It's me. I am back on the podcast. I told Jason that I would do my best to try and record one of these today because, truth be told, it was his idea to do these more kind of behind the scenes updates from each of us, and I know he likes to do his when he's like out on a walk, huffing and puffing and, you know, his brain's going and thinking about business stuff, but I told him that I would come downstairs and try to tidy up the art room and record a podcast at the same time and see how that goes because as you all know, we are parents now, we are short on time. And also, if you listen to Jason's last episode, know that we're also just like so excited about business stuff right now, so that's another reason that we're short on time for the podcast. But I was just thinking today of what a shame it is that we haven't recorded more episodes because literally, Leon just turned six months old, and I feel like everything in our lives is different as it should be when you become a parent.
Carol:I mean, it does. It flips your world upside down. It's what everyone says that it is. But I'm like, if there was ever a time to have updated the podcast on what we were thinking and feeling and doing, it would have been these past six months, but that's just not the way that it went. We had to prioritize our time.
Carol:And hopefully, this new format is a way that we can keep you all updated and give you a more real time look at how we're like rebuilding our business from the ground up. Again, if you listen to Jason's episode, you will understand that we are in this phase right now where we're just like more excited than we have been in years and years and years about business stuff, and I think that's because we are builders at heart. Like when we met, Jason had his, you know, wild marketing business, I wear a shirt, and I was teaching myself how to become a designer, and then I started my own business, which evolved into an art business, and he's been doing entrepreneurship for so many years. And so this idea of starting things and building them from the ground up has always been something that we really connected on and always been a huge passion of both of ours. And we're entering this era now with AI where that has never been easier, faster, more full of possibility.
Carol:Like, it just it feels like the world is at our fingertips right now. And listen, I know there's a lot to, I don't even want use the word fear, but I know there's a lot to be skeptical about with AI. I'm not saying it's all positive, but I continue grateful that we sort of kept an open mind and have embraced it as this tidal wave has come towards us because I do believe that it is a tidal wave, and, you know, it's impossible to stop progress. And so our way of dealing with that was just to lean in with curiosity and try to learn these tools and to put our builder hats on and learn things. And that is just something that, business aside, it's not just something that I'm passionate about when it comes to business, it's something that I'm passionate about when it comes to life.
Carol:Like, it fills up my bucket so much. And that kind of relates to this idea of now becoming a sort of working mom. And, you know, since January, we've gone back to work full time and, you know, we're lucky enough that we have our amazing nanny Annette who comes here and watches Leon during our work hours. I feel incredibly lucky that we're still, she's still at the house. So, you know, we can come downstairs and see Leon whenever we want.
Carol:And so I feel like we still get a lot of like face time with her even throughout the workday. And I know that's not the case for everyone, so I do feel very lucky in that regard. But the whole thing is, I knew by the way, if you're a mom who does work, doesn't work, whatever your setup is, I'm one of those people who is like, I'm here for all of it. Nothing has convinced me more that everyone's family dynamic is right for them and they are the biggest authority on their family dynamic than becoming a mom. I'm just like, why would you ever judge anyone else for their choices?
Carol:Like, you have no idea what's going on with someone else's parenting. So anyway, however you choose to set up your work life, whether it's like side projects or you're working full time or you stay at home with your kids for years, like whatever that looks like for you, I want you to know that I fully support those choices. But for me personally, I knew that my work is such a part of my creativity and my creativity is such a part of my, like, soul feeling fulfilled that I I wanted to go back to work. So that's why we had the setup that we did. However, that being said, that's great in theory, but once you actually have a kid and they are your whole world and like you love them more than you ever thought was possible and you want to spend every freaking waking moment just like watching their amazing expressions emerge, it becomes a lot harder to make that choice of spending time away from them for work.
Carol:And so I knew that even though it fills up my bucket, if I was going to spend time away from Leon, it was going to have to be working on things that were truly filling up my bucket so that I felt like when I was spending that time then with her being fully present in mom mode, I wasn't like drained from my work. I was feeling filled up from my work so I could be an even better mom to her. That was my whole goal. And so when we did this huge shift from Wandering Aimfully Unlimited in our coaching program over to deciding to do this AI app, vibe coded apps angle this year, it was a huge leap of faith because we still don't exactly know how it's going to be monetized and how the revenue is going to look. And we basically walked away from a hugely sustainable, calm, repeatable, amazing business.
