The Best Moments of Authentic Media Podcast | Ep. #11 Recap Special

In this special episode, we’re bringing you the best moments from the first 10 episodes of the Authentic Media podcast. From powerful stories of entrepreneurship to personal branding insights and inspiring conversations about faith and growth — this is a highlight reel you don’t want to miss!

Have you registered for the Entrepreneur's Edge FREE Webinar: https://authenticmedia.kit.com/0b6885...

CHAPTERS:
0:00 - Episode 7
3:31 - Episode 5 with Kelli Higgins
8:57 - Episode 2 with Jessica Savard
14:45 - Episode 3 with Anthony Blanco
19:22 - Episode 10
23:19 - Episode 4 with Mikaela Gibbs
25:55 - Personal Branding Bundle
26:38 - Episode 1
28:02 - Episode 8 with Kirsten Flory and Anthony Blanco
33:01 - Episode 7
37:32 - Episode 4 with Mikaela Gibbs
41:33 - Episode 9 with Carter Gaskins
45:50 - Episode 6 with Anthony Blanco

Chapters

• 0:00 Episode 7
• 3:31 Episode 5 with Kelli Higgins
• 8:57 Episode 2 with Jessica Savard
• 14:45 Episode 3 with Anthony Blanco
• 19:22 Episode 10
• 23:19 Episode 4 with Mikaela Gibbs
• 25:55 Personal Branding Bundle
• 26:38 Episode 1
• 28:02 Episode 8 with Kirsten Flory and Anthony Blanco
• 33:01 Episode 7
• 37:32 Episode 4 with Mikaela Gibbs
• 41:33 Episode 9 with Carter Gaskins
• 45:50 Episode 6 with Anthony Blanco

Transcript

I am a firm believer that doing less is launching you to doing more. And I say that because I think right now you were probably focused on doing all of the things, getting all of your to do lists. Items checked off, right? Like you're trying to, you know, go to this networking event, be involved in the community, go to work, do the job, do the podcast.

Like you're trying to do all these things, hang out with friends, be in a relationship and along the way. You don't realize, but all of those things are only getting like 10 percent of your time. Okay. So when you are launching your personal brand and as you're building it, wherever you are in this stage, I encourage you to focus on one thing.

And I'm speaking from experience because if you go back into the previous episodes, I talked deeply about where I was during that time, thinking I can do everything. Right? And so I encourage you, my friend, to do less because it will launch you to doing more. So if that looks like just, if you're doing a podcast right now, and that looks like just doing one podcast once a week or doing it every other week, you put in all your energy into that and watch how it will launch you forward.

Watch the amount of views go up, watch your content get better, watch your Speaking it better because you're putting so much energy into that. Okay. Even look at your business pouring into one system and say, you know what? We're going to focus on really increasing our content in our email list, right?

Like we're going to pour so much love and emphasis and making sure that every single word is spelled right. Writing an email to our email list and you will see your email list. Like, just advance and increase, but more importantly, you'll see people start responding. They're like, who is this person on the other side?

I like this, right? Whether it's working out, let's even talk about that. It's the top of the year. I know many of you are working out right now. Okay. How consistent are you, honey? Okay, is it every single day? Is it four times a week? Is it five times a week? Right? Like, focus in on one thing. And I used to really believe, I'm telling you, I used to believe that I'm like, I can do all these things.

Like, I don't know what people are talking about. I'm out here doing it, and honey, I was exhausted, okay? So learn from me and understand that these mistakes are just to give you an overview of like, hey, as you're going into 2025, I encourage you to just take some time to yourself. Ask yourself, are you doing any of these things?

Are you having limited beliefs on yourself? Are you not asking for help because you're afraid that you're going to get denied? Are you unwilling to pivot because you'd rather be where you are because it's comfortable? Are you not willing to invest in your visual identity? Because maybe you may not have the funds.

But who could you ask to help get you there? And then are you doing two or three more things than you should be doing right now? Versus just focusing on that one little thing. That you know, if you do that, it's going to launch you even further. Can I tell you, and I think I told you this before we started recording, I said, I love everything about you.

I love your mindset. I love your lifestyle. I love just everything that you've created. And I think that you are such a. Strong powerhouse when it comes to standing on what you believe in when it comes to creating the life that you've always dreamed of. And so I'll never forget one time you're like, no, Danielle, I literally like love my life.

I left my like house and everything. And I just never met someone that was so confident and like saying it and believing it. Cause you know, like sometimes people will say things and you're like, yeah, you know, it's like saying, how are you? And people were like, you know, the nonchalant good. Yeah, whatever.

But like you responded in a way that was so accurate and so like truthful that I said, I want to get to know more about this person and like, how do I create on the level in create the lifestyle that you have and. Coming in here at first of all, like your home is so beautiful. And, um, I think that you can speak to the women and really anyone out there who may feel like they don't know how to create the life that they've always wanted.

And so kind of take me through your thought process. Um, okay. I will say that I went through a big mind shift change about, well, it was 2017, I have it on my ring, um, because I like to be reminded of it, but I just decided that I didn't want to live another day If it wasn't the life that I loved and if it wasn't the life that I wanted to live and so I, I, I do think that there is a point in your life.

