from compost to book deal: Kate Flood on social media, burnout & balance
Above is a YouTube interview with compostable kate, and below is an overview of the interview and the transcript at the very bottom.
In this interview, I speak with Kate Flood — aka Compostable Kate — about her journey from creating compost content online to publishing her bestselling book The Compost Coach. Kate shares how her background as a teacher helped shape her educational and purpose-driven approach to social media, and how niching down into compost content ultimately caught the attention of a publisher.
We talk about the reality behind building a platform — the process of how she grew her following and how burnout led her to take a full year off social media after the book launched. Kate speaks honestly about the pressures of being “on” all the time, and how walking away gave her a deeper perspective and space to reconnect with her values.
Kate also shares her insights into ethical collaborations, the importance of owning your platforms, and how real-life connections fuel her creativity more than any algorithm can. We wrap up with what’s next for her — including her return to classroom teaching and a possible second book on the horizon.
Key takeaways:
You don’t need to chase virality to grow a meaningful platform
Niching down can make your message clearer and more impactful
It’s okay — and necessary — to take breaks from social media
Real-life community and connections matter more than metrics
Content with purpose can be both joyful and powerful
Follow Kate via Instagram or buy her amazing book here.
Thanks for showing an interest in this interview series :)
Honey xx
Video Transcript:
Honey Atkinson (00:00)
Hello, today I'm here to chat with Kate, author, teacher, compost queen who's based in Sydney with her husband and her three young kids. Most of you would know Kate as Combostable Kate on Instagram. I first heard about Kate via Insta, but we hadn't crossed paths until she started shooting her book. At the time, Kate was living in the Bega Valley and her cousin, Sierra, and a photographer, Nat Madam, have both put my name forward to photograph Kate's book.
She messaged me and then we met up and we hit it off instantly. We've both got that same like crazy high energy vibe and enthusiasm for whatever we do. Kate and I went from not knowing each other to working pretty intensely together for two weeks straight over very long days and trying to get everything shot for the book. We also had kids at the same school so we were juggling school runs in between and the crazy stuff that life brings you. It was a real gift to be involved with Kate's book. For me it was like a real merging of my personal interests and work.
was like a dream job and I gained a new friend from it too. yeah. Okay, welcome.
Kate Flood (00:54)
Thank you, honey. It's lovely carving out a little bit of time to chat to you because now that I've moved away from the big valley, we're doing so much phone tagging and you know, it's hard to carve out that time. So it's great to have some time to catch up and talk about all the things that we've achieved and all the stuff that we've still got ahead as well.
Honey Atkinson (01:12)
Yes, so much. Always scheming, aren't we? Yes.
Kate Flood (01:14)
Yeah, I know.
We need to get better at scheming and bringing stuff to fruition though, because I think often my, you know, my head has all of these ideas, but then the reality of having three small children sometimes brings things to a grinding halt. But yeah, it's really great having you as a creative collaborator and a motivator as well. You know, I'm really impressed by.
all of the different things that you do and find it super inspiring having you as someone that I can bounce ideas off. So yeah, it's cool to be here.
Honey Atkinson (01:46)
Yes, yeah, likewise.
So I've got Kate on today to really just have a chat about, I think a lot of people who maybe love the idea of creating a book or, and kind of like to figure out how that would happen. So kind of just like the process that you went through from, know, composting to having a social media account and then how that kind of merged into a book that I think for a lot of people, they're like, wow.
that's just, you and there's so many steps along the way to make it happen, but it's, it seems, you know, something that people dream about and probably will never do, but a small percentage of people will. And it's like figuring out what that magic is. And I guess helping other people figure out how to make it work as well. It's kind of the main reason I've got you on. You've got so much to give,
Kate Flood (02:27)
yet. ⁓
Well, it's it's was a really interesting process for me. And I think the first element probably of my success using Instagram and then subsequently TikTok was thinking about it as an education platform. So I always had a really clear idea about why I was using it. And that probably stems from me being a teacher. So I thought.
Gosh, it's amazing, you know, that we're all on our phones and we can be absorbing, you know, all different messages from different people. And I wanted to have my voice on the platform to be one of inspiration and education. sounds a bit cheesy, but that was really, you know, my purpose around it. When I first signed up to Instagram, it was a new platform for me. Lots of my girlfriends have been on it for years, but being a high school teacher, unfortunately, so many of the bullying problems that
dealt with, was a year coordinator, came from social media. So I personally didn't have an account. But then when we living in the inner west at the time, there was a group of very cool old ladies who were all on Instagram and were surprised to hear that I wasn't, because they followed gardeners. They followed one particular account called the Plant Street Library, a lady in Annandale, and she would post about when she had cuttings to share.
