From Bankrupt To Billion-ish: How Suzy Batiz Built Poo~Pourri
Suzy Batiz went bankrupt twice before inventing Poo~Pourri in 2007. She bootstrapped the toilet spray to $8 million in revenue by year eight, stayed debt-free the whole time, and credits spiritual work and inner alignment rather than desperation for her success.
Questions this video answers
April 2007.
Approximately $1,000,000 in the first year (wholesale $5 product).
Roughly $1M in year 1, $2M in year 2, $3M in year 3, $4M in year 4 … reaching about $8M in year 8.
About $2,000,000 profit at that revenue level.
No — she states Poo~Pourri was self-funded, debt-free, and she reinvested profits.
Chapters
So we're in the home of Susie Petiz, entrepreneur, founder of Poo Pourri, you know, a multi hundred million dollar a year company. And what's so interesting about her life and the reason why I wanted to even build a deeper connection with her than I already have is because Susie is a really good example of someone who has recovered from failure multiple times. I think the perception of successful capitalists is that they were always that way or there's something better about them and you don't hear about the struggle as much. And Susie's been really open about the fact that she's been bankrupt, literally.
Emotionally, spiritually, financially. And so she has come from the absolute grave and built something that is amazing. And I want to unpack that because.
I think the opportunity right now to be a successful entrepreneur even later in life exists as long as you are willing to go all in on it. And she did. And somebody who had her success, her real success, I mean the success that built this, the success that builds a world renowned company that sells hundreds of millions of dollars, it all later in life. And that's really fascinating to me. As opposed to the social media world that we live in today, this is somebody who built a real impressive business selling real new innovative products in the world at a later age. And I want to unpack that because I know there's a lot of people who think that they've missed their time or that one product can't change everything.
And are begging for the scraps or leaving their great ideas on the table. And I want to get Susie's story out to inspire that next entrepreneur who is sitting on something just as impressive and exciting. Well, Steve, thank you for welcoming us into your home. This is spectacular.
I think it's easy to assume that when you walk into a place like this or someone sees your success, that it's easy to assume that it's always been that way or that this person had a very linear path to success. And I was hoping we could start by me asking you about failure.
Oh boy.
Like today's failure or.
I mean you've been very public about the fact that you've been bankrupt, you've had business twice, twice bankrupt and you've had businesses obviously not go the way that you wanted them to. And then one, two, skip a few. 99 Poo Pourri comes out of, out of nowhere to a lot of people and now it seems like it's an overnight success. And I was hoping that you could tell the other side of the story.
Yeah. So, gosh, I Don't even know where to start with the story. Basically, I guess we could have two chunks. Like, the first 38 years of my life.
Was filled with really drama and the energy was me just trying to get my feet back up on the ground. Right. I often say it's like being at the top of a mountain of a double black diamond. You lose a ski and it's a slope like this and you just fall and you can't quite get your grasp. Right. So my first bankruptcy was when I was. Well, I was married, bankrupt and divorced by the time I was 21 years old. So I came out of the gate really flat on my face, Right. Tried to kill myself. When I was 21. I was in an abusive marriage at 23, was homeless at about 26, just for a couple of weeks. It wasn't super dramatic. Homeless. I was couch surfing. I didn't have a place to live. I had two kids. That wasn't fun. Yeah. And then I was always, like, always I would have a job, but then I always had a side hustle. And what was interesting about the side hustle, Ryan, was that I thought that money and success was going to bring fill some void within me, some hole. I thought if I can be successful enough, if I can just if it. Money and success were the thing that was going to drag me out of this. You know, it was like the thing I could hold on to. So everything I touched just fell apart. You know, I would have businesses on the side and they would all close. I've had, literally, I need to make a list of this. We need to put that on my to do list, but I need to make a list. Like, I've had bridal salons, clothing salons. I've had tanning salons. Wow. I've had businesses, interior design. I had a bridal salon. I mean, I had businesses all the time.
Are these all before age 38?
They're before age 38. So I was in. My big dream was. So I had two dreams when I was really young. I wanted to work at a factory or the post office. Because you made a lot of money. So that tells you what economic level I grew up with. Like, if that was a good job and you make a lot of money, okay. Or the military. My aunt and uncle were in the military and they had a double wide trailer. And I mean, they were rich. It was exciting. You know, they were the rich people. So I thought, wow, I want to be rich like them. Like, I need to get a good job, I need to make money. And I just crawled and climbed and crawled and climbed. And it's like every time I would fall on my face, and I would just get back up and try again. And then finally I came up with an idea which would be great. Now, if anybody's listening that wants to do this, I. This was in 1999. I was recruiting. I was the vice president of a recruiting firm because I always got to the top of whatever job I took. You know, I was fast promoted. I'm pretty quick smart, and I thought, you know, what's important not a person's skill is their culture. So I had a concept called Greener Grass. And it was a recruiting site, a recruiting platform, where it first matched people's culture to a company's culture. That was the first level of match. And then you could go in and see what jobs they have. It'd be a great idea. Now, it was 25 years too early, right?