You just have to make a decision. You just have to say, I'm going to start making decisions that improve my life. Um, and that's how you start raising your standard, by the way, is I think sometimes you We don't have a standard and you kind of have to find it. And sometimes that standard might be on the floor.

And so that's okay because that makes it really easy to rise up. Say it again for the people in the back. My standard was on the floor, okay? I almost tripped over the bar. So I just consciously started making decisions that I knew was going to make my life better. So I knew. I am not the type of person that wants to be in a nine to five job.

I'm a free spirit girl. I, if I have an idea, I love floating towards it. You know, I just, and as my family, they're always, their favorite line to say about me is, which way's the wind blowing today? That's where Kelly's going. And at first it would drive me crazy. It was almost a trigger for me. And now I'm like.

Yes, because that's exactly how I want to be. You know, I want that freedom, right? I didn't realize I thought that was like a life sentence when they would say it to me, but now I see it as freedom and they probably said it because they were projecting that they wish they were that free. Um, can you be as free as the wind?

I can. Wow. Um, so anyways, I made a decision to just start making better decisions. And then I also started. Deciding to be around people that had better mindsets. I didn't want the negative talk anymore. That also meant that I had to cut a lot of people out of my life. In the last ten years, I have probably gone through, well, one actual divorce, but I would say three friendship divorces.

And those were harder than my actual divorce. Losing a really, really good friend, at least someone that you thought was a really, really good friend, is hard. It's very hard. But then I also, Developed a mindset of, you know, friends come and go. I always say friends can be there for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.

Um, and so you just kind of have to look at each friend differently and understand what that relationship is. I also decided to just throw away the rule book that society gives you when you're Like going into your adulthood. Wow. You know, here's the rule book. This is what you need to follow. You need to get married.

You need to have kids. You need to have a secure job. You need to do all of these things. You know, you can't stay stuck in this whole like lifestyle of suffocation. Yeah, it's a cycle. And, and we can get even deeper into the fact that I truly believe that it is a society cycle that they want you to get stuck in because You buy, you buy their medicines, you buy their things, you buy their makeup, you buy the clothes that are trending.

And so they want you to stay in this cycle. They really do. And so once, once you become aware, like that's just the first step you start becoming aware and you're like, wow. That's weird. Yeah. Wow. That's weird. And then you start questioning like the awareness is truly the first step. And I know that's what they always say, but it was so eye opening.

And then, um, then I started doing affirmations and I started writing on post post it notes of wonderful affirmations for myself. And then, so then I started getting into this different mindset. And then when I started elevated agent, I just decided I. Any business that I start or I move into or whatever has to be flexible.

And so now anytime I have an idea for a business, if it is something that ties me down, no. And I have people around me that tell me no. I, this year, have hired a CFO in my business and we had talked about potentially doing a physical location, um, and she said, no, no, you can't. And I was like, it's my, it's my money.

And she said, no. Period. And I was like, okay, cool. You're right. You're right. That's how you know they're like your people. Yes, absolutely. What advice would you give someone who is It's going through life and they have that feeling of, you know, I don't, I don't know if this is what I should be doing. I don't know if I'm, I'm living in my purpose right now.

Like this doesn't feel right. I feel like I may be abandoning my destiny, but it's. It's more uncomfortable for me to, to stop and, and ask myself that and try to figure out an alternative. It's more comfortable for me to stay here, even though there's this underlying feeling. What advice would you give to someone feeling unsettled, but not willing to pull the trigger on the next step of figuring out what their future looks like?

Yeah, that's a good question. I think like right now in this space, I would say like, stop what you're doing and like, take five days to yourself. Mm-hmm . And if you are, and don't do anything, right? Yeah. So like, do your day to day, like, you know, get up, go to work. Um, if you are an entrepreneur, I would say take like, if you can, if your, if your business allows it, but like take five days to.

Um, truly like just be still, like take yourself on a walk, take yourself like to the movies. And within those five days, if you are still feeling the exact same feeling that you are feeling, it's time to address it. Yeah. Because I think that when we are operating on our day to day, daily duties, we are.

Filling the void of feeling whatever void that is like trying to disrupt our daily duties, right? So like the void that you're not trying to address is like the thing that you actually probably should. But I think that we cover it up with all of like the daily duties, like the work and the friendships and the dinners and the meetings.

It's like we just like stuff it. Yeah. With like, it's like a stocking. Like we just stuff it with like all of this stuff. Yeah. And, but when you don't do anything and you have nowhere to go, you have nowhere to be and that feeling is still there, it's like, yeah, girl, it's time to address it. It's time to be still.

And honestly, if someone were to be like, you know, I don't have time for that. That's totally false. You have time for what you want to make time for. Um, and I think the biggest thing for me, what I learned, especially after the event, right, was, like, it can wait. It can wait. Yeah. And whatever project, um, that is, that has a deadline, whatever, um, thing that you're working on that you're like, I'm afraid that if I don't finish this, I'm going to miss out.

