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Work like you’re not a parent.
Parent like you don’t work.
What if that whole system is wrong?
This is Full Stack Moms, and we are Mallory Lee and Shannon Curran, two working moms navigating tech careers, parenting, and everything in between. We talk about why the traditional rules of work don’t fit modern parents and how women in tech are doing things differently. Through honest conversations and behind-the-scenes stories, this show explores careers, caregiving, ambition, and the messy reality of having it all, just not all at once.
Connect with Mallory: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorylee/
Connect with Shannon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-sweeny-curran/
Produced in partnership with Share Your Genius
www.shareyourgenius.com
[00:00:09] Mallory Lee: This is Full Stack Moms.
[00:00:11] Shannon Curran: This is not a parenting podcast nor a business podcast, but a place where we talk building careers in tech, raising kids at home, and making it work in public. . Nikki, it is so nice to have you on the pod this morning. don't know how many episodes you've watched if you watch any, but the way that we have everyone, great.
the way that we have them all start is, you can tell folks a little bit about you. So, like, how many kids do you have? What does your kind of village look like? What does your home look like? And then what do you do for work? 'cause those are kind of the two, the intersection of the two things we talk about here
[00:00:41] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, absolutely. No, I'm so happy to be here. I have two boys. I have a three-and-a-half-year-old and a 10-month-old, so in the weeds of it. And, my village, I ... My husband and I live, my father-in-law lives with me, so I have a little bit of help there, which is really nice. both the boys go to daycare, [00:01:00] and I work completely from home.
Um, my husband's an engineer, so he goes into office, but I have a little bit more of a flexible job because I work for myself. I am a solopreneur and a personal brand strategist, so I teach people how to show up on LinkedIn and build their personal brand to bring in opportunities, whether you are in corporate, out of corporate, or just looking to build a brand online.
That is what I do.
[00:01:24] Mallory Lee: Amazing. Amazing.
[00:01:26] Going Viral With Humor
---
[00:01:29] Mallory Lee: I have followed you for, I would say, probably at least a couple of years now, and always love seeing what you have to say. I was laughing just yesterday because I saw your post about when you find yourself in the Google Doc.
[00:01:44] Nicole Ramirez: one went a little crazier than I thought. I got this idea, on Instagram. Like Instagram, that, that GIF came up and someone was talking about answering people in different, platforms, like not texting your friend back, but answering in different things. And I was like, "Oh, that's funny." And I was like, "You know what [00:02:00] this also looks like?"
When you, like, spook yourself in a Google Doc. And now it has about 10,000 reactions, which is
[00:02:07] Shannon Curran: Oh my God. What is the, what are the impressions on it? It's got to be over 100,000. Like
[00:02:12] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, it's 380,000.
[00:02:15] Mallory Lee: Oh,
[00:02:15] Shannon Curran: Oh my God!
[00:02:16] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah. So I'm like, and I just literally like I threw it up at a 9:30 at night and then went to bed, and I'm like,
[00:02:22] Shannon Curran: Every time
[00:02:24] Nicole Ramirez: every
[00:02:24] Mallory Lee: time. I know. That's so
[00:02:26] Shannon Curran: We've been talking about this lately. It just, they go when they go, you know? There's
[00:02:30] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. Oh, yeah.
[00:02:31] Mallory Lee: No rhyme
[00:02:32] Nicole Ramirez: Pops off sometimes. Uh, humor is one of the best things that I tell people that makes people feel seen, makes, makes it travel. And so if you can make people laugh, it actually is the best way to build trust.
[00:02:44] Mallory Lee: Yeah, that's awesome advice. I think that's why you see people like every once in a while peppering in like that self-deprecating kind of humor, even live in meetings and stuff. I see some really smart people who [00:03:00] do that on purpose. I'm like, "I know that you're, you're doing that on purpose right now, but
[00:03:04] Nicole Ramirez: It's funny 'cause like I hate when I say this 'cause it sounds like a, where I'm like, "I'm so funny, so I'm smart." But it's like humor is actually a, like it's sign of intelligence because you're like kinda connecting with people. But it is, and that's why I tell people like, "Share your things that you, you see in everyday life and you can connect."
Um, but peppering those things in, it kinda lightens the mood, it makes people feel seen, it builds trust, and yeah, it's just one of those things that helps kinda carry your message along because people go, "Oh, okay. They, she gets me. They get me."
[00:03:34] Edutainment and Content That Converts
---
[00:03:34] Mallory Lee: I also think it's a little bit of like edutainment, right? Like you kind of have to deliver the information in a way that's like entertaining to people because there's just so much out there, right? Like I think about this a lot. I think, Mal, you and I have talked about this as people that have been on LinkedIn for like a really long time.
[00:03:50] Shannon Curran: and I guess this episode we'll talk about LinkedIn. I'm always like, "Do we want to talk about it?" Yeah, we have to today. Um, and so, uh, I think it's one of those where you're like, "God, all of my like [00:04:00] non-work posts are the one that are popping off." But then it's like you look and you're like, well, they're the most entertaining.
And the other thing about my work-related posts, so I work for myself as well, is like the ones that get the least amount of engagement, as long as they end up in the right, in front of the right eyes, they always convert to business. So it's kind of like they just have two different uses, right? Like the masses find...
Like I posted something about like talking to my toddler the same way I talk to Claude, and it just like flew. it was like the thing that I say to Claude that I also say to my two-year-old. Like, it just like went crazy. I didn't even really think anything of it other than the fact that I constantly tell people that Claude is just like a two-year-old, but like really fast.
Like it is like, yeah,
[00:04:38] Nicole Ramirez: ' cause I
[00:04:39] Shannon Curran: it like it lies better.
[00:04:40] Nicole Ramirez: all the time. It's so relatable, and that's exactly, you ma- like, made people feel like related to and feel seen. I love that and making people laugh. But you know exactly what you said, I love that it's like the education and entertainment, because I tell people like, when you're putting out a post, does it educate, does it entertain, does it inspire?
Those are the three checks. it can do multiple of [00:05:00] those things at once, like you said, but if it doesn't do any of those things, why are we putting it out? People want something from the post, and entertainment is one of the best ones that you can do
[00:05:08] Shannon Curran: Yeah. It's like your calendar one, Mallory. Mallory went, like, randomly extremely viral a few weeks ago too about her back to school calendar. I know, I'm like... I know.
[00:05:21] Nicole Ramirez: I love it
[00:05:22] Mallory Lee: everybody's got a busy calendar.
[00:05:24] Shannon Curran: Yep
[00:05:25] Mallory Lee: I did laugh because there was one friend that commented on it and she's like, "Oh, this is nothing. Wait until they're in high school and you've got sports." And I was like, "Oh, no."
[00:05:35] Nicole Ramirez: I
[00:05:35] Mallory Lee: Yeah, it's the other side of it where it's probably gonna continue to get worse,
[00:05:39] Nicole Ramirez: my si- my sister's 12 years older than me and she raised three kids and that le- the last one is at the end of their high school stuff and I was just like, "Ooh, my, this is what my future is going to look like."
[00:05:50] Mallory Lee: Oh
[00:05:51] Shannon Curran: I can't with the just you wait people though. I just can't. I'm like, I get it. Like, sure. everything's hard in
[00:05:57] Nicole Ramirez: It's always just you wait. Like, just you wait till [00:06:00] they're a toddler, just you wait till they're this. every stage in parenting is hard. Like, there is not an easy part where you're like, "Ah, this is easy." It's the same as, like, when they talk about pregnancy. They're like, "Oh, well second trimester's easy."
