Female Startup Club

Lauren Meisner built Centennial World, a Gen-Z media business covering internet culture, from just $5,000. It launched in 2019 as a beauty publication and today it's an independent podcast network running a daily show plus weekly deep dives, with most of its audience on YouTube. She's also just launched Spon Studio, a marketplace built to connect independent podcasters with brands.

But the part she really opened up about... the actual numbers behind creator brand deals and how to monetise in the creator economy for 2026.

In this juicy episode Lauren gets properly honest about the money side of the creator economy. We get into what brands are actually paying right now, the mini series she sold for $20k before finding out it was worth five times that (ouch), payment terms that somehow stretch to nine months, and how on earth you price yourself when the whole industry still feels like the Wild West. If you've ever stared at a brand's email with no clue what number to send back, this one is for you.

I wanted to know:

what brands are actually paying podcasters and creators in 2026
how she went from a $9k first deal to multi six-figure partnerships
how to set your payment terms and stop chasing late invoices

This one is for the woman who is building something in the creator economy (or wants to) and is done leaving money on the table.

⏱ CHAPTERS
00:00 - Introduction
01:30 - The creator economy is still the Wild West
04:00 - Building Centennial World from $5,000
07:30 - From beauty publisher to internet culture
11:00 - Why they killed the website and went all in on podcasting
15:00 - Going solo after her co-founder exited
19:00 - Scaling too fast and burning out
24:00 - Building shows that don't rely on her face
28:00 - The first brand deal: $9,000 from MAC
33:00 - The mini series she undercharged by 5x
38:00 - Building a real sales process and cold outreach
44:00 - The 2026 wildcard opportunity for creators
49:00 - What brands actually want now
54:00 - The dark side of being chronically online
58:00 - Term sheet red flags and saying no to free work
01:03:00 - Payment terms and getting paid up front
01:08:00 - Why she built Spon Studio
01:14:00 - Advice for starting a podcast in 2026

🔗 LINKS
→ Lauren Meisner on Instagram: @laurenmeisner_
→ Centennial World on TikTok: @centennialworld
→ Spon Studio: www.sponstudio.com
#FemaleStartupClub #CreatorEconomy #Podcasting #BrandDeals #CentennialWorld

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe

→ Apply to join our inner circle: https://apply.femalestartupclub.com/apply
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin
→ Get opportunities delivered to your inbox here: https://female-startup-club.beehiiv.com/
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This episode is for women who have a busy brain, feel misunderstood, or want to understand themselves better!

I've invited my husband, P-A, back on the show (you heard from him a few episodes ago!) to walk through something I sent him recently that genuinely felt like a breakthrough. I called it 'My Brain Operating Manual'.

Quick context.. I've been on this big journey of understanding my ADHD. Why some things feel impossibly hard for me and others come so easily, and what is actually happening inside my brain when I spiral (which is daily, lol). So I sat in the bath one night, went down a massive rabbit hole, and put together a document explaining exactly how my brain works, so PA could finally understand me properly.

This episode is the two of us going through it together. No structure, no script, just talking it out:

→ why an ADHD brain never has a true "off" mode
→ why I'm completely depleted by the end of every week (and why it's not normal tiredness)
→ the masking thing that nobody else can see
→ why a tiny "can you pass me a pen" interruption is genuinely painful
→ why empty, unscheduled days are a neurological requirement, not a luxury
→ why new ideas land as extra weight instead of swaps
→ the book that completely changed how we communicate (The Course of Love by Alain de Botton, read it!)

It's a conversation about understanding yourself, being a good partner to someone whose brain works differently, and why depth beats width every single time.

If you've got a busy brain, whether you have ADHD or you're just burnt out and stretched and running on empty, this one is for you.

We're also kicking off a listener series on busy brains, so if you want to email in your questions, all the details are below.

