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Are you a business owner? Or are you on the verge of taking that side hustle to the next level? Or curious about the world of entrepreneurship? Join Vivian Kvam, Co-Owner of Tandem Works, each week for a behind-the-scenes at small businesses and what it takes to succeed.
Each episode is full of inspiration, education, tips, and great conversation with people like you, people who are figuring it out. Take your business to the next level with insight from expert guests in business, leadership, and marketing.
Vivian Kvam (00:01)
Hi Jennifer, welcome to the podcast today. I'm so excited to have you here.
Jennifer Lea (00:03)
Thank you.
Thank you so much, glad to be here.
Vivian Kvam (00:09)
Yeah, I was reflecting back on how I actually first met you. And you probably won't even remember because there were so many people but I was at a craft fair with a girlfriend. Just I was actually looking for a designer with certain earrings. And I went past your booth. I was like, what is this? And I remember stopping and talking to you for a while and you presented your business so well. And I remember thinking I'm really intrigued by this woman.
And then I had chance to cross paths with you again when you pitched at Rev and I was like, okay, this is a sign. I need to have Jennifer come on the podcast because you're fascinating. I'm excited for today.
Jennifer Lea (00:48)
Thank you, thank you. It's been a journey. I think that was a couple years ago when we first met and yeah, Omaha is a big small town. It doesn't matter what side of the bridge you're on.
Vivian Kvam (01:01)
Yeah. So, okay. Let's start with your journey, right? Because I want people to know and understand your business, Entree Envy, because it's both like charming and delightful and incredibly smart. And I love that combination that you bring and you can like read it in everything you do, that there's this lovely charm, but you have so much smarts that you bring to your business. So can you just tell us what is Entree Envy? How did it get started? Just kind of give us a little bit of that
Genesis story.
Jennifer Lea (01:30)
Yeah, thank you. So Entry Envy is a custom exterior home identification solution first and foremost and I really was my own first customer. So when I got divorced in January of 2020, COVID hit a couple of months after and I found myself that year trying to buy a home during the peak of the real estate market and the financial turmoil of a divorce.
and I knew the area of Omaha I wanted to be in, but I also knew that beggars couldn't be choosers, there wasn't much on the market, and I was gonna have to get what I get and not throw a fit. I found a home in the school district I wanted, it was lovely, good bones, but needed a lot of work.
Vivian Kvam (01:59)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (02:20)
And so I take over this house and I started remodeling it room by room. So I managed a law firm for about 18 years. So I was managing this firm all day long and then, um, single mom with two kids. And I would, you know, get them dinner and situated. And then I started working on projects like refinishing wood floors and playing backsplash and.
tearing out tiles, showers, and redoing popcorn ceilings and everything. I literally touched every ceiling, every wall, every outlet, every switch in this house over the course of about nine months. And it was the best therapy that I could have ever bought. I didn't really know that at the time, but I researched it later. And there statistically is a different part of your brain that's working when you're just doing methodical type activities like painting. But it's really good. So I had a lot of time to think.
And during that time period, I became passionate about getting more women into the trades because at that time, there were hundreds of thousands of women out of work because of COVID. And they were in tourism and hospitality and entertainment. There were also hundreds of thousands of people across the United States remodeling their houses and taking on home improvement projects and complaining they couldn't get any help. Why? Why do we have two groups of people, one group willing to pay one group that wants to work?
and we can't bring them together. And I started digging into this and it really, it's a socioeconomics, societal stemming culture issue and so many deep levels and realized that I was really passionate about solving that problem, but it was not a part-time job. It wasn't something that I could do while I was still remodeling my house, still trying to adjust to being a single mom with kids.
and managing this law firm, which was not a small job. And so I kind of shelved that idea, but that's where the seed was planted. So a few months later, I was almost done with my remodel. I was nine months in, and I'm a big believer of your subconscious mind and first impressions, and that when you walk into any space, any meeting, any event, and including your own home, there is a energy.
transfer of energy and a feeling of how does how does this make me feel and I think it's so important and people overlook it in their own homes and if you think about where you come into your house most of the time it's through the garage. Garage is usually a disaster. You walk into a mud room or the laundry room that's more of a disaster. Everything that you have to do and like how does that make you feel right?
Vivian Kvam (04:55)
Yes.
Jennifer Lea (04:59)
As opposed to my favorite rooms to walk into are a hotel room. I walk into a hotel room and like, peace and calm. There's no laundry to do. There's nothing out on the counter. Like it's just this beautiful place, this Renity. So long story short, I've always tried to be very intentional about how you come home. And I was pulling into a driveway that was a bittersweet reminder of what I had left. It was a substantially lower valued home.
Vivian Kvam (05:08)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (05:29)
gorgeous now after my remodel but the inside still looked like a fixer upper and I, or the outside still looked like a fixer upper and I was quite frankly out of time, energy and money and I was trying to figure out how do I easily add curb appeal without spending a lot of any of those resources. So I decided to paint the garage door, paint the front door, update the light fixture at the front of the house and then update the house numbers. They were above the garage door, under the
And so I started Googling modern house number signs and starting right there, that's a very boring search. Just let me save you that. And the only one that I found that I kind of liked had a little planter box on the front of it. And I really didn't want, I like seasonal decor on my porch. I don't like wreaths because we have a storm door on the outside of it and it gets smashed. You can't see it very well. And 99% of the time they scratch your door and I had just repainted mine.
And so I love the idea of this planter box that could go, you know, with my numbers, it would identify my home, it would be right by my front door, it would be underneath my light, it was the perfect size. But what was I going to put in this planter box that was going to grow? Live in Nebraska, right? It was small. I was gonna have to water it, you know, twice a day, even if I could try for three or four months out of the year, then the water was gonna rot the wood. I don't have time for this, right?
Vivian Kvam (06:48)
Hmm.
Jennifer Lea (06:56)
So I make the sign anyway, and I take it to a craft store, and I spent 45 minutes in the craft store aisles trying to figure out what to put in there. I had to buy three foam blocks, because they didn't sell one. I had to buy a whole bag of Spanish moss, because they didn't sell me 3.3 ounces. I had to buy 12 tulips, but I only needed three. So $37 later, and 45 minutes for the time, now I'm driving home, and I get home, and I have to find my wire cutters. For some reason, those always go missing in my house.