Yeah. That's actually a huge sign that you are, that you are supposed to just be still. And I say that from experience, because after the event, I remember this feeling of like, I have to keep the momentum. I think I told you that. I was like, we have to keep the momentum. Yeah, I remember that. Like, we gotta keep going.

We're gonna lose people. And it's like, you are feeling this like, anxiety and pressure. Yeah. And it's like, when you think about, going back to the character of God, right? Cause I just like, he's my fine, my foundation, you know? And so I always just compare things to him. And honestly, I think it's really helped me get into this headspace of stillness and like peace, because if we can compare it to the word, then if it's not like him, then you are now comparing it to worldly things.

Yeah. And that is not of him. Right. And so I think for me, I, like, as a creator and as a business owner and as, you know, a person that does all of these things, I really had to find, I had to find something to lean on. And like, yes, I was and have always been a believer, but I think that I was a passive believer.

Like, I was just one of those people that was just like, yep, I go to church, I check it off my list and I'm like, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, right. But it's like, you have not found time to like, be still, you know? And so going back to. After the event, and I said, Oh my God, we got to get these social media videos out, like da da da da da, and I literally, I kid you not, I felt the Holy Spirit say, do not post, it's actually time to get off of social media.

Yeah. What? You're telling me I had the most two successful day event. Yeah. That was great. People are posting pictures and photos. They're waiting on us. It's a month later. Yeah. What? My, like, perfectionist brain was going insane. Yeah. I was like, what do you mean we have to get off social media? Right?

You're at war with yourself. I was at war. And I literally just kept feeling like. Their spirit said, like, get off social media, it can wait, it's not going anywhere, you know what I mean? And it was honestly the most, that was like the most disruptive thing I've ever done. It sounds crazy, but it's like when you're in a person that has an agenda, that's like, I gotta get things done.

It was like a foreign language to me. I was like, what do you mean? Yeah. But it was so funny because, like, after that and still, like, I think it was like a month and a half or two months later, like, we posted it and it was like, we didn't miss out on anything. Nothing. Yeah. We got the same feedback we were going to get, whoever was meant to see it, saw it, whoever didn't, didn't like, and I think it just goes back to releasing control.

So when I say that if you're a person searching for purpose and you need help and you're trying to avoid what has been showing up, I encourage you to rest and be still. If I were to come down to one thing that personal branding is, it's your reputation. Yes. It is what people say about you when no one is looking.

It is what people say about you when you are not in the room. It is literally just one key thing. Personal branding is your reputation. Who are you when no one is looking as well? And what are people saying about you when you're not around? But the interesting thing too, Anthony, that I really wanted to share was, um, when I looked into.

Personal braining sounds like I really want to know, like the Google version of what personal braining is, and it literally was defined as the process of intentionality of intentionally defining and promoting one's identity.

And interestingly, I'm like, okay, as I'm Googling, I see this other like definition that pops up from Harvard and it says, I kid you not an intentional strategic practice in which you define and express your own value proposition. So how are you being intentional, right? As you're showing up in the world in everything that you do, Everything that you do is your personal brand, everything, how you treat people, how you communicate to people, how you show up, how you appear, how you dress, like you are sending a message.

And so I think it's important that We all take time and identify, what is my personal brand? Well, it's interesting. So, uh, I read a book a while back ago by Damon John and it was on negotiations. Well, he was talking about the power. I think it's called power broker or something like that. And the way he says this is 90 percent of negotiations happen before you ever show up to the table.

A hundred percent. Right. And so when he goes into his reputation, I mean he hammers on reputation. So when, whether you're working for yourself as a business or you're trying to build a business or you're a corporation or you're a employee or team member as a part of the business is that everybody's looking you up to see who you are.

You know, and so nowadays, what's funny is, oh, and what's really funny is that people get, um, I would say. Um, lower thinkers about like this kind of thing. They're like, well, they shouldn't look me up on social media. That's my private Facebook. I'm like, yeah, if I'm an employer, I'm going to go hunt you down on social media and I'm going to look up to see how you show up in the world.

Right. Even before I meet people, like if I'm meeting a stranger or something, I'm like, what's your social media. And like, it's interesting. Cause like that is the world and the day and age that we live in. It's kind of like a blessing and a curse, but it's also like. Who are you on social media? Because there's so many facades and personas and masks that we meet.

Um, what do people call it? It's, um, oh my gosh, you're like the person that you show up as it's coming to the surface. Like an avatar or something? Like an avatar, but. Like the person you're representative, your representative is what people are showing up as, but it's not fully who they are. It's like this vast version of themselves that they hope to be or wish to be.

Which is something that I read this morning in like the book, um, by Joe Dispenza of like breaking the habit of being yourself is like the identity gap that we are all navigating is who you are versus like who you really want to be. And it's just interesting because I think a lot of us are living in that identity gap.

We think that we're showing up as who we think we are, but who you really are in real life and in the physical realm is. It's something completely different. Absolutely. And that, as I was actually going to ask you that in the first part, when you're saying being, being, uh, authentically you, is I frequently argue, have the argument with people when I say argument, we're not really arguing, but it's like a debate or questions I ask.

