The Business Reality Check: You can’t grow a business you hate.

About The Business Reality Check: You can’t grow a business you hate.

Successful but sinking? This is your intervention. We don't talk marketing tactics; we talk misalignment. Each month, we take a blunt, honest look at the Business Reality Check Pre-Assessment results submitted by a professional services owner who's ready to transform. We expose the expensive "lies" and disconnects causing the burnout. If you're tired of being drained by the business you built, join us to face the truth and find your authentic purpose. Your sustainable success starts now. Take the Free Assessment: https://www.thrivecollective.shop/

Publisher

Thrive Collective

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

15 Apr 2026

Latest episode

30 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

22 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   30 Oct 2026

   You Went Full-Time. Your Marketing Needs to Catch Up.

   Kat Fretwell can help replan a wedding in five hours after a tornado takes out the venue. Putting her prices on her website? That scares her. The founder of Events By Kat Audrey recently left a job she loved to pursue wedding and event planning full-time. Her work has taken her from Alabama to Tuscany, and she builds close relationships with couples who trust her to bring their wedding vision to life. But giving her own business that same attention has been harder. Her Instagram shows the care and creativity she brings to her weddings. Her website doesn’t quite tell the same story. People are visiting, but she says those visits aren’t turning into bookings. In this episode, Jonna and Lori help Kat work through what needs to change now that the business has become her full-time work. They look at who she most wants to serve, how to explain the value of her services, and why being approachable doesn’t mean adjusting her price every time someone asks. The conversation gets personal, too. Kat opens up about people pleasing, the difficulty of leaving her job, and avoiding networking events because she worries she won’t belong. Together, they talk through how to start showing up without waiting to feel completely confident. You’ll hear us work through • Defining your ideal client after years of saying yes to whoever needs you. • Publishing starting prices while leaving room for custom packages. • Helping website visitors understand your services and take the next step. • Bringing your personality into your brand instead of trying to look like everyone else. • Building vendor relationships when getting through the door feels intimidating. If you’re proud of the work you do for clients but keep second-guessing how to market yourself, you’ll recognize a lot in this conversation. About Kat Katherine “Kat” Fretwell is the founder of Events By Kat Audrey, offering wedding and event planning throughout the Southeast and for destination celebrations. Based in Alabama, she brings a love of travel, thoughtful design, and Southern hospitality to her work. Her services include full-service planning, partial planning, and wedding-day coordination, with custom options for each couple. Connect with Kat Website https://www.eventsbykataudrey.com/ (https://www.eventsbykataudrey.com/) Instagram https://www.instagram.com/eventsbykataudrey (https://www.instagram.com/eventsbykataudrey) Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089056285745 (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089056285745) TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@eventsbykataudrey (https://www.tiktok.com/@eventsbykataudrey) Business Reality Check is hosted by Jonna and Lori, co-founders of Thrive Collective. We help business owners work through what’s keeping them overwhelmed or stuck, with honest feedback and practical steps they can take in their own businesses. Want your own reality check? Apply to be a guest. https://becomethrive.com/ (https://becomethrive.com/)

2. 

   16 Oct 2026

   You Can Outsource Your Marketing. You Still Have to Lead Your Business.

