Recover from Burnout and 10x Your Business... In the Same Year with Emily Griffith

0:01Light that spark fire nation JLD here and welcome to entrepreneurs on fire brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the ideal destination for business professionals with great shows like Creator Space. Today, we'll be breaking down how to recover from burnout and 10x your business in the same year. To drop these value bombs, I brought Emily Griffith into EO Fire Studios. Emily is a graphic designer turned food entrepreneur running Lil Bucks, America's buckwheat brand, making gluten-free superfood snacks called Cluster Bucks from sustainably grown USA buckwheat. Today, Fire Nation, we will talk about burnout.

0:39We'll talk about recovering. We'll talk about regaining your energy and a sense of control and so much more when we get back from thanking our sponsors. Artificial intelligence has made a splash in the headlines and for good reason. The digital landscape is changing quickly and AI is a huge part of that. If you're feeling behind the curve, don't worry. HubSpot has got your back. HubSpot's AI power tools, including their content assistant and chat spot, are a perfect place to start learning the power of AI. Here's how they work. HubSpot's content assistant helps you brainstorm, create, and share content in no time.

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1:53Franbridge's founder and frequent EO Fire guest, John Ostenson, has done more placements than any other in the country and his service is free. Sign up for a consultation with John or get a copy of his book, Non-Food Franchising, at FranbridgeConsulting.com. Emily, say what's up to Fire Nation and share something that you believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. Hey, y 'all. I'm Emily, the founder of Lil Bucks. And thank you so much for having me on. Really stoked to get a chance to do this. I would say one thing that I believe that it's kind of the opposite of one of the things you hear about starting a business is you hear a lot of people say, fail fast.

2:44And I don't think that's it for me. I think my mantra there would be learn fast instead, because why would we set out to fail anything? Obviously, that's not the full intention of fail fast. But I think that it can give a mentality of like, let's throw the wall and see what sticks. And unless you're even I think that terminology came from tech and there's a lot of money being poured in that industry. But, you know, that's running out. And I think most of us starting businesses, either in other industries or small businesses, your own service-based business, we don't have time to do that. So I think instead of failing fast, it's learned fast.

3:29So how do you do that? Surrounding yourself with really smart people to get you there faster. And this is why, Fire Nation, I bring on real founders from real companies. And as I shared in the intro, Emily is a graphic designer turned food entrepreneur who is running Lil Bucks, America's buckwheat brand. So besides that introduction that I gave in the introduction, what do you want in your own words to tell Fire Nation about who you are and what you do? I am a very creative ADHD entrepreneur started a little bucks my food company with a sustainable mission when I was 25 so I think I did a lot of growing up with this company and learning both about myself and obviously what it takes to run a business and yet alone one in the food industry where you're making physical products so it's been such an adventure and I've learned a lot And I think this particular episode and the topics we're talking about today, I've been learning in tandem while growing this business.

4:37So it's been an interesting five years. It has been an interesting five years. And I've actually been with you for a couple of those as an investor and, of course, supporter of Little Buck. So before we dive into some of the tougher topics we're going to be talking about here, why Little Bucks? What is it and what makes you fired up about its future? Little Buck, America's Buckleet brand. And so we're making crunchy snacks and superfood toppings from sprouted buckwheat, which is actually a fruit seed. That's your fun fact for the day. It's super nutrient dense, high in protein and fiber. It's gluten and grain free.

5:13I got the idea for it when I was living in Australia, another beautiful place. And I had a life changing acai bowl where this cafe used sprouted buckwheat as a topper on the smoothie bowl instead of your typical sugary granola. And when I was moving back to the U.S., learning no brand was focused on using this really versatile, crunchy superfood seed. I started making products out of it and selling them at farmer's markets in Chicago in 2018. And fast forward to now in 2023, we're getting ready to do a launch nationally with a certain amazing natural food retailer. We have a few new flavors coming out of our Cluster Buck snack product line.

