So Many Plates… So Little Time? Is it too late to start something new with Shonna Jordan

Kathi: As promised, I am back with my girlfriend Shonna Jordan, and I'm so excited to have you on the show. We've known each other for years. We go way back. And as I explained in the intro, Shonna, you're an amazing marketing wizard. So let's talk about how you learned all this stuff. How did you get so good?

Shonna: Okay. Well, it started in college. I got a degree in marketing communications and then got a job in corporate. And as I'm in corporate, I'm expanding what I want to do, and I started to get bored marketing the same company over and over and over again, trying to find new ways, new approaches, new channels to work on. And we're talking years ago, before social media, I'm just saying. So after that, I talked with the CFO there, and she's like, I'm about ready to bounce. Can you help me with brand development? And I'm like, absolutely. So she ended up being my first side hustle. And then as time went on, 9/11 happened, and a week before Christmas in 2001, I got laid off, and the company decided they couldn't survive. So I started Jordan & Jordan Marketing.

Kathi: Yay.

Shonna: Yes. Exactly. And I thought, I'm going to bring this polished corporate look and strategies to the small business owner and entrepreneur. And that's what I built it on. I wanted to help entrepreneurs and business owners, well, entrepreneurs sometimes become business owners, you know what I mean, and bring that strategy to them.

Kathi: I think that's crazy that your CFO asked you to brand her. She knew you're so good at branding. You got your first gig without even trying.

Shonna: Exactly. It was amazing. And as I started my business, I had one client, because once brand development is done, it's done, and then they take it and run with it. People come back if they want to talk about marketing strategies or materials development or that kind of thing, but for the most part, once the brand development is done, if you know what you're doing, go for it. So then I had one client at the beginning of 2002 and have been doing it ever since.

Kathi: Now, when did you start Good Ol' Gals? This is how I met you. What, 18 years ago? Tell me about the origination of GOG and how that happened.

Shonna: Sure. So Good Ol' Gals is our answer to the good old boys network. And how that came to be was I was out there doing what I was telling my clients to do. Network, network, network. Grassroots marketing works. You know that. Meet people, build relationships, business follows. So I was with a group, a business-to-business group, and the leader of that group said, hey, I think I want to start shifting. And so myself and three other women, including that leader, got together and started, not bitching, but we were a little complaining about what was available to us. And one was even the leader of a group. She was like, I'm not happy with this. I want to network with women. I want to support women. And so we confabbed that day back in late '07, and then we had the first meeting December 7th of '07. I'll never forget it: 7/07. So then there were some things I didn't know about, because there were some things that we had talked about, like exclusivity, and I was still growing my business. I was only five and a half years into my business, and I was still in that growth phase, having made it past the two-year and then the five-year mark for new businesses. I'm like, I don't want to be competing. And they were saying they wanted to be inclusive, and I'm like, I've got to sit on that. Well, I showed up to that first meeting December 7th, and then the woman who had become my business partner said, well, I'm going to get rolling with this. You think about it. And so then I went, you know what? Get your big girl panties on. We're here to collaborate, not compete. We're here to lift each other up and support each other. So we partnered, and then I ended up taking it over. Unfortunately, she passed away, but she had already handed it over to me. We had already done all the conversion and everything. So that got started because we were challenged to find something that was fun, that broke the mold, because the mold out there, Kathi, it was sad. It was dismal.

We're here to collaborate, not compete. We're here to lift each other up and support each other.

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Kathi: Exactly.

Shonna: So here we are. It's a fantastic networking group. There are going to be franchises in other places. Here in San Diego we have two chapters. There are more chapters to come, but it's called the Good Ol' Gals Network, and it's fantastic because, like you said, it's inclusive. You can have other organizers. I don't care, because guess what? We all do different things, and we overlap, and we can share when we have abundance and we can ask when we have needs.

Kathi: So I love the women's collaboration idea, and I think you were really a front runner. Now there's a lot of women's networking, but there's still nothing as good as Good Ol' Gals, in my opinion.