I had to find something like poke in what I'd bought so that it didn't blow away. I have Spanish moss torn all over the garage, trying to get it together. It's a mess to work with if you've ever attempted that. And I'm like, I don't have time to do this every month. But I wanted it. I wanted to celebrate all the holidays and seasons. And so I started Googling, faux floral holiday and seasonal decor kits.
Vivian Kvam (07:38)
It is.
Jennifer Lea (07:48)
both Laurel front porch subscription kits, like everything I could think of, artificial flowers, fake flowers, any variation. I wanted this done. I looked at other manufacturers who were making signs that were similar. Were they shipping anything? The answer was no. And I don't, you know, I mean, I think every founder has a story, right? And there's people who ruminate on ideas for a while and finally decide to do it. And then there's people who have an
epiphany.
and the idea comes to them all at once and then you have to decide if you're gonna take action on it or not. And mine wasn't all at once. For 48 hours, I don't think I slept or ate. I just built this whole entire multi-million dollar company in my head. I just, I saw it immediately. I saw that it didn't have to just be house numbers, that it could have been monograms. I know that women love to have a personal way to identify their home.
I knew that people who lived in assisted living facilities decorated their doors and would also love something seasonal on their door. And then the number one factor where you sort of say what the smart part was, is in 1997, I was a sophomore at UNO in a marketing honors class and Dr. John Heifer very specifically told us that day in class, he said, if you're ever going to start a business, make sure it has a reoccurring revenue model.
Now, mind you, 1997, this was not a common term. And he went on to explain the Omaha World Herald, you know, like how, you know, subscriptions have been around for a long time. We just don't think about it in the same way. They were magazines, they were newspapers. And, but that always stuck with me. And I thought, this is a reoccurring revenue model. It's not about the signs. The sign is just the container. It is about the subscription. And then I thought, well, not everybody has the same decor style. I thought,
Vivian Kvam (09:10)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (09:38)
In general, you have two. You have modern or you sort of have more of a traditional look. And my grandmother is 91, my mom is 67, I'm 46. And I sort of thought about those profiles. Like what do we all like and how do you accommodate something for everybody? And so then I built all the models. I mean, mind you, I managed a law firm for 20 years. So.
um, you know, acted as a CFO and in much of my role. And so I've got out Excel and I'm running all the business models on this. How does this make money? And at the end of this 48 hours, when I had all of this together and knew it was something that was very, very potentially real, I still had the problem of, okay, single mom with two kids, no money. This is a hot mess stage of your life. Not done with your remodeling.
um you know managing a law firm uh and you now think you want to start a company like what and i know that one of my favorite quotes is sarah blakely said that um you know ideas are the most fragile in their infancy and most people don't most founders don't tell anybody about what they're working on for at least a year and there's a lot of reasons for that fear somebody might steal the idea fear that somebody's going to tell you it's a bad idea right and
Vivian Kvam (10:39)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (11:02)
I knew that there was one person that is my single source of truth in my life and always has been, and she's also tough as nails, and that's my mom. And she is generally coming from a place of pessimistic, skeptical, very analytical, top three gallop strengths or consistency, discipline and responsibility. She's been in corporate all of her life, and I was 99% sure.
Vivian Kvam (11:20)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (11:31)
when I told her this idea that she was going to say, absolutely not. You don't have time, right? Like no matter how good it was. And what she said to me, she goes, hmm, actually, I think it's a good idea and I'm retiring next month. I'll help you. And I was like, oh crap. Well, now I have to do this, right? Then it got real. And so I did some early customer validation
Vivian Kvam (11:38)
Right.
Huh.
That's right.
Jennifer Lea (12:00)
like within two weeks, I went to the Rockbrook Arts and Crafts, like their festival that they've always had down in Rockbrook and Omaha. And I just, I paid for my booth space, didn't have the company, didn't have, I made my sign the night before at like four o'clock in the morning, didn't have a website, it wasn't selling anything. I just wanted to do some research and I took five samples and.
I think I did. Did I get a card? Maybe a little bit of information. Anyway, I collected, no, I just did surveys. I collected 250 email addresses in six hours from women that said, let me know when you go live. This is a great idea. So it was enough validation for me to invest $10,000 of my money to get the company off the ground. I hired a coach and started building the backend and figuring out how to do this. And that was, um,
Vivian Kvam (12:39)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (12:57)
Really the idea was April of 2021. I started working on the company actively at the beginning of May of 2021. And then we launched in October of 2021.
Vivian Kvam (13:10)
I just love this and like people who've been listening to podcasts for a while probably know what's literally going to come out of my mouth next. But I love how often people stumble into business, right? Where it's like this idea pops into their head, they see the need. And to your point, like some people really ruminated on it for a while, like it can be years and other people are fast.
movers, like they're action takers. They jump in, they validate right away, or they get started. I'm curious, do you feel like because you took action quickly that has been, that you could attribute that to some of your success rather than maybe ruminating on it longer, doing three or four more validation processes, etc.?
Jennifer Lea (14:00)
Yeah, 100%. I'm very much an action oriented person. And if anything, that frustrated me in corporate was that there was so much red tape to get things done and it took so long. It's one of the things I enjoy the most now owning my own company. There's no red tape. Like it's, I want to do it. I make it happen. It's done. But I just had this conversation with somebody yesterday, actually, the question, similar questions sort of came up and I said, you know,
It's like being on the end of the high board. And the longer you stand there, the harder the decision is and the less likely you are to take it. And so it is climb the stairs, get up there and jump. Like there's no, I mean, like not, I mean, do it thoughtfully, right? Like if you're gonna climb the high board, then you've already had to have thought about it, that this is something you're gonna do. But then once you get up there, it does not behoove you to think about it. Like you just have to do it.
Vivian Kvam (15:02)
You just have to jump. I do love how you talked about, and I hope people are picking up on, though you moved quickly, you moved with information, or you at least put together information, then went out and validated that, which is something that we bring up all the time, of great idea, love the direction, but do know your numbers, work it out a little bit, and see if the model holds water, right? That's important.
