316: Building Your Community and Your Business with Storytelling with Laura Di Franco

Hi there. You’re listening to the Leading Lady podcast. I’m your host, Alison Loftus, and I’m a certified professional coach specializing in leadership and work-life balance. I work with clients to shift their limiting beliefs, insecurities, and self doubt. This podcast will be filled with tools and strategies to help high achieving women like you feel connected, empowered, and in the lead of your life, both personally and professionally. Let’s transform your life, starting now. Lead yourself. The rest will follow. Hi there leading ladies and welcome to today’s episode. I am joined by fellow leading lady Ambassador Laura DiFranco. I have absolutely loved working with Laura. She has really helped me understand the power of storytelling and how building your business can include writing some books. So Laura is the CEO of Brave Healer Productions, an award-winning publisher for holistic health, wellness and business professionals with a mission to help the world experience what’s possible. I love this, I cannot wait to chat. Laura, you’ve changed my life. I cannot say that enough. Thank you. Working with you is a dream. So thank you for being on our podcast today and let’s dive in.

Community and Collaboration

Laura DiFranco: Yeah, let’s do it. I’m super grateful to be in your world, Allison, and everything that we’ve done together has been just a gift back to me too. So thanks and thanks for having me here today.

AliceAnne Loftus: Yeah, I appreciate that. Every conversation I have with you, Laura, I think raises my energy like exponentially. I always finish our conversations and I’m like, yes, I can take over the world.

Laura DiFranco: I like that, I like that, I think that, yeah, that’s the energy that I live with every day. It pours through. And I mean, it’s the energy we want in our business lives, right? Like in our circle of colleagues. And it’s like, if someone isn’t that and is going in the other direction, I’m like, no, no, yeah, vibes are off. Mhm.

AliceAnne Loftus: So you and I have talked a lot about community. And what I appreciate so much about brave healers is the community aspect of it, because in any big project you have in your work, sometimes it feels like you’re in a vacuum and you’re doing it on your own. How did you come across this idea, or where did this idea come from in building your community and getting these books out there into the world?

Laura DiFranco: What a great question to get me to think back on that. Like, you know, this company is ten years old now and congrats. Thank you. And I was running two businesses at the same time. I was a full time physical therapist with a private practice here in my home. And then I founded Brave Healer Productions because I had my healer, holistic health and wellness colleagues wanting to build businesses. I was blogging, they wanted to know about that. I was writing my books. They wanted to know about that and speaking and writing our truths out for people to get to know, love and trust us. Right was like a big thing for my physical therapy business first. But way back then I’m like, all right, you guys, I’m going to do a class. Come on in. And I had some people who I knew out in the social media land and had a group there, and I just started teaching what I knew and what was working for me. And slowly that community grew and were, I don’t know, we’re I keep saying 3000 authors strong, but I keep saying that for like the last couple of years. So it’s probably more than that by now.

AliceAnne Loftus: You just kept it at that. You’re like, whatever, 3000.

Laura DiFranco: Thousands, you know, or 25 countries around the world and just a community has gotten much bigger, but it has made the world feel much smaller. Yeah. In those connections, I see this visual of the map and I see and I think about this community. I think of a world map. It’s in my brain. And here, you know, you can see all the continents and all the little red stars. And I’m like, yes, look at that, you know, and it started with like 13 of us in a class. Yeah. It’s like.

AliceAnne Loftus: It reminds me as you were talking like the little red stars, it’s how many degrees to Laura DiFranco, not Kevin Bacon. How many degrees to Laura?

Laura DiFranco: Uh, I love Kevin Bacon, though.

AliceAnne Loftus: I love Kevin Bacon. Come to Annapolis sometimes. He plays his band. Plays here. Yeah. So, you know, community is so important. We’re not meant to do this alone. We have all of this impact. You know, I think about the the connections that I’ve made from the authors that I’ve met in your community, even if it’s just a phone call here or there saying, hey, this is harder than I thought it would be, or I’m feeling a lot more vulnerable than I thought it would take for me to show up in this way. And I just have gotten to meet some really, really cool powerhouse people through this community that remind me that the work that we do really matters, and that even as small as we feel, you know, the world is a big place, as small as we feel these stories, these books, these chapters that are going out into the world really do make an impact not just on our community, but it ripples out.