But anyway, I'd put all of my money in it. A little bit that we had. You know, we were living in the big house, the two cars, we had mortgages.
So I have to ask, how did you get on your feet after working.
Like, recruiting, you worked? Oh, I did everything. I cocktail waitress, because I found out I'm at a casino because I found out you could make five, six hundred dollars a day. So I did that for like a year and a half, saved up enough money to get a down payment on the house. Then somebody came in that was recruiting, and I was like, well, I can sell. You know, let's do that. So I started recruiting, then became a vice president of a recruiting firm. So I always had a job, and I excelled at the job. But I realized when I was in sales, like, I. All I had to do was sell more to make more. So to me, it was awesome. You know, it's like, oh, this is great. Instead of my, you know, $20 an hour, my flat salary, give me a open field, and you better stand back. Right? I was super aggressive, like, I'm going to make this thing happen. But I really knew there was something wrong with the recruiting field. So I put all my time, energy, and what little bit of money we had, and I quit my job and was contracting a little. And then the stock market crashed in 2001, and I was 38, and I was literally done with business. Like, I didn't want to have anything to do with it. I put on headphones, I listened to Disturbed, you know, that I was angry. I had rage just coming out of my being. Like, I have Tried. So.
You want to curse. And you can curse if you want to curse.
Fucking hard. I had. I had tried so hard at being successful. Like right now when I tune in, I can just cry from just the level of exhaustion that I had. Because if it were for effort, like, I would. I would have been a gazillionaire. Because I was. Nobody had more effort than me. I was always working, always climbing, always. That's just the way it was. I was just. I was going to do it, and it just never worked. So when that happened, at 38, when I had a bankruptcy, I was in a really. I was state of rage and depression. And I didn't want anything to do with business. I made business the bad guy.
And you know, honestly, Ryan, what I realize now is it wasn't even business. It's how I was doing business. So there's very common practices in business that are really sleazy. For example, I'm gonna do you a favor so that you do me one, right? Cute guy, you know, I know he likes me, but I'm gonna go to lunch anyway. Cause I might get the deal. Like, there's a lot of these sideways out of integrity business moves that are.
Legit business things. I'm gonna. I'm gonna make a phone call and pretend like I'm someone else to get someone on the phone. And, you know, then I get them and then I have their attention. I'm gonna pitch, you know, those newsletters all the time. Hi, Susie. You know, do you want to have lunch? I'm like, who is this? And I feel like it's a freaking cheesy, you know, sideways sales letter.
So it's all those things that we do to try and get something.
Exactly.
Even if it is coming at it from the perspective of I'm going to give to this person so that then I can get. It's always, what. What can I get out of this?
100%. So I did all of that, right? And when I was bankrupt, I was. Not only did I get to face. Not only. I was full of so much shame. Like, I didn't. I lied to everyone. You know, I didn't tell anyone the truth that I'd filed bankruptcy. I didn't even tell my kids the truth. Like, that is. That's what gets me when you're at such a point when you lie to the people that unconditionally love you.
Right? That's where I was. It's like I can't even face them. I can't even tell them what I'VE done. So I'm going to tell them that we have to move across town because, you know, and we need to be closer to work. And I uproot my family. Of course. How jarring is that now, you know, kids are anyway, whatever. But I was sitting in this really big pile of exhaustion, shame, guilt.
Embarrassment. I mean, just all of this stuff just came down on me. And I went to a hypnotist, or hypnotist, whatever you call it, Hypnosis counselor. And he said, you know, your problem is you have no meaning in your life. And I was arrogant. I was like, what are you talking about? I have kids. I have meaning. And he goes, no, you have no spiritual practice. You don't have a God. Your. Your God has been money and success. And I was like, okay, whatever, dude. He gives me a book, man. Search for Meaning. I don't know if you read it. Yeah, and I read it and I was like, well, this is interesting, right? So that was like a little crack open in this, you know, this really pit of hell I was in. And I started reading that book, and then I started studying devouring religions. You know.
Buddhism, Hinduism. I was a kabbalist for a minute. Conspiracy theory. Like, I was literally just like, I.
Love how you put conspiracy theory in the spiritual.
Oh, it was David Icke all day long.
Oh, dear.
You know, we are the world's ran by Reptilians.
Oh, dear.
You know, I was in it hard.
And it is funny how things like that, they replace what some people use to find meaning. So you can find meaning by dedicating your life to something, or you can find meaning in, well, everything. Everything is a conspiracy. And the world is against me. And my meaning is to expose that.
Yeah.
And we do such adorably complex things to find meaning. So how did that unravel for you?
Well, I terrified my children letting them know that Reptilians were running the earth. I always tell them they survived me, but what I started seeing was this common theme in religions. And I was like, hold on, I know this story. As I studied various religions. And then I realized that.
