25 | Lessons from a Top Social Seller, Jackie Richards, Part 2: Burnout, Taking a Break and Staying Focused

This week's episode is a continued conversation between Jackie and Heather surrounding utilizing social media for business and it's emotional and mental impact. Hear Jackies heartfelt story as she relates how social media impacted her mental health in 2020. They also discuss how to know when to take a break and avoid burnout as well as touching on working with multiple network marketing companies. 

Episode Highlights:

・Continued conversation with Jackie Richards a top social seller

・Hear Jackies heartfelt story as she relates how social media impacted her mental health

・Learn when it's ok to take a break and avoid burnout

・How does the addiction aspect play into using social media for your business

・How social media can impact your mental health

・How network marketing can provide consistent income without consistent work

・Stop comparing yourself to others, it steals joy

・Jackies thoughts on working with two network marketing companies

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Transcript:

Hey friends. And welcome back to the Scale Without Social podcast. And if you've been listening to the last four, maybe five episodes and some of the interviews with part one, my friend, Jackie Richards last week, and Bob Heilig, before that, and maybe you checked out my series on social media being an addiction and several different strategies that you can take to leverage or choose to not leverage social media for your business. 

And as we're continuing Jackie's interview today, we're going to talk about several things that I think will really hit home. For those of you who are building on social media. And you're listening to this because you either have people on your team who maybe aren't quite duplicating the success that you have had personally. Or maybe you secretly want to be an online influencer, like Jackie. And you want to know how to do it the right way and you want to do it by avoiding things like burnout and setting some clear boundaries for your business. And also just, you want some tips and tricks on how to do it right. 

Well, Jackie brings the gold today and she shares her story of how she hit a wall and took an entire month off of her business. And spoiler alert, it actually made her business thrive for several reasons. But also she when she came back she had more clarity than ever that it's leaning into her passion and her purpose and taking advantage of short form video as in reels that have really helped take her business to the next level. And that has duplicated well for her team as well. So cannot wait for y'all to listen to Jackie today and let's dive in!

Heather: Okay. So again, this is part two of my interview with Jackie Richards. And if you haven't listened to part one, I would definitely go check that out. It's not a super long episode. So go back to episode 24, to hear more of the backstory of Jackie Richards and how she has built a massive business by leaning into her passion and purpose. 

So we're going to pick back up with the next question in my interview with Jackie here we go.

I do wanna touch on something kind of, kind of hard because it's, I know it's something that I have seen people experience and I am so grateful that you have offered to share this, but let's talk a little bit about burnout. Because I know that that could be a real thing for ambitious, driven entrepreneurs on any business model, right? Or any platform. But I think specific to trying to build a business on social media, I think I see where oftentimes people can easily get burned out. And, and would you mind sharing your story?

Jackie: Yeah, absolutely. So I think you've nailed it on the head by saying that like, you know, there can be an addiction being formed here on a social media.

I mean, I think most people, whether they're in network marketing or not, or own an Etsy shop or a realtor or not. Whether they have a career on their phone or not. Most of us have an addiction to the notifications to looking to scrolling, to just mindlessly grabbing your phone in the doctor's office. And, you know, I don't even know, like, I'll be like making dinner on my phone looking at Pinterest and then I'll just pop over to Instagram, like as the water's boiling. Like it's just really like a bad addiction, anyways. So, but, you know, sprinkle in that I get money from this addiction. It, it like 10xs it. 

And so as I experienced a lot of growth through social media, I equally experienced, you know, a heightened addiction, a heightened toxicity to being on my phone. And then pair that with, I'm not sure what came first, the chicken or the egg with me, but I got a hormonal imbalance. I'm not sure if it was from working so hard or if, you know, I, you know, had a hormonal imbalance and it exacerbated my panic attacks and anxiety. But I did develop a lot of panic attacks in 2021. And, you know, I don't wanna like completely throw it all on it being from Instagram or, you know, my team or network marketing. But it just got really bad. It got really, really bad. And I eventually, and when it gets so bad to where it's crippling and you're, you're nauseated, you can't, you know, do anything. Of course you're not gonna create content. 

And I tried for a while though. I mean, if you guys scroll back on my stuff from, from November, 2021 to December, January, February, March. Like I was suffering, literally in the throws of it, but still posting a reel a day, still trying to demonstrate for my team. Cuz yeah that voice in my head, my team will do what I do. Keep showing up. 

