Introduction

In this episode of Grace in the Grind, host Jim Burgoon interviews Ashley DeLuca, CEO of George Bryant's company. Ashley shares her inspiring journey from corporate dissatisfaction to entrepreneurial success, discussing how she overcame personal challenges and found fulfillment as a mother and business leader. This conversation offers valuable insights for anyone looking to make a major life transition or find greater purpose in their work.

Ashley Decluca

Ashley DeLuca is email marketing specialist of 5 years turned CEO with George Bryant who specializes in putting the H.E.A.R.T. back into your business. There’s a 99% chance she’s drinking an Alani right now, thinking about business, and chasing her kiddo all at the same time.

@ashahleeks on Instagram

Timestamps

(00:00) - Introduction and welcome

(01:28) - Ashley's entrepreneurial journey begins

(03:43) - Finding fulfillment and leaving corporate

(07:16) - The role of courage in making big decisions

(08:28) - Dealing with self-doubt and second-guessing

(10:23) - How motherhood shapes Ashley's identity and mission

(13:16) - Overcoming challenges and building confidence

(17:43) - Current approach to leadership and showing up authentically

(19:46) - Self-care practices and filling the bucket

(20:53) - Book recommendation and personal growth

(21:55) - Final thoughts on betting on yourself]

Key Takeaways

• Recognizing unfulfillment is the first step towards positive change
• Have the Courage to bet on yourself can lead to unexpected opportunities
• Motherhood can be a powerful driving force for personal and professional growth
• Overcoming identity challenges is crucial when making major life transitions
• Self-care and quality time with loved ones are essential for maintaining balance
• Authentic leadership emerges from personal growth and self-awareness

Relevant Links

• Ashley's Instagram: @ashahleeks
• George Bryant's Instagram: @itsgeorgebryant
• Book mentioned: "I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn't)" by Brené Brown https://amzn.to/4ev5exB - Affiliate Link to the book on Amazon

Call to Action

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to Grace in the Grind and leave us a review. Your support helps us reach more people with inspiring stories and valuable insights.

Connect With Us

• Follow Jim on all social media: @LeadwithJim
• Visit our website: www.leadwithjim.com
• Follow Ashley on Instagram: @ashahleeks

Jim Burgoon

https://grace-in-the-grind.captivate.fm/episode/ceo

Copyright 2024 Jim Burgoon

Welcome to Grace In the grind, the podcast where we dive deep into the

journeys of heart centered and purpose driven leaders and entrepreneurs.

We'll pull back the curtain to explore the stories behind success, how people

have navigated the toughest challenges, overcome their obstacles and found

their way through the grind to build something truly impactful, whether you're

a Christian leader looking for guidance or an entrepreneur seeking inspiration.

We're here to equip and encourage you.

So let's get started, and find the grace within the grind.

This is Grace in the Grind, and now your host, Jim Burgoon.

Welcome to the show.

Welcome to grace and the grind.

this is my good friend, Ashley DeLuca.

And we're here just kind of really talked about some stories behind the story of

how she's gone from a time of struggle to thriving, what that looks like and the

wisdom and how you can do that as well, she is now the CEO of George Bryant, Yeah.

George is a good friend of the show as well.

And so Ashley has moved into a CEO position doing that.

we're going to let her unpack what that looks like.

What's the life of a CEO and things like that.

So welcome to the show, Ashley.

Oh my gosh, thank you so much for having me.

I'm stoked to be here.

Yeah, so, you know, we've known each other for a while and, gone through

some really crazy times watching things up and down all over the place.

So I want to start this off, first and foremost, just let our viewers know

maybe some of the journey you've been on to go from where you were, where

you started, to be where you're at.

Yeah.

Oh my gosh.

So it feels so crazy to say that my journey started over six years ago.

my very first like entrepreneurial encounter was at a Panera Bread.

It was with my best friend, CC.

I always used to joke that she was double the age, double the wisdom.

And I was sitting there and I was in my.

Early, early twenties.

And I was explaining to her how frustrated I was with the corporate grind.

And I was sold this dream that if you just worked up the corporate

ladder, you would be fulfilled.

You would be happy.

Things would look great.

And for me as a kind of budding web designer, I.

Felt like I was hitting rock wall after rock wall.