Jennifer Lea (15:27)
Yeah.
Vivian Kvam (15:29)
So I love that you talked about, you spent 48 hours basically in spreadsheets, you know?
Jennifer Lea (15:33)
Yeah, well, my number one gallop strength is strategic, and two's maximizer and three's arranger. So for me, I've always synthesized that by saying, I start backwards. What's the goal we're trying to get to? How do we get there in the most efficient, highest ROI possible? And then what are all of the resources that it's going to take to accomplish that?
And so those three skills have served me really, really well in creating this company. It also helped that I had 20 years of experience managing a $10 million business. So some entrepreneurs have a fantastic idea. They have absolutely no idea how a business runs. And so not only are they trying to figure out how to run a company, they're also trying to figure out how to take their idea to market. For me,
Vivian Kvam (16:23)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (16:29)
Marketing is my background. That was my major. It's what I've always loved. But then I got sucked into sort of what the golden handcuffs are of corporate and I was doing very well and I was really good at my job. I enjoyed it. This was just an opportunity that it was like, I've kind of been thinking about something in the back of my head for a long time of doing something on my own but not having the calling, not knowing what it was. And so, you know, it was like this was an opportunity that
I could embrace, but I wasn't also trying to figure out into the state. Like, I'm not trying to figure out how to run the company. I know that. But building a company from scratch, from a dirt concept, is completely different. I was used to managing teams of people. I had management layers in place.
So you come up with this idea and the first thing I start doing is, okay, this needs to be done, this needs to be done, this needs to be done. And I'm like looking around my office at two o'clock in the morning all by myself on, well, who's going to do this?
Vivian Kvam (17:30)
You need some mirrors, right? Like, and you are going to take that one and you're going to take that one. That's right.
Jennifer Lea (17:33)
Me, myself and I, right? So radically different. And it's that way for a long time. I mean, until you can hire your first employee and then your second and then your third. And we now have about 14 team members plus four really core, maybe five outsourced agencies that are really part of our team. And
so...
You go through all the stages and the newborn stage is the toughest. I never want to do it again. Oh, oh, so many late sleepless nights and you know, everything breaks and the company just needs so much of your time and your love and attention and all the time. And then you go through that. We're still a toddler. We're two and a half years old, but we're getting better. I've always said, like, you know, I have two children, 12 and 14. And I remember, you know, when they could hold their own bottle, like wow.
That was a game changer. Like, wow, you can sit there. You can put your bass fire back in your mouth. Good, good, we're making progress, right? And so it's like those little tiny gains as the company gets a little bit stronger, a little bit bigger, a little bit more independent that it gets a little bit easier. Doesn't get less stressful, doesn't get less risky, but you start to be able to just sleep a little bit more, breathe a little bit easier.
Vivian Kvam (18:40)
That's right.
Jennifer Lea (19:01)
You know, it's a journey.
Vivian Kvam (19:07)
You mentioned, Jennifer, that early on, and I'm curious if you still engage with a coach. But you said one of the first things you did was hire a coach. What was that coach helping you with, or what does that coach help you
with?
Jennifer Lea (19:19)
I have so many coaches. I'm a super big believer of investing in yourself. And every coach in my life has, it's kind of a season and a reason. They serve a specific purpose. There is not a one size fits all. I think coaches are as specific as physicians and their specialties, right? Like you don't go to the cardiologist when you're having GI problems. Well,
I've been very intentional about who I've hired. I've been very intentional about what the needs are, who I surround myself with, and sometimes it's a group basis, sometimes it's one-on-one. There's value in all of it. So, total, I probably have invested, I'd say probably close to $100,000 in,
coaches, mastermind groups, self-study courses, all of the things to learn how to successfully build and scale a startup. I think the biggest thing is its mindset and who you surround yourself with. And you have to like...
I think the challenge is that this, people say like, it's lonely at the top, it is lonely at the top. Because the higher you go, the fewer people think at the level that you need to be surrounded with. So you have to constantly be thinking bigger. And from the very beginning on this business, this was never a small business to me. This was immediately recognized as a nationally, potentially globally recognized brand.
Question was, how in the heck do you do that? How do you start a company and take it to that level? And so, you know, the first thing I went to, well, the first person I went to was actually the only other founder that I knew. And I knew lots of people who owned companies, but this was different, this felt different. And so I went to the only founder that I knew.
And I don't believe in coincidences at all and how he had come into my life. Joe Petzig, our kids went to the same school together and I'd served on a fundraising committee with him. He also had a business that was a client of our law firm. And so I called Joe and he was like the best person I could have called at the time for a lot of different reasons and said, I've got an idea, can I talk to you about this? And he's like, absolutely.
the day, the time, the place, what I was wearing, what he was wearing the day that we sat down, and I laid this whole thing out on the table. And I'm like, what do you think? And he's like, I think you've got something and this is where you need to start. And gave me a list of resources I have. I found this piece of paper about six months ago actually. And it was like so many names and so many different things. I don't know who any of these people are. I'm like, oh my gosh. But I just started doing the work. And I started going,
down the list and started connecting with all of those people. So sometimes coaches are paid. Sometimes they come in the form of mentorship and people that have done it before you. And it depends on what you need. So when I realized the endeavor that I was willing to take on, I, and again, I knew how to run a company. I didn't know how to start one. I went back to when I got my executive MBA in 2014.
and met a wonderful, I interviewed actually 78 executive coaches all over the world. And one of those coaches that I got connected to through that program was excellent in sales, systems and processes. She was also the mother of five boys. She was Mormon, very strong in her faith. And I just had connected with her so well then and she was one of three.
that I really thought might be the right fit. So I interviewed all three of them and got there, you know, what's your program like? What am I gonna learn? You know, how big is the group? Is it one-on-one? What's the cost, right? And I hired her out of those three and I worked with her for six months with the single goal of help me get this company launched. And we went through, how do you buy a website? I mean, mind you, I had been outside of...
