← The Product Boss with Jacqueline Snyder
The Product Boss with Jacqueline Snyder
670. The Power of Uncertainty: Why Now is the Time to Take the Leap
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Jacqueline Snyder
Hi, I'm Jacqueline Snyder and this is the Product Boss podcast. I've helped launch and grow thousands of product based businesses, even one of my own. And over the last 20 years, I've seen behind the scenes of businesses just like yours. Whether they are makers, manufacturers, artists, or food and beverage businesses. I have spent so many hours studying it all. I've discovered what makes them successful, what mistakes they could have avoided, how did they turn their ideas into a successful business, and what are the strategies that they have used to make more sales and be discovered by more customers. And this is what this show is all about. Whether you're just starting out or you're looking to become a million dollar product boss, I'm here to give you the permission to chase your dreams, no matter how big or small. All you need is the right mindset, a little courage, strategy and support, and you too can be the next million dollar product boss. Let's do this. Oh my goodness. Friends, if you are anything like me, you probably spend more time running errands than running your business. Am I right? Like, everything needs something, we gotta run around. And I knew that this was like a major issue for me back in the day, which is why I decided to get help where I could. And I decided to let Instacart handle all of my grocery shopping. So I no longer had to worry about running all the errands and having to run out and get more almond milk for my lattes. Rather, I was like, you know what, we're just gonna let Instacart handle that. So I want you to imagine skipping the store and getting back to designing packaging, orders, making, or maybe actually taking a break, even a nap. Remember those? Okay, so with Instacart, you can get groceries and essentials delivered in as fast as an hour so you can focus on growing your business without sacrificing a meal. Plus, less stress and more focus. And here's a tip. I've actually used Instacart before to order gifts from my daughter's friend's birthday parties because I haven't had time to run out and get presents. And I've been able to get the packaging like the gift bag and the gift, like, hello, Sephora, delivered to my house while I was in the middle of coaching sessions so that I could have the present right. It's like having a personal assistant without having a personal assistant. So if you want to do what I do and get the help where you can, you can try it. Now. If you head to the productboss.com instacart hey. Hey. Welcome back to the Product Boss podcast. I am so glad you're here this week with me. And you know, this has been the idea in this podcast has really been popping up in so many of my coaching conversations, my one on one clients, and my masterminds inside of my community. The Product Boss Academy, which is our member, our membership and curriculum and all the amazing things, right? And I meet with them once a week in there. And the word that keeps coming up is, and I'm gonna say it in the nicest way, uncertainty. I know, you know how a lot of people are feeling. You're probably feeling the same way. You know, you open the news app, you hop on social media. There's just so many things happening in the world that are kind of like right up in our face. And every day is feeling a little bit different. Is this thing gonna happen? Is it not gonna happen? You know, people are los jobs in the US like in the government, in government positions, or working for the federal government, and there's just so many things happening. And I know it feels like a really scary time, and I know it feels uncertain, but this is going to sound a little counter to a lot of people, but why would now, with this idea of uncertainty, why would now be the time to take the leap? Why would now be the time to push, like, push through to your limits and like, actually do things in a different way? In a way that some people might be like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, like, hold on, pull back, like, make it safe, make it little. Let's like hold on and, and, and try and like, hunker down versus no, no, I'm going out. I'm going out and I'm going on a big exploration. I was talking to my husband about there's people who stay. I don't remember what we were listening to, but it's this idea of like, if we think back to like when a lot of people lived in like tribe, tribal communities, I imagine this is how I imagine it. We're all sitting around a campfire and, you know, it's primitive days. And there were people who went out and explored. They left the tribe, they went out and explored and they kind of went on their own. And there are people who stayed and they were like, I'm gonna stay here. I'm gonna make it safe. And I said to my husband, I was like, I don't know which one I would be. I was like, I feel like I'm always looking for safety and stuff like that. It was like, I think I would be the one staying by the campfire. He's like, no. He's like, you might. But when things started to get weird or rough or things started to seem like things were going to get uncertain or change, you would actually go out. You would go. You would be the one who was like, I'm gonna go figure this out. I'm gonna go figure out the new pat. The place to be safe, like, and