6:01And we're also a leader in the regenerative farming movement, which is basically like next level sustainable farming. So we're working directly with American farmers to take care of their soil health and make us really nutritious food. I got to be honest too, Fire Nation. And I've shared this before. When I first came across Little Box and I was researching the company and the founder and I got the product in, I was like, man, I love this idea for the reasons that Emily just shared. I mean, it was really cool about having the non-sugary superfood things, about the sustainability, the growing in the USA.

6:41There's a lot of things that I loved about it. And I tried the product and I'm like, you know, this is good. This is good. And I knew that Emily was the type of person that was going to continue to iterate, continue to test, continue to try new things. And I knew she had something special that she was going to grow into. And guess what? This product over the past couple years has gone from something that's good and is very good for you and very good for the environment to, oh my God, I need to hold myself back because you have now developed this product that tastes too good. And I say that because now I want to eat it all the time because it's so yummy.

7:27Your new flavors are amazing. Please do not send them to me because again, I'm just eating them too high of a quantity. And I love this evolution, Fire Nation. That's what I wanted to share is that You know, your first iteration of something may not be great. And that goes back to what Emily was sharing at the beginning of the show. That doesn't mean that you just considered a failure and walk away because you failed fast. Okay, you're done. Go out to the next thing. No, like iterate, improve, get customer feedback, you know, pour your own blood, sweat, and tears into making the product better, better, better, better, better until you're now sitting on a great, fantastic product.

8:04And I mean, there's a lot of exciting times to come because Emily didn't say, I'm just going to try this and fail fast. She said, no, I'm going to learn fast and I'm going to keep getting better every step of the way. Now, the reality is, as you mentioned, you were 25 when you started. We all make mistakes as entrepreneurs, for sure. Experience isn't something that you had a ton of going into this. And so burnout is going to happen to entrepreneurs. and it's important to talk about it because it's something that for a long time people didn't talk about. So let's hear your burnout story. I moved back from Australia to start this company and for love for my now husband.

8:43So I guess that worked out. But yeah, I moved back in 2016 or 2017. I was 25 years old, launched this brand at Farmer's Markets. And yeah, let's go back to not a perfect product. There weren't even flavor labels on the front of the packaging, which I just thought, oh, they could like tell what flavor it is by what color the buckwheat seeds were.

9:06Anyways. And I to start Little Bucks, I started freelancing full time doing graphic design and some digital marketing to bootstrap the business. And I was like, oh, how great. I can be flexible with my freelance, have the flexibility to go. I was making the product in a shared commercial kitchen. So going to the kitchen and then, you know, as Little Bucks takes off, I will, you know, tone down my freelance business. And what ended up happening was two and a half years of two extremely full time jobs, like 100 hour weeks, and also just working so frantically fast, like in the freelance world, a lot of my clients were event and restaurant based clients were think they needed things done really quickly.

9:51So I was just very reactive, it was very difficult to, I didn't have any processes or any boundaries around work for either my freelance or little bucks. And I think what started to happen, I wasn't even, I mean, I was like a chicken with its head cut off. I also had undiagnosed, very obvious looking back ADHD. So just like add that to the mix. It was like a complete tornado mentally, but I think I was moving so quickly. I didn't even notice. And what really made me be like, oh, my goodness, I'd always been really into HIIT workouts and like intense training. Like I was a soccer player and ran track.

10:31And so I really like pushing myself physically. And I was in my favorite workout class. And I remember, you know, just kind of realizing, like, wait a minute, I'm not getting stronger. And I actually feel like I'm getting weaker. Like these are becoming harder. like burnout is like, you know, after such a prolonged period of chronic stress, like emotionally and mentally, there was a lot of fatigue and totally burnt out there. But it was like physically, finally, you know, this healthy 25 year old that was very strong and fit and like, not really feeling like I can get through these workout classes that I would have thought were easy.