Vivian Kvam (23:55)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (24:00)
the marketing world for so long. Like my professional experience was great, but the marketing side was antiquated because when I started in marketing, it was pre-internet days. And so it was just an interesting process to get myself up to speed. And she helped me find the shortcuts. How do you hire somebody internationally to help you get your website done? That's more affordable.
Vivian Kvam (24:16)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (24:27)
How do you hire a virtual assistant overseas? How do you, like, it was all of those, get these places in place. And then, so I launched in October of 2021. And then the next coach who I actually had also interviewed at that time, but didn't hire, was a coach that I call him my courage coach.
Mindset is the most important part of all of this. And you've got to find somebody that believes in you more than you believe in yourself. And for me, that was Paul Fink. And I still coach with him to this day. And the coaching role has evolved as my needs have grown and the business has grown, but he was the one from the beginning who said, you've got this, and here are the next steps and keep going.
Vivian Kvam (24:53)
So.
Jennifer Lea (25:20)
and really was hugely influential. I've had a coach that I'm absolutely a workaholic. And so Paul's sort of the coach that says like, get out there and work harder. And my other coach is the coach that says, hang on, go watch the grass grow, because you can't burn out. It's a fine line. And I have another group of women that actually are in Omaha. It's not,
It's not as much of like a super intense, high level mastermind, but it's a group of really kind, like-minded women who get together once a month. And I can get a hug from, if I just need a hug, sometimes you just need a hug, you know, like this is hard and they get that. I have an online coaching group that I work with and she, the founder of that group, has a subscription box in Texas. She has 4,000 subscribers.
and she created a company to help other women start and grow their own subscription boxes. So she's very industry specific. I'm a member of the Subscription Trade Association. They have coaches, mentors, a ton of resources through there. I got accepted into the End Motion Accelerator program last year. I think we talked to 180 different mentors and potential investors.
love that the program managers are your coaches through that program. I'm now in pipeline. It perpetuates itself. You got to do the work and you got to show up. There are so many wonderful, wonderful people that want to help you. And again, some of them are going to pay and some of them you're not, but it's just there is no price you can put on investing in yourself. So I'm sure I forgot a couple.
Vivian Kvam (27:12)
No, that's so good. And it is true. And I love how you hit on different people for different seasons. It's okay to lean into somebody maybe for a period of time and then to say, okay, I'm moving to a different stage. Because I think sometimes people will also hold on too long to a mentor or coach. And it doesn't mean that you can never speak again, right? It just means that you need something new.
or you're at a new stage and not everybody's going to be with you the whole way. And I think of that when we talk with entrepreneurs, even with employees, right? There are generally speaking people who are just perfect and right for that beginning stage of a startup. And those same employees and team members or vendors may not be the right people to go into the next stage. And that doesn't make anybody a villain.
Nobody's wrong. Nobody did anything wrong. It's just the right people at the right time and being able to gracefully move between those. But I love how you talk about, I mean, literally hundreds of people in your life because I do think there's a misconception often of, yeah, I have three people, right? Like, no, we're talking about networks of people. You may have certain people who are close in your inner circle.
Jennifer Lea (28:05)
Mm-hmm.
Vivian Kvam (28:34)
but you're really talking about getting out there and meeting and touching lots of different people so that you can learn from so many different perspectives. And I love when we get to bring in, and you mentioned this as well, like not everyone has to be an expert in your industry. Like you want a couple of those, like the woman you mentioned who helps with that specific, but gosh, we learned so much from people who don't do anything close to what we do. And I feel like I pick up some of my deepest learnings from those folks. It's pretty incredible. I love it.
Jennifer Lea (29:01)
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think that there it needs to be a balance of almost equal, because in your own industry, you can get very myopic of this is what everybody else is doing. And one of my coaches who's not in that industry always talks about kind of like referencing investors and investors, you know, get great the ones who are super successful and to get the
Vivian Kvam (29:12)
Hmm.
Jennifer Lea (29:29)
great deals are the ones who didn't wait for everybody else to do it, right? They had the insider information and they took action on it. They didn't wait until everybody else bought in that particular part of town. They didn't wait until everybody else was buying that stock. And I think when you're in the industry, yeah, it's old news. And when you're in your industry specific groups, it's easy to jump on what everybody else is doing. And
Vivian Kvam (29:36)
Mm-hmm. Right.
Right, old news.
Jennifer Lea (29:57)
Sometimes that's okay, sometimes that works, and sometimes you're better off learning from a different industry and going, huh, wonder if I can apply this to our company and make sense of it.
Vivian Kvam (30:10)
Yeah, I love that. And I wanted to ask you too, we've talked about the coaching part, how you put the business together, but even right now today, just thinking about how we can lean into each other, what
types of tools and, yeah, I guess mostly tools. What kind of tools in that are you leaning into right now to keep yourself productive and efficient?
Jennifer Lea (30:25)
Yeah.
Vivian Kvam (30:35)
that you might, I know I have like my top three or four things that I'm always talking about and I switch them out, right? Because I discover a new tool or a new way, but what is it you love to share with people that's working for you right now, whether it's a tool or a process or a mindset for
Jennifer Lea (30:51)
Oh my gosh, there's probably a lot. From the tech standpoint, I have always been a huge fan of Siri reminders. I use those. I use Siri on a regular basis, like to set my alarms for the meetings during the day, to remind me in a year to follow up with somebody. Like, I have the systems in HubSpot or whatever, but she's extremely effective in my life. So that's a go-to. I use Calendly.
like every day, it's so, Calendly is so much more responsible than I am with my schedule because if somebody asks me and I, you know, when can we have coffee or a meeting, I go to my calendar and I, I'll find time, right? But if I actually use the systems I have in place and respect and honor that note, I'm only allowing this many networking opportunities this week and this is when they happen.