Is it easy, or is it just not as tough as throwing up in the, or being huge? Like, it's still not easy.
[00:06:19] Shannon Curran: people used to ask me, "How are you feeling?" I go, "Still worse than if I wasn't pregnant."
[00:06:23] Nicole Ramirez: Right.
[00:06:23] Shannon Curran: Would say, like, "I still feel
[00:06:25] Nicole Ramirez: Where the bar is still low. And so if I'm like, "I'm doing okay today."
[00:06:31] Shannon Curran: I found the right cocktail of meds and carbs to keep me, like, alive for the
[00:06:35] Nicole Ramirez: Like I got to nap three times today, so I'm doing better than yesterday.
[00:06:40] Shannon Curran: I know.
[00:06:41] Mallory Lee: Exactly.
[00:06:42] Shannon Curran: Oh man,
[00:06:44] Who Nikki Helps and Where to Post
---
[00:06:44] Mallory Lee: Oh, Nikki, I'm curious, when you work with people, is it mostly founders that you're working with lately?
[00:06:51] Nicole Ramirez: I actually, I kind of, my ICP kind of found me. I actually work with, I, I do work with founders, but, it is women, who have, [00:07:00] are either in corporate, so I call my corporate insiders building, their corporate, like their personal brand within the corporate walls just to not leave corporate to actually just like have a personal brand.
Corporate escapees who are quietly trying to leave. And we have to do that within like not sending up red flags and my corporate dropouts. So either they have been laid off and they have been pushed out or they've dropped out, which I have been at every stage of these. So, that is usually who I work with.
But I, I work with a, a ton of different people that come with me, but that is the main, main kind of ICP that finds me
[00:07:34] Mallory Lee: Okay. That's great. And I know it's primarily LinkedIn, but do you ever, point people to other platforms as something that would potentially be necessary?
[00:07:44] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah. I mean, every person is different. So if I see a potential, like people that are really good on video, I'm like, "You should be on TikTok and Instagram," yapping, 'cause LinkedIn just, you know, as much as they claim to love video, do not love video. And, uh, so, oh yeah, 100%. Like it's like [00:08:00] it's...
[00:08:01] Shannon Curran: as a yapper, it hates it. It... Two years ago I was popping off and now it's like forget it or
[00:08:06] Mallory Lee: They loved it for a couple weeks. They loved it for a couple weeks.
[00:08:08] Shannon Curran: I was in the feed. I had a day in the life in the feed, and now it's gone. Gone
[00:08:12] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. And that's why I'll point people other way. So what I always say is personal brand is a destination and a journey. There are many vehicles to get you there. My favorite vehicle of choice happens to be LinkedIn, but we've got other ways to get there. And so the strategy that I teach people and content and things that I do, which is my authentic story framework of like, you know, part of it was like the educate, entertain, inspire pillars, TOFU, MOFU, BOFU, all of that, that is from my 15 years in marketing and in journalism before that can be taken to any platform.
But I, I've got a love for LinkedIn, and a hate. I've got a love-hate for, for LinkedIn
[00:08:49] Mallory Lee: Yes
[00:08:49] Shannon Curran: Well, it's also like you kind of have to become an expert on the ... It's hard to be an expert on every channel too. Like, I think this is also like, for any of us that run our own business, like I, I have [00:09:00] like a very specific ICP I work with as well, and it's like, makes me really good at working with them, right?
Like, I work with, you know, B2B tech companies between 1 and 10 million. Like, if you get more complicated than that, like I'm gonna pass you off. Or if you don't have any revenue yet, not a good idea, right? So I think there is like this ... It makes sense that you spend a majority of your time on one platform and then have like some adjacencies that can be,useful on others.
But yeah, it makes sense. It's hard to keep up these days.
[00:09:28] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, 'cause like, I mean, especially like it's hard to keep up with even just one platform of the algorithm changes and what's working and what's not. and so to do that across multiple channels, but yeah, it's like I- if they need, they're, they're like, "Oh, well I'm gonna start a substack," I can give them, I have like a whole thing.
It's like, "Here's how to set it up. Here's what I suggest, best practices, but that's on you now. Like, here you go." and so that's where it carries over. But yeah, LinkedIn is my bread and butter.
[00:09:53] From Journalism to LinkedIn Coach
---
[00:09:53] Shannon Curran: So for anyone that hasn't followed you for a long time, can you tell a little bit of your story of how you got here? So corporate and then [00:10:00] journalism. Like how did you make your way into like your own job and then why you do this specific work?
[00:10:05] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, that's a great question. So I started as a journalist. I was in newspaper journalism and then magazine journalism, and what I call the dawn of BuzzFeed, um, was right when I was in magazines and everything was going online. So I very quickly realized that I also needed to figure out the online world.
So I started doing email marketing and content marketing online and building WordPress sites and made my way very quickly into marketing and ended up there for about 15 years. So I worked in a vast amount of, uh, industries. I should have realized pretty quickly I was never made for corporate 'cause every 18 months I was like, "This is boring.
Let's change industries altogether." Uh, and so I've worked in everything from healthcare, banking, performance contracting, and house building. Like I... You name it, I've touched it. And, um, so I made my way over there, and as I climbed the corporate ladder, my, uh, for- final job in the corporate life, my past life as I call it, uh, was a [00:11:00] director of marketing for Forbes.
And so I was working on the Forbes lists, accolades, and unfortunately July of 2024, I was laid off from that job. And I kind of made a decision there that I hadn't built anything for my own. I had always tied myself to a title and was like, "Who am I without this title?" So I did what everyone does. I jumped on LinkedIn and started applying to jobs, 'cause I was like, "Okay, panic.
got to apply jobs." And I started seeing people in my feed and was like, "Hmm, like everyone's starting to... This is not the LinkedIn that I know from two years prior when I was trying to look for a job. there's people on here sharing their thoughts and actually having personality and things." So I was like, "I could do this too."
So I started doing it, and I always make the joke that I told my husband, like in the midst of just my complete career crisis, I was like, "I think I want to be a LinkedIn influencer." And he was like, " I
[00:11:53] Shannon Curran: Oh,
[00:11:53] Nicole Ramirez: that's a thing." Yeah, he's like, "This girl's lost her mind." And he was like, " Okay, I support you.
[00:12:00] Terrified." Like, okay. Um, and he was like, "All right, you're still looking for a job, right?" this is like a thing. And I was like, "Yeah, this is gonna give me a job." And, uh, funny enough, as much as like we joke, that is what happened, and I ended up building my presence, and it got me consulting jobs and carried me through.
And then as I was building it, I kind of realized like, okay, I went from 2,000 to 10,000 followers really quick. I just hit 50,000 followers at my two-year mark. And I- it's- it was a tremendous growth, and I kind of just started helping people. People were like, "How are you doing this?" And so I started giving away for free, and then like people were like, "How much do you charge?"
And I was like, "I can charge for this. Interesting." And so
[00:12:41] Shannon Curran: What you got? That's always the answer
[00:12:42] Nicole Ramirez: " Wait a minute. What are we charging here?" And so I'm like Googling. Um, and so I figured out really quickly that's like what I loved more. I was doing consulting on the side and coaching, like consulting jobs and coaching, and I was like, "Oh, I love working with people."
