OnlineBound with Elena Mutonono

My guest for this episode is Vanessa, from Speak English with Vanessa. Listen as we share our ideas about how to keep a healthy balance between motherhood and business. Vanessa explains how she prepared her business for the transition to motherhood and the changes she had to make. She also talks about the importance of seeking support. She gives tips on how to shift your mindset to combat any feel...

In the second part of this interview with Olly Richards, we continue talking about the relationship we have with money as business owners and the anxiety that can result. He shares insights from his journey to separate his feelings of self-worth from the expectations of others and describes the benefits of non-attachment. He concludes by sharing how we can do our best work when we're in alignment...

In this episode, I'm speaking with Olly Richards, the founder of StoryLearning. In this first half of our interview, we discuss the importance of stories and the stress of growing a business. Olly describes the role of storytelling in language learning and how he built his methodology around it. He also shares what makes it so effective as a marketing tool for small businesses. Learn about the min...

Welcome to season 5 of OnlineBound! I'm very inspired to share this new season with you because my guests are all online educators, and mostly language teachers. In this episode, I talk about my belief that expanding your mindset is the most important strategy for a successful launch and share stories about how I've transformed my mindset. Join me to gain some insights into how you can transform y...

OnlineBound is a podcast for online language teachers and coaches who are tired of cramming more client hours into their day and look for ways to grow their business in a smart, lean and sustainable way. In this podcast we explore the topics of authenticity, sustainability, values, efficiency, resilience and creativity when running an online teaching business in an oversaturated language teaching...

In this episode, I'm sharing some reflections on burnout. I talk about my own experiences and what I realized about burnout at the end of last year. I also explain how I challenged the idea that consistent work leads to burnout. Now I find my tasks leave me more energized than ever! I'll also touch on how adjusting your mindset and boundaries can help you to be less affected by other people's crit...

In this episode I share my thoughts on how to remove the word "should" from your thoughts and reframe it with something more empowering.  You'll hear me talk about: How it's easy to give up when we compare ourselves to others. How a previous podcast guest, Marija Dobrovolska, felt pressured by gurus to grow and lost the heart of her business.  How we can use our experience as language teachers to...

For full description, links and the transcript go to www.elenamutonono.com/podcast In this episode I share my thoughts on the idea of time, how we treat it and how it treats us. You'll hear me talk about: The notion of "time will heal all evils" or make all things better. The nature of time, how we can use it to our advantage and disadvantage. The concept of taking time to make a decision. The sto...

It's easy to convince ourselves that we're not quite ready to try something new, and that we need to do something familiar first. In reality, this is just a stalling technique that prevents us from moving forward. The yes, but first thought loop can lead to endless excuses. Listen in to hear my suggestions on how to avoid this trap.

Check the episode page for notes and links: https://www.elenamutonono.com/2023/01/12/shift-your-thoughts/ In this first episode of Between the Seasons , I'm reflecting on the all-or-nothing mindset that many of us struggle with and how it affects our businesses.  Listen to find out how adjusting your perspective can help you break the cycle, find acceptance, and move forward. I'll give suggestions...

Check the episode page for notes and links: https://www.elenamutonono.com/2022/12/22/shut-down-business/ In this episode I'm speaking with Marija Dobrovolska, the founder of Deutsch mit Marija, who shares her experiences as she decided to (almost) shut down her business which was affected by the war between Russia and Ukraine.  Listen in on how Marija navigated and is still navigating this challen...

In this podcast I'm speaking with Benny Lewis, aka the Irish Polyglot and the founder of Fluent in 3 Months. Benny opens up about his mental health struggles, the journey to recovery and the lessons he's learned along the way -- about himself, his values and his business. Check the episode notes for more links and information about Benny: https://www.elenamutonono.com/2022/12/08/benny-lewis-mental...

