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Episode 50 · 8 months ago
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Episode 50 · 8 months ago
Running a Business and Finding Your Inner Warrior with Natlyn Jones
ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Welcome the good people cool things,the PODCAST, featuring conversations with entrepreneurs, writers musiciansand other creatives, I'm your host Joee held and today's guest is Natland Jonesfounder of Shee Warrior and Natland is just an all around rock star. Shestarted getting into boxing way back in the day with her husband, boxer war,Jones, junior and quickly realized the many benefits the boxing can bring topeople. She channeld that focus into she waror a brand, creating sustainableact of Wer for the fighter and all of us, and this episode we're chetding allabout running a business from getting started to social media, to Natland'sworst moment as a business owner and how she bounced back from it and isstronger than ever before. We also wrap things up with a list of home, workoutsand songs to keep you motivated. So you can do what I always tell you to do atthe end of these episodes and get after it. Today. It's lot of great stuffnatlands a delight, and this is the first podcast she's ever done. Icouldn't sell, I think, she's natural, so looking forward to many more podcastappearances as well, honored that I am the first one that she's done and guesswhat y'll good people cool things celebrating it's year, lung anniversary.How exciting is that it's been a year since I started this podcast meeting,so many good people there's lots more to come. Obviously, a lot more coolthings on the horizon as well, and to celebrate I'm doing a crazsy sale overat the good people, cool things shop you don't even have to edter a codeeverything's on sale, just go to good people, cool thingscom shop and youwill score some sweet sweet discounts on all that fun, Merch and, as always,if you'd like to get in touch with the show at GPCT podcast on Facebook,instagram or twitter love Hearim from you love her and what you have to say.For now. Let's happen to the conversation with natlan. Let's saysomeone doesn't know who you are give us your elevator pitch, but also whatelevator are we riding on, while you're...
...giving the pitch okay for someone thatdoesn't not? Who? I am? I'm Natland Jones and the Elevator, Oh, if I had tochoose an elevator, let's just hoase an elevator ATV MGM inVegas Yeah, we'll just jump on one of those elemat lovely, lovely yeah. Ithink the elevator question throwus people for a loop sometimes, but Ithink it's fun to see like when I had one say it's: They weren't sure, but itwas going down. It's like that was dipressor, but I think going up yeah. I think that's amore positive outlook, COMPAN YEAH YEAH! We definitely need that right now, soyeah. What you're doing is certainly helping contribute to that with shewawyor. So can you kind of talk about? First of all, what that is if peopleare unaware and what was the inspiration behind launching it? Okay,so she warrior is my active weare brand and the inspiration behind launchingshe warrior. It came from. Actually it started from me being in the boxing gym.I've always been into fitness. I helped my husband with his boxing career forsome years. He retired he kind of came in and started putting the gloves on meand we started hitting and doing some things and I love it so that kind of sparked it and then, as Iwas working out sparring training like a fighter, I thelght wow, wouldn't itbe great to actually be able to wear brand that represented that women could actually like identifywith that really spoke to the inner fighter, the inner warrior in us. Sohence I kind of started brainstorming. I came up with the name she warrior andthen I embarked on the journey to make it reality. So awesome, do you still remember thefirst time you put on boxing gloves? Can you can you take us back to thatmoment? I remember the first time I put...