Like, I've been pointing my marketing expertise and storytelling and journalism at [00:13:00] companies for so long, and that was fine. But I realized when I pointed it at people, watching them be able to succeed and get opportunities that I was getting and build and do things, I was like, "Oh, this is like, I feel connected for this."
So I fell in love with it
[00:13:14] Shannon Curran: That's awesome.
[00:13:15] Building a Team and Rapid Growth
---
[00:13:15] Shannon Curran: And do you have a team now or is it still just you? Like you just rocking just you
[00:13:18] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, no, I've got a team. I've got a content strategist, 'cause I was doing a lot of ghost writing. I got a couple clients and things like that, that it was kind of starting to become like more of an agency, which is not really where I wanted to go, but it kind of happened naturally. but I've sunsetted the ghost writing program.
People still there, but I had a content strategist and a v- uh, assistant and a podcast manager who also runs my cohorts and things like that. and so all of that stayed. And now we're just kind of, I'm refocusing. I've sunsetted my ghost writing program, leaned into my coaching, my cohorts, my workshops, and I'm launching a community here next month
[00:13:52] Shannon Curran: So cool. In two years, Nikki. That is crazy.
[00:13:57] Nicole Ramirez: It's been a
[00:13:58] Shannon Curran: And this is... I know. And [00:14:00] this is also in the time where, like, follower growth on LinkedIn has gotten so much harder. Like, it has got... So what do you think are, were the biggest reasons that you were able to grow that quickly?
[00:14:11] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, I think the main reason is I've always thought of content as strategy, like strategic thinking around it. you know, I always like, it's so cliche, but TOFU, MOFU, BOFU, top funnel, middle funnel, bottom funnel content. And so I think pairing my journalism and being a little bit more vulnerable and willing to show up with humor is a big part of that, and being able to like carry those messages through.
But I also paired it with what have I been doing for companies this whole time? If I were thinking of myself as a company and a brand, what would I tell them to be doing? And it's that mix of content and really thinking of content as a strategy, not just as,who am I writing for? What's my, what I call my IAP instead of an ICP, like, uh, your ideal audience persona.
How are we getting into as many rooms as possible? And then it's, okay, are these posts being [00:15:00] strategic and are they good hooks? So I basically took everything I was doing as a marketing consultant and aimed it towards myself.
it's worked super well. You grabbed me and my attention, and here we are, so
[00:15:13] Shannon Curran: I'm like more mad at my algorithm that you didn't end up in mine. I'm like annoyed. I'm like, "How did this happen?" Are we connected today? We're connected today. Oh God, I have too much to talk about AI.
[00:15:23] Nicole Ramirez: That's totally fair. No, I lo- like, I love to talk about a bunch of different things, but yeah, I like ... It's funny 'cause I, like, took my ... I started as, like, talking about marketing expertise, and then now it's, like, completely gone over to, like, LinkedIn and personal branding. But,there's just a middle there that, like, branding is branding.
[00:15:40] Mallory Lee:
[00:15:40] Mom Content and Beach Chicken Fame
---
[00:15:40] Mallory Lee: How has it changed, you know, being a mom now? I know that you were already a mom when you really kinda started hot and heavy on the LinkedIn space. But like, being in journalism before, marketing before, having that level of strategic writing and vulnerability, how has motherhood, impacted [00:16:00] that?
[00:16:00] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, it's been huge. Um, you know, and a lot of, one of my main pillars is talking about motherhood and motherhood humor and toddler humor and, you know, just as my one kid is becoming not a toddler, I've got another one right on the way. So never out of content there. I'm just gonna have to keep having kids to do, doing it.
Uh, no. So, uh,
[00:16:21] Shannon Curran: Just bank a lot of it. Just bank it all. Like, at, like, start scheduling one post a week for three years of, like, something funny your three-year-old says. Yeah.
[00:16:29] Nicole Ramirez: I call them my little LinkedIn nepo babies. I'm like, "You guys don't even know." It's like, it's like wait til you're on LinkedIn. Um, no, but being a mom is, like, really just, it's been incredible to just have that kind of perspective on the world now, and watching them discover the world has, like, really opened my eyes to things.
But, you know, one of the, the turning points in my content creation was my beach chicken post, which is when my son was two and a half, and, um, it [00:17:00] went viral across the internet. So it was motherhood is just marketing. My son, hates fish but loves chicken, so I gave him salmon and said, "Here, buddy, beach chicken."
And he said, "Yay, beach chicken," and he ate the whole thing. And I said, "It's not lying, it's rebranding. Know your customer." And that was a throwaway post on a Saturday morning. Closed my laptop, went and did stuff, and by Monday morning I was on the Today Show, and Newsweek. It's gone viral across the internet multiple times.
I got a brand partnership with, Tyson chicken nuggets, and it's like- yeah, craziness.
[00:17:33] Mallory Lee: That's
[00:17:34] Shannon Curran: And they tell you you have to, like, engage in the first hour. Like, you didn't do any of it,
[00:17:38] Nicole Ramirez: I didn't know.
[00:17:39] Shannon Curran: Don't post on the weekend, don't post on... And you were like,
[00:17:42] Nicole Ramirez: broke all my own rules. and it's funny 'cause it just like, it was crazy. And now every about six months, and that was like the turning point where I realized that like, parenthood content was one of the things that I like, wanted to do. And so, like I've done humor, I've done vulnerable content with my parenting and stuff.
My one thing is like, [00:18:00] I just don't post my kids as content. That is like my, my, my personal rule for myself. but it doesn't mean they can't be content.
[00:18:07] Mallory Lee: Yeah. Oh, that's so funny. I would say once a week I see someone that's ripping off the beach chicken post, and I'm just like, "Guys,
[00:18:19] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, and it's like, I, you know, for me it's, I think that inspiration comes from everywhere on the internet. and so it's, it's funny to see. And so I don't get too worked up about it. It is weird to see things go viral on Instagram all the time with my exact wording over people's, like, posts of their kids.
It's really odd to see. but I've never claimed to, like, own the term. B- I'm sure there are parents out there that have called things beach chicken and trees for broccoli and things like that, and rebranded, like, their things. But it is weird to open up my app and see huge accounts being like word-for-word my post.
And I'm like, "Oh my God, that's so weird." Yet I've never gone viral for that post on other channels myself. And I'm like, I'm looking at these things [00:19:00] and it's like 47,000 people liked this. And I was like, "Ouch."
[00:19:04] Mallory Lee: Yeah. Oh my goodness.
[00:19:06] Nicole Ramirez: But it is what
[00:19:07] Shannon Curran: it als- I know, and especially with a lot of these accounts being like meme accounts, like they're not even people. It's like they're just an aggregator of like information on the internet, and it's so... I feel like there was like a lot of conversation about this probably like 10-ish years ago when like, when BuzzFeed or Betches or any of those that like came up that were like so are any of these their idea, or are they just like ideas they're c- collecting from the internet?
And it is like a very interesting... It's kinda great that you can just like stay in your lane and do your thing and just continue to not l- worry about it. But it is like kind of a bummer sometimes when it feels like something that's like iconic to you, you
[00:19:42] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah. It's, it's funny 'cause it's just like, I have another friend who has a big TikTok and Instagram and Threads presence, and she's not that much on LinkedIn, but her is toddler content. Um, and she has brands like rip off her content all the time. She does a lot of, um, she, her indoor mom content is what her thing is.