11:09So that's where I was like, oh, gosh, we need to take a break. And I mean, I felt like it was like I took three weeks off and was just like, oh, my gosh, like what even happened? Tried to, you know, came up with some better boundaries and work habits. But really, and I ended up taking six months. I tapered out of freelance, transitioned to Little Bucks full time. But then again, I think there was still still had the undiagnosed ADHD, still was like learning fast, didn't have processes or boundaries in place around work. And then another year later, was burnt out. And that's when I hired a burnout coach because I didn't want to walk away from the business.

11:50We were growing and there was so many reasons to keep going and for me to bring this into the universe. But I needed to learn how to better take care of my energy so that I could be my full self to actually do this. And Fire Nation, one thing we talk about a lot on this show is keeping your finger on the pulse of your business, like understanding what's working, what's not working, like, you know, checking with your team, all the things. But guess what? You also have to keep your finger on the pulse of you as a human being, as a person. Are you sleeping well? Are you eating well? Are you exercising well?

12:27I love how you shared that you felt like you were getting weaker in your workouts. So that was you being cued in and clued in to your body and realizing something's not quite right. This is a first sign of something that I need to take seriously before something really falls off, before the wheels really start rolling in the wrong direction. And Fire Nation, we're going to be talking about this and more when we get back from thanking our sponsors. Success Story, hosted by Scott D. Clary, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Success Story features Q &A sessions with successful business leaders, keynote presentations, and conversations on sales, marketing, business startups, and entrepreneurship.

13:10One of Scott's recent episodes was with none other than Jack Canfield, where they discuss adapting to life's twists and turns. Listen to Success Story wherever you get your podcasts. More and more entrepreneurs and investors are discovering the awesome franchise opportunities that exist outside of food. Franchising can simply be the better path, and interest in franchising is at an all-time high. Lucky for you, John Ostenson, founder of Franbridge Consulting and a frequent EO Fire guest, is here to help you explore the premier franchise opportunities today. John and his Franbridge Consulting team are part of the largest brokerage in the U.S.

13:45and have vetted the market thoroughly. Franbridge is hands down the premier source for the best opportunities in the non-food franchise world. They represent every type of non-food franchise, from healthcare to dumpsters, youth sports to business services, specialized senior care to pet grooming to insulation and floor coatings. John has served as an Inc. 500 franchisor, a multi-brand franchisee, and he does more placements than any other in the country. Sign up for a free consultation call with John today or get a free copy of his book, Non-Food Franchising, at FranBridgeConsulting.com. That's FranBridgeConsulting.com.

14:21Emily, we're back. In hindsight, it is, of course, 2020, but let's talk about something you wish you did differently when you first encountered burnout? Honestly, with burnout, I think one of the first things you need to do is accept it. So temporarily accepting that maybe you're not at the top of your game. You don't feel 100%. You're not able to give everything you want to give to maybe your relationships, your work and, you know, yourself, your creative projects, your spirituality, all of that. And being okay with it, like you're exhausted, instead of hanging on and trying to still be the best you can be in all those areas of your life, just accepting that like you're exhausted, and you need to take a step back, where can you take a step back?

15:14And if you You need to take a step back on relationships or, you know, your like spiritual creative projects. Just so you can take care of those baseline needs of like your physiological. Like there's the, I don't know, you can look this up. It's the Maslow hierarchy of needs. I think this really helped put things in perspective for me. But basically it's a pyramid. And at the bottom are your like basic needs, like water, food, sleep, like home. And then as you go up the pyramid, there's, you know, in the middle of the pyramid, love and belonging. So that's, you know, your family, friends, relationships.

15:53And at the top is like being the best you can be. And I think growing up and being someone who's interested in wellness, I was like, I want to be at the top of the pyramid. I'm at the top of my pyramid. And when I was burnt out, I was still trying to do all the things to stay at the top, but then not even like eating during the day because I was so busy and like getting terrible sleep. so just accepting that like now is not the time to be at the top of your pyramid but it's the time to prioritize like meal prep or making sure you're getting healthy food and actually getting enough sleep at night and like just rebuilding so you have the you know base to do anything else um so it was kind of a form of perfectionism that i had to let go of i wish i did that sooner I'm glad you brought up the Maslow hierarchy of needs.

