Oct. 17, 2024

Lindsay Fork - Founder & CEO of Luxe Brands: Turning Challenges into New Businesses, Filtering Opportunities, and EOS

Lindsay Fork - Founder & CEO of Luxe Brands: Turning Challenges into New Businesses, Filtering Opportunities, and EOS

Lindsay Fork is the Founder and CEO of Luxe Brands. Luxe Brands is a bridal fashion company with multiline offerings + brands for all brides. From La Jeune Mariee Bridal Collection, a luxury designer and special-order boutique located in downtown Columbus, Ohio, to "luxury for less" with multiunit Luxe Redux, the company caters to serve all brides.

 

Lindsay recently won the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for the East Central Region. 

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The importance of filtering new opportunities. 
  • How to retain talent through performance recognition. 
  • How to navigate the fear of letting go and delegating responsibilities. 
  • How to turn challenges in one business into new separate businesses. 
  • The impact of external accountability with the Entrepreneur Operating System (EOS). 

 

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Transcript

Lindsay Fork 00:00
If I'm going to let go of something, and I'm going to feel comfortable letting go of something, I want to talk to the person that I'm basically giving it to. It's like giving somebody your baby and saying, "Are you going to take care of this for me? And tell me how you're going to do it?" If they explain to me how they're going to do it, and I feel good with that, then that's what allows me to let go.

Callan Harrington 00:23
You're listening to That Worked, a show that breaks down the careers of top founders and executives and pulls out those key items that led to their success. I'm your host, Callan Harrington, founder of FlashGrowth, and I couldn’t be more excited that you're here. Welcome back, everyone, to another episode of That Worked. This week, I’m joined by Lindsay Fork. Lindsay is the founder and CEO of Luxe Brands, which includes LeJeune Marie, Luxe Redux, and the Ohio Bridal Outlet. This might be one of the best examples we’ve had of a founder truly following their passion. And Lindsay’s growth has been pretty much unstoppable from the purchase of her first business, and with that kind of growth, it’s definitely brought some really unique challenges that we talked through. We talked about time management and the importance of developing a filtration system for new business opportunities. This is a pretty common theme. Once somebody or a founder starts to see some consistent success, all sorts of opportunities come their way. And if you’re not careful, those opportunities can quickly turn into distractions. I love talking through Lindsay’s system for processing these. We also talked about one of the early challenges Lindsay experienced with employee turnover. In the early days, many employees were using her business as a stepping stone to get into the corporate fashion world. It was really interesting to hear her retention strategies and how she built employee loyalty through talent recognition. She provided a lot of tactical processes that I think people can implement in their businesses. That said, my favorite part of the conversation was talking about Lindsay’s experience moving from self-implementing to outsourcing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). If you’re not familiar, it’s a strategic goal planning methodology. It does a great job of keeping the leadership team, goals, vision, and everyone aligned. I think that external accountability is incredibly helpful in challenging you and helping you move forward. I loved learning from Lindsay’s experience going through this because EOS is definitely something that’s top of mind for me. I’ve self-implemented it, but after listening to this episode, I can really see the value of having a third-party implementer for it. So with that, let’s get to the show.

Lindsay Fork 03:15
So, Lindsay, I've been excited about this because, one, you've grown super fast in an industry that I don't know a ton about, which is the bridal industry and the wedding industry. How did you even get into this? It’s a great question. Since the time I was a small little girl, I had always loved bridal gowns. So, I always say I never wanted to be a wedding planner. I kind of knew what went into that but just loved bridal fashion and bridal dresses. My mom would take me to the library as a little girl, and instead of going over to the children's books, I would be over in the periodicals or the magazines, wanting to get Brides Magazine, which my mom just let me do, which was great. And yeah, I started putting together a binder. I was just a very, probably romantic child, romantic teenager, long-term relationships. I wanted the white picket fence and just dreamed about my wedding, but really more about what I was going to wear and the whole thing. So, moving into college, I had an opportunity to work at a store in the Reading Bridal District down in Cincinnati. I went to Xavier University, and so I was 19 years old when I started there. It was just a really great opportunity for me to work in sales, get to know the fabrics, get to know the dresses and designers. It was kind of a dream job to have while I was in college at an early age.