And at that stage I had a really big shared street garden. So I had lots of edibles and herbs and cut and come again veggies that me and the neighbor shared. And they said, you know, you have to sign up so you can get some more free plants. And that was an interesting revelation to me because I really hadn't realized that people used social media in that way. I just thought it was all about, you know, taking a pouty selfie as a teenager. ⁓ And I think
Honey Atkinson (04:16)
Yes.
Kate Flood (04:18)
like you honey when when I think about doing something and when I you know really put my mind to a new project I go all in so I started reading some articles about about garden accounts and one of my favorite garden writers Alice Fowler she writes for the Guardian she had an article this was you know five years ago about her favorite gardening instagrams and one of them was
this lady Hannah, she calls herself the Worm Munger. And I thought, wow, it's amazing that, you know, she's got this whole platform teaching people how to worm farm. She was a real inspiration about me starting my Instagram. Initially, though, I was sharing about the street garden and compost inadvertently was something that I would always come back to because I'd try to buy as few amounts of bagged potting mix I would be making my own from my own soil mixes and compost and worm castings.
And so that sort of crept into my content. It's something that I had always been really passionate about, but hadn't realized that equally people would be as interested in it. I think it also was a bit of the, the confluence of COVID and everyone being stuck at home and people turning inward and then starting to think about their garden as a form of, of self-expression and relaxation and environmental activism as well.
So I think my content really resonated then. So my account slowly grew, but when I first started my account, was called the Grove Street Gardener. That's where we were living at the time. And then when we moved to the Bega Valley, I just really knuckled down on making compost content because I thought, you know, if we're all stuck at home, then at least we can be making a good impact on the planet. So I changed it to compostable cakes, which I thought had a good ring. And
And from there, that's where Murdoch Books, my publisher, then found me. So I was in a really highly fortunate position to have a publisher seek me out. Whereas I know talking to people who are trying to get a book deal that often the more usual path is you may get a literary agent.
Or equally, you try and do it yourself and you write something called first pages, which is like a small section of your book idea. And then you present that to different publishing houses. Whereas the Murdoch Books team sent me a DM saying, have you ever thought about writing a compost book? And I immediately said yes, which, you sort of think about these things, but it didn't really feel like a reality until I got that message. And
And from there, that's how I started working through the process of signing the book deal and writing the book. But in terms of people thinking about dipping your toe in the publishing world, think always think about how precious some of the real estate is on social media. So with my captions, even still now to this day, I usually write as much as I possibly can. I.
You know, people often write really short captions, but I'd try and include as much detailed information there. and I would equally in my videos, a lot of them, like some of my old videos, really ridiculous lip syncing ones, but I wouldn't feel afraid of using humor to educate as well. and, and from that, my publisher Jane could see that I could write and could see that I could communicate an idea that that resonated.
And yeah, it was interesting that the process of negotiating for my book because I really knew what I wanted to say and it was a lot of information. they were expecting me to write about 30,000 words and my manuscript was, so my unedited manuscript was 90,000 words. And then it was a back and forth process of editing it down to about 70,000 words.
Honey Atkinson (07:38)
Well.
Kate Flood (08:05)
But always in my head as well. I knew that I wanted it to be a highly visual book because I find the process of composting so beautiful. It's this act of transformation where you you've got waste that really has gets totally transformed and turns into garden gold. So I wanted to capture that beauty of decay and renewal. And so I knew I wanted to work with a passionate photographer.
And then a couple of people as you said Nat and Sierra sent you my way. So I truly do think that your photos bring the book to life. So we really ended up being the dream team for the book. So that was a really exciting thing as well.
Honey Atkinson (08:44)
Yeah, was an incredible process that being able to have the chance to photograph again similarly like I wasn't necessarily obsessed with compost but just obsessed with the earth and then the beauty and decay, the beauty and everything as a photographer you see beauty in not just a sunset.
Kate Flood (08:56)
Hmm.
Honey Atkinson (09:04)
And having the chance to actually stretch my muscles and to be able to photograph something that most people would be like, that's just rotting food, but to be able to photograph it in a way that was beautiful was really exciting. Yeah, really different to how I normally shoot. So yeah, it was fun, the process.
Kate Flood (09:13)
Yes. Yeah.