16:40And as you mentioned, you've got the bottom, which is the physiological needs like breathing, food, water, shelter, clothing, sleep. Then you have the safety and security. We're talking like health, employment, property, family, social ability. And then that love and belongings in the middle, like you said, that's friendships, intimacy, sense of connections. And then the second to last top level is self-esteem. That's your confidence, achievement, respect of others that need to be a unique individual. And then of course, the top, like you mentioned, the self-actualization, that's morality, creativity, spontaneity, acceptance, experience, purpose, meaning, and inner potential.

17:17And of course, that's something that is amazing to strive for, but you can't be achieving the top while below you it's crumbling because that is like being in a house of cards or building your kingdom on sand. It's just not going to be sustainable. Now, you did identify your own personal burnout warning signs. And I'm really curious about this burnout coach that you worked with. Because frankly, I've actually honestly never heard of that specifically. I know that there are people that help with burnout, but to be identified as a burnout coach. So talk a little bit about that. How do you decide to go strikeout and find a burnout coach?

17:56How did you find that individual? And what were the main things they really helped you with? You know, I was young when I started going through this. So between a therapist to help explore some of the like, more emotional side of things. And then I also did have this coach that I did end up hiring because I found, I started just like diving into like, okay, I accept that I am burnt out. This was the second round of burnout. Where you know, the first time I tried to like self heal and kind of like half assed it got a little better to survive another year and then really crashed and burned and was like, we need to take this seriously.

18:30And I was just consuming anything I could about burnout. There's a book, I think, Emily Nagoski. It's like burnout, burnout, burnout. That was a really helpful book. She had a lot of interviews on podcasts. And then there's this other podcast called Fried. It's a burnout podcast. And it was just about all these different entrepreneurs and just regular people, their different stories and how they became burnt out. And so learning from others and actually the host of that podcast, I think she's one of the earlier burnout coaches. So for me, I was like, I think I need someone to help hold me accountable.

19:08And maybe because I tried to self heal from burnout and like, you know, self study it and learn. But there's, there's just some like, deeply ingrained beliefs in how I work and like felt like I needed to work and boundaries that I didn't think I needed to have. So having someone who was kind of a no bullshit coach that could call me out and hold me accountable to actually create boundaries and do what needed to happen to stop being burned out was really helpful. And I think one of the things, like I said, the first time I noticed like, wait a minute, I'm tired. What is this? And like eventually learning I'm burnt out is like the physical signs for me were the easiest to notice because I've always been really in tune with my body.

19:54I've always been really into fitness and so and like feeling my best so I think the physical symptoms but those are probably the last to come because you're so exhausted your body is literally screaming uncle like please stop um so there are the physical symptoms that I'm better at noticing like whether it's like some anxiety swirling around inside your body or like terrible sleep or you know your workouts you're you're getting weaker blah blah blah but I think what the coach really helped with was the emotional aspect and paying attention to warning signals emotionally that are like tools you can use to determine why you're burnt out.

20:33And I think one of the most important emotions to learn to pay attention to is resentment. And when you're feeling resentful, like for example, maybe you normally love preparing dinner for your family and it's normally something you enjoy but you're kind of like in your mind just like oh like have to like prepare food for these ungrateful swines like you know like you get those moods in your head and you're like wait a minute that's resentment why do I resent it's not your family's fault like you normally like cooking dinner for them and this is like how you show love or whatever but um so that's a sign of like okay why am I resenting is it something that they're doing or is it a boundary that I haven't set around for myself.