I don't know, I was just curious and open. I was starting to be a little open. And then I'm taking my daughter to an acting lesson, and I'm waiting for her. I go into a bookstore and I see on a bookshelf, this book, and it's Byron, Katie's picture. And it says, loving what is. And I was literally like, are you fucking kidding me? Like, I am not loving what is okay. Because what is, is awful right now because remember, I'm still in the pits of this depression.
And you're 39. 40.
Around this time I'm probably about 40. Yeah.
And, and I, I, I don't mean to belabor the point of age, but I'm really fascinated, and we'll get to this, of the fact most people think their lives are kind of over at 40.
I know, it cracks me up some.
Some people think their lives are over at 30. Or at least you've solidified the path you're on and there's no more changing.
Yeah. No.
And what, what's really interesting about your story is that you completely changed the game.
Yeah.
After 40.
Oh, yeah.
So at 40, you're looking at this book saying, fuck that, that like loving.
What is like, I'm not gonna love this. Right.
And you're into conspiracy theory.
Yeah.
You, you're not happy.
You know, this is how bad it was. I wouldn't even make a sales call because I was doing interior design. I wouldn't return a call unless the numerology was right. I was. No. I had given up so much control in my life. I had no self, I had no agency in my life at all. I was sleeping in my bed. I was sleeping and turning my bed a different direction every month because of feng shui. Like, I was in a really, really bad place. Okay. Like I had no, nothing within me that to hold on to anymore. And so I see this book and she just keeps looking at me.
It is a very bold cover.
It is. She's just like staring at you. So I go pick it up, I devour it, Right. In two days, go online. I was at one of her workshops two weeks later, and I went into her workshop drinking the big thing of wine a night, you know, like the double yellowtail. The big one. Yeah. I was drinking that every night. And I didn't think I had a drinking. I didn't, I wasn't even conscious enough to even think if I had any problem. Right. I was so out of my head, out of my mind. And I went to her 10 day workshop and I walked out.
Completely at peace and free for the first time in my life.
And I, what, what happened in that. Just to kind of highlight is that I had been such a victim for 38 years, 40 years. And then even we're going to get really talking about taboo topic. But even my molestation. Byron K. Looks at me and she said, did you say no?
I'm like, I'm a little girl, right? And I was like, no. I never said no. But what happened in me owning that I didn't say no is I found some empowerment. Does that make sense?
Yes.
It's like, hold on. What if I had said no? What would have happened in my life? So slowly I started gaining this not only power, but also peace.
And I was sitting at home listening to Gangaji and just so blissed out, crying just in gratitude that I had finally, for the first time in my life, found happiness and still didn't want anything to do with business. I was like, is business still the bad guy? But it doesn't matter. I found happiness. I don't need business anymore. Right. Because that's what was gonna give me happiness. Now I'm happy. I don't need anything. I don't even need to work. I didn't even know if I was gonna be with my family. I was just so happy. So I really sat in that state for a couple of years, and I joined kind of the Byron Katie camp, was going and doing all the assisting there and had zero desires, dreams, anything to move from that place. So when people always say, like, you have to have a dream in order to get it, I don't believe that. I actually believe that whatever dream you have could be limiting you greatly.
I like just being open in the moment and discovering what that opportunity is available right now. Because that's the way this has all worked out for me. Trust me, I could never have dreamt of this. My dreams wouldn't have been this big. Right. I'm surprised all the time. Yeah.
So when did you shift from this place of. I'm really happy with what is. And I think a lot of entrepreneurs are scared to get to that place. I hear all the time, if I. If I heal all my warts and wounds, I'm afraid I'll lose my drive. If I'm just happy with what is.
You will lose your drive.
Tell me, tell me more.
But that's not a bad thing. It's actually a good thing.
Tell me more.
Because I think that drive is probably sabotaging you.
Because it's an external drive. It's not an internal from here drive. Right.
I found what a lot of people call drive is really this need to consume to fill a void. And the void never gets filled. And so we call this drive because we're doing lots of things.
Yeah, it's more like that.
Yeah, yeah. You bring that extra will.
Yeah, yeah.
And hoping something comes in. Yeah, yeah.
And when that is sealed or filled or satisfied or evaporates. Then you're in an abundant place and you can. Now you're. Now you're powerful. Now you can just create.
Yes.
And creation feels really good.
Creation feels good.
Creating feels really fun, really light. It doesn't feel like you have to tap into the extra energy reserve to try and will yourself into doing the things you don't want to do.
I love what you just said because it reminds me. Let's talk again about the 38 years I was creating in order for that thing to give me something. Right. It's like having a child to fill some void in yourself. Like what a horrible energetic to put upon this being right. It's like it's never gonna. You know, that's a really kind of screwed up energetic. And it's just. That's what I was doing with businesses. It's like I would do this so that I could get that it was that same business move that was going on. Right. And I know most entrepreneurs out there are probably like, I do that all the time. What I'm a fan of, what I've discovered is that when I can create from a place of.
