Where's the line?

Where is the line?

What is it going to take for us to stop hustling and pushing and driving until we have nothing left?

And for what?

The great Mark Cuban once said, business happens over years and years.

Value is measured in the total upside of a business relationship, not by how much you squeezed out in any one deal.

And we couldn't agree more.

This is the Business Development podcast based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and broadcasting to the world.

You'll get expert business development advice, tips and experiences and you'll hear interviews with business owners, CEOs and business development reps. You'll get actionable advice on how to grow business brought to you by Capital Business Development, CapitalBD CA.

Let's do it.

Welcome to to the Business Development podcast.

And now your expert host, Kelly Kennedy.

Hello.

Welcome back to the Business Development podcast and today it is my absolute pleasure to welcome back to the show for the third time Jesse Shoechuk.

Jesse is a multi award winning producer, media strategist and one of North America's leading experts in video strategy and digital storytelling.

She is the founder and president president of the Menopause Mission, a fast growing movement that is transforming how women understand and navigate menopause through education, community and honest conversation.

Jesse recently stepped into a new major chapter as well as the chief marketing officer at Capital Planning where she brings her signature creativity, brand leadership and strategic vision to one of Canada's most trusted benefit and group savings organizations.

Many will also recognize Jesse from her nine year tenure as CEO and executive producer of Modern News media where she helped countless brands elevate their voice, sharpen their message and master the power of video.

Her earlier experience as an entertainment reporter with City TV deepened her understanding of communication and human connection.

Jesse has served with women in film and Television, Alberta, the Alberta Media Production Industries association, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television and the Edmonton Business Association.

She has also been named to avenue magazine's top 40 under 40 and nominated twice for the Mayor's celebration of arts award for excellence in artistic management.

This is, like I said, her third appearance on the business Development podcast and she continues to bring insight, clarity and authenticity that inspires entrepreneurs, leaders and creators at every stage of their journey.

Wow, Jesse, it's great to have you back.

Thank you.

That's a really long, uncomfortable.

You need to stop being so successful immediately because pretty soon that's going to be like eight pages.

Yeah, I could have actually taken a washroom break and been back.

I was like, see in a bit.

Wow.

We're going to have to shorten that bio.

Oh, goodness.

Thank you, Kelly.

It's always a pleasure to have incredible conversations with you.

Oh, the pleasure is mine.

Episode 38.

Lights, camera, action.

Literally our first year of the show.

One of our very first guests on the show came back for episode 140.

Social media mastery.

Can you even believe it?

No.

And I'm so proud of you.

It has been an honor to watch your journey and be a part of your community and that you have built.

And, yeah, you're doing just incredible, incredible work in this world.

Thank you.

No, thank you.

Thank you.

Thanks for believing in me way early.

You know, I look back to some of those, like, original episodes, and it's just like, my gosh, the trust that you put in a new podcast.

I think most podcasters need to realize that there is a lot of faith and trust.

And because you got to trust that podcaster is going to be credible, that they're not going to burn you, that they're going to stay.

What's the right word?

High integrity throughout the journey.

Right.

There's a lot of faith that guests have to put onto the podcast host.

And early on, it really is just faith.

Because who knows, right?

Who knows?

Throwing it out there.

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

Even right now at this point, it's like literally half the show ago since the last time that we had a conversation, which is kind of insane because we see each other a lot throughout Edmonton and throughout, you know, Catalyst Club and various things that it doesn't feel like that long.

But for our listeners, for a lot of them, they are experiencing Jesse Shuchuk for the very first time.

So please, Jesse, who are you today?

You know, three years after our first conversation,.

Who I am today is somebody that is probably more in touch with herself and her identity, her passions, her intuition, her spirit, her purpose than she's ever been.

And I often actually refer to myself in the third person.

I'm just kidding.

I don't.

It's the director in me.

Oh, my gosh.

Yeah.

Just have been through some pretty pinnacle changes through my early to mid-40s.

One of them definite, definitely.

Being menopause and coming out the other side, really digging in deep to myself and what I would love and what I want in life and the impact that I want to make versus what are people going to think and how can I accomplish to provide self worth and what am I achieving in this world instead of what impact I'm making?

It's been a really, really big transformation and it's been very uncomfortable.

You've been achieving and making Impact your whole career, though.

I look at you and I look at your history and I just think, wow, like, like literally, check out the bio, check out the introduction bio.

I know, Jesse, you are making impact everywhere you go.

Please explain to me and our listeners a little bit.