you would come back and you would take the village with you. And I was like, yeah, I think you're right on that. Right. And so this is the moment that I have ventured out away from the fire, down the path, into the woods I like to live with off of visuals. And I'm telling you that there is a better place. There is a safer place. There is a place that if the things feel uncertain, would you mind coming with me on this journey to push out of what feels safe, but also is keeping us small and realizing that, like, we can't wait. You can't wait for something to happen. You or to you. You can't wait for the person to ride in on the white horse and come and save you. Right? This is the time where with uncertainty, we take the reins and we take control of our life. So that's what I'm gonna get into today. Because if you're waiting for the right time to start something big, to do something big, to take that. That next leap, whether it's, you know, launching your business or adding on another sales channel or doing it differently, like zigging when other people zag or zagging when other people zag. I don't know which way it goes. Maybe it's the idea of leaving a job that's making you miserable or finally taking an idea that you have and putting it into motion. This episode's for you. And I think most of us are somewhere in here at different parts in our life or. Or we're focusing on different sections of our life. Because here's the truth, right? And you know this. I know you know this. Deep down, the right time doesn't exist. It never has and it never will. And I get it. Uncertainty is uncomfortable. It is. It's so uncomfortable. But here's the flip side. Uncertainty is also a catalyst. It's what pushes people to finally take action when they otherwise wouldn't. Right? And history proves it. I mean, the thing is, is that we will stay small and safe if things feel like they're safe. But when things start to get into a. And this is, I believe, deep down, I'M again, I'm not like an anthropologist, even though I loved anthropology in college. But the idea here is, is that how did human beings get to where we are? We were always needing to find something better or different or we'd have to seek change to improve our life situations. That's how we came from living by the fire, like making our own fires, to eventually figuring out how to create a stove or a chimney that brought fire into a home. And then now we have heating systems in a lot of our houses. That's human innovation. And P.S. those are products, right? Those are concepts, those are ideas of things that people make. There was someone who came up with the concept of a chimney in a house and taught that and then were eventually hired to come build chimneys for people in houses. Right. When people stop building their own houses. So I'm really just pulling all of my historical visuals from watching Outlander. But if you watched it, you know, but let's just. This is like where I'm trying to take us to. Okay? So I want to take us back, right? I want to take us back to uncertainty being a catalyst in my life and how it actually pushed me into action when I never thought it would. And in ways that I saw this happening for people that I ended up working with. So back in 2007, I started my own business. Okay. I was 26 years old. I didn't love where I was working. I was in. I was having panic attacks. It was. I was working for more, more. I was working more hours on what I was getting paid to do. And it was not a nice place to work. It was not women taking care of women. It was women thrown under, women under the bus. So it's just incredibly terrible. And so I gave them my six week notice and I left without having a place to go to because I just couldn't do it anymore. I took it all the way to my edge of uncomfortable, of terribleness. Right? It wasn't even uncomfortable, it was terrible. I like took it all the way to. I had to be in so much pain to leave versus there were so many other moments that I knew I could, should have left, could have left, deserve to have a better work, work environment, all the things. So I left. And fortunately I had a friend that also had a fashion company and she's like, hey, come help me. Come assist me while you're interviewing. So I went and interviewed for Monique Lulier and BCBG and St. John and all these like cool brands here in Los Angeles. And while I was doing that and I was working with my neighbor slash friend. She had a maternity clothing line. I was like, I was inspired. And I, like, I was raised by entrepreneurs, but safety and security to me was getting a job and working for someone that paid me a salary. And then I didn't have to worry about stuff. But what happened is the more and more I went and took interviews and realized I don't want to fit into their box. I remember BCBG they had offered me. I went in for a dress position to design dresses. And because I came out of swimwear for Cosa Bella, where I was working, and did really, really well at that, they're like, you know, we want to hire you as our swimwear designer. And I just. I didn't want to go back into swimwear. And then also a big thing for me was you had to go park in some parking lot far away and take a bus shuttle. And I was like, I'm always going be late. It's never going to work. And just like, it didn't fit right and didn't feel right. So I told myself, I'm going to try. I'm going to try and be an entrepreneur for a year. What's the worst that's