She's the indoor mom, and she [00:20:00] talks about like things that ... Like she'll do things and like brands will take it, and that is like crazy to me. and she's like, "Hey, this is my post." Um, so it's, it's an interesting conversation that I'm sure could be a whole different like
[00:20:12] Shannon Curran: Yeah, seriously
[00:20:13] Nicole Ramirez: um, of like what the difference is between inspiration and plagiarism online, and what the difference is between plagiarism and trends and things like that.
[00:20:22] Mallory Lee: Ja,
[00:20:23] Nicole Ramirez: Oh yeah. Yeah, I feel like we c- there could be a whole dissertation of things of what the difference is. But yeah, for the most part I just go like, "Ah, well, that's me."
[00:20:34] Shannon Curran: Totally
[00:20:37] Mallory Lee: Flattery, right?
[00:20:38] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. I'm like, that's just why I was like, well, it was relatable, so it is what it is. And I just, I always tell people, 'cause they're like, "Oh, doesn't it bother you?" And I'm like, "No, just I continue to make content that's worth stealing. That's what I do."
[00:20:49] Shannon Curran: Oh, wait. You need to ... I want you to trademark content worth stealing. That
[00:20:54] Nicole Ramirez: Oh, I love that. Yeah, that's good.
[00:20:59] Shannon Curran: [00:21:00] Is re- okay. Check. Uh, there's no, I don't, I don't need any royalties. I, uh, but I think that's
[00:21:05] Nicole Ramirez: I love that. That's
[00:21:07] Shannon Curran: told me this week, it's, I feel like I'm like the, resident, consultant friend that, like, everyone comes to. That, like, if they're gonna ask me if they should quit their job, I'm probably gonna tell them to.
Like, it- they know what they're getting if they're coming to me. And, uh, and so s- uh, uh, I'm gonna mention Melissa again, 'cause we mention her in every episode. Uh, she was someone that was on this podcast. She said I should, uh ... She's like, "Shannon, you have to trademark consulting curious, because you are the person that everyone comes to if they're consulting curious."
I was like
[00:21:33] Nicole Ramirez: Oh, s- my clients would love you 'cause that's like, like I get a lot of people that are like, "Yeah, so like how did you leave corporate?" And they're like in their corporate roles. I'm like, "Mm-hmm." Yeah, yeah. And that's Consulting Curious is good. That's, I'm like they would love that. And I wrote down the content worth stealing, uh, on
[00:21:51] Shannon Curran: I love it.
[00:21:51] Nicole Ramirez: Yep.
[00:21:52] Shannon Curran: I love it
[00:21:53] Nicole Ramirez: think that's good. I might do a, a post about that and tag you and be like, "Guess what? This is, that's a good one," 'cause that's exactly what it is. Just make [00:22:00] content worth stealing. Try not to get too upset about it
[00:22:03] Mallory Lee: Yeah,
[00:22:03] Shannon Curran: like teaching your toddler that it's okay and nothing, not everything's fair. You know what I mean?
[00:22:07] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. That's what I'm like, The only time I did, uh, like, so that a brand used the, it word for word and was selling things, and I was like, "Yikes. Ick."
[00:22:18] Shannon Curran: Flag as AI
[00:22:20] Mallory Lee: you just them a bill? Did you just send
[00:22:23] Nicole Ramirez: That's, I, I had a bunch of people like send them and then they like offered me free product and everything. They kept it up. They didn't like... Shameless. but yeah, they, it was weird. It was like they literally like did a TikTok video and it was just word for word as a script, the post. And I was like, and I was like kind of, I was like, " This isn't even a good steal because the post doesn't, it doesn't sound natural when you're just like reading it
[00:22:46] Shannon Curran: Saying it, yeah
[00:22:47] Nicole Ramirez: It was weird. It was an odd thing, but it went viral
[00:22:51] Shannon Curran: Not everyone has taste, Nikki. That's the thing you learn, That is, it's few and far between these
[00:22:56] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. And pe- uh, the people don't have shame either. I was [00:23:00] like, yeah, look, that's
[00:23:01] Shannon Curran: back taste, bring back shame. I
[00:23:03] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah,
[00:23:04] Mallory Lee: Bring back shame. I need more shame around, around my house too. Yeah.
[00:23:10] Shannon Curran: Yeah. Go to your house.
[00:23:12] Mallory Lee: We joke with the boys that when they won't smile for a picture and they just, you know, they're like, "Ugh," we're, like, gonna put it on the wall of shame. We're gonna print all of those bad ones and just have, like, a wall of pictures where everybody's
[00:23:26] Nicole Ramirez: For their graduation party, it's just all the pictures they wouldn't smile
[00:23:29] Shannon Curran: so good.
[00:23:30] Nicole Ramirez: That's so
[00:23:31] Shannon Curran: This is what you put me through every
[00:23:33] Nicole Ramirez: good. Yeah, if you're like,
[00:23:34] Mallory Lee: Right.
[00:23:35] Nicole Ramirez: " This is you just not smiling. This is you having a full tantrum. This is you like-
[00:23:41] Mallory Lee: I know,
[00:23:41] Shannon Curran: this is what Mallory, you literally ask right for Mother's Day like your gift is that you get one nice photo a year. Isn't that, is that you? That does... You're like, "All I want is one good picture."
[00:23:50] Mallory Lee: I
[00:23:50] Nicole Ramirez: It would be a really funny thing to have, like, you come into the event and it's like Instagram versus reality. And it's like all the nice photos, and then everything that was actually going [00:24:00] on behind the scenes
[00:24:01] Mallory Lee: Yes, I have a lot of that. I have like 80,000 pictures that need to be sorted through and figured out on my devices. So I'm gonna have to save a few bad ones and delete, a lot of the other bad ones at some point down the road.
[00:24:18] Shannon Curran: The thing we always say we'll do on an airplane and we don't do, which is delete our camera roll. That sh- never
[00:24:24] Nicole Ramirez: funny
[00:24:25] Shannon Curran: Ugh
[00:24:26] Work From Home Systems and 5AM Club
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[00:24:26] Mallory Lee: Um, I'm curious, Nikki, like when it comes to, you know, working from home and childcare, and you mentioned you've got your father-in-law that you live with, what's the sort of system you guys have deployed for kiddos?
[00:24:39] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah. I mean, as much of a system as you can have. Um, like, I'm like, ugh. Uh, especially like on a week like this week where my 10-month-old is home sick, my husband is in the other room a- and we're switching on and off between meetings. you know, for the most part, we've got both the boys in daycare, so my husband, who works in office, takes them in in [00:25:00] the morning so that I can...
'Cause I get up really early to start doing everything, and so we get them out the door. Um, but my father-in-law's a huge help. He, does all the cooking, grocery shopping, and, dishes and everything like that. So I kind of, I call him the house manager.
[00:25:14] Shannon Curran: House manager? Ah, and he has a job. When my husband didn't have a job, he was the house manager. Now we have
[00:25:20] Nicole Ramirez: Yes. Yep. I was like, so my father-in-law kind of does that, and he's got a full-time role.
He's a building inspector here in, uh, our township. But, you know, he gets home and he does all the cooking and stuff so I don't have to worry about that. So as soon as I'm done with the day, I go get the boys and I try my best to... Um, back in my corporate career, I would like, be still on, like, you know, working with them.
But once they're home, I try to shut down now that I'm working for myself, and I don't get back online, after they go to bed. That's my, my new rule. I used to jump back on the computer after I put them down. So I was like, always thinking about that. I was like, "Okay, go to bed so that I can get back to work."