In this episode I'm speaking with Marlene McNally, a life coach and a mentor who shares how teaching is different from coaching and what coaching involves when we help our clients succeed. Marlene uses her own experience as a language learner, why it was hard for her to master certain skills despite working really hard and what she wishes now she would have known then about the way our mindset kee...

In this episode I'm speaking with Gayle Macdonald, a transformational sobriety coach at Sober Bliss , about changing her niche. I first met Gayle in one of my programs , back when she was an online English teacher exploring different ways of teaching languages online. In the course of the program, Gayle began to look for her niche -- something that would transform her personally and prompt others...

My guest today is Ben Fox, the founder of Shepherd. Com -- a website that helps you find what to read next. Ben talks about the concept behind his project, how it started and how it is different from other similar websites. He shares tips on how to pitch your project to other people in such a way that they cannot say no. He gives a few key marketing strategies for self-published authors, how to im...

In this episode I speak with Eric Turnnessen, the founder of a software company Membermouse, a musician, a coach and a teacher, among many things. Eric shares his unconventional advice about running a business that relies more on intuition and your vision rather than blueprints and failproof methods.  We talk about patience and consistency, assessing your strengths, engaging with your customers to...

In this podcast I'm speaking with Lucy Simkins, the owner of the English with Lucy Youtube Channel , about the danger we face when we show up online -- our urge to please everyone and make sure everyone likes us. Lucy talks about her own mental health challenges as some people criticized and attacked her work online, as well as the tools she is now using to accept that she would not be "everyone's...

Welcome to season 4 of OnlineBound! In this episode I reflect on the last 5 years of running an online community for language teachers. The experience of growing together as a community of online business owners and teachers has been transformative for me. As someone who is used to doing things alone, I continuously see the power of being in a community, supported and nudged by people who really "...

All podcast notes are here: www.elenamutonono.com/podcast Check for more information and extra links. In this interview I'm speaking with Sasha Maslov, a Ukrainian-American portrait photographer and storyteller based in New York City. His work has been exhibited in various photo galleries and art spaces around Europe and the United States. Sasha is a regular contributor to a number of magazines an...

All podcast notes are found here: www.elenamutonono.com/podcast In this episode I'm speaking with Lindsay Williams about changing her mindset from a local language teacher to an online teacher to an online entrepreneur. Listen in to learn the story of Lindsay's first course launch and her initial struggles with marketing. We discuss why online language teachers find marketing most challenging, how...

More detailed notes and links are available at: www. elenamutnono.com/podcast In this interview with James Martin, we talk about the source of joy and creativity, about motivation and perseverance through difficult times, and the art of sharing your work when it doesn't feel good enough. James shares his creative process, which he likens to a faucet that you must never turn off. He encourages us t...

In this episode, Elena Mutonono talks to Shena Lashey. You'll learn about the phenomenon of dimming your light when you share your work with the world. Have you ever felt guilty for your own success? Are you afraid that if you shine too bright, you may take the light away from others, make them envious or uncomfortable, or invite haters? You are not alone. Listen to this episode to learn what dimm...

In this episode, Elena Mutonono interviews Kerstin Cable about the power of podcasting for online language teachers.  Kerstin, who has been podcasting since 2013, sees podcasting as an opportunity to stand out so you can stop using low pricing or the number of certificates to attract students – and make people fall in love with you instead.  If you've been asking yourself if it's still worth creat...

In this episode, Elena Mutonono interviews Sarah Morgan. You'll learn some practical tips on preventing and dealing with mental health challenges when you work online. There are many ways the world of online business can challenge our mental health: Being exposed to marketing messaging that makes you feel like you aren't enough and you're always missing out. Seeing success stories and income repor...

In this interview with Henneke Duistermaat, you'll learn what you always wanted to know about blogging for business but were afraid to ask: Is blogging dead? If I want to blog, where do I start? How do I write faster? What does it actually mean to write for one person, and is it a good idea? How do I balance connection with readers and selling? Is a newsletter different from a blog post, and if so...