Episode 6
From Branding to Breakthroughs: Building Authenticity with Anika Jackson
Grace Simmons sits down with Anika Jackson, a marcom executive, educator, and podcast host, to explore her inspiring journey of resilience, reinvention, and connection. Anika discusses her expertise in public relations, branding, and digital media, as well as her passion for empowering others to share their authentic stories. From leveraging storytelling to build impactful brands to balancing personal wellness and professional growth, this episode is packed with practical insights and empowering advice.
Let's Meet Anika Jackson:
Anika Jackson is a marcom executive and instructor at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, where she also co-hosts the Mediascape podcast. She is the founder of the Your Brand Amplified® business podcast, ranked in the top 1.5% globally by ListenNotes, and a sought-after speaker on branding and digital media strategy. Anika is pursuing her MBA with a specialization in AI/ML at Villanova while contributing her expertise to organizations worldwide.
Episode Highlights:
• How storytelling creates authentic and meaningful connections.
• Anika’s career journey and lessons learned from life transitions.
• The role of travel in personal and professional growth.
• Tips for balancing creativity, leadership, and personal wellness.
Key Topics Discussed:
• Leveraging storytelling as a tool for brand building and personal growth.
• The intersections of public relations, branding, and digital media.
• Strategies for embracing change and thriving during life transitions.
• How travel offers perspective, creativity, and connection.
Takeaways:
• Authentic storytelling builds trust and drives meaningful impact.
• Travel can inspire both personal growth and professional creativity.
• Balance is essential for sustaining creativity and leadership.
• Embracing change creates opportunities for reinvention and growth.
Anika's Contact and Social Media:
Website: yourbrandamplified.com
Social Media:
- Facebook & Instagram: @yourbrandamplified
- Facebook, Instagram, TikTok: @amplifywithanika
Resources Mentioned:
- Your Brand Amplified® Podcast: Available on all major platforms
- Animal Love Rescue Center - Costa Rica https://animallove.cr/
Your Turn to Share:
What’s one way storytelling has influenced your personal or professional journey? Share your thoughts with us on social media using the hashtag #RandomAndWonderful.
Your Next Steps:
- Subscribe to The Random and Wonderful Podcast.
- Leave a review on your favorite podcast platform to help others discover the show.
- Follow Grace Simmons on Instagram @amethystpalaverhut
Learn more: amethystpalaverhut.com
Transcript
Hello, travelers. My name is Grace
Speaker:Simmons, and this is the Random and
Speaker:Wonderful podcast. Settle in and listen
Speaker:to stories of wanderlust and
Speaker:transformation as you gain tips to
Speaker:inspire your next travel experience. The
Speaker:Random and Wonderful is brought to you by
Speaker:the Amethyst Palaba Hut, LLC. All
Speaker:right. Hello, everyone, and welcome to
Speaker:the Random and Wonderful. Today, my guest
Speaker:is Annika Jackson, who I met
Speaker:at Podcast Movement. As you all would
Speaker:have noticed, there's been a wonderful
Speaker:stream of people, wonderful people that
Speaker:I've met and amazing stories that I've
Speaker:been able to collect and share with
Speaker:people that I've met at Podcast Movement.
Speaker:So, Annika, welcome. Please tell
Speaker:everyone a little bit about yourself, and
Speaker:then we'll get started. umm Thank you so
Speaker:much. Yeah, you are one of my favorite
Speaker:people I met at podcasting, I have to
Speaker:say. Gosh, I don't even know where to
Speaker:start. I have so many twists and turns in
Speaker:my story at this moment in time.
Speaker:I am a single mom,
Speaker:multifaceted, ADHD,
Speaker:fully present, realized it as an
Speaker:adult and realized that, yeah, it's a
Speaker:superpower. It also can hold me back
Speaker:sometimes that now I understand like, oh,
Speaker:this is the way my brain works. So I'm
Speaker:trying to figure out how to work with
Speaker:that. As I'm a college professor
Speaker:teaching digital media management,
Speaker:podcasting, sometimes PR and branding.
Speaker:As I am going back to school myself to
Speaker:get an MBA because I can't teach full
Speaker:time unless I have a master's degree. I
Speaker:have a podcast with USC Annenberg.
Speaker:Inside Some Digital Changemakers. I have
Speaker:my own podcast, Your Brand Amplified,
Speaker:that's almost four years old and 400
Speaker:episodes in. And I have a,
Speaker:you know, I do a little bit of coaching
Speaker:here and there for people on either
Speaker:nonprofit stuff, podcasting,
Speaker:brand strategy, public relations. I have
Speaker:a very organic career.
Speaker:And so I I know how to do
Speaker:things in a way where I'm like, how do we
Speaker:save money?How do we get the best bang
Speaker:for our buck?Because I'm always
Speaker:in that phase of reinventing and being
Speaker:that small entrepreneur who needs to
Speaker:maximize resources. And so that's really
Speaker:what I have a heart for, working with
Speaker:people who are in that same space.
Speaker:Yeah. You mentioned, like, a lot of what
Speaker:you do has an organic flow to it, which
Speaker:is really neat. But like, how do you even
Speaker:know where to start?Like, what started,
Speaker:and then these different pieces kind of
Speaker:connected?Ooh Well, I think part of it
Speaker:is in our blood. We
Speaker:have, whether it's you have generational
Speaker:trauma, I think there are other
Speaker:generational things that also pass
Speaker:through us. What is that my family is
Speaker:a long line of entrepreneurs, a long line
Speaker:of professors, educators, you know,
Speaker:and also people really involved in
Speaker:servant leadership. So helping other
Speaker:people, giving back, pouring into other
Speaker:people. And that's really what I
Speaker:realized. When I work with people at
Speaker:any level, I always take them through
Speaker:branding exercises andis you need to
Speaker:understand your own brand. And my brand
Speaker:is really about amplifying people's
Speaker:voices, making sure everybody understands
Speaker:that they have a voice, they have a story
Speaker:that needs to be told, that their story
Speaker:is unique and will inspire somebody else.
Speaker:And so that is a lot of where it started.
Speaker:My mom was an immigrant from Thailand.
Speaker:She came here for college and ended up
Speaker:staying. And I saw a lot from her example
Speaker:of how she would-- we lived in Kansas,
Speaker:Lawrence, Kansas. She became a single mom
Speaker:when she, my dad got divorced and I saw
Speaker:how much she poured into us, how much she
Speaker:put her work. You know, she'd get up,
Speaker:make a hot breakfast for us every morning
Speaker:before she went to work and we went to
Speaker:school. I still do that for my daughter.
