Women in Business: Is Leaving Your W-2 Worth It?

Mindy Price (00:00) Did you know that 450,000 women left the US workforce last year and around 58 % of them, yeah, do the math, they quit voluntarily. They weren't pushed out, they walked. And we were three of them. But before we get to that, we always do our sip of the day. You're listening to the Sugar, Spice and Spirits podcast. I'm one of your hosts, Mindy Price, along with Kelly and Natalie. So ladies, what is your sip of the day? Kelly, what do you have? KELLY (00:29) So in true Texas style it's very hot outside, so I decided to go with a nice little chilled white wine. I'm not a big white wine drinker, so it's a little sweeter, but I I love peach so and I love the sparkle. So I went with this Della Rosa. It's sometimes I even put over ice if I'm sitting outside. So it's it's good. It's a nice little summer little summer fun cocktail. Mindy Price (00:52) think what you're doing is just kind of rubbing it in our face because you're about to go on a cruise tomorrow, so you're just kind of getting ready for that. KELLY (00:59) Yes, and I did buy the drink package, by the way, just saying. So yeah. Yeah. How about you now? Mindy Price (01:04) We'd be disappointed if you didn't. Yeah, Natalie Pilkinton (01:07) I'm Mindy Price (01:07) Nat, what do you Natalie Pilkinton (01:07) not Mindy Price (01:08) have? Natalie Pilkinton (01:09) I'm not jealous, but I'm drinking an Evian and I'm having a little bit of a headache. So I'm just gonna hydrate from being in the the being being in the desert and all the hiking and everything we did. I think I'm just a little dehydrated. So hopefully this helps. Mindy Price (01:22) Well, I will tell KELLY (01:22) Good call. Good call. Mindy Price (01:23) you, I am working on my water. I'm about right there right now, but let's be real. That's not what I'm drinking today for this. I actually have a Nighthawk bourbon barrel. You know, it's one of my go-tos, get glass of cab. So cheers ladies. Natalie Pilkinton (01:39) Cheers. KELLY (01:39) Cheers. Natalie Pilkinton (01:41) Can't go wrong with a good cab. Mindy Price (01:41) So, you can't. So let's talk about this. KELLY (01:43) Mm mm. Mindy Price (01:45) The numbers are pretty incredible when you start to dig into them. And we're not gonna get into the numbers where we're throwing stats at you. But when we were thinking about what is something to talk about and what do we all have in common, the three of us work together. And near the same time, we all decided to go into business with each other independently and then also with this podcast. And I don't know what your thoughts are about the stat and the fact that when you think of so many women, not necessarily just Gen X women, we tend to relate more to that, but are choosing at this point in time to either stop working for different reasons because they are at the age that they're at, they're having to take care of aging family members or parents. And so there's the caregiving aspect or just, you know, whatever their reasons are. What are your thoughts on? those numbers. Natalie Pilkinton (02:40) Well, I think the the numbers are pretty astonishing. Fifty-eight percent voluntarily quit, and that's you know, from the catalyst survey, and that's the Forbes study. Forbes put this out, which to me I always like to cite the source and and like to understand. And some other stats, you know, four hundred and fifty-five exited, four hundred and fifty-five thousand exited the workforce January to August, and fifty-eight percent quit voluntarily, not laid off, not fired, and seventy-six percent say middle life. Life. Is that what we're calling it now? Middle life, negatively KELLY (03:13) Mm-hmm. Natalie Pilkinton (03:14) impacted worker ambition. And 85% women selected burnout is their primary feeling. We were reading the receipt status as a side of outrage. I think that we are in a generation that it's you can only handle so much. You've got all these pressures, you've got all these things, you have this knowledge, you have this expectation, because we're at a point where we We are the experts in our field. We are the senior seasoned ones, as some may say. but that doesn't mean we're dead. That doesn't mean we're rollover. That doesn't mean life's over. It just means that we're choosing a different path. And sometimes we're blazing our own path. Sometimes we're forging in a, you know, in a rainforest with a machete trying to figure it out, you know, but it's it's hard when you're sandwiched. Like we're that sandwich generation now. We've got our aging parents that we take care of, that we're blessed to take care of. We're lucky to still have around. And then we have, you know, our littles and our kids going off to college. So we're like in between trying to juggle everything, and then we start getting into the grands, and you get the grandbabies that come in. So there's so many other factors, and flexibility is important. And because as the woman and the caregiver, when we're back in the workforce, we have to. handle everything. We have to juggle