So I, but I was having crippling anxiety and panic attacks throughout all of that. And finally it just was way too much. And I was like, we've we just gotta stop. You gotta stop the drip, you know? And so I turned off all of social media for about six weeks in March of this year.

And that was hard. That was really hard. 

Heather: Wow. Yeah. And so that looked like, did you delete the apps or what, what did that look like specifically to take that detox for that time period? 

Jackie: I didn't delete the app, but for whatever reason, I had this like thing in my head that I just was done with it. Like, it was really just like I'm done.

And so I didn't even like get on though. Does that make sense? Like, yeah, I just didn't check messages. Like, I just, it was whatever it's just, I had, like, I was like almost very apathetic towards the place. I was like, no, like, this is it's literally not serving me. So I just got off and I didn't do anything with it.

I just spent time with my family and I went to therapy and I started taking care of myself. By taking care of myself, I mean, like I was going to yoga every day. I was eating better. I was just kind of being Jackie outside of network marketing and kind of seeing that she was also of value. 

Which that's a rabbit hole. Is like outside of like who you are on social media and in your company. Even if I had that stripped from me, like I hold value. I hold water, like as a person. So just feeling that. And so, yeah, I discovered boundaries and then when I felt ready to come back, I came back and I came back nice and slow. And now I'm just a lot more cognizant of like the time that I spend on there.

And when it feels icky and gross. I'm done. And yeah, so it was just a recalibration moment. And up until that, that huge breakdown of mine. I told you this, Heather, that I would have probably about every six weeks I would have a breakdown though. Like a mini one, like I would take three days and be like, no one talk to me. Like I'm off the app, I'm dying my hair pink.

You know, everyone just leave me alone. And I thought that was kind of normal to do that, to just be like, oh yeah, breakdown, it's fine. Then we'll be back on Monday. But it took kind of like a full blown shutdown to really evaluate how I wanted to keep going. So now I just, I am much more into content creation.

Like I just, I do the things that really bring me joy. And for me, I do enjoy, like, even though it is a toxic addiction and it turned me into this monster. And that sounds crazy, right, I know. But I do like it though. Like I do like the impact that I make. I do like the conversations I have. I do like I have so much fun with it.

Like I really do love making videos. So I do that. I do more of that and less, and I guess I just adjusted my expectations and my thought process of like what I needed to be for other people online. Wow. 

Heather: No. Well, first of all, thank you for sharing. I know that's never easy to, you know, really kind of hit the hard stuff really head on. But I know that you were bold enough to share it, even though I didn't actually see it all myself since I was on social media, but no, yeah, you're fine.

Shared this with your, with your following, right? I mean, you yeah. Told your story in a very vulnerable and honest way, right? Did you tell before you took that break or was it after, what did that look like? 

Jackie: Yeah, I did. I let him know. I'm just like, I haven't been well for a while.

And I just was like, I'm not well, like, I'm just gonna be honest. Like what you guys see me doing screenshotting all the calls I do every day. Like I used to wear it like a badge of honor, like I'm so busy, I'm so busy. Let me post that out on social media, cuz I just wanted to be like, again, I wanna model it.

Yeah. But then it's like, it's so crazy because it, at what point does it become toxic? And at what point is it inspiring? I don't know. I truly still don't know on social media and in network marketing in general. Same thing too with, like, leaderboards and like who's selling what. Like, I even asked my team the other day, I was like, does it inspire you or not inspire you?

And it was like, not really cut down the middle, but there was a lot of people that were like, it's not good for me. But then there were so many people it's so inspiring. I think that's really hard with what we do is. Where is that line? I don't know. Honestly, I don't know where the line is, but I just knew that where I was feeling, I'm like, we're in the toxic line. We're in the red.

Heather: You chose you and your own mental health and, you know, self awareness to be able to do what

you had to do. 

Jackie: Yeah. 

Heather: Regardless of what impact that would have. Right? 

Jackie: Right. Yeah. 

Heather: I, again, we haven't talked about this, but it wouldn't shock me if, since you've been back and in, you know, sharing that super vulnerable story, not to build a following. Cause that obviously was not your goal to be transparent and doing it to then, you know, connect with people and, you know, build trust, all that.

But, I guarantee you that was the end result because other people are feeling that way too. And, and you and I both know that the hard things that we go through in life, they are for us. They're meant to serve us, and to help us grow into who we're meant to be. But, also to help us serve other people.