Vivian Kvam (31:26)
Hehehe
Jennifer Lea (31:49)
My schedule is so much more well protected. And the only way that I am managing everything I am right now is because I'm sort of honoring those spaces and the time blocks and what I've created. So the Calendly is huge. I also think that I had the pleasure of meeting Alexi Wellman a few months ago. And one of the things that she said, I don't know if you know Alexi, but she's incredible and the CEO of.
kind of a spin-off of Yahoo and she said that you know take yourself off of the to-do list like you that if you you're an entrepreneur you're gonna have a thousand ideas every day which I do and every time those ideas come up you need to think who is gonna do this because it's not gonna be you and that is so true so
Vivian Kvam (32:22)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (32:44)
I have, it doesn't mean that I don't still work 100 hours a week. It just means I'm not in charge of getting that done. I'm in charge of making sure that it gets done and or exploring it or whatever. And that's been a game changer. Um, I am definitely building out our team. I think, you know, mindset around, I mean, I don't even know how to explain the mindset shifts that I've had around money. Um,
It's, I definitely grew up with a scarcity mindset mentality and I still battle it. But I also, when I was in corporate, there were a lot of shareholders, attorneys that I worked for who signed my paycheck. And in the world of law firms, whoever has the biggest book of business has the biggest stick in a lot of cases, depending on the firm, but it's always there. And so when issues would come up,
Vivian Kvam (33:34)
Hmm.
Jennifer Lea (33:40)
Every shareholder had an opinion. Every shareholder had a sign, you know, signature of your paycheck at some level. And it became very challenging early on in my career to figure out how do I sort of rank the importance of people's opinions? How do I help everybody get along? You know, how do I get the best outcome for the business? And what I took the position of, I was 26, first time I started managing a law firm. And...
I wrestled with this right away and I came up with, within the first two weeks I was there, I decided after an issue that had happened and I got pulled in by lawyers of why did I make the decision I did? And the truth at that time was, well, because I had already figured out who had the biggest stick and that's what he wanted. And so therefore that's what I did. And I learned that wasn't the right answer. And what my true North has been is what is in the best interest of the company?
Vivian Kvam (34:33)
Hmm.
Jennifer Lea (34:40)
Period, end of story. And sometimes that is the person who has the biggest stick. Sometimes it is very directly involved with people because it influences the company, right? We don't open our doors without teams. But I knew from that point forward that if I were ever called in to testify again and on the witness stand of why did I make that decision, I needed to be able to back it with what was the business interest. So when I started this company,
It's super personal. It's me, myself, and I, and it's my checking account, right? So day one, you start this company, and it feels, it's really hard to separate yourself. But I sensed that right away, and I thought, how am I going to do this? And I went back to my true north and said, stop thinking about it like you. Stop thinking about it as your checking account and say what's in the best interest of the company.
Vivian Kvam (35:16)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (35:38)
And it's not easy, but that's how I have operated. And so that means hiring people before I can technically afford it, investing in technology before I technically need it, but knowing that we're going to and that's in the best interest. Everything that we have done has been as far as I can possibly be emotionally removed from the decision, what is in the best interest of the company.
Vivian Kvam (36:07)
I think that's really good. And I've definitely shared this before on the podcast. Um, I also for sure came from like a scarcity mindset and I battled that as well every day. Even again, today I was having that conversation with my business partner, Michaela of, I know in one part of my brain that this is not important and not where I need to dwell being in that, you know, fear.
and yet my brain will go there. And I was saying this right this morning, I was like, it's like I have a hard time getting my brain to switch. And so I have to, I've definitely found that I have to do some like physical things sometimes to sort of jar my brain back to where I want it to be. I have to journal things a lot. I have to admit it. I think that's been huge for me to be able to say out loud to Michaela, I'm living in fear right now in this moment.
and I don't want to be. It's like literally what I said today. And it just helped to say it out loud and then go, okay, Vivian, what would I tell myself if I wasn't me, right? And then to hear that feedback from her as well. And that's one of the things that I love about having a business partner. It's like a built-in mentor at times, right? But thinking back to your conversation about having mentors and people in your life, like, are you able to be
honest and vulnerable and open with them is so important. I see too often where people will say, oh yeah, I have a mentor, I pay them that. And you ask it to somebody, you're like, well, are you willing to say to them that you're struggling? Oh no, no. I wouldn't want to. Like gosh, you're losing half of the value, if not more. I mean, maybe it's more like 80, 90% of the value really, if you can't be open and vulnerable about that with the right people, right?
Jennifer Lea (38:00)
Mm-hmm.
Vivian Kvam (38:02)
So I appreciate you sharing that because I think a lot of people are in that, they are in that mindset and may be afraid to say it. When I first had my first businesses, I literally chose clothing to mask my fear, right? Of if I wear this, I cut my hair to mask my fear of inadequacies, et cetera. And it did not serve me well. I was actually quite miserable doing that. So I love that you talk about that.
And I know you mentioned before, or we jumped on here, that you even like choose words. Is that a piece of how you are navigating through, you know, some of those fears? Are you using those words sometimes? Like I might use a journal.
Jennifer Lea (38:47)
I journal a lot every day. I journal every day. I also do a weekly to every other week, depending on my schedule, called the Life in Progress Report. And it's a documented sort of like, what's gone really well, what could go better, what are the challenges, what are the wins? Sort of recapping that last week or two. I love Word of the Year.
Vivian Kvam (39:12)
Very cool.
Jennifer Lea (39:15)
And so that is like, I do believe like, I have to be intentional about what is that one thing that I'm focusing on. And it has been powerful. So my word right now of this year is love actually. So I went back to, and sometimes I do two words depending on like if I master one and then I'll take on a second one if it so feels. And so.
When I started my words of the year, it was at the beginning of 2020, in 2021 it was fearless. Like be scared and do this anyway. And then trust, like trust myself, trust God, trust the universe, trust the process, trust the team, trust. And then I did surrender, being, you know, lay down your weapons, stop fighting. You've built this company and it's not gonna fall apart if you just back off tiny bit.
In fact, it might do better, right? And these have all been hard words for me. Then I did clarity. Clarity was the hardest word. It took the longest, took the longest. It took it on in June of last year, and I would say that it started to get more clear towards the end of November and continued into December, but I'm at the...
Vivian Kvam (40:22)
interesting.