It was
a really interesting process and, and it was, you know, I think that you understood the brief from day one, which made it so much easier. And as you said, you know, we got on like a house on fire. I think, for people interested in getting in this area, connecting with creatives is a really awesome, place to start. my sister-in-law, is a really interesting academic. she writes about Marcha.
So she's a matcha historian and you it's interesting with all of this interest in matcha that's now blown up and she has written academic books, but she would like to write a more informal commercial book and, and it was just using her as an example for other people. So she is a, is a published author, but to break into the publishing industry has been an interesting process for her because she,
went the usual way, put together first pages and, you know, a blurb of what her book would be about. But she so far hasn't got interest from publishers, commercial publishers yet, because she doesn't have a platform. So I think as much as it's a frustrating thing, and, you know, like I've spent hundreds of hours on creating content, but I can see that it becomes like your,
Honey Atkinson (10:20)
Yes.
Kate Flood (10:33)
your visual CV, it shows how you can write, it shows how you can communicate. And also you have an inbuilt audience who then are ready to buy from you as well. ⁓ And that really is something that with the current climate in publishing, it's especially, you know, the cost of living has increased so significantly that people don't have spare cash.
Honey Atkinson (10:43)
Yes, yeah.
Kate Flood (10:55)
probably like they did during COVID, there was a huge publishing boom and now it's really cooled off. So having that inbuilt audience means that publishers, it sort of, it lessens the risk for them. ⁓ Absolutely. Yeah.
Honey Atkinson (11:07)
Yeah, so they're looking for low risk things and having that having runs on the board with social
media or some type of following just shows that yes, the market for what you do is warm. So let's let's start a discussion rather than a going in a bit cold. Yeah.
Kate Flood (11:18)
Yes. Yeah. Yeah, that's right. And
so I think, I think also probably other advice that I could share is for me, it was, it was very easy to using the social media lingo of niching down because talking about compost was the thing that I'm most interested in, you know, even now as a gardener, you know, I love plants, but I truly am much more interested in decomposing stuff than growing stuff. and
So I was able to narrow my focus and I could see pretty quickly from my account that that's what people were interested to learn from. but I think that is a useful thing. So not talking about too much. my, because social media was a new, well Instagram was a new platform for me. I read lots of, you know, articles and tips about how to go about making content and how to go about presenting yourself online because I,
wanted to get it right, I didn't want to waste my time. So thinking about those like keywords in your name with mine, I've filled it up with as many keywords that are relevant to me. I think those things do make a difference and also it's been an interesting thing about the way that my content has evolved. So I now really love making videos with other people who
in the same space, so whether it's about regenerative gardening or whether it's a home gardener who's starting up a composting system for the first time. But I think those collaborations that you can do with like-minded people also is really useful because then that broadens your reach to their audience as well, likewise them to your audience. But I think all of that helped me grow.
Honey Atkinson (13:00)
How do
you kind of navigate those, you know, like those collaborations? Like, so obviously you get asked sometimes, sometimes you might be inspired to ask someone, like how do you kind of feel out that it's a good fit, a good fit for you or you just...
Kate Flood (13:12)
Well, I think
for me, I have just asked people that have followed me and there's been a few instances where I've been, well actually I quite regularly get asked by companies and stuff to make videos with them. And I've always said no, because I feel very comfortable selling myself and selling my knowledge, but I don't feel particularly comfortable selling stuff.
Whereas working with other gardening accounts, where we are just sharing knowledge and sharing advice and our experiences. I feel like that that works with me ethically. But I also just think as you well know, I'm quite shameless with these things and rejection doesn't bother me. know, so I just like, you know, if there's someone's video that I think, wow, that's such a cool idea. Even if they don't follow me, you know, if I think that would really resonate well with my audience.
Honey Atkinson (13:57)
Yes.
Kate Flood (14:06)
then I'll go over and send them a message and, you know, start the process from there. But I think, yeah, just, just being, knowing that I think it's been helpful because I feel like Compostable Kate is like my alter ego. So, you know, she, she lives online, whereas I live in the real world. So there's that separation. ⁓
Honey Atkinson (14:20)
Yes. Yes. ⁓
Yes, yes.
And also I think that like you are different to a lot of people, but like especially to me, like I would send something out and then like think about the fact that the person's having to message me back, you know, so it's like, I think what people, you know, who are listening need to understand is that this is actually you. Like in real life, you're like, you're an extrovert, you love people and you're like, cool, give it a go. If it doesn't work, you know, like, okay. Yeah.
Kate Flood (14:35)
Yes.