all of that where as and it's it's not sexist, but it is just the nurturer roles and the way our God given, you know, talents and expertise is. The women are the are the nurturers and the men are the the hunters and the gatherers and they bring back, but we can only do so much and we need that flexibility and the workforce doesn't allow it. You know, COVID kind of brought that that was probably the benefit, the work from home aspect of it where you could have some sort and certain flexibility. But now with everyone being required to get back to the office, we're paying for these leases, I get the business side of it, but women are also pushed. You know, we're the ones that are impacted. I think the hardest. And you know, I'm not one to do sexist kind of things like, women this or men this, but there is a reality to it, I think. Mindy Price (05:20) So I want to take just a little bit of a step back because you said two things that I'm just over here giggling on the inside because I think it's this time of life that we're going through it. don't know, Kelly, you're a little bit older than us, but I think you can probably relate to this. Natalie and I being so close in age, you said two things. First, the word you said was seasoned. Natalie, I can remember as a young trainer, where we had to choose how do we talk about the older generation in a way that doesn't come across tacky and the word we would use is seasoned and I'm KELLY (05:56) Even Mindy Price (05:57) literally going I am in a season of my life where I can actually relate to the words that I have been using for so long. So then as you were saying that literally last night I almost sent this to y'all and I don't think I did but it was talking about the youngest class of senior citizens being the new 50 year olds. so Natalie and I can relate to this so much. it had, these people were, maybe came up on my phone because we were floating the river this weekend and these people were in their tubes and stuff and they were floating around and there was a group of them and they were like, the 50 year olds are like, look, these 50 year olds are having to learn how to navigate the new. way of life for themselves. And we think there should be a freshman class for senior citizens. And so it was lumping us into the senior citizen category. And the other day I was talking to Travis and he was like, yeah, babe, where's my AARP card? All of these things that are like this new piece of life. And I know that's not necessarily what we were talking about, but it's, it's very interesting to be like, man. I used to think was so old, I used to think 60 was so old, and now I'm like, I'm young at heart. I don't feel that way. Some people who feel like going back to the work where they're aging out and there aren't as many opportunities, I truly don't feel that way. I made this choice to become an entrepreneur and have my own business and bet on myself, not because I couldn't find another equally great, greater or job that would keep me happy. But I wanted to do this. And then for a second, as we talked about this topic, y'all, I did go, my gosh, what would it feel like to be in that position, to feel like you're being pushed out, to have to deal with age discrimination? That is something I'm thankful that I haven't had to deal with. But then I think about, and Kelly, you talked about some topics that we can do because you have friends that are in the beauty industry where there's so much money being put towards it and trying to look younger and act a certain part and the things that we do and how much money is spent on that. And so there's just a lot of different things that we could talk about. And I know that I maybe just want a glass of wine and went off on a tangent, but when you said seasoned, I thought about that, that I saw. And it was a very tangent text Natalie Pilkinton (08:28) Yeah. Tangent tax. KELLY (08:29) Internet checkboard. Mm-hmm. But no, I think all of what you said kind Mindy Price (08:34) Yeah. KELLY (08:36) of you got a little choked up there, didn't you? Mindy Price (08:38) you KELLY (08:39) I I think all of what you said, it it does tie into everything that we're talking about. And because we are seasoned, and I'm I'm I'm a little more seasoned than y'all are, but I I think our our experiences, they they help guide us to where maybe we're more likely to take that leap of faith. I mean, you've you know, in in in both of y'all, in all of our careers, we we have multiple facets to our careers. You know, Mindy, you're not just a fabulous coach, business coach, leadership coach, but you're a fabulous speaker. And people ask you to speak for you know, in front of huge audiences on, you know, on several different topics, not just related to your industry that you've been in for so many years. Natalie, you are an investment coach. You know, we all worked together. You went out there and tried to, you know, pull money together. You tried to, and now you're now you're teaching people, but you're still flipping houses, you're still doing real estate. So I me being a physical