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Welcome to episode 451 of The Whole View! This week, Stacy and Sarah address the health benefits, the question of sustainable seafood and Seaspiracy as a whole.    If you enjoy the show, please review it on iTunes! The Whole View, Episode 451: ConspiraSEA: Is Sustainable Seafood Impossible? Welcome back to episode 451! (0:28) Stacy and Sarah have received many questions on Netflix new documentary, Seaspiracy.  Stacy took almost eight pages of notes, while Sarah has also prepared many sea-related puns for you. First off, the name ConspiraSEA was right there, and she totally feels they missed the boat (ha!) on that one.  Stacy also mentions they gathered thirteen pages between them to ensure you are provided with as much information as possible and not just Stacy and Sarah's opinions. The message the show tries to deliver is the opposite of this show's top recommendations.  Stacy could tell within minutes that the filmmakers had an agenda. She and Sarah plan to review the science-based facts from the claims made in the film.  The goal is to help listeners navigate safe, sustainable seafood because despite what the film attempts to present, seaweed and plant-based options do not compare to the health benefits. So Stacy and Sarah want to dive right in. (Get it?)      Benefits of Seafood It's important to emphasize what we'd be missing out on if the premise that sustainable fishing is impossible is true. (4: 01) Eating more seafood can reduce cardiovascular disease and prevent obesity and diabetes. High amounts of vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, fats, and protein all contribute to these benefits. (Intro to Nutrivore) Fish is a great source of vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, B12 and E, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, copper, potassium and selenium. Oily, cold-water fish provide substantial amounts of vitamin A and vitamin D as well. Fish with bones remaining (such as canned salmon and sardines) are the best dietary sources of calcium in the food supply. Marine fish are an excellent dietary source of iodine. High Selenium Content protect against some cancers,  enhance bone health,  maintain thyroid health,  reduce the risk of infection, assist in DNA production, and  protect the body from free radical damage Omega-3 Fats EPA and DHA reduce inflammation,  lower blood pressure,  protect against some cancers (including breast),  increase insulin sensitivity, and  improve endothelial function Improves gut microbiome composition Salmon  Or any fish with a similar salmon-pink or orange color also contains the antioxidant carotenoid astaxanthin. helps reduce LDL oxidation boosts HDL levels, and  protects against skin damage.   Fish protein is the BEST! Also supports a healthy, diverse gut microbiome (in addition to omega-3s) - better than any other protein source: beef, pork, chicken, soy, casein, and pea. (11:20) Many fish benefits are mediated via protein, and fish protein is easy to digest.  In a meta-analysis of five prospective cohort studies, lean whitefish's high consumption reduced the risk of stroke by 19% (which was even more than fatty fish intake, which reduced stroke risk by 12%).  A study of Swedish women shows that three servings of lean fish per week reduced the risk of stroke by 33% compared to zero servings per week.  In Norwegian men, weekly lean fish consumption (including whitefish) was associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome, lower triglyceride levels, and higher HDL cholesterol.  Likewise, a randomized crossover trial found that simply adding 100 grams per day of whitefish (Namibia hake) to the diet significantly lowered waist circumference, diastolic blood pressure, and LDL levels!  And another trial found that eating 150 grams of cod per week caused significantly greater weight loss in young overweight adults than a same-calorie diet without seafood.   Seaspiracy "Documentary" Sarah poses the question: what if eating fish and shellfish is destroying the ocean ecosystem and is actually full of toxins? (17:30) This is what Seaspiracy claims, so let's talk about this propaganda. Stacy reminds us documentaries are a filming style, and the information contained within is not regulated.  They can be amazing ways to learn about history or science. They can also be manipulative propaganda. So just because it's in documentary format does not mean it's news or that it's true. This documentary was made by the same people who made What the Health and Cowspiracy. What the Health… is Wrong With This Documentary?! Handling Critics, Conflicts and Vegans We don't want to get into a point-by-point discussion but let's bust the two biggest myths purported by this documentary: Sustainable Seafood Claims The "movie" claims that there's no such thing as sustainable seafood what so ever. Commercial fishing is destroying the oceans.  They claim fisheries aren't regulated, and fish farms are even worse. Also, the proportion of fish sold in the U.S. is caught illegally, and the ""sustainably caught label is meaningless. The second claim is that we should all be vegan. Seafood is full of toxins (like mercury and PCBs) and microplastics. It's destroying the oceans, and we can get the same nutrients from algae.   What is Sustainable Fishing? Sarah adds that her first research job in college was research for the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans. (22:01) It entailed actually doing research for sustainable salmon fishing. They even published a paper based on her research!  The United States is recognized as a global leader in sustainable seafood because we rely on strong science, responsive management, and enforced compliance. Fish, shellfish, and marine algae are renewable resources because they reproduce and replenish their populations naturally.  