   Hiring someone to handle your marketing sounds like relief—until you realize you’ve hired another person who needs you to tell them what to do. There’s a difference between paying someone to complete tasks and hiring an expert to help you make decisions. Knowing which kind of support you need can save you months of frustration. This week, we’re changing things up. Instead of coaching a business owner through a reality check, Jonna and Lori sit down with fellow agency owner Crystal Oakes, founder of Oakes Creative House, for an honest conversation about what’s happening in marketing—and what business owners need to understand before spending more time or money on it. Crystal has been building her agency since 2016, helping businesses with branding, websites, SEO, photography, and marketing strategy. She brings the perspective of someone who has led creative work across 22 countries and eight languages, and who believes educating her clients is part of doing the job well. We start with a business owner who replaced a five-year-old website with an AI-built version overnight, without considering the SEO consequences. From there, we get into the decisions behind the shortcuts: hiring inexpensive help without a plan for managing them, accepting AI content you’d never approve from a designer, and investing in marketing before you’ve figured out what you’re selling. In this episode, we talk about:• The difference between hiring task support and hiring someone to lead your marketing.• What business owners need to communicate—and what a good agency should help them figure out.• How to use AI with a strategy, clear brand direction, and quality standards.• Why changing agencies won’t always solve the underlying problem.• How to talk about marketing results when every activity has a different timeline.• Choosing where to invest first instead of chasing the next tool or tactic. You don’t have to become a marketer to run your business. But you do need enough understanding to ask better questions, choose the right support, and participate in the decisions that affect your growth. If you’re tired of trying things without knowing whether they’re helping, start here. About Crystal:Crystal Oakes is the founder of Oakes Creative House, a woman-owned marketing agency she has been building since 2016. Her team helps businesses with brand strategy and design, WordPress websites, SEO, brand photography, and ongoing marketing support. Through courses, workshops, and digital resources, she also helps business owners understand their marketing and make more informed decisions about it. Connect with Crystal: Website: https://oakescreativehouse.com/ (https://oakescreativehouse.com/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/oakescreativehouse/ (https://www.facebook.com/oakescreativehouse/) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oakescreativehouse/ (https://www.instagram.com/oakescreativehouse/) LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/41780071 (https://www.linkedin.com/company/41780071) TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@crystallynnoakes (https://www.tiktok.com/@crystallynnoakes) Business Reality Check is hosted by Jonna and Lori, co-founders of Thrive Collective. We work through the real business challenges behind scattered marketing, confusing offers, and exhausting workloads—with honest feedback and practical next steps. If your business isn’t working the way you hoped, let’s figure out what needs to change. Apply to be a guest and get your own business reality check:https://becomethrive.com/ (https://becomethrive.com/)

3. 

   2 Oct 2026

   You Believe in Your Business. Does Your Audience Get It?

   You can explain your business, post about it, and pour hours into marketing—and still leave people unsure whether you’re the person they need. Corina Wilson knows what her work can do. Through The Spell You Tell, she helps women recognize the stories they repeat about themselves and start finding their way back to who they are. After a divorce in 2023 led her to rebuild her own sense of identity, she wanted to help other women who had lost themselves in being a mother, partner, employee, or everything to everyone. But less than a year into building her business, alongside a full-time job and motherhood, she was spending more time trying to find those women than helping them. In this episode, Jonna and Lori work through the gap between the message Corina believes in and what her audience needs to hear. “Stuck to unstoppable” sounds exciting—but does an exhausted woman want to become unstoppable, or does she just want to feel like herself again? From there, we get specific about who Corina serves, how to make paid speaking the priority, and what needs to happen between someone hearing her speak and becoming a paying client. If you’re putting time into marketing but still wondering what’s connecting, this conversation will help you look at your message, your offers, and where your effort is actually going. You’ll leave with practical questions to ask before adding another task to your list. About Corina: Corina Wilson is the founder of The Spell You Tell, a speaker, workshop facilitator, and workbook creator. Her work helps women notice and challenge the self-talk that keeps them repeating familiar patterns. Through her “Catch It, Check It, Change It” approach, she helps them reconnect with themselves and make more intentional choices. Connect with Corina: Website: https://www.thespellyoutell.com/ (https://www.thespellyoutell.com/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSpellYouTell/ (https://www.facebook.com/TheSpellYouTell/) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thespellyoutell/ (https://www.instagram.com/thespellyoutell/) The Business Reality Check is hosted by Jonna and Lori, co-founders of Thrive Collective. We work through the real business challenges behind scattered marketing, confusing offers, and exhausting workloads—with honest feedback and practical next steps. If your business isn’t working the way you hoped, let’s figure out what needs to change. Apply to be a guest and get your own business reality check:https://becomethrive.com/ (https://becomethrive.com/)

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Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

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Guest appearances

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