Yeah. Much like with you and I are jamming. I'm like, is that really you? Or is that who you want people to see you as? Right? Because when people are, when they're talking about personal branding and I want to be seen. But is that really you? Right. And it's okay if it's not. Right. But that's the question that people have to ask themselves.

So going like through your steps to say, who am I really, again, it all goes back to confidence is going to create the clarity, which will enhance their message will, which enhance like how they're showing up to the. To everybody, whether, again, whether you're business, corporate, whatever. When you are in the process of putting together, let's say, your professional photos, your website, you are going to have to envision yourself in a new realm, okay?

It may sound different for many of you out there, but it, it definitely is true. You may have to envision yourself self in a new realm. Your highest version of yourself looks so different than what you currently see. And I say that because this whole life that we have is a journey. This whole life that we have is literally us learning lessons along the way, which is why many of us rebrand.

Think about it. When I was first launching this podcast, I think back to who I was at the time, right? Just a very different individual, young lady, still trying to figure it out. I was still in the news industry. I was trying to literally just do the day to day things. And I was just Honestly, doing a podcast with no strategy, no system, just interviewing people for fun.

It was a great start, right? Like it was just something that was a really good hobby at the time. And so now fast forward, I would say five to six years later, I've evolved since then. And so rebranding for me was so personal that I said, you know what? I'm not going to hide any of the scars. I'm not going to hide the journey.

I'm not going to hide anything because one, I think hiding is what keeps everyone in this space of fear. Okay. And we're going to get to that space in a second, but hiding keeps everyone in a space of fear. And which is interesting because really fear is like nothing, it's what we create in our mind, because fear is false evidence appearing real.

But when I think back to who I was back then, I was striving to be a person that everyone wanted me to be. I was striving to be a person that was, you know, all put together, I had all the answers, I dressed really nice, I knew everything. thing. You know, my life was just everything that people imagined. And I think it just really came from a mindset that I took on when I was younger.

So it was like an identity cap that I just like held on and was walking through life. Like this is who I am. And it was so crazy because I embodied the identity so much that I believed it to be true. And so it's interesting because going back to I wanted this journey to be so open and I wanted to bring people along with the rebrand so you can see that I'm still walking through this clearly.

I'm still processing things. I'm still trying to shed off. the pieces of me that were put on me when I was younger. I'm still trying to walk in the boldness that, you know, God has put on my life and not be afraid to, you know, say things I may not fully understand or get, but say, Hey, I'm still walking through this.

I'm still processing this thought, but I want to share it with you. Right. And so I think like being open and vulnerable and just not having fear around. communicating with people because we are all trying to figure it out. That's the thing. We're all trying to figure it out, but I think we want to have it all figured out before we get out there.

before we put ourselves out there. We want to have it all figured out. What if God chose you to reveal your story, reveal your journey as you are walking through it? What if God chose you to do that? You know, I think when I think about moving to Topeka, I think about that sacrifice. I'm like, that was obscurity.

That was obscurity. to be your one season. That was supposed to be the one surrender, you know, like, and it's interesting because it's like, as a believer, I've Understood that like this walk is not like a onetime surrender thing. Mm-hmm . Mm-hmm . Like we learned at the woman evolve that like mm-hmm . No, there's different levels of surrender, honey.

Mm-hmm . This is not a one, one time payment. You're done. Right? Like, no. This is a monthly payment. . Mm-hmm . I loved, I heard once that like, you should be able to look back over your life and see a series of crosses Ooh. Of like areas where you had to surrender. Yeah. And like, nope, I'm going to lay this down. I was like, dang, that's good.

I was like, man, I want people to be able to look back over my life and see a series of crosses. Where she's had to lay down what she wanted, what she thought she wanted, what, all of that. And be like, okay, Lord. But I love it because it's like the fruitfulness and the image of that after is like he gives us what we've always needed.

Yeah. And really what we, like what we're supposed to have. Yeah. It's like I could have had all these plans for myself, but The moment that I choose that cross it's like you're saying yes to something so much bigger than oh my god Can we please talk about that? Yeah, I was thinking about this this morning.

I was just like, okay I know I said yes, and I was actually talking to like my girlfriend's earlier and I said I said yes a long time ago But I never knew what I was saying yes to. I was just like, yes, I'm here. Like, I'm here. I'm laying it all down. And I think that back then there were a couple of sacrifices I made, but it was like, it was across a good time.

Yeah. It was like, it was like a mini little, you know, but then like, as the journey and as like these months have went. on this year, I just, it's interesting. I just would have never imagined this space, but it's interesting because it really has me in this space of like trust and like having to believe God for something I literally have never seen before, like no other.

Yeah. Like if you were to ask me what is next year look like? I don't know. Yeah. Like I don't even know what next month looks like. I'm literally taking it, like, not even a day, an hour at a time. Yeah, sometimes that's all the best you can do. It's just like, it's like one foot in front of the other. Your brand deserves more than just a selfie.

It deserves a vision captured perfectly. Hi, I'm Danielle J. Martin, and I'm here to help you create a visual identity that creates. It's a lasting impression. So whether you're launching a business or you're enhancing your presence or you're rebranding, your photos are your first impression. So our brand photo shoots aren't just for you to take pretty pictures, but they're for you to tell your story, build trust and connect with your audience in a whole different way.