Jennifer Lea (40:39)
the most clear that I've been since that word came into be. And I'm still not entirely sure I'm there, but where I had love, it was like, I've been in bulldozer mode since I got divorced in January of 2020. It was survival mode, COVID, remodel. I was actually, I did a blog during the remodel, so which was good, but like I have not like,
I have not taken a day, an hour just to like chill and like I should. And then, you know, started this company and you know, working a bazillion hours. And so I just decided that I needed to be more intentional about loving life, loving our customers, loving my team, just loving myself, like just like slow down a tiny bit and enjoy this journey because it's pretty incredible. And when you're on it and you're building the plane,
you're flying at 500 miles an hour it's hard and so I don't think I've grasped it yet but I'm trying I'm at least it's there it's like don't forget love so it's been fun
Vivian Kvam (41:43)
Hehehe
I think that's so fun and I was jotting this down as you were talking because I'm pretty sure, I'll try to fact check this, but I'm pretty sure 2021, my word was also fearless, which I wonder if coming out of 2020, a lot of people were like, okay, I'm not gonna have this fear, I don't know. My next word was thrive. And I kind of skipped a year where I felt like nothing jived. Like I...
Jennifer Lea (42:04)
Okay.
Okay.
Vivian Kvam (42:21)
played with the word for a while and it just never hit. But this year it has been kindness. And I was talking to my husband some about this because he's like, you're a very kind person, Vivian. Like, what do you mean kindness? And I was like, you know, I think it's because I haven't been able to take the time to show that kindness that I want to show. And I wrote down what you've been, the bulldozer. I was like, yes, it has felt like a bulldozer at times. So I'm stealing that. Cause I was like, that's a really great way to say it.
Jennifer Lea (42:47)
Yeah.
Vivian Kvam (42:49)
in my own life, like I've been bulldozing my own life. And I want to just reach out to my neighbors and have time like to invite them over and extend kindness, but then also to extend some kindness to myself, because I'm not always very kind to myself. Maybe I'll be kind to others, but then I don't give myself the same grace, right? Of, hey, it's okay to take a breather. It's okay. You know, I find myself saying these to people.
coaching people through that with clients saying these things and then realizing, Vivian, you're not considering how to be kind. Back to yourself. That's right. The whole do as I do as I say, not as I do or yeah, exactly. They love that. So I just thought that was kind of a fun little parallel there that I could definitely resonate with for sure. So okay.
Jennifer Lea (43:23)
Not practicing what you preach, right?
That is it.
Vivian Kvam (43:43)
As always, I'm like, we could turn these conversations into three hour conversations easily. But as I'm just thinking through here, just the different things we've talked about, one thing I did wanna ask you a little bit about before we start to wrap up is, you know, you talked about building a community and really encouraging women to consider the trades in entrepreneurship. And I'm curious how you have been breathing into that on a...
practical, tangible level. Like what do you mean by that and what are some of the things you've been doing?
Jennifer Lea (44:17)
Yeah, so I think that's one of those manifestations that has a lot behind it that I don't yet know. Like I don't know where it's going, just like with intention that this is like, I know this is my purpose and I don't know yet quite how it manifests. As of right now, I'm a big believer that
Vivian Kvam (44:29)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (44:42)
you don't need to tell women like how to do something. You just need to tell them what needs to be done and when it needs to be done by and walk away and let them figure it out because they will. They will get it done every single time. And so I, we have two locations. One is downtown in Omaha and the other one is out west. And the downtown location is pretty much women that are 19 to 27.
And that is where all of our one-time signs are made, the production of all of our custom signs. And they're creative women, they love to paint, they're detail-oriented. It's a very lax atmosphere, and they basically just, they have the keys, like come to work when you, they have no scheduled hours, come to work when you wanna work, get done when you wanna get done, this is what needs to get done, if you need help, holler, you know, we'll hire somebody else, we'll figure it out.
And that has, I have always been like this as a manager. Like I don't, I personally hate micromanagement and that oversight. And so the beauty is, is I get to be in charge of who I are. And if you need that in your life, don't come and work for me because you're not gonna get it. If you like independence and support, like I'll help you whenever you're asking for it, but I'm
Vivian Kvam (45:52)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (46:08)
not gonna like.
double check everything. Then that's the team that I'm building and we appreciate that. The group out West, very different demographic, 45 to 65, either stay at home moms, semi-retired, they like faux floral, like tape, they like hot glue guns, they like crafts, they like, it's so different.
Vivian Kvam (46:13)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (46:38)
and it's fun. Both offices are fun. They just have different vibes. And most of that work is task-based. So they can do it there, they can take it home, and they get paid six cents per sheet of paper they cut, or 30 cents per bag of moss they stuff. And it's working beautifully, because a lot of women, it's hard to track your time. Like you'd be like, okay, I have five minutes
Vivian Kvam (46:45)
Sure.
Jennifer Lea (47:07)
right after dinner and then, you know, maybe I have more time when I want to watch Sleepless in Seattle at two o'clock in the morning after my kids have gone to bed or whatever. But again, don't tell them when to do it or how to do it. Just tell them what needs to be done and let them do it. And so I would like to believe, and I know that I've got skeptics out there, but I would really like to believe that I can scale this company using that model. I have 25 women right now who are on a waiting list to work
Vivian Kvam (47:29)
Hehehe
Uh huh.
Jennifer Lea (47:35)
for us.
The women that are working for us under these models right now are thriving. We have no turnover. I mean, it is, I can't say I have an incredible team. I have an incredible team of people and until something is broke, I'm not changing it. I'm not, I'm not trying to do something different because it's totally working. So I don't know what I think where this goes is that I think I build.
a very large company out of entry envy, hiring women in those two different demographics that are paid differently depending on what those roles are. Men will only listen to you if you can prove that your way worked. I have 18 years of experience arguing with lawyers. I can hold my own.
Vivian Kvam (48:19)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (48:34)
I know how to have difficult conversations with male dominated industry leadership. And in order for our AI is huge, but the industries that will be impacted the least are still the trades, manual labor. And so in order to get, because we already know we have a huge labor shortage problem, huge.