Callan Harrington 05:12
Was there anything that you think inspired this? Or was it just, "I saw this, I really like it, and I’m going to follow it"?

Lindsay Fork 05:19
Yeah, I can’t pinpoint anything specific that was like, "Oh, Lindsay, you love bridal gowns." I don’t know that there’s one specific thing. It must have just been born into me or something and sparked that passion.

Callan Harrington 05:31
Has that spark ever stopped?

Lindsay Fork 05:34
I don’t know that it’s stopped, but it’s different now because it’s a business and a company. So, sometimes the zest for what got you or got me into the business can get lost on a day-to-day basis when you’re running the company. But I get to relive that a little bit when I go to Bridal Market. We go to Bridal Market in Chicago and New York City twice a year to see all the new designs that are coming out for the following year. That’s kind of like my Olympics, right? I get to go and see runway shows. And it’s exciting now that we’re past COVID for so many years, because shows are coming back, and everything’s a production again. For a long time there, it was virtual, or even when we did come back, it was sort of "ho-hum." But now it’s exciting again.

Callan Harrington 06:18
Yeah, I’m noticing the same thing. It feels like the push back to events in person has become huge. People are craving it. So you got into the industry, and you mentioned it’s kind of a dream job for you. Then you bought your first company, La Jeune Marie. Why did you want to buy the company in 2007?

Lindsay Fork 06:39
In 2007, I was an account executive for a home builder and developer magazine here in town, which is now no longer around because of the economic downfall we saw in ‘08. I got let go from my job in sales, which was also when I was 20 weeks pregnant with my now 16-year-old daughter, which is wild. So, I went out on a lot of interviews during the winter of 2008, trying to find a job. And I don’t think a lot of people wanted to hire someone who was 20 weeks pregnant at the time. I had already started thinking in my mind, "Do I want to keep doing this—something I’m not passionate about—or do I want to take a leap and get into what I’ve always wanted to do, which is own my own bridal boutique?" So, I started looking into a franchise opportunity, and believe it or not, I had spoken to my parents. I grew up in a retail business—my mom and dad had owned a retail business since 1986 and just recently sold it last year. I said to my dad, "I’m thinking of doing this franchise, let’s talk about it." And he honestly said to me, "Why would you buy into a franchise and do all that? You already know so much about this industry because you’ve been following it. You’d be paying royalties back to someone else." So, we started exploring what could be possible outside of the franchise opportunity and landed on La Jeune Marie. It was started in 2004 by two women who were sisters-in-law. My sister had gotten her bridesmaid dresses there, so I had experience with the store prior to purchasing it. But, you know, my dad has this rule that everything is for sale for the right price. They weren’t advertising the business for sale, but we went to them and asked, "Would you ever consider selling? We’re interested in buying your boutique." Long story short, that happened in the summer of 2008. So, my daughter was two months old, and I was going through the process of purchasing this little boutique in Worthington. And basically, all my dreams came true, which was super awesome. I got a small business loan, started working with PNC Bank, and just dove in.

Callan Harrington 08:50
How did that feel?

Lindsay Fork 08:51
It felt natural. I don’t remember looking back and thinking, "Oh, this is really hard," or, "This is really crazy or different." It just felt like I was going to work. I loved what I was doing, and it was intense. There were a lot of long days, but days don’t seem long when you’re doing what you love, right? What started to get hard was the growth piece of it. The store I bought was 800 square feet, so all the things I wanted to do weren’t always possible in such a small space.

Callan Harrington 09:17
I understand you quickly 4x’d that. Is that right?