That means we can sustainably harvest fish within certain limits without depleting their populations.  Sustainability has two basic steps: Scientists perform a stock assessment to recommend how much fish should be harvested. Fishery managers and regulators follow and enforce that recommendation. Fishery management uses science to determine these limits and entails catching some fish while leaving some to reproduce and replace the fish that are caught. What It Means For Sustainability The United States is actually a global leader in seafood sustainability in general. Interesting enough, Stacy notes the "documentary" left this detail out entirely. (25:03) The argument centers around that our global population are rising, but our global abundance of wild fish is not.  Food and Agriculture Organization of the U.N. (FAO) estimates that 66% of fisheries are sustainable, contributing 78.7% of consumed seafood.  This means there's room for improvement since 20% of the fish eaten in the world are from overfishing.  However, this doesn't mean give up on fish. It means you need to be an informed consumer! One of the amazing things about our oceans is that fish stocks can recover and replenish if they are managed carefully for the long term.  Some stocks that have come back from the brink include the Patagonian toothfish in the Southern Oceans.  Other examples include the recovery of Namibian hake, after years of overfishing by foreign fleets, or the increase in some of our major tuna stocks globally.  Research shows that fish stocks that are well-managed and sustainable are also more productive in the long term. This means there is more seafood for our growing global population. Outlying Scientific Data on Sustainable Seafood In 2006, a study predicted a global collapse of fish species and empty oceans by 2048. However, it was later busted here: https://sustainablefisheries-uw.org/fisheries-2048/  Stacy adds that while watching the "documentary," she noted all the studies referenced were at least 5 years old.  Sarah mentions that when she comes across studies considered "outliers" and goes against most other data, she looked a bit closer at the details.  Nowadays, we're seeing many of these "outlier" articles being overly weighted and fueling pseudoscience claims on the internet. She notes that it doesn't mean that they are necessarily wrong. We just need to look a bit more critically at the science to figure out what exactly is happening.    Commercial Fishing is Highly Regulated Stacy notes one important aspect she learned from the "documentary" is that people can be bribed anywhere. (38:06) She adds that given details in contrast to the "documentary" agenda can be cut out to strengthen the case. Because bribery exists, the "documentary" claims you can't believe anything anyone in the industry says. However, they fail to provide any instances of this so-called bribery. Commercial fishing is not equivalent to CAFO's or industrial farming. All it means is catching fish to sell. It can be done large scale, but the industry is highly regulated. In fact, U.S. fishermen abide by some of the most rigorous environmental measures in the world. Both large and small scale fishing boats are regularly inspected to ensure fisheries are protected, and we're abiding by sustainable seafood guidelines.  Fishery management in the United States is guided by several laws, including the Magnuson-Stevens Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, and Endangered Species Act. 10 national standards of sustainability manage U.S. fisheries. These standards aim to prevent overfishing, protect other species and habitat, and minimize bycatch on non-target species.  It is the case that some fish sold in the U.S. were caught elsewhere.  If you're looking to uphold sustainability, ensure you shop local or see where the fish was caught, or the fishery is located. It's important to note that the main economy of Pacific island nations is fishing. So outlawing the sustainable seafood industry would result in their economy's collapse.   Farm Fishing Isn't Evil Stacy notes one claim the "documentary" makes is that fish farms have a "organic waste" (aka the fish poop in the water). (51:35) Fish poop is not a toxic substance and used as food for organisms like algae.  Aquaculture, or farming in water, plays a critical role in ensuring that our need for seafood is met sustainably. It's also a resource-efficient way of increasing and diversifying U.S. seafood production.  The future of sustainable seafood must include both farm-raised and wild-capture seafood!  Increasingly, seafood farming (if done responsibly as it is in the United States) is recognized as one of the most environmentally sustainable ways to produce food and protein. We discussed antibiotics use and "coloring" in farmed fish in Episode 366: Seafood Safety Concerns. Sarah notes there's a mandatory withdrawal period for each type of antibiotic fed to fish before the fish can be slaughtered. So, there is ample time to make sure there's no residuals in the meat by the time we eat them.  Additionally, the dye used is actually astaxanthin: the same red carotenoid pigment found in red algae makes wild fish flesh that distinctive color. It's an important antioxidant and makes them healthier!  Because of feed ingredients, the nutrient profile of farmed fish usually isn't as good as wild. But, it's still a great choice! Marine Stewardship Council Certification At Whole Foods, the seafood counter displays blue labels from the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), an international, nonprofit organization. (58:52) The MSC is a prime example of an economic trend: private groups, not the government, tell consumers what is good or bad for the environment.  