...on boxing gloves it was actually beforemy husband retired. I was doing some combine training andthings like that because, like I said, I've always been into fitness and I wasactually someone was holding the mids for me and he was like that's crap likehow your and you need to stop doing that,because you're learning everything wrong, and so I was like okay Woutd, itfeel so good and then he helped me a little bit, but he wasso busy it just wasn't enough time he's like if you're going to learn it. Youneed to learn it the right way. So you know some time went by I'. You know I did tenis other thingsand then a local gym, like one of the franchisesopened up in town- and I was like, oh so excited I joined with the friend andwe went there and it was really. It was nothing about technique. It was allmore about just you know, cardio conditioning which was cool, but I camehome and I showed him some of the stuff we were doing and he was like Uhuh. No,that's Um not going to work and let me take you the gym and we got to dobetter than that, because you can't be my wife and be hitting the bag life tas,so that's kind of how it started. I actually remember that moment and Ilooked a little crazy at first. I thought, but you know he was veryencouraging and after you know, like a few weeks, I kind of started catchingon the things just as fast or quicker than some ofthe fighters in there. So then he became highly impressed with my skillset. That's awesome and I think that'sthat's a good kind of point to like boxing. I think, for a lot of people,its kind of an intimidating activity and that it's like, Oh, you know I needequipment. Do I have the right gloves. Do I need a full, like you know, fullpunching bag and a speedbag and things like that? But it's such a good workoutlike e I've. Probably I can probably count on my on one hand how many timesI've done a boxing work out, but every time I was like that, kicked mybuttright and I feel great afterwards...
...so for someone that maybe is a littleintimidated, a little scared to try boxing. Can you kind of talk to notjust the physical, but also the mental benefits of doing a boxing workout? OhYeah, sure I think personally, like you shouldnever be afraid to try anything and boxing should definitely not be one ofthose things I mean you know, even if you mess up there's really no right orwrong. It's like I try to be in the mindset that you know everybody's onthis journey to improve themselves. Whatever you need to do to makeyourself feel better just to make it through the day, then you do it. So youknow you put on a pair of gloves. You beat the bag, even just you. Don'tnecessarily even have to have a gloves, because you can just go through punch,drills. You Know You can jab. You can throw your right hand you can hook. You can do lateral movement, you can,you know, boxes do jump, rope pushup, you know all that course stuff. Soboxing is really great, even if you don't have all of theequipment like a boxing ring or a speedbag heavy bag, because you stillcan do the movements and the techniques and it engages your entire body. Youknow hand foot eye coordination, your coreeverything's engaged. So I think that's why, when you probably did it's likeit's no other to me, I've done a lot of different workouts and there has never been one thatcomcpletely engaged. Almost every single muscle group like boxing has andthen it's the mental thing, because it's like just to punch or hitsomething. It's like a stress reliever. So I've always wanted to be like a yogiperson. You Know Bazin noma stay all as well. I mean I love that and I do alittle bit of it, but I don't think it's technically probably mypersonality, so it seems like the boxing gym has turned into my Zin. WhenI get in there, it didn't matter what happened a hour ago. It didn't matter.What's going to happen to tomorrow, it's like, I really focus on in thatmoment, like I'm in that moment, and I...
...feel so good and I feel im powered andwhen I'm done, I feel more relaxed. It's like it's like ha now, I'm a saywith the with the fist. It's a gread tag, Lao Yeah Yeah. I feel like boxing the Times I'vedone it. I always learn a new muscle, yeah that I didn't know I have I'm justlike. Why is this sore like that? I didn't even know there's anything likeit's like kind of the Glup, but it's like not really- and it's just so goodyeah yeah for sure, also going on so going from boxing moreso to the business side of things when you made that transition to shewarr. What has surprised you about running a business? Let's see, let me think what hassurprised me about running a business. I actually I've had several businesses in the pastIV ran a personal training studio. I did some things in finance. I actuallyhelped my husband with our boxing promotions company, so I kind of wasversed in what it is to have a business. So nothing probably really shock me. Ithink the most surprising thing or the thingthat I've had to learn to navigate with the most social media andmarketing. So you know how you think: Well, social media, the Internet, kind of levels, the planefill a little bit for smaller brands to be able to have a platform and a voice,but it's still hard to find your audience and to find your niche and that's probably been a little moredifficult than I initially imagined yeah. I think it's I know some peoplewill see a brand that has like you know: Twenty million followers and they'rethey're like well. That's so cool and...
