Women in Leadership Series: Rayna Rokicki
Meet my friend, Rayna - an amazing podcast host, producer and coach-extraordinaire.
Plus, she’s an amazing wife and mama to boot.
Soak up her wisdom and learn how she manages it all:
Tell us a bit more about you and what you do for a living.
As a dedicated podcast coach and producer, I specialize in helping women entrepreneurs unleash their stories, expertise, and visions to captivate audiences.
I coach women on how to launch their podcasts in alignment with their business goals. I used to exclusively produce podcasts but saw a growing need for podcast coaching as clients were seeking me out as a podcast expert to guide them in developing and growing their shows.
I am currently developing podcast launch cohorts where aspiring women podcasters can develop their shows under my expert eye with the support and camaraderie of fellow female podcasters.
Did you always know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?
Honestly, entrepreneurship was never on my radar but when I look back on my career there was a natural pathway leading to this moment. My background is in communications, anthropology, and dance. I’ve always been passionate about telling women’s stories and teaching comes second nature to me. My pivot toward the podcasting space and amplifying women’s voices seems almost preordained when I look back at it as it combines all my strengths and passions into one career.
It’s a bit magical when the universe leads you down a path that is perfect for you but not on your radar before that moment.
What led you to start your own business?
My business came about as a way to fill a much-needed void. There were no other podcast producers who focused specifically on amplifying the voices of women thought leaders, especially women from the Midwest. I decided I wanted to be that person and hence the Ladies First Digital Media Company was born.
How do you manage being a wife, mom and business owner?
It takes work. I use a goal-setting framework from Jillian Johnsrud that helps me stay focused from month to month. The power of this framework lies in the fact that you are allowed to let things drift from your focus for a month, to accomplish something else that is a bigger priority at that time. It’s not possible to do all the things well all the time, so you have to let something go. Learning this lesson and acting on it has been invaluable for me!
Do you believe work/life balance exists? What do you do to manage both?
Work-life balance doesn’t exist. There is a work-life wobble though. Different seasons throughout the year and in life require you to focus more on one area or the other. I’ve learned to embrace the lean and don’t feel guilty about it. It all balances out in the end.
What are some of the biggest challenges female business owners face and what advice do you have to overcome them?
Confidence and owning your expertise are two of the biggest challenges women face as entrepreneurs.
We know more in our areas of expertise than we think we do. Men have no problem being confident in certain areas especially when they don’t know it all, we need to embody that mindset too as we are just as capable if not more so. As with anything in life, we need to be open to the learning process which includes mistakes, trial and error. Show your vulnerabilities…this makes us more human, more relatable.
What’s one thing you wish you would have known earlier in your career?
The importance of pausing and pivoting. When I first started, I thought my path was set and it would never change. I now know how wrong that thinking is. When you are not sure what to do next in your business, pause for a bit, and let things settle. Your woman’s intuition will take over and guide you on what is next.
What advice would you offer the next generation of female business owners?
Dive into learning and acting upon that learning. Too often people get overwhelmed by the learning and do nothing with all that knowledge. Each time you learn something new for your business, put that into practice right away. Don’t let that wisdom get buried.