Just the desire to create without any wanting anything from that creation, that it's going to get me something just because I want it to exist in the world. That's when I've been the most successful. That creation's not going to get me anything. It's not gonna get me fame, it's not gonna get me recognition, it's not gonna get me. It's literally just an outpouring and sharing. It's like making a great meal or, you know, you make the best cookies. You want everybody to taste them. Cause they're so good. Right. You're not making it to impress them about your cookies.
You wanna share or to get anything in return for the cookies?
Yeah. No, no, no. You're like, here, taste these cookies. I made em. They're fantastic. And here's the recipe.
So I asked. A lot of entrepreneurs worry about them losing the drive. And we're talking about that unhealthy drive that really exhausts us. You got to that you did get to that place where you were just happy and you started to want to create. When did it shift again into business?
Well, I think I told you. I wrote a course called Inside out how to create a life you desire by going within. Because I knew that any external, external motivation is not going to create the life you want. Right. Because at some point it's going to catch up with you. What I knew is that when you go internal, it's like an inside out flip. When you focus on the internal, that your external world actually shifts and changes and you can create whatever life you want. So I wrote this course, had five women in my class and none of them finished it. And I had the thought, oh, I just filed bankruptcy four years ago. I could see why they don't think I know about abundance. Right. It made sense to me. And I just trashed that. And about. Not even six months later, probably even a couple months later, I was at a dinner party and essential oils were always my hobby. And my brother in law said something about bathroom odor and we started talking about, can it be trapped? And I felt alive. Like I felt like a zing. And I was like, oh my God, I saw it all. I was like, oils floats on water. And I just said, I can do that. And he very sarcastically like, oh, you think so? And I was like, yeah, I do. And it took me nine months. But the difference, Ryan, wasn't that I was creating so that I could get something. It's so this is this kind of movement. I was being pulled in by this curiosity, if I could do something right. It was like a painter, can I paint the sun? You know, it's like a Rembrandt, you know, he wanted to paint that skyline. Exactly. So that's where I was at. Can I do this? Never, ever, ever thought about being product, business, marketing, nothing. Just for the act of creating. It took me nine months, ironically. Right. And I create it. And then it was like, it's so good. You have to share it with the world. Just like I would if I wanted to share the avocado toast with you this morning. Right.
And it was really good.
It's really good. But when you make something really great, you want to share.
Yeah.
So that's the energy with which Poo Pourri started.
And that was the first formulation.
Yeah.
Really? The original formula.
Yeah.
And still you started using it.
And it's the base of everything. Yeah. Still we still use that same formulation as our base.
So the energy was just completely different from the past. I didn't need that business to fill me. I didn't need anything to make me happy. I was already happy. And then I got into my own cycle of, you know.
You know, Byron, Katie used to say it's easy to be peaceful when you go sit on a mountain in Sedona, but get into life. So I spent a decade of spinning my wheels out, feeling scared, going down to the jungle, drinking ayahuasca, coming back Going, okay, I'm not scared right now. Ah. I'm scared again. Oh. Like it was 10 years of me, you know.
Being great and terrified and not. It's like a. It's like a really messy yoga practice. You know, it's like, okay, I have these principles, but how can I actually live them in the world? And I'll be honest with you, probably only this year is when I feel like I'm in my stride of really those principles all kind of, you know, it's 10,000 hours, right? So I could have pretended along the way. I didn't. One thing I did is I was not willing to pretend. So after. Because I pretended a lot prior to 38. After that, I'm like, screw it. I could lose everything. I'm going to go towards what turns me on. I'm going to be who I am in the moment. Like, that's what I'm gonna do. If I'm scared, I'm gonna be scared. If I'm happy, I'm gonna be happy. And it was a little bit of this kind of ride.
But always looking at whatever I was creating in the business. Coming back to.
Number one, how did I create this and what's the energetic. That actually, what's the energetic vibration or footprint in which that was created?
And you're fine tuning for that.
That's it.
You're fine tuning for that feeling, really?
I'm fine tuning to. And in my new course that's coming out.
What I say is you were born. What I've. What I've discovered is that you're. You're born with an authentic vibration, right? So you come in as a soul with a vibration. And then based on the environment, you know, where you're nurtured, your programming, society, everything that vibration, the channel gets a little off, way off dial sometimes, right? And I think that. And in my. What I, what I. What I like to teach is all we're doing is trying to get back to that authentic, original vibration. You already are that, right. It's just, it's just like the dials off. My dial was like the knob was broken off. And, you know.
When my daughter was 2, I was at breakfast with my buddy Jesse Elder, and Esther was running around at Joe's in downtown Austin. And Jesse looks at me and says, man, all the work we do to try and get back to that, that's it. It's just the wonder and the.
That's it.
The excitement. Everything we do is just. We're just trying to get back.
That's all we're trying to do. Yeah.
So I can't help but wonder though.
As you said Byron put it, it's easy to be in that state when you're on a mountain in Sedona. Business is not a mountain in Sedona.