The MSC says its label guarantees that the wild seafood was caught using methods that do not deplete the natural supply.  It also guarantees that fishing companies do not cause serious harm to other life in the sea, from coral to dolphins. Unilever and the World Wildlife Fund joined hands in 1997 to establish MSC as an independent not-for-profit, more than 20 years ago over concerns about overfishing,  This certification process is not carried out by the MSC. It is independent and carried out by expert assessment bodies. Also, it's an entirely transparent process, and NGOs and others have multiple opportunities to provide input.  All the assessments can be viewed online at Track a Fishery.  Only fisheries that meet the rigorous requirements of Standard get certified. Check out their rebuttal to Seaspiracy here! Other labels to look for: The Monterey Bay Aquarium labels products like a traffic light — green, yellow or red — to urge shoppers to buy or avoid a particular fish.  The Blue Ocean Institute has a similar system. The Tuna Tracking and Verification Program (TTVP), established under the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act, is how NOAA Fisheries monitors compliance with dolphin-safe tuna labeling. (Reference) What about the BAP cert for responsibly farmed fish? This topic is very important to Sarah and Stacy, and they want to make sure they're supporting the right companies and share this with listeners for their own knowledge.   Conspiracies The "documentary" claims that sustainably sourced labels are lies and all dishonest. (1:12:20) It was organized in a very manipulative way where it starts with a fact but shows footage as a representative that isn't a fact.  Stacy shares these examples: Fact: enough single-line is used daily to wrap around the world 500x. This does not mean that much line is discarded into the ocean daily- just used.  It's phrased as though it's being dumped in the ocean every day, which it's not.  In fact, single line fishing is a good thing! Fact: 250,000 sea turtles are "captured, injured, or killed" in U.S. annually from fishing vessels.  When fact-checked, you realize that that number includes the ones returned to the ocean after capture or healing from injury. This species is protected now, so many are rescued and returned.  However, the "documentary" conveniently leaves that out to manipulate the impact of the number.  Sarah adds that we are biologically herbivores (solely plants) or carnivores (solely meat) but omnivores. This means our body is designed to gain nutrients from a combination plant and meat diet.    Fish Toxins Can't we just eat algae? No- it's not the same as seafood. By this logic, we'd get the same nutrients eating grass that we do from eating beef. Stacy and Sarah did a whole episode on it: TPV Podcast Episode 366: Seafood Safety Concerns. There have been a few European studies showing a U-shaped response curve to fish consumption. Moderate fish consumption reduces all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease risk. However, higher fish consumption increases the risk of all-cause mortality.  The studies have postulated that this may be due to increased exposure to some of the toxins that can accumulate in fish. These toxins include methylmercury, dioxins, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) However, this isn't seen in North American or Asian cohorts studies where fish is equally as likely to contain these toxins.  The authors of a rigorous 2017 meta-analysis proposed an alternate explanation for a U-shaped curve in Europe. Traditional preparations of fish in many parts of Europe include deep-frying, pickling, or salting.  This high-salt and/or trans-fatty acid intake may be to blame for the higher all-cause mortality seen with higher fish consumption. What about microplastics? We've talked about single-use plastics on the show before in TPV Podcast Episode 352: Sustainability & Mother Earth. Also, Sarah has written about it here: https://www.thepaleomom.com/my-journey-towards-zero-waste/ Plastic pollution is a problem! They did get that right. For more information on this, see articles here and here. But solving this problem doesn't include avoiding seafood (buy sustainably caught). Look to lower your carbon footprint, reduce the use of single-use plastics, avoid cycling, recycle properly, and look to reusable bags and containers. There are better ways to learn about how to protect our oceans: Planet Earth documentary Blue Planet Nova National Geographic Scientific American magazine Where Do Stacy and Sarah Get Fish? My favorite source is ButcherBox  https://www.butcherbox.com/thepaleoview Stacy has a local fishmonger at farmer's market, plus Costco, Trader Joe's - tons of vendors now sell Alaskan and/or certified sustainable seafood Farmed shrimp, Alaskan / farmer's market salmon, dolphin-safe line-caught tuna, local shellfish Great Resources https://sustainablefisheries-uw.org/start-here/ https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/5-things-you-should-know-about-sustainable-seafood https://www.msc.org/media-centre/news-opinion/news/2021/03/26/response-to-netflix-seaspiracy-film https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31932439/  https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html    Final Thoughts Sarah reminds listeners that documentaries are not grounded in scientific fact and can be skewed. (1:31:40)  The truth is the oceans are in trouble and need help, just not wholly in the ways stressed in the "documentary" Seacpiracy.  We need to look at this practice to find an action we can walk away with feeling good about.  If you haven't joined the Patreon family yet, joining supports this podcast and provides you with bonus content on what Stacy and Sarah really feel.  Thank you so much for listening, and we'll see you next week!