Speaker:My daughter can make her own breakfast,
Speaker:certainly, but it's something that like I
Speaker:she's going to be in college soon. So
Speaker:yeah, you know, and then she would come
Speaker:home from work and she would play games
Speaker:with me and my little brother every night
Speaker:and just the love and care she put into
Speaker:us. To make sure that we knew that she
Speaker:was there, even if she was time was
Speaker:something that was really important. For
Speaker:me, everything started organically.
Speaker:I was asked when I was in high school, I
Speaker:was in the club scene, music, DJs.
Speaker:So a friend was like, hey, this DJ wants
Speaker:you to start promoting for them in Kansas
Speaker:City and you'll get in free. That was the
Speaker:keyword, right?Done. Yeah, right.
Speaker:During that. And then I got a job at a
Speaker:coffee house when coffee houses were very
Speaker:first becoming a thing. I'm aging myself
Speaker:in the early 90s. And then I got another
Speaker:DJ asked me to move to Chicago and be his
Speaker:assistant and work in a club there. And
Speaker:then he got me another job in a marketing
Speaker:firm. And then I was tired of Chicago in
Speaker:the snow and I moved to LA and that job
Speaker:got me another job. So it just was this
Speaker:whole cycle of being in the right place
Speaker:at the right time, people believing and
Speaker:not being afraid to ask. Umm
Speaker:And so that's been and then, you know, I
Speaker:did take a few years out of my career. I
Speaker:did a lot of other things, took a few
Speaker:years. Got married, had my daughter,
Speaker:was a stay at home mom. I mean, I was
Speaker:good for her, but I also was like, I
Speaker:always had to keep busy. You need to do
Speaker:stuff. But when I got divorced, I
Speaker:realized I had to get back into the
Speaker:workforce. I had to make money because I
Speaker:wasn't gonna get, you know, I wasn't
Speaker:gonna be supported the same way by any
Speaker:stretch of the imagination. And that led
Speaker:to me working for companies, starting my
Speaker:own businesses in Houston. And then when
Speaker:I moved back to LA, I knew I had kind of
Speaker:started over and I just. was
Speaker:tenacious. I I was like, I just
Speaker:want to do PR and branding and that stuff
Speaker:again. And I sent out resumes. I got
Speaker:interviews. I was like, maybe I need to
Speaker:do nonprofits, not getting any jobs here.
Speaker:And I think a lot of it was like, I was
Speaker:in my 40s. I had a little bit of a break
Speaker:in my work experience, so people didn't
Speaker:see that linear career path that
Speaker:used to be the norm. You know, I'd spent
Speaker:like every dime moving back to LA. So
Speaker:that I could-- because my sister lived
Speaker:here, my brother lived here with his
Speaker:wife. My daughter wanted to come back to
Speaker:LA where she'd been born. My ex-husband
Speaker:wanted to come back. So I was like, OK,
Speaker:I'm going to make this happen, move back.
Speaker:Had to go on food stamps. I mean, I had
Speaker:to like-- I went from having a lifestyle
Speaker:in Houston, married to somebody who owned
Speaker:part of his company, being able to donate
Speaker:lots of money, tens of thousands of
Speaker:dollars a year to different charities,
Speaker:fashion, art. That whole thing,
Speaker:being in the papers, you know, getting my
Speaker:picture taken, chairing galas, that
Speaker:kind of lifestyle. And moving back
Speaker:here, I had to sell a lot of stuff. I had
Speaker:to really start over. I didn't have a
Speaker:safety net. You know, I had a few friends
Speaker:and some family that would give me money
Speaker:here and there. But a pivotal moment for
Speaker:me was when I was in a Walmart, buying
Speaker:food at like the Walmart grocery store in
Speaker:our neighborhood, dropped my daughter off
Speaker:at school, went to the Walmart, and my
Speaker:card was denied. umm And
Speaker:I was like, ooh, what am I gonna do?I
Speaker:don't have any food for my kid. So I was
Speaker:panicking. You know, something had gone
Speaker:through before I realized it was going to
Speaker:go through. So it was being on the other
Speaker:side of the coin from what I was used to.
Speaker:I was used to being the one who helped.
Speaker:Yeah. And the manager pulled
Speaker:me aside and said, I don't know what it
Speaker:is, but God is calling me to help
Speaker:you. I got what you need for you and your
Speaker:baby to get you through the next few
Speaker:days. and let me
Speaker:pay for it. I'm going to call you right
Speaker:now. Chills, yes. And you know
Speaker:that really humbled me and made me
Speaker:realize, like, I need to also accept
Speaker:help. I need to be, I need to admit
Speaker:whatever's going on with me and not, I
Speaker:think I was so used to being in that
Speaker:place where you, you know, what you see
Speaker:on social media, like, everything's
Speaker:perfect. You have, you're going out to
Speaker:all these events, you're dressing in all
Speaker:these cool clothes. doing all these cool
Speaker:things that you forget that you actually
Speaker:are a person. You have to-- Yeah. Yeah
Speaker:And then I kept applying for jobs. I got
Speaker:a little bit of work here and there. And
Speaker:then I'd been in LA about six months.
Speaker:And it was a full moon,
Speaker:December, right around my birthday.
Speaker:I went out, looked at the full moon,
Speaker:and I just put my hands up. I said, OK,
Speaker:God, I've done everything-- Jan, I have
Speaker:applied for every job. I have put out
Speaker:every resume. I don't know what else to
Speaker:do. It's just in your hands. And at that
Speaker:point, I was going on a trip back east
Speaker:with my boyfriend. He had bought his
Speaker:tickets to see his parents to go back to
Speaker:Philly. And I got a call on the way to
Speaker:the airport with somebody who said, Hey,
Speaker:I have a new client coming in. I think
Speaker:that it would be great for you to work
Speaker:with them. Yeah. I interviewed during
Speaker:Christmas, got the job. That started a
Speaker:new trajectory for me. And here I am,
Speaker:five years later, I'm now teaching grad
Speaker:school at USC, which is crazy to think
Speaker:about. Wow, yeah. I've had a
Speaker:business. I had a PR business during the
Speaker:pandemic. I moved over to a couple
Speaker:agencies. I have a, you know, I love
Speaker:podcasting. I found this amazing network.
Speaker:And I've just been consistently
Speaker:rebuilding, rebuilding, and it's all been
Speaker:faith and justbeing in the
Speaker:right place at the right time and being
Speaker:willing to learn whatever I needed to
Speaker:learn at that moment. Yeah.