It's not a mountain in Sedona.
It can be fun, it can be exciting. And there are days that you take it on the chin.
Most days.
Yeah.
Yeah. There's always problems.
So how did you recalibrate? Especially when you have the memory of business equals bankruptcy of business equals stress of business equals pain. And then you create this. It would be easy to understand that someone would say, yeah, I created this thing. No, I don't want to go into business. No, I'm not going to go back into that experience. But you found a way to bring that state of being into building something amazing. How did you make that transition?
Well, I think again, it's more like you have Esther and you're going to do what you have to do. Whether you're going to, whether you parent right or you don't parent right. You're going to always adjust as you go. Right. That's business. I brought this thing to the world that I am responsible for. Right. I want to share it. I knew that with that sharing comes a responsibility of taking care of it, making sure that it grows. And then, you know, sometimes, you know, I. Sometimes I was a horrible parent, sometimes I was a great parent. You know, I've been everything in business. I've been a bully, I've been a bitch, I've been a saint. I've been amazing. I've been it all right. And it's. Each time it's like I keep closing the gap. You know, I used to spend a lot of time in fear and then I would spend less time in fear and then less time and less time and less time. So that gap just keeps closing just as you would a yoga practice or something. I just, you keep, you fall less, you know.
And it's not a, it's a long game in my experience. And especially when you're using business as a catalyst, as a major catalyst for your self growth.
Yeah. And it's a good one for them.
It's a good one.
I wanted to ask you about building and running a team because forgive me if I'm wrong, you did not do that in the first business.
Up to 38. Correct. You had all these side hustles that didn't go the way that you wanted them to. And then you have this thing you want to bring to the world and.
From the outside. I'm sure you're tired of hearing this. It seems like it just took off like a rocket.
Yeah.
And I would like.
It's like that actor in Hollywood, overnight.
Success 10 years later. So I'd like to hear about that. But I'd also like to hear about the adjustment of. It's one thing to be in a Zen spot by yourself, and now you're leading other people into that. And I'm asking selfishly, because this is my transition. So I feel I've done so much work as an individual, and business has been my catalyst to get to this place. And it's another new. A new level to bring other people with you into that vision and that experience. So I would just like to hear about yours.
Well, and again, like I said, I really think I've just got into my sweet spot this year as far as where I could say, like, hold on, I got this. Like, I think I understand what's going on. And I've never thought about this before, but when you just said that, it's also the energy. I used to.
Have employees to do a job, so I wanted something out of them. And now I more think of collaborating with genius, with people living in their genius.
Like, I love collaborating. Everything here. Most of things are collaborated with artists. Right. I love playing with artist, but I didn't realize that's what I'm doing in my business. That's the best way to do in business.
Such an aha.
It's such an aha. And I really hadn't thought about it. I. I knew I was choosing people to be in their genius more, but I didn't understand until this moment. So. Thank you. But it's. When someone is in their genius.
I. I get to be in my genius. And there's no frustration and there's no tension in my experience, or very little. Yeah. When people aren't in their genius, you're trying to get something out of them that's not in their genius. There's a lot of tension.
I've also noticed that myself and those around me have a tendency to discount their genius because it seems easy. Oh, that's. So the things that I'm really good at put me on a stage. Like, if there's a stage, I would like to go on it, please.
Yeah.
What are we doing on the stage? I have no idea. But I would like to be on it.
Yeah.
And I know half the room would rather be dead, but in my head, I think, well, everybody can do that. It's just a stage. Who wouldn't want to be on there? That's the sandbox. That's the playpen. And I've found, as I work with people, if I don't know what my genius is and what that feels like, it's really hard for me and the other person to be able to identify that, because we're thinking about what we can get from each other 100%, rather than how to free each other up, to just be in that zone. And then stuff just kind of bakes.
And it's magic.
It is magic.
And I'll tell you. So one of. I had a very. My first experience of this is even, you know, people always see me as creative, and I am. You know, I love marketing. I love creating campaigns and programs and. But it always wasn't smooth. And one of my first photo shoots in Ojai, I literally took.
A photographer and their genius, a stylist and their genius, a creative director and their genius, a producer and their genius. We had no plan. We go to Ojai and we produce the best pictures that have probably ever been taken. I never liked taking pictures before then. There was a lot of pressure, and I. It was just. It was not. It wasn't ever fun for me. It was a really awkward, horrible thing. But. And it was so playful and so fun and no tension, and it was just great because everyone. And it was like, oh, how about this? And, oh, that's great, and how about that? Then you can start riding on this energetic. You know, the wave just gets created much easier and better. And I was like, why did that work? And why is this so Fuji. And what I realize is, because.
I was allowing people.
Because of my hope addiction, I can squeeze them, mold them, shape them into their genius, rather than going, no, you're not your genius. Bye. Bye. Let's get someone in their genius. Right? This isn't serving you or serving me.
