IAM1591 – Podcaster, Photographer and Caregiver Runs Podcast to Support and Offer Information on Alzheimer

Jennifer Fink has a family history of Alzheimer’s disease. After her father died she & her sister became responsible for their Mother who has advanced Alzheimer’s Looking for support, answers and more Jennifer did deep internet research dives but came up short. Realizing that as one of the more than 16 million unpaid family caregivers she couldn't be the only one searching for help so she decided to create her own podcast. While still new, Fading Memories has already helped many people including Jennifer. Being part of the podcasting and caregiving community has given her more than she expected when she conceived of the plan to start a supportive podcast.

• CEO Story: Jennifer has always been an entrepreneur, with her main career as a professional photographer, an industry that’s changing dramatically. She has looking for something different for a few years, searching for ways to connect better with her mom. A couple came up short, so she made her own podcast and she loved it, having the conversation that brings forth healing and benefit, and so she’s loving every step of the way.
• Business Service: Professional Portrait Photographer. Supportive podcast for caregivers.
• Secret Sauce: Keeping it personal, honest, and humorous.
• CEO Hack: Buffer for scheduling posts.
• CEO Nugget: (1) Do something you love and have a passion for it (2) Sometimes you just have to listen to yourself.
• CEO Defined: Balance and flexibility to do what you want.

Website: www.fadingmemoriespodcast.com

Twitter: Jennifer_Fink
Facebook: Fading-Memories-Podcast
Instagram: alzheimerspodcast
LinkedIn: jennifer-fink

Episode Link: https://iamceo.co/2019/01/11/iam151-podcaster-photographer-and-caregiver-runs-podcast-to-support-and-offer-information-on-alzheimer/

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Transcription

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00:08 – Intro

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

00:34- Gresham Harkless

Hello. This is Gresh from the I AM CEO podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Jennifer Fink of the Fading Memories podcast. Jennifer, it's awesome to have you on the show.

00:43 – Jennifer Fink

Oh, thank you. Good morning to everyone.

00:45 – Gresham Harkless

Good morning to you. What I wanted to do was just read a little bit more about Jennifer so you can hear about all the awesome things that she's doing Jennifer Fink has a family history of Alzheimer's disease. After her father died, she and her sister became responsible for their mother who had advanced Alzheimer's disease. Looking for support and answers and more, Jennifer did a deep dive into Internet research, but came up short, realizing that one of the more than 16 unpaid family caregivers, she couldn't be the only one searching for help.

So she decided to create her own podcast. While still new, Fading Memories has already helped many people, including Jennifer. Being part of the podcasting and caregiving community has given her more than she expected when she conceived of the plan to start a supportive podcast. Jennifer, are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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01:33 – Jennifer Fink

Definitely.

01:34 – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. So what I wanted to do was just hear a little bit more about your CEO story and what led you to start your business.

01:40 – Jennifer Fink

Well, I've always been an entrepreneur. My main career at this point is professional photographer, but that's an industry that's changing dramatically with cell phones, digital, all that stuff, and not necessarily changing for the better, in my opinion. So I've been looking for something different for a few years and like the bio says, I was searching for ways to connect better with my mom. Coming up short, I realized, and I think the bio is slightly wrong, there are over 16 million unpaid family caregivers in America and I couldn't possibly be the only one looking for better solutions.

I searched for a podcast that also came up short. There are a couple, that didn't appeal to me and so one day while I was at the gym, I thought, hey, why not start my own I love it. The conversations with people are beneficial. They're healing in a lot of ways. They're fun, and I'm loving every step of the way. So that's the short take on the journey.

02:44 – Gresham Harkless

Okay, that makes perfect sense. Obviously, sorry to hear about everything that went on with your father and obviously helping to support your mother. You're definitely courageous for being able to do that. I always say, like, in true entrepreneurial form, you know, you saw a problem and you said, okay, well, there's nothing here that's kind of filling that gap. So I'm going to decide to create it myself. It sounds like.

03:05- Jennifer Fink

Exactly.

03:06 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. I wanted to drill a little bit deeper. Could you tell us, I guess, a little bit more about your podcast and then also too, about what type of photography you do as well?

03:13 – Jennifer Fink

Well, the photography part's easy. I'm a professional portrait photographer, and so I get to make beautiful pictures of everyday people, which is always a challenge, but it's fun. I've been doing that for 26 years.

03:26 – Gresham Harkless

Nice.

03:26 – Jennifer Fink

So it's nice to have a new challenge. The podcast. I wasn't sure what direction I was going to go with it, other than a supportive podcast for caregivers like myself, until I started working on episodes. The very first one I did was a bunch of different audio recordings of my time visiting Mom, and that took so many hours to piece together into something that I thought might be worthy of listening to that I'm like, no, this is not the direction we're going. I don't have this many hours every week. She's not always super conversational, so I knew that wasn't sustainable.

