financially.
It's easy to look at the big podcasters and assume you can start a show and be making millions a month in a short amount of time... but it doesn't happen like that. A lot of the big podcaster's you love, have been doing it for years, or they had influence before starting.
First off– I want to say, if you are thinking about starting a podcast, DO IT. It's been the most fulfilling thing I have done in my business. I started it out of frustration after being rejected and snubbed by another brand, and I wanted to share what I had been going through as a business owner.
I felt alone. Deeply and utterly alone.
And I needed a place, that was 100% mine, that I could show up and voice the difficulties of being a misfit in the fashion industry.
And so thats how it started.
To be honest, money didnt even cross my mind. I never considered doing it to make money.
And if you don’t make money on it, it can be hard to keep up on.
But I've recently had a few opportunities come up that were directly related to being a podcast host, and this made me realize how much this show actually DOES provide me.
So let's talk about it.
Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

Three Big Business Mistakes I Still REGRET (RE-AIR)

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.For years I waited to be "saved". And you know what? In some ways I think I am still waiting...We're taught that if we're good enough, beautiful enough, smart enough, talented enough-- we will be discovered.But what if no one comes?Does this mean we haven't waited long enough?Does this mean we aren't enough?Over the last decade I have watched other business owners be "picked". And every time, I would question myself: "why not me?"But here's the thing: you'll never know why.We have no way of knowing how anyone has truly accomplished anything we see online. Everyone's story is different. But I can say something with 100% certainty: don't wait to be chosen. It's no one's responsibility to pick you. Tune in to hear what other lessons I had to learn the hard way;)
Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

The Power of PAUSING with Ally Matos

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.This week on the Voted Least Likely Podcast I sat down with Ally Matos, the talented photographer, videographer and business strategist behind Allyfotografy Media Co.
I met Ally years ago in person at a networking event (one in which I may or may not have hid at). Since then we have virtually cheered each other on. In this chat, Ally shares her journey with grief, how her curiosity has sparked her business trajectory, and how PAUSING her business allowed her to come back stronger. 
May is mental health awareness month and today's episode touches on the importance of prioritizing your whole well-being. A huge thank-you to Ally for her vulnerability and for sharing her story on the show.Learn more about Ally Matos here: https://www.allyfotografy.com/Ally's personal IG (the "Hot Mess Express" as she calls it):https://www.instagram.com/allymatos/Allyfotografy Portraits IG:https://www.instagram.com/allyfotografyportraits/Allyfotografy Media Co. IG:https://www.instagram.com/allyfotografymediaco/
Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

My Mental Health Journey (please read disclaimer)

DISCLAIMER: this episode covers mental illness, depression, and suicidal thoughts. These topics may be difficult to listen to. If you, or someone you know is struggling, please seek support. https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/mental-health-services.html
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. I had originally scheduled an episode with tips on how to manage your mental health as a business owner.But instead, I am publishing today's episode about my own struggles with my mental health. I had a lot of hesitation around publishing this episode. I decided to do it, because there was a time in my life when I needed to know I was not alone with these feelings, and hearing my story might help someone else.This episode covers my mental health struggles starting at age 9. Though it has been an on-going journey for me, I am grateful to have support in my life allows me to now be healthy and happy.Tune in to today's episode to hear the story.A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

The "B" Word: Burnout

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.
If you Google burnout, here's how it's defined: a state of emotional, physical and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress
If that felt like it was written for you, you're not alone. Over the last few years I have spoken with lots of small business owners who have been feeling the same. So, it doesn't seem like burnout is going away anytime soon, but there are things we can do about it.Tune in for tips on taking back control.Mentioned in this episode: Eliza Trendiak's story (listen here) Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns

Are you LACKING the Skills you need? (RE-AIR)

A huge thank-you to the Georgia Straight for ranking the "Voted Least Likely" Podcast as the 3rd best podcast in the BOV 2023 Awards! I am so honoured to have this show recognized. Thank-you to everyone who voted, together we can make others feel less alone on their journey.
This podcast has turned into the most fulfilling project I have ever done.
And I almost didn’t do it.
Because I didn’t have what I believed to be the main skill required to pull this off.Learn more about the Voted Least Likely Podcast here:www.leahyard.comIG: @leahyardTikTok: @leahyard
Our sponsor is our very own jewellery brand: Leah Yard Designs
5% of all profits are donated to the Downtown Eastside Women's Center. Shop the full collection of demi-fine jewellery at: www.leahyarddesigns.com
IG: @leahyarddesignsTikTok @leahyarddesigns