Speaker:How do you even-- so like, yes, you have
Speaker:that moment of like realization, yes, I
Speaker:am a human, and yes, I need to ask for
Speaker:help. How do you even transition to then
Speaker:saying, like, what does asking for help
Speaker:look like ohh in that moment?
Speaker:In that moment, it was going well.
Speaker:Somebody else saw that I needed help, and
Speaker:they were willing to help me. And, you
Speaker:know,Benefits are there for everybody.
Speaker:It's not a bad thing if you have to go
Speaker:on food stamps or get other help.
Speaker:You have to be willing to ask. And it's
Speaker:not easy to do. They ask for a lot of
Speaker:paperwork and meetings. You
Speaker:know So they don't make it easy on people
Speaker:to get help. So you have to really want
Speaker:it. But I was like, I don't know what
Speaker:else I'm going to do right now. I know
Speaker:this will be temporary, but this is what
Speaker:I need. And so I had to be willing to let
Speaker:go of my own ego and
Speaker:be in that moment, right?And then
Speaker:it's it's a continuous process. Over the
Speaker:past five years, part of my journey has
Speaker:very much been realizing I have to put
Speaker:myself first. So I have nonprofits I
Speaker:work with. I have one particularly in
Speaker:Ghana. We built an orphan home. You pay
Speaker:for kids to go to school. We have organic
Speaker:farming that our partner in Ghana owns so
Speaker:that it can pour back into jobs,
Speaker:you know, fresh food. Money to pay for
Speaker:the orphans to get to school and
Speaker:for them to have people in the house who
Speaker:will take care of them. And I had to
Speaker:go, you know what, I've given so much and
Speaker:I feel horrible because people's
Speaker:situations are worse than ours in the
Speaker:United States. But I had, you know, I
Speaker:just go to things like that, that mean a
Speaker:lot to me and say I can't give what I was
Speaker:giving before because I'm
Speaker:actually paying my bills, taking care of
Speaker:my kid. So I've had to make a lot of hard
Speaker:decisions. and really find that strength
Speaker:inside myself to
Speaker:use my voice and say, this
Speaker:isn't a no, but this is a no right now.
Speaker:Yeah. Do you-- so
Speaker:that's a part of my own like travel
Speaker:journey as well, is learning how to use
Speaker:your voice, going from a place of not
Speaker:speaking so that other people feel more
Speaker:comfortable, and then realizing that you
Speaker:needed to speak up. Either to make the
Speaker:changes that are necessary or just to
Speaker:actually declare what it is that you're
Speaker:actually feeling, right. So just to be
Speaker:present versus just, you know, being a
Speaker:participant or like a viewer or something
Speaker:like that, using your voice to be able
Speaker:to establish those different
Speaker:boundaries, is that something that?You've
Speaker:had practice in or did you have to kind
Speaker:of grow to using that, especially after
Speaker:this transition of like, you know, big
Speaker:and fancy, you have this humble moment
Speaker:and now you're going back. How has that
Speaker:voice continued with you?Yeah,
Speaker:that's such a great question. Like I
Speaker:said, it's a constant struggle because
Speaker:when you are in that fancy world, you
Speaker:don't have to worry about it as much. And
Speaker:there are there are probably things
Speaker:looking back that I would change. I think
Speaker:I got really caught up in that, the
Speaker:external validation. versus internal
Speaker:validation. And so,
Speaker:funnily enough, moving back to LA, where
Speaker:there are celebrities, right,
Speaker:next to Hollywood, nobody cared if I went
Speaker:to any events, nobody cared if I had
Speaker:perfect makeup every day. I could just
Speaker:sit at home and I'm like, wait, people
Speaker:are gonna hire me just because they know
Speaker:that I'll do quality work, not for the
Speaker:trappings. And it's still
Speaker:taken me, I've taken on clients that were
Speaker:not the best clients because I thought,
Speaker:oh, I need this money to pay my team. So
Speaker:it's constantly learning to go with your
Speaker:gut. And as I'm saying that, I'm feeling
Speaker:that, like, feeling in my gut of, yeah,
Speaker:that was a lesson you were supposed to
Speaker:say no to. But you also learn, right?You
Speaker:take the lessons. And at this point, I
Speaker:think I've gotten a lot better at it. It
Speaker:really is true. Also, which I
Speaker:hate to say, and this is why I want
Speaker:younger people to really find their
Speaker:voices earlier. But as a woman,
Speaker:when you turn 40, there is a difference.
Speaker:I'm almost 50. And I feel like I've just
Speaker:found my stride. And there's a whole
Speaker:bunch more life ahead of me. Oh, that's
Speaker:happy. This year.
Speaker:Oh my goodness. Yeah,
Speaker:and it's about having the maturity of
Speaker:having lived life, even if I'm younger,
Speaker:'cause Asian. You know, so even just
Speaker:having that, like, that little bit more
Speaker:experience and feeling like giving
Speaker:lessAttention, time,
Speaker:energy to the things that are not going
Speaker:to propel me forward. OK, yeah,
Speaker:say it that way. Yeah, yeahAnd it's a
Speaker:struggle, but I have been really working
Speaker:on it. I've been actually working with a
Speaker:former Zen monk who I met through like we
Speaker:were both, you know, just different
Speaker:network referral coaching groups.
Speaker:And I realized that the way I teach
Speaker:branding to students and to people I work
Speaker:with is this is kind of the same way he
Speaker:was teaching his work. But I didn't
Speaker:have that, that was he was the missing
Speaker:piece. Because when I talk about
Speaker:branding, I always want people to be
Speaker:authentic to who they are. Think about
Speaker:who you are, what your mission, vision,
Speaker:values are. Everything can come from
Speaker:that. That makes it much easier to say
Speaker:yes or no to things, if you're very clear
Speaker:on that. Because it aligned with where
Speaker:you wanna be, who you are, or is it not,
Speaker:right?But he teaches about connecting
Speaker:with yourself, connecting with your past,
Speaker:connecting with your present, visioning
Speaker:your future. Mm-hmmGetting
Speaker:comfortable in that space, doing a lot of
Speaker:work. And then that's where you find your
Speaker:voice. That's where the inner becomes
Speaker:outer and where you feel
Speaker:comfortable and confident in that
Speaker:voice. Hmm
Speaker:I'm curious about how do you make that
Speaker:like a teaching lesson to other people,
Speaker:especially maybe people who haven't
Speaker:experienced what you've experienced?Oh,
Speaker:that's such a great question. One way is
Speaker:modeling it. You know, my daughter is,
Speaker:she's 16. She's always interested in what
Speaker:meetings do you have?Who are you talking
Speaker:to?What are they about?I love that she
Speaker:has that inquisitive brain. And another
Speaker:thing that we love to do together is
Speaker:travel. So this year I will
Speaker:have traveled at least
Speaker:three to four months of the year. Yeah,
Speaker:crazy. I I wanted to travel more this
Speaker:year. I just didn't realize how much more
Speaker:it would be. And
Speaker:some of it's been in the US. So I've been
Speaker:to Vegas for an AI conference. I'm going
Speaker:down just down the street to Orange
Speaker:County for a few days for another AI
Speaker:conference. I've been to DC twice
Speaker:for a podcast movement and also I'm on
Speaker:the Intuit Small Business Council. So we
Speaker:go once a year to talk to Congress
Speaker:members about the needs of small
Speaker:businesses throughout the United States.