I don't do that now. But that also means that I wake up anywhere from 4:30 to [00:26:00] 5:30 in the morning to get stuff done. But I'd rather work in the morning and then just like, there's a point in the afternoon that my brain is not functioning at full capacity anyways. So like, why am I getting back on at n- 7 to 8 o'clock at night?
[00:26:13] Shannon Curran: that's great. I had a brief stint in the 5:00 AM club and I loved it. It was just amazing. And then we went on a vacation and it kind of like fizzled and I've been trying ever since to like claw my way back. do you have any tips and tricks for being an early riser?
[00:26:32] Nicole Ramirez: Gotta go to bed early. And that's,
[00:26:34] Shannon Curran: to bed early. I know, I hate that.
[00:26:35] Nicole Ramirez: yeah, I'm like, I know that as like you gotta ... ' Cause if I, if I miss that and I, like, we have a night where like we're out traveling and such, it makes it nearly impossible, and then I get thrown off. So I try to go to bed no later than 10:00 so that I'm like...
And so I start winding down pretty early, um, and just in my bed and just kind of like shut down. that's my be- best thing for it. And coffee. If you're a coffee drinker, [00:27:00] that is
[00:27:00] Mallory Lee: I sure am.
[00:27:02] Shannon Curran: Cheers.
[00:27:03] Mallory Lee: Nice. Yes. Cheers, everybody.
[00:27:05] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, I'm like, that is my biggest things there. Um, I also, I always said to people, um, you know, in my corporate career I co- If you would've told me a couple years ago that I was gonna be a morning person, I would've told you you were absolutely insane, 'cause I was a very night owl, like up til 2:00 AM, all this stuff, like worried.
But I was very stressed out in my corporate career, and now I love my job.
[00:27:27] Morning Motivation Shift
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[00:27:27] Nicole Ramirez: And so I said like, "Find something that makes you a morning person," of like find the thing that you're excited to wake up for. And I'm excited to go through my whole day of like, okay, what are my clients working on today, all this stuff.
And so when I wake up, I get excited to actually do my stuff. and when I woke up in my corporate career, I was like, "Oh my God, who is gonna Slack me today? What is going to happen?" "What fires am I going to put out today?" That'll make you not wanna get out of bed real quick.
[00:27:51] Shannon Curran: Yeah. I somehow still have that. I somehow still have that. I like, I don't know how I did this to myself. I know. Um, but [00:28:00] yeah, I
[00:28:00] Mallory Lee: because you're like embedded in everybody's Slack.
[00:28:03] Shannon Curran: Just have, like, five corporate careers. Yeah, that's not right. Um,
[00:28:06] Mallory Lee: Yeah.
[00:28:07] Shannon Curran: Yeah, I really have screwed up a little bit, but it's all right. It's all right. Uh, it's better than, better than being a W-2 for me for now.
[00:28:12] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, and consulting can become mini corporate sometimes. I was there.
[00:28:17] Shannon Curran: I know, I know. It's your own fault. It's my own fault. My, my boss is the worst. She's, she sometimes
[00:28:21] Nicole Ramirez: And so I was like, being an entrepreneur is a bunch of problems that you created for yourself and you're like, you're like, "Oh, I did this to myself."
[00:28:28] Shannon Curran: Oh
[00:28:28] Protecting Mornings vs Nights
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[00:28:28] Shannon Curran: that's really interesting, 'cause I feel like there's usually the decision, when you have a job, like, that's more flexible is, like, you either protect your morning or protect your night. It's like, I feel like most people have the same story of, like, once your kids get home, you take that time off.
So that means, so from like, whatever, 4:00 to 7:00, like you're really focused and, like, there with your family. But that does mean you usually pick up on either end. So it is interesting. I think for me, I protect my morning. Like, I'm with the kids all morning, 'cause I do drop off. So, like, I'm ... My husband leaves, [00:29:00] like, super early, so, like 5:00 AM, so there's no- nothing really happening.
So if anyone wakes up, it's on me. And if I start working before they get up, I can't stop thinking about work when they're awake. So I know myself. I'm like, I protect my morning. But that does mean that usually I'm working a little later or I work when they go to bed, things like that.
so it's interesting. I've ... That is, yeah, just whichever side works for you, um,
[00:29:21] Nicole Ramirez: why I'm like, I think fi- finding your own schedule about this stuff. And it's not necessarily that I think getting back online after the kids go to bed is a problem. It's just where my stuff is that I know myself. Um, but yeah, same thing in the morning 'cause like I have him take care of the kids most of the morning.
Like, I help a little bit, but my brain is already on because I've been working since 5:00 and so my brain is going work, work, work, work, work. which is why he takes care of the mornings. But then I'm able to go, okay, 3:00 I start winding down. By the time I go pick up the kids at 5:00, it's ... I gotta, I gotta shut off.
[00:29:52] Shannon Curran: Yeah,
[00:29:53] Mallory Lee: Interesting.
[00:29:55] Trying to Do It All
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[00:29:55] Mallory Lee: I think my problem is that I'm trying to do all of [00:30:00] that at the same time. I wanna get
[00:30:02] Shannon Curran: you're like both all the time
[00:30:04] Nicole Ramirez: Yes
[00:30:05] Mallory Lee: I want to get up early and work. I want to make it to the gym after the bus comes. So like I do a lot of the lion's share of the morning. So I want to get up and work and then be the morning mom and then go to the gym and then work all day.
And then Brian brings them home from school, which is awesome, and they come home closer to like 5:00, 5:30. So I do have some extra time there. But then I still end up working at night. And so my, problem is I'm not protecting any time, I guess, any of the
[00:30:38] Nicole Ramirez: that's, it's such a common problem, especially with moms. We're trying to do it all
[00:30:42] Mallory Lee: Yeah. For sure. And then I end up catching
[00:30:45] Shannon Curran: you can't really turn off mom. Then you end up ca- then you end up with a sinus infection. That's the, uh, then you have to like force day off. I know there's ... Yeah, it is, I talked
[00:30:54] Nicole Ramirez: The universe will make us slow down whether we like it or
[00:30:56] Shannon Curran: Yes, I took a little time off, yeah. And it like, [00:31:00] it made a big difference of like, oh, I only have to be one thing right now.
It felt like I barely was doing anything. I was like, wow, like this is crazy how different it feels.
[00:31:07] Never Going Back Corporate
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[00:31:07] Shannon Curran: Um, yeah, Nikki, do you see yourself ever going back corporate, like any time in your life? Do you think you would go back in-house?
[00:31:16] Nicole Ramirez: I try never to say never, because of the things, but I just couldn't see it. Um, I love working for myself. I've always had an entrepreneur mindset, and I should have realized that early.
[00:31:26] Teen Entrepreneur Origin Story
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[00:31:26] Nicole Ramirez: when I was 19, I couldn't afford to get an internship in New York. I got offered, um, a magazine internship in New York City, but I didn't come from a lot, so I couldn't afford to get up there.
And so instead, yeah, uh, they, and
[00:31:40] Shannon Curran: Unpaid in New York, unpaid, yeah. Like, who
[00:31:43] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. I'm like, "I can't even afford the gas money to get there, let alone try to put down a deposit to get..."
Like, it was insane. Oh, wow. Yeah. and so I decided to start my own magazine, uh, L7 Women's Magazine. It was love, lust, listen, learn, lead, live, and look.
