Welcome back to No Filter Fridays - caffeine-fuelled and chaos-approved.
I’m sharing the warts-and-all reality of rebuilding The Mama Assembly™ from scratch - because too many of us try to figure it all out alone.
Each week I pull back the curtain on what I’m trying, testing, and learning as I go - the stuff that might just save another small business owner a few headaches (or a few hours lost to Canva).
If you’re at the start or somewhere in the middle of your own build, this is for you.
Season #2 | Issue 2: From Pivot to Pirouette
A few months ago, I was standing at the edge of my own metaphorical school dance, not because I didn’t want to move, but because the music had changed and I had to learn a new rhythm fast.
The minute redundancy hit, I grabbed my metaphorical clipboard, pulled my positive pants up high, and started making moves.
Because that’s what I do when life flips the table - I build a better one.
After months of organising, planning, testing, and reshaping what’s next, it finally started to click.
The pivot became a pirouette - not a clumsy sidestep, but a spin with intention.
(If you missed how it all began, catch up in Season 2, Issue 1: The Epiphany to Pivot.)
What That Looked Like This Week
It’s been late nights, too many browser tabs, and a few “why won’t this damn thing connect to Shopify” moments.
Here’s what went down behind the scenes at The Mama Assembly™:
🧭 Brand Direction
Announced my pivot from handmade to digital. Rewrote the homepage, refreshed the email sign-up, and gave the brand language the glow-up it deserved.
💌 Marketing Momentum
Dropped the AI-Ready SEO Starter Kit - my first free lead magnet to help other creators teach AI who they are. It’s part strategy, part experiment, all progress.
📢 Social Storytelling
From funny cake banter to midweek reflections, I’ve been sharing both the chaos and the clarity. “Building in plain sight” means no filters, no fluff - just figuring it out in front of you.
💬 Community Conversations
Between Pantry volunteering, chats with mums in mid-pivot, and connecting with other small businesses and creators online, I’ve realised we’re all dancing the same dance - just to different music.
🧠 Establishing a Business Isn’t Easy
Let’s be honest, this part? It’s the grind.
It’s not glamorous, and it’s not fast.
There are moments where I question everything: the direction, the timing, the effort.
Sometimes I'm tempted to take a little peek at the job advert emails that keep filling my inbox, but I don't. I stay focused. I'm on a new path.
I remind myself, every strong business, brand, and movement starts in the trenches, and that’s why I lean hard on the systems and tools that keep me sane:
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My project boards and content planners.
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My automations, templates, and workflows.
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My clarity rituals that remind me why I’m doing this.
Because reinvention isn’t about overnight success, it’s about sustainable structure.
I’ve spent this week putting the pieces in motion, cleaning up systems, structuring ideas, and turning chaos into clarity.
💡 This Week’s Lesson: Blogging Takes Work (and Strategy)
Writing a blog sounds easy until you’re actually doing it, every single week.
It’s not just words. It’s titles, keywords, image selection, Canva covers, Pinterest pins, Facebook snippets, LinkedIn carousels, alt text, tags, and a dozen different image sizes.
By the time you’ve finished one post, you’ve basically created an entire marketing campaign.
If you’re writing for your own business, here’s what helps me (and might help you too):
✅ 1. Capture ideas all week.
Keep a running list - notes, screenshots, or voice memos - of sparks and stories that could turn into content. You’ll thank yourself later.
✅ 2. Start with the foundation.
Know your topic and reason. Ask: Who am I writing for? What do they need right now?
✅ 3. WIIFT: What’s In It For Them.
You’re not writing for you - you’re writing for your audience. Know them. Serve them.
✅ 4. Build around your platforms.
Once the blog’s done, repurpose it: LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram.
Same message, adjusted tone. TikToks if that’s your thing (mine starts next week... promise).
✅ 5. Stay on course.
You don’t need every post to go viral. You just need it to connect.
Consistency beats perfection every time.
It takes time to get it right, but the time you spend now is what builds your brand later.
Because while the dance might look spontaneous, there’s always a method behind the movement.
Next week, I’ll share the un-glamorous but wildly satisfying side of it, the machine I’m building behind The Mama Assembly™: My OneNote HQ, My Trello boards, and the tools that make the creative chaos work.
If You’re Going to Show Up to the Dance…
Move.
Even if you miss the beat.
Even if no one else is watching.
Most of my conversations this week were with myself - in public, on my own posts.
At least I’m getting engagement. 😂
You’ll find your rhythm eventually, but only if you start moving.
✨ Stay in the Loop
Love a mix of real talk and real tools?
Join both corners of The Mama Assembly™ community - because sometimes you need a story, and sometimes you need a system.
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💬 No Filter Fridays
Real talk on reinvention, resilience, and rebuilding life after corporate. Every Friday, I share the messy, hilarious, and liberating reality of starting over. |
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☕ The Mama Edit Where honest stories meet practical perspective. Motherhood, mindset, and the messy middle; part motivation, part organisation, always real. |
Thanks for reading,
Gill x
Fuelled by caffeine, curiosity, and occasionally vodka.
If You’re Curious What I Actually Did This Week…
(Warts, wins, caffeine, and chaos below 👇)
🧩 Building The Mama Assembly™
- Announced the pivot away from handmade
- Updated homepage + sign-up
- Applied AI Optimisation - EVERYWHERE!
- Launched AI-Ready SEO Starter Kit
- Published 17 LinkedIn posts
- Volunteered at the Pantry (every Thursday I volunteer my time from 9-3pm to Lead a local community pantry)
- Wrote From Pivot to Pirouette
📊 WOW (Week on Week) Summary = FULL TRANSPARENCY
Because reinvention’s not just a feeling, it’s measurable progress.
Progress isn’t always viral, sometimes it’s visible in the quiet metrics.
Every post, every subscriber, every small step builds the rhythm.
Highlights: 17 LinkedIn posts | +3 personal followers | +1 company follower | +4 No Filter Friday Newsletter subscribers on LinkedIn
What happened between 31 Oct – 6 Nov:
| Gain / -Loss | % Change | |
| Gill Townsend - Followers | 3 | 0.3% |
| Gill Townsend - Post Impressions | -800 | -42.2% |
| The Mama Assembly - Company Followers | 1 | 3.0% |
| The Mama Assembly = No Filter Fridays subscribers | 4 | 2.4% |
| Newletter Article Views | 50 | 100.0% |
| The Mama Assembly Visitors | 17 | 100.0% |
| Other Socials (followers) | Gain / -Loss | % Change |
| TikTok | 0 | 0.0% |
| 1 | 0.3% | |
| 1 | 0.4% | |
| 0 | 0.0% | |
|
Website |
Gain / -Loss | % Change |
| Subscribed customers (general) | -2 | -0.9% |
| No Filter Friday subscribers | 0 | 0.0% |
| The Mama Edit subscribers | 0 | 0.0% |
| Posts across platforms this week | Total | % Change |
| 17 | 13.3% | |
| TikTok | 0 | 0.0% |
| 2 | 100.0% | |
| 1 | 100.0% | |
| Website (blog) | 3 | 100.0% |
| Emails sent | 1 | 100.0% |
Progress isn’t always loud. Sometimes it’s hidden in the numbers, the quiet proof that momentum’s building.
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