therapist, I own a business in Louisiana. I have a full staff that runs it. So I was over here doing other medical type stuff. So we've had the opportunity to see various components of our career. And I think because of that, because we're not just a master of one trade. we we have a little a few more options to to get out there and take that leap of faith. And so when the company that we were all with together, when we decided, you know, hey, you know, the company's gonna go a different direction, we decided to go our own directions and take that leap of faith. I know you guys have been just been hustling like crazy. Me, I've got to kick back and relaxed a little bit more. I am I am almost 60 and fortunately have a husband Mindy Price (10:21) Do we have Natalie Pilkinton (10:21) Ancients. Mindy Price (10:22) a, hey, do we have a bragging tax? Yeah. Natalie Pilkinton (10:25) I don't know, but she's ancient. She's going all these places 'cause she's in retirement. She's the KELLY (10:27) We should. Hey, let me tell you what r I take Natalie Pilkinton (10:30) freshman class of retirement right there. That's Kelly. She's the definition. KELLY (10:33) Yes. Yes. I'm I'm gonna be the poster child for retirement, hopefully. No, but I and I d I do t I do tell people that I'm semi retired. They're like, Well, what do you do? I said, Well, I I've I've got my doctorate in physical therapy, but I'm semi-retired. I do a podcast and have a business in Louisiana and the rest of the time I just do what I want. So we we've all worked hard to to get there. but it it's it's funny because we started this podcast. Let's face it, we didn't know which end was up. And sometimes our our up end is still down and sideways and all different directions because we're still learning. And this is not something any any of us had, you know, aspired to, but we're having a blast with it. And it's a business. I mean, it is, we, we han you have to handle this like a business. So we dove off and did something like that on top of you guys doing your, you know, your own thing. So it's it doesn't surprise me that number one, and and like Natalie says, you don't want to be sexist, but let's face it, A lot of women in the workforce get passed over for promotions because why? They're women. Some s sometimes they get talked over in a meeting. why? Because a lot of people just see the corporate world as a man's world. even though and I know we went through these stats a long time ago and I'm sorry I I didn't pull them up, but there are a lot of very powerful women out there who own and run their own companies and people listen to things that they do and that they say, but that's a very small percentage. So for those of us who want to get out there and make our own way, make our own pathway, be our own boss, I think those are the ones that you're gonna see jumping into their own entrepreneurial pathway instead of going back to the corporate world. Because we all three had the opportunity to go back to the corporate world after we left, you know, our past employer, but we decided not to. So I think it takes a strong woman, but But let's face it, we were all scared. We were we were all scared a little bit. But you you know, we dug our heels in and just said, Hey, th this is what we want to do. And I think that's what a lot of strong women are out there doing too. Mindy Price (12:36) And I know my reason for not going back to work for a W-2 job and then becoming my own employer. Look, if I don't get things done, the only person responsible is me. And I had a conversation, I had drinks with somebody in a new industry. And we were talking about what they're looking for for training for their people and their teams. And she said, Mindy I have a friend like you that they do speaking. They work like twice a day and they make so much money and you must love it. And I'm like, twice a day, twice a week. They work two days a week and I'm like, no, I'm still working six to KELLY (13:10) Yeah. Mindy Price (13:10) seven days a week. Like there's a lot of stuff that I'm still building, but it's on me. I'm building something for me. And my decision to start my own thing started a while back. I had wanted to do this for... a really long time. There was just a catalyst, speaking of a catalyst survey, Natalie, that really helped me. Okay, well, you're either going to do this now because timing is right or you're going to wait. And so I chose to do that for you, Natalie. What made you say, I'm not going to go back to a W-2. I want to bet on myself. What was that for you? Natalie Pilkinton (13:43) Well, I've always been in real estate and I see what real estate does for people from the investment aspect of it. So being in real estate is just my passion. Like I absolutely love it. So if I'm if I'm going to do a W2, like the one thing that I would say is I I like the consistent income of a W2. That's probably the the one thing that's missed. But the overall thought processes, real estate's where it's at. I wanna be in real estate. I wanna do more. I wanna invest. I wanna buy it, you know, an