The reaction you're seeing in me is just the frustration of how many times I've done that.
Oh, I've got the T shirt, the souvenir cups, the trophies.
We make it so hard on ourselves. Got it all. We make it so hard on ourselves.
Yeah. I won't pretend like I've got it figured out. It's a work. Because one of my strengths is I see possibility. One of my weaknesses is I see possibility. And sometimes that's the only thing I see. Right. I don't see all the other around it.
I understand.
Yeah.
So I have to wonder tactically, you're starting to bring on other people. You have this product. I mean, this isn't a super high margin product. We're not selling. We're not getting thousand dollar commissions every time a bottle of Poo Pourri is sold.
There was a tremendously large marketing budget to make the video hit in the way that it hit.
But that was eight years in.
That was eight years in.
Yeah, we were eight years old.
That I didn't know.
Yeah. Poo Pourri's 13 years old.
Wow.
12, 2007, April 2007 was the first bottle we sold.
Okay. That's amazing.
12 years. That's what I mean. Yeah. People don't understand. So what my strategy was is I'm actually wasn't that interested in business. Okay. I was interested in continuing my personal development. And I had this child I have to take care of.
Okay.
It's kind of like I gotta go to the jungle. Like, I would leave the company. I'd be like, here's the keys. I would go down the jungle with no cell phone, no WI fi, for two weeks at a time and be like, you guys just figured out, like, this is my priority. And then I would come back and try to integrate all that. I wasn't that interested in business still. I was interested in my personal evolution, and that was my priority. And I often felt resentful a little bit that I had this thing to take care of. I didn't even realize that it was the thing that was helping my evolution. Right. And then once that started flipping, I was like, oh.
Business is merely an aspect of myself.
And that's interesting.
It is.
Right Then I. Then my world all started merging together rather than being, oh, this is business Susie. Spiritual Susie, you know, Mother Susie. It was like all these suzies started. You know, what's happening with my kids? Oh, how's this a reflection of me? What's happening in my business? Is this a reflection of me? And it's like, oh, shit. Okay. My world just got really collided.
Where I was.
I was. I was under the assumption the video happened much sooner. So I was curious how. How it scaled successfully without breaking. Because you would have to do a lot of personal development work quickly to try and keep up with that growth as it was scaling.
I have.
Well, tell me about that.
Yeah. So the first year, we did a million dollars in a $5 wholesale product.
Where did that. Where did those sales come from?
Boutiques.
Okay.
So what? I often tell people, like, I've never had a business plan ever. I just. People will tell you what to do. Once you have a child, don't people tell you exactly what to do? Everything you should do? Oh, here's what you need to do. Okay. So that's the same thing with the business. People tell you, you know, oh, you need to do this. So I literally just kept following footsteps.
Especially when you have something that's worth sharing.
Yeah.
And I feel the need to put that asterisk in there because there are a lot of business owners who go in just looking for the money. And so there's no ability to really amplify that, because it's about what I can extract out of this. What can I sell? What can I get? But when you've got something that people love. Yeah. People start telling you what to do. Like, I want to put it in this shop, or I want to. You should talk to this person.
That's it. Yes. That great. That's a great distinction. That's true. Yeah. So people would just tell me what to do, and I was doing that. So it's like I was keeping that going, but I really just want to be meditating and going down to the jungle, you know? So I was doing that. I would run the business and I would go out to the jungle, and then I would come back, and it was a very herky jerky kind of thing. But what I knew ultimately, again, remember, I wasn't that interested in business, so there's some interesting dynamics going on. I wasn't interested in business yet. I was desperate to keep it alive, yet it was really only interested in what was going on inside of me. And I just wanted to go be sitting in a mountain. So it was. It was an interesting little con. Complex thing going on there, you know? And I mean, it was. It seems much jerkier now. It's all perfect right at the end. It's like, oh, everything makes sense. And it was all amazing. And I got what I needed and everyone else got what they needed. And there's lots of stories in between all of that, but.
Yeah, so I. I was just going down. We did a million dollars the first year. I knew that there was something I had to keep running, but I was not willing to give everything I had to the business and sacrifice my personal development because I was starting to find freedom within my being. So I was just operating both of those at the same time.
Did you feel like that held you back or did you feel like it amplified the result?
Well, that's one of the things, you know, now everybody's like, scale, scale, scale, you know, that was eight Years. So we were doing a million dollars a year. Second year, 2 million. Third year, 3 million, fourth year, 4 million. You know, so at eight years, I was doing $8 million a year. I was making about 2 million profit. I was going to Maui, you know, 10 weeks a year, going down to the jungle. I had a pretty sweet little life going. And then. Then I got this urge that came up out of me, like, I got to get this show on the road.
I actually felt excited when you said that.
Yeah.
Because there's actually a lot of freedom in waiting for the impulse or waiting for the urge.
You have to.
Because I know I. I'm a driver. I'm a. You know, I want. I want to beat business into submission.
Yeah.