So I started looking around, and people started coming to me with, hey, I have this question, or have you heard of this? Just I started with the idea that I wanted to pass on the information that I wish I had known when my mother was in the earlier stages. There are so many outlets for help and support and information out there, and almost everybody I've spoken to is shocked when they realize I didn't know there was this help this information or this product.

It seems like we're all caregiving in the dark, and that's no good. So since May 1st, my goal has been to pass on all the information I've learned, deal with my mom, start the podcast, do research, and find out more about what options there are, and what help there is, because we're not in the dark. There's a ton of stuff out there, and we just need to share it better.

04:55 – Gresham Harkless

Absolutely. Yeah, I've always heard that. The fact that you put in that time and not only do it for your father but also you're taking your time and your talents to be able to create this podcast to help others is definitely admirable.

05:09 – Jennifer Fink

Well, thank you and it's been exciting. I have my episode that's coming out next week. I talked to a podcaster and his mom. They lost grandma mom in June. His podcasting partner thought, oh, doing an episode with me would help them process. Well, their episode is fantastic. The way their family came together when Dad threw up the white flag and said, I can't do this anymore. I need you guys to find a caring community for Mom slash Grandma and what they did, they call it the committee.

It's a blueprint that I think every family should hear and hopefully take to heart and follow as a guide because it was so inspiring. One of the problems a lot of families have is it's constant grief. I go and I see my mom, and she's not doing as well. Or some days, like this week, she was a lot. She was dressed better. She looked more put together. I'm like, okay, this is a good day. Some days, it just, she just seems really lost in her own mind. I call it a death by a thousand cuts because it's. It's just difficult. It's not.

It's a very long process, and it doesn't take the same path for everybody. So it's hard to deal with on a basis in daily basis. Some family members can't do it. They don't think they can do it. They're afraid to try. So it ends up being the burden of one or two siblings to take care of a parent or handle most of the work. The way they went around, that was fantastic. So I've learned a lot. It's just. It's been an exciting journey.

06:50 – Gresham Harkless

Now, I wanted to ask you for what I call your secret sauce and this could be what you feel kind of sets you apart or your podcast apart and what makes you unique.

06:58 – Jennifer Fink

When I first started, I was still processing some grief and anger after my father died. People who have listened to the podcast will understand why because I do talk about it, and I wanted to be very open and share. But at the beginning of an episode, I had my husband listen to him, like, is this kind of too negative? He goes, oh, God, yeah, you need to delete that. So I did and I try very hard to be fun and positive and throw in the humor, because if you can't find the humor in dealing with this disease, you will lose your mind, literally.

That's just a place people don't want to go. So it's. I try to keep it very personal. I try to keep the humor in it, and I just try to be very open. I think that's what people are responding to. I the one of the podcasts that talks about Alzheimer's that's similar to mine. I haven't heard her talk about her personal journey much. Now. She's been around a lot longer and I'm sure it's there. But one of the reasons that I started my podcast was I couldn't handle her audio quality. I think it's the artist in me. I just couldn't hack it.

Some of the episodes were so bad I couldn't listen to it with earbuds. It was like the host was at one volume and the interviewee was at another volume. It was much lower. It was like you're constantly turning the volume up and down. I'm like, I can't do this. I want to hear this person speak. I've met this person in real life and I can't listen to this episode. So I try to keep in mind that even though it's just me, I'm just a little one-person podcast right now, I want to keep it personal humorous, and honest. I think that's what people respond to, is they can relate.

08:39 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. I think especially in this day and age when you are open and honest and you are telling your story, people do connect with that because during difficult times especially usually you kind of clam up, I guess you can say, and then you don't necessarily want to talk about it, but the fact that you're able to tell your story and you're empowering others to definitely listen to your podcast for one. But definitely, I'm sure, reach out and see how they can learn from you and then also get help as well. So it's awesome that you're able to do that.

09:06 – Jennifer Fink

Yeah, and I've been trying to connect with people on social media. There's a gal on Twitter whose situation is, makes mine look like a walk in the park. When I see her making comments that could be described as a little bit of a cry for help, I try to respond and give advice like a long-distance hug, because I can't imagine walking in her shoes. I know what walking in mine is like. Hers is even worse.

There are a couple of people online that I kind of check in on a daily basis because I just don't know how they get up every day. I really don't. So I can see that she needs help and trying to. I'm trying a little bit that I can. To help because I've gained so much knowledge, it would be. I think it would be wrong to not share it.

09:49- Gresham Harkless

So, yeah, that makes perfect sense. It's kind of like our duty to do that. So I appreciate you for doing that. Now I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. This might be an app, a book, or a habit that you have, but it's something that makes you more effective and efficient as a business owner.

10:04 – Jennifer Fink

Oh, that's tough because I'm doing so many different things right now, but I've. There are so many online tools because the photography business is changing and not in the best way. It's definitely the opposite of growing. I don't have a ton of money to advertise and promote the podcast, so I've greatly learned how to do it through social media.

