Over breakfast with my good friend Rachel from @wildsoulbeauty this morning, we were chatting about all things personal and business. As it always does, the conversation turned to our relationship with social media.

The Algorithm Struggle

I’m notoriously bad at feeding the monster that is “THE ALGORITHM.” I like to compare my social media experience to going on one date in five years and being surprised and shocked when he wasn’t the one! Meanwhile, Rachel feeds that monster weekly with the most thoughtful, beautiful posts, and no one turns up to the date!

It can’t be just us, right?

The Power of Generosity

While chatting over eggs this morning, I shared that one of my students over the weekend called me that word again a word I’ve heard so many times when people are talking to me or about me. She called me “overly generous.” I get excited when someone says that to me because it’s at the root (pardon the pun) of my values, and not just in business.

Two of my core values at the heart of Yarrow Lane are accessibility to all and generosity.

But then, the very wise Rachel said to me: “Laura, you need to be generous with boundaries.”

Lightbulb moment!

Finding Joy in the Right Space

I’ve been trying to be generous in a space that feels forced. Over on Instagram, it’s not joyful for me to sit down and spend time posting. I could and have paid others to do it for me (shout out to the amazing @Shell.mcmedia), but I still have to provide all the herbal knowledge so I will drag my feet and fight against it. I don’t want to build a community where I feel unworthy of people’s attention, waiting for them to click a heart.

I want to be radically generous in a space that encourages us to slow down and literally smell, eat, and drink the plants.

That space is here!

Another lightbulb moment (there must have been something in those eggs): I already have the foundations of that space. It’s here my blog, my newsletter, my website!

Stepping Into My Values

Stepping into my core values of accessibility and generosity (with boundaries), here’s how I see the future of Yarrow Lane:

Weeds are for everyone. I want the knowledge of plants to be accessible to all, and I never want to gatekeep plant knowledge.

I want to create and provide as many free resources as I can over here, not on social media. But I also need to have very clear boundaries. (“Generosity with boundaries!”) If someone wants to learn from me personally to have me as their plant guide/teacher that is a service that I charge money for. Classes, subscriptions, and consultations are my service offerings that I charge for.

Let’s Get Clear

Generosity does not have to mean doing things for free or giving away free things.

When I say I share knowledge freely, I do not mean that I will do whatever anybody asks me to do if they want free stuff from me. I will create free resources in ways that align with my energy and work best for me. That may be in the form of:

• Blog posts
• Free downloads
• Free webinars (like the one I hosted in October, which was a great success)

It will happen over here as we build a space where we can slow down and hide out from “The Algorithm.” (Isn’t it funny how we talk about the algorithm as a person? “The algorithm is out to get me,” “I think the algorithm doesn’t like me,” etc.)

Moving Forward

For me, it’s really about accessibility making sure I’m not gatekeeping knowledge while also trying to push my business forward a little so I can be in a place to offer just a little more.

I believe that if I give freely, it returns. It’s reciprocal. It can be mutual good for me, good for you, and good for the plants.

If that is something that fills you with a little joy & hope. make sure your signed up for my newletter offering so I can share and be radical generous with you.

Love Laura & The Plants

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