*Learn more about The Brief Collective's Scaling Summit happening May 3rd-May 6th, 2026 and reserve your spot!

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This week I chatted with Matt Ellis, who is the Executive Director of Brand at Metalab in the UK. We talk about how he spotted a gap at MetaLab to bring in more brand services that actually enhance product development, and what makes a brand stand the test of time. He also shares his take on AI—experimenting with new tools while keeping your craft sharp, using AI to explore ideas and make them richer rather than just speeding things up.

Guest Name: Matt Ellis

Guest Linkedin: Connect with Matt

Metalab: metalab.com / @metalab

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags:

designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

*Learn more about The Brief Collective's Scaling Summit happening May 3rd-May 6th, 2026 and reserve your spot!

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In this episode, I chat with Jennifer, VP of Strategy & Innovation at creative agency Marks. She shares her journey from traditional advertising to becoming a leader in brand strategy, and how her autism diagnosis helped many of her ways of thinking finally make sense. We talk about the power of emotional detachment and truth-telling in creative work, plus why adaptability and future-focused thinking matter more than ever—especially for small agencies and independent designers.

Guest Name: Jennifer Murtell

Guest Linkedin: Connect with her.

Episode Mentioned:

S12E4: Six Sneaky Places Design Businesses Leak Time & Money with Shannon Mattern

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags:

designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

In this episode, I chat with Gina Knox, a financial coach who helps small business owners craft strategic financial plans. She shares her journey from art school to QuickBooks to financial coaching, and dives into the unique financial challenges small businesses face and how to get better at managing your finances. Gina is on a mission to help business owners thrive financially, and I took so much goodness away from our conversation and I hope you do too!

Guest Name: Gina Knox

Guest Website: ginaknox.co

Guest Instagram: @ginaknox

Podcast: Small Business, Big Money

Program: Small Business Money School

https://ginaknoxco.thrivecart.com/money-school/partner/ - Affiliate link

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

In this episode, I chat with Vidya, a leadership catalyzer, strategy consultant, and founder of Warrier Strategy. We talk about the challenges of monetizing your passion, especially in creative fields, which can often lead to burnout. Vidya also shares her personal journey from a seemingly fulfilling life to experiencing burnout, what led her to make major life changes, and how she ultimately transitioned into coaching other business owners and creatives.

Guest Name: Vidya Ramachandran

Guest Website: vidyawarrier.com

Guest IG: @vidya.r.warrier

Liberate Course

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

In this episode, I read and chat about some of the wild client feedback you have received as designers that you guys submitted, plus share a few stories of my own.

*Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

Happy New Year listeners! In this solo episode, I'm breaking down what an ideal day and weekly schedule looks like for me as a mom of two, wife, and business owner working 24 hours a week. I'm also chat a bit about Scale with Confidence, my new sister offer to The Design Minimind.

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

Enjoy this episode from the archives while we're on our Holiday break! We will be back with season 13 next week!

In this solo episode, I’ll be chatting about ways to improve your efficiency and get faster at brand and web design, allowing you to scale back on your working hours.

Inbox Question:

“What's an appropriate amount of time spent on choosing brand colors (initially)?” - Shelby Reed

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design

Enjoy this episode from the archives while we're on our Holiday break! We will be back with season 13 on Jan 13th!

I chat with Emmanuel Probst, Global Lead of Brand Thought-Leadership at Ipsos, a global market research company. We dive into all things market research and brand transformation. Emmanuel gives insights into the skills and empathies independent designers can offer clients that larger agencies can’t, as well as ways to find unique inspiration outside of social media. There are so many incredible topics discussed in this episode and I can’t wait for you to hear it!

Guest Information:

Guest Name: Emmanuel Probst

Guest Business Name: Ipsos

Guest Website: www.ipsos.com/en-us

Guest LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/emmanuelprobst

Links Mentioned:

Purchase Assemblage: The Art & Science of Brand Transformation on Amazon

Access Ipsos’s market research data

Links:

The Design Minimind - My 1:1 coaching program for designers

Download my FREE Creative Direction Figma Template (includes 4 audio trainings as well)

Get 30% off of your HoneyBook subscription - The CRM I use in my studio.*

Enjoy 1 month of Showit FREE with my code “HelloJune” when you sign up.*

Earn $100 after you run your first payroll with Gusto, my payroll and compliance software.*

Get 50% off your first year of Flodesk, my email marketing software.*

*Some are affiliate links which means I may earn a commission.

Connect With Us:

Our Free Facebook Community

Our Website

Podcast Instagram

Hello June Creative Instagram

The Design Minimind

Join The Creative Diaries (my email list)

Tags: designer, design, brand design, brand identity design, design studio, design business, graphic design, brand designer, better podcast, brand designer podcast, logo design