Is it the fact that we just never see our impact at the scope that other people see it?

Because I look at you and I just think, wow, like, what's next from Jesse?

Cause it's going to be incredible.

I think the big question comes from what drives us to that success and that impact.

I think for a really long time.

And I'm actually going to change that to I know for a really long time that was coming from a place of needing to prove myself due to deep insecurity, childhood trauma, the feeling of self loathing or unworthiness.

And so the more I could accomplish, the more maybe I would fill that deep void that was inside of me somewhere up so I didn't feel so freaking empty and needing to prove myself in order to feel full.

Yeah.

And that I think is pinnacle.

And that's a really, really tough one because I mean, when you talk about digging deep, that is really going to the core of how a lot of us were raised.

And really, let's talk about the patriarchy and that we're defined by what we do instead of who we are.

I gave a TED talk in September of 2025 and it's called Freak of Nature, my signature talk, really talking about how a lot of us feel like freaks of nature.

When we're going through something, we feel really isolated.

We will often silo ourselves and retreat so that we can deal with something and then come back out that that better version of ourselves rather than leaning into community, rather than really being open, vulnerable and talking about it.

And I, and I talked on stage about the line of success and talked about how I've been hospitalized twice for pneumonia due to burnout, sentient to early menopause due to burnout, and just total complete physiological depletion where I'm going and getting injections in my body to be able to get up and continue to produce where's the line?

And this is what I said on stage.

And I stood there in front of these people with the beautiful Ted behind me going, where is the line?

What is it going to take for us to stop hustling and pushing and driving until we have nothing left?

And for what?

Mm.

I walked off those stairs very, very happy I didn't trip.

Because that's all you think about when you're going on and off the stage.

Please don't trip.

Please don't trip.

And in that moment, I knew that I needed to make some different choices, that I need, needed to practice what I was preaching.

And I, I found different variations of that line over these last few years.

I'm.

I'm trying to take on less and I' do the work of my inner child trauma and learn how to self regulate and daily meditation regulation before I start anything, before I dive into work and jump out of bed and go for a 10k run.

That, that used to be me because I was achieving, I was accomplishing.

Instead I'm trying to just be.

And there were so many things that just came to light through that decision.

Yeah, the idea of just being, my gosh, like I, I resonate with that.

And as the entrepreneur, I also completely understand the other side where it's like it's not a light switch that we can just flick off.

Right.

We were talking about it ahead of the show and I think you're always an entrepreneur.

I don't think you can disassociate from yourself as an entrepreneur, no matter which direction your life goes, because it becomes a part of your decision making process.

It becomes a part of the way you show up in the world.

It becomes just a part of you in such a heavy way that I love the idea of just being, but I struggle with understanding with myself how I could do that.

It's.

I just know I would struggle with it, which is I think maybe the challenge of so many leaders out there.

It is incredibly difficult.

Yeah, it is a rewiring.

So even to take a day off, if I was feeling unwell, I would feel guilt, I would feel shame.

I wouldn't even be able to go down and rest.

It would just be pushed through.

Put the cape on.

It's okay.

You can rest on the weekend.

You'll catch up, you'll catch up later.

You can sleep when you're dead.

I mean, we joke about these things, we say these things, but it's not a joke.

We're doing that.

It's so much more real and yet we talk about it.

But the putting it in practice, it was really difficult, Kelly.

I would lay there and I was like, I know I'm supposed to rest.

I know I'm supposed to rest.

And it took practice just being in that state of depletion where I couldn't, I couldn't go anymore.

My like body actually stopped.

Like I hit the cement wall.

And it was retraining and it was Self loving.

It would be like, what would you tell a friend if they were completely burnt out and they were laying in bed and they're like, I have nothing left.

I'm feeling unmotivated.

I don't feel like I have that fire in my soul.

These are signs and signals.

Not necessarily for us to just keep going, push through.

It's.

These are signs and signals to go pay attention, what's going on with your soul.

So laying there has gotten easier, resting.

I wasn't feeling well this week and I've started this new job and I need to make an impact.

And what are they going to think?

And it's like, I can't.

I'm in my fourth week.

I can't take a sick day.

It's like, no, you have to.

Yeah.

Because if you push through, you're going to be out for an entire week.

Yeah.

Instead of just taking some time to take the right vitamins, really load up on hydration, sleep, sleep.

And I actually came out after two days with my symptoms going away instead of deep diving into total duress.

And it's possible, it's possible, but man, it is.

It was hard.