Laura DiFranco: Yeah, that’s such a good feeling for me, too. When I invited you and others to write for Journal of a visionary, what was going through my mind was this. And I’m like, well, I know I’m not alone, and I have some pretty awesome people around me, and I know that they all have a really unique story of how that day to day plays out in their in their minds and their bodies in their own communities. And that was one of the books that we’ve done where I really had a mission to be in the journal of us, like be, you know, like, what are the secret things we’re writing down about our lives and what’s going on? And, and, you know, of course, in our books, these aren’t secrets anymore. These are vulnerable stories that change our lives because we write them and we share and there’s a transformation there. But then a reader can see themselves in it, feel themselves in it. That ripple moves out. Gosh, I mean, there’s probably a lot of the ripple that I’ll never know, but there’s enough of it that I do know now enough, you know, comments and things and what an incredible feeling that is. Like, yes, I, you know, I feel like I live my purpose every day in that.

AliceAnne Loftus: Yeah, yeah. That’s beautiful. And Journal of a visionary. You know, I’ve been a lead author with you in three books. I have my solo book. I have contributed chapters to, I think 2 or 3 other books, maybe four other books. But Journal of a visionary. I’m chapter 17. The Loneliest Seat in the room shameless plug was probably one of the most raw writing experiences I’ve had. And you know, when you invited me to be part of it, I was so obviously honored. I want to be in as many books with you as possible, but I wasn’t expecting how cathartic and how healing that writing that chapter would be for me. And when the book came out, I actually got several text messages from people saying, I just read your chapter and wow, I thought I was the only one that felt that way. Thank you for putting my heart into words, you know, and that I know. I say it all the time, but it really was surprising. As many times as I’ve done this, I’m always surprised. And I think our storytelling and this is going to take me to our next point, is that storytelling in our marketing. While that wasn’t my intention, I do see a huge uptick in business. Every time I write something or I tell a story or I share an experience, it’s almost like immediately people say, I want more. I want to know you more. I want to work with you more.

Laura DiFranco: It’s a vulnerable way to connect with people, and they build trust with you through those real stories. They’re nodding their head. It’s also their story. They’re not feeling alone anymore. They’re like, wow, she was brave to write that down and publish it for the world to read, you know? And in that courage that you had, is there permission to be courageous also? Yeah. And so like, this is it, man, you’re giving me goosebumps now, like just talking about this because our publishing sits on a foundation of a healing process, of a self-development journey, of a place to find out interesting things about yourself. Like I, it cracks me up that you say, I was surprised, but I get it. Yeah.

AliceAnne Loftus: Like I’m always surprised. Like, yeah, why am I still surprised?

Laura DiFranco: Well, what’s that one story that you maybe never shared before? And, you know, so I’m prompting you all to get this stuff down. And we have this theme for this particular book. And I mean, you all surprised me too. Like I read these things and I’m like, oh my gosh, she’s a badass, you know? But I just love it so much. And I really resonated with that chapter. And there’s so many chapters in that particular book that I think if you’re sitting at home and you’re an entrepreneur or visionary entrepreneur and you’re doing your thing every day, you’re waking up and you’re like, oh my gosh, how am I going to do it all over again? Today we wrote that book for you. I wish I had.

AliceAnne Loftus: That book 20 years ago. Right.

Laura DiFranco: I actually have it. I’ll, I’ll share the the crazy. I somebody did this the other day and cracked me up. Like, what’s that? I love this book. I’ll shout out Jenny Hawkyard for this beautiful art. She’s an artist in Europe that I have collaborated with. And you know, we love collaborating with our designers, our artists, our authors. And that’s I’m getting the visual of the map again now.

AliceAnne Loftus So many people are involved in the process of this. And I just keep repeating like, we’re not meant to do this alone. And it is so much more fun when you can collaborate and collaborate well with others. So you said something like, what is that story we’ve never told before? And that makes me think, you know, where is the balance of sharing and being vulnerable and getting people and helping people to trust you and sharing too much. Someone. Has anyone ever asked you that? Can we share too much?

Laura DiFranco: Yes, this comes up a lot. I joke a little bit and I say, you know, there’s not really TMI in Brave Healer Land because your border of it is a discomfort zone and you have to be where you need to be in the moment with your storytelling and sharing. And there’s going to be a level of that for you that makes you feel brave about it. But there’s, there’s so many directions I could go with this particular question. You know, you also have parts of your life that are sacred to you, that are have to do with your inner circle of family, have to do with, I don’t know, all the things. And, you know, our.