I'm like show me the brand with liketwentyhousand followers, but they're all super passionate and engaged yeahat them. I'll. Take that any day like building that following your right isso difficult. But when you have it it's way more powerful than just like alarge number yeah. It's priceless. I never had a personal presence on socialmedia because I can see how like people are so mean sometimes and negative, andtheir energy can just be bad. It can be used for good or evil. So I alwaysthought you know. I don't want to put myself out there to be bombarded withcriticism and I don't want to try to live up to some some image. You know so I'm like I'm apretty normal person. I think, and I'm Jenuine authensic and I just livemy life. So it was new for me navigating the facebooks and theinstagrams, and then you have you know the tick talks and the snap chats, andI mean the list goes on and on, but I'm learning I'm kind of learning on job yeah and it is definitely an ongoinglearning process partially. Just because they'll always change thealgorithm and they'll change once do like instagram every new week, they'retrying to keep up with tick tock and every other social platform, so theintroduce reals now reals are the thing that if you're not posting those you'regetting bumped oun that and it's just like it's a constant strugg. It'sconstant and it's hard to keep up with, and it's a lot, but you need it and,like Yo said, if you can make it work and you can find tha formula, it'spriceless, but so she ware offers a lot of different different pieces andand you've partnered with a company who'sename, I'm blanking on on the Boxang gloves side of thing rival, yes rival.Yes, I was like no. I was an or- and so, if,...
...like thinking of all the things youoffer, is there like a favorite outfit that you have if you're coordinaingfrom head to to what would be like your your power? Outfit Yeah? I have a couple, but if I want to gobold, I really love our leopard ombra print. It's bold and it's kind of like thisgoal. Yellow thing and our logos kind of embedded inside of the Leper Pren,the Sports Bra and the Legging, it's pretty dop. So that's that's one ofdefinitely one of my favorites and then we have a compression, that's all black.I love all black too, with black with the matching sports braw, it's prettybad ass. So I like that one too, and has that Tummy control thing high waste.You know it's just comfy, but it's still, you know you look good when youhave it on so that is always a tough Combo to pulloff is comfy and looking good. Yes, it's definitel yeah athing. To do. Iagree fantastic! Well, maybe- and thisdoesn't have to be with you- were but youre having been involved with so manybusinesses. I always think this is a fun thing to ask to, even though it'snot fun in the moment, but what's what your worst moment as a business owner il one of my worst moments, probably inmy Shee Wor, your journey as a business owner was bringing on the wrong digitalmarketing fromt. So that was a big learning experience,because I wasn't well versed in the aglorithm and all these things so thecompany it was small, but they threw out a lot of words and a lot of things community building, and it was just alot of time and money wasted to be honest. They didn't have anything everto choke for it, and then you know I stuck with it for probably four or fivemonths, but when I saw it wasn't going...
...anywhere, I probably should have let itgo a little bit sooner, but I'm the person that goes well. I don't want tobe wrong. You know I want to make sure I'm making the right decision. Theyseem so nice, you know, but when I you know, cut the court a little bit in anice way, it completely went they weren't night. They were more niceto me at all because I didn't want to do it anymore, so that probably it wasa learning experience. But U that was probably the worst thing that has happened thusfar, but I learned from it. So it's not really an ill. It's a lesson. So yeah, I think that's and I don't thinkfour to five months is too long for that to because it is it really anykind of campaign or partnershit. I think it does take time. I mean I havea marketing background and there's Times where will be like a weekend toworking with someone and they're like. Why aren't we like front page of theNew York Times right now and I'm like because you literally like justlaunched a month ago like it's, it does take tat yeah along those same linestoo, like that's a good point of their results, weren't really showinganything like. Even if it's like hey, we don't have that New York Times hit,but we've gotten into you know some trade magazines or we've had somepeople posting about us on social, like you can still point to that, and Ithink it's at least in some elements. It's easy to spin, like hey, we haven'tactually done anything but like here's, something that sounds impressive and Ithink learning like the difference between. Is this actually somethingimpressive or are they just doing that to kind of like save their own? But Ithink that's a important thing to learn and you reallydon't learn it until you kind of go through something like thatl you're,absolutely right, yes and that's exactly what happened and then theykind of blame the fillure on...