Like, I mean, I, and I'm still a driven snow.

I'm not a driven person.

I don't want to be a driven person and I don't want to say that behind I am, I'm a drawn person.

I want to do things because I feel drawn to it, not because I'm driven by the need to succeed.

And then let's talk about what defines success.

Because that was a big one for me.

I needed to have a seven figure business.

That was, it was so it was talked about at one of our community catalyst calls.

Like, this is often, I think a goal of entrepreneurs is the seven figure business.

I want to have a seven figure business by this date.

And for.

But for what?

Yes.

And that's the thing.

It comes up over and over and over again.

Even when you achieve it.

You, you know, we've talked to a lot of people.

At what cost did you achieve it?

Oh, at what cost?

At what cost?

When I was 24 years old, I had just turned 24.

Eight days later, my mother died in my arms.

Oh, my gosh.

I felt her breath stop on my head.

I heard her heartbeat for the last time.

Wow.

I had no idea.

She was 48.

Okay.

And my daughter was raised without her in her life.

And what a loss because she was something else.

And I, I was sent onto a trajectory of success, of proving myself, of being a good daughter.

A legacy to my mom, my dad and my sister.

Walked into the Cross Cancer institute and went to therapy.

I walked into my boss's office at Access television where I was working at the time.

It was channel nine on the dial.

If you had aluminum foil on the brain.

I remember it well.

I remember it well.

And I said, give me all you got.

And he did.

I spent the next two years working on a project that was called the prime Minister awards of teaching excellence.

And I lived out of the Edmonton airport.

I lived in hotel rooms.

And then during the day I would turn it on and I would throw myself into projects.

I got to tour Canada twice.

Wow.

Every single province.

It was absolutely incredible.

And in the evenings I was scream crying in my hotel room.

I feel bad for the people in those hotels, but we try and distract through accomplishment to not have to process the emotion.

I had lost the only person in the world that had ever made me feel safe at a very young age.

Yes.

And so for the next 18 years, I just continued to achieve and succeed.

And yeah, I definitely made impact, really positive impact through the entertainment industry in.

Through Blackstone and First nations communities and catalyzing conversations that were never seen and making waves.

Top 40 under 40.

That year that I won top 40 under 40 2012, I was going through the hardest divorce and my daughter was two.

Oh my years old.

So I was 33 years old and I was winning awards against Stargate SG1 in Vancouver.

We took the LEO award for best dramatic series and on the COVID of Avenue magazine for top 40 under 40.

And living through some of the hardest years of my life.

Because we don't talk about those things.

We don't talk.

We don't talk about those things.

We just become our highlight reels.

Yes.

Are longstanding eight page bios.

And that's not everything that I am.

There's so much more than what's on that page.

Right, of course, of course.

But we get so lost in it.

Right.

It's so funny, you know, even talking about like Cat's Club today with Chris, talking about what legacy are you leaving?

And it's like, well, define legacy.

I think I kind of struggle with that one because it's like, of course we're leaving work legacy is each one of us.

Everyone on the show is leaving a work legacy.

But what about the legacy with your kids?

What about your legacy with your neighbors?

Right.

Like, like you mentioned, there's a whole nother version of you out there in the world that I think as entrepreneurs we don't necessarily prioritize no, no.

I am a multi, multi, multi award winning television producer, top 40 under 40 entrepreneur of 10 years.

I had a wall of accolades.

I'm also a double divorcee, someone who grew up without a mother, a single mom of over 15 years, a person that struggles with general anxiety disorder and mental health, and an advocate for just getting real.

Yeah, it's about time you missed that.

You're an absolute awesome person to know and a pleasure every single time that someone gets to speak with you.

That's from the outside perspective.

Just so you know, I. I don't think I've had a conversation with you that I just truly didn't enjoy having you in the room for.

You're a light everywhere you go.

And you know it and I know it, and everyone who knows you knows it.

And I think if we're talking about the legacy that you leave, to me, that's the legacy you leave.

You're just awesome and I appreciate you so much.

And yes, you've done a million things, but you continue to step out and help people wherever possible, inspire people wherever possible.

Whenever we're in Catalyst Club, you're one of the first people to step up and be like, you're incredible.

If we're talking about legacies worth leaving, you're definitely making an impact on that front.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And you know, I think you touched on it.

I think that oftentimes we don't celebrate our successes enough in defining success as just being who we are.

Just being a person that really wants to cheer people on, you know, and really wants to see other people succeed.

And yeah, maybe I don't celebrate that enough because I do.