going to happen is I'll go back and get a job. Well, 20 years later, almost, I've still an entrepreneur and now officially unhirable, I believe. But this is what led me into saying I left my job without a place to land. And then. And I know that sounds like it comes with privilege, but I didn't have kids back then. I had been saving, right, Like I was younger. So I had less responsibility. But I have so much responsibility now. I have teams of people that I pay, not I pay for. I pay them so that they can pay for their family, right? They can live their lives. And I have my own family and all the things, but entrepreneurship allowed me to do that. Now, if I go back to 2008 too, and I think about then, it was a recession here in the States. So I started my company in 2007. You would think 2008, I'd be like, oh, my God, what am I going to do? It was the major recession in the state. People were getting laid off from jobs left and right. And do you know what happened, happened? Here's the craziest thing, okay? Uncertainty. People getting laid off. Like, the world doing what the world does. Those layoffs forced people to finally pursue the ideas they had been sitting on for years. They had been waiting, hesitating, and telling themselves maybe one day they were living in misery, or maybe not as extreme as misery. That was for me. But they were living. They were working for someone else and daydreaming about big ideas of making products, right? Big product ideas. You know, everyone has them. Like people. That's why people love Shark Tank. They're like, oh, I had that idea, or I wish I had a big idea like that. And so when the world forced them into a change because they were waiting for that right time, that right time was never gonna come. The right time is now. And then that may be one day. And then the world shook them. And that's exactly where we are today. Right? So this episode is all about, like, why waiting for stability is an illusion or how uncertainty forces action. And why now and not tomorrow and not next year is the time to bet on yourself. So if you've been waiting for a sign, then let this episode be it. All right. Hey, friends. Okay, so I don't know if you're anything like me, but sometimes it feels like my self care routine is slipping through the cracks. Because when I'm juggling and wearing all the hats in my business and doing all the things, I mean, the last thing I have to do is like really fulfill that self care routine that my daughter's talking about. She's like, mom, so listen. So when it comes to running a successful business, you can't really pour from an empty cup. And a lot of times that self care is like one of the first things to get yourself recalibrated. So that's why I want you to meet Glossy. Now, Glossy is my favorite daily beauty supplement designed to transform your skin and gut health from the inside out. And I'm actually an investor in this business because I so believe in this idea of science backed ingredients for digestion and skin hydration. And Glossy makes it really easy to look and feel your best without that whole 10 step routine in the mirror. The thing I don't actually have time for, all I have to do is simply mix a stick into my water and I'm good to go. So if you want to try this, because I so believe in this business, I think it's amazing. It's done so many wonders for my skin and my gut, which are two things that I need help with. And you want to simplify your wellness and your beauty. All you have to do is click in the show notes and you can use the code Jacqueline Snyder. So it's my full name. Use the code Jaclyn Snyder. And I'm hooking you up with 15% off your order. So cheers to glowing skin and a thriving business. Hey friends, are you unsure of what to say on social media or what to even send in your weekly emails? Well, what if creating content could be easy? Would you be looking for a shortcut to creating consistent content? Yes, consistent content. Because you know, consistency is key. Well, let me tell you, you are not alone when you feel like you're struggling on what to post or what to write in emails. And we know that you have that product part of your business down. But as you're listening to this podcast, you probably already know that to get more people to your products, to buy your products, you need to great content. No, I see I keep saying content and that's the dreaded C word. And we can't tell you how many product bosses tell us that they want to create great content for their audience and their customers, but they don't know what to say. Or they are so busy they can't find the time, or they really, really, really don't want to be the face of their brand. Well, no worries because that's exactly why we created A Year of Content. It is your shortcut to creating consistent content that resonates with your audience and brings more loyal customers who can't wait your products. If you want to see how easy this is and how easy it is to create content for your audience and your customers, head to www.ayear of content.com. so let's talk about this myth of stability. We love to believe that things will eventually settle down. That one day we'll wake up and the economy will be thriving, jobs will be guaranteed, the world will be predictable again. But here's the thing that's never going to come. Nothing is ever stable. The world is never stable. It is the world. It is life, lifing life. If we can just say that life lifes, nothing is