Shonna: You know, that is true. I have seen other organizations pop up. Nobody can duplicate GOG. They can make it fun. They can try, which is great. They can do socials, they can do all of that, embrace it. But with me at the helm, providing all of the graphics, the attention to detail, the outreach, the way we communicate with women, I like to say we have fun and business gets done.

Kathi: Yeah. And that's the truth of it. And you folks listening do not know Shonna, but Shonna is a powerhouse, and she's so extremely organized and so detail oriented that every single meeting is completely orchestrated. You wouldn't even know it, because you're just having fun and eating lunch and rocking and rolling, and you have no idea what goes on behind the scenes. But it's very well structured, which I very much appreciate, being a professional organizer. Although it doesn't feel like it.

Shonna: It doesn't feel like that. But if I took all the attention to detail away, people would be like, what's going on? Because it's there. We have themes, we do all of that. You anticipate it, you have this excitement, and sometimes you don't see that this color matches that color and that the front of the room is on point, on theme. A lot of people don't necessarily see that until it's gone, and then they're like, oh, that makes a difference. So we're still upleveling too, Kathi. We've got a new thing we're doing this month to kick off the new year. So we'll see. Fingers crossed that it works, because I really want to provide an event experience, not the same old networking meeting. It's more of an event, and it's an experience.

Kathi: Well, you're already doing that. So upleveling, I cannot wait. I cannot wait. So I know what your unique gifts are to the world, but what would you consider your dharma? What's the unique thing that you bring to the world?

Shonna: Well, interestingly, we just talked about one of the things, and that is my unparalleled attention to detail. Someone on my leadership team actually called it layered. The attention to detail is absolutely layered. So that's one thing. And then obviously I'm creative. But the cool thing is, a lot of people ask me why my marketing agency is Jordan & Jordan. Is there another Jordan? I'm like, no. It's me. It's my right brain and my left brain. So that's one of the huge unique gifts that I bring, because I can come up with a logical process to facilitate a recall for your product, and then create the materials and the site and all of the things that have to go with that. Or brand you, and then talk about strategies and what you're saying. So it's that twofold thing.

Kathi: Which is very helpful for anybody who's thinking, oh, I don't even know what my identity is. I don't know what my brand is. I don't really like my colors. Someone made it for me. You're the person to call on to put that whole package together.

Shonna: 100%. For sure.

Kathi: So if someone was starting out a business and they were given some identity and they're not really resonating with it, what type of advice would you give them, or where would they start?

Shonna: Well, first of all, one of the biggest mistakes that a lot of people starting out make is that they do not check all the different places when they just named their business. So make sure that you have the .com, not a .net. If you can't get the .com, I really highly recommend moving it. Check the US Patent and Trademark Office. Is it a federally registered trademark? Then also check with your local county for fictitious business names. Is it available there? So all of that, from a naming standpoint, that's the biggest mistake. But if all of that fits, and they have this identity and they're just not happy with it, I would approach it from why. Why are you not happy with this? And then we can just do a brand refresh. Maybe we keep elements, depending on how long they've been in business. If they've been established for two or more years with that brand, then the refresh would just be a little bit of a facelift. If they've only been in business for six months or less than a year, then I would say let's just redo it, so that you're happy. I like to use this analogy, and you probably appreciate it: your brand is like your favorite sweater. You wear your favorite sweater all the time, or your favorite jacket all the time. And if you're not happy with it, if it's not your favorite, you are not going to feel good about yourself, and you're not going to feel good about introducing your business to your ideal client.

Your brand is like your favorite sweater.

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Kathi: Spot on. Spot on. What I'm always amazed at about you is how you come up with these one-liners for people and their business. You've got the catchy one-liner, and I can tell when someone's been Shonna Jordan-ed when they stand up in the networking group. I'm like, ah, that sounds like Shonna. I don't know how you do it, but you do.

Shonna: It's just a unique gift. Seriously, I get these immediate downloads. I have to talk to the person and hear them talk and ask them what their clients say, and then I go, what about this? And it just happens. It doesn't take too long for it to start happening, which I'm very blessed with. I'm blessed to have that gift.