Speaker:Wow, OK, I traveled with my
Speaker:daughter over. Spring break, we
Speaker:did West Coast. So we started in
Speaker:Seattle, looked at college there, went to
Speaker:Oregon, looked at University of Oregon,
Speaker:then ended up at Palo Alto, looked at
Speaker:Stanford. And then I went to a
Speaker:wedding in Mexico. This
Speaker:past week, I took a little hooky trip and
Speaker:went to Red Rocks to see a concert.
Speaker:That's in Colorado. Never been there. It
Speaker:was a quick flight. Got there, had you
Speaker:know comp tickets to a band called Arcade
Speaker:Fire's 20th anniversary of their first
Speaker:album. Super fun, super beautiful
Speaker:venue. Flew home the next day. So I tried
Speaker:to incorporate a little bit of both kinds
Speaker:of trips. A little bit of fun. I
Speaker:went to Philly for 10 days to do some
Speaker:in-person classes for my MBA. Went to
Speaker:Canada for 10 days with my daughter to
Speaker:look at a college, but then see family
Speaker:that we have up there. Went and spent 10
Speaker:days in Greece, 10 days in England.
Speaker:And we're going to Thailand for about two
Speaker:weeks for my birthday and Christmas in
Speaker:December, and probably a couple other
Speaker:little trips in between. But
Speaker:what I think that's important
Speaker:about that is maintaining those values no
Speaker:matter where you go, but really getting
Speaker:to know the people where you are, doing
Speaker:things that locals do, right, embedding
Speaker:yourself. So when I was in England,
Speaker:meeting up with people I'd metAlong the
Speaker:way, I'd met actually a woman that I'd
Speaker:met at Podcast Movement Evolutions.
Speaker:Oh, cool. We met for dinner. One of my
Speaker:best friends lives there. I have some
Speaker:other people that I know from different
Speaker:things who live there. So I was able to
Speaker:go experience things the way that people
Speaker:would experience them who live there, go
Speaker:to their favorite pubs, restaurants, get
Speaker:their recommendations. I think that's
Speaker:something that you love to do too, right?
Speaker:Because travel really helps you.
Speaker:understand, appreciate, and feel more
Speaker:acceptance in the world of other people.
Speaker:Yeah. What they do, but then also
Speaker:hopefully not come across as the ugly
Speaker:American and know that we're not all like
Speaker:that, right?So So
Speaker:yeah, so those are some of the places.
Speaker:And then I'm part of a group called
Speaker:Influence Hers Foundation. I'm on the
Speaker:board, and it is a group of women of
Speaker:color and allies. We do
Speaker:mindfulness, wellness activities, online
Speaker:and offline, get together for brunches.
Speaker:Most recently, we went to an amazing
Speaker:brunch at a Michelin star Asian
Speaker:woman-owned restaurant in downtown LA.
Speaker:And we had different people talking about
Speaker:different charities that they worked with
Speaker:and different mission-driven
Speaker:opportunities. And then we are going to
Speaker:take trips also to
Speaker:Central and South America, to Africa, to
Speaker:show that volunteers aren't
Speaker:just white women.
Speaker:Yeah, right. Like that people who look
Speaker:like the people that we're helping serve
Speaker:want help and that we are going to be
Speaker:there. And so that's something that I
Speaker:think is really impactful because it's
Speaker:not on one hand you're coming in, you're
Speaker:helping, but we're really trying to work
Speaker:within the ecosystem of what's there and
Speaker:what's going to be not bringing all the,
Speaker:you know, that's what you hear a lot
Speaker:about like people bringing in and
Speaker:donating all the stuff and then that
Speaker:kills the local economy. We don't want to
Speaker:do that. So we want to say, what are your
Speaker:needs?What are you doing here?How can we
Speaker:help support?What you already have in
Speaker:place to help you grow in your own path,
Speaker:right. So that it's not just needing
Speaker:depending on other people, outside
Speaker:people, because nobody wants to do that.
Speaker:A point. A point.
Speaker:want to take a quick moment to tell you
Speaker:something exciting that's coming up. The
Speaker:cultivating confidence on this retreat
Speaker:is happening. From May 8th to
Speaker:the 12th, 2025, I'll be
Speaker:hosting A transformative retreat designed
Speaker:specifically for women dealing with
Speaker:imposter syndrome and self-doubt.
Speaker:We will be heading to the beautiful,
Speaker:tranquil lagoon of
Speaker:Bacalar, Mexico. This is going
Speaker:to be an opportunity for you to recharge,
Speaker:reflect, reconnect with yourself. So
Speaker:think daily yoga, meditation, gourmet
Speaker:meals, confidence building workshops, and
Speaker:plenty of adventure. We'll do kayaking,
Speaker:stand up paddle boarding. And day trips
Speaker:to explore the area. It's all about
Speaker:creating a supportive space where you
Speaker:can grow and have fun. Spots are limited,
Speaker:so if this sounds like something you
Speaker:need, head over to
Speaker:amethystpalaverhut.com
Speaker:to learn more and reserve your spot. All
Speaker:right, back to the episode.
Speaker:I enjoy that your story has a mix of
Speaker:like, yes, you do travel for work as
Speaker:well, but also you're mindful about
Speaker:including like fun
Speaker:into the trips, right. And so even if
Speaker:it's visiting family or there's a place
Speaker:that you want to check out, Red Rocks is
Speaker:definitely on my list and I'm so sad I
Speaker:didn't get to do it last year. Let's meet
Speaker:there because. Honestly, I can fly to
Speaker:LA, from LA to Denver, go to a
Speaker:concert, and it might take as much time
Speaker:as it would take me to drive into LA,
Speaker:find a parking spot. Nice. All right.
