Building Confidence as a Founder through The Female Founders Journal with Lisa Simone Richards

What if the thing standing between you and your next level isn't your strategy—it's the story you keep telling yourself? In this episode, I sit down with Lisa Simone Richards, co-founder and CEO of Pearl Spark Pages, to talk about the journey from publicist to stationery founder—and everything she had to unlearn about perfectionism along the way. Lisa opens up about the moment she stopped performing confidence and started sharing her actual, imperfect experience, and how that shift became the foundation for The Female Founder's Journal, the only therapist-approved guided journal made specifically for women in business. We talk about the statistic that changed how she saw her own self-doubt, the daily practice that helps her nervous system actually feel her wins instead of rushing past them, and the full-circle moment of bringing her product into the very bookstore where the idea was born. This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt like they had to look like they had it all together—and is ready to build something real instead. Key Talking Points:In this episode, we discuss… Lisa's transition from publicist to founder, and the exact date she remembers stepping into "the new Lisa" Why more than 75% of women leaders experience imposter syndrome at some point in their careers, and how that statistic shaped her business The difference between measuring your progress forward versus backward—and why looking at how far you've come builds more confidence than chasing the horizon Inside The Female Founder's Journal: the morning vision prompt, the evening reflection, and the daily practice of naming what you're proud of Why falling off a journaling habit doesn't mean you've failed, and the "bounce back system" that removes the shame from starting again The full-circle moment of bringing Pearl Spark Pages back to the exact Indigo location where the idea first sparked What's next for Pearl Spark Pages as it grows from a single journal into a full stationery brand Who Lisa is looking to connect with right now—service providers and business coaches working with female founders Time Stamps: [01:33] Introduction of Lisa Simone Richards and Pearl Spark Pages [03:30] Lisa's core message: you don't need to be perfect, you're already enough [05:05] Building authentic connections through vulnerability, one relationship at a time [06:40] Career transition from publicist to stationery creator (January 17th) [07:22] KPMG statistic: 75% of women leaders experience imposter syndrome [08:23] Publicists neglecting their own visibility and brand [10:50] "The Gap and the Gain": measuring backward instead of forward [12:28] How the Female Founders Journal works—daily and weekend prompts [15:46] It's okay to fall off the journaling habit and get back on [17:30] Ashley on postpartum motherhood and giving yourself grace [18:37] The "bounce back system"—removing shame when you fall off [21:25] Biggest business highlights and wins [22:00] Indigo bookstore mirror events and the origin story full circle [25:00] The 90-day confidence guarantee and customer transformations [26:30] What's next: expanding into a full stationery brand [31:32] Leadership growth, the Founders Operating Manual, and community building [34:32] Ideal connections: business coaches and service providers for female founders [37:52] Holiday gifting and the perfect gift for women entrepreneurs [40:38] Closing message: "You're doing a great job" Connect with Lisa Simone Richards & Pearl Spark Pages: Website | Instagram | LinkedIn Connect with Ashley Graham: Thank you for listening! Don't forget to subscribe to my newsletter for more expansive content and stories here. Follow Ashley Graham (@simplyashleygraham) and The Conscious Publicist (@theconsciouspublicist) on LinkedIn. If you loved this episode and want to further support the show, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcasting platform! Apple | Spotify | Blog | Business Copyright 2026 – The Conscious Publicist® – All Rights Reserved