Kathi: To be able to listen and to be able to hear it at the same time. That's fantastic. Okay, so the whole podcast is about how we've all been through the wringer. We've all had ups and downs and highs and lows. So talk to me about one of your low points, what happened and how you came out of it.

Shonna: Well, that's an interesting question for where I am right now. In April of 2025, in a compressed period of time, life got really loud. It was like the universe was going, here you go. Try this. Here's another test. Here's another test. Here's another test. I was the marketing consultant for an emergency water rescue device and then became a partner, and then in April we discovered a recall was necessary. That was my reference earlier. I had to create the process by which this would be most cost-effective and work. And three weeks after we discovered it, he passed away, and he was the inventor of the device. So now I find myself trying to do a corporate takeover, and then I had to travel at the beginning of May for that business. My sister turned a milestone birthday. She'll shoot me if I say it. And so I was helping make that special for her. And then I also got the opportunity to do an exhibit at the Sublime Life Sobriety Festival, and that's another whole endeavor that I'm working on as well. And so I'm like, yes, I'm going to take it. So now I'm hustling, and meanwhile still keeping all the other stuff going. I'm sure I'm preaching to the choir, because I'm sure we've all had moments like that. It just unloaded. Oh, and sorry, I missed it: I did a pop-up event for my fifth anniversary of not consuming alcohol. I did that on June 16th. And then by the end of June, early July, I'm diagnosed with LADA, which is late-onset autoimmune diabetes in adults. It's not type two, it's type one. And that was the worst eight weeks of my life, until we got the treatment plan dialed in. I get choked up when I talk about it, because one of the things that happened during this time was my vision got so blurry I couldn't work, and after a month I was low, so low. And I was also grieving the loss of carbohydrates, adjusting. So there was loss upon loss and grief upon grief and hustle upon hustle. I think part B of your question was how did I get out of that?

Kathi: Yeah. Because it was a lot. I watched you go through all this, and it was so much. I'm like, I know she's going to come back. She's going to rise out of it. But man, you did have a lot put at you at the same time. So let's hear the story about that.

Shonna: Well, one of the things that I encourage, that I had to remind myself, is to surround yourself with people who support you and care about you, and don't be afraid to ask for help. That was the hardest thing, because I would classify myself as a hyper-independent professional female. Go, go. And when you get a setback like this, you really have to draw upon the support of others and ask for help. So even that made me feel a little down, having to do that. I prided myself on it, which is silly. It's silly to pride yourself on being able to do everything yourself. Ask for help. It's good that you can. You don't have to do it all. So that was one thing. And then the other thing was a gratitude journal. 100%. No matter what, I did my gratitude journal. And the cool thing is, at the beginning of 2025, I started a jar called Good Things. Once a week, I would write down three or more good things, maybe the highlight of the week, and I would make a little scroll and tie it and put it in the jar. And then for the first four days up through my birthday, so from December 31st to my birthday on January 4th, I opened some of those scrolls. And what hit me, I'm going to get choked up again, dang it, what hit me was that I still found good things during all of that. They were random, because they weren't in order. I would just shake it up, and then I would grab one, Kathi, and I would look at it and I'm like, oh, wow. I remember that week. And some of them were tough, because at the bottom I put, I miss my business partner. Some of it was tough, but I was still finding good things through all of it. And it's an exercise, because you can let yourself spiral. You can let yourself go. And you know what? Be with it for a minute, but don't stay there. Don't stay there. And it's hard. That's why the other people help.

Kathi: Yeah. There's always something you can be grateful for. I love that. I didn't realize that's what you were doing. That's good.

Shonna: Yes, I did that. I'm sure you did that too. You went through a lot this year as well.

Kathi: Yeah. And gratitude is key. Absolutely. No matter what happens, there's always at least one thing you can think of, and oftentimes many, many more. That's the crazy thing. You're like, oh, and that, and then that, and then all of a sudden your mood is up. So I think that's really great advice. If any of you are listening and you're going through something, please pick up paper, start a little jar like Shonna does, or start a journal, whatever it is. Start thinking about everything that is good in your life, and that will help you get through if you're experiencing anything like that. So you wear so many hats. Talk to me about a memorable moment of your career, speaking of gratitude, that makes you smile, where you're like, oh, I will never forget when that happened.