So if you're ready to elevate your brand that creates a lasting impression, go ahead and click that link down below.

I've learned that people pleasing will destroy you because you are going to be suffering from worldliness. And so I truly believe that God wants you to get to a space where you can hear him so he can lead you and he should be the author and the leader of your life. But when you are moving according to man and if you're moving according to what other people are telling you to do and saying, hey, you need to come to this thing, you need to come to that thing.

You are going to be. Losing your voice. I didn't recognize that I was losing my voice until I got to a space where I was literally calling my friends and my partner for everything. And I was like, what do you think? What do you think? If you're in the space of like, what do you think? What do you think?

What do you think? And you're not asking yourself and God first. Like, that is a space where you're not taking ownership. Of your voice, take some time, get clear, figure out what you like, figure out what you don't like, like truly ask yourself, Hey, check in with yourself before you ask anyone else. And so I think that was a space that I had to learn that like, dang, I need to like, get my voice back.

I need to like, just. Before I even make a decision, be still for 24 hours, think about it, because I truly believe that like, your feelings are just going to be up and down. So take time. I think that people are getting confused, especially when it comes to like marketing yourself, right? With like marketing your lifestyle, right?

So I kind of came up with like these two different styles of marketing. I think there's a difference between lifestyle marketing. And then generosity marketing. Right. And so I think I would define lifestyle marketing as if you were trying to portray a certain lifestyle and you want people to know like, okay, this is what you need to do to get what I have today.

Right. Yeah. Kind of manipulating people in a way where it's like, if you do what I just did, then look, you'll get to six figures. Right. But it's like, everyone's story is different versus like generosity marketing. Anthony, I think you kind of like always emphasize that you have to be so obsessed with your client's problem that it becomes your own problem, where do you care for them?

And so I would define generosity marketing where you are offering so much value, education for free that you're not expecting anything in return. So it's like, how would you guys see the difference between Lifestyle marketing versus generosity marketing. Ooh, yeah, that's a good one. I get asked that a lot and I think, you know, starting the business, I mean, you two have businesses too.

I got a lot of people ask me, how did you do this? How did you do that? And I would say that's tactics and it's great to say, I want what you have. I mean, Absolutely. I see it. See people. I'm like, I would love to have that. What I encourage people though, does the flip the script. I'm like, why do you want to have what I have?

What, what about what I have, what I have is interesting to you. And you know, I think, I think it's easy. When you mentioned lifestyle, you want to emulate somebody's lifestyle. Because I think sometimes we look at success. It's a tangible thing. It's a, I want to have that kind of car. I want to have that type of jewelry.

I want to carry that kind of purse. I want to go on that type of trip. Okay. But why, why do you want that? Is it, is it because that's something that brings you joy or is that something you feel like you have to do that because that will get you there. And I feel like that's a little inauthentic. Yeah, so if we think about the generosity side of marketing, I know for myself as a business owner, as I've worked with other business owners, whether they're startup entrepreneurs that they've been in business for a while, where I see the biggest amount of success for them and me is if we come together, we bring our Strengths together.

I'm like, I am bringing you some resources and tools. And I'm going to push you and I'm going to have you dissect your business. And I want you to tell me all the areas, what you do well, what you're struggling with. And then we're going to bring in resources to build you up because I always tell my clients and, you know, in a real estate format, I never want to put you in a real estate acquisition.

Um, where you might have the money now, but that's not sustainable because that doesn't make you successful. It doesn't make me successful. So we're gonna, we're gonna baseline it. We're gonna figure out what do you bring into the table? What do you an expert out? What do you do really, really well? Because what you do well is probably not what I do well.

I mean, if you make. If you have a coffee shop and you roast the most amazing coffee brew, I can't do that, but I'm going to drink your coffee. So you do that well, let's capitalize on that. And I'm going to bring to the table what I do well. So that way we are raising each other up and this, I love the quote, a rising tide lifts all boats.

And I see that. And that's, in my opinion, the generosity side of marketing, because if we're building communities, you know, and we, we are here in the Midwest and we're here in Kansas. But if we are truly after rebuilding communities, rebuilding the people in our communities, our communities rise. Yeah, I, a couple things.

So Jim Rohn says, well, Zig Ziglar says, if you help enough people get what they want, then you get what you want. And then Jim Rohn says, he says that. If you raise the value in the marketplace, the marketplace will pay you your value. And so if people say, well, I want to make more money at work or I want to, I want to increase my, my business.

My question always back to them is what value are you adding to the marketplace? Right? And so when we produce concept, uh, content. Uh, for the marketplace, like we we're doing YouTubes and all these things, these podcasts, it's providing content and a way of thinking to build into people to help them have a transformational change in the way that they think about how they think.

And by adding that value. Without expecting a return it will But you know and people can believe or whatever they want to believe But if you want to it will create like the law of abundance is is that if we're out there Producing and creating and loving and and lifting others up with the stuff that with our skill set that you had mentioned with our gifts And we do this it will the tide will rise and it'll come back to us.