And so as I was, in this process of trying to figure out what I wanted to do

and really how I wanted to move forward in my life because I was in college

full time, I was working full time.

I was doing all the quote unquote, right things.

And I.

Just wasn't happy.

It just wasn't fitting.

It just wasn't working for me.

And so it was in that moment that she shared with me, she was like, you

should just open up your own business.

And I was like, what does that even look like?

I've like always thought small businesses were brick and mortar.

And I was like, I don't know how to bake really well.

it come to find out I was able to start my very first, company

blank slate media consulting.

And I started doing Craigslist jobs, and I don't know how I wasn't kidnapped, but

I would meet strange men up at Panera Bread to talk about their website and

their business and what they were looking to create, and women too, of course.

And so, We started there.

We started just with this baby little business, just trying to figure out how

things were going to work and pursuing this dream of becoming an entrepreneur.

You said a couple things there that I, I really, I want to kind of dive

into a little bit, you know, you work in a full time job, you're in

college, you're doing all the things.

and a lot of you and I, our listeners are same way.

They're doing like 900 things.

And so I guess my first question going at, let's dig into that where it

says, at what point did you recognize.

That you were unfulfilled and then what Now, are you finding your fulfillment?

Like, where was the recognition point, that realization, that self awareness,

and then what did you do about it?

And then where are you in that journey?

Yeah.

So really the unfulfillment piece.

was just a little bud.

It was like the seed planted that day where I recognized that there

could be so much more that I didn't have to go through the process of

becoming somebody else's dream.

I could create my own.

And it was in that moment that Again, the seed was planted and it wasn't until

probably two, three years later when I became pregnant with my son, Nick,

and I was still doing the hustle, the grind, I was still in corporate, I was

still going through the process of, you know, being in college full time.

And I had this business that I was working on as well too.

And so I was adding all of these pieces and I watched somebody else go through

a maternity leave, like on my team.

And I realized I didn't want that.

Like I didn't want to just have, if I don't remember how many weeks it was.

So for the sake of conversation, let's say it was 12.

I didn't want to just have 12 weeks maternity leave or

eight weeks maternity leave.

Like I wanted to be able to have both for me and my kiddo where I could

work and go through the process of being able to be there with him.

And so when I eventually, I left, I was just like, peace, like I'm done.

I found a different level of fulfillment that had that seed had planted when I

was at Panera that day that I was able to find that, like, My fulfillment

doesn't necessarily come just from the work that I create and what I do.

It comes from being able to be both, to be able to be a mom, to be able to be a

business owner, to be able to prioritize my son and to be able to put him first

and to make my schedule around him.

And what's so interesting, and I'm sure we'll get into this.

Is it like that?

Conversation, me leaving and then having that seed planted was a

complete lifesaver and being able to create the lifestyle and being able

to create the dream that I have now.

So that's, so I want to first and foremost, for you guys

who are following me online, I always use hashtag wisdom mom.

And so that's been something I've been using for years and you

dropped a big one just a minute ago.

And I, and I wrote it down and I, hopefully I.

You know, say it the way you said it, but it said, I didn't

have to be someone else's dream.

I could be my own.

And I was like, hashtag wisdom bomb on that one, because that

was an actual amazing statement, actually like, Oh my gosh.

And then you're using seed like that.

Everything is a seed.

And I think that's super important because I think there's a, there's

this deception or this self, like we lie to ourselves a little bit

that says, once I leave, everything has to be fullness of something.

And

there's seed.

There's a seed like you leave and it's the small little kernel

that pops into something big.

So where did you find the courage to do that?

When you said I left and I planted the seed and it saved my life.

Where did you find that courage?

Because I know there's a lot that are struggling with I

want to, but I'm too afraid to.

It's just, for me, it's always been evidence that every time I bet on myself,

everything ends up like perfectly okay.

And I know that a huge part of that is just trusting God's plan for me

in my life and knowing that God is watching over me and that he's leading

me in the direction that I need to go.

And with that, I really Just fully trust myself and my decisions and knowing that

those gut feelings that I have are very much so God signals for me and being

able to pair that with knowing that God always has my back because truly, like

I think about even just in every moment that I've done that, like the experience

that I just shared with everybody here about leaving my corporate job and

just going right into entrepreneurship without having the whole saving grace

plan that I wish I would've had.