Shonna: It's interesting. This is one of the questions that I still have to ask myself, because I'm so in gratitude, like we were talking about, that one doesn't just stick out. So in general, I would say this whole upleveling thing from a life standpoint, being able to get through that and uplevel and find good things, like we were talking about, that is memorable for me. The transformation that has happened. But I will tell you, from a life standpoint, not necessarily a business standpoint, although the business did benefit, and it's always commingled with us.

Kathi: It is. It is totally.

Shonna: The day I decided to give up alcohol is one of the most memorable moments of my life. I don't want to get into the story, because it's a long story. But I thought I was taking a break, because I knew I needed a break, because I was going through what I now refer to as my dark days. And this was 2020. So while everybody else was becoming heavier drinkers in the middle of the pandemic, I was giving it all up. That's what I was referring to. That was a memorable moment. I will never forget that moment.

Kathi: Actually, not a bad time to quit, if you think about it, because you're on your own. Fewer social issues around that. That's interesting. A big transition for most of us during that time. So you've had so many landmarks. I want to talk about the bar, the non-alcohol bar. You're such a front runner. I remember you talking to me about it a couple of years ago, and now they're popping up, and more and more people are going to bars to not drink. I know my husband goes to bars and doesn't drink. So talk to me a little bit about your concept. I can't wait for it to happen.

Shonna: Right now I'm in the get-the-pitch-deck-together phase, because I did the pop-up, which was a proof of concept, and it was amazing, and I had some amazing sponsors. So a lot of people are becoming alcohol-free, for whatever reason, doesn't matter, just like they're becoming gluten-free or dairy-free or sugar-free. It's a health and wellness thing. It doesn't make you feel good after you've had two. Or even before: for me, as soon as that first one hit, I was like, I'm a different person. So the concept is this. One of the things that people miss, for whatever reason they choose to be alcohol-free, is the social aspect of consuming alcohol. People go out to bars or establishments or restaurants, and it always seems to involve alcohol. I miss shooting pool. I miss throwing darts. I missed playing games with others. I missed trivia nights and DJs and dancing. I missed all of that. So my concept is to create that environment, but no alcohol. There will be beverages, but they will not contain alcohol. I've already coined a few names, like the Nargarita, and they have really good, high-quality ingredients. And I think the last stat that I saw was that in the last three years, non-alcoholic alternatives tripled in revenue. So I really want to do that, and then I want to expand it. I want it to have a membership vibe to it, where it's almost exclusive. You have to be a member, and of course there'll be many membership levels. But I also want it to be an event center, because the bar is not going to be open 24/7. It's going to be open maybe 4 to 10 or 11 during the week. So I'm like, why not use the space for other things? And then also my talk show studio. So I want that all under one umbrella.

Kathi: I love that. I think you're spot on. One of my girlfriends is gluten-free, intolerant of everything, but she brought over non-alcoholic vodka for a Christmas party. I was like, wow, that's pretty incredible. So it's coming around for sure. Okay, you get so much done. Talk to me about how you stay organized. What's your favorite organizing hack?

Shonna: Okay. So yeah, I do have a lot of hats that I wear. From a life standpoint, I work from home a lot. I work remotely. I'm not always in an office environment. And one of the things I discovered is that when you do that, it gets muddy, life and staying focused on business. So I do two things. One, the Pomodoro technique. I do 25 minutes of focus, five-minute break, 25 minutes of focus, five-minute break, and so on. That really keeps me dialed in. But the other thing I do is I have what I call my go-upstairs, come-downstairs basket. So rather than being all over the place, if I know that something is going to need to go upstairs, I just put it in the basket. So that way I'm not running.

Kathi: And then when you get upstairs, you get distracted by something you just saw, and you're like, oh gosh, I have to do that.

Shonna: And then the other thing, there's a lot, but that's one of them. And then purge. Purge your desk. Purge your closets. Purge everything at least two times a year.