apartment complex. I want to be the GP in that. So having all of those those desires, real estate's just where it's at. You know, it's one of those things. Being eight to five, I'm one of those that I could go eight to five. I I just got burned out at where where I was before, those long days, long hours, and I need flexibility. I've got, you know, I'm the sandwich generation. I've got, you know, my mom who lives with me who's disabled. And I have my, you know, my little one that just went off to his last day of first day of elementary school. So I'm I'm right in between. Plus kids that are older and then fiance has we have grandbabies. So it's it's one of those things. I just want to be be flexible and Being a realtor doesn't mean you aren't working 24-7. Like you, you are working, however, it's your it is on your terms. You still get to write, you still but you're hustling. I if somebody's looking for an easy paycheck out there, then I you know, I don't think entrepreneurial is for you being and leaving the workforce unless you have a caregiver at home, like a husband who is bringing home the bacon or somebody that is paying. But You know, for me, I just didn't see it any other way. A fr you know, it's it's and like you said, it but it's also gotta be me. It's me. It's me or nobody. Like I've gotta make it happen. And so it's that's just the only way it is. But real estate for me is in my blood. I'd be doing if I were to go back to a W2 if, if, if it would be in real estate, the real estate arena, some way, some shape, some form. KELLY (15:49) So I and and I totally agree with you. I my big thing is I I love I've always worked from home. After after I did when I was doing physical therapy, I did ho home health. So I was I was out and about. Never was inside four walls. And there's there were occasions when I would go in and cover at a at one of my friends, she owned her own clinic. And if they had somebody out on vacation or maternity leave or something, I'd go I'd go cover. And I I tell you what, being within confined within four walls for eight, eight to nine hours a day, it I I came to the conclusion that that's not for me. I needed to be able to go out and and and be out in the public. And even though they you think working from home is very confining, you still have all these different things around you. I mean you can still come and go if you need to run to the store, you know, put on a load of laundry or something, you can. But for me, going back to now I will admit if I did not have my my business in Louisiana then I probably would really think about that W2 Because like you said, Natalie, it it it's it's steady income. You don't have to worry about, I mean you're not out there hustling. Like you said, you you guys are you two are always, always hustling. I get guys, I get emails and texts from these guys at 10 or 11 o'clock at night and I'm like, go to bed, go to bed. You know, but they never, ever, ever stop. And that's why, that's why they are success so successful. And, you know, it's It's a it's a big leap to to bet on yourself. And you have to follow the guidance of, you know, we always talk about mentors, we always talk about, you know, people who have out there, you know, gone out there and already done it. you can't you have to just gravitate towards that type of person who can guide you and lead you in this in your new endeavor. But it's it is definitely not for everyone, like you said now, is an entrepreneur. People think, I want to own my own business so I can go and do and then you know fly away and do this. Well, one of our very good friends is is a realtor, very successful realtor, Michelle Doss. She's she's she was the assistant principal at a s at the high school and also a realtor. She was still the number one or number two realtor in our county. And I'll never forget, she was helping me with one of my houses that I was buying or selling. I don't know what was doing. And She texted me something and I said, Why are you texting me? She was on vacation in Africa. And I said, Girl, this can weigh because I don't know. It's okay. I had a few minutes. So you're right. You're not ever, you're not ever not on call when someone wants to see a house or someone has a question. So it it's you do want your own hours. You do want to be your own boss, but sometimes your own hours aren't always dictated the way you think they would be. Sometimes your own hours may be answering a question at nine or ten o'clock at night. that you don't just shut down that you know with that W2 you clock out at five o'clock, you may not have to think about it 'cause the next day. That's not necessarily the entrepreneurial spirit. It's like you go to bed thinking about it, you wake up thinking about it, and you probably even dream about what you should be doing to be successful. So it's it's you're right. Now it's it's not for everyone. Sometimes that W2 is a lot more comforting for some people. Mindy Price (19:00) Well, and you brought up Kelly mentors and coaches. And I think the thing that we have skepticism on our