Yeah!
Yeah, yeah, no, that's totally right. But I think
I feel like people can learn from that and just know that, you know, this sort of stuff isn't that serious, like as much as my messaging is, but you know, it's, and of course there's going to be people that will say no, because they're not interested in your content or they're not interested in collaborating at that current time because they've got too much on their plate. But I think putting yourself out there is really great.
Honey Atkinson (14:58)
Yes.
this.
Kate Flood (15:11)
⁓ And in terms of selling my books, I went through quite an intense period of doing lots of videos and making lots of content because being a first-time author and being really passionate with what I had produced, you know, I've written a really excellent book and I can totally back myself on that, but I wanted to make sure that as many people could read it as possible. during that promotional period, I made a lot of content.
Honey Atkinson (15:11)
Yeah.
Kate Flood (15:36)
and I was on lots of really cool podcasts and I didn't do very much in person, I did hardly any in person events actually for a number of reasons. So living in the Bega Valley with my partner often being up in Sydney, that sort of inhibited what I was able to do. But equally it was interesting. the publishing industry has, costs have increased for them so significantly.
partly because of climate change. So the cost of paper now is so much more than it was 10 years ago. So for first-time authors like me, they weren't prepared to bankroll a book tour because that's a costly exercise. So I did have to rely on my voice. So whether it was on radio, ABC has been really generous with me being a compost and gardening expert. So I'd often be on the radio, on local and national radio. I did some TV stuff.
Which is interesting as well with TV, cause you sort of start realizing that everyone is just out to make content. And if you can communicate clearly online, then you'll be able to communicate pretty clearly in different formats too. ⁓ So I leant into that, but I know that you're wanting to talk about burnout, which is definitely something once I was able to say my book was a best seller, took it didn't, it initially the sales were, were, was solid, but they weren't huge.
Honey Atkinson (16:37)
Yes.
Kate Flood (16:53)
And Honey and I would often be talking about, know, Honey is very data driven as well as, as well as creative, but you know, I remember a conversation with you while you're saying, can't they say, you know, you did that real and then this many people clicked through and I talked to my publisher about that and she laughed and she's like, publishing is so old school and the data is so slow. But yeah, my book initially, it took a little bit of, a little bit of time to gain momentum. And independent bookstores were a big
part of its success. whenever I promote my book, I always first of all talk about now at this point, borrow it from a library to really lean into the circular economy. And then secondly, buy it from an independent bookshop. And then finally, thirdly, you know, is online, but I don't want my dollars and the consumer's dollars going to places like Amazon. So, yeah, really giving support behind the Australian independent book industry, I think is is important too. But after doing that,
big social media and traditional media push. Once I was able to say my book was a bestseller, which is a huge achievement, I really needed to go cold turkey with social media. I basically, think I definitely took at least a year off. So it was where I did nothing. So I've got a TikTok account and an Instagram account and I was totally done. You know, I'd given everything that I.
that I wanted to give or, probably more than that at points as well. ⁓ And I think that was an interesting experience for me because I needed to take that time off. And it's also a really good thing for people who have their own businesses who are using Instagram as a platform for sales to know that you can take that time off and you don't.
Honey Atkinson (18:19)
Yes.
I think that's something
I really wanted to centre in on that because I feel like that's how, I hear all the time because I photograph women in business is that feeling that they can never stop. Like if they have a week off, then they're going to be penalised and then...
Kate Flood (18:46)
Yes.
Yeah. And,
you do get a bit, so I, I genuinely took about a year off and didn't do anything, didn't do any stories, didn't make any videos, nothing. So you'll see if you, you know, if you're interested, there'll be stuff, you know, actively posting and then you'll see a big time off. So all of last year, basically didn't do anything. and now I have re engaged my audience.
because I feel invigorated and I feel like I've got something new to say as well. You know, I got to the point where I was like, I've made all the videos that I wanted to say, my book says everything I want to say, you know, I can't keep on rehashing the same information, you know, that's not serving my audience. It's not serving myself. You do get penalised for doing that, but not indefinitely. So I found after taking that significant time off the videos and the posts that I
started sharing had a really small reach. So my account now is really quite large. So I'm used to having my videos initially be served to my audience and then they tend to break out and put new eyeballs and new people who are interested in composting get to see them. That didn't happen when I first started reposting. And that's, you know, the algorithm.
giving you a smack on the wrist saying naughty, naughty girl for taking a year off. ⁓ but then it came back, you know, and I think if you know what your messaging is and if you then, once you've taken that time off, if you put the work back in then, and you're making content that, that resonates with people, then it's totally fine. And I know that, you know, it's
Honey Atkinson (20:03)
Yeah.