Speaker:RightAnd yeah, deal with all that mess.
Speaker:That's
Speaker:true. Then yeah, all right, well, we need
Speaker:to add that to the list because that's
Speaker:definitely, definitely like on the list
Speaker:of places. And I remember one of my
Speaker:favorite artists was there and I was
Speaker:like, How did I miss this?What in the
Speaker:world?Anywhere. So now I need to go back,
Speaker:but like incorporating that joy into it.
Speaker:And even when you're working and helping
Speaker:other people, I think it's also important
Speaker:that sometimes we tend to whore all of
Speaker:ourselves right into other people. And
Speaker:not that you shouldn't enjoy your your
Speaker:work or you shouldn't be, you know, self
Speaker:sacrificing, but I think there's a really
Speaker:unique balance of. Being able to have a
Speaker:community where you're sharing these
Speaker:different stories of how other people are
Speaker:helping others around the world, you
Speaker:mentioned like that image of the ugly
Speaker:American where there's a temptation to be
Speaker:like, I am a representation and let me
Speaker:show you how some of us can be really
Speaker:great. But then there's also like, yeah,
Speaker:yeah but I know I'm Grace. This is what I
Speaker:have to offer to these other people.
Speaker:And so, yeah, I like that there are
Speaker:touches of intentionality behind how you
Speaker:help other people, but then also how you
Speaker:get to explore the world with what you do
Speaker:and as you're still helping others. Yeah,
Speaker:that's very well-rounded anyway, is what
Speaker:I'm trying to say. Yeah, I think you I
Speaker:try, and I think part of that is one of
Speaker:other things that my mom did when we were
Speaker:growing up is when immigrants would come
Speaker:from Southeast Asian countries to
Speaker:Lawrence, Kansas, she would help
Speaker:them. She was paid by the local churches
Speaker:and the people who helped bring people
Speaker:over. So she would take me with her. And
Speaker:I would sit and play with the kids, and
Speaker:she would go in and teach, Here's how you
Speaker:actually wash dishes, or, Here's how you
Speaker:don't discipline your children in the
Speaker:United States. For all the things,
Speaker:because there are these nuanced
Speaker:differences in every culture. And
Speaker:so I got to see a lot of that in
Speaker:action, and that really made my
Speaker:perspective open. Also, the fact that my
Speaker:father was an Air Force brat, if
Speaker:you will. My grandfather built Air Force
Speaker:bases all over the world. So my dad spoke
Speaker:a lot of different language. He went to
Speaker:high school in Morocco. He did
Speaker:construction in Turkey when he was 19. He
Speaker:lived in Italy, he lived in France, he
Speaker:spoke these different, but he was really
Speaker:culturally aware. And so they instilled
Speaker:in me this value of also we're like, we
Speaker:are a global community. And that makes it
Speaker:really fun, right?How can you not have
Speaker:joy in like meeting people and learning
Speaker:about who they are?Yeah. Yeah
Speaker:There's a complete difference, I think,
Speaker:between being like a tourist and a
Speaker:traveler. It doesn't seem like it's on
Speaker:purpose, but there is a strong
Speaker:restriction if you're a tourist from
Speaker:involving yourself with the people that
Speaker:you meet when you're traveling or getting
Speaker:to understand their, like,What a day in
Speaker:the life of a local looks like. And I
Speaker:think if you get in that mindset of like
Speaker:a traveler, you want to ask those
Speaker:questions. You want to, you know, maybe
Speaker:you'll see a video of some type of food
Speaker:and you want to ask the locals like, is
Speaker:this really what you guys like to eat or
Speaker:what does it mean?Why?You know, like
Speaker:there's so many other questions. I think
Speaker:more meaningful questions that can come
Speaker:up if you do have that open heart and
Speaker:interest in other people. I just love the
Speaker:nuance of what you said because.
Speaker:tourist, you do think about people who
Speaker:want to find restaurants they're familiar
Speaker:with. Right. They do want a
Speaker:different experience. Or we hear about
Speaker:places that are beautiful cultures, but
Speaker:you can't leave the resort or you never
Speaker:leave the resort. Right. RightAnd that's
Speaker:another kind of experience I want to
Speaker:have. Even when I've been a
Speaker:tourist, and I I don't remember if I
Speaker:connected you to the animal
Speaker:rescue resort in Costa Rica. Did we talk
Speaker:about that?No. Oh, OK.
Speaker:Well,So there is this
Speaker:group of people that moved from Israel to
Speaker:Costa Rica a long time ago. They brought
Speaker:80 animals with them. They were very
Speaker:peaceful, kind of hippie, vegan. You
Speaker:know, they didn't want to live-- like,
Speaker:they didn't want to have the same lives,
Speaker:like corporate lives, all that stuff that
Speaker:they'd have if they had stayed in Israel.
Speaker:They just wanted to be peaceful. And so
Speaker:they bought a resort in Costa Rica that
Speaker:was up for sale. They brought all their
Speaker:animals because they love animals. And
Speaker:then people started realizing, oh, they
Speaker:love animals. We can just abandon our
Speaker:animals to them because there's no
Speaker:national system in Costa Rica.
Speaker:They have so many animals now, dogs,
Speaker:cats, horses, ducks,
Speaker:chickens, like so many things that you
Speaker:wouldn't even expect. And they have done
Speaker:a campaign where they've just invited
Speaker:people that they think would be animal
Speaker:lovers to come down and experience the
Speaker:resort. You have to buy your flight
Speaker:ticket. You have to take care of
Speaker:transportation from the airport, but then
Speaker:you get to stay there for free. All your
Speaker:meals are free. They're vegan, but they
Speaker:have some really good vegan meals there.
Speaker:Okay, yeah. Zip lining, river
Speaker:rafting, horseback riding, all for free.
Speaker:And you also tour the animal rescue to
Speaker:see the animals and play with the cats
Speaker:and the dogs. We learn. And
Speaker:that can be really overwhelming. I have
Speaker:pets, I love animals, but I'm not, that's
Speaker:not my big cause. Yeah, yeahBut I
Speaker:was invited. So I took my daughter there
Speaker:one year, actually last year, for
Speaker:like her midwinter break from school.
Speaker:And it was just really lovely. And there
Speaker:were other people who had much bigger
Speaker:followings and were really actual
Speaker:influencers. There were people who'd been
Speaker:on reality shows, like Too Hot to Handle
Speaker:and things like that, who were there. OK.
