Jen A. Miller Consulting

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5 Steps to Shake Self Doubt

With Toast Meets Jam I’m constantly meeting and getting to know young female founders. If you’ve watched my interviews you’ll know that they’re all about getting to know the women behind the businesses. In getting to know these amazing young women I’ve picked up quite a bit of incredible advice on what it takes to launch your own business. With the help of Entrepreneur Magazine, I’ve created Toast Talk, a new series to bring you all of that advice rolled into one delicious dish that you can dig into every Tuesday.

To kick-off we’re going to start by talking about overcoming the obstacles that can come with launching a business. And this week we’re going to start by talking about self-doubt.

One of the biggest fears I hear from young women entrepreneurs is that they feel like have no idea what they are doing and are worried that someone is going to call them out for it. If this sounds like you, you’re in luck because I have 5 easy steps for you to shake that self doubt.

#1 Find Your Support System

Figure out who those people are in your life that are going to be there to support you as you grow your business. Remember, no matter how independent you are, this is not something you need to do alone and it will be much more fun if you invite people to be a part of the process with you. Find those friends, family members, and mentors who truly get it, will pick you up when you’re feeling down and push you forward when you need a little encouragement.

#2 Start Telling People About Your Business

It can be scary to share your ideas with other people. You might be worried about what they’ll think or about the negative feedback they might give. But by starting to talk about your business, not only will you start to gain more confidence in it but you’ll also start building out your support system. You’ll find that the people who care about you will want to see you succeed and will help you figure out the bits you don’t know by connecting you to the right people and resources.

#3 Don’t Worry About What Everyone Else is Doing

There are always going to be people out there for you to compare yourself to. And the reality is there are going to be people out there doing things that are very similar to what you are doing and who in your eyes might be doing it better. Good for them! Let them inspire you but don’t let them discourage you. Don’t get caught up in what other people are doing. Stay focused on what it is you need to be doing to grow your business.

#4 Remind Yourself Everyone Starts Somewhere

It can sometimes seem like everyone around you is an overnight success. Like they woke up one day, decided to launch a business, and boom they instantly had it all figured out and were a roaring success. When my mind starts trailing down this path I have to remind myself that everyone starts somewhere and even the people you look up to most likely have beginnings that look very similar to your own. One handy tool that I love to use when I need a little reminder of this is the Wayback Machine. This handy tool lets you go back in time to your favorite businesses and look at their historical versions websites. Trust me it does wonders for your confidence.

#5 Celebrate Your Successes

Last but not least, take time to celebrate the wins no matter how big or small. When you’re launching your businesses there are so many first you will encounter. Be proud of every step of the journey you take forward. Right these down somewhere so you can remember just how far you’ve come and how truly amazing you are!

Now I want to hear from you. What do you do to shake self doubt? Leave a comment below and join the conversation @ToastMeetsJam.

September 20, 2015
An Interview with the All-Female Film Crew of The Empowerment Project

Director Sarah Moshman and Co-Producer Ashley Hammen dish on the making of the documentary, The Empowerment Project.

Last month Catherine and I had the pleasure of attending a screening of the female driven documentary, The Empowerment Project: Ordinary Women Doing Extraordinary Things. The film seeks to answer the time-tested question, “What would you do if you weren’t afraid to fail?”. For Sarah Moshman and her crew of female filmmakers, the answer was easy. It was the creation of this project.

Over the course of 30 days and 7,000 miles, these women hit the road to interview 17 women in leadership. From ballerinas to brew masters, they interviewed women in industries as varied as they come, all the while negating stereotypes of what it means to be a women in charge.

As far as we think we’ve come, the truth is that we still have a long way to go to accepting powerful women as the norm. The Empowerment Project seeks to see that change by sparking conversation about what it means to be a successful woman and what it takes to join the ranks. Needless to say, we wanted in on the conversation.

For the latest installment in our Brunches with the Best series, I sat down with Sarah Moshman the film’s director and Ashley Hammen one of the film’s co-producers to find out more about the making of the film, what they hope to see it accomplish, and the advice they’d offer to our Single Girls.

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February 14, 2015
An Interview with the Co-founders of Vrai & Oro

Learning to Live Authentic with the founders of Vrai & Oro

“Be true to the way you are and live in a way that makes you feel good. Live in the moment in a way that makes the next even better.”

Vanessa Stofenmacher and Chelsea Nicholson, co-founders of Vrai & Oro

One of the thing that most excites me about leading The Single Diaries is that it has been an incredible way to get to connect with other entrepreneurial young women. The more time we spend growing the site, the more women we come across with inspiring stories to tell. From starting their own yoga practices to traveling the world volunteering to building their own companies, we have been able to use the site to tell some pretty amazing stories from our Single Girls. It is my hope that not only does our site help to spread the word about the work they are doing but also inspires you, our readers, to go after whatever it is that you are most passionate about. At the end of the day our mission is to help you be authentically you and to provide you with the advice to help you live the life you want to lead.

The latest Single Girls I had the pleasure of sitting down with have built a company around that same vision. Vanessa and Chelsea are the leading ladies behind the just-launched jewelry site Vrai & Oro. Their brand promise is to bring you fine jewelry without the markups but their purpose goes much deeper.

I sat down with these two to learn more about the lifestyle of authenticity they hope to inspire through their high-quality jewelry and to learn more about the journey that has led these two young women on a mission to disrupt the long-standing jewelry industry.

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February 13, 2015
Saying Goodbye to The Single Diaries

Time to turn the page and start a new chapter

We can’t become what we need to be by remaining who we are. – Oprah

It’s hard to believe we are sharing this post, but this will be our final month of The Single Diaries. This site has been such a huge part of our lives for the past year and a half. Though it’s difficult to imagine a world without it, we have realized that it is time for each of us to take our next steps.

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January 5, 2015
Your January Calendar| Single Girl Out ‘n About

Start the year right with a month of fun and festivities!

Happy New Year! I can hardly believe 2015 is already here. It feels like each year goes by faster than the last. One of my resolutions for 2015 is to make the most out of every month. I’ve always considered January – March the worst part of the year, putting it down as the quarter with the worst weather and the fewest things to do. This year I’ve decided it’s time to change my attitude and embrace the winter months for all they have to offer. To see what I’m looking forward to this January, check out this month’s calendar!

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January 2, 2015