I definitely, definitely see that as just like the very start of being able to build

my courage to then overcome and make even bigger decisions later down the road.

I like that.

I love that a lot.

And so do you ever, do you ever struggle with like self doubt

or second guessing yourself and how did you fight through that?

All the time, even still today, I struggle like yesterday, I struggled

with a, like a huge feeling of uneasiness and I was second guessing.

I was doubting and I was struggling through all of the feelings.

And so I'm very equipped to knowing what that looks like, knowing that it comes in

waves and it usually doesn't last long.

what's interesting for me is that I usually will feel very

confident in what I'm about to do.

Like I'm very gung ho.

I'm very like, this is it.

Like I make up my mind and I stand for it.

I don't waver when I make the decision.

It usually comes.

Like I almost have like decision fatigue or decision remorse.

like, a couple of days later down the road, I'm like, Oh

my gosh, what did I just do?

when the excitement of standing in your power and your decision and knowing

that God has your back fades and you're just like, we out here now we out here.

Oops.

Yeah.

Well, Here we go.

Well, I like that because it's like, it's almost like, well, it's too late now.

I've already made the decision, you know, and I think that's a beautiful

place to be in because, you know, you already made the decision and

there's so many people out there that are struggling to make the decision.

Like there's that, imposter syndrome, whatever label you want to put it,

they're struggling to make the decision But you make the decision and then

you have some struggle afterwards, but the decision's already made.

The hardest part is over.

That's amazing.

I love that.

So that brings into another line of thinking and you said it earlier.

cause you actually said it in a way that says I get to be both

mom, creator, you know, business owner, but that speaks to identity.

So how is your identity fueling your, you know, your mission in life?

And then what were some of the steps you use to create that particular

solidness in your identity?

So for me, being a mom drives me.

I didn't know when I first became pregnant that, being a mom would drive my entire

life and my entire why and all the things.

But looking back now, I realize that becoming a mother was one of the

greatest gifts that was ever given to me.

I really struggled.

Like I had a very extremely rocky and abusive marriage and

relationship with my ex husband.

And one of the things that always kept me going in the moments that

I wanted to personally give up was having that little baby looking back

up at me and I'd be like, no, like I get to choose to live for him.

Like regardless of anything else, like I'm, I'm choosing to do this for him.

And Nicholas is like, definitely one of my biggest anchor points and everything.

he was like my hope.

He was like, he's the one who got me up every morning.

Like even still today, like when I struggle with, you know, all of the

pieces that I'm still healing from, from that relationship, like I get up in the

morning because he gets to go to school.

And I know that I have a responsibility to get him up for school.

And so even in the moments that I really struggle with my thoughts and

I'm really down and I'm really blue and things aren't looking the greatest you

know, cause we all struggle with that.

Like we just wake up one day and we're just like, why do we feel this way?

Like, this doesn't feel like me, but we're going to feel through it.

He's the one who keeps me forward.

And for me, I had to shed a part of my identity as well about

being a wife, because being a wife was also something that was

really incredibly important to me.

And I was really proud of that.

And I was very excited and grateful and thankful.

And I was just like, I feel like I'm fulfilling what I feel

like I'm being called to do.

Like, you know, God, like, I feel specifically like

God wanted me to be a wife.

God wanted me to be a mother, like, and to experience all of that.

And so when I got divorced, like I went through a really hard time

with taking that out of my identity.

I would have to catch myself and be like, Oh no, like I'm

not that anymore for anybody.

And being able to like work through that has just further anchored in for

me, like how much I truly love being a mother and how like Nicholas is like the

most important person in my entire life.

And I will do anything for him.

And so regardless of what happens, like I fully anchor into that.

And that is just what has over consumed everything for me and filled

in all the holes is being able to refine myself as a mother and then

as a business owner as well, too.

that's amazing.

And I love how you say you fully anchored in the net.

I think I'm going to do an episode on anchor points at some point, because

it's, I think that's super important.

I like this word.

You said, you said, I shred, I shed it, my identity or that part of my identity.

How did that work for you?

Like, how long did that take?

Like, how hard was that?

It was probably one of the most difficult things that I've done.

Easily.

I had the decision point, right?

Like I had the decision point of like, yeah, like this isn't working.