Lindsay Fork 09:21
Yes.

Callan Harrington 09:22
How did you do this?

Lindsay Fork 09:24
Probably just knowing what I knew and having a strong sales background. I think I’m someone who builds trust with customers and clients really easily because I’m neurotic about knowing everything about what I’m selling—product, process, all of it. I feel uncomfortable selling something I don’t know inside and out. I’m also good at pivoting when there are issues. Like, if you’re working with a bride and she’s unsure of something, I think I naturally have a way of talking through the solutions. I’m big on, "Okay, if there’s a problem, there’s always going to be multiple solutions," and that’s where my mind goes.

Callan Harrington 10:50
What I'm hearing you say is that at this point in particular, you knew your product front to back. And as a result, when these issues come up—because I have to assume when an issue comes up with someone buying a bridal gown, that’s like a level five emergency—you could lean on the research and the knowledge that you had within the space. How did you get to that point in that knowledge?

Lindsay Fork 11:18
You know, just experience and the desire to want to learn. I think you have to have a deep care for what it is that you’re doing and really want to make your customers and your people happy. In bridal, especially, there’s a lot of emotions that run high. I’ve been in the business long enough to know when issues creep up, and I understand that for a bride, it’s an emotional and high-tension time. But I pride myself on—and I’m going to knock on wood—we’ve never missed a wedding, as far as not having a gown ready or not having alterations done. Sometimes things do go up to the last minute, but we’re there with them every step of the way. If there are issues, it’s just us staying calm, relaxed, and giving as much detail as possible to make them feel comfortable.

Callan Harrington 12:12
What were the challenges you mentioned? It was when growth hit that you started experiencing headwinds. What were some of those big ones that stand out?

Lindsay Fork 12:24
Yeah, so like I said, going into the store brand new in 2008-2009, there were some changes that I wanted to make with some of our vendors that we had at the time. And also in our industry, going to Bridal Market, it's always surprising to people that we don't really have a say sometimes as retailers on what we buy. As far as quantity, minimums are pretty tight in our industry. So if you go and visit all the current designers that you have, in order to stay current with them, you have to keep up with your minimums. And if you don't, they pretty much threaten to go to your competition down the street. So, one of the reasons that I love how Luxe Redux came to be after La Jeune Marie is because not only did it help me, but my passion for growing that part of my business is that I'm helping other bridal retailers all across the country with their cash flow and helping them manage their inventory. It's a really kind of messed up industry that we're in, in terms of how we have to keep up with our inventory and buy these minimums for fear that if we don't pick up what the designers or the reps want us to pick up, we're going to lose them altogether. Things are changing, and that's good, but when Luxe Redux started, we were having dresses discontinue, or we were deciding, "Okay, we're not carrying this line anymore because we're bringing in a new line." Again, the store was 800 square feet in Worthington. I was shoving all these dresses and extra inventory downstairs in this basement. Once or twice a year, you'd try to have a sample sale, advertise it, and hope a line of brides would be waiting down the sidewalk in the morning to get in and get the best deal. And I'd come in that Saturday or Sunday morning really wanting to see that, and I would sell four dresses. It was so disappointing.

Callan Harrington 14:07
Yeah, that’s tough.

Lindsay Fork 14:09
And this was before Instagram, so there wasn't a ton of social media at the time. So, I just had the idea: "I need a store that’s a sample sale all the time." These dresses needed to be separate from the La Jeune Marie brand because most brides coming to La Jeune Marie for an appointment expect to try on a sample dress, say yes, get their measurements, order it, and wait six months for the new dress to come in. Whereas with Luxe Redux, you take that sample and purchase it off the rack for a discounted price.

Callan Harrington 14:43
It doesn't seem like anybody else was really doing this at the time. Is that fair to say?