part, guess, just being that generation where we want to figure things out. We want to truly know, can we rely on this information? Is this true? And it made me think clearly I'd like to play on Instagram and TikTok, but I saw something else last night. So I was scrolling through and there was this young man. He said he's made seven figures doing XYZ, but he never exactly said XYZ was. So just for fun, I was like, well, let me go look him up online. Let me go read a little bit about him on Reddit. And he turns out has his own coaching program. And there were a couple of people that were on there that were complaining about getting swooned into his program. And they talked about how expensive it was. This gentleman gave up his debit card to the company and signed a contract instead of a credit card. went through a bunch of stuff, ended up being refunded for this, but a lot of people were saying what a scam that is. And so the warning that I would say is there's some great business coaches that are out there. We had Steve Rozenberg on our show in an episode. He is wonderful. He has coached us. I help other businesses. There are so many great coaches that are out there, but there's also so much on social media that says, it's so easy to get rich quick. It's so easy to do this and just work two to three hours a day. Now, is there some proof that there is success out there? Yes. Have we personally found that? No. So we cannot speak to that, but I can tell you, do your research, do your homework. know, Natalie, you'd mentioned that it's not all easy. Entrepreneurship isn't easy. You said the thing that you miss is that steady paycheck. Not to take your words, but basically, you know, to know that that's coming in. That is scary. And a lot of people romanticize, and I'll say I did too, of, I wish I had my own business. I wish I could control that. it looks like it's so much easier when in fact, it may be harder. But the thing is, is it's yours and you have nobody to blame except for yourself if you don't put your SOPs together, if you don't have the right tracking system, if you're not doing your taxes the right way, if you're not filing everything the way that you need to. So there's a lot that goes into it and you have to have the ability to say, these are the things that I need to do. I'll say AI can make it a lot easier when used the right way and not solely relied upon. But. There are also younger people who are like, just want to do it now. And I was one of those, but I always thought, and I don't know if y'all did, I can remember somebody saying, Mindy, why don't you just start your own speaking business now? And this is 15, 20 years ago. And I was like, because it's so much easier to be a W2 employee where my employer. is having to take care of that. I was still speaking. I was just splitting fees with them and I was still running my sales team and I was still, you know, had quotas and everything. And I was like, I've got insurance, I've got benefits, I've got a steady paycheck that's coming in. Why would I ever want to work for myself? Plus having young children, I wasn't in a financial position where I could take that leap. just, it was one of those things where it didn't make sense for me. And so, We talk about, we always say, don't wait till it's too late. Don't wait till it's perfect to take that leap of faith. But I do think you need to be smart about doing it also. You need to look at the pros and cons because you could be in a situation where it just financially does not make sense for where you're at to take that leap if it's not fully thought out. And I know there are opportunities that could be missed on. It's like, well, why didn't I? But I just feel like maybe it's the mom in me where I have to say, Not everybody is ready to take that leap yet. And so maybe, Natalie, because of the success that you've had and the success that I've had and Kelly, you you have your other business. You have a steady income that comes in. It's a different lifestyle for you because you don't have the double, but you do have that. But for Natalie and me, we were just in a position where we're like, you know what, it's now or never. Because if we wait any longer, then we're just that much further out. And I'm a year and a half in and I'm exactly where I'd hoped I'd be in my business plan, which is really exciting. Now, the overachiever in me is like, what? Wait, I didn't get that contract? Wait, why am I not ahead? Why am I just equal to where I'm supposed to be? You we have those problems too. But I wanted to put that out there that it's not easy. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. Natalie Pilkinton (23:44) Well, there's some practical takeaways before somebody tries to go off on their own. And that's like have six to twelve months, like a runway or a bridge, like in savings, or and if you don't have that much, start building while you're you're in your position, while you currently have that income. Start building, start working on it, start doing. connections are so important, like building your tribe, having your team around you, having people around you. Mindy, you and I are great networkers. Kelly is too. She's just not necessarily in that professional, professional mind or that professional way, but she networks with everybody and knows half of Angleton, Brazoria County, and Lake Jackson down there. So, you know, it's it's really not allowing yourself to be holed up working on the business 100%, that networking, who you know, those communications, all of that's important. So I think that's that's one of the big things to keep in mind. If you are thinking about taking that leap, go for it, do it. I want to encourage you, but do it with the right team around. And I think that we're a good team for each other. We'll call bullshit. Like, hey, you're not pulling your in, you're not pulling your weight. Hey, Mindy. Like, what do you think about this? What do you think about that? You're not, you you didn't do this. You're you're messaging me. Hey, you didn't do that. You know, it's like we hold each other accountable. So we rise, we lift each other up. And I think it's important that you have those type of people around you. KELLY (25:06) I think one thing that we kind of alluded to earlier, Natalie, I think it was you when you said, you know, that some of the things to come out of COVID, there were a lot of people for whatever reason, their it's like their creativity just blossomed. And you're seeing a lot of women take their their thoughts and their ideas and their and their their wishes that they had to to be independent and and build on that because when we when they were stuck at home, they had, you know, they had the ability, not that they weren't working, but they had the ability to maybe branch out and some of some of them had to. but it you're right. If if you are in a position where you're ready to branch out on your own, if you're if you're single, absolutely you have to have that that big chunk in your savings to live on. if you're if you're married, I mean I know Mindy and her husband, I mean and forgive me if I'm speaking out of turn, but I know Mindy and her husband had had a long conversation about the fact that, hey, guess what? Do you support me? We may hit some some rough patches because Mindy was making darn good money because she was she was phenomenal in her field. And that that's a huge hit. When I, you know, I I walked away from six figures on top of another career and told my brand new husband, thank you for marrying me. Guess what? I quit. You know, he was probably like, What the hell? You know, crap. We just bought a tractor and all this, you know, all this stuff and now you're quitting. so it's you have to have that conversation with yourself, with your family, with your kids. Your kids have to understand, Natalie, you've got little kids. Guess what, honey? We can't go on a big shopping scree shopping spree before school starts this year because I'm not making that money. So you have to be willing to scale back, make those sacrifices. Some people are just not in a position where they can comfortably do that. We had a lady that worked for us at the at the company in Louisiana and she came in and she worked, she goes, I don't care what you pay me, I just need benefits. I mean, we paid her well, but she was there primarily for the benefits because the for her to get insurance any pl any place else was was a ridiculous expense. So people have different reasons for doing for sticking with the W2 other than just, you know, a steady, a steady income. being an entrepreneur entrepreneur is number one hard to say and number two it's not for yeah, Natalie Pilkinton (27:29) Can't smell it. KELLY (27:30) I can't even spell it either. I always get the E's and the U's mixed up, but it it's it's not for the for the faint at heart because it is you either go at it 100% or or or not at all. Because it you can't especially if you start a business where people are where you're responsible for people. It's like it's one thing like you said, if I fail, it that's on me. But what if I fail them? I have mouths to feed. I have lives to take care of in my business. If we don't do something right and we just kinda half ass it, guess what? Our clients suffer, our patients suffer, we suffer, our kids, our family, everything. If we don't do it right and we don't educate ourselves. And when my when I first started the business, I'm in medical. It took me it took me several years before I finally got into that business mindset to where I knew exactly what need what needed to be done. Thankfully I had my dad as my mentor. So, you know, both of these ladies in in in speaking, in leadership, in real estate, in home health, in medicine, we can all be leaders. We're all we can all be mentors. We mentor each other, but you know, reach out to to them, to me, to us, anyone, if you are thinking about making that leap into, you know, self-employment, because it's like I said, it's it's not easy, but it can be very rewarding. Very, very rewarding. So Mindy Price (28:52) Kelly, you make a great point of surrounding yourself with other people who can