Kathi: You're talking my language.

Shonna: I know. I'm in the garage now. I'm doing this. Now I'm doing that.

Kathi: Yay. Yes.

Shonna: But you taught me well. You taught me well.

Kathi: Well, you know, add space to your life and you thrive.

Shonna: Seriously. Very important. One of the things that I always say to people is, now I can breathe. When it's decluttered, when it's purged, when it's organized, I can take a breath. And you were instrumental in giving me the skill set to have that happen. So thank you.

Kathi: Oh, you're very welcome. I haven't thought about the stair basket for a while. I used to have one. Now I just throw things at the bottom of the stairs willy-nilly. But I do the same thing. Those little baskets are really cool. I need to get one, because my husband's like, I'm going to trip over that stuff on the stairs. I'm like, yeah, but it's going up, right?

Shonna: Exactly.

Kathi: The basket's awesome. So if you guys haven't ever seen it, check it out. Go on Amazon and look at the stair basket. It's pretty cool. It's shaped like a stair, stepped up and everything. Okay. So if you could look back and talk to your 18-year-old self, what kind of advice would you give her? Because you've done so much. You're such a trailblazer. What advice would you give her, now that you know what you know?

Shonna: It's going to sound trite or cliche, but don't give up. Don't give up. Just keep going. I tell myself that every day now. But if I had to go back to my 18-year-old self, I would tell her, don't give up going for your dreams. No matter how old you get, just keep going. Go for those dreams. Recontemplate everything. But do give up the peer pressure to consume alcohol. Because what if I had bucked against that trend back at 18 years old? I think I would be a little bit further along in some of the endeavors that I'm pursuing. So that's the advice that I would give.

No matter how old you get, just keep going. Go for those dreams.

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Kathi: Okay, that's great advice. What have we not talked about? Is there anything that you really wanted to talk about? Because gosh, we could go on and on.

Shonna: Oh, totally. Absolutely, 100%. I was on another show the other day, and one of the questions they asked me was, what's the biggest mistake that you see people make in networking? So what I would say to that is, once is not enough. You can't just show up one time, collect business cards, add them to your email list and never show up again. First of all, that's not a good business practice. But once is not enough. Consistency is key in anything that you do in business or in life. Consistency is key. Now, if it's not a good fit, that's different. If you didn't get a vibe. But still, once is not enough. Try it two to three times at least. I would say three times. And then if you come and you say, well, it's not working, like you enjoy it, but it's not working, then you need to have a conversation with me, because there's something that's not working for you specifically, because it's working for other people. So let's talk about that. Let's overcome that challenge together.

Once is not enough. Consistency is key in anything that you do in business or in life.

Kathi: Yeah, that's a great tip. What other marketing tip would you have? We should have been talking about that a little bit more.

Shonna: Okay, so another thing, and I'm going to tie it all together, because I've produced large business events with vendor tables and sponsors and stage entertainment and food. I've done all of that. Again, attention to detail. But then I have the monthly meetings, and I still approach them the exact same way. So one of the things that a lot of people also tell me doesn't work is exhibiting, or taking a table at an expo or a networking event. It just doesn't work. And I say, well, why? What did you go into it expecting? Well, I didn't make one sale. I'm like, okay, right there is the issue, because your goal was to generate income immediately at that table, and that's gravy. If that happens, that's gravy. What you need to be generating are leads, and then the gold is in the follow-up. And I have strategies that I use when I'm coaching people to do their exhibit marketing and how to make the most of it. But one of them, just real quickly, is when somebody hands you their business card or gives you their contact information. After a 20- to 30-second conversation, because you don't want to get thrown into long conversations, if this is a qualified lead, and if they ask you a question and it's hot, or they're like, oh yes, I've been wanting to do this, note it. Guess where?

Kathi: On the card.

Shonna: On the card. Note it on the card. Or if they give you digital, note it in the digital that they just gave you, because those are the ones you're going to follow up with first. They're going to get a special follow-up, not the bulk follow-up.

What you need to be generating are leads, and then the gold is in the follow-up.

