Offline, With Alison Rice

Latest Episodes:

Celebrity stylist Jess Pecoraro on feeling the fear & doing it anyway. Nov 20, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

This episode is part of my ongoing Self Care Sundays mini-series produced by Studio Offline and in partnership with Estée Lauder. I sit down with some of the brand’s inspiring ambassadors and friends to have an honest conversation about self care and success.

My next guest is the perfect example of this idea that we need to get comfortable with discomfort when it comes to evolving professionally. Feel the fear and do it anyway.

Jess Pecoraro is one of Australia’s most in-demand celebrity stylists, and during the pandemic, like so many others, executed a brilliant pivot. She co-founded a styling subscription platform called Selected. What she didn’t anticipate, though, was how hard it would be to come out from behind the scenes, to lead the scene.

Also, the unique challenge anyone who is wanting to move into online learning and education faces: How to create a methodology for that which is just simply felt and known.

In this episode, Jess shares her journey from magazine intern to styling the likes of Pip Edwards, Delta Goodrem and Jesinta Campbell. She opens up about choosing a redundancy package over re-applying for her role, how she overcame her fear of public speaking and presenting, why confidentiality is a key contributor to her success and the role she believes fashion plays in our lives.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Sah D’Simone on why altruism is the ultimate business strategy. Nov 06, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

My next guest is someone my sister suggested I follow a while back, and I’ve been obsessed with his signature style of spirituality even since.

Sah D’Simone is a Brazilian-born meditation teacher based in Venice Beach, California. He’s also a bestselling author, transformational speaker and coach.

He’s worked with the likes of Kanye West, Cardi B and Google, but as you’ll soon hear, those names were never on his career vision board. For Sah, True Self Success starts and ends in service.

Sah developed his personal equation for liberation through desperation. He said that even in some of the most enlightened rooms in the world, he experienced the same kinds of psychological and verbal oppression he experienced in the non-spiritual rooms in his life. So he created the Spiritually Sassy method, which, in its simplest form, helps people be themselves. It’s been described as a life-embracing path to awakening in modern times.

There’s so much for us to learn in this episode. He talks about starting and growing a spiritual business, learning to dance with fear and the uncertainty that comes with entrepreneurship, how to create from a place of abundance vs. scarcity, altruism as the ultimate strategy and so much more.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Laura Poole on knowing what you are before defining what you’ll do. Oct 23, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

Have you ever thought deeply about why we start businesses or brands? Usually it’s to solve a problem, fill a gap in the market or make money.

But how many founders do you know have started something with the intention to exit it? And not “exit” Silicon Valley style with millions of dollars, but exit with nothing but the knowing that they’ve fulfilled their purpose in this lifetime.

Laura Poole is a powerful and prolific Vedic Meditation teacher, and in this episode, she presents a more evolutionary perspective on the why behind what we choose to create.

She asks us to first know what we are, before deciding what it is that'll we’ll do.

Because how much of what we create is actually about our individual need to feel valued and valuable? Like, how many of us can hand-on-heart say that we hope our role becomes redundant because the business outgrew us? Our ego would be screaming. But with the context Laura brings in this episode, this becomes quite a liberating thought.

She also helps us see past “success” as an individualised experience, and instead, asks us to consider what collective and community success might look like. How might that change the way we show up professionally?

What I also heard from Laura is that this way of building something also gives us back the one thing we can never get more of in the relative world: Time. Time to explore other parts of ourselves that want to be expressed. Time to consider the next season of our life and what would be most evolutionary for us once again. Because we are not the thing we started or the thing we do.

I hope this episode helps you on your way. Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Honouring the interconnectedness of True Self & profession. Oct 09, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

What we do for a living feels a bit more emotional than it used to. Restrictions to our freedoms have made many of us question what actually makes us feel happy and fulfilled. A sneaky sleep in. A long walk before the workday starts. A home-cooked lunch. Creating just because not for. The time to think more deeply and even change our mind.

Many of us are also questioning if we're using our gifts and skills in ways that make us feel truly useful in the world. Is it time to start something that means something? Could we lead more consciously? And how much money is enough?

We’re evolving, and this podcast is evolving with us. I’d love to share Offline’s Manifesto with you.

I hope this season helps you on your way. Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Alison on pregnancy, labour preparation & the postpartum period. Jul 10, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

To close season six, I'm dedicating this Ask Me Anything episode to my little girl, Betty.

So often, the stories we hear about pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period are negative and fear-based. My experience has been more soft than hard, and so I hopes that sharing a different perspective might help you feel more excited than scared about this new chapter.

In this extended episode, I answer listener questions about my pregnancy, navigating pregnancy anxiety, labour preparation, hospital bag must-haves and why I believe I had a soft and positive postpartum experience. I also talk about the sense of perspective I have following two pregnancy losses and the life lessons I hope to teach my little girl.