Yeah, I think that very heart centric, very empathic.

I'm a little bit of a super feeler, one would say.

And yeah, I do care.

I really, really, really give a shit what I found.

What I found with running my business, and I guess we'll pivot into the new chapter, is that through the hustle and through the grind and through the trying to keep money coming in, food on the table, a client load, enough to pay off a significant amount of debt on the company, my team, I felt like I lost that sometimes.

I felt like I wasn't being that person that you'd show up to rooms or networking events and it became about who you can convert.

Or coming from that place of desperation or coming from that place of needing to make money and needing to have this business succeed because it was going to define me as a person.

And I felt like in those moments, I Felt like a fraud and I didn't.

Yeah, maybe less of a fraud.

I didn't like how I felt.

I didn't like that feeling that you're coming in basically to convert.

And it's not because you're a malicious person or lack integrity.

It's because you have to.

Yes, yes.

And I didn't have a second income.

It's just me taking care of my kid.

Right.

And.

And I just got tired of it.

Yeah.

Because I didn't feel like I could be who I really am, which is all heart, you know, I just, I just want to be as much heart as I can be.

So I made the decision after I stepped up those stay stairs, not tripped stepped after the TED talk, that I was going to shut down my business.

My business that I built up from the bottom almost 10 years.

I'm just a few months away from my 10 year anniversary because it just wasn't able to be showing up in the way that I wanted to for what was necessary to be done in that organization.

Yeah.

A job offer came in through a friend and colleague actually who I worked with when I was 19 years old as a producer.

Fellow producers.

He's the CEO of Capital and we're part of a networking group called Synergy Network and he had put in our WhatsApp group looking for a marketing coordinator.

And this is all just like a lot of very beautifully serendipitous woo woo universal support.

I reached out and I said, let's have a conversation.

He thought I was going to be pitching him on Modern Muse Media and instead I pitched him on what if I brought me.

I brought it over to Capital and really helped their business thrive and share their beautiful story.

I can't wait to do more work and really dive in.

And yeah, this all happened within a week.

I pitched him I on the Friday I met with the COO and him on the Wednesday and I had an offer that I accepted by the following Friday.

It happened in one week and I had made the decision that I was going to let go of a 10 year business that I had built from the ground up.

And the grief in that moment was probably equal to the relief in that moment.

Yeah.

And the last few weeks the biggest thing that I have discovered and I have always known this, but I think I've just been more open to this is how we as human beings can experience so many emotions in one moment of time.

We can experience great joy, ecstasy, hope, relief, impact.

I mean all of these things in one moment of time.

And, and that's been day to day over the last few weeks is just processing this big change, this big step.

Yeah, it's been wild.

Okay.

I got a few things there.

Number one, I don't know how maybe you did tell me before, but somewhere along the line, I didn't know you lost your mom so young.

And so I just wanted to say, like, I'm.

I'm super, super sorry about your mom.

48 Is way too young.

Way too young.

I can't imagine what you went through, and I'm sorry that's happened to you.

The second thing is, it's so funny because I look back to the start of my entrepreneurship career and I would say, you know how you talked about, like, the peace or the struggle of, like, having to constantly fight for what you eat, Basically, like, that is entrepreneurship and it is a lot of stress.

And it's so funny because it came up inside Catalyst Club today.

Literally this morning, we were talking about a coffee where one of our members was just mentioning, you know, like, I'm really great at what, what I do.

And that member is.

He is exceptional.

He might even be the best in Canada at what he does.

Yeah.

But he's like, I absolutely hate having to convince people that I'm good at what I do.

And so much of entrepreneurship is the job that you didn't sign up for.

The piece of employment is you're no longer having to convince people you're good at what you do.

You can just be good at what you do.

Which I think, I think on a certain level is.

I talk about low level anxiety.

I think I live with low level anxiety since I became an entrepreneur.

But I think a big part of that is, you know, you're always wondering, okay, I'm great at what I do, but when is the floor going to fall out from under me?

And the sleep and the, oh, my gosh, anxiety.

So much anxiety.

I recognized in that moment after the TED talk that my bio had caused me 20 years of nervous system deregulation.

And all I wanted to do in that moment is take my arms around my little me and go, I'm going to take care of you now.

Yeah, we're going to.

We're going to rejuvenate.

We're going to.

We're just going to reset and, and do some healing from all of that deregulation.

My nervous system has been through so much, and the last 10 years has definitely been the worst of it.