So I'm curious if your business, since then, now that you have shared that vulnerable aspect of your story, but also now that you're kind of back better exemplifying the things that light you up and, you know, setting boundaries. What has that done to your business? What has it done to your following?

Jackie: Yeah, I was kind of, it was like a little bit of the slap in my face to see the month that I took off was like my highest month ever. But honest to goodness, and I think that was a Testament to me. One, my ego was like, well, what the heck?

When I go missing, everyone's fine. Like, I wanted to be the hero of my story. And I think that is like a lot of like Enneagram threes and Enneagram eights. We do have a lot riding in that we need something, and I thought, you know, oh, well I'm gone, but I just experienced my biggest month. And that was a Testament to me of like, yeah, Jackie, that's why you did network marketing though. Like, remember that it's not all about how hard you show up reflects in your paycheck. It really is like, I spent years and years and years and park dates upon park dates giving makeovers to get to this point where I don't have to work myself to the bone and have panic attacks after every realigned posting to see an income of that.

So again, everyone like being an influencer and being viral is not the same as network marketing. 

Heather: Yes. 

Jackie: So I just want to like, again, normalize that I had somehow started to believe that though. I didn't even know how I landed there. I was like, Alice in Wonderland. I'm like, what is this weird place I'm at?

So yeah, my highest month ever was the month that I took off. And then in that same month, I still had stayed on par for the course with my own personal sales. I was gone for four weeks and yet I saw my own personal sales did not experience a huge dip.

And I was like, what is this? And I was like, but that's the residualness of the trust that I had built. And part of why, you know, I still am standing on my platform that I am because I'm like, well, it is still cool then. Like, it is cool. Like Instagram did help me, even though it was part of like my demise. I was like, well, it gave me this though.

It gave me, yeah. I don't even know. It's all very weird. 

Heather: No, you know, and it makes sense, and I love it. You've done a really beautiful job of explaining how social selling and network marketing are a little different. Of course, I did a whole episode on that too. But they serve each other in that, unlike a traditional online influencer or someone who's doing straight affiliate marketing, like L'ange. Cuz I did L'ange too and I sold a bunch of hair products.

But the minute that I stopped creating content, there was no residual or little to no residual. I actually got a text from someone the other day that was like, can I have your L'ange link? And I was like, I don't even think I have the L'ange link. I dunno if I have the L'ange link, you know?

Jackie: Right. 

Heather: But anyway, but like with you know, my Seint business, I had the same experiences as you in taking my business off of social media. You know, my business has thrived, and I've had the highest best months of my five and a half years in business in doing that. And it's because I've built that residual income that was based off of the connections and relationships, which I've been very transparent.

Hey, some of them were built on social media. Most of them were built on social media. And so I think that you're exactly right. It can be a very beautiful thing for many people, but I think you do have to kind of get a hold of what it's doing for your mental health. 

Jackie: You have to, you almost have to do like daily audits.

I feel like that is maybe something that I am a little bit more aware of is because that line is so blurred again. Like, are we in the toxic? Are we in the red? And some days, you know, you do inch on over there. So, I think you just have to, if you're someone that is still utilizing social media, it is very much so like that didn't feel good.

Okay. We're not doing that anymore. Or, wow, we spent maybe 30 minutes too long "engaging." I'm using air quotes, you guys, like engaging or scrolling, you know? And just being like that didn't feel good. I'm not doing that. But, I just am very aware that like what does feel good for me is making reels and showing up on my stories.

And then some of the other stuff I do outsource. I'm like that's not my cup of tea. 

Heather: No, I'm a huge believer in outsourcing and my most recent awesome coaches, Michelle Myers and Summer Phoebus from, She Works His Way, they actually did a podcast on their platform talking about what fills you and what drains you. And so for you, content creation fills you and other things in other aspects of your business that you are outsourcing smartly drain you. For me, it's the opposite. The content creation drains me.

 You know, and so like, I mean, not that I can't outsource content creation, but content creation is something that you have to do if you're gonna build on social media as an influencer or as a social selling network marketer. 

Content creation is key. And so, you know, you have to have that passion for it.

So well, man, there's so much good stuff with this. So what would you say, you know, what is some of the biggest advice? Cause I know people who haven't followed you will go follow you after this, just in hearing your story. But what are some of your top tips if someone has said, yes, I wanna build on social media. Whether it's network marketing or whatever that looks like. I wanna build a social media following, but I wanna do it in a way that creates boundaries like healthy boundaries to prevent things like burnout. What would you say are a few tips that you could share for how to do that the right way?