And I do that at my own expense. And that looks like burnout, and that looks like struggle, and it looks like pain. It doesn't feel like ease.
Yeah.
But when you feel. Feel the impulse and you just have to do it, it's. There's a lot of freedom in that. And so I think I know where you're going next.
Yeah.
And I got really excited when you said that.
Yeah. So that's it. It's.
So did I do it right? I don't know. Did I? You know, I'm sure someone would have scaled it much faster, but what ended up working out is that this whole time, because, remember, I'm debt free, never had a loan, so this is all my own money. I keep reinvesting into the company. And whenever I felt that urge, like, oh, shit, I gotta get this show on the road. I had a stockpile of cash and a pretty strong company. Like, I knew who we were before I started to scale. And actually, in the Innovator's Dilemma, Clayton Christensen talks about that. I remember reading that and going, hold on. That's what I did. Right. I just did it intuitively. What he says is, at the beginning of innovation, you have to be impatient for profit, impatience for growth. But once me, too start coming out, you flip that. You become impatient. You become impatient for growth. And I mean, wait, how do you do that?
Impatient for profit.
Yes, impatient for profit. And you just go towards growth. Right. It's just like, go. So that's what I did. Just naturally, it's like, okay, we got to go now. But it was that literally. I remember waking up looking at my husband going, like, I got to go. Like, something has to happen. And.
Was it impulse? Last year, I lost a few million dollars on this automatic unit, and I launched it before the Impulse Supernatural, my new company. I launched it before the impulse because of a pressure, outside pressure. So again, it's a practice I wouldn't tell you. I'm a master. I learn. And I'm like, oh, shit. There you go. Okay, what happened? I went for the impulse. So what I've, what I've discovered is that there's a wave of energy when you wait for that impulse. There's a natural wave of energy that you can ride on that you cannot create.
By yourself.
How do you find the impulse?
Well, I'll tell you. So there. I have such a classic story. I don't want to give you the details because it's a private situation, but I remember talking to my mentor and I said, my daughter doesn't know this about me. I'd like to share this with her. And he asked about her age and he's like, well, you'll know the right time. And I remember over the years going, I don't want any secrets from, you know, my children or anyone. And I remember over the years she would call me and every once in a while I'd be like, is this the time to tell her? And I was like, no, no, no, no. And then one time she called me and I was in Hawaii and she was going through something and I felt this bubble come up out of me because she could have had a lot of judgment and created a lot of drama, you know that it was, it was a very sensitive conversation, right? And I felt this bubble come up and I knew, oh, now's the time. And I shared with her and it was the most beautiful connection. Had I not waited, it would have been a very disconnected conversation, right? And that's the difference between forcing and then waiting for that natural flow to happen. And it's hard, dude. It's hard when I, you know, you, you know, you know, you're nothing these days unless you got a billion dollar company, right? Like, trust me, those carrots are all there, right? So I still with, with this automatic unit I did last year, like, oh my God, competition. We gotta go, right? I jumped the gun and I paid for it. The auto unit flopped because it was. There was a technical issue. I lost millions of dollars, but not even the millions of dollars. It was a time and energy. So that was another lesson for me to go. Regardless of what the outside world is showing me, wait for this impulse to arise within me. And it is so.
So, so, so, so, so hard.
Thank you for sharing.
Oh, I mean, incredibly hard.
Can I ask you about the jungle?
Yeah.
So I, We've, we've discussed that you've gone down and, or you've done ayahuasca 90 some odd times. I've done this myself. I can't imagine doing it 90 times. What keeps you doing that form of work? And what is, what's different than 90 something time versus the ninth time?
Well, probably you have this experience that every ceremony was different. Even if you do 90 or 1000, they're all different. And you will learn and see different aspects of yourself every time. And I'm a seeker, I'm an explorer. I'm just the way I'm cut, right? So. And I'm a deep explorer. But every time I journey with some medicines, I discover and see something about myself, about humanity, about consciousness and the way it works. And that is my number one interest. And my, my. So I do have one goal or a commitment and it's to reach my highest evolution in this lifetime. And I don't know what that looks like, but I want to always be evolving and growing and that's it. And it used to be I was more, you know, like the triathlete of the psychedelic world, you know, and personal development, I would say now I'm more like, you know, sure, I'll go for a run. You know, that sounds great, you know, I'll discover something on that run. I'm a little more like that now.
But every time I would discover something. And my business Poo pourri was built grown with that medicine. With me going to the jungle, coming back, I remember, I remember one day when everything flipped for me. I'd gone down to the jungle, I came back, I'm sitting at my desk and I. And something scary happened that I can't even remember. You know, fill in the blank. Some scary something competition or, you know, something that we all get terrified of. And I remember sitting at my desk going, I'm in ceremony. That's when I realized there really is no jungle and there really is no medicine. You're always in the medicine, right? So somehow everything started flipping to where, oh, it's just an experience. I go down to the jungle and think I have to have, but I'm actually in the medicine all the time. Because what's the difference between this scary thought of a competition or, you know, sales are down. How is that any different than when you're in the medicine and this, you know, the tarry dragon of Untruth presents itself. It's all fear.