Lindsay Fork 14:48
Yeah, fair to say. I didn’t know of anyone at the time doing a sample sale store. What everyone was doing were sample sales out of their own special-order traditional boutiques. So yeah, it was just, "What am I going to do with all these dresses?" They were in great condition, too. It’s one thing if you want to donate them and hope someone uses them as a costume, but these dresses were in amazing condition and still had value. It was sad to think they would just go to Goodwill or a school theater or be scrapped.

Callan Harrington 15:19
Did you just have this big confidence that this was going to be successful, or was it more of a roll of the dice?

Lindsay Fork 15:25
Market conditions at the time told me it would be successful. I obviously knew what was going on in the economy. That was a hard time to start a business, right? But what's great about the bridal industry is that it's somewhat recession-proof. Especially if you’re doing well and you know what you're doing, people are always getting married. I guess I never thought, "This isn't going to work." That’s not how I think when I go into something. I might think, "What's my backup plan if this doesn’t work?" but with Luxe Redux, I didn’t spend too much time thinking about that. There was space available close to La Jeune Marie, so I could manage both stores. I had someone who wanted to run Luxe Redux, and I could just go back and forth between the two stores and make sure everything was running smoothly. I told a couple of friends in the industry what I was doing, and they were like, "I have a bunch of samples, too. Can I send them to you?" And I’m like, "Sure, send them over, and we’ll see how it goes." So, I was like, "Okay, I need a consignment contract." That was fun for me because I always wanted to be an attorney. I had taken the LSATs and looked into law school, so I was like, "I can write a contract, no problem."

Callan Harrington 16:37
So you started Luxe Redux from scratch after purchasing your first business. Before I founded my own company, I looked into buying a business to skip over the beginning stages, but I knew in the back of my mind I’d probably end up starting something from scratch. Have you thought about acquiring businesses?

Lindsay Fork 16:56
Yes, we have somewhat acquired other businesses along the way. Luxe Redux currently has eight locations, and two of the locations came from previous bridal shop owners. For example, our third store came from two owners who were friends of mine in the industry. They sent me a list of dresses they wanted to consign, and I noticed it was more than just a few dresses from the previous season. It was essentially their entire store. I reached out and asked, "Are you guys considering closing or selling?" They took a huge sigh of relief and said, "Yes, we're done." Their husbands were retiring, and they wanted to exit the business.

Callan Harrington 17:37
As you've grown and shown success with multiple businesses, do these types of opportunities come up more often?

Lindsay Fork 17:44
Yes, definitely. I’ve kind of become known as the person to approach if you want to sell or close your bridal business. I get to see how other people are running their businesses. NDAs are signed, and I get to ask questions, which is valuable. However, a lot of the businesses that are closing are in smaller towns, and it doesn’t always make sense for us to put a Luxe Redux there, at least not at this time. I still get a couple of inquiries every month from people looking to sell or close their businesses.

Callan Harrington 18:15
Do you have a filtering process for that, or do you talk with everyone?

Lindsay Fork 18:19
I’m starting a filtering process because, over the past year, I’ve gotten busier and need to focus my time. While I want to help people and their stories are interesting to me, I sometimes realize, "I’ve spent three hours on this, and it's not helping me." We’re adding a form to our website for people who are interested in selling, and there will be certain requirements before we start the conversation.

Callan Harrington 18:45
I was curious about that because I could see it taking up a ton of time. So, you opened Luxe Redux, and you're seeing success. I understand there was a point where you had to expand because you were losing employees to larger retailers in Columbus, right?

Lindsay Fork 19:03
Yes, this goes back to the early days at La Jeune Marie, around 2009-2010. I would hire great employees from Ohio State’s fashion program, University of Cincinnati, Kent State, etc. Columbus has a lot of cool stuff, including several fashion schools. I was getting fantastic resumes and employees, but their goal was to go on to be buyers or merchandisers for the big fashion brands. They would work with me for six to eight months, get their big break, and then leave. That was frustrating.

