What do white pants, a pair of scissors, and a Friday night party have to do with building a billion-dollar empire? For Sara Blakely, the creator of SPANX, that unlikely combination changed everything. From selling fax machines door-to-door to becoming the youngest self-made woman billionaire on the cover of Forbes, Sara’s story proves that your next big idea might be hiding in plain sight, and hers was shapewear. In this episode, I’m explaining exactly how she did it in 10 steps, including every challenge along the way and showing how persistence pays off.

By learning from her story, you’ll see how to:

✔️ Spot everyday problems that could lead to big opportunities

✔️ Build a brand rooted in authenticity and real customer needs

✔️ Use rejection and setbacks as fuel instead of failure

✔️ Take bold, unconventional steps to get your idea noticed

#sarablakely #sarablakelyspanx #spanx #spanxfounder #selfmade #womeninbusiness #founderoriginstory #womenfounder #startupstories

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Listen to Jeans with a Blazer on your favorite platforms:

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Connect with the Show and host:

• Show: Instagram.com/jeanswithablazer
• Host: instagram.com/melbeuz/
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• Email: hello@jeanswithablazer.com

Music: “Sugar Groove” by INPLUSMUSIC — Licensed via PremiumBeat (License #6849247, Order #5428551) for Jeans With a Blazer podcast. Used with permission.

A good manager makes an okay job bearable. A bad manager can break you...and your career, and that's a big nope from me! In this episode, I’m talking about the "code" for how to work with bosses, manage up, and build a better employee-manager relationship. These tips will help you handle difficult managers, communicate clearly, and become the employee they can’t imagine working without. Plus, I'll go over the eight different types of managers with some actionable strategies to boost your career, master leadership skills for employees, and create real workplace success.

📌 Get the Resource from this episode: The Manager Training Manual for Stressed Out Employees: https://bit.ly/managertrainingmanual

Who It’s For:
This episode is perfect for professionals who want to strengthen emotional intelligence at work, navigate tricky manager dynamics, and grow in their careers.

What You’ll Learn:

• How to work with managers more effectively
• Techniques for managing up without overstepping
• Manager communication tips that actually get results
• How to handle difficult managers and reactive work environments
• Strategies for career growth and workplace success

#workingwithmanagers #managing up #workplace hacks #difficul managers

Source for data: https://www.shrm.org/executive-network/insights/future-of-talent-retention-report-why-employees-leave

Send us a text

📌 Subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode.
⭐ Leave a review—it helps more people find the podcast and keeps these conversations going.
📲 I love hearing from you—follow @JeansWithABlazer for latest episode updates and @melbeuz on Instagram and tag me your biggest takeaways, your latest wins, or what topics you want to hear next.

Listen to Jeans with a Blazer on your favorite platforms:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• YouTube

Connect with the Show and host:

• Show: Instagram.com/jeanswithablazer
• Host: instagram.com/melbeuz/
• Website & Newsletter: Jeanswithablazer.com
• Email: hello@jeanswithablazer.com

Music: “Sugar Groove” by INPLUSMUSIC — Licensed via PremiumBeat (License #6849247, Order #5428551) for Jeans With a Blazer podcast. Used with permission.

Before we knew what stan culture was, we knew what it felt like to be changed by a song—and that kind of parasocial connection that shapes who we follow, what we buy, and who we become. Mega-fandom isn’t an accident, it’s carefully created, and it's something that can be replicated.

Let’s talk about how stan culture is engineered to build brand loyalty through some of the biggest artists in the entertainment industry by forging deep parasocial relationships, and creating communities that show up.

From Taylor Swift's "Swifties" and Beyonce's "Bey Hive" to that one artist who changed your life when you were 11—this is stan culture explained and broken down step-by-step for how brands (and you) can use it to build a loyal audience through the lens of identity, psychology, and strategy.

💡 What You’ll Learn:
- Why fans stay loyal—and how to ethically engineer that for your brand or mission.

- The role of Social Identity Theory in music fandoms, brand culture, and leadership.

- Looking into the qualities of major fandoms like the Swifties and Bey Hive, and how they mastered the attention economy.

-The difference between influence and intimacy—and why it matters now more than ever.

#stanculture #parasocialrelationships #swifties #taylorswift #parasocial #beyhive #brandloyalty

Send us a text

📌 Subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode.
⭐ Leave a review—it helps more people find the podcast and keeps these conversations going.
📲 I love hearing from you—follow @JeansWithABlazer for latest episode updates and @melbeuz on Instagram and tag me your biggest takeaways, your latest wins, or what topics you want to hear next.

Listen to Jeans with a Blazer on your favorite platforms:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• YouTube

Connect with the Show and host:

• Show: Instagram.com/jeanswithablazer
• Host: instagram.com/melbeuz/
• Website & Newsletter: Jeanswithablazer.com
• Email: hello@jeanswithablazer.com

Music: “Sugar Groove” by INPLUSMUSIC — Licensed via PremiumBeat (License #6849247, Order #5428551) for Jeans With a Blazer podcast. Used with permission.