Right? It's just we make it, we make a story of that. It's different in the Medicine So my practice now more is how can I always be in the medicine?
That makes a ton of sense to me, doesn't it? I was hoping that you could give advice or what you would say to someone who was starting something after 40 or what they perceive to be later in life or feel like they are not a 19 year old tech billionaire and therefore are too late. What would you say to that person?
You know that I talk with my kids about this all the time and so many young people at work, there's such a. We're number one. Our targets are all wrong.
Tell me what you mean.
Well, to have to be a billionaire at 20, it's like what kind of target is this? Where honestly we're raping the earth. We're really a super dysfunctional society.
And I believe it's because of those targets. You know, it's like I just want to make money. I just want to create something and make and be this rather than how can I what is naturally emerging. It's great that we have this idea, but how can we do that in the most responsible, sustainable, sustainable way that everyone wins, right? That it doesn't hurt anyone. It actually improves our state of well being and our consciousness. That's what I'm more interested in now.
And I would say that.
You know, this whole thing about time, you know, really there is no time. You know, look at Einstein said it, this isn't a woo woo thing, right? If time doesn't really exist, how can you be behind? Behind of what? There's always going to be someone that's smarter, richer, ahead of you, whatever. And even that is a concept. But no one can be you and no one can express like you and your expression is going to come. You know, most famous artists were late in their life. You know, there is a level of mastery that comes from just living life. The reason I won't date a 36 year old man is because there's a lot of life in those 20 years. They're usually attracted to me and I'm like dude, there's a lot that 20 years. There's a lot in there, right? Even if you don't do it at any successful level, just living alone provides a level of wisdom, right? You don't have to be this Mars person on the planet to learn, you know, you, we know that. Oh that's hot shit. You know, you hopefully most people.
So I would say if you're 40, good on you. You right now have more wisdom than you did when you were 19. Hopefully. You know, most people I think do. And this has to be the perfect time for you.
And that's it, you know, And I still get caught up in that, too. I'm like, oh, my gosh. And then I. And I just notice. And I look at that thought, like, who are you and what. There's always going to be that carrot. That thought that.
You know, always.
So it's a great segue into. The last question I had for you is, after accomplishing what you've accomplished and finding that personal freedom.
Now, what do you do next?
You know, I'm really interested in freeing myself up. That's one of the things I started this movement called the Movement Standard, where it's just like moving your spine and your body and all these clinchy spots. I've been interested in freeing up my mind from these old programs that had suppressed and oppressed, you know, I've oppressed myself with.
So next is more and more and more freedom. And how can I create now from a place of freedom, rather from a place of that constricted programming? And I'm curious to see what that looks like.
Beautiful.
Yeah. I don't know.
I know you're being more intentional about sharing content, and I know you have a podcast that I want to help you with when you're ready to launch that. And I know you've got other things that you're starting to create, and where do people find them?
Well, you can find me@suzybateeze.com I do most of my Instagram, so I'm not actually a person on Facebook or LinkedIn. Sorry, I'm just not. I think there's a lot of drama on Facebook. I just don't resonate with it. You know, Instagram I like because I can curate it so well. But, yeah, you can find it there. And you'll be seeing a lot more from me because there's just this natural sharing that I. It's like. Like right now. I hope you guys pick some of the basil out of my garden. Like, I have basil and mint, like, too much. So that's what happens is when you're abundant, like, you want to just give it away. So now I'm just looking at. I've learned a lot and take it or leave it, you know, whatever. I have a lot to share.
Beautiful.
Yeah.
I can personally attest, I would highly recommend Susie's Instagram page. I love how you share the personal development work that you do. Kind of live as it's happening, or when you're decompressing from something that you did and you share it. And Susie has told me that she's got a podcast sitting on the sidelines, that I'm taking it as a personal mission to ensure that that comes out because I think we need more entrepreneurs that think like this. So thank you very much.
Thank you so much. Yeah, thank you. I appreciate it. It's fun.
You know, it seems almost petty to say, but Susie's life changed when she created a product.
And she created a product, a simple product that created a several hundred million dollar company. Tell me capitalism doesn't change lives. It allowed her to go on her personal and spiritual journey. It impacted the lives of customers around the world. It impacted the lives of employees. I hope it impacted your life today. And the fact that we're sitting here having this conversation about business and meaning and purpose and entrepreneurship and the spiritual path and how it all blends together, it's so overlooked how this path of being a capitalist has an impact on other people in positive ways. It might be the greatest contribution that you make in your life. If you need help choosing your first product that allows you to create that type of an impact, we can help. Go over to capitalism. Com Start. We have some free resources for you to help you do that. If you like this video, please let us know in the comments and subscribe to the channel. We'd love to be sending more to you. Thanks for watching.