Kate Flood (20:23)
Instagram and TikTok want every single second of our attention and they want small business owners to feel like they cannot switch off at any time. And I think that's just such an unhealthy mindset to have. And you know, if you're putting so much online, then you know, maybe you're letting lots of other elements of your life be put on the back burner and that's not the right balance either. ⁓
Honey Atkinson (20:47)
Yes, yeah.
Have you found any other avenues like outside of social media just in that time off where you know actually human connection starting to keep you know like is it you noticed kind of anything that have like been organic that have happened through the lifestyle?
Kate Flood (20:49)
and
Yes!
Yeah, look, count councils
are somewhat a big part of my work. I've worked for lots of different councils in New South Wales. And also just now that I'm in Sydney, I've met so many fantastic people who I've really been inspired by in person. And, know, I think that's been just real life is so much more interesting than what happens online. And, know, what I'm filming is about real life when, you know, I'm making compost content.
But it is still edited, you know, I never show my kids online and I now as well because I Because we've moved and I've got my systems all slowly starting to Be set up. Thankfully the kashi is something that's very easy to bring in a rental But I have been showing, you know a real edited version of of what I what happens in my life And that to me actually is really protective
And it's been really helpful doing that because I think if you give too much online and don't actually operate in the real world, then all of those real world connections, if that gets lost, that's when I think burnout happens far more quickly as well. ⁓ And yeah, it's been, it's, it's been an interesting process. I've always thought about Instagram, the fact that it's rented space and you know, I need to
Honey Atkinson (22:04)
Yeah.
Kate Flood (22:17)
be a big girl and create a website and do all of that. That's just finding the time to do that. Even with that year off, I was really so exhausted from doing any online creation. didn't have the energy to do that, but that's what I'm wanting to channel time and effort into now. So stuff that I own. So the fact that, you know, Instagram is there as a promotional platform and as an education platform is great. But I think,
focusing on platforms that you own is really significant too. And also just feeling like, think it's easy for me when like what I'm putting online is not, like I'm not, I've sometimes posted, yeah, I posted my book quite regularly, but I'm not really selling my products online, whereas small businesses who are doing that, it's hard to get that organic engagement when,
when you don't have a message beyond that. I feel like I'm lucky in a way that for me, because I am a teacher, you know, I'm teaching people about compost and that's something that is, you know, that it's, there's such a hunger for it. But I can see that if you're a small business owner trying to sell stuff, feeling like you can't take time off, you could feel that pressure. But I really think it's healthy to take stock and to
not feel like you need to be posting all the time, especially if you end up not posting, you know, stuff that is interesting or engaging, but you just feel like you have to rehash ⁓ stuff all the time.
Honey Atkinson (23:46)
I agree. And I think that,
I think in the end, the life from my experience, when you are doing it, because you feel like you have to, without a sense of energy and enthusiasm for what you're doing, then the algorithm and like, it all it shows, it's like pretending that you're like, I'm fine, I'm fine.
Kate Flood (23:53)
Yes.
Yes!
Yeah.
Yeah.
Honey Atkinson (24:05)
I think you can that people can sense that and then you're getting less results, you're in more energy, forced energy and not any results for it and that just makes you feel even worse because it's like, why am doing this? Yeah, it's feeding into that feeling of being a failure.
Kate Flood (24:11)
Yes.
Yeah, totally. Yeah, yeah, I think-
Yes, I think knowing why you're doing it and you know, for me, I suffer from really bad climate anxiety and it feels really good when I get messages from middle American housewives saying, you've made composting so cool. you know, I've gone to the big box store and I've got myself a, a compost bin and I've started composting and my husband thinks I'm mad, but I'm obsessed with it. And, you know, for me, they're the moments where I'm like, I can see the impact that I'm making. that's
really motivates me to keep on educating people. ⁓ But I think now, especially that diversity, not just putting all of your eggs in one basket is really important. And being kind to yourself because yeah, I think if you do one interesting, engaging post a week, honestly, I feel like that is plenty. You know, I think
Honey Atkinson (24:51)
Yeah.
Kate Flood (25:11)
I've seen it was interesting as well with my platform. my publishers, I signed my book deal when I had about, I think I had about 18,000 followers.
