Dads & gallery co-curators Quajay Donnell & Richard Colon are building community & leading by example

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Dads & gallery co-curators Quajay Donnell & Richard Colon are building community & leading by example

Years ago, I interviewed both Quajay Donnell and Richard Colon for my passion project, I Heart ROC. We’ve all experienced a lot of life changes since then, and our friendships have grown too, so I was excited to check in five years later for a podcast interview! We talk about how photography has helped them better get to know Rochester, their journey to founding Behind the Glass Gallery, and their experiences as dads. At the end of the day, sometimes you’ve just gotta jump in the bounce house, even if you’re in your 40s and you know your legs will hurt the next day!

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Jon-Stephen Stansel on creativity & humor as a social media pro and dad

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Jon-Stephen Stansel on creativity & humor as a social media pro and dad

I’ve followed the work of social media consultant Jon-Stephen Stansel for years, so I was thrilled when he agreed to chat with me for the It’s a Lot podcast. After getting his start doing social media at higher ed institutions and government agencies, his online connections led to him working with brands like Invincible, Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power, Hazbin Hotel, Sausage Party: Foodtopia, and Avatar: The Way of Water. In this conversation, we talk about the joys of being creative and funny on social media, how AI lacks taste that’s necessary to succeed as a social media manager, the dark pits of the internet, and more. In the second half of the show, we also explore Jon-Stephen’s life as a dad and the joys he’s finding on his parenthood journey.

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Editor & dad Brendan Dabkowski shares about screentime shame & parent guilt

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Editor & dad Brendan Dabkowski shares about screentime shame & parent guilt

I met my friend Brendan Dabkowski through Instagram years ago and now we’re both adjunct professor at Nazareth University. We’re also both parents of little ones and know the struggles of finding enough childcare, needing mental health support to navigate parenthood, and more! It was fun to dive deeper on these topics with a friend. My favorite parts were hearing about some of the joyful experiences of his life as a dad so far, like taking his son on long bike rides and watching his daughter light up around their new kitten!

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LinkedIn influencer Jayde Powell is ditching outdated notions of 'professionalism'

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LinkedIn influencer Jayde Powell is ditching outdated notions of 'professionalism'

Five years ago, I interviewed Jayde Powell here on the Serve Me the Sky blog, long before she became a sought after LinkedIn influencer! Jayde has been building her personal brand for a long time; now, she’s getting $20,000 brand deals for her LinkedIn content and earning over $200k per year from her influencer work. I was stoked to catch up with her for the It’s a Lot podcast. In this episode, we got into the nitty gritty of brand deals (including red flags she’s learned to suss out ASAP), her plans for retiring from social media by 40, what her different income streams look like, how she’s breaking free from the limiting box of ‘professionalism,’ and more. I find Jayde super inspiring, and I hope you will too.

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Illustrator Anoosha Syed says you have to know your "why" when it comes to social media

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Illustrator Anoosha Syed says you have to know your "why" when it comes to social media

This week, I was thrilled to chat with children’s book author/illustrator Anoosha Syed. She’s had a fascinating career path so far and she’s an incredibly talented artist, and she’s a new mom as well! We had a great conversation about content creation, building a brand online, letting go of dreams you once had for your career, and how damn hard it is to balance freelance work and motherhood.

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Kat Eddy feels ready for life with two under two

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Kat Eddy feels ready for life with two under two

In episode 5 of It’s a Lot, I chatted with mom and business owner Kat Eddy, the founder of Katboocha, about her expectations before becoming a mom of two kids under two. We spoke about a month before her youngest was born, so make sure to tune back in this fall when we have a follow-up conversation about the reality of two under two!

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That time Jackie Ortiz angered the birding community (and other stories from a content creator & social media pro)

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That time Jackie Ortiz angered the birding community (and other stories from a content creator & social media pro)

On It’s a Lot this week, I chatted with Jackie Ortiz (she/they), a social media professional by day and food/travel content creator by night. Their whole career has focused on building community and cultivating curiosity, which I really admire! We explore figuring out how to identify which stories will resonate with your target audience, learning to create video content, encouraging people to see familiar places differently, and lots more. We even talk about the time a small mistake in one of her travel videos infuriated the birding community!

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Artist Christy Roushey on career path pivots & showing up authentically online

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Artist Christy Roushey on career path pivots & showing up authentically online

In episode 3 of It’s a Lot, I spoke to artist and mom Christy Roushey, founder of The House of Roushey, about her journey of leaving engineering to be a stay-at-home mom, teaching herself new skills, and eventually launching her own art business. We also discuss having hard conversations with your kids and the importance of having mental health support.

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Author Kristen Felicetti is feeling some social media nostalgia

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Author Kristen Felicetti is feeling some social media nostalgia

On the second episode of It’s a Lot, I chatted with Kristen Felicetti, author of Log Off, in celebration of its one year publication anniversary. We discuss the LiveJournal and Myspace days of social media and ponder what the future of social media looks like. We also explore Substack as a social media platform, where Kristen works by day as their Head of Support.

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7 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting a New Instagram Account in 2025

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7 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting a New Instagram Account in 2025

So you’ve asked yourself these 5 questions and determined that Instagram is the right fit for you and your business. You have the bandwidth, you know your audience, and you have goals in mind. You’re all ready to launch. How do you launch well? Avoid these 7 mistakes when creating a new Instagram account and you’ll be golden. 

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