⏱ CHAPTERS
00:00 – Introduction
02:00 – Why I made a Brain Operating Manual for my husband
06:30 – The daily spiral (and why it gets worse by Friday)
12:00 – The book that changed how we communicate
17:30 – Bucket 1: an ADHD brain is always running
24:00 – Masking, and why it's invisible exhaustion
30:00 – Why high inbound volume drains the tank
36:00 – Scheduled plans cost energy before they happen
42:00 – Unscheduled time is a neurological requirement
48:30 – Too many roles fragment focus and output
55:00 – Why new suggestions land as additions, not swaps
1:02:00 – The practical fixes that actually changed our lives
1:08:30 – Advice for partners of neurodivergent people
1:13:00 – Depth over width, and our new listener series

🔗 LINKS
#FemaleStartupClub #ADHD #Neurodivergent #ADHDinWomen #BurnoutRecovery

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin
📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe

→ Apply to join our inner circle: https://apply.femalestartupclub.com/apply
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin
→ Get opportunities delivered to your inbox here: https://female-startup-club.beehiiv.com/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Queenie Tan went from working at McDonald's at 14, to earning $400 a week renting a share house at 19, to buying her first home at 23, to a $1 million net worth before 30. She's now one of Australia's most followed personal finance creators, the founder of a budgeting app with a 50% conversion rate, and the author of The Fun Finance Formula.

But what she really wants you to know about how she actually got here might surprise you...

In this conversation with Female Startup Club, Queenie gets refreshingly honest about why her parents divorced over money, the embarrassing teenage near-death moment that completely flipped her relationship with cash, and the exact framework she used to go from $0 to $100,000 (which took her 40 months) and then from $900,000 to $1 million (which took just 3 months).

We dig into investing, pre-nups, divorce, property... There's a lot packed in here!

I wanted to know:

* Is buying your first home at 23 still possible in 2026?
* The exact percentage of every paycheck Queenie automates into investments
* And what she did when her budgeting app made just $50 in its first month of revenue

This one is for the woman who is tired of feeling stressed about money and ready to actually do something about it.

⏱ CHAPTERS
00:00 – Introduction
01:30 – The teenage near-death moment that changed everything
05:45 – Why her parents divorced over money (and what it taught her)
11:20 – Working at McDonald's at 14 & finally understanding her dad
16:40 – Moving out at 19 on $400 a week & dropping out of law school
22:15 – The $100,000 milestone framework: 40 months vs 3 months
28:30 – Is buying a house at 23 still possible in 2026?
34:00 – Why you need more than one source of income
38:45 – What's the salary you actually need to live a good life?
44:20 – Pay yourself first: the 20% rule that changed her finances
49:50 – Queenie's full breakdown: investments, Bitcoin, property, emergency fund
55:15 – Living below your means & the trap most content creators fall into
1:00:30 – The annual CFO meeting every couple should run
1:06:00 – The $40,000 takeaway bill one user discovered using her app
1:11:20 – Bootstrapping a budgeting app & making $50 in month one
1:17:45 – From 1% to 50% conversion rate: how Queenie fixed the funnel
1:23:00 – The crypto mistake she made in 2017 (& what she does now)
1:28:15 – Money lenses: which one are you?
1:34:00 – The financial red flags & green flags in a relationship
1:40:30 – Why you should consider a prenup (& what they actually cost)
1:46:00 – University, weddings, credit cards: the cons that keep us broke
1:52:15 – Investing for her daughter & the $1k-a-year compound effect
1:57:30 – The best way to become a millionaire in 2026

🔗 LINKS
→ Queenie Tan's Instagram: www.instagram.com/investwithqueenie
→ The Fun Finance Formula book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fun-Finance-Formula-Unlock-Growing/dp/1394346107
→ Queenie's app: https://billroo.com/

#FemaleStartupClub #QueenieTan #PersonalFinance #MoneyMindset #FinancialFreedom

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe
→ Apply to join Doone’s inner circle: join.femalestartupclub.com/apply
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe

→ Apply to join our inner circle: https://apply.femalestartupclub.com/apply
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin
→ Get opportunities delivered to your inbox here: https://female-startup-club.beehiiv.com/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Use code 'FSC50' to get $50 off Bronte's sportswear brand Earthletica

Bronte Campbell competed at 4x Olympic Games before the age of 30, won 3x gold medals, 1x bronze, set a world record, and became world champion in both the 50m and 100m freestyle. She's now the co-founder of athletic sportswear brand Earthletica and just closed a crowdsourced raise of $1.2M.

But what she really wants you to know about elite performance and what it actually takes to win surprised me...

In this conversation with Female Startup Club, Bronte gets refreshingly honest about why she's "not the most talented swimmer", what it's like training every single day next to your older sister who is faster than you, and the inner dialogue she had to learn to perform when it mattered.

