The Secret to Building a Die-Hard Community (Hint: It’s Not About You) with Lindsey Marie
What Happens When You Stop Making Your Business About You
I've been in Lindsay Marie Zastro's world for a few years now, and there's something different about the energy at her Powerhouse Women events. Last year, 800 women packed into a Scottsdale ballroom, and the connection was electric. But here's what blew my mind: Lindsay wasn't trying to be the center of attention.
The Accidental Empire Builder
Lindsay's story starts with a book she never intended to monetize. Feeling restless in her network marketing business, she said yes to a writing program just to prove she could finish something scary. That book became the foundation for what's now one of the most engaged communities in the entrepreneurial space.
“I very much created a solution to a need that I had,” Lindsay shares. “There's a magic that happens when you lean into an idea and you don't have an attachment to monetizing it.”
The Community Secret
What Lindsay discovered accidentally is now her superpower: the difference between building an audience and building a community. While most entrepreneurs focus on getting people to connect with them and their brand, Lindsay asks a deeper question: “How do I get these people to connect with each other?”
This approach does two things. First, it takes the pressure off Lindsay to personally connect with every single person (impossible at 800-person events). Second, it creates what she calls “aspirational identity”—people don't just follow Lindsay, they become part of something bigger.
The Fashion Transformation
One of my favorite parts of Lindsay's journey is her evolution from self-described “vanilla sister” to the fashion icon we see today. After her book transformation, she literally looked in her closet and thought, “Whose clothes are these?” She hired a stylist, changed her hair from jet black to strawberry blonde, and started dressing for her aspirational identity.
“I started to wear the stuff that I thought I couldn't,” she explains. This wasn't about fashion for fashion's sake—it was about external expression matching internal transformation.
The Hard Truth About Growth
Perhaps the most powerful moment in our conversation was Lindsay's honesty about what transformation really costs. “There is a shedding process that happens as you're releasing an old identity, and it will inevitably shed some people.”
As someone who's also experienced this painful but necessary part of growth, I appreciate Lindsay's vulnerability here. Your new identity deserves to be supported by people who see and reinforce who you're becoming, not who you used to be.
What's Next
Lindsay is entering what she calls a season of “creative surrender”—focusing more on being than doing, returning to pure creativity without business intentions attached. It's a beautiful reminder that sometimes the best strategy is to stop strategizing and start creating from the soul.
If you're building a business or community, Lindsay's approach offers a refreshing alternative to the typical “look at me” marketing we see everywhere. Make it about them. Help them connect with each other. Create an aspirational identity they want to step into.
Listen to the full episode to hear Lindsay's complete transformation story and get the practical strategies for building conscious community in your own business.
xo, Tracy
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Links in this episode:
Follow @lindsey.marieofficial on Instagram!
Follow @powerhouse_women on Instagram!
Powerhouse Women Event – August 15-17 at Scottsdale, Arizona
Buy My Book: The Desired Brand Effect