Jackie: So the first thing I wanna say to someone that decides that if you're gonna go do it, if you're like, I want to try out this social media thing. I just want you to normalize it. It is going to be a lot harder than you think it is, like, think about like it being really hard. And I want you to think about it being harder.

And I know that that sounds like really like, ugh, like, are you sure you wanna do this? But like I want people to know that. I'm so glad that network marketing is getting better at like giving disclosures and saying. And we're not just doing like, just post what you love and get sales. Like that is like the biggest bull load. Like what? But like that was perpetuated for a while.

And I feel like you should know that it will be hard. That's my biggest tip is just normalize that and get comfy with it. So then tip number two is, I would probably say, follow not everyone in your company. Like go do what I did in 2016 and look up other company top earners. Look at other people in other companies that are doing this so that you can one quit like rubber necking at everyone and being like, oh, my sideline sister's been doing this as long as I have, but she's further along than I have. Like, there's so much toxicity in comparing people that go to your same high school. Like being like, she's telling my boyfriend, no, go look at other high schools. Go look at like people that are popular at other places.

And I find that that's really good for me. So right now I go through about half. I feel like once a year I do this. I knew everyone in the company, like everyone in the Seint business. And for me, it's the best thing. Like you're muted. I don't even know what you're doing. I'm doing me, and I'm following other people in other companies and other content creators that inspire me.

So I'd really encourage you to look and find other people so that you're not so down on yourself when you compare your timeline to someone else's. What's gonna happen is we don't know how well you're going to do. We don't know that in network marketing because it is all dependent on a couple of factors here. One, relationship equity.

I learned that from Bob. You know, I don't know if you are a Heather Burge who had a boutique standing in a cute Georgia town, and you have friends that like you already and are going to respond to you when you do a Facebook launch party. Or if you've been hiding out for five years. I'm not sure, but either way you both can do it.

It's just, you can't compare yourself because you don't know someone else's relationship equity. Two, you don't know how well someone's going to do when they get on social media. Are they going to be a Camille Clauson where they're just freaking funny, and they can just rattle off stuff and just get talking and they're chatty and it's amazing.

Or is there some more introverted things there? So it's just, you don't know what's gonna happen until you kind of get out there on the ball field. And the biggest thing you can do is mute all the players as fast as possible. Like y'all wanna go follow everyone in your company. And I would say pick one or two.

Pick one or two to follow, and then let the rest be other people in the same industry as you so you can get inspired. Then three is I would just say do the things that count the most. Meaning a lot of people will post, I don't know, this is against kind of things that you go for, but you have to understand that there are big rocks and little rocks when it comes to social media.

And to me, if I was trying to go on social media and do this, I would choose the big rocks that will actually move my business. Which right now it is undeniable that short form video is a massive rock. It is the thing that's going to, if you shoved it off a cliff and it fell into a lake, gonna have the most ripple effect the most exposure. So I personally would get off your private Facebook page. Quit just posting in a V I P page. I would stop doing like secret work. And I would be like, you know what, I'm gonna go do the things that create the most ripple effect. And that would be short form video. So again, your Instagram stories are not the biggest ripple effect.

That's not the largest rock. So if you're spending a lot of time on your Instagram stories and frustrated with results that's it's a closed circle. It's literally a closed circle. Whereas short form video is opened up. And if you're gonna go on social media to do this, let's go and do it in that way. In an open profile, in a place where you have the most exposure. It's terrifying as hell.

There's a lot of fear there, but that's where it's gonna count the most and hold the most impact. So those are three tips. I ain't got five. I got three tips. 

Heather: I love it. Well if people want more, they can just go follow you and watch all of your amazing short term videos because you so much gold you've already shared. And I know that you'll continue you to share that. So I have one more really tough question. 

Jackie: Yeah. okay. 

Heather: What's your take on people doing more than one network marketing company or using other network marketing. I know I'm bringing it. I'm bringing it. 

Jackie: We're just gonna go there. Okay. Honestly, it's like this is my thought process here. It is I love and respect you no matter what, like you can totally do what you want.

However, and what I'm about to say is an opinion. It does not mean that it is gospel. I have seen people doing two companies work when they have a massive amount of relationship equity, and when they have a lot of trust. AKA, we see a lot of influencers are able to demonstrate this behavior. And so what's hard though in network marketing is sometimes that influencer is your leader. But you come in here with your grandma won't even buy from you . And if you find that you are that person that's trying to do two companies, because you've seen it demonstrated, I would suggest maybe trying to just share one product for 90 days.