I wanted to know:

* How Olympians actually make money (and why her first sponsorship deal was $500 A YEAR!)
* The 3 traits every Olympic athlete has in common
* And what really happened with the brother who went into life-saving surgery during her first Olympics

This one is for the woman who has ever felt like the underdog in her own life or industry and wants the real playbook for showing up anyway.

⏱ CHAPTERS
00:00 – Introduction
02:30 – Growing up barefoot in Malawi & deciding at 7 to be an Olympic swimmer
08:15 – The grade-3 weirdo who timed herself running laps around the school
13:40 – "98% luck": the coach, the pool at the end of the street, the genetic gift
19:20 – The 3 traits every Olympic athlete has (it's not what you think)
24:50 – Hip surgery, glandular fever & nearly losing it all at 14
30:15 – Competing against your own sister every single training session
36:00 – "I'm not the most talented swimmer in my squad. Not one time."
41:30 – The inner dialogue: positive self-talk, karaoke delusion & crying into goggles
47:10 – London 2012: qualifying at 17 & not knowing how to "look like an Olympian"
52:45 – The phone call about her brother during the closing ceremony
58:00 – Rio 2016: getting injured 4 months out & how she rebuilt her race
1:04:20 – Pain meditation & the 5-year-old left behind on a hike
1:11:00 – Periods, vomiting after races & the pill at 14
1:16:30 – The first ever pregnancy policy for Australian swimming
1:22:00 – How Olympians actually make money (& the $500 sponsorship deal)
1:29:15 – Signing your image rights to the IOC & the 6-week blackout
1:35:00 – The Raygun moment & what it was like in the village
1:41:30 – Retiring, building Earthletica & the $800k raise
1:48:00 – Sport vs business: which is actually harder
1:54:20 – Her husband Benfield refusing to weigh in on Paris
1:58:00 – Advice to young women who want to dream big

🔗 LINKS
→ Bronte Campbell's Instagram: www.instagram.com/brontecampbell
→ Earthletica: www.instagram.com/earthletica

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin

#FemaleStartupClub #BronteCampbell #Olympics #WomenInBusiness #Earthletica

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe

→ Apply to join our inner circle: https://apply.femalestartupclub.com/apply
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin
→ Get opportunities delivered to your inbox here: https://female-startup-club.beehiiv.com/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jemma Sbeg built one of the world's most recognisable psychology podcasts at 21, hit 100 million downloads, and landed a Netflix deal by 26.

But what she really wants you to know about your 20s and what happens when you find success surprised me...

In this conversation with Female Startup Club, Jemma gets radically honest about the loneliness that comes with rapid success, why high-achieving women are the least likely to talk about it, and what she actually did when the numbers stopped feeling like enough.

I wanted to know:
The real psychology of high-achieving brains
The exact decision-making frameworks Jemma uses to stop spiralling
And what exactly happened with the Netflix deal

This one is for women who are building something real and wondering why it feels lonelier at the top.

This one is for the woman who is building something real and wondering why it feels lonelier the further she climbs.

⏱ CHAPTERS
00:00 – Introduction
02:15 – From heartbreak & corporate job to 100M+ downloads
07:40 – The loneliness of success no one talks about
13:20 – What happened after the Netflix deal
19:05 – The worst case scenario decision framework
26:30 – Hard work as emotional avoidance
33:10 – The comparison circle reframe
39:45 – The 5 whys technique
46:00 – Building a Gen Z company culture
52:20 – How the Netflix deal was negotiated
58:30 – Why strangers celebrate you louder than people who know you
1:04:00 – Journaling, voice notes & managing anxiety
1:10:15 – The psychology of your 20s

🔗 LINKS
→ Jemma Sbeg's Instagram: www.instagram.com/jemmasbeg
→ Jemma's podcast: www.instagram.com/thatpsychologypodcast/

#FemaleStartupClub #JemmaSbeg #WomenInBusiness #PsychologyPodcast #NetflixDeal

📱 Join 160K smart chicks in the Female Startup Club universe

→ Apply to join our inner circle: https://apply.femalestartupclub.com/apply
→ Female Startup Club's Instagram: www.instagram.com/femalestartupclub
→ Doone Roisin's Instagram: www.instagram.com/dooneroisin
→ Get opportunities delivered to your inbox here: https://female-startup-club.beehiiv.com/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.