guaranteed. I know we can get into that comfort of believing it to be. But then when something happens, we're like, oh my God, I can't believe that happened. No, no, it was all things are always going to happen. So let's you could think about personal things for yourself that have happened. You can think about things externally that has happened. You know, we were talking about the 2008 recession, the housing crisis, 2020 high pandemic that changed the entire world, changed the way we live and we worked like in an instant and even now we're in a different time in 2025 and things feel weird. Things feel weird. The energy around us is weird. There's layoffs, there's economic shifts. Major industries are evolving faster than ever. AI is speeding up, right? And we're seeing proof that certainty is an illusion. It is an illusion. Certainty is not real. What we need to dig into is, no, things are always going to shift. And if we're comfortable with the ground shifting below us, it's a treadmill. We're staying in one spot and the treadmill is moving below us. Then you're like, okay, I get it. The treadmill is going to move below us. What am I going to do? So if you're waiting for things to feel safe before you take a risk, you're going to be waiting forever. I know I've said this. So stability, my friends, is not something you wait for. It's not something you wait for. It's something you create. And you create it by building something that you own, something that no boss, no company, no economy can take away from you. And for so many people, especially if you're listening to this podcast, it's entrepreneurship, right? Entrepreneurship is the thing that we own, that we create and we go out and get. So let's talk about what happens when uncertainty hits, because it's always going to happen, right? So I saw this in 2008 when people were losing their jobs. They were scared. They didn't know what to do. But instead of staying stuck, many of them finally took action on ideas they'd been dreaming about. I think about this one client. She's one of my very, very, very first clients with my one on one consulting business in the fashion industry. And she was an accountant from the east coast, moved to Southern California, an accountant, and she got laid off from her job. And she'd always said, you know, I want better clothes that women can wear that are workplace clothing, that aren't super, super expensive, that feel professional, but are also comfortable. That was like her idea because every day she'd get dressed and go to the office and have to put on stuff that she just didn't want to wear. And so when she lost her job, she was like, now is the time. So I have some money saved. I'm going to do this thing. Now is the time that I'm going to take action on a dream I had while I was waiting for the right time. There's never a right time. I always tell people, like, what would you look? This is what I say to my one on one clients. If you were on your deathbed at the end of your life and you looked back, what would you regret not doing? What ideas did you sit on and regret and watch other people pursue and do that you didn't do? So the thing here is that instead of staying stuck in fear, I saw my clients, including myself, take action on ideas they'd been dreaming about for years. Because here's the deal. When you're backed into a corner, you realize that waiting is no longer an option. You gotta get outta the corner. So think about it. How many people have you heard say, I'd love to start my own business one day, or I have this idea, but I just don't have time, I don't know how, or I wish I could work for myself, but I need stable income. And then, and boom, they get laid off. Something happens, right? A spouse gets laid off, something shifts in the economy, someone gets sick, right? And suddenly the stability they thought they had is gone. And especially when we go back to working for someone else, the paycheck that you depend on will disappear. So what do people do? The people that I work with, right, they get resourceful. They start that business, they turn that side hustle into their full time thing. They take the leap they would have never taken if life hadn't pushed them. And the irony, the crazy, crazy irony here is that they could have done it sooner, but comfort kept telling them to wait, right? Comfort keeps you waiting. So here's where I want you to shift your mindset in the world, right? The world is unpredictable anyways. Let's just do it, right? Let's just say it out loud. It's unpredictable. Yes. So why not take control of your future? Nobody's coming on the white horse to save you. You are coming to save you. So if the economy is changing, then why not build something that puts you in the driver's seat? If jobs aren't guaranteed, then why not create your own income? If we're already living in uncertain times, then why not use uncertainty as a motivation instead of fear? Because here's the thing. People will always buy things. We will always need products, tools and services that improve our lives. I want you to think about it. I think about this all the time because it's always on my desk. And if you've been on any of my live challenges or when I teach live, you'll see me pick up my phone and be like, people spend a thousand dollars on a new iPhone, even when they, in quotes, don't have the money. I can't pay my rent, but I'm going to text you from my thousand dollar iPhone. They invest in the things that