Carol:But we just knew that we had bumped up against doing it for eight years and realizing that it wasn't a growth edge for us anymore. And so I continue to just be so grateful that we did take that leap of faith because now I feel like when I'm spending those hours away from Leon, I'm working on things that excite me. I'm working on things that challenge me. I'm learning new stuff every single day, and it just makes me feel so alive, which I'm really grateful for. So that's where I am with work stuff, with life stuff.
Carol:I am getting back into content creation. So the way that it has sort of naturally developed is that I'm sort of in charge of like the vibe coding to website mostly and trying to create content for our Instagram and TikTok channels. And Jason is taking the lead on the products themselves. And I think he shared some of that with all of you in the last episode. And then, of course, he runs Teachery along with our amazing operations manager, Sara.
Carol:So that's kind of how the roles break down. There's a huge amount of overlap. Like, I work a lot on the UI of the apps, like SceneRole, and even do UI design work for Teachery and things like that. Jason helps me brainstorm with content and when I can rope him into, you know, filming things with me as well. And then, of course, like he's coming up with all the crazy fun ideas for the Vibe Coding two website, like, you know, the little buzzword blaster game and all the little hidden Easter eggs and just all of the interesting dynamics to keep it fresh and interesting.
Carol:That's his sweet spot. So there is a bunch of overlap, but I'm really enjoying being sort of, like, the main point of content creation. I spent a lot of years taking a step back from content creation, just because a lot of the apps are overwhelming, and I just I didn't wanna be there anymore. But I think taking that time away and coming back, I now view it as more of a creative practice. So sorry, I have been sick since we got back from our trip.
Carol:We traveled to The US to introduce Leon to all of our friends and family for three weeks, and we got a cold right when we got back. Thank goodness, not on the trip, but when we got back. So I'm just not getting over it. So I apologize if my voice, my hoarse voice is painful to listen to. But, yeah, so I'm just enjoying the process of learning more about content creation and ways that I can use AI to not just make my process more efficient, but make it more creative.
Carol:Like, I just found this, like, super cool workaround. I'm gonna make a reel about it, but I haven't seen anyone else talk about this workflow. I just found this fun workaround where you can use NotebookLM to spin up, like, slide decks based on your reel scripts. And so whatever your script is that you're gonna film for your Instagram reel, you upload that into NotebookLM, you turn it into a slide deck, but you you direct it with a custom prompt with your brand colors, and you say, like, in our case for vibe coding too, hey. Make this, you know, the illustrations all like a retro pixel game mechanic with quests and badges and stuff like that.
Carol:And the graphics that it's able to generate are so fun and would take me, like, hours and hours and hours to do by myself, but I basically can screenshot the assets from NotebookLM. Don't use the slide deck because it's kind of not very well designed, but the illustrations are great. So I can screenshot the illustrations, pull them into Canva, and make little, like, Canva animations for our reels that feel custom and feel special. So that's just one example of a little workaround that I found recently that I've been loving using for content creation. So like I said, trying to use these tools not just for efficiency, but also for creativity.
Carol:And I think that's how you stay ahead and you keep that, like, human element in everything that you're doing with AI. That's where I'm at. I think I shared a lot about work stuff, mom stuff. I continue to just enjoy being a mom so much. Like, Leon is now at that six month stage, and really, those months from three to six months, like, were have so far been my absolute favorite.
Carol:Not that I didn't love the newborn snuggles and all of that, but she was just so small that it was like everything was about attending to her, like, core needs, but her personality has started to develop, and it just becomes a lot more fun when she can smile at you and laugh with you and all of those things that a lot of you listening who are parents will know. But parenthood is everything that I, you know, thought it would be and so many things that I could have never known it would be, and I'm enjoying every single stage of it. It's, of course, challenging at times, the most challenging, honestly, but it's, like, both, as people say, the hardest thing and the best thing ever. And I don't know. I was just thinking today, like, in a lot of ways, I feel like I'm the happiest I've been, I mean, maybe ever right now.
Carol:And so I'm really just trying to soak that in. And I know that one day I'll look back at this time and wish that I could transport myself back to this moment, like here and now. So I try to be aware of that, that I'm living these amazing years right here in front of me and not disappear time into my laptop, even though I'm so excited about all of this stuff, just trying to make sure that I'm present with every day, present with Leon, present with our little family and just living in gratitude. That's it for me. If you're enjoying these updates, let me know and I'm gonna really try to keep uploading them As I'm working on stuff.
Carol:This is just my my first one, so we had to rip the band aid off somehow Alright, talk to you soon