...myself and the some of the team that Ihad working with me and I'm like wait. That's Deflection, you know not sayingyou know we didn't make some mistakes but you're completely off base and soyeah yeah. It was sad I was like o. Why are they still mee? I don't understandwhat a happened you know, but whatever you know, I'm mov on they kick roks todon kick ROK is such a good, and so I loveit the so you kind of did get a taste ofsocial media with that Hete that meanness there you got a little bet. Igot I got. I got a little bit, yeah yeah, it's true. I got a little bit,but you know I'm. I think I'm smarter and Wiser for it and I'm still tryingto figure some things out and you know going through life you're going to makesome mistakes, but you learn from them, and I've learned a lot. So that's agood thing. That's always good yeah, it's bad! Ifyou're, if you're going down wrong paths, routine, laandbeing like thistime, it'll work but yeah living a doing the same thing. pecting result:Yeah Yeah, think that's the definition of insanity, efacts yeah! I think you could be right. Yeah and one other thing I wanted to such Omwas you're very big and sustainability and wanting to use products that are either recicbl orsustainably sourced. Can you kind of talk about why that is important to youand obviously it's a thing. A lot of companies want to be doing. How are youmaking that happen? I'm big! Well! I was when I started this whole missionto make the active where Bran I my goal was to be subtainable and made in theUSA. So after some research I was able to dothose things and sustainability was important to me because of the you know, th the footprint that we haveon the environment. So when I did some research, I was kind of shocked to findout because you don't think about...
...clothing, how many end up in a landfill and thewaste in the byproducts to actually make the clothing. So I'm like wow.This is insane, so I thought if I could contribute in a more positive way. Thatwould be great, so I was able to find a company that hadthe materials where they use recycle materials like clasticbottles and worless Diyes, and I thought wow. This is great. It's moreof a positive impact. I think you know some of US care about the ennvironmentand will care about the brand and the bat story and will feel good aboutpurchasing products from a company that was youknow, aware of that and trying to be positive and make a positive impact. Soit's a small thing, but I think you know all the small things add up andthe embarrassment it's. I think if we take care of it, it'll take care of usand it's you know for generations to come, so we have to definitely makesome changes on all ends. If we want to keep moving in a positive direction, Ithink, as far as health and just everything so yeah it de tainabilitywas important for me. I know. Sometimes it can be a little bit hard becausethings are more pricey, sometimes you're more limited with yoursilhouettes and things. So I hope you know, even as our company grows, I hopeto be able to stick to the game plan of sustainability as much as possible andstill be able to offer a versatile collection. Sof, absolutely and I think, a lot moreconsumers are learning the value of having that, and you mentioned the theprice differential. I think most people are willing to pay pay that difference. Knowing that heywe're not harming the earth and if you're, you know, one of I hope themajority of people that are looking at...
...like climate change and things that areimpacting the earth negatively and are like wait a minute. Can I do somethingto perhaps slow that down in even just the tiniest, but I think most peopleare willing to do that, and it's good to see companies like yours reallymaking that a big point of of the business as a whole. Thank you yeah. Ithink so too. I think a lot of people are willing to pay for that and I think it's important so hopefully, astime goes on, you know more and more brands get on board. So I think youknow together we can have a like a huge impact eventually. Iknow everything takes time, but you know it's like baby steps. So my partand I'm trying to do it. If we applaud you for it and and- andperhaps this is a a negative seguet, but I obviously two thousand and twenty ayear like none other, these troubled dimes, perhaps you've heard about them,but we obviously doing business in a pandemicis a little different, but I think your business is set upnicely that I mean people can do boxing workouts from home. I have probablyworn athletic where more in the last yearthan I have, because it's it is comfortable, Tus be lounging around it,even if I'm not doing a workout that day, it's nice to have have things that you can wear aroundthe house. So has the pandemic kind of shifted Your Business Strategy or businessoperations, or is it kind of just been business? Is Usual since the pandemic?It's been business as usual as far as our model goes, but it did somewhat shift my boat in a different direction.Well, I guess it is stalled us out for...