make them feel good, more efficient, More connected, the things that they want. People will always find the money to spend on the things that they need, want, desire, or if it solves a big enough problem, if it moves them from pain to joy. And you're going to hear me say this, and people are like, how does my necklace. I hear this. How does my necklace move people from pain to joy? They feel good about themselves when they put that thing on. How do you feel when you put on a piece of jewelry or your favorite shirt, or you paint your nails a certain color? Right. You use a hairbrush that really makes your hair silky smooth. Like, all the products we have make us feel better. And so people will always buy things. And having a product business will always be something that is creating stuff for people to buy. And sure, there's gonna be lean times and there's gonna be really amazing times and some things are gonna trend and then they're gonna go away. That's business. You just have to keep going. And that's why entrepreneurship, especially product based businesses, it's just, it isn't just about making money. It's about creating something of value that people will always want or need, no matter what's happening in the world. And yes, this can be a candle, this can be a journal, this could be a recipe book. This could be a baked good. You just need to know how to connect with people. You just need to know how to come up with and continue to come up with the right ideas. You just need to know how to make that thing, how to create a brand around it. Because the product is not what they're buying. They're buying the brand. That's what they're buying. They're buying what they feel when interacting with your products or your company. They buy the experience of dealing with your company. That's what they're buying into more than the product. That's why people buy one thing versus something else. So if you're sitting an idea, if you're waiting for things to calm down, I want to really ask you, I want you to ask yourself, what are you actually waiting for? Because 2025 is not going to slow down. The world isn't going to get more perfect and then hand you a perfect time to start. But what is going to happen? Yeah, more uncertainty, more change. More people who will either stay stuck in fear or choose to take control of that steering wheel choose to go their own path. So here's my challenge to you today. I want you to stop waiting, okay? Could you please stop waiting? Stop hoping for things to feel Easier. And instead ask yourself, what if I just started now? What if I lean into the discomfort instead of the. Of avoiding it? What if I trusted myself to create my own security instead of hoping the world gives it to me? The uncomfortable is already here. The uncertainty is already here. So why not step into it with purpose? So here are your two choices. One, let uncertainty paralyze you. Or two, use uncertainty as a fuel to take action. And I hope you choose the second one. I hope you choose the second one. Because that's all we really can do, right? That's all we can do is move in, move forward. And that's why I. I think creating a business, having a product based business, if it's a side hustle right now and really thinking about, really leaning in if it's something that you've been doing, but kind of doing it, eh, Right. Making it better and leaning in if it's something that you're like, I think I'm doing okay, but I think I could actually like, really build something magnificent. Then it's time to lean in. So if you're ready to take the ne. The next step, I wanted to give you something just totally awesome and amazing. Head over to my Instagram. I'm going to drop a link to my Instagram. Okay. And then send me a message, a DM at the product boss. DM me the word dream. Okay. DM me the word dream. And I am going to send you a checklist of how to build your dream business, how to have a business that helps you live your dream life. Doesn't matter what's happening in the world. You have your hands behind the wheel. You get to take action. Okay? So message me the word dream on Instagram and then I want you to tell me what's the thing you're committing to today. Send me a message. I want to see you in my DMs. Okay? If you're not following me, come follow me. Because here's what I know. The people who take action in uncertain times are the ones who come out stronger on the other side. And they keep testing and trying. And if they fall down, they get back up. Right? You just keep going, keep going. Because that's all we can do in life, right? We just keep going. And I want to keep going with you. I want to keep supporting you through the highs and the lows, the uncertainty, the changes, the challenges, all the things that life is going to like. So why not? Let's do it together, right? All right, so I'll see you over on my instagram in the DMs. DM me the word dream, and I will send you my dream business checklist so that you can have a dream business. So that no matter what happens, you're going to start now. You're going to lean into the discomfort instead of avoiding it. You are going to trust yourself to create your own security instead of hoping that the world gives it to you. And I'm going to be here to support you along the way. All right, my friends, thank you for tuning in today. I hope this episode was helpful to you. You share this with someone who needs to hear it. And as always, I will see you here next time.