Like we don't belong together.

Like I'm leaving, I'm moving out, like all of that.

And then there's the opposite part of that decision fatigue or that decision remorse

of like, Oh my gosh, what did I just do?

And I walked through that for months.

Months of waking up every day.

I felt like luckily I lived with my family for those six months.

And so I was accounted for essentially, the best way to make sure that

like, I took care of myself.

I took care of Nick and I got up and I worked every day.

but that first year, leading up to the point of the separation and then

into the actual divorce was one of the hardest years of my entire life.

I don't know if I look at my life and I look at.

The process of like the abuse and the things that I went through as really

really difficult and hard but I also Don't remember a lot of it like I blocked

out a lot of that like my My brain just doesn't remember like i'll have trigger

points where i'll remember things and be like, oh my gosh that happened to

me But then a lot of times like I just don't remember like I blocked it all out.

And so With my healing journey.

Like I very vividly remember a lot of it.

And I know that there was a lot of moments where I just, I really

struggled with all of it and it took, and it still takes time.

Like, I think I'm still working through a lot of pieces of it, but I would say

definitely it was like a year long process of like working through the doubt, working

through the remorse, working through the, Am I making the right decision?

I don't know.

And then having to have other people remind me of why I was

making that decision and why it was the best decision for me.

That's amazing.

and I'm honored to know you.

I mean, like that's a tough thing to go through and just to see the meteoric

rise you've come out of that, that has been, it's just been beautiful to watch.

So I just want to honor that and recognize that.

I wrote down five things here.

One words basically that you said that was like really kind of a process,

which is really fascinating to me.

for number one was the decision, you know, when you're shredding his decision.

that's probably the most important thing.

Once you make the decision, everything else gets easier.

You know, the remorse or the dealing with the shame and guilt of that

time, the proper support and then the refocus and I wanted to write that down

because what you said was incredibly important, not only in the area of.

Personal mental health, but in the shifting of identities, because we

live in a world that really is lost.

It's mine with identity right now.

I think that what you just said was probably some of the most important

things that could be shared.

So thank you for that.

What's interesting is I don't feel like even in my current state, like,

as I should, it's like, I feel very unequipped to being able to lead or

guide somebody through the process, because I feel very much so a baby to it.

Like I, I just figured it out day by day.

Like I woke up, I drank my coffee and I said, okay, what are we going to be doing?

But thank you for reflecting that process back to me because

I didn't see it that way.

I just saw it as something that I did, not something that could be repeatable.

Oh, you're welcome.

Absolutely.

Can be repeatable.

And I think there's a lot of people out there who have experienced

what you've experienced.

That's going to really benefit.

From what you just said and what you did to get through it, to be where you are.

I mean, you're a CEO of a company.

that's incredible to come out of that abusive relationship to be a

stellar mom, to be, running a company.

that's some great stuff.

And I think that it needs to be recognized more, and it goes into how

God's working in your life and how much.

You've been working on your identity and how it's fueling.

I'm honored and thank you for sharing all that and being

vulnerable enough to share that.

So thank you so much for you as well, for coming on the show and sharing

this incredible, incredible experience.

How do you feel like after going through this process, after doing this?

That you show up as a, as a leader, like, how do you feel

like you're showing up now?

I definitely show up completely differently than how I used to.

I would say like three year, two year ago, Ashley was very timid, was very

calculated and how she showed up.

It was very scripted to only show, specific parts with specific intentions.

You know, I would share the behind the scenes of like, Hey,

I'm really struggling with this.

This is what I'm going through.

Now I'm like been being able to process it within my own self and

within more of like a trusted circle.

And so I feel like this process for me has definitely been

a huge shift of confidence.

Being able to understand and know that the power that I hold and being able to

take that with so much, so much gratitude and honor, honestly, like being able to

lead and to be able to guide and to be able to focus and to be able to, like,

support George has been a One of the biggest catalysts, I would say, and part

of helping support that decision process.

he's one of the first people to remind me of who I am and to remind me of

the potential and what future actually looks like in a very positive light.

Just heart centered way and I feel like that allows for me to be able to fuel

my impact even greater and to be able to give more to people because that's

really what I truly desire and when I'm in a healthy state, I want to show up.