So all these different
[00:31:58] Mallory Lee: Oh, wow. I love that[00:32:00]
[00:32:00] Nicole Ramirez: That's amazing. Thank you. And so, um, I hired 52 different interns from across the country and, um, yep, and I managed all of them at 19. And I got Penn State to offer them college credit if they joined for, uh, six months. And I ran this magazine, and I was doing that while also working a job and working another magazine internship locally,
[00:32:22] Mallory Lee: Wow
[00:32:23] Nicole Ramirez: this.
And then at about two years, I ended up selling the magazine and the rights to it, and moved on. And I should have realized at that point that I probably wasn't meant for the corporate world. but that was what we were told as millennials, "Go and get a job, and that's what you're supposed to do." And I'm glad that I did it.
I actually very much encourage people to go into the corporate world to understand the inner workings of working with other people and, like, processes and business and everything. And so I'm really grateful that I did that. But, I feel like the true version of myself being a solopreneur
[00:32:55] Shannon Curran: Mm-hmm.
[00:32:57] Mallory Lee: So cool.
[00:32:59] Nicole Ramirez: Never know where [00:33:00] the world is gonna take you. And so, uh, yeah, like it just, uh
[00:33:03] Shannon Curran: I do the same thing. I'm like, "It would take a lot." That's
[00:33:05] Nicole Ramirez: It would take a lot. Like it would
[00:33:07] Shannon Curran: take a lot.
[00:33:08] Nicole Ramirez: Like my husband would
[00:33:09] Shannon Curran: feel pretty
[00:33:10] Nicole Ramirez: going back." Yeah. I was like, like anyone else in my world would be like, "Uh, she's never going back."
But I'm like, "I never say never. I never close any doors."
[00:33:19] Shannon Curran: Yeah, I could see a world where I
[00:33:20] Mallory Lee: good perspective.
[00:33:21] Shannon Curran: Yes,
[00:33:22] Mallory Lee: Wait, Shannon, you're saying you can see yourself going?
[00:33:26] Shannon Curran: I just don't know what my life's gonna look like in like 15 years when I have kids in high school or like, you know what I mean? Like I don't know. You know what I mean? It's kinda hard to tell. Like i- in this phase of life, ugh, I turned down two more jobs this week and it was like I'm feeling so sure about it every time.
They were like, "You gonna come in-house?" And I'm like, "No." And I like s- I have to stand like 10 toes down like, "No, I don't want your sh*tty healthcare." Like I literally am like standing like 10 toes down. Uh,
[00:33:52] Nicole Ramirez: Yep.
[00:33:53] Shannon Curran: But I literally respond ... Yeah, it's hard. It is hard though. Like in 10 years, I don't know. Maybe, maybe there's like some business I believe in [00:34:00] so much that I like want to be a part of it from a different perspective or
It, you know, AI has changed, I don't need to talk about AI today, but it's changed a lot about being a solopreneur. It makes it way easier. Like we can do so much on our own to build your own business now. Like when I first started it took me so much longer to do all my projects for clients than it does now.
And so what is the world gonna look like in 10 years? Like I don't know. Like consultants, do- will they exist? I don't know. I don't know. Like I'm not sure.
[00:34:25] Nicole Ramirez: world's gonna take you or like where things are gonna go. I think for me it's because I'm able to make all the decisions about my time, my projects, who I take on, what I do, the rules of the game of like nope, I turn off on this time and all this stuff. Going back to a world where I had to answer to someone, and that is why I even left marketing consulting, because I don't answer to anyone
Yeah. I'm gonna grow up to be Nikki. It's one of these
[00:34:50] Mallory Lee: I know, right?
[00:34:51] Handling Virality and Trolls
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[00:34:53] Mallory Lee: Oh, here's a question I have for you, Nikki. have you ever needed to coach someone through a personal brand, [00:35:00] crisis, like disaster situation?
[00:35:03] Nicole Ramirez: no. I've had people's posts go viral multiple times, and with virality will always come a little bit of the trolls and some backlash and things like that, no matter what your post says. I've had it as a creator, I've had friends go through it as creators, and I've had clients that have gone viral and had to deal with that.
Full crisis, no. Knock on wood, thankfully. Um, I'm pretty good at, uh, everyone kinda runs their content within the program through me. I'm very hands-on. That's why I only take on a certain amount of people, because of my editorial background, one of the benefits of my program is I have an eye on all of your content in the time that we're here, so nothing goes out with my eye, without my eye on it.
Towards the end of the program, I'm kinda just doing a check and going like this. At the beginning of it I'm like, "Nope, nope. This is this." Like red ink everywhere. but that teaches their brain how to think in editorial sense and LinkedIn content. So the good thing [00:36:00] is, I will never... I've told people, "Mm-mm.
We're not, we're not doing... I know what that's gonna do. Like don't do that." Uh, or, "That's a diary entry," or, "That's this. we keep that between us." Yeah. "We're not doing that." Uh, so I will always- I love it ... I, yep, I tell my clients, "I'm always kind. I'm not always nice." I will be like, "Nope, that's terrible. We're not doing that."
So
[00:36:19] Shannon Curran: And it's always like something really personal to them that you're like, "Too much, Sally, too
[00:36:23] Nicole Ramirez: I'm like, "We're too, telling too much." Yep. Like, I'll tell
[00:36:26] Mallory Lee: Send it to the group chat instead
[00:36:28] Nicole Ramirez: they'll send it me, like this whole thing. Exactly. Send it to the group chat. Let's like, think about this. what I tell people to do is think about the comments preemptively. what are people going to respond to this? What do you think people are gonna say to this?
and sometimes we wanna have a little bit of those, like, pushing the limits a little bit, and we prepare for those comments. "Hey, just FYI, this is..." Especially when it comes to AI content and things like that. Like, people have a lot of strong gut knee-jerk reactions to AI. So when I work with people in the AI space and they're like, "Yeah, but this is how I feel," I'm like, [00:37:00] "Okay.
My check is, are you okay being known for this? If this blows up and you're on the Today Show on Monday, are you okay standing 10 toes down on what you said?" And if the answer is, "Eh," we, we, we pull it back. if you're like, "Yeah, I can stand up on that stage and go, 'I fully agree with this. I don't care what anyone says,'" and you're okay being known for that, whether whatever your goals are, clients, jobs, being on the Today Show as a creator, then fine, let's push it out.
But think about those comments and things like that. So I, I've worked people through, like, how to respond to trolls, and it can be anywhere from, "Nope, block and delete, that is truly just someone being rude on the internet," to, "Let's respond to them and let's see what we can..." Like, and I've, I've actually talked with people and then the, the, that person's deleted their comment and apologized or s- responded and been like, "Okay, I understand where you're coming.
Sorry for being kind of a jerk." And like, you can actually remind people of their humanity a little bit. The good thing about LinkedIn, and the reason that I choose it as my vehicle, [00:38:00] is that, there's not as much anonymous users, uh, on LinkedIn. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Um, this is tied to their name, full name, job, and LinkedIn shows your comments to everyone, and you can go to someone's profile and view comments.
And so nine times out of 10 people are going, I'm not gonna say anything because my boss is watching. My future jobs are watching." So most of the time you're not gonna have trolls. It does still happen. the third-degree connections, I call them Ken. No matter who it is, woman, man, that's Ken. And Ken will appear out of nowhere and be like, uh...
And it's usually retired men who just, like, have nothing else to do.
[00:38:39] Mallory Lee: You're so right.