Through entrepreneurialism, it is so much more roller coaster, and we joke about it, but it is it's not, it's not a joke.

Describable.

Yeah.

What that actually looks like in the day to day.

Yes.

I took this position because of that, because it's time for me to be able to just show up and do what I'm really, really, really good at.

And for an organization that's really aligned with my advocacy for women's wellness and neurodivergent leadership and menopause in the workplace and all of these things, which really aligns with benefits and group savings plans because it's all about wellness in the workplace.

And I'm going to have the opportunity to speak and because something that I saw that can happen with patterns and paradigms is that as soon as you start leaning in to what you're passionate about, which is my keynote speaking.

Yeah.

Which is the impact which is writing the book about my mom's death, which has been in, in play for 20 years, that modern news would always find a way to distract, would always find a way to delay, would always find a way to dissuade.

And so it would be with cash flow issues, it would be with client troubles, it would be with HR relations on the team.

Something would always pull me away from launching this personal brand and from moving in this direction of my dreams.

I was supposed to launch Jesse Speaker AUTHOR HOST in January of 2025 and we are now almost one full year away from that and nothing has been done because somehow this company would always pull me away from that.

And so you have to, if it's not working, you have to do something different.

And it was what I was talking about in the Catalyst Club today, where oftentimes we don't do something different.

We're encouraged to just get back on the horse.

And the horse will ride the well tread trail over and over.

We will just get the train back on the tracks and shoo.

Chew down those, those laid tracks and just do the same thing over and over again, which is the definition of insanity.

No wonder I was feeling crazy in the brains.

It's like it's time to turn everything on its head and go, what if this could be different?

Taking this incredible opportunity that is going to help me regulate my nervous system, help me be more present and less stressful for my daughter.

Help me just be me.

Yeah.

And allow for me to have time to work on the things that I want to grow and nurture in alignment with this organization.

And that became so, so clear.

Now, that decision, that didn't make it easy.

Yeah.

Just because I had clarity doesn't Mean, there was ease in letting go of Modern Muse.

I cry, I think almost every day still.

Also went through a personal separation at the same time.

And lost my Bubba, who is very near, near and dear to me.

She has 102 at the same time.

This all happened in the fall of 2025.

And I was like, how much more can I.

You know, you have those moments in time where you look up and you're like, no more.

Yep.

No, I'm.

I'm.

I'm tapped.

I'm tapped.

Take the reins, take the oars.

I.

And that's exactly what I just needed to do.

I was like, no more.

I give it up.

And there's still a tremendous amount of processing, of emotion, even after you decide for the thing that you, you know, you need to do.

It's just wild, like I said, how you can experience so many things at the same time.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And like I said, this is actually the first time in nearly 400 episodes at this point that we're kind of making the opposite pitch where we're questioning and saying, listen, you went down this entrepreneurial journey, it's okay to go the other way.

Right.

Like, I think so much of entrepreneurship is support.

And, you know, I am here to support wherever possible.

I'm.

I'm an eternal optimist.

If people are on that path, I want to help them in any way I can.

This show is very much about encouraging entrepreneurship, helping entrepreneurship where possible.

Catalyst Club is about that too.

But.

And you're making a very fair case.

There is an argument for a different direction, and I'm happy that today we're able to make that argument together.

Jesse, I'm happy it's you because I'm not sure that from anyone else that it would have as much impact.

I genuinely think who you are is what allows this message to resonate with people.

Because I know we have people listening today who are questioning their entrepreneurship path, who are like, am I on the right path?

You know, I went down this path.

I had high hopes I was going to make my million dollar business, and it's just not working.

I'm.

I'm running myself into a wall.

I'm running myself ragged.

I have burnout.

I'm sick.

And you're saying there is another way.

And I just, I think you're speaking to them today, Jesse, and I just want to kind of continue going down this path.

If people are feeling that way, if maybe they are deciding or a great job offer has come across their plate and they're questioning, should I Continue down this entrepreneurship path because I know we've all been there.

We've all, you know, I get job offers.

There's lots of situations where that shows up.

If that's where they're at today, they're running themselves ragged.

Maybe they've had a 10 year company similar to you speak to them today, help them with that decision.

If.

Make it all right for them if you can.

No, no, I'm not going to make it okay for them.

And this is why.

And it's proving your point.

So just so you know, I'm not being defiant.

They need to make it okay for themselves.

This is the biggest thing that I learned about this decision is we define this step that I've taken as giving up.

And I have not given up.

I haven't given up.