...a little while, because ourmanufacturer had to shut down in New York and that lasted for maybe fivemonths and then, when the protesting and some thingshappen, there were some fires and some different things. So then they had toshut down for another three four weeks, so I definitely was thrown behind with making my new collections and beingable to fulfill orders on something. So it threw me a card ball, but we bouncedback and we recovered, but it changed some things but you're right in that,since it's active, where, as meisure more now than ever since we're morehome than we're doing zoom, and it's like the the waste up type of stuffthat that I think people are in it more and being home, I think people focusmore on their well. You have time in a way, it's hard,like your mental, in your physical wellness, so you're able to take theexercise class when you're looking at you know the videos, whether you knowthe fitness influencor or whatever. I think people are able to try morethings at home because they're not able to go into their gym. So I think inthat way it was. It wasn't like completely detrimentalfor us, but it definitely did slow things down. I said these troubledtimes, but I just as much I've heard you knowpivoting and resiliency and the the face of all of this, but I I think Imean those are overused terms, but I think there they still hold true isthat the brands that were resilient in the face of this- andyou know, maybe made some changes either in their mindset oroperationally just to kind of keep up with everything. I think those the onesyou still see, yeah, I'm tdhriving and doing well and so yeah, hopefully wothousand and twenty ones a little...
...easier on all of us, but yeah we've atleast got this underon. Do Yeah Yeah we'll see how it goes. I havemy fingers crossed me too. Wewe all do like hey, you know,let's see, know I'm sto down with two thousand and twenty, but I was one ofthe people that was kind of afraid to say I'm so excited for two thousand andtwenty one. I can't wait because I knew just waking up y three hundred andsixty five dat. It wasn't going to make a difference on what was happening. SoI'm like what, if two thousand an twenty one is even worse, so I was oneof the people. That's like! Oh, my goodness, two thousand and twenty is myyear. Is Year, clarity! Oh, this is I'm Gointo kill it this year, and so I'mlike how about you just be quiet and Sel, see how things play out and that's kindof the the seat I'm taking right now, yeah, I'm just going to stand in thecorner, I'll, observe everything wel we'll take it from that. Yes, Yes forsure, Aa well, you're almost off the hook,but we always like to wrap up with the top three and even though we'rerecording this at night and it's you know, maybe close to bedtime yeah. Butso we can start tomorrow, okay with a nice workout. What are your top threeworkout tips to bring out your inner warror? Okay, top three workout tips tobring out your in a word, I'm going to give you. These are like things you can do athome and they don't require much, but it's like the most bank for your book.So it's like engaging your muscle groups and it gives yeur heart rate up,so one would be berthies, that's one and my next will be planks. Those aregreat because thet engages the court and Ifirmly believe and like scientifically the Corpe. If you don't have a strongcore, everything else will eventually fall apart. So that's why I love aplank and...