It may not come back to us from Joe bob from down the street who we who were serving and helping through something But it may come from over here because I believe that our positive intention To make an impact and change will will be rewarded somehow Absolutely, and that's that's the faith that I have if you are trying to collaborate with certain people If you're trying to get to a certain If you're trying to get in a certain room or environment, Honey, you have to speak up.

You have to literally put yourself out there. Another story I have for you is I was, um, out with one of my girlfriends and it was interesting because I am probably the most sociable person that you'll ever meet. Like I talk to anybody, I don't care who you are, if you're, you know, Bob Schmell on the street, I'm like, Hey, what's up?

How are you? Right? And so it was so funny because there was a time when this guy was trying to get to know what I was doing. He was like, yeah, I see you have a podcast. Tell me more about it. And I don't know if it was because I was just really tired at the time. And he was trying to hold a whole conversation And you could tell I was just really turned off and was not trying to have a conversation Not the fact that he was hitting on me But just the fact that I was just really not trying to have a conversation And it was interesting because my girlfriend after said Why were you talking to him like that?

Why are you talking like, you know, he was not interested Do you not know like this person is x y and z and they could help you get x? You know, to the space and I'm like, Oh, really? And so it's funny because I usually have that mindset going into any conversation that I'm having, but lately I've just been so kind of like protective of like who I talk to and why I talk to them.

And so it's just funny because it was just another reminder that you do not know who you're talking to. Like, you have no idea who you're talking to, and so you should treat everyone, first of all, you should treat everyone with the same image as if this is God's child. This is like literally God's children.

Like this is like the son of God. This is the daughter of God. And if we were to all have that character of like, hey, you know what, like, hi, nice to meet you. I know, I know I don't know you, but like, I want to get to know you. Right, like genuinely and like looking at them in their eyes and saying, you know what?

I want to know more about you. Tell me about your story. That's really interesting. And so it was funny because it really checked me because after the fact, I was like, Ooh, this person is someone I really do need to connect with. Right? And so over time, you know, I said, wow, how many of us are doing that?

Because we are expecting people to look a certain way. We're expecting them to, you know, look like they have money or we're expecting them to look like, you know, that they are so groomed. Up enough and put together that, like, that's the type of person I want to connect with. It's like, honey, no, like, first of all, the people that have the most money don't look like they have money at all.

So, that's just another, like, free tip for you. So, literally, like, stop acting like you are too good enough to communicate with anyone. That's number one. So going back to mistake number two not asking for help Is if you have a question about how to get into let's say a certain event or environment or you're trying to really get into the room of a lot of people that you know could help you Really like open doors and give you access to other opportunities You would literally have to decrease your pride and not be afraid to go ask the person that maybe you don't even like that has access to that room.

And so it's interesting because it's another reminder that the Bible says to love your enemies as God loves you. And so you literally have to Take away your pride, take away your ego to think that first of all, why would we leave it up to this person to think that they would keep us from the opportunity when really it's God that at the end of the day advances us to where we're supposed to be.

That was like the biggest wake up call for myself is like, stop thinking that the people that you don't like or you think that they don't like you is going to keep you from the blessing that already has your name on it. You were called to be where you are. Because God has placed you there and regardless if he uses your enemies or the people that don't like you, which is more than likely what he does, you have to literally like say to yourself, okay, God, like, I see you, I understand you.

Now, if he were to put you in that position and say, I want you to go out and do the same thing, I want you to go open that door for them. I want you to go connect and network with that person that you may not like and give them that exact same opportunity that I gave you. Now, that's a whole different level.

Speaking from experience, like both of us, release this space, this identity of like, release it. Come on, let's do it together. Let's release. We're releasing perfectionism. Like we're releasing performance. Let it go. Let it go. Let it go. It's going to hold you hostage and it no longer serves you down the line.

By pretending to be something you're not. And I think, like, let's even dive into, like, How do you know if you're, like, in performance? Like, how do you know if you are operating in your perfectionism? And I think for me, it was like, Okay, if I'm operating from a space of, like, people pleasing, Um, if I'm trying to, I talked about this earlier, but If I'm trying to adapt The language of the people I'm around, like, say they're like speaking slang or they're cussing.

And then I start cussing, you know what I mean? Like, and that's more so like, you're like really over, like, you know, exerting yourself on like you're trying to feel accepted. So you're like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's like, wait, what? You don't talk like that, don't you? That's not you. Yeah. And so I think that's when, you know, you are operating in a space of like performance.

Perfectionism. Um, so I know moving quickly, moving quickly. You're not like, are you taking a moment to pause? Yeah. Like hustling. Yeah. Producing. Um, For me it was like for I think the performance piece for me was really from a space of like we talked about earlier But like, you know, I was in cheer for like 12 years and I was always on stage and then I went into TV So I was always on the camera and it was like even in that space when I worked in the news industry I remember I adapted did this.

Oh my God. Like you can go Google it. I don't care. But like if you go find like my old videos, I remember like talking like this, like news anchor, like this is what they say, like how you have to talk. And I'm like, yeah, can you give us that? That's like a trend on like social media. Can you give us news anchor?