21:18Maybe I do need a break. Something else is crazy in my life. So we need to like use a meal delivery program for a month, whatever it is. So that's been a really good one in my business and my personal life. Anytime you're kind of like, in your head, like, this is annoying that I have to do this or that they did this, blah, blah, blah. Like you're resenting for whatever reason. That's like the biggest warning sign of like, either a boundary that you haven't set, but you should set has been crossed or, you know, you need to like take a step back and give yourself more space so that you're not resenting something you normally love.

21:54Fire Nation, lots of things to think about here. Keep your finger on the pulse of your business, yes, but on yourself as a human as well. So take us home, Emily. Take the stage here. Share with us your vision for the future of Lil Bucks. Oh my gosh. Well, I want to see our Buckley in every pantry in America. So that's the thing. I'm five years into this and I'm like, we're just getting started. I honestly think we're at the position now that I've envisioned for this little super food fruit seed back when I fell in love with it in Australia. Like we have this wonderful product line cluster buck that took years of iteration to get to where we think it's something that could be in mass market has appeal with both health foodies and just like everyday folks, everyday Americans.

22:45So we're launching those into some really big grocery channels. We're launching an airport and coffee shops. We have single serves. We've got big stuff. We've got our bulk buckwheat. We're trying to get in places like sweet green. So all these things, I finally have established the base for all these channels that we see success in. So we're just getting started. So that's why I'm like, we got another five years of going buck wild here. So I need to make sure I'm ready to lead the charge and spread the buckly love because that's what I'm really good at and really passionate about. So I had to take care of, got to look out for number one to make sure you can actually make your dreams happen, right?

23:26Big time, big time. And if Fire Nation wanted to learn more and purchase some of this amazing product, what could they do? LilBucks.com. It's like Lil Wayne, but Bucks. And you can use EO Fire. It will give you 20 % off for sure. And you can try all the goodies there. What's your favorite flavor right now? If you had to choose one of your babies. I think the Snickerdoodle Cluster Bucks because I love cinnamon. So good. It's so good. But we have some new flavors launching in a month, and I have eaten all the R &D. So at this point, I'm just dying and waiting for them to launch because I can't stop thinking about it.

24:04Oh, it's amazing. I definitely enjoyed getting a dabble into those as well. So Fire Nation, EO Fire is going to get you 20 % off. Let's sell them out of the snickerdoodles. I think that would be a good idea. So LilBucks.com. dot com. Emily, thank you so much for sharing your voice, your message, your mission with the world. For that, we salute you and we'll catch you on the flip side. Thank you so much for having me. Hey, Fire Nation, a huge thank you to our sponsors and Emily for sponsoring today's episode and Fire Nation successful entrepreneurs. They accomplish big goals. That is why I created the Freedom Journal to guide you in accomplishing your number one goal in 100 days.

24:49And we're talking step by step. Visit thefreedomjournal.com. I'll catch you there or on the flip side. Success Story, hosted by Scott D. Clary, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Success Story features Q &A sessions with successful business leaders, keynote presentations, and conversations on sales, marketing, business startups and entrepreneurship. One of Scott's recent episodes was with none other than Jack Canfield, where they discuss adapting to life's twists and turns. Listen to Success Story wherever you get your podcasts. More and more entrepreneurs and investors are discovering the awesome franchise opportunities that exist outside of food.

25:30Franchising can simply be the better path, and interest in franchising is at an all-time high. Lucky for you, John Austinson, founder of Franbridge Consulting and a frequent EO Fire guest is here to help you explore the premier franchise opportunities today. John and his Franbridge Consulting team are part of the largest brokerage in the U.S. and have vetted the market thoroughly. Franbridge is hands down the premier source for the best opportunities in the non-food franchise world. They represent every type of non-food franchise from healthcare to dumpsters, youth sports to business services, specialized senior care to pet grooming to insulation and floor coatings.

26:03John has served as an Inc. 500 franchisor, a multi-brand franchisee, and he does more placements than any other in the country. Sign up for a free consultation call with John today or get a free copy of his book, Non-Food Franchising, at FranBridgeConsulting.com. That's FranBridgeConsulting.com.