Lindsay Fork 19:45
It was frustrating because I couldn’t offer them as much money, and I wasn’t offering benefits at the time, so I understood why they left. But what was funny is that after they had gone on to work at these big companies, they would come back into the boutique to visit. I’d ask, "How’s it going? You got your dream job, right?" And they’d look at me and say, "Yeah, but I’m working insane hours, and I would do anything to be back here."

Callan Harrington 20:13
Yeah, I’ve heard similar stories from friends in corporate retail. It sounds like an aggressive environment. So, what did you have to do to retain that talent?

Lindsay Fork 20:23
That realization really set my mind on growth. If I wanted the company to grow and be more "professional," I needed to offer more competitive benefits. I’ve always been into functional medicine, mental health, and physical health, and I wanted to make sure that my employees felt supported. Around this time, it was becoming increasingly important for companies to offer work perks. I wanted to create an environment where people wanted to stay. So, we started offering things like health benefits and work perks. We offer the Calm app, and we use an internal social recognition program called Nectar. It’s based on our core values. We have over 75 employees now, and everyone is on Nectar. If someone exhibits a core value, like hardworking, service-minded, or respectful, their coworkers can recognize them and give them Nectar points, which can be redeemed for gift cards or other fun stuff. At Luxe Redux, we have something called a Lavender Sale. Lavender is one of our brand colors, and if you sell a dress, a veil, and one other accessory, like a headpiece or a pair of earrings, you’ve made a Lavender Sale. You get points on Nectar for that. If you have a perfect day and sell to all your brides, you get points. It’s a great culture builder.

Callan Harrington 21:37
It sounds like an amazing culture builder. So, I want to pivot a little and talk about EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) and EO (Entrepreneurs' Organization). You’ve mentioned in articles that these were big turning points for you. Starting with EOS, which is essentially a strategic goal planning and vision board system, what led you to feel like you needed to implement something like this? And what was the impact?

Lindsay Fork 22:05
About 11 years ago, I got involved with an organization called EO (Entrepreneurs' Organization). I was at a wedding vendor function, and I was talking to a fellow business owner about the challenges we were both facing with growth. At the end of the night, she walked me to my car and said, "You really need to join EO." I didn’t know much about it at the time, but I decided to join. In EO, you’re placed in a forum with seven to ten other business owners from different industries. Nobody else was in bridal, but there were real estate developers, medical professionals, and other entrepreneurs. The funny thing is that no matter what industry you’re in, we’re all going through the same stuff. I was the baby of the group, but I learned so much from them over the years. A lot of people in my forum were using EOS in their companies. They’d talk about "rocks," the "vision traction organizer," and the difference between a visionary and an integrator. I quickly realized, "Okay, I’m the visionary." I’m the one with all the ideas and big-picture thinking, but I needed an integrator to help with follow-through and execution.

Callan Harrington 23:14
For those who aren’t familiar, can you explain what an integrator is in the EOS framework?

Lindsay Fork 23:19
Yes, the terminology can get a little confusing, but the integrator is typically your COO (Chief Operating Officer). So, I’m the CEO and visionary, and the integrator is my COO, who handles the day-to-day operations and ensures that all the plans are executed. The implementer, on the other hand, is usually a third-party certified EOS consultant who helps run your meetings and keep you on track. We started using EOS in 2017, and I hired a third-party implementer to guide us through the process. The implementer runs our quarterly meetings and our two-day annual meeting, where we set our goals and priorities for the year. EOS really helped us get organized and gave us a structure to follow.

Callan Harrington 24:01
How has EOS changed the way you run your company?

Lindsay Fork 24:05
It’s been a game-changer. We have a leadership team in place now, and we’re all aligned on our goals and vision. EOS helped us break down our long-term vision into smaller, manageable steps. We have a 10-year vision, 3-year goals, 1-year goals, and then quarterly "rocks" that we focus on. It keeps everyone on the same page and gives us a roadmap to follow. One of the biggest challenges for me as a visionary is letting go of certain things. I’m used to being involved in every little detail, but EOS has helped me delegate more effectively. Our integrator (COO) has taken over a lot of the day-to-day responsibilities, which frees me up to focus on the bigger picture.