Uh, how would you tell us the weather today is 95 degrees. Good morning, everyone. Welcome into the Authentic Media Podcast. Outside right now is 93 degrees, more like 70. You want to actually make sure you have that jacket near ya. Isn't that crazy? Like, who is that? That's crazy. That's crazy, right? So wild.

Cause it's like, we really are. I am, I'm putting on a show like good morning. I think it's like, I think that for me it is that out of body. Oh, I do. Okay. What's yours? I don't even know. Come on. Let's hear it. Like you have to give me an announcement. Okay. Um, you guys should come to family night tonight. Oh my goodness.

Hey church. We're so excited to have you here. We would love to see you this weekend at family night. There's going to be games, food, activities, and so much more.

That's it. And like, you felt that you felt that through the camera. You're coming to family night. That was actually an announcement. She's read before I have. So it came, it came naturally.

Yeah. But I think when you have a lot of out of body experiences and you see that and you're like, yes, like I can do that well for whatever purpose that is. And it does look good. And it. It sounds good and people are excited to come, but it is just like, what are we doing? What are we doing? Especially from your platform.

You know, it's one thing to be like a video announcement. Yeah. I mean, in that way, it still was a lot, but it's a whole other thing to be like, this is my brand and who I'm presenting myself as, like, am I being fake or am I just being who I am? What steps did you take? Because I always like to say that this is going to be a very educational platform where we want to kind of give someone the step by step guidelines on how to do it.

Because it's just so easy for someone to like, hear your story and be like, Wow. Like I feel the same way, but I don't know like the next steps to take. So in your situation, what did you do? Whether it's prayer, whether it was going to therapy, um, what did that look like for you? All of it. Like started off, um, prayer was the first thing.

I just can't do it anymore. Like pray. Like, what do you need me to do? What I need to learn from this? I always ask why as well. Because when I was going through grief, I was mad because I lost my son, I lost my father. Back to back, too. Yeah, back to back within a year. Like, all of these things I was, like, upset about.

And I became upset with God about it. But I never asked, like, God, why are you doing this? But when I started asking the words, like, why? Why am I going through this? I started getting the answer through prayer. It started figuring out like, okay, why are you going through this side? Because why am I, why am I going through it?

Because I need to use you to help other people. So it's like, um, the step by step way of prayer has to be first. After prayer, you have to start believing yourself. You start reading how to find yourself, how to. Figure out who you are, because I lost who I was through the whole path. And once you start figuring out who you are, then you go to therapy, and they will help you know who you are on top of knowing yourself as well.

All those little things like, I didn't even think about that. And you start thinking about all the things you went through as a child, you'll be like, I did go through that as a child. That's what therapy brings out of you. All those little pieces that you forgot about that you blocked in your brain.

Music. Music helped me as well. And, um, try not to listen to, you know, hardcore music. Don't try not to listen to that type of stuff. It's more like things that help your mental, like the wavelengths that make you like those type of music that get you going, like spiritual music. I don't know. I can't really say what type of music.

It was just more, I played it on like, mental, mental health music and it would give me that calming type of music. I didn't put it on like hardcore rap, nothing like that. No secular music. Right, nothing like that. Wow. But those, it takes step and it's not going to happen overnight. It was a whole year process.

Right. Of just going through all of this. I loved how you talked about, You started with prayer, and then you started with trusting yourself, believing yourself, because I think that is An exercise or I think it's step that we tend to overlook or we think that like, you know what, I don't have to do that. I don't have to spend time with myself when honestly like spending time with yourself and the Lord is like all in one, just like the top things that you need to do.

That's something I recently learned. Um, and then I loved how you were transparent about like going to professional help. Did you ever find a challenge as a black man, like going to therapy was something you didn't want to do because of the statistic? Like. Black people shouldn't be getting mental health or is that something like you just never even thought about yeah My favorite words were I'm good What do you still say now?

What does that mean give me a little bit more how's everything going I'm good. All right, that's all I'll say like I'm good Because I'm so used to I don't like asking people for help Okay, so what is that? What, why do we not like asking for help? I think it's Is it an ego thing? I think it's an ego. It's definitely an ego thing.

Especially for a man. Right. Like, we I complain. I do. I throw it out there, but Yeah. I don't complain to a point where it's like I just throw everything out there unless I'm frustrated or upset. I hold a lot in. And I just say, I'm good. I'll figure it out. And then, I would go in the room or something and then, it's a whole conversation with just me and God.

Like, how am I, what am I supposed to do with this? How am I supposed to figure this out? How am I going to move forward with this? It could be something with photography or life or whatever it is. I would just keep saying, like, how? Like, I'm good. So, there is this concept that I picked up. , um, that's called the economic value ladder.

Mm-hmm . Okay. And so the first step in the economic value ladder Yeah. Is, is all about the doing what do, what do you do. Okay. Yeah. And so when we look at the doing or the implementation mm-hmm . That is what people are gonna get paid the least at. Yeah. And what I find is when I'm talking to people, whether they're business owners or whether just people working at a job and they're like, well, I wanna get paid more.