Speaker:We just-- that's the way that they're
Speaker:pouring back. And so while I was
Speaker:confined to this one resort, I still got
Speaker:to see a lot of talking to people who
Speaker:worked there who were locals, talking to
Speaker:people who had found their home there,
Speaker:even though they weren't from there
Speaker:originally, learning about the good that
Speaker:they're putting into the world to see how
Speaker:I could help. And that that was like,
Speaker:that's the experience where you feel good
Speaker:about going to a place, staying
Speaker:in one area, right?Because that really
Speaker:was a travel experience, not a tourist
Speaker:experience. Yeah, like the
Speaker:entire that space was the experience
Speaker:versus hiding on the resort, right,
Speaker:from other places. Yeah. They still reach
Speaker:out. We've done contests to get people to
Speaker:donate money and they've given a trip to
Speaker:a friend, right?If they have a very
Speaker:serious animal situation, they'll say,
Speaker:hey, can you repost this on your stories
Speaker:or can you share this because this dog
Speaker:came to us and this is what happened and
Speaker:we need to raise X amount for their
Speaker:surgery. It's-- they're just really
Speaker:beautiful, kind people. And those are the
Speaker:kind of people you want to meet. And
Speaker:you're like, yeah, I want to keep helping
Speaker:them. Yeah. I'm like, OK, I have to
Speaker:choose Grace to Asaf. So if you can get
Speaker:that trip and go down, yeah. That
Speaker:would be really cool, actually. Nice.
Speaker:Yeah. All right, so you know I have to
Speaker:throw like a random travel question in
Speaker:here. What is-- do you have a favorite
Speaker:travel story that you like to share?Oh,
Speaker:my gosh-- Even though you just told a
Speaker:really good--I
Speaker:have to think about that, because
Speaker:I've had weird travel stories
Speaker:where-- I mean, weird in the context of I
Speaker:wanted to go to St. Bart's for my
Speaker:honeymoon when I got married to my
Speaker:daughter's dad. Mm-hmmI think that's very
Speaker:posh and fancy. We was involved
Speaker:with a charity-- I'm still involved--
Speaker:called Junior League of Los Angeles. And
Speaker:somebody had given a certificate for a
Speaker:stay at their place in St. Bart's or
Speaker:whatever. I really wanted it, so we've
Speaker:been on it. We get there. It's like
Speaker:mosquito infested. I got like so many
Speaker:mosquito. It was not a
Speaker:she she by any means. OK. Sometimes you
Speaker:have to reset your expectations. Yeah.
Speaker:You have to be willing to be flexible
Speaker:when you go someplace. It might not be
Speaker:exactly what you think it is. It might be
Speaker:better. Or you might have to pivot. We
Speaker:ended up leaving and going and checking
Speaker:in someplace else and finding just a tiny
Speaker:little place, but it was perfect. So I
Speaker:thinkThe experiences where you learn
Speaker:something, where you're willing to be
Speaker:adaptable, where you
Speaker:aren't as rigid, right, are the best
Speaker:ones. Like my daughter is one of my
Speaker:favorite travel partners. We travel the
Speaker:same way. My boyfriend is one of my
Speaker:favorite travel partners, because he does
Speaker:set things up where he's like, OK, if
Speaker:we're driving somewhere, let's take this
Speaker:much time to drive, and let's go see this
Speaker:really cool thing. So it's really the
Speaker:whole journeys and experience. Right?And
Speaker:I think that's, I mean, when people say
Speaker:the journey is the destination, it really
Speaker:is true. So I would urge everybody to to
Speaker:think about travel as a great way to
Speaker:learn about yourself, to make yourself
Speaker:open to new experiences, new people, and
Speaker:also find yourself along the way. Yeah.
Speaker:Yes. You better advertise for
Speaker:this travel experience. I love
Speaker:it. Have you found that travelI know like
Speaker:it's helped with development or kind of--
Speaker:travel's been a part of your experience
Speaker:as you are growing and learning. But do
Speaker:you think it's been a lesson?Or
Speaker:has it just been like a part of that
Speaker:journey?It has definitely been a lesson.
Speaker:I'm thinking, too-- this is 20 years ago,
Speaker:so I'm aging myself still. Well, I
Speaker:already did that. But my now
Speaker:ex-husband-- I think this is even-- this
Speaker:is before we were even married. He had
Speaker:some work in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Speaker:And I had dropped out of college to
Speaker:work. And then I went back, and I
Speaker:graduated in 2004. So he's
Speaker:like, well, why don't you meet me there?
Speaker:So I met him in Cape Town, one of my
Speaker:top favorite cities anywhere in the
Speaker:world ever, ever, ever, ever. Nice. OK.
Speaker:But apartheid had just been a thing.
Speaker:People were still very
Speaker:eggshelly about it. And I had these
Speaker:experience where I'm considered colored
Speaker:there because anybody who's like Asian,
Speaker:Indian, mixed is colored. And
Speaker:so I brought tour guides who were white,
Speaker:like almost be apologizing to me.
Speaker:We'd go to restaurants and it was
Speaker:interesting that both among the
Speaker:Afrikaner, the white community and the
Speaker:black community, it was very much more
Speaker:of men are high, high, high above women.
Speaker:So we went to a restaurant that was like,
Speaker:you know, native foods from South Africa,
Speaker:from different villages. It was an
Speaker:amazing meal. But then I was paying for
Speaker:the meal, and the waitress was completely
Speaker:taken aback that I was paying
Speaker:for a man. And so
Speaker:that was-- seeing how people were
Speaker:reacting to me, being a foreigner in this
Speaker:country, but them putting their own
Speaker:constructs was really an awakening
Speaker:experience. And it's one that will stick
Speaker:with me for my whole life and
Speaker:gave me a lot of things to think about, a
Speaker:lot of lessons. and how to approach
Speaker:people, how to approach situations, how
Speaker:to appreciate people from where they're
Speaker:coming from and not just my own views,
Speaker:right, and hope that they would do the
Speaker:same for me. But sometimes they do,
Speaker:sometimes they don't. So that's a place
Speaker:where I experienced a big lesson. Hmm So
Speaker:like in that scenario, then, first, have
Speaker:you gone back?No, I want to.
Speaker:OK. I want to. I also want to get-- I've
Speaker:been working with a nonprofit in Ghana
Speaker:for over 15 years.
Speaker:And I've never been, because every year I
Speaker:was like, I can either pay for a plane
Speaker:ticket, or I can put more money into the
Speaker:nonprofit. Me too. More kids. And so I've
Speaker:always done that. Oh, yeah. The other
Speaker:thing is, if you're going to go, it's a
Speaker:long trip. So I think if you're going to
Speaker:go make an investment, I want to go to
Speaker:Africa for like three weeks, a month.