Kathi: Yes, they are. That's a really great tip. And someone else that I was interviewing a few weeks ago said, yeah, and then just do a quick little video and say, hey, I met you at GOG, and I know you asked about this.

Shonna: Yeah. And that's all you have to do.

Kathi: That's an interesting follow-up. I love that.

Shonna: You're talking about as follow-up, right?

Kathi: Yeah, as follow-up. A quick little video. Hi, I met you at GOG. I know you were really interested in this. Can't wait to talk to you, or whatever.

Shonna: I love it. That's a good idea.

Kathi: She says, I spin out 30 in like 30 minutes. When I go and I have these cards, I just spin them out and say, hey, nice to see you. And I'm like, oh, that's kind of smart.

Shonna: Does she send the video through, then? Now I'm learning.

Kathi: She emails the video.

Shonna: Okay. I was like, does she post it on her website and then they have to click through?

Kathi: She emails the video straight to them. They get it right away. And then this other guy does it within 30 minutes of meeting someone. He has this card, like a board, that has a name on it. It says hey and the person's name, and then he wipes it and writes the next person's name.

Shonna: Okay. Anything to personalize.

Kathi: Yeah, it's interesting. I love those ideas. It's fun doing podcasts, and I know you have a talk show coming up. So do you want to talk about that, or do you want to talk about your book? Anything last minute?

Shonna: The book is kind of on pause. I started the promotion in January, and then it got delayed and delayed, and then all the things happened that we talked about earlier. So I did the book launch, and it's on pause for now.

Kathi: It's a fantastic book, by the way. I love it.

Shonna: Thank you.

Kathi: It's a children's book for adults, and she did all the artwork. It's very poetic, and it's a really deep message that anybody can read and everybody can understand.

Shonna: Yes. And it's got several underlying themes. But from the talk show standpoint, it's similar to what we're doing here. Why I call it a talk show is because it's going to be in real life. It is not going to be on Zoom. Podcasts, Zoom, Spotify, like you're doing, I love it. They're great. But I'm a nose-to-nose, belly-button-to-belly-button kind of girl. I want to be able to laugh and then reach over and fist bump and do all of those things in real life. But it also has a talk show format. There'll be an intro, and then we'll intro the guest, and the guest will come on with music playing, and then we'll play a game. And I like to joke that if you can imagine the Ellen DeGeneres daytime talk show and the Jimmy Fallon late-night talk show, if those two shows had a baby, that's my show.

Kathi: I love it. Looking forward to it. That's awesome. Now, I know that you have a website and you have a free, valuable resource that you can offer. So let's talk about that a little bit.

Shonna: Sure. On shonnajordan.com, it gives you a little information and asks you a couple of questions. Are you here because you have a pressing marketing question? Do you have a strategy? Are you trying to figure out if your strategies are working? What about your networking? That type of thing. You're there for a reason. And I'm giving away 20 minutes of free direct access to me. It's with me, and you can book straight online. It doesn't cost you a dime. I call it no cost, no strings. Seriously. If it's not a good fit, we're good. If it is and you're interested, great. But you will get what I call freebies in that 20 minutes.

Kathi: Which is a lot of juice, kids. Anybody who finds that link, just do it, because I don't know how long she'll actually keep this free. So join in and ask her. You're going to get some downloads, and you're going to have something you can walk away with and use. So that's huge. Thanks, Shonna. I appreciate that.

Shonna: Of course.

Kathi: Okay. In closing, I feel pretty complete. Do you feel like there's anything that we missed?

Shonna: No, I feel really complete.

Kathi: Yay. I'm so happy to have you on the show, finally.

Shonna: I know. I am too, Kathi. Thank you for being pleasantly persistent with me.

Kathi: Oh, absolutely. I knew it would be a good show. So for those of you who have tuned in, make sure to go to the website and take Shonna up on that 20 minutes, because you're going to come away with something you can use for your marketing. Guaranteed. It always happens with her. That's just how she is. And until next week, you guys, have fun, stay organized, stay energized, and learn how to market and show up at networking events with more ease, more grace. And remember, be consistent. So until then, we'll see you.