I'm like, well, you're doing the doing. And they're like, but I understand, like, I'm supposed to get doing the doing. I'm like, that's fine that you're doing the doing, you're doing the implementation, but just understand that the next step up in the economic value ladder is actually unity. So that's why, like.

I would say that owners or business managers or directors get paid more than the people that are doing right. So it's a step up in the economic value ladder. But what most people do is not money when I got this and I understood like what my gifts are and my abilities. Yeah. I graduated out of the out of the implementation and I graduated out of the unity.

I'm still there when some some things that I do. But I graduated into that the there's a there's a line that supercharges your income, whether you're a person, a business owner, professional. Whatever is communication. And so if you get your communication down and you start rocking that out in such a way, um, that you're learning how to talk better, you're learning how to email better, you're learning how to text better, you're learning all these, you're learning how to get a point across better.

Yeah. Is that will pay you two to three to four to five times more than the unity level. Right, right. However, what I find is that most people spend their time at the implementation and the unity, but they want to get paid like they're at the communication level. Yeah, right. But they don't want to work on the communication, right?

Because they're like, No, I just want to get I just want to get paid at this level. Yeah. Or I hear a lot of people say it must be nice. And I'm like, well, if it must be nice, then go do the work to become this right. Right. I've worked with so many companies where maybe there's a sales team, what a sales people do.

They what? Talk. They talk. They communicate, right? So I have admin teams that are like, well, I, that must be nice that they're getting paid. I said, that's no problem. I said, you can interview for the, for the team. Right? So you can interview for that team. And they're like, well, I don't want to do that. I don't like it.

So then don't be expected to pay like you were a sales professional, right? Or that you're at the communication level. And that's fine. That's okay. Right. But then the max level of economic value is imagination and vision. And that right there will again Yo, yeah, so like if you can see it, that's good. You can vision it and then you can communicate it To the people.

Yeah, that's what's going to set you apart from anybody. Right? And so what I, when I'm talking to people like a business owner that just had this conversation last week and I said, listen, you guys, I said, listen, and, and these are, these are in this specific trait. These, uh, this is a dentist I'm talking to.

Okay. So dentists can earn a very good living, very, very good income at the implementation phase. Yeah. However, um, What I taught them is I said, listen, you can come up to the communication and vision phase. You can grow from a practice to five practices. You can move instead of being a practitioner all the time.

You can move into a visionary and communication and coaching phase inside your business. You can have other people, other dentists come in and do the implementation. You can hire directors to be your. Your unity people, your office managers, right? That will grow your wealth and income exponentially anywhere, usually between five to eight times their valuation by making that transition.

Yeah. And so that's the important of people understanding that to fire themselves as quickly as possible from implementation as fast as possible. You and I were just talking, uh, at our first podcast today. Um, you and I were talking about like you essentially firing yourself. From you doing editing on your podcast.

And I said, right. Because what does Danielle do? Well, right. She has vision and she communicates, but if she's spending, if you have. If you have time in a day or or you have let's say you have 80 percent of your time is spent on editing. Yeah, right Yeah, you're not spending any of your time on creating vision and communicating you're spending on it and you click click click click click click click, right?

I'm like the lowest like the lowest value of economic value You know, like you're like man, I've got this value like how do I how do I get? How do I provide provide such value that I get paid for it? I'm like Danielle then quit doing the editing crap. Like you asked me you're like, well, I could teach you how to edit This is like a month ago or whatever.

I'm like, you're like, no, I don't get paid to edit videos. That's not my job Yeah, right. My job is to encourage is to build is to create behavior changes to implement strategies to implement Tactics to grow people in businesses again, going all the way back to helping business owners get what they want.

Yeah Yeah and I think it's like a process that we all have to like get through because like like I said in the beginning I Mentioned that every business owner and company goes through a space of like survival, right? Where you have to like do everything and figure everything out until you can get people in places but it sounds like even when we're talking about economic value that like even Business owners and companies, it sounds like they get to a space where they're comfortable, they are producing, they're scaling a little bit, but there's still some like blind spots, like, you know what I mean?

So it, it, it always sounds like that companies and businesses need business advisors essentially, because like you're going to come in and you're going to expose like the blind spots and like what they're not seeing. That's right. Um, because when you're so involved in it and you don't have any other.

External or outsider perspective like sometimes it's like you don't know what's killing you. That's right. Yeah. Coach operates in, I would tell you that coaches operate in people's blind spots. Yeah. So people like, are you a consultant? No. Right. A consultant tells you what you should do, what you should do.

A coach helps you, advises, right? The coach helps mentor you and to ask the right questions about what you should do. Give suggestions, but at the end of the day, it's like you can do whatever you think is best for you. Right. But yes, I, I definitely love that. Thanks for watching the Authentic Media Podcast YouTube.

At Authentic Media Company, our mission is to help you develop an authentic brand so you can make the impact that you are called to make. If you got anything from today's episode, make sure you drop a comment down below. I'm interested to see what your takeaways are. And if you haven't already, make sure you're subscribed to our YouTube channel so you can be the first to know when we drop our newest episode.

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