Like yes, sure stay signed up with your back office fees of the other company. But maybe see what happens to one business if you were to go 90 days with just one product because we don't see the iceberg that's happening for that successful person who may be demonstrating. Well, they share L'ange, and then they also share this amazing, you know hair shampoo, and then they also do this.

And it's like, yes, but when we all go in and try and do that, it can get really frustrating because you don't have the years and years and years of social media equity that someone else has built up. So my opinion is I wouldn't do two companies. I just haven't seen it work out great. I've seen it actually perpetuates a lot more frustration unless, of course, the person is a unicorn personality or they have a ton of influencer energy behind their accounts. So that's just mine. But again, I want people to be happy. I want them to be happy and if you cannot not share about the powder that you drink, that makes you not have headaches, but you also still wanna share about your skincare.

Then I say, go for it. Like, you know, at the end of the day, I, I shared this with an artist of mine that I onboarded that does two companies and. She, I said, you know, I want you to be happy and it depends on your goals too. So you have to kind of ask yourself, what's your goal. If your goal is to sell $500 or make $500 a month, then do it like live it up.

Like just whatever. But if you have this end goal of having a large end impact, having a large team and like, et cetera. Like I would say let's dial it in, in one place. But if it is just to kind of have fun and share what you want, do it. But you have to maybe ask yourself, what are your expectations here? As you share two products.

Heather: I love that. So, and I totally agree with you to each their own. And there's not, you know, I know you're like me in that we love a lot of people that do choose to do that because they are they're, they're amazing. 

Jackie: I can think of like 15 people right now that I know they've bringing home the cash, but guess what?

When I go look at their iceberg, There is a ton of freaking work that they have done to foster a community that will buy from them for two companies. But the problem is that when it, when people come in and see that demonstrated, they don't have that equity. 

Heather: Yeah. 

Jackie: And it just makes me sad because it breaks my heart that they think they're gonna do it the same way that X, Y, Z influenced their person and said company is doing it.

And it's like, okay, but then you've gotta be okay with maybe three years of grunt work before you get to their level. 

Heather: Totally. 

And I think it does come down to that residual income built through duplication and through exemplifying the actions that really anybody can take versus exemplifying the actions that are probably gonna create failure in a lot of people.

And if that creates personal success and joy and impact for you, that's awesome. Like that's, that's exactly what they should focus on, but they can't necessarily have the expectation that they're also gonna have that residual growth that leads to, you know, making an income from others results, essentially.

Aside from tied to your own personal effort. So thank you for, you know, answering that. That was like a tough question. 

Jackie: It makes anyone happy, if you're listening and you do, you do two companies and it makes you happy. Then like, keep on keeping on, but like check yourself. Are you really happy? Are you really taking home the bacon or is it creating more distraction than success?

Heather: Yeah, for sure, because it is it's difficult even as a traditional business owner, trying to do that. When I had my boutique and this, I never said I would stop doing that boutique, but the minute that I felt that freedom of what it could look like to just go on and focus on one thing, it was a game changer for my business, absolute game changer.

And so yes, it can add to the confusion and the distraction in your mind. So I love that you're inviting people to get a little bit more introspective of what it looks like for them.

Jackie: Just get curious about it. 

Heather: Curious. Love it. Oh my gosh. Well, Jackie, you are amazing. I think I could probably talk to you for hours.

In fact, we, need to get together and just spend time together. I'm so glad that we were able to do it here, live on this podcast to where people can, can get a glimpse of what it looks like for two people who have very different strategies to be so aligned on how to, you know, build the business the right way. Whichever way that you choose to do it.

So I'm just grateful for you as a friend and, and for everything that you shared today. 

Jackie: Oh, thank you. I was, I love, I love chatting with you. You're a breath of fresh air. It's the best.

Heather: Ditto darling. 

Well, if people wanna follow you, I know they can go to at the Jackie Richards. J-A-C-K-I-E R-I-C-H-A-R-D-S. Right? 

Jackie: Yeah. 

Heather: Again, I just so appreciate all the value that you've given and we'll continue to give, not just here, but just out into the world. It, it is so special to a lot of us. 

So love you, Jackie.

Jackie: Okay. Thank you, Heather.