Alison xo

Books

WOT Baby ebook
I didn’t mention it in the episode but loved Dr. Harvey Karp’s Happiest Baby On the Block for general info and newborn settling techniques
Ten Moons
Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth
Spiritual Midwifery
Spirit Babies
The First 40 Days
The Motherhood (would have liked more positive stories though!)
The Montessori Baby

Conception

We saw an IVF specialist after our second miscarriage for testing: AMH levels, reproductive carrier screening, sperm DNA fragmentation test
I had weekly acupuncture from ovulation until week 12, then moved to fortnightly, then monthly during the third trimester. I see Jade at The Whiteowl Clinic

Pregnancy

Our OB is Dr. Alex Owen
Acupuncture with Jade at The White Owl Clinic
I had a few osteo sessions to support some pelvic pain and one session after birth. I saw Nadia (French and amazing) at Sydney Osteopathy in Bondi Junction

Labour Preparation

Epi-No Childbirth Trainer
Perineal massage
Labour preparation session with a women’s physio (to test pelvic floor and learn how to push correctly)
Hypnobirthing course with Lillian from Woven
Antenatal classes through the hospital

Hospital Bag

I laboured in a black crop top and black maternity underwear
Papinelle pajamas and robe
Depends underwear
Toms maternity pads. I then wore ModiBodi when I got home from the hospital
Diffuser and lavender essential oil
Portable speaker and charger

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Gab Waller on having the confidence to push through rejection. Jun 26, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

In this special Self Care Sundays mini-series produced by Studio Offline and in partnership with Estée Lauder, I sit down with some of the brand’s inspiring ambassadors and friends to have an honest conversation about their careers, businesses, life on the other side of the filter, fashion, beauty and... confidence.

What does confidence really mean to women and what does having it help us to achieve?

The topic and series celebrates Estée Lauder’s Double Wear Foundation, a product that allows women to wear confidence and feel empowered to take on the day.

My next guest is personal shopper to the stars and fashion entrepreneur, Gab Waller. She got her big break sourcing and “Old Celine” coat for Rosie Huntington-Whiteley in 2018, and hasn’t looked back. She now has a team of six helping her to respond to hundreds of personal shopping requests each day.

In this episode, Gab opens up about what confidence means to her, how she’s seen fashion change a woman’s perception of herself, her breakthrough moment, why it’s so important to push through rejection, how she’s thinking about scaling her business, building her support team, how to develop deep relationships with clients and brands, the lessons she’s learnt the hard way, the importance of discretion in her business and how she’s thinking about circularity in our need-it-now consumer culture.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Stephanie Miller & Laura Henshaw open up about their journey from influencers to entrepreneurs. Jun 12, 2021

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Dearest you.

An honest conversation with Keep It Cleaner (KIC) co-founders and friends, Stephanie Miller and Laura Henshaw. What started as an ebook and a hobby has since grown into a multi-platform offering spanning recipes, workouts, mindful guides, community events and a podcast.

But how did they do it? Have they had investment? How did they know who to hire? And what advice do they have for anyone with ambition to start a movement? I ask it all.

We also discuss social media in all its usefulness and complexity, and I ask for their opinion on gifting. Is what was once an interesting and organic way for brands to expose their products to new audiences becoming more harmful than helpful?

Steph generously opens up about how she’s feeling five weeks into her new role as Harvey’s mum, and Laura gifts us with invaluable insights about growth, evolution and confidence.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Rae Johnston on the realities of being a woman working in science, gaming & tech. May 29, 2021

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Dearest you.

In honour of National Reconciliation Week, please enjoy this replay of my honest conversation with proud Wiradjuri woman, mum, award-winning STEM journalist and host, Rae Johnston. It first aired in May 2019.

Compassionate, strong and with an incredible sense of justice, Rae is a modern role model for women everywhere.

In this episode, Rae shares unique and inspiring lessons taken from her humble beginnings — including what it was like to have $5 left each week after paying her bills and feeding her child as a 19 year-old mum, the disappointing and often-complex realities of being a woman working in gaming, tech and science, her reflections on the trauma she experienced as a young model trying to get her start, her advice to employers on how to attract and support Indigenous talent, and how proposing to her husband was less about challenging gender norms and more about deep love and respect.

This conversation is longer than others, but every minute of it is compelling, educational and inspiring.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Zero waste life advocate Dr. Anita Vandyke on living in alignment with your values. May 15, 2021

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Dearest you.

An honest conversation with doctor, rocket scientist, author and zero waste life advocate Anita Vandyke. In this episode, Anita challenges the dogma surrounding living a zero waste life, educating us that it’s not about being perfect. It’s about effort.

Have you ever found yourself wanting to reduce your personal waste but feel totally overwhelmed when it comes to how? Or maybe you’re scared that if you try, you’ll fail. And then there’s the fear of the judgement that can come with trying to live more consciously. . . 2020 taught us that cancel culture is real and while sometimes very valid, it also stops us from speaking up and out about the ways we’re trying to be better.

Anita is here to help us take a step forward. She explains that living a zero waste life often starts with living a low waste life. She also shares how she personally handles criticism for her choices, why she implements spending bans and what she discovers when she does, easy zero waste strategies that absolutely anyone could implement today, why spirituality and science do co-exist and what motherhood and a major health scare taught her about herself.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo

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Donna Hay on how she built a brand that transcends trends & mediums. May 01, 2021

Show notes

Dearest you.

In this special Self Care Sundays mini-series produced by Studio Offline and in partnership with Estée Lauder, I sit down with the brand’s Australian ambassadors, friends and experts to have an honest conversation about life on the other side of the filter.

This season, the mini-series continues to explore our collective relationship with the word confidence. What does the word confidence really mean, and what does having more of it help us to achieve?

The topic and series celebrates Estée Lauder’s Double Wear Foundation, a product that allows women to wear confidence and feel empowered to take on the day.

My next guest is Australian food entrepreneur, Donna Hay — a name synonymous with simple but delicious recipes enjoyed by families across the country.

In many ways, this honest conversation honours the time and level of integrity it takes to build a brand that transcends trends and mediums.

Donna has written 27 cookbooks selling over six million copies worldwide, and has successfully expanded into homewares and TV. But as someone who identifies as shy, how did she find or cultivate the confidence to do it? In this episode, Donna and I explore her journey to success and the lessons she’s learned along the way.

Thank you for being here.

Alison xo