...from there I would say. If you don'thave a jump rope, you should get one. If you can jump rope, I mean it's agreat. Like five, ten minutes of jump rope. I mean your war out, so you canlike do that. Little Sh pushups are great too it's so many that I don'teven know if I can do just like there yeah, but you can do and you can do dips.It's all kinds of stuff you could do at home, but probably the most Feryourbotiwould still say is the birth, because it's so many ways and modifications todo a Burgbey and most people hate them. But it's like a love hate relationship. Soif you can like grind it out, it's well worth it yeah yeah. You said Burpie and I died alittle btonside, but I know how effective they are rithey're, soeffective and you can even throw some pances in there. You know like when youget up. You can like throw one to jump back down get up once to I mean you cando all kinds of stuff, yeah yeah. You can even combine the three of Berpiepush up and a plank like you can you can miss those all yeah e can countthem all thi one I at tomorrow well tomorrow, supposed to be restingfor me, but yeah. Why not I'LL DO I'll? Do the five minutes of Burpie plankpushups and then pake myself for it, but it'll be great okay yeah, I thinkyou'll like it, though, and it's like one thing I tell people is like: Don't things are hard but take it slow atfirst, especially if it's new it's like you know, maybe you can do ten twentyminutes of jumpbroke. You know just tryng to do two or three: you know.Maybe you can only. Maybe you can't knock out fifty Berpies, but maybe youcan do ten and it's like slowly build and be kind to yourself because we allhave to start somewhere and life happens so sometimes you're going toMiss Ta Day. Sometimes you know you're going to have a bad day. It's just life,so you don't let that completely sidetrack. You you get back on thehorse and you ride again...
...exactly I like that. Like that analogyon the horse- and you might you might enjoy this, Idid a workout. I mean this was two or three years ago, but I still rememberit of Tha. The end of the workout was a sprinting in place and then she put onthe song thunder by imagine dragons, yes, which is already like anoverplayed song and a song, I'm like I'm sick of this song, but I especiallyhate it now because she, the instructor, said any time they say the word thunder.You do a Burpie and I'm like, I can't even keep up withthat. They say it's so much in the song, but it was a very sadistic workout, butI like dancing urls training right there yeah I was just like the song needs to, let's just turn itup for the rest of the dess. I think yeah music's important so yeah. I don'tknow how I feel about that song, but it's definitely some songs. That canmotivate me to get through something like that and it's other ones that arelike what the hell is going on right. Would you want to do a bonus, a bonustop three of your top through workout songs? Yes, I can do that. Okay,fellets see the bonus top three. I love Riona, workwork workworkworkwork. All Time favorites, I'm going to throwmy husbands in can be touch can be stop. We had it's like that's like. What'sthe best ever Gameday type crap, you know, then I would say my third one likeanything: Missy Llaot or SR like hi intensity type stuff, and I can be, butI like country, I like gangster rap, I like all kinds of stuff, so it justdepends on what kind of mood I'm in, but those type of high energy type ofsongs. I can like Sprin it out. You know whatever I got to do. I can get itdone if my minsilis, not all the way in it, they kind of Helpe push me throughYeah Yeh Sierra's, a Nice underated pick, Ifeel like she doesn't get as much love...
...as some of the others, but like shegetten, but her stuff. My ear yeah like when it comes on, I'm like all rightyeah. I can work to this yeah and I should I mean I should you know I'mGoinno my girl beyonce, like she gives me like. I can't leave her out so yeahyeah, but Sierra like she has some really dope. Music and she's definitelyunderrated, but she should be on everyone's workout playlist for sureabsolutely retweet RETWELV. Well, not let if people want to learnmore about you or she waror. Where can they find you onmine? They can find usonline at I. Am she warriorcom so find us there and we're also on instagramand facebook for Instagram? It's I dot am dot she warrior and for facebookit's the same thing: fantastic, fantastic will natlon. Thankyou so much for homping on the PODCAST. Hopefully this is your first podcast.Hopefully it wasn't too painful. No, it wasn't. You made it so easy and I waslike I had anxiety all day about it. So well, I'm glad I could. I could use theanxiety a little bit and, of course, Wi'll end with a corny joke, as wealways do. I tried to even make it a little fitness finess team, chair. Okay,what do you call a pig that does karate? I don't know, what do you call a pickthat does karate a pork chop good after tthat people? I get it. Okay, that'sbad! Okay! You can say it's Badr, that's okay! It make sense yeah. That is not thatbad Thoug Joly.
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