Speaker:Yeah. Really be able to experience. Have
Speaker:to. Yeah. Mm-hmm,
Speaker:mm-hmmMy question to your experience in
Speaker:Cape Town was, soDo you feel so now that
Speaker:you've understanding like how people
Speaker:would see you, do you feel like you then
Speaker:need to adjust in a certain way?
Speaker:Like is there some sort of adaption that
Speaker:needs to happen or are you still
Speaker:going in with like, I understand this is
Speaker:how people are gonna think and then I
Speaker:need to be a certain way. Yeah. OK. I
Speaker:think you said it very eloquently
Speaker:earlier. You said, I'm Grace, I'm not
Speaker:gonna worry about, you know, So I think,
Speaker:yeah, I'm gonna come in as myself, but
Speaker:I'm also going to be cognizant of. When
Speaker:I'm in Thailand, yeah, if I'm going to go
Speaker:into temples, I'm not going to wear coats
Speaker:and a tank top, right?I'm going to be
Speaker:covered appropriately when I'm in
Speaker:different cultures, because that's
Speaker:respectful to the people that I'm
Speaker:visiting. And that that is also my
Speaker:culture. But there are a lot of other
Speaker:examples you can give. But yeah, so I
Speaker:think it's keep being true to yourself,
Speaker:but also be mindful of where you
Speaker:are and being respectful of somebody
Speaker:else's culture. HmmI like that.
Speaker:It's a good mix and a good balance. You
Speaker:mentioned that you have, or you're
Speaker:working with two podcasts, at least. I
Speaker:don't want it associated with the school,
Speaker:but then you have your own. Could you
Speaker:describe the two?And then how do you
Speaker:manage two podcasts?
Speaker:One is Mediascape Insights from
Speaker:Digital Changemakers. That is the one
Speaker:with USC Annenberg. And it's through the
Speaker:program that I mostly teach for, which is
Speaker:the Master of Science in Digital Media
Speaker:Management. SoThat one is
Speaker:once a week. You know It's It's
Speaker:great. Mostly I interview professors, I
Speaker:interview people who I think would be
Speaker:interesting for the students to listen
Speaker:to. The other one is called Your Brand
Speaker:Amplified. And I had
Speaker:had two podcasts for clients before it,
Speaker:and that just didn't work out very well
Speaker:'cause they didn't have the budget to
Speaker:sustain it, they weren't using them as
Speaker:marketing tools. And then my boyfriend's
Speaker:like, I'm in the film industry, why don't
Speaker:you just do your own and I'll do some
Speaker:editing for you, help you get it set up.
Speaker:Then it got to be bigger, and he teased
Speaker:out on that. But that one,
Speaker:and this is something important for
Speaker:anybody, whatever you're doing, if you're
Speaker:starting a business, you're starting a
Speaker:podcast, where you start is never where
Speaker:you're going to end up. So I was like,
Speaker:Drive time in the United States is 27
Speaker:minutes on average. I'm going to keep my
Speaker:podcast to under this time frame. I'm
Speaker:going to ask these five questions, and
Speaker:I'm only going to interview publicists.
Speaker:That wasn't my personality, though, and
Speaker:it did not work, didn't feel natural.
Speaker:I tried it. So I quickly pivoted to, I'm
Speaker:going to interview brands. And And then
Speaker:now it's, I interview a wide range of
Speaker:people talking about life strategies,
Speaker:business strategies. I interview people
Speaker:who have created the technologies that we
Speaker:use, like who have the patents for Syria,
Speaker:you know, that Syria and Alexa are based
Speaker:on. I talk to people who are at the
Speaker:forefront and like have worked on
Speaker:billion dollar deals for businesses. But
Speaker:then I also talk to people more like me,
Speaker:who are small business entrepreneurs,
Speaker:who've had,ups and downs and want to
Speaker:share their journey and share some
Speaker:tricks, tips that others might find
Speaker:helpful, whether it's work and life,
Speaker:one or the other, you know, or both. So I
Speaker:bring on a large variety of guests, which
Speaker:I know is not probably what I
Speaker:should be doing as a podcaster, right?I'm
Speaker:not used down, but it makes it
Speaker:more interesting for me as well.
Speaker:And I think it makes it more interesting
Speaker:for my listeners becauseThey're also
Speaker:people and they want to hear, sometimes
Speaker:they want to tune in and hear expert
Speaker:advice, and sometimes they want to tune
Speaker:in and hear me talking to somebody about
Speaker:coaching or
Speaker:manifestation or feng shui for your
Speaker:office. So it's worked well.
Speaker:I have a good sized audience and,
Speaker:you know, advertisers and things like
Speaker:that. So it helps me fund. So how do I
Speaker:manage it all?That's a really good
Speaker:question. I release five episodes a week
Speaker:between the two podcasts. Oh my gosh. So
Speaker:four for mine, one for the university.
Speaker:The reason I do that is partly because I
Speaker:had such a backlog of guests and content
Speaker:that I I don't have that as-- well, I
Speaker:have a backlog of guests. I have guests
Speaker:booked out through the middle of next
Speaker:year. But I want guests to not have to
Speaker:wait a year to get on my podcast, which
Speaker:many of them do, but then have to
Speaker:wait another three to six months for
Speaker:their episode to be released. So now,
Speaker:episodes release about two weeks or so
Speaker:after we record, and I try to batch them.
Speaker:So like this week, I did eight episodes
Speaker:between Wednesday and Friday. Hmm
Speaker:So I have to do it when I have the space
Speaker:and the time, because I know that they're
Speaker:going to be really busy moments. I have a
Speaker:really great team. I did work with a
Speaker:US team when I had my agency, but I
Speaker:couldn't sustain the cost because it's
Speaker:all me paying for stuff. So then I
Speaker:approved too. a team. I have an admin and
Speaker:an editor from the Philippines. They're
Speaker:amazing, the quality of work. I've worked
Speaker:with them for a long time, and that has
Speaker:just helped me so much. And then we use
Speaker:tools like Simplified and other tools
Speaker:to, you know, help the process,
Speaker:post-production process move along
Speaker:seamlessly. Nice, okay.
