In this episode of Mastering Business Skills, hosts Sharon Savage and Erin Alli sit down with author, speaker, and small-business champion Shawna Suckow. They talk about how small businesses can stand out, show up more human, and attract their exact right customers in today’s noisy marketplace by moving away from stiff “performative professionalism”. How instead using real stories, personality, and values to connect with their audience. Shawna shares practical and simple exercises to identify what truly makes you memorable, explains her “brandships zone” of being differentiated, trustworthy, and unforgettable, offers real-world examples and mindset shifts that help you lean into your authentic voice, and shares when and how to pivot your marketing, especially when old tactics stop working, while also touching on choosing one or two aligned platforms, showing up consistently, and her own journey from reluctant speaker to CSP and author of Small Is Your Superpower.

Highlights

• Why sounding “professional” is actually making you forgettable
• Choosing the right platforms (without burning out)
• When and how to pivot your marketing
• Small is your superpower

Connect with Shawna

Website: The Buyer Insider

Book: Small Is Your Superpower

LinkedIn: Shawna Suckow

In this episode of Mastering Business Skills, Nicole shares how she grew Empower Virtually from a one‑woman operation in 2023 into a thriving global VA agency that matches business owners with executive and administrative support across sectors like coaching, law, and healthcare. She explains how being overbooked with a client waitlist led her to build a team, and how her natural “matchmaker” skill helps her pair the right VA with the right client so owners can stay in their zone of genius.​

Nicole discusses the realities of building a business as a military spouse living in the UK, including the challenges of moving overseas and needing a career that could travel with her. She also talks candidly about balancing toddlers at home, an unpredictable military schedule, and running a growing agency by working in focused pockets of time and accepting that some seasons are simply harder than others.

• Business owners who feel overwhelmed and know they need to delegate but are unsure what to hand off first.​

• Fractional leaders and service providers looking to streamline operations with executive and admin support so they can focus on higher‑value work.​

• Entrepreneurs balancing business growth with family life, especially parents and military spouses navigating unpredictable schedules and limited work windows.

• Website: Empower Virtually ​

• LinkedIn: Nicole Bryan

In this episode, Stephanie shares how she went from running an online membership community to becoming a “Community Steward” at Exchange, and why she chose that title instead of the traditional “community manager.” She explains Exchange’s community-centered framework, where the wisdom is in the room, and how appreciative inquiry and intentional questions unlock the collective intelligence of a group.​

Stephanie and the hosts unpack what community really means and why it is more than social media followers or a big email list. They explore community as a space of giving and receiving, where people consistently come together, support each other, and experience genuine connection, whether in a neighborhood, a book club, a team, or a small, intimate circle.​

The conversation dives into conscious leadership and stewardship, emphasizing that everyone in a community; team, members, and leaders, is responsible for the space they co-create. Stephanie offers simple, practical ways leaders can protect their energy, avoid burnout, and show up more intentionally, such as taking small pauses between meetings, noticing their own state, and even naming their exhaustion or stress in front of a group to create safety and authenticity.​

Stephanie also shares how becoming a mother and now preparing for her second child has shifted her relationship with work, pace, and the feminine, inviting her into deeper slowness, sensitivity, and trust in the unknown. She talks about “mastering presence in a group environment” as one of her core skills, including sensing the energy of the room, slowing down an agenda when needed, and asking, “What is the question we’re really trying to answer right now?” to bring conversations back to what matters most.​

Listeners will walk away with:

• A clearer, more grounded definition of community and how to build it intentionally.​

• Practical ideas to steward energy, prevent burnout, and practice conscious leadership in everyday interactions.​

• Simple presence practices to use in workshops, meetings, coaching sessions, and group programs.​

• LinkedIn: Stephanie Courtillier

• Work: XChange Website​