To serve I want to give I it feels good for me to be able to Just love on

people as opposed to like two years ago Like I didn't have anything to give I

was showing up empty every day and so I was just giving what I could give

and now I feel like I Have more of an overflowing bucket to be able to give

and to serve and to love which feels So incredible and amazing to have every day.

That's awesome So then that also begs the question is What does Ashley

do to fill herself up regularly?

So for me, it's really about quality time.

Like, you know, there's like the five love languages and

I'm like, I love all of them.

Give me all of them.

but I, I really truly enjoy quality time with people.

And so I focus on making sure that I have, time.

To just sit with Nick to be able to, focus on making marble runs with him

or to cuddle on the couch and watch SpongeBob, whatever that may be.

Like my biggest bucket filler is Nick.

And then the people who come underneath of that, like within my inner circle

to have intentional conversations to make sure that, I get to text

them every day and to remind them how much I'm grateful for them.

And so it's, yeah.

It fills my bucket to give them some of love because then it just like comes

pouring back, which is like beautiful.

And I'm just so grateful for that kind of friendships.

That's awesome.

And so then like, what are you currently reading?

So I am actually reading a book, from.

I'm pretty sure it's from Brené Brown.

I see the cover.

Let me see here.

It's really good.

It's about shame.

I know that's kind of like her jam.

but it is, Oh my gosh.

Sure.

I think it's, it's in my bag upstairs.

So the book is I thought it was me, but it isn't I've been a brown.

Okay.

Awesome.

I like how it's, you know, it's a book about, overcoming shame, something that

you have been dealing with in your life.

So that's, just another piece of evidence that shows the amount of

development you've gone through, how God has really put you through some

fire and, developed you into the amazing leader that you are today.

As we start winding down, the show what is something, a piece of wisdom or a piece

of life, that you would love somebody to grab a hold of that says, this is

something that you just absolutely need.

Like, what would you say to people?

I don't believe that you'll ever regret betting on yourself,

whatever that may look like.

I do believe in.

Having safety plans in place, now that I've gone through the things,

but the majority of my biggest moments didn't have a safety plan in place.

Like I didn't know, like when I left my ex husband, I had no

idea what I was going to do.

Like, I had no idea where I was going to live, what was going to happen, how long

I was going to be at my parents house, where I was going to like, nothing.

I had no idea.

My stuff was in boxes for six months and I would just pull

out random things that I needed.

And looking at my life now, like, you know, I have a

beautiful home for Nick and I.

It's like the perfect size.

It's the complete opposite of what I used to have and being able to see that now.

And to be able to create an environment that is safe and calming and really

feels like home for both of us.

I

Never would have had those feelings had I not have betted on

myself and just done the thing, made the decision, taken action.

And so I truly believe that if you are feeling led, you feel like you're being

called to go after something, take the leap, do the thing, I like that.

that's powerful.

Just bet on yourself.

And I think the world needs more of that.

so if people want to find you get connected to you and what

you're doing, where would they go?

What's going on with that?

Yeah, definitely.

So if you're interested in like my own personal life, all the fun things

behind the scenes, The best place to follow me is over on Instagram.

I'll spell out my handle.

It's, A S H A H L E E K S.

And then if you're interested in seeing more of the business side and all of the

fun things that are happening there, I definitely recommend following George and

his handle on Instagram is at it's I T.

ITS and then George, Bryant.

And all of that is together.

Awesome.

And I'll make sure that that gets all onto the show notes as well,

guys, So make sure that if you've made it this far in the episode, make

sure you grab a hold of those and then go support Ashley and George.

both are incredible individuals with an incredible mission.

And so I do appreciate you being on the show and just all the wisdom.

And experience that you've dropped.

I truly believe it's going to help the listeners who grab ahold of this.

you are an amazing light and amazing individual, Ashley.

So thank you for being on the show.

Thank you so much for having me and giving me the space to share.

I really appreciate you.

Absolutely.

And so guys, thank you for being part of the episode.

if you liked this episode, why don't you go on to the next one?

This has been Grace in the Grind.

Whether you're a Christian leader looking for guidance or an entrepreneur

seeking inspiration, it's Jim's passion to equip and encourage you.

Make sure to check out Jim's solo episodes, where he shares

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Take care of yourself and we'll see you next time on Grace in the Grind.