Optimism is a non-negotiable ☀️

I'm not going to lie to y'all — I'm not really in an ✨expository✨ mood this week. I had some ideas of what to write about, but nothing really felt right. So instead, I'm going to take a moment to be vulnerable.

I'm struggling right now. I know many of us are, especially those of us who are small business owners. Prices are going up. Budgets are tightening. Clients are walking away — not because they don't need our services, but because they are having to cut costs wherever they can.

One of Golden Poppy Digital's core values is that optimism is a non-negotiable. In order for us to keep moving forward, in business and in life, we have to believe that a better world is possible.

And I honestly do believe that. But it feels a lot like that scene in Walk the Line where Johnny says, "That stuff will work itself out," and June shoots back, "No, it does not work itself out. People work it out for you and you think it works itself out."

This stuff does not work itself out. But I have to trust that I'm going to find a way forward. That we're all going to get through it because we're going to help each other through it. That's what community is for.

So with that said, I have a favor to ask: Please consider dropping my name in rooms I'm not in! If you hear someone talking about wanting help with social media, or wanting to outsource it completely, mention Golden Poppy Digital. Send them to my website. Tell them that I have an insane but very cute cat that joins every Zoom call! Networking and referrals are such a powerful tool, and can be life-changing for small businesses like mine.

This stuff might not work itself out, but we are going to work it out. For ourselves, and for each other. Thanks in advance for your support 🧡

📰 LinkedIn is testing Suggested Feeds, which would be feeds dedicated to a specific topic so you don't have to sort through all the ChatGPT-written inspiration porn posts on your homepage.

🤝 LinkedIn is also adding collaborative posts, which I'm excited for. Just like on Instagram, these posts will be shared to all collaborators' feeds, giving small businesses and entrepreneurs more visibility on what they're working on together.

🎥 Facebook is bringing back Facebook Creator Studio ... but of course it's AI-powered, because God forbid Meta do anything without AI 🫠

Let's take the question mark out of "what to post" with a Content Lightning Round! These virtual sessions can be 30 or 60 minutes, and give us time to brainstorm tangible content ideas for your socials.

What you'll get:​
⚡ A list of actionable content ideas
⚡ A strategy on how to implement them
⚡ A recording of our session that you can come back to again and again

Book your Content Lightning Round ⚡️

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OTHER WAYS TO WORK WITH ME 👇🏻

🌱 For the small business owner who doesn't want to deal with socials AT ALL, my Bloom package is full-service done-for-you social media management that includes content strategy, creation, scheduling, and community engagement!

🌿 If you like personally responding to comments and DMs but don't have time for all the content creation and scheduling, my Sprout package offers social media support to take the content component off your plate!

🌼 If you just need help getting photos and videos off your camera roll and turning them into content that converts, my Seed package is for you!

Pick your package!

🎵 I've heard mixed reviews of the latest Olivia Rodrigo album, but after having it on repeat for a few weeks, I can confidently say that I really like it — not least of all because there's a Robert Smith feature (!!), but also because it's a whole story arc of young, dumb love ... and makes me feel relieved to be perennially single 😅

📚 I just finished Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson and it's going to be a minute before I can read anything else. The book is based on a true story and documents the horrors of chattel slavery through the eyes of a mixed-race woman living in Virginia. The writing is captivating and the story is fast-paced, but consider this my warning that you will need a strong stomach to get through it.

📺 I finally started watching Heated Rivalry. I am aware that I am VERY late to the party, but as someone who actively avoids romance novels, a TV show based on romance novels did not seem like something I would enjoy. HOWEVER. I am willing to admit when I'm wrong. Shout out to EJ for talking me into giving it a try, AND fielding all my real-time texts (which, to be fair, are mostly just some variation of "OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGG") as I watch.

⚾ I'm prepping for our trip to Illinois next month by bingeing the entirety of the WPBL Official Podcast, trying to decide what WPBL merch I want to wear on the plane to Chicago, and making sure everyone within a 10-foot radius of me knows that the WPBL exists. I cannot remember the last time I was this excited about something, and there is something truly poetic about coming back to my baseball fandom in my 40s just in time to watch us get a league of our own 🧡