Honey Atkinson (25:22)
Actually,
was going to ask, was my next question was to say, to come back to that beginning question, which was like, where were you? So people have an understanding of where you're at. So like you had the Grove Street one and then you changed your name and you're being a bit more strategic about what was the time period that went by from like, I'm just going to share some cuttings and stuff in my garden to like being more strategic. And then that was happening. Like what sort of time period do think that was?
Kate Flood (25:42)
Yes.
think that I had been, so I had Sunday my daughter was very newborn baby when I, when yeah, I'm trying to think back when I first started the account and I didn't have very much time at all, but I I enjoyed the fact that I could share these images of the street garden. And I also enjoyed the fact that I was using, even back then that the captions that I wrote, I felt like they were like little exercises for my brain.
about writing some interesting, engaging captions that you captured what I was doing. But like everyone else who starts a new Instagram account, had a tiny following. It always surprised me when I got new followers because I was sort of like, why? I couldn't quite work it out. But I think because I was showing something a bit different,
The street garden that I had was really epic. It went all the way around the corner. Lots of neighbors ended up being involved. But that's once again a real life experience that becomes an interesting thing online. And then when I started posting about how I was feeding those pots and my different worm farms and compost bins that I had in a very, very tiny little terrace, I could see that people were interested in that. that was the...
That was the content that took off, but it didn't, it wasn't like I went from, you know, a hundred followers to a hundred thousand, um, within a short period. think I can't really remember that the, so I signed up in September of 2020 and, um, I signed my book deal at some point in, um, 2022. And I know from, so in those two years, I went from zero to.
like about 18,000 followers is what I was at when I signed the book deal. and, then beyond that, you know, it's, it's grown over the years. but I can see that there's, there's particular, you know, there's some videos that I've made, I've gained 20,000 followers off one video. ⁓ yeah. And that unfortunately as well is like that kind of
Honey Atkinson (27:46)
That blows my mind. Yeah.
Kate Flood (27:53)
gambling sort of mindset where if I just put that dollar in then that's going to you know make my fortune and and I found that I think I've been pretty good at separating myself from those numbers because it's quite a new medium for me um and also because I like I had you know I'm a teacher and had 10 but actually during all of this time I was a stay-at-home mom you know had three very small children so I wasn't
feeling like every follower was, was how I was making my money. So, you know, I just was like, Oh, this is curious. I've got all of these followers. Like it was a surprising thing. And I think by having that more relaxed attitude freed me up from the content that I was making, you know, I was making really ridiculous content. Like I started making videos. I never filmed myself and I never talked to the camera. I never ever done stuff like this before. Um,
which I think meant, and I also know it's part of my personality, I don't have a strong experience of shame, which is useful when you're online. But I also just didn't think about the people that followed me. didn't, because I don't, you know, I don't, I only follow Oz Harvest, an amazing food bank charity here in Australia. And I'd only ever followed, you know, a small amount of accounts. Now I just follow them.
partly because I don't want to think about who's following me and I don't want to think about, you know, friends, old friends from high school or, you know, parents from my kids school following me. Cause then that can inhibit what you're doing. I just wanted, if I had something that I found funny or I found educational or interesting, I would just put my blinkers on and share that. and I think that was another way how my account organically grew. ⁓ but I am,
Honey Atkinson (29:44)
That's good advice
about that kind of separation. I think it's something that I hear as a common anxiety that people have. Sometimes your work persona is maybe a bit more G'd up than what people see at home, like your brother or your sister. And so people feel like that when they share that that person is watching them and so it of inhibits the things that they want to say and how they want to express themselves. So I think it's good.
Kate Flood (29:46)
Sorry.
Yes.
Yep.
Mmm.
Totally.
Honey Atkinson (30:11)
So they're like,
Kate Flood (30:11)
Yeah.
Honey Atkinson (30:12)
yeah, blinkers on.
Kate Flood (30:14)
Yeah, I think because you know, so many people do it nowadays. we are, kids have moved schools. So I've got this whole new group of mums who are quite curiously at my videos. And I'm like, don't scroll back too far. You're to see some really bad lip-syncing ones. But equally I'm not ashamed of that because I, I really, for me, you know, I, I, if it's humor that gets someone to compost or if it's
some scientific facts that get someone to compost. I don't care what it is that I'm doing. I just want to see that real life impact of people actually embracing scraps and returning those scraps to the soil. And so I think because my feeling about what the impact that I'm wanting to have is what drives me, I take away my feeling of shame or embarrassment about these things. I think it's easier for me in that way because
Honey Atkinson (31:01)
Yes, yeah, yeah, not.