Callan Harrington 24:44
Was it hard to let go?

Lindsay Fork 24:47
Yes, it was really hard. It’s like giving up your baby. But EOS has helped me trust my team more. When I know they have the tools and the structure in place to succeed, it’s easier to let go.

Callan Harrington 25:00
That makes total sense. It sounds like EOS has really helped you scale your business in a sustainable way.

Lindsay Fork 25:06
Absolutely. It’s given us a system to follow and external accountability. That’s been key for us, especially as we’ve continued to grow and add new brands under the Luxe Brands umbrella.

Callan Harrington 25:17
You mentioned you started with an implementer but eventually began self-implementing. How did that transition go?

Lindsay Fork 25:23
It went well for a while. After about three or four years, our first implementer moved out west, and we decided to start self-implementing. By that time, we understood the system well enough to run it ourselves. But as we’ve grown and added more brands, I felt like we needed to go back to using a third-party implementer to elevate the system across all of Luxe Brands. So, we hired a new EOS implementer, and it’s been great. We’ve gone through two quarterly meetings with them, and everything is back on track.

Callan Harrington 25:58
Do you feel like it’s been more effective having an outside implementer?

Lindsay Fork 26:03
Yes, I do. When we were self-implementing, we were still making progress, but I think we were just going through the motions a bit. We weren’t challenging each other as much as we could have. Having an outside implementer brings fresh perspectives and helps push us to the next level.

Callan Harrington 26:28
That makes sense. Sometimes it’s hard to challenge yourselves internally without that outside perspective pushing you forward. So you brought on an integrator, which is a big piece of this. Why was that such an important move for you?

Lindsay Fork 26:41
We hired a COO in January, and that person is the integrator for the company. It was probably one of the scariest but most important decisions I’ve made in the last few years. I’d been looking for someone for over a year. You think, "Can I afford this person? What value will they bring to the organization?" I knew they’d bring value, but it’s a critical hire, especially when you’re a visionary like me. You need someone to challenge you, someone who’s going to be by your side and see the company’s growth the way you do. It’s like a marriage, honestly. Age, gender, none of that matters—it’s about the relationship. You’re working so closely together that you need to understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Eight months in, I’d say we’ve had some hard conversations, but those are the ones that get us to the next level. I value that. He’s got a ton of knowledge about the retail world, coming from corporate retail, and while he’s new to bridal, he says he’s having fun.

Callan Harrington 27:41
What’s been the biggest benefit for you since bringing on the COO?

Lindsay Fork 27:46
The biggest benefit is probably something I’m still learning to embrace—letting go of the vine, as Gino Wickman (author of Traction, which outlines the EOS framework) would say. I’ve always wanted to focus on certain aspects of the business, and now I have someone who can take over those areas. But it’s hard when the reality of letting go actually hits. You’ve been involved in everything for so long, and now you have to trust someone else to take care of it.

Callan Harrington 28:16
How do you navigate that letting go process?

Lindsay Fork 28:19
I talk it out. I’m a talker. If I’m going to let go of something, I need to talk to the person I’m handing it over to and understand how they’re going to handle it. It’s like handing over your baby and saying, "Are you going to take care of this for me? Tell me how you’re going to do it." If they explain it to me and I feel confident, that’s when I can let go.

Callan Harrington 28:41
Yeah, I struggle with that, too. I find myself hanging onto things I don’t even like doing.

Lindsay Fork 28:48
Exactly! That’s the messed-up part. You don’t even enjoy those tasks, but you hold onto them because it’s what you know.

Callan Harrington 28:56
Let’s talk about the Ohio Bridal Outlet. You launched that recently, right?