Speaker:So it's manageable. Yeah,
Speaker:the big thing is if you're gonna start
Speaker:it, be consistent, know what your brand
Speaker:is. understand how to set it up as a
Speaker:business entity, if it's your bread and
Speaker:butter, or how to use it as a tool to
Speaker:promote your business, right?There's so
Speaker:many things and and that's, I really want
Speaker:to help people. So that's a program that
Speaker:I'm launching is Pod Pro Launchpad to
Speaker:help people like me, but not take the
Speaker:many years and the amount of money I
Speaker:spent figuring out that this was actually
Speaker:business and just start with this
Speaker:foundation and help them understand, here
Speaker:are monetization methods, here are growth
Speaker:methods. You know, here's what you need,
Speaker:but it really is just be consistent,
Speaker:minimize your expenses. You don't
Speaker:need a $20,000 studio and a $1,000 mic to
Speaker:get started. Right. Yeah.
Speaker:Nice. All right, so before we wrap
Speaker:up, I'm curious, what is your
Speaker:go-to self-care practice?
Speaker:Mm-hmmOoh, I have a few. I listen to
Speaker:subliminals when I went to sleep.
Speaker:I do a lot of self-reflection during the
Speaker:day. This is going to sound funny for
Speaker:self-care, but I try to take breaks
Speaker:between meetings when I can so that I can
Speaker:do something for myself, read a little
Speaker:bit of a book, listen to a podcast, walk
Speaker:the dogs, just get a little refresh
Speaker:mindset. And then I'm working with Alan
Speaker:Knight, who's a former Zen monk. His
Speaker:program is the Zen Activation Program,
Speaker:and I'm I'm going through and training
Speaker:under him to eventually become a
Speaker:certified coach and help
Speaker:You know, coach other people and train
Speaker:other people who want to get certified.
Speaker:And that has been a really big help
Speaker:because that holds me really accountable
Speaker:to am I pointing to myself enough?
Speaker:What are my levels on the wheel of life?
Speaker:Like what are you focus on?Are there some
Speaker:things that I need to work through that
Speaker:are going through my brain and making me
Speaker:like freeze?And then sometimes it just
Speaker:means I sit on the couch and read a book
Speaker:even when I have a ton of work to get
Speaker:done because you have to listen to your
Speaker:body, you have to take a break. Last
Speaker:year, I was getting sick all the time.
Speaker:And it was because I wasn't taking care
Speaker:of myself. So first and foremost, you
Speaker:have to listen to your gut. You have to
Speaker:listen to your heart. You have to make
Speaker:sure that you're going-- even if you have
Speaker:to make yourself take time for self-care,
Speaker:if you don't, you might not be there
Speaker:anymore. Umm Reality. And your
Speaker:body is
Speaker:is for sure going to give you warning
Speaker:signs. Yeah. And that's the thing, right?
Speaker:Like, you start getting sick. You start
Speaker:getting a little bit sore. You realize
Speaker:there's some tightness that you didn't
Speaker:really expect or you've been working
Speaker:through. And yeah. And then,
Speaker:yeah, your body definitely gives you some
Speaker:good warnings. You mentioned subliminals.
Speaker:Yeah. What is that?Oh, I love
Speaker:subliminals. So it's music
Speaker:with-- the words are sped up
Speaker:underneath. So they're chants, mantras,
Speaker:affirmations. OK. And you can't hear them
Speaker:under the music. And they're sped up
Speaker:really fast so that it'll-- you might
Speaker:listen to something for 20 minutes, but
Speaker:the message will have come through maybe
Speaker:several hundred or even a thousand times.
Speaker:Yeah. And I have a whole app, an
Speaker:app from this woman, Stephanie Keith.
Speaker:She is the Manifest It Now, Law of
Speaker:Attraction Tribe. She has a podcast.
Speaker:And I love it because there are also
Speaker:different exercises I can go through.
Speaker:There are meditations, there are
Speaker:interviews she's had with people to walk
Speaker:through certain exercises, workbooks,
Speaker:and then the subliminals. They really
Speaker:help me at night. Or the Calm app. I'll
Speaker:alternate between like brown noise and
Speaker:something else. And then like
Speaker:subliminals. Nice. Okay, cool. I don't
Speaker:think I've heard of it. Ohh Yeah, no, I
Speaker:don't think I've heard of it. You know
Speaker:what, 'cause I put them on at night when
Speaker:I'm going to sleep, you're supposed to
Speaker:like... Ideally, you're listening, you
Speaker:have the headphones on, and it's playing
Speaker:in the background of whatever you're
Speaker:doing. But for me, that helps me fall
Speaker:asleep. And then I wake up feeling better
Speaker:in the morning. Right. Yeah. And
Speaker:motivated. Yeah, that's
Speaker:nice. Awesome. OK.
Speaker:Annika, this has been awesome. I'm so
Speaker:glad that we got a chance to do this. But
Speaker:before we go, please let everyone know
Speaker:where we can find you and what's next for
Speaker:you. Ohh Thank you, Grace. I love talking
Speaker:to you. I'm so, so happy that we met at
Speaker:Podcast Movement. Me too. So excited for
Speaker:what we're both doing and how we can work
Speaker:together in the future. The easiest way
Speaker:to reach me, I'm just going to give one
Speaker:link, because otherwise I'll start
Speaker:sprouting off a whole bunch.
Speaker:yourbrandamplified.com. You can find my
Speaker:podcast there. You can find links to
Speaker:schedule time with me, find out about
Speaker:some of the programs that I offer, my
Speaker:bio, you know, just all the things. And I
Speaker:love giving people a free half hour
Speaker:on my schedule to talk aboutliterally
Speaker:anything. If you want to talk about PR,
Speaker:brand strategy, digital marketing,
Speaker:media, podcasting,
Speaker:nonprofit work, just
Speaker:being a single mom, whatever it is,
Speaker:there's no right or wrong. And I'm just,
Speaker:that's something I can do to help people
Speaker:hopefully like continue on their journey
Speaker:and feel inspired. Mm-hmm
Speaker:That's wonderful.
Speaker:Oh, okay, cool. That's such a sweet note
Speaker:to end off. All right.
Speaker:Well, thank you again for joining me and
Speaker:I hope you have a wonderful day. Thanks.
Speaker:You too, Grace. Hey there,
Speaker:Grace here. I hope you enjoyed today's
Speaker:episode and gained some useful takeaways.
Speaker:Thank you so much for listening and
Speaker:staying until the end. Don't forget to
Speaker:rate the show or share it with some
Speaker:friends. Have a wonderful week. Take
Speaker:care. And remember, be bold, be
Speaker:curious, be ready to tell your story. You
Speaker:never know who needs it. Bye. Bye.