[00:38:40] Shannon Curran: Project manager Jim. It's
[00:38:42] Nicole Ramirez: Yes. And it's like retired project manager Ken, and he'll be like, "Well, actually..." And you're like, "All right, Ken, listen." And so nice of... But there's
[00:38:51] Shannon Curran: just you wait.
[00:38:52] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. I had a post do five million impressions. That reached corners of the internet that I never wanted to be in. And [00:39:00] so I ended
[00:39:00] Shannon Curran: on LinkedIn?
[00:39:01] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah. Oh my God. I ended up turning the comments off for that. And the funny thing is it was a post about AI, and it was just... And it wasn't even that controversial. I have a friend, Becca Chambers, who she did a po- post that was slightly political, and it was in a time that something had happened, and it got 17 million impressions.
She gained 20,000 followers in two weeks. She had to turn off, not turn off her comments, she had to delete LinkedIn from her phone because it was killing her phone battery, and she had to literally disappear for four days.
[00:39:36] Mallory Lee: Wow.
[00:39:37] Shannon Curran: Wow.
[00:39:38] Deals Over Dopamine Metrics
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[00:39:38] Shannon Curran: And it's, it's also so dependent on what you want followers for. So like I, um, my
[00:39:43] Nicole Ramirez: Like she was like, "I didn't ask for this. This is not what I expected to happen." Like if you asked her, she would've been like, "No."
[00:39:51] Shannon Curran: No, and especially if you're trying, like, if you're trying to get brand deals, you're trying to be a creator, that is one thing. Like, I know that follower count really matters.
But it's funny, my business coaches always say, "Deals over [00:40:00] dopamine." that is this like, it- for people that... I know, it's a really good one. Nick Bennett original. of Duo Consulting. There's a few Nick Bennetts. there's so many of them. So,
[00:40:09] Mallory Lee: are a lot
[00:40:09] Shannon Curran: he always says, he's like, "The posts that do..."
Like, what are you trying to get out of it? And it, they actually find when they're working with people that have big followings, it's really hard for them to do, like, high-ticket consulting work, because people don't, like, see them necessarily as, like, people that are doing, like, higher-ticket consulting.
It might be easier to do coaching or cohorts or workshops, right? So it's just a different business model. Totally different, right? And so he's always like, "Yeah, but why do you care?" Like if, I'm like, "I know, the button, the red, the red, button of like no one liked my thing, no one commented on my thing."
It's like, deals over dopamine, Shan. Like, what are we trying to do here, right? Like, there's... But it's hard. it's like Pavlovian, right? Like, it's hard for your
[00:40:46] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. And that's what I
[00:40:48] Shannon Curran: who wants 20,000 followers that aren't gonna buy anything, you know what I
[00:40:50] Nicole Ramirez: No, that just like followed you for the thing. And it's like, yeah, it, it's, it was, there's a point where you go, "Oh my gosh, this is great. This is great. Okay, okay. We're, nope, [00:41:00] okay. No, I'm good."
[00:41:02] Shannon Curran: We've lost the plot. We've
[00:41:04] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah
[00:41:04] Shannon Curran: the plot
[00:41:06] Nicole Ramirez: And that is exactly what happened with my five million one.
Like, it was like around the like 1.2 to 2 million mark, I was like, "Oh, okay. We can, we can stop now. We can, we can... We're good." And it just, yep. And I was like, "Okay, this is out of control." but no, I tell my clients, "Don't concentrate so much on the..." They're like, "Oh, well..." And was like, there is not a lot of times that I even know what my, the impressions on my posts are, unless it's really big.
Like my GIF where I, I was like, "What the heck just happened?" And then I'm like, "Oh, no." But if you ask me the rest of the week, I would have no idea. It could be anywhere from 1,200 to like all this stuff. Because what I'm looking for is, do I still have a fully inbound business? How are my DMs? What are my saves?
What, what is going on? Followers are the, the product of engagement and all that stuff, but the true thing I'm looking for is, am I being noticed by the right people?
[00:41:56] Shannon Curran: I've Started looking at the saves, and it's pretty [00:42:00] fascinating. It's like, wait, who, why would you save this? What, what do you
[00:42:04] Nicole Ramirez: Out of network and in network is a big thing I look for. Like how much is my content reaching? What are the comments that are going in there? Are people reaching out, DMs? Am I getting lead fills? how many people are viewing my profile and what does that look like? And yeah, the impressions are, it's a good track of like, okay, did the post do well and things like that.
But a lot of the time I set my expectations per post. Did that GIF post probably bring in anyone, uh, like for things? No, but it did gain me 200 followers. So it's like, yes. but did I get any DMs that day? Today I put out an infographic, it probably won't reach 5,000 impressions, like just in general for the infographic, but it's an infographic about my framework.
That'll get me a lead. It always does. It'll, I'll have 5,000 impressions and 200 saves on that, and in two weeks I'll have a, a lead. That is setting the expectations for each piece of content, and that's why I teach it strategically. It's like, [00:43:00] set your expectations. That's a BOFU post. That is pushing my cohort.
It's not gonna get a ton of reach. TOFU posts are those GIFs that everyone relates to, and it's gonna get you the right reach. but it's doing a mix of those. Getting in the room, then selling to the room
[00:43:15] Mallory Lee: Mm-hmm.
[00:43:16] Shannon Curran: Totally. It's like it's marketing, Nikki. It's so crazy.
[00:43:19] Nicole Ramirez: It's marketing. Like, so I'm like, that's why I always see people like, "Just show up and push content."
I'm like, "In, yeah, step one, I guess." There's a bunch
[00:43:30] Shannon Curran: build the muscle. Build the muscle, I guess. But otherwise, yeah. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. Oh my God, it's
[00:43:37] Mallory Lee: Hard to believe, I know. We always run out of time
[00:43:41] Nicole Ramirez: I know. I, well, I don't, I don't stop yapping, so it's like...
[00:43:44] Shannon Curran: me neither. Oh, we're a crew of yappers here, so
[00:43:47] Working Mom Saves and Wrap
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[00:43:47] Mallory Lee: well, to wrap it up, is there anything that saved you this week as a working mom, as a professional, uh, that made your life easier? So we talk about this every week. It could be a person, a [00:44:00] product, a process, something that you have in place to make your life better.
[00:44:05] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah, actually. Okay, so there's a product that my client bought me, and it's called Pocket. So, yes, and it's an AI, um, recorder. And so I take this everywhere. And this has been in the last two weeks, I have done everything from being like, "I need diapers," to all this stuff, and it's feeding into my Monday board.
Um, and I have a client of mine who taught me how to manage my life like a startup, which is like manage your project management and your like, "Hey, Declan has, um, a spirit week this week and he needs to wear red on Wednesday," and I don't have like, I need to do laundry, all this stuff into my board.she's the one that actually bought me this 'cause she was like, "I..."
This, and it attaches to the back of your phone, and
[00:44:52] Mallory Lee: Ooh, wow
[00:44:54] Nicole Ramirez: And so
[00:44:55] Shannon Curran: You need to get a sponsorship on this.
[00:44:57] Nicole Ramirez: I was like, she actually said the same thing, but like [00:45:00] that truly, like I have no affiliate code, nothing. That is truly just me dropping that product 'cause it really was, I was literally in the midst of doing some other things and realized that we were out of wipes and things like that, and that like, you know, same thing with the spirit week, and I would've forgotten both of those things.