AliceAnne Loftus: Stories weren’t lived alone either. Other yes, there were other people part of that who were experienced all of the. Time.

Laura DiFranco: Parallel to you.

AliceAnne Loftus: Yeah. And it’s always up to the writer what they’re sharing. But I always say, you know, we have generous, big hearts and we’re not here to upset anyone, offend anyone, disappoint anyone in our storytelling. But we are here to heal ourselves. We’re here to heal the old stories we’ve been telling about ourselves, and transform into this awesome version of who we are today, helping the world. I mean, you know this community. They are badass for that reason. They’re stepping up every day. They rose their hand and said, hey, I’m gonna do this and I’m going to be on this journey, and then I’m going to teach it to other people and I am going to share my vulnerable, true stories. But is there a line for that? Sure. Yeah. I mean, it just depends on the person, right?

Laura DiFranco: Yeah, I love that. So this takes me to my final point because yes, when we share our stories, people like and trust us and they want to work with us. So how can you use a book to really amplify your business and build your business.

AliceAnne Loftus: Not only are they going to get to know, love and trust us, but like I say this a lot. You know, if I was in the market for a coach, business coach, health coach, whatever, I’m out there needing support with, and I lined up 100 people with the same credentials and they were all capable, high credentialed people. It’s the personal story. It’s the one in that

Laura DiFranco: group that is willing to be vulnerable and share a story about themselves where I’m like, oh, okay, she’s the one for me. Yeah. It’s what makes you stand out in the 100 lineup there. And people are so afraid to share their stories, but they don’t get that. That’s actually what’s going to get them hired.

Using a Book to Grow Your Business

AliceAnne Loftus: Yeah, my business blew up when my first book was released, and my first book isn’t even a business book. It’s my own lessons in leadership, you know, of how to lead my own life, not even leading other people, just leading my own life. And my business blew up overnight before the book was even published. People just knew it was coming out. It was like my credibility shot through the roof. People could not get enough of it. And the crazy part is I published the book and then I wanted to hide. I felt like I was walking through the streets naked with it, you know, once it was out into the world. But what it taught me is that people, I guess, believed me. They knew that if I went through it and I overcame it, that I might be able to help them too. Right. So I saw that in my business. And then with the collaborative books, we lead one, two and three. Oh my gosh. Laura, you saved me with We lead one. That was a project I just needed to get over the finish line. But then it blew up my world blew up my world. And I think what you taught me there was the power of collaboration and how bringing everyone’s stories together. Well, number one, it’s just a whole lot more fun. And then you’re bringing this again, community of people. And maybe not everyone’s going to resonate with every chapter, but there might be, you know, some nuggets here or there or a chapter that really grabs on to someone. But again, my business just exploded with those books.

Laura DiFranco: Yeah, that was the idea for me in dreaming up the business model of it and dreaming up what I really wanted, which was, of course, you to have your published book. But I also wanted you to have a juicy community where all of you were stepping up to do this process together and could talk about it, and then could also introduce each other to people and refer people. And you build a community like that, and it becomes a very powerful business builder, and you’re just one of those people who gets it. Like you understand the value of that community that we create in the collaboration. You’re also making me think of something that you said a few minutes ago about your solo book coming out and wanting to hide. So we call that post-traumatic publishing disorder.

AliceAnne Loftus So it’s there’s a name for it.

Laura DiFranco: Well, you know, I joke about that, but that is very, very real. Like you get the courage to do it. You go through all the steps, you get to the end finish line. The thing is out in the world and you all of a sudden you realize more than your mom and your BFF are going to be reading. You know, your real, real stories. And you’re like, oh, can I go back to bed now? I don’t know if I want to promote this, you know? And you like, go in the other direction, but too late. It’s out there. It lives.

AliceAnne Loftus: Forever. It’s out there.

Laura DiFranco: And a lot of people don’t even write their books just for the simple fact of like, well, okay, well then my life is changing. I make a transformation. I might change my mind of something I said, blah, blah, blah. Well, that’s what book number two and three are for. Like you can write as you go through the journey. Like people understand that that first book was incredible and your stories were incredible in that. Thank you. And I love that you felt the response of people drawing to you because of that. It’s powerful.