Lindsay Fork 29:00
Yes, we opened the Ohio Bridal Outlet about three months ago.

Callan Harrington 29:04
What was the genesis for that?

Lindsay Fork 29:06
I’ve wanted to open an outlet for a couple of years now. During some of our EOS meetings, it would always come up as an issue to discuss (what we call "ID"), but it would get pushed to be a long-term issue ("LTI"). My team would look at me like, "Okay, Lindsay, you have another idea for a new store, but we can’t handle it right now." Inside, I knew it would work, but we were growing so fast with La Jeune and Luxe Redux that we just didn’t have the capacity to open another store. But this year was the year to do it. The real catalyst was our inventory. Luxe Redux was doing well, but we were bursting at the seams with dresses. We had so much excess inventory from stores all over the country, including some international stores and designers. We were sending some dresses to our charitable partners, which we still do, but a lot of these dresses were in amazing condition, and I knew there was a huge market for brides who want to spend under $1,000 on a dress.

Callan Harrington 30:05
So, the outlet caters to that budget-conscious bride?

Lindsay Fork 30:07
Exactly. We offer amazing dresses at a reduced price, but it’s a different experience from our other stores. It’s more casual—no appointments are necessary, brides can just walk in off the street and browse around. We carry bridesmaids’ dresses and occasion dresses as well, all priced under $999.

Callan Harrington 30:24
It seems like each new business you start strengthens the others. Is that right?

Lindsay Fork 30:28
Yes, absolutely. Each brand builds on the others. For example, when we’re dealing with minimums at La Jeune Marie, if we have extra inventory, it goes to Luxe Redux. If there’s still inventory left, it moves to the Ohio Bridal Outlet. We’re able to hedge our risk by managing inventory across all three brands.

Callan Harrington 30:48
That’s really smart. What comes next for you?

Lindsay Fork 30:52
I’m excited to continue growing the company. We’re expanding into some cities that are farther away from where we’ve traditionally been, and that’s exciting. We’re growing our management team, our stylist team, and I’m proud to be building careers for people in the bridal industry. I want to create a different type of retail company where people can have long-term careers. Personally, I’m also pursuing a passion for functional medicine. I’m currently studying to be a functional medicine coach, and I’ll graduate in February 2025.

Callan Harrington 31:24
Why am I not surprised to hear that?

Lindsay Fork 31:27
[Laughs] I love learning, and I’m squeezing it in somehow!

Callan Harrington 31:32
Lindsay, last question: If you could have a conversation with your younger self, what advice would you give?

Lindsay Fork 31:38
I’d tell myself to focus on growth and not worry too much about setbacks. Learn from them, but don’t stew on them. Don’t spend too much time talking about things that you can’t change. Just keep forging ahead.

Callan Harrington 31:52
Did setbacks get easier for you over time?

Lindsay Fork 31:55
Yes. The more setbacks I experience, the more I realize that you get past them. Now, I look at things more logically rather than emotionally. I even tell my kids about the 5-5-5 rule: Is this going to matter in 5 minutes, 5 weeks, or 5 years? It helps me gauge how upset I should be about something.

Callan Harrington 32:15
That’s a great way to look at it. Early on, every setback felt like the end of the world for me. But eventually, you realize that you’ll get through it.

Lindsay Fork 32:26
Exactly. You learn to take things in stride.

Callan Harrington 32:29
Lindsay, this has been great. Thank you so much for coming on today!

Lindsay Fork 32:32
Thank you! I had a lot of fun.

Callan Harrington 32:35
I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Lindsay Fork. I loved hearing how she turned challenges in one business into opportunities for new ones. If you want to learn more about Lindsay, you can find her on LinkedIn—check the show notes for details. And if you enjoyed this episode, you can find me on LinkedIn as well. I’d love to hear from you. If you really want to support the show, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Thanks for listening, everyone, and I’ll see you next week.