Kate Flood (31:05)
I'm using it to educate people and to get people composting. ⁓
Honey Atkinson (31:09)
Yes, yeah, I guess it's also
that I feel like that there's still a key that people can use like a thread for business owners and stuff when you're about like you've got this thing where you're not actually selling something all the time, you're incredibly passionate about it. I think it's for me, and it's something that I talk about often is that people should share a little bit of the other things that are in their life that excite them and light them up.
Kate Flood (31:32)
Mmm.
Honey Atkinson (31:32)
get excited about because even though it not be directly related to the thing that they sell, it actually is the thing that makes them human and more likely for someone to buy from them rather than like if there's two people selling you know candles like why would you buy from that person like or that person because maybe you saw that they also like this this and this that they're excited about. Yeah so I feel like it's just even if they don't have the same type of thing that they're
Kate Flood (31:37)
Yes.
Mmm.
Yes.
Honey Atkinson (31:58)
you know, but the greater good type thing that you're doing, there's having something in like a thread of what you do in your personal life that really excites you. ⁓
Kate Flood (32:06)
Totally.
Yeah. Yeah. And I think that, that, you know, going back to human connection in real life, but that, that human connection that can happen online, I think absolutely is, is important to small businesses. And you know, now, you and I, plus a number of really other inspiring people in this, environmental advocacy and, education space have a cool WhatsApp group that
connects us together. know, and it's so commonplace, all of these feelings. So even people who have that kind of bigger picture and bigger drive, you know, for you to give your hours online, you need to have that some sort of monetary return. And talking about how you can work through the ethics of that and how you can show enough of yourself whilst also protecting, protecting your home life or whatever it is that you're, you're wanting to keep separated.
It's something that I think is different for each person and it's been interesting talking to these other group of really awesome women and seeing how they're navigating that.
Honey Atkinson (33:06)
I agree. think it's like making sure whatever you do online, having a group of people that maybe aren't necessarily in your friendship circle because sometimes your friends or your partner, you try and share things with them and they just don't understand, they don't understand the parameters of how the space works, for work, for business, the ethics that are involved. And so having a group of like-minded creatives or whatever it is that industry that you work in that kind of get it.
Kate Flood (33:14)
Yes.
Mmm.
Yes.
Honey Atkinson (33:30)
and being
able to share stuff and then bounce ideas and go, oh, that person thought of a way to make money still, but also be ethical. so we're always igniting each other and helping each other along. I think it's a great thing to have.
Kate Flood (33:39)
Mmm.
Yes, I think so, definitely. And whether, you know, maybe you don't have those connections initially, but looking at other accounts and how they do things, even if it's totally different to your small business, I think if they align with you in terms of your values, then, you know, even just watching how other people do things, I think is really interesting. And you can learn a lot from that. ⁓ Yeah, I, I.
Honey Atkinson (34:05)
Yep.
So it's been a couple of years since the book came out. What sort of stayed with you from that experience and what do you think is next?
Kate Flood (34:10)
Yes.
another book. My publisher for the last few years has been keen for me to write another book and I was like, I don't have anything else to say. You know, you're expecting 30,000 words. gave you 90,000 words. This is, this is everything I could possibly want to say about it. And in a way that, you know, felt great because I wanted to have, create a book that answered everyone's questions and, you know, became a reference book that you could refer back to all the time. it's,
Honey Atkinson (34:18)
you
Kate Flood (34:43)
not just for beginner composters, the last chapter, is almost my favorite chapter called The Soil goes into all of these other regenerative practices that people could do. But I did feel like the idea of writing another book, was like, well, I don't have anything else to say. But now they have been starting to talk to them about what book number two could be. And I've been starting to talk to you as well about what it could be. And I feel excited about that process.
And then aside from this, been, I've gone back to the classroom. So now that I've got three kids, my youngest is in little kindy. She goes to a sign of school. So she's not at kindergarten full time. But by her being there three days a week, it's allowed me to return to the classroom. And that's been so fantastic because for me, or my passion for compost education came from teaching. Cause I'm a food tech teacher, which is like a home ec cooking teacher.
and teaching young people how to cook, but then at the end of every lesson putting all of the food scraps in the bin felt so deeply backwards and wrong and crazy. That was a big part of me thinking, know, composting needs to be accessible and it needs to be something at the forefront of people's minds. So now going back into the classroom, I'm teaching at my kids' dine and school here in Sydney and teaching food tech.
teaching there's an agriculture part of it as well so teaching kids to compost has been really great. I've only just started this term so that's another yeah another part of my real life work that feels really impactful ⁓ and really joyful as well.