help you. Because I will say that starting my company in speaking and consulting business inside the WHY and then also having Sugar Spice and Spirits, completely different brands, completely different things, having the support of the two of you has been... absolutely incredible because there are days that it is hard. I remember calling y'all going, I just lost a $45,000 contract that was supposed to be in the bag. And I lost it right before I went on stage and decided to call and take my clients, know, future clients, you know, phone call. And I was just like, my gosh. And then I got a couple more nos and I was like, I just lost $60,000 worth of business so fast that I knew was coming in and y'all are like chin up. you got this, you know you're gonna be fine. There are, it is that roller coaster, there are those ups and downs and then you know a week later I'm calling y'all going guess what, you know everything is fine, Natalie Pilkinton (29:58) Yeah. Mindy Price (29:58) you know this came in and that came in based off of this and but it is not easy. Surrounding yourself with great people that want to build you up. The other thing that I'll Natalie Pilkinton (30:06) To build to what I think. Mindy Price (30:08) say, not just talking to our ladies but talking to anybody that's watching, sometimes the people that you think are gonna cheer you on the most that are in your corner, your great friends that you thought were friends, unfortunately start to show their true colors and they don't support you like you thought they were going to. And that's really a hard thing too. And I don't know if it's because they feel like they can't relate to you anymore or there's a jealousy factor. I don't know, but I have literally seen that in folks that I have coached. I've seen things that have changed over time. It's kind of like, I remember when I switched from being on the owner management side to be on the supplier partner side. all of the people on supplier partner side because I couldn't give them business started to treat me differently. Just a weird, weird thing that happens. And so you want to have a support system because if you go at it on your own, I'm not saying you can't be successful. I'm not saying you can't use AI as a partner, but there needs to be a limit to that. having... people in your corner that you can just talk to is incredibly important. And so if somebody has a topic, if you've got a question, you can reach out to us at sugar, spice and spirits.com. There's a section called spill the tea. You can spill the tea there. You can give us a cocktail recommendation there. You can also tell us about a show topic or just ask us a question. Of course, if you want to sponsor the show, we are fully excited to entertain your offer. If it makes sense. If it makes sense. So. KELLY (31:30) Okay. Mindy Price (31:33) With that, I don't know if there's another piece of advice that you want to give before we wrap up today. Natalie Pilkinton (31:40) No, I just say if you're in a rut, like say you don't want to quit, you're not an entrepreneur spirit, but you're in a rut, get a mentor, get get a coach, get somebody in there that can help you. get into the trade association for your or for your industry or organization, like get out there and put yourself out there. Don't allow yourself to be stagnant. You've got to always be growing. And if the company that you're at is overlooking you or not treating you right. look inward first, make sure you're not the problem. The problem isn't you, you is the problem. Make sure KELLY (32:10) It's even the problem. Natalie Pilkinton (32:11) that it's it's, you know, that you are responding, you are professional, you are dressed appropriately, you are showing up on time, you're doing everything, checking your boxes and doing it with a joyful heart. And then if you're still stagnant, look for a different company. look for a different organization because sometimes you might be just not right at that place. So just always be growing in. Read the book Who Moved My Cheese if you're not sure. KELLY (32:37) don't try not to limit yourself. You know, if if you're not happy where you are, there's a reason. If it's you, if you don't prosper, Because you're the problem and you're just in the wrong field, then find your heart, find your passion, do what you want to do, surround yourself with people with that same heart and that same passion, and then get out there and like Steve Rozenberg said, if you do this, do more. You know, his thing is if you make 10 calls, make a hundred. If you get in front of 20 people, get in front of 500 people. You have to do the work, you have to make it happen. Because you can't just sit back and let it happen for you. You've got you've got to do the work yourself. And it's and it's tough work. But again, in the long run it's totally worth it. In my opinion. So others may have a Mindy Price (33:22) Absolutely. KELLY (33:22) different opinion, but I love it. Yeah. Mindy Price (33:24) I love it too. So with that ladies, I want to say cheers to both of you and cheers to you.