If I've given up anything, it is undesired stress, undesired roles, things that I don't want to do, which is manage people, which is oversee business financials and which is pivoting.

I don't.

I gave up those things.

And oftentimes we define this as giving up.

You asked me to tell them and be that for them that they need to find within themselves and that was the big thing.

I.

You're going to ask your family and they're going to tell you to take the job because they're watching you and they're worried about your stress.

And that was my dad.

I talked on stage in my TED Talk about how he cried.

I've only seen my dad cry three times in his life and it was the first time when he fell off a ladder and punctured a lung and almost died.

The second was when my mom died.

And the third time was in the hospital.

For the second time.

My dad is going to be the first person to go take a job.

Same with my sister, same with my aunts and uncles.

I mean, none of them have run businesses.

Friends, family that have watched you struggle.

And for years I was like, no, I'm doing this because they were not the ones that needed to answer that for me.

Yeah.

And I am not the one that needs to answer this for you.

Who is listening?

This is about going in.

And it is so hard because we are so used to getting everything and making our decisions from sounding boards and from everyone else around me.

You know, like, oh, we're going.

What are you having for lunch?

Well, what are you ordering?

Or you know, what are you doing this weekend?

Or we look out.

And yeah, I looked out so often and oh man, if you talk about caring about people's things.

That was probably one of my biggest burdens and some of the deepest work that I've needed to do in this time.

I mean, I did a post celebrating and announcing the shift and move, and everyone's like, I can see the joy and the elevation on your face, and we're so happy for you.

And then I had some other people that texted me and said, you know, this must be really difficult.

You must be processing a lot of emotions.

That was the real and raw conversation to have.

But I didn't need to look out for this choice.

This was an inner thing.

I retreated, I slept, I reflected, I meditated, I journaled.

I struggled with journaling.

So not as.

Maybe as much as I.

That's why I paused.

I'm like, I drew it a little bit.

A little bit.

But this was an answer that had to come from me.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

And.

And not caring what anybody else thought.

And.

And this is the right answer for me right now.

And I know that unequivocally, but it took time to get there.

I was not happy running my business for, like, a few years now.

Yeah.

So this was not an overnight decision.

The opportunity and all of this other stuff that was happening in my life brought an openness to my heart, to this opportunity that maybe I didn't have at those times because I wasn't ready.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Being ready is absolutely a part of the puzzle.

Yeah.

And, I mean, there is that whole being ready, but you're not ready.

So there's, you know, do it before you're ready.

Okay.

Was I really ready?

No, I was just open.

I think is more.

So I was open.

I wasn't open to taking a job, you know, at Christmas time, it'd be the conversations of like, okay, so when are you gonna get a job?

What, are you done struggling?

All you do is complain about this.

Like, I was not open, and suddenly I was in a place in my heart where I was.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I think, like, with entrepreneurship, we're so future focused.

Right.

It's like, okay, I'm struggling in this moment.

And we see it all the time, everywhere we see.

So we see it because I think we all recognize that it is time.

The factor is, no matter what you do, for the most part, it is time to get there.

But nobody knows how much time it is.

We're just, I'm gonna get there.

I'm gonna get there.

Right?

Like, that is the entrepreneurship charge.

We just have it in us.

But nobody's got the crystal ball that says it's going to be next year or the year after or 10 years from now or 20 years from now.

We're just all, it's coming, it's coming, right?

It's coming.

And it's so funny that you say that because it's still coming.

So for me, it's still coming.

I am, I am an entrepreneur through and through, and they know this.

In this new position, I have a lot of autonomy and flexibility.

And when we went into negotiation for this position, the CEO and I have been friends for years.

He knows me right?

And I'm a big personality.

And the question was asked, like, how do you know you can work for someone else?

And there was pure transparency, which is one of my core values.

And I said, I don't, I don't.

You're taking a risk, I'm taking a risk.

We're going to see how this all goes.

And we are almost a month in and just figuring it out together.

But I do feel like I've been given flexibility, autonomy, that this is more of an intrapreneur role as the Chief Marketing officer to really take this and run with it in my own way as well.

A lot of flexibility to continue to be that entrepreneur that I am in heart and in spirit and mostly in neurodivergence, where you need to be doing multiple things and grow my personal brand and my speaking and my.

And write that book and have that impact.

And capital is being my biggest cheerleader in regards to that.

And essentially going, this can really, really align.

Well, let's look at this differently.

And I don't feel chained or handcuffed to a desk or position.