Vivian Kvam (48:42)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (49:00)
And we've sent successfully for 35 years, everybody who's graduated from high school to college. So we even have more of a detriment in the blue collar trade space. And the only way that we can fulfill our labor needs in manufacturing and trades is to include women because otherwise we're excluding 50% of our potential workforce that's already too small.
And the only way that we are going to be able to successfully incorporate women into those industries is if we change the way that they have been run and operated for a hundred years. And so I think that entry envy becomes one model of how to do that different. And I am in a role someday of
Vivian Kvam (49:28)
Right.
Jennifer Lea (49:52)
speaking, consulting, coaching in the male-dominated leadership industries to help them understand how to not only take the roadblocks down for women but literally put up the welcome signs and say, this can work. And you know, it's things like you can't have women start work at seven o'clock in the morning. Not gonna happen. They're taking kids to school. They're doing that. You know, you've got to address, I call them the three P's.
Vivian Kvam (50:15)
Right.
Jennifer Lea (50:20)
Periods, pregnancy and pumping. We have to talk about this guys, it's a real thing. There's just so many, I mean, there's so many things. There's so many pieces to this. But the reality is, is we are the caregivers and we're dealing with the kids and we're dealing with our aging parents and we're dealing with our grandparents and we're dealing with our siblings and like whatever else, right? We're running the world. And if you want us to also be at work,
Vivian Kvam (50:44)
Uh huh.
Yes.
Jennifer Lea (50:49)
then we got to do this different.
Vivian Kvam (50:56)
Yeah, and I think there's such a shift for that among both men and women, certainly among women, like you're describing. I mean, there's some real tangible differences in how most women's mode of operation is, right, within the construct of their lives. Like you said, often they're the ones who are caregivers to children. They are often the ones who are running kids to school, et cetera. But I do think that, like, this is the fun thing, right? I'm gonna botch this now. I'm just kind of...
it's occurring to me, but just how generations cycle and what each generation, you know, they talk about the boomers and Gen Y and all these, like what they demand, right? And how society goes through these cycles and how we're in a cycle right now where we really get to shape things and collaborate between our generation and younger generations. And that cycle has happened before and it's a really exciting time because it's like when new things are really birthed.
And there's some pain with that too. I mean, just to bring it full circle, you were talking about the beginnings, infancy of a business, right? Well, you're talking about the infancy of some new ways of thinking that can feel painful and not really have its legs yet and gives people sleepless nights, but then at what generation are people gonna look back and be like, gosh, you remember that time that wasn't normal? And now it is. And so I love that you're pioneering different things.
Jennifer Lea (52:18)
Yeah.
Vivian Kvam (52:22)
And
I think that's so true of many entrepreneurs. We start out a business to create a thing or offer a service, but oftentimes I think business owners have so much behind that. That's where you really start to have that community impact and can really change the world in some pretty big ways beyond not to discount having a lovely entry way and solving that problem is amazing.
But oftentimes there's so many other layers, right, to an entrepreneur and what it is that they affect, the change they want to affect in the world.
Jennifer Lea (52:51)
Yeah.
Yeah.
that a lot in the last week actually and I think at the end of the day I've always said as a leader like when I've worked with employees and I have hard conversations with them I always say I just want you to be happy because when you're happy everything else works you are going to get along with your team your co-workers better you're going to perform better you're going to be a better human you're going to make the world a better place like just be happy so do
Vivian Kvam (53:11)
Mm.
Jennifer Lea (53:24)
what it is that
Deliver joy, you know when we talk about what entry envy does and we deliver a monthly or quarterly Faux-floral holiday and seasonal, you know subscription kit to somebody's door. We're delivering an experience We're literally just delivering joy and the j Um, I kind of was coming up with an acronym for our core values and I think that if I broke it down and said Okay, it is joy Um, we joyously deliver five-star customer service
Vivian Kvam (53:40)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (53:56)
We value open and honest communication and you're happy. Like it's that simple, like you're happy. And whether that's you're being a team member or you're being a customer, it's kind of all in that same space. So I think that's really, it's really true, but it's fun, it's fun. I meant to mention earlier that sort of the behind the scenes of these, of my head.
Vivian Kvam (54:05)
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (54:24)
And what's going on the startup side is all on my LinkedIn profile. So I don't share it on Facebook and Instagram, but it's on, um, LinkedIn. If, if you follow just me, um, there and sure you can put the link in your show notes, but, um, that's, I, I write every week, um, and post something about, uh, where my head's at in business. So, um, if you want more of that, that's kind of where it's at. And then.
Vivian Kvam (54:32)
Perfect.
Jennifer Lea (54:52)
In terms of Entry Envy, it's just anywhere people are social. EntryEnvy.com, Entry Envy on Facebook and TikTok and Instagram and Pinterest and all places. So yeah, follow us there.
Vivian Kvam (55:05)
Perfect. I love it. Well, thank you for telling people how they can connect with you, because we always want to have that, and I will link to all of those places in the show notes. As we're wrapping up, I always ask each guest some rapid fire questions. Are you down for that? Okay, cool. Jennifer, what do you think the biggest misconception is about owning a business?
Jennifer Lea (55:16)
Thank you.
Okay, go ahead.
that it's easy and you know it's fun it is fun it's not easy and the hardest
Vivian Kvam (55:33)
Hehehe
Yeah. That's fair, right? Is there a piece of advice that you've been given and you have actually successfully applied to your business?
Jennifer Lea (55:38)
loss i've ever had
Oh, so much, so much. I mean, I think I gave one earlier, you know, today that's just take yourself off the to-do list, you know. But I would say that I, I've read so many books and invest in yourself. I mean, I think that's just an underlying message, you know. Just learn,
learn.
Vivian Kvam (56:12)
Is there a song or a book or a podcast or anything like that that's inspiring you right now?
Jennifer Lea (56:18)
Um, I, there's been getting a lot of those. Um, I have a playlist called, uh, sort of Jen's inspired list. So when I need a little boost of like energy or confidence, I listen to, um, I just read a book a few months ago that changed, uh, the way I thought on a lot of things called 10 X is easier than two X by Dan Sullivan and Benjamin Hardy. Um, two X thinking is working twice as hard to get twice the results. 10
Vivian Kvam (56:30)
Love it.