Honey Atkinson (36:15)
I love it.
We've always spoken about it. feel like that a kids version is definitely would be great. Yes, but really simple.
Kate Flood (36:22)
Yes. But you know, that's also the
interesting thing about the publishing industry. That was the book that I felt like pretty quickly. was like, Oh, well, I could do a kid's version of this and that. And my publisher was not interested at all. They're like, no, Costa's got kids books coming out. We can't compete with him. No, not going to do it. You know, and so, um, that's yeah, it's, I'm, I have got lots of no's as well as getting some big yeses. Um, and, just go, okay, well that's, you know, that's fine.
Honey Atkinson (36:48)
Yes.
Kate Flood (36:52)
And moving on to the next idea, think, is getting that resilience about this. know, especially with publishing, they're looking at the big picture and they're looking at selling these books. And so they look at all of this other data that you're just not aware of.
Honey Atkinson (36:52)
Yeah.
Yes.
We're just going, that sounds like a fun thing to do. You teach teach kids, it's the next generation. No doubt, no doubt, would have backed it up, but you know, sounds like fun.
Kate Flood (37:14)
Yes!
Totally, yeah. Yeah.
But it has been lovely actually seeing how other teachers have been using my book and I know that my book is at a lot of schools. So that's even though there's some saucy, you know, worm sticks, maybe are not so good for kids. It's yeah, it's been really cool to see that have a have it's the impact there.
Honey Atkinson (37:32)
That's fantastic.
Kate Flood (37:45)
And then for me as well, in terms of what I'm wanting to lean into, is in-person workshops. I've done lots and lots of online workshops for councils. but I am wanting to, wanting to really get in-person workshops happening here in Sydney, because that's, you know, you can learn so you can learn a lot from watching videos, but actually saying someone do these processes in person, I think is a
huge thing. I've been running a few at the city of Sydney, but I am wanting to back myself to run them independently. So that's something new for me. And Alex, who is the founder of CornerSmith, the really lovely, pickling, in a West cafe. She's written quite a few books as well. She has been helping me with that because she's been a online and in-person educator for a really long time.
And that's something that I've just really loved the generosity of people in this space sharing information that is So, you know, you can't all of this stuff It's such a new career that this online stuff and being a influencer as I call myself, you know There's there's you know, I have no sense of what to charge for things Especially because I would be doing all of this for free if it actually made people compost as well so I think that's saying something that that I've
been so impressed by if you ask people these questions and you're in the same sort of wheelhouse, people have just been so generous with sharing their knowledge and their experience. So that's been a really supportive, excellent part of me taking the next step in working at how I can take my knowledge and skills to new areas.
Honey Atkinson (39:23)
It's fantastic. I think it's just a mirror of your energy. I think because you're so giving and energetic in that way and you're so open just telling anyone in the street something about composting. I feel like that that's just a mirror of you. That's why I think that happens. So I think that
Kate Flood (39:40)
Yeah,
I think there's truth to that. And you know, equally with me having to take that year off, you know, that was sort of that turning inward. not like I was not interested in engaging with people in that way. And that's also because, you know, if you're giving too much online, then there has to be that point where, where things stop. And so it is lovely being back. You know, I think that's reflective of the composting process. I
Honey Atkinson (40:05)
Yes.
Kate Flood (40:05)
myself
was going through that decay cycle and now I'm going through that renewal cycle. And that's totally human as well. So I think giving yourself grace to collapse in a heap and then to regrow from that, think is, is, something that is quite universal. So it's, it's nice to be in this phase now.
Honey Atkinson (40:27)
Oh, it's perfect. It's a perfect way to end. Thank
you, Kate, for your time and your energy. So good. Yeah, I agree. Having that time and space, none of us allow it enough in our lives to reflect on things. It's always go, go, go. So yeah, thank you. So you can follow along with Kate via her Instagram and I'll include that in the show notes and with buying her book.
Kate Flood (40:37)
Mmm.
My pleasure, thank you honey. ⁓
Honey Atkinson (40:54)
shot it and she is my friend but I can't recommend it enough it's absolutely incredible so yeah check it out at your local bookshop.
Kate Flood (41:03)
Thanks, honey.
Honey Atkinson (41:04)
Yeah, yeah, thank you
so much. We'll see you soon in Sydney.
Kate Flood (41:07)
See you soon. Yeah.
