Entrepreneurship is an iterative process
Cynthia started Goldminds as a school mindfulness program with nothing but a vision and a deep belief that kids deserved to learn how to manage difficult emotions. Five years later, it’s a popular bedtime story app helping thousands of families get their kids to relax and actually fall asleep. Now, as a mom of two, she’s on a mission to turn bedtime into the most peaceful part of a child’s day and build the kind of calm that sticks with them for life.
Cynthia Arscott founder Goldminds
Can you start by introducing yourself and telling us in your words, about your inspiring story?
I’m Cynthia, a mom of two and the founder of Goldminds, a bedtime story app for kids with mindfulness built into every story. I grew up with a lot of anxiety at school, with friendships, and especially at bedtime. It wasn’t until I discovered meditation as an adult that I realized I could actually manage my intrusive thoughts and quiet my mind. I remember thinking, “Why did I have to wait so long for this? Why didn’t I have access to these tools as a kid?”
So I got certified to teach mindfulness and meditation to children, built in-school programs, and started teaching kids live. Then the pandemic hit, my first son was born, and everything changed overnight. I turned the live classes into a beta app so I didn’t have to be live all the time, and gave free access to 300 families. The feedback was clear, the mindfulness tools were working best at bedtime to help kids fall asleep. So I listened, and five years later, the Goldminds app is live and helping thousands of kids relax and fall asleep easily.
What made you decide to go into business for yourself?
I was always one of those kids who hated being told what to do. People called me bossy. I ran lemonade stands in the summer, and I loved helping my parents with their garage sales. For years, I kept an ongoing list of business ideas in the notes app on my phone, waiting for the right one to click. I loved the idea of working for myself, on my own schedule, and building something I truly cared about. When my anxiety really picked up in my mid-twenties, and I discovered mindfulness and meditation, that’s when the lightbulb went off. I knew this was the idea I was ready to go all in on, and I started taking action!
How did you market your business when it was brand new?
I created an Instagram account and very cringely started posting! At the time, I was running school programs and virtual classes, juggling both during the pandemic like every other business owner trying to figure it out. Every single day, I would DM 40 moms (the maximum before Instagram freezes your account) and invite them to free “Mindfulness Monday” classes. I also cold emailed every school I could find, asking if I could run a mindfulness program for them. It was very scrappy and unglamorous, but it actually worked and gave me some confidence that the idea was worth going all in on.
What is a typical day like for you?
Probably very similar to every other parent with young kids, it starts out quite chaotic, trying to get everyone out the door! I drop my three year old at preschool and my seven-month-old at my parents, then head back home to work. Mornings are my focused work time where I’m heads down on whatever the business needs, whether that’s content, story writing, or meeting with my teammates. In the afternoons, I’m fully present with my boys, sometimes with a little help from grandparents, followed by a family dinner when my husband gets home. Then it’s the kids’ bedtime routine and “family storytime”, which honestly is my favourite part of the day, and once they’re asleep, I usually get another work session in. It’s a lot of juggling, but I genuinely wouldn’t have it any other way!
What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Seriously, just start! Your idea is going to change so much from what it looks like in your head right now, and you will never figure that out until you’re actually in it. The clarity comes from doing, not planning. So stop waiting until it’s perfect and go. Once you’ve started, never ever stop, just pivot! The entrepreneurs who make it aren’t the ones with the best original idea; they’re the ones who refuse to quit and keep adapting until something works.
Next, get comfortable throwing spaghetti at the wall. Not recklessly of course, but responsively. Try things, pay attention to what sticks, double down on that, and let go of the rest without attachment. The ability to experiment without ego is a superpower in entrepreneurship.
Lastly, your business is a direct reflection of you. If you’re burned out, scattered, and running on fumes, that shows up in your work, your decisions, and the energy you bring to everything you’re building. Taking care of your nervous system isn’t a luxury; it’s part of your business strategy.
We all face challenges. Looking back, what have been some of the biggest challenges and obstacles you’ve had to navigate?
I had the idea for Goldminds the year before the pandemic, so my school mindfulness programs vanished almost overnight. Suddenly, I was building a business in a completely uncertain market, not knowing if in-person was ever coming back or if virtual was the new reality. But I just kept going! Pivoting, trialing different things, and pretty much just refusing to stop.
I also quit my full-time job way too early. At the time, it felt like the right move because I wanted my energy to be 100% on Goldminds, but that added a whole other layer of financial pressure on my family that I wasn’t fully prepared for.
Honestly, though, the hardest part of all of it was pushing through when I didn’t have significant proof that I had a real business yet. The financial wins weren’t there to prove I was on the right track, and all I had to hold onto was my own belief that this was going to work! I really had to trust myself and the burning desire I had inside to keep going.
How do you set your business apart from others in your industry?
Honestly, I try not to look too hard at what others in the industry are doing. I’m generally aware, but I feel like we’re just on an entirely different playing field.
Our app is built by a small team of parents who are living the exact same thing as every family using Goldminds. We’re not a big Silicon Valley dev team building features in a boardroom. We make stories and features based on what our users actually want and need, and that makes the product feel like something families can genuinely trust.
We also get to show up during the most important part of the day for most families, bedtime. That’s when connection is high, emotions are real, and parents need support the most. We take that seriously, and we’re doing so much work to make that time easier and calmer for everyone in the room. You can’t manufacture that kind of trust, and we’re working hard to keep earning it!
Do you have a favorite quote or motto that inspires you?
I love the work of Louise Hay, and it has really guided my journey as an entrepreneur. She believed deeply that your thoughts shape your reality, and one idea I come back to every single day is that “the world outside of you is a direct reflection of the world inside of you.”
When doubts creep in, when I’m not sure I can handle something, when things just feel hard, I come back to that. Instead of pushing through on willpower alone, I ask myself what needs to shift on the inside first. Because I genuinely believe that the clarity and confidence I cultivate internally is what shows up in my business and my life. So I do the inner work every day, and I trust that the outside catches up!
For more information, go to https://getgoldminds.com/ Goldminds: Kids’ Mindfulness & Sleep App
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Melissa Stewart is the founder of SheOwnsIt.com. She is a Purveyor of Possibility, Entrepreneur Advocate and Coffee Addict. She believes that behind every successful woman is her story. What’s your story?