Jennifer Lea (56:46)
X thinking is.
working a fraction of that, but thinking and working in a way that's getting you 10x results. So that was kind of a game changer book. And then the book that's sitting on my nightstand right now is called Undaunted by Kara Golden, who's the founder of Hint. And it's just a really awesome motivational book of like, this is a long journey. It's not either...
There's a quote that says something about like overnight success that took 15 years to happen, you know, and I always, I always look at that because, you know, whenever I'm comparing myself or my company to others, um, I always find myself surprised when I find out how old that company is or how long that founder's been at it. And then I'm like, Oh, yeah, we're, we're two years old, like hang tight, you know, but.
Vivian Kvam (57:18)
Exactly, yes. Right.
Mm-hmm.
Jennifer Lea (57:41)
Entrepreneurs, I think, by nature are impatient, and it's a success in the strength and weakness.
Vivian Kvam (57:41)
Absolutely.
Absolutely, always trying to cram more in and I have to walk that back so often. But speaking of walking things back, when you do kick back and relax, do you have like a favorite go-to
beverage?
Jennifer Lea (58:03)
I'm a wine girl. I drink red and white and rosé and bubbles. Really admit wine that I don't like. So yeah, wine.
Vivian Kvam (58:13)
I love it. Same here. I'm usually, I'll even show up to like the beer events with a bottle of wine. And I'm like, I'm fine with that. I'm just, that's how I do it.
Jennifer Lea (58:21)
I'm good with a Miller Light. I'm good with a McAulterer Miller Light too. So I will drink beer, but I prefer those for hot sunny days and swimsuits.
Vivian Kvam (58:25)
Hehehe
Sure, absolutely. Jennifer, is there something that people often get wrong about you?
Jennifer Lea (58:37)
Hmm.
The comment that I've heard throughout my life is, are you always this happy? And the answer is yes. Life's short, just smile. Yeah, it takes less energy to be happy than it does to be anything else. So maybe.
Vivian Kvam (58:49)
Mmm.
Jennifer Lea (58:56)
Vivian Kvam (58:59)
Yeah, yeah. Okay, last one for you. And I feel like we've touched on this already, but I think it'd be great just to recap, summarize, because this is like the most important thing, right? What do you think business owners can do that really has impact and makes the world a better place?
Jennifer Lea (59:18)
Show up for their people. Just, you know, your job isn't to get it done. Your job is to help everybody else on your team have what they need to be successful. And yeah, what I said is just be happy. We have a happy employee. They're gonna be engaged. They're, all of the statistics relate around that. We know, right? They're gonna do a better job. They're gonna, there's a hundred percent, like just keep your people happy. And that, it's that simple.
I know it's not easy. And it's one of my favorite quotes is that simple doesn't mean easy, but it's that simple. Just keep them happy.
Vivian Kvam (59:57)
Yeah, I love it. And I love your idea of a simple core values with the joy. We love core values here. We talk about them a lot, but I like that for sure. Keeping things simple. I was just kind of thinking back through our conversation, how would I summarize and recap? And I was thinking about how you mentioned that a lot of this started when your house was under construction, like you were remodeling. And I was thinking about how like...
Basically, the road to success is always under construction, if I can use that as a word picture, because it is always about learning and growing and persisting. And even when things get tough or you open up the wall and realize there's something there that you weren't expecting, I've done a lot of remodel things on campers and houses. And I think it's a good word picture as I'm thinking about it. There's a lot of times I don't know what I'm doing, but even
Even like those seasoned entrepreneurs like you were talking about where you see them 15 years later, like they had to start somewhere as a beginner. And so as I'm just thinking about wrapping up here, like I feel like one of the messages that comes through today is just like that keep pushing and keep learning and, you know, like don't underestimate yourself and it's okay to have fear. Reach out for help. Like it's normal. Like don't let it paralyze you.
And so I just love how you brought all those themes together. And I just really appreciate you sharing and being open and vulnerable. And I really hope that people do reach out to you, follow you on LinkedIn. I know I'm gonna check it out for sure because I don't know if I follow you on LinkedIn yet. So I'm gonna go look and see for sure. And just wish you so much success too. Like I said at the beginning, I have really been intrigued by you and I'm just honored that you came on the podcast to talk with us. So thank you.
Jennifer Lea (01:01:47)
Well, thank you. It's an honor to be here and I truly do love your analogy of success is a lot like construction, you know? I mean, that's really interesting because it's, I think a lot of it is, is you just have to start. You just have, you do just have to start, like, you know? And I think the thing that resonates most with me is it is messy and it's gonna, it's not gonna look great until it's sort of done.
You know, and that done part, they can take a long time and it's sticking with it through the mass wall, you know, working through the remodel, working through the construction. Like it's, it's not, it's not easy. It's not necessarily fun, but then when it's done, it's like so rewarding. It's so satisfying to just be able to like, I did that. Like I figured that out. So I don't know. Entry envy is, I think the hard part is, is like, when is it done?
Vivian Kvam (01:02:16)
That's right.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Jennifer Lea (01:02:44)
You know, when do you look back at the house and go like, yeah, I got that done, you know? I would say like, I've maybe gotten, like if I had to equate my company to a remodel of a house that I'm redoing the whole thing, I think I've gotten like the kitchen done, which is big. Kitchen is big, expensive, and it's hard, and it's detailed, but it's like, I gotta do all the rest of the house now.
Vivian Kvam (01:02:45)
Right.
Yeah.
Right.
huge.
Jennifer Lea (01:03:12)
and the rest of the house won't be as hard, right? It takes time and it takes money, but it's not as challenging. So yeah, that'll be interesting, but you gotta have a place to eat. So that's where we're gonna start. We built the kitchen first.
Vivian Kvam (01:03:13)
Mm.
Right.
Right, that core.
That's right. Actually, we just tore a wall out of our kitchen right now, so I'm like, yes. Boy, this analogy could go for a while. I'm like, yep, okay. I think we hit... Yeah. Thank you.
Jennifer Lea (01:03:36)
Yes, it could. It could. I like it. I like it. Well, thank you so much. It's been lovely.