AliceAnne Loftus: Yeah. Again, we’re really not alone. I don’t think I’ve actually experienced a unique experience of my own now that now that I’ve read other people’s stories and people have shared with me, I’m like, oh, wow. Like I thought I was the only one too. And there’s just so much healing when you can look at another person and say, I see you. I hear you. I feel you. You know? Yeah. And maybe the trigger is different, but the emotion was the same. And we’re just people walking each other home. So. Exactly.

Laura DiFranco: Definitely.

AliceAnne Loftus: Really beautiful. And I wouldn’t have considered myself a storyteller. You know, I was a writer. I journaled my entire life as a kid. There was nobody else to talk to. So just pen and paper with my safe place. But never could I have imagined that my stories would be out there for the world.

Laura DiFranco: That’s pretty exciting, right? And the writing piece, storytelling piece, we call it Brave Story Medicine that was trademarked just recently. So I’m extremely happy and excited and proud about that.

AliceAnne Loftus: That’s congrats to that.

Laura DiFranco: Thank you. And that process of moving somebody from a journal all the way to published and even like grabbing a microphone like we’re doing today, you know, on the podcast, but just being out loud about it, but in a way that’s powerful and effective and bringing you the people that will help you bring your vision to life. Yeah. Right. Because you don’t do a business without your community and other people. It’s all about other people and your community.

AliceAnne Loftus: Other people matter. You need other people. Yeah. And I would say that’s probably a lesson, my biggest lesson in entrepreneurship is you need other people. Yeah, yeah.

Laura DiFranco: I get that one. And you need them from a standpoint of, you know, I don’t know if this was you in the beginning of your business, but when I started the first business and that was physical therapy, right? And I was seeing clients and it was really just me. It was just like one on one sessions, blah, blah, blah. But at that stage of my life back then, the belief, the thoughts were, well, I’m successful because I’m doing it all by myself. And that is so twisted. And so thank goodness eventually I did the 180 on that. I’m like, no, like that success I dream of that is completely not all by myself. It is the opposite of all by myself. And then, you know, when you finally have that like aha moment and you can move into this other place where you see the opportunities, I mean, everything can happen there, right? That there’s a magical moment in that.

AliceAnne Loftus: Yeah, yeah. So true. And I see this a lot with solopreneurs. I think my experience might have been a little bit different because my first business was running a child care program. You know, my first week of business, I had six children and eight teachers.

Laura DiFranco: You are never by yourself.

AliceAnne Loftus: I was never by myself. And you literally cannot run a program without teachers and things like that. So I think I learned very, very early on the power of people and the right people. And I’m so thankful. I’m thankful that I was able to have that mindset right out the gate, because I do see solopreneurs get stuck in and I get stuck in leading lady sometimes feeling like I’m the only one that can do the thing. But yeah, that’s a, that’s a whole other podcast in there. So Laura, how can our listeners get in touch with you? Because if you’re listening to this episode, I cannot emphasize enough. You have a story, probably multiple stories, not probably. Definitely multiple stories that need to be out into the world. So how can our listeners get in touch with you?

Connect with Laura

Laura DiFranco: Well, easy would be to just connect with me on LinkedIn, right? Just type in Laura DiFranco, but BraveHealer.com is a place to come and you’ll see all what we’re up to. You can connect with me on the website too.

AliceAnne Loftus: Okay. And are you still taking 2027 authors? Oh for sure. Okay.

Laura DiFranco: So you might be an author ready to write a chapter in one of the expert collaborations. I don’t know, maybe you’re a leader like Allison and you have a community and you want to step forward and lead a project, right? I can’t wait to talk to you. Yes. Yeah.

AliceAnne Loftus: It needs to happen. These books need to be out into the world. So if you’re doubting yourself, quiet that noise. Make the call with Laura. Reach out to me. I’m happy to share my experience. The good, the bad, the ugly, the wonderful. And Laura, thank you so much for being such a tremendous resource to all of us and helping us get our stories out there.

Laura DiFranco: Thank you. Allison. You’re an amazing cheerleader, inspirational person in my life, and I so appreciate just all of the love and support. Thanks for having me today.

AliceAnne Loftus: Yes. Thank you. Until next time, take the lead. Thanks for tuning in for another episode of the Leading Lady podcast. You can find all of the links and information mentioned in this episode at www.leadinglady-coaching.com. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to follow the show so you don’t miss any future episodes. And while you’re there, it would mean the world to me if you would take a few seconds and leave me an honest review. This will allow me to be able to help other high achieving women find inspiration, connection, and develop strategies to live and lead with purpose and intention. See you here next week.