And at the end of the day, it gave me like a recap of like, "Here's all the things that you need to do."
[00:45:20] Mallory Lee: Love it. Okay. Pocket, next on the list to check out. I, checked out a new product that we purchased, and it is the tin can phone.
[00:45:33] Nicole Ramirez: What is
[00:45:34] Shannon Curran: Yes, I've heard of this. I've heard of
[00:45:36] Mallory Lee: it's really fun. It's a phone for kids that's like a house phone, and it operates over Wi-Fi, and it does give you a phone number that people can call the boys from. But I can control the contacts and who's allowed to call and who they're allowed to call.
there's like four speed dials. So the speed dials are me and Brian, and then my mom and Brian's mom, [00:46:00] and they have been having a blast calling our moms. They just like call them whenever they want to. And it takes you back to like a simpler time when you literally had a phone on the wall where you could just call people.
And so we've, we've really enjoyed it and, uh, yeah, tin can phone, pretty awesome
[00:46:20] Nicole Ramirez: That's so, that's cool. I love that. Yeah, um, my three-and-a-half-year-old loves to call his grandmas. and he's just like, that's... Like, he's like, and he's, his new thing is like, "Leave, I need privacy." Yep. And I'm like, "Okay, buddy." And so he will shut the door and talk to, to Lala and Mimi, and he's like, he's just like, "I le- I need privacy. Out."
[00:46:42] Shannon Curran: God, I love when they t- yesterday my, um, my son said to my daughter, he goes, "Willa, do not touch the phone. It's fragile. It's fragile," is what he says. I'm like,
[00:46:53] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. I love when they pick up like your own phrases. Like, 'cause he looked at me yesterday, he goes, "Are you serious?" I was like, [00:47:00] "Oh my God, that's me." Uh, 'cause I'm like, anytime like he's doing something, I'm like, "Are you serious right now?" Like, "Are you," like, like, "Are we really doing that?" And I was like, "Oh, he's picking up on everything I'm saying."
But like,
yeah, he looked They sure do
at me and he goes, "Are you serious?" And I was like, "Oh f-
[00:47:14] Shannon Curran: Yeah, Seth the other day, he was, or this was a few weeks ago. He was trying to, like, nail something into the wall, and every time it dropped he would go, "Seriously?
[00:47:23] Nicole Ramirez: They're like little products of us. We're like, "Oh
[00:47:25] Shannon Curran: Oh, it's the best. It's scary. yeah, I guess I'll go a little, I'll go product too, but this is a little more obscure. so chocolate chips are my save this week because we potty trained over the weekend, and they worked flawlessly. It was, yep, and this morning he got
[00:47:41] Mallory Lee: do tell
[00:47:42] Shannon Curran: I said, "So we get one chocolate chip for trying," 'cause that, the first few days you have to just get them in there.
Like, it's like you gotta try. and I don't wanna just say, like, only when you pee do you get something, right? Like it's like you tried, that was the act of trying, great. Two chocolate chips for pee, three for poop. But of course he goes, I was like, "How many did you get [00:48:00] for poop?" He goes, "One!" And I was like, "Great!"
And then we it's like, like backwards negotiation. no, he did so awesome. I try, I'm
[00:48:09] Nicole Ramirez: awesome. Congrats. Potty training is so tough
[00:48:13] Shannon Curran: I was, it was me that was putting it off. I was putting it off, and finally daycare was like, "Shannon, he's ready." they were like, "He goes at least once a day
[00:48:21] Nicole Ramirez: had to be told that too, 'cause I was also doing that. I was like, "I don't wanna do it."
[00:48:26] Shannon Curran: I don't wanna do it. I have two kids in diapers, let's just keep it that way. Like, it just feels easier. but yeah, he, um ... Yeah, without sharing too much about his personal information, he did a fabulous job, and he is, like, rocking it at daycare, and also bless daycare for, like, rocking with us. Just said, "Great.
Send him in, no diaper. We'll deal with it." and it's been really awesome. But yeah, the chocolate chips. This morning he woke up, I said, "'Cause now the first thing you have to do is go to the bathroom," which is, like, added to the morning routine in so many ways, right? Like, it was so much more stress. And he's like, "So I can get my chocolate chip?"
And I was like, "Absolutely." Uh, I was like, "I'm gonna have to do m- more [00:49:00] toothbrushing than usual, but yes, uh, happy to do that." So bless the chocolate chips this weekend. But we are, uh ... Looks like we're, we're c- obviously still in it, but, I would say we're past the point of no return, which feels, um, really good.
So yeah, chocolate chips for the win this week.
[00:49:15] Mallory Lee: Congrats. I love when people wait until everybody's ready because that is when it just takes the first time. And a lot of people try when no one's ready because you just get this pressure you think you're supposed to, and it's a huge fail. And then everyone is sad, and it takes, a lot of different rounds of trying.
But my advice to all boy moms is like, "Hey, if you wait until everyone's ready, you will have a much better experience." So I'm very happy for you
[00:49:47] Shannon Curran: I felt, I definitely felt the pressure of, like, a bunch of his peers in our family and stuff, not at school. But were like, "Oh, yeah, he just potty-trained himsel-" And I was like, " I just don't think we're there." Like, I just felt in my gut like we weren't there, and I'm so glad [00:50:00] that I, like, waited til he was really ready.
So, maybe he, it was probably a few weeks ago. Maybe it took me a little longer to get ready than him, but we, uh, we did it.
[00:50:08] Nicole Ramirez: another one to, to do with and then I
[00:50:11] Shannon Curran: Yeah, I was gonna say I'm gonna have to do it again. So
[00:50:13] Nicole Ramirez: And we're gonna have to do it again. So
[00:50:16] Shannon Curran: she's already, uh, potty curious, so we'll see how
[00:50:19] Nicole Ramirez: I was gonna say, girls seem to be easier from what I hear to potty train, and I was like, "Great, I got two boys."
[00:50:26] Shannon Curran: Yeah, sorry. well I'll let you know. Can report back. But uh, Nikki, it was so good to have you. I know we're over time, so I want to make sure we let you go. But it was so nice to meet. Everyone follow Nikki on LinkedIn. You probably already do,
[00:50:37] Nicole Ramirez: Yeah.
[00:50:37] Shannon Curran: Um, but everyone follow her.
[00:50:39] Nicole Ramirez: Thank you so much. This has been wonderful. Appreciate it
Thanks for listening to Full Stack Moms,
[00:50:44] Speaker: We'll be back with more episodes that help you see you're not crazy and you're not alone. If we might be your people, please make sure to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
[00:50:54] Shannon Curran: Sorry, the cleaners were here yesterday, so everything was in a different spot. Uh, which is, like,
[00:50:59] Nicole Ramirez: f**k life
[00:50:59] Shannon Curran: [00:51:00] great, but I was like, "Where's my microphone adapter?" I, like, was looking around and I... But hey, I'll take it. I'll take
[00:51:05] Nicole Ramirez: Yep. That's why I was like, I always feel like it's like champagne problems. Like, the cleaning people come and then I look at the shelves and I'm like, "That's not where things go."
[00:51:13] Mallory Lee: our kids, especially Cohen, they've started blaming Miss Maria for things. So if they can't find something, they're like, "Ugh, well, I don't know where Maria put it." And I'm like, "First of all, you sound really snooty, and don't do that. Secondly, she doesn't touch your stuff. Like, don't blame her.
She didn't do it."
[00:51:37] Nicole Ramirez: That's not funny