I use the scheduling platform Buffer because I don't have time to do this stuff daily. I go in a couple of times a week and fill up a week or two of social media posts. I look at my calendar and see, okay, what am I going to be doing that day? My husband ran for city council, so I was. I utilized the social media for his campaign and I learned how to make it personal, even though I'm scheduling it a week or two out.

10:52 – Gresham Harkless

Nice. No, Buffer is definitely a great CEO hack. Now, I wanted to ask you for a CEO nugget, and this is a word of wisdom or piece of advice, or if you can hop into a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

11:03 – Jennifer Fink

Oh, well, a definite word of wisdom is, this is cheesy because everybody says this, but it's do something that you love, something you're passionate about. I mean, the podcast is new, it's not monetized yet, so it's definitely a passion project at this point. There are times I think, I don't know, I'm not sure I'm ever going to get to a point where this is making money, but I know what I'm doing is for good, so I keep going. Do what you love, and then you don't work a day in your life. I'm sure people have heard that a lot, but that's been my mantra for the last 26 years.

If I went in a time machine, I think I would tell somebody to constantly, or I would tell myself, to really think outside the box. I've listened to advice from rock-star professional photographers and other industry notables, and I find a lot of the time their advice doesn't apply to me. The photography end, they're always saying, you aren't your own client. You have to focus on this other demographic.

When I stopped listening to that and realized, yes, I am actually my own client, my clients are just like me. How would I want to be marketed? What would I want? What would make me spend more money happily, I was much more successful. So sometimes you just have to listen to your inner voice, and other times you have to step outside of yourself and try to look in so you can find the little thing that you aren't doing that will probably make a difference.

12:29 – Gresham Harkless

That makes perfect sense.

12:31 – Jennifer Fink

I was hoping that made sense.

12:33 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, I mean the idea, especially of scratching your own itch, so to speak. Because a lot of times some of the best ideas that I've heard have been people that have had issues. Even your podcast, because you went through with your father and then your mother, now you decided to create something. So it definitely sounds like you're doing something phenomenal and you're creating something.

Sometimes we never know exactly how that end product will manifest itself. But I believe full-heartedly in what you said. If you kind of follow your path, follow what you love, follow what you are and what is your gift, that will align and lead you down the right path. So I definitely agree with that. Now, I wanted to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. We're hoping to have different, quote-unquote, CEOs on the show. So I wanted to ask you, Jennifer, what does being a CEO mean to you?

13:17 – Jennifer Fink

I think that I have balance and flexibility in my life to do all of the things I want to do. I, you know, I go to the gym in the morning. I normally cycle on Wednesdays and Fridays, but I am in the worst air zone in California thanks to all the fires. Right now, it's pretty bad. There are times I think the household is struggling monetarily, so maybe I should just go get a real job, quote, unquote.

I look back I'm like, if I got a 9 to 5 job and commuted somewhere, I wouldn't be able to deal with my mom and her needs and I wouldn't be able to work on the podcast. I just moved forward and trying to, trying to find the sweet spot of monetization and doing a passion project that makes me happy and benefits other people. It just, I think just means you're in charge of your own life.

14:11 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. Sometimes, whether highs or lows, sometimes you just have to keep moving forward. A lot of times that's what kind of separates people as a whole. I definitely appreciate you for sharing that definition with us. What I want to do is pass you the mic just to see if there's anything additional that you want to let our readers and our listeners know and then also how best people can get ahold of you and of course, subscribe to your podcast.

14:31 – Jennifer Fink

Well, I'll start with the easy part. The podcast is on Apple and Google podcasts and probably most podcast platforms. The podcast host I use pushes it out into places that I'm not familiar with because I'm an all-Apple person all the time. I've been an Apple computer user since 1982.

14:50 – Gresham Harkless

Nice.

14:50- Jennifer Fink

The website for the podcast is fadingmemoriespodcast.com I post a lot of additional information if I'm talking to somebody. Like, I think this week's episode was on long-distance caregiving. So I link articles and basically blog about how to do that effectively. So there's definite, you know, you can listen, you can read, you can do both. I think people need to know that. Well, life is short.

Although my grandmother is almost 101, so I'm not so sure. I always believe that you need to do what makes you happy and you need to adjust your life so that if you're happy at a lower income level versus maybe you want to be at a corner office level, but that doesn't make you happy.

Do what makes you happy because if you're unhappy, life's going to be long and unpleasant. That's been my motto for a long time. I'd rather have the flexibility and the freedom to do what I feel is right, what makes me happy, versus chasing the almighty dollar. I think that has led me to find things that I'm very good at that I can then turn into a business

15:59 – Gresham Harkless

That makes perfect sense and yeah, that's definitely a good reminder for everybody. So, Jennifer I truly appreciate you for taking some time out of your schedule. We'll make sure to have all those links in the show notes as well and I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

16:11 – Jennifer Fink

You too. Thanks so much.

16:13 – Outro

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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