I feel like we're really actually navigating this together with autonomy.

And I feel like for entrepreneurs, that's a biggie.

Just think about it very differently.

Like, what if you take a position, but you could have all the other things that you love and you want to do, but not the things that you don't want to do.

And that's what I'm exploring right now.

It's like, maybe I can have everything that I had that I liked and leave and give up.

Yes.

Not the business, not my legacy, not my success.

Give up the things that stressed me out.

What if.

And of course, what does life look like without that stress?

Right.

Like, I think we all won.

Maybe.

Maybe that's my.

Maybe you're about to find out.

To be continued.

Maybe that sounds like a great follow up episode.

I like that.

I like that.

But this isn't the only thing that you're working On.

I would like to maybe go into.

I'm not sure that we did.

We discussed the menopause mission in our last show.

I'm not, I think, I know you were doing it, but I think it was very new.

Obviously you mentioned that you, you entered early menopause.

I don't think we've ever talked about it on this show before.

Bring us into the menopause mission.

Why has it become such a passion project for you?

And why does, why does something that seems to happen to every woman at some point, why is it such an underserved area?

All right, let's do this.

Okay.

So it all started honestly with my mental health.

And I've already alluded to that's been a thing of my entire life.

Definitely much more sensitive and.

And was.

Was scolded for that, for being too sensitive.

As a child, I went through basically a suicide, not more than ideation planning.

When I was going through the deepest, darkest part of my menopause journey.

And essentially I was in bed for two days, couldn't get up.

It was my daughter who came and sat on the bed and said, do I need to call someone?

And that got me on this health trajectory in 2022.

So this has been, you know, an ever evolving, ever expanding for me of self reflection and healing.

So essentially what came of that is I needed to find out what was going on as a journalist, as a TV producer, director of so many years.

I was like, why aren't we talking about this?

And I cannot be the only one who feels like I'm losing my mind, my entire identity, body, brain, physiology, physiology is changing.

And so I ended up producing a 22 part documentary series, interviewing some of the top experts in North America, really getting to the bottom of the stigma and also the science behind all of it.

When I resurfaced from that, because again, remember, when we're going through something, oftentimes we retract, which I do, and I.

And I go dark.

When I resurfaced, people are like, where have you been?

And I haven't seen Jesse around.

And I was like, you wouldn't believe what I've just been through and what I've discovered.

And women were coming out of the woodwork saying, oh my gosh, me too, me too.

I'm being gaslit, dismissed by health practitioners.

You're too young.

I was 42, fully menopausal.

And so I said, something needs to be done and something has to be done here.

So I started a non profit called the Menopause Mission.

We are registered federally, put together its very first summit for October of 2023.

And it was sold out.

And we've continued to have sold out summits.

We now have a membership, we have partnerships, we have a full board, an executive director, and we are, we are going strong into our third year of operation.

There is a need, there is a niche, there is.

We need to make the M word mainstream now.

It's gotten so much more traction and cloud and attention since this started for me in 2022.

There was nobody talking about it.

Since been on Oprah.

We have our Dr. Havens, we have even Mel Robbins, everyone, Oprah, talking about menopause finally, which is really, really encouraging.

There's still a lot of work to be done.

There's still a lot of research to be done through this process.

I found out that up until the basically early 2000s, all of the research we have for women's health is on men, which sounds absolutely archaic and crazy, but it's actually true also that the suicide rate in women is highest between the ages of 45 and 55.

And they are finding that there is a correlation to perimenopause and hormone transition, same with the divorce rate.

And so this is not just a hormone shift.

This is an identity shift for women.

And we are losing sweet, sweet C suite positions.

We are having women shut down businesses sometimes out of desperation because they can't do it anymore, and sometimes for me, out of an identity shift and a total realization of, like, where I want to be making impact in the second half of my life.

Right?

And so menopause has been a huge part of my world for three years.

I became a speaker.

I was always a speaker.

I was in broadcast and entertainment reporter.

But I really started speaking and being brought out to conferences, kind of getting known to be the menopause lady, which is so funny.

I love it because we often associate that with, like, somebody with like, gray or white fluffy hair, which is.

Sure, yeah.

Not somebody in their 40s.

Start as early as 35.

We.

We are like, completely, like, mess.

We were completely disillusioned and our moms and aunts and did not talk about it because we don't talk about it.

We just go through it.

We suffer in silence.

And I was like, no way.

We are not doing this.

We are not doing this.

One billion women are in menopause right now.

One form of menopause this year.

One billion.

Why were we not talking about this?

Because we don't talk about women's health.

Because women just need to grin and Bear it and put the cape on and get through it.

Whether it's periods, postpartum, abortion, losing their child, hysterectomies, any.

Anything to do with women's health.

We just.

We talk about the little blue pill more than we talk about what 50% of our population goes through, our bodies go through, and how the hormone levels impact everything.

Like during menopause, they take brain scans and we actually have smaller brains because we literally lose our minds, our gray matter, because the s. We're not getting estrogen, and so the receptors fall away, which makes us feel like we're literally losing our minds.

And so you have women going, I can't function.

I don't have my executive.

My executive function.

I can't find my keys.

I can't think straight.

I can't perform my job.

And they have this total identity crisis because they can't show up or perform or.

Or be the person that they used to do, because we're totally defined by our success and achievement.

And suddenly they can succeed and achieve.

So.

Or.

Or procreate.

So we're just not worth anything anymore.

Throw us away with the dirty dishwater.

Oh, my gosh.

Yeah.

I just.

I can't believe that something that happens to every woman is not mainstream conversation.

It just.

It blows my mind.

And I don't think I'm that forward thinking.

I'm really not.

I just.

It just.

I'm never not surprised.

I get very surprised on this show by some of the things that come into my purview that I just never thought about before, and this is definitely one of them.

So thank you for doing that.

Jesse.

I do just want to mention, you know, we did talk about suicide.

I do just want to mention 988is the suicide crisis helpline here in Canada.

Jesse, I'm so thankful that you're still with us.

The rest of you listening, stay with us.

You have so much to contribute, so much to offer this world.

I appreciate each and every one of you.

Yeah.

Jesse, thank you for the work that you're doing.

Thank you for coming in here today and being so vulnerable, talking about something that so many entrepreneurs are just simply afraid to even consider, let alone talk about.

And we know that from a lot of our conversations inside Catalyst Club is talking about failing in any way.

And it's not failing.

Once again, it's transitioning.

It's.

It's making a different choice.

I don't think it's failure.

I think it's just a new direction.

I believe that, same as you do, but I think just, there's just this.

What do you want to call it?

There's a fear to even talk about the idea of going in a different.

Direction because it's just defines us, just becomes.

It is significant.

Our businesses are not us.

Our businesses is something that we created.

And anything that we create, anything that's really created, you know, can come to an end.

Everything is temporary and it doesn't serve you.

And if it doesn't light you up and if it's no longer your passion, you don't have to keep climbing and fighting for it because it defines you as a successful person.

That's not success.

Your health, your joy, your happiness, your peace, your ability to have inner peace.

And regulation is success.

Yes.

Yes.

And I think that that is the spot where we end today's show.

Jesse, you are incredible.

For our listeners who want to get in touch with you, this res.

I know this is going to resonate with them.

So for those that are want to reach out and have that conversation, because I know you're there for them, what is the best way for them to get a hold of you?

Oh, my goodness.

We didn't even think about this.

So.

Because it will no longer be through modern Muse Media.

But yeah, I do have a personal Gmail, so it'll be Jesse Shoechuk.

And you'll need to definitely check the notes for spelling on that because there's a C where you think the C wouldn't be and not a C where you think another C would be.

So anyway, all the Ukrainian consonants and yeah, I guess stay tuned.

I'm.

I'm launching my personal brand in 2026 and I can't wait to see what this next chapter brings and how many hearts that I can touch.

And that's what I want my life to be about now.

Amazing.

We know this show is going to be a minute still coming out.

So if your brand launches ahead, and it actually probably will, I'll make sure that all of your website and everything is linked into this.

You are on LinkedIn, so I will mention that as well if you guys want to get a hold of her.

Jesse is active on LinkedIn.

She will continue to be active on LinkedIn, pretty sure.

So we'll see you there.

Jesse, always a pleasure.

Thank you so much for coming on and just being so vulnerable with us today.

Thank you for creating the space for us to be.

I appreciate you so much.

Until next time, you've been listening to the business development podcast and we will catch you on the flip side.

This has been the Business Development Podcast with Kelly Kennedy.

Kelly has 15 years in sales and business development experience within the Alberta oil and gas industry and founded his own business development firm firm in 2020.

His passion and his specialization is in customer relationship generation and business development.

The show is brought to you by Capital Business Development, your business development specialists.

For more, we invite you to the website at www.capitalbd.ca.

See you next time on the Business Development Podcast Podcast.