How much does a website cost? That is a great question. And I bet you’re having a very difficult time getting a straight answer—that’s because any salesperson worth their salt won’t tell you how much a website costs until you’re willing to sit down and listen to their sales pitch. In this podcast we break down the cost for you by explaining the different types of websites, the common ways sites are built, and how much each of those ways cost! Want an actual online quote on how much a website would cost you? We have a Website Price Calculator Tool free to use. Transcription Hello again this is Monica Pitts - Welcome to Marketing with Purpose. With me today to finish up our two part podcast about how long websites last and how to make them last longer is Mrs. Stacy Brockmeier. 0:17 Hey guys. 0:19 So Stacy is our resident expert consultant slash sales lady. Wearer of all the hats. And she regularly reviews websites and helps people decide what they can do to make them last longer.

Welcome back to episode 404 of the Whole View. (0:27) Stacy is almost getting use to saying that. It has been a month since they changed over. Sarah is proud that she has been using the correct name of the podcast, especially since she has puppy sleep deprivation. Stacy is feeling well, and thanks everyone for the positive vibes they have been sending her way. Her heart rate is completely back to normal, and she is now symptom-free. Even though you recover, it still takes time to rebuild and get back to full strength. It takes time for inflammation in the lungs to heal. Sarah has been wanting to do antibody testing to see if she had it. The quality of the antibody tests is a huge range, so Sarah is yet to research this just yet. Stacy firmly believes that knowledge is power. From her entire coronavirus experience, that is really her big takeaway. Stacy is so excited to host another pet show this week! The last pet show they hosted felt like an uplifting conversation. Remember, while Stacy and Sarah will refer to their dogs in this episode, they are also both cat owners and love their cats dearly as well. They are talking about pets in general.   Listener's Question This was a question that Stacy wanted Sarah to cover for a while. (9:09) However, just recently, this question was received from a podcast listener, before the last pet show was hosted. When Sarah announced that she was getting a dog, this was the most common question she received. What do I feed my dog? Ashley says, "Hi Sarah and Stacy! I started listening to the podcast several years ago while I was living in New York City. Every evening after work I would get on the train, put in my headphones, and listen to an episode. I guess I am one of the listeners you are always apologizing to for the early episodes. I have to say I have truly enjoyed them all and have learned so much valuable information. Thank you for all your hard work to both educate and entertain your listeners, I feel like we are friends at this point and I still look forward to a new episode every week. The Paleo View is my favorite podcast hands down!  As a person eating a nutrient-dense, anti-inflammatory diet myself, I am wondering how to feed my dog in the same way. My husband and I recently added a Bernedoodle puppy to our family and he is the most adorable and mischievous little guy. There is so much conflicting information out there about what diet is best for dogs - they need grains, they don’t need grains, raw is best, raw is dangerous. Most dog food is so highly processed and contains ingredients that to me seem highly inflammatory and nutrient-poor. The organic and grain-free foods look good on paper, but then I read about concerns with grain-free diets and heart problems in dogs. I like the idea of a raw diet, but that also requires a lot more work on my part to source and prepare his food which just isn’t practical for my life right now. I would love to know the science on this topic so I can feel confident in what we are feeding our dog so that he can continue to be a healthy and happy pup! Please help!"   Knowledge is Power Stacy is excited for Sarah to help. (12:11) After a bit of research when Matt and Stacy for Penny, Stacy made a food choice and Sarah looked into as she was preparing to get a pup. Sarah found that it actually isn't that bad of a food choice. Stacy has had two veterinarians that a grain-free diet for a dog isn't good and that a raw diet for a dog is not good. So when Stacy asks what is a good option and why the foods that they recommend are exactly as Ashley indicates. They are foods that would be highly inflammatory. After seeing Penny's symptoms when she was adopted and knowing what kind of diet she was on, Stacy knows that she has sensitivities from her inflammatory diet. So Stacy is excited to learn more about what is an ideal diet. As a reminder to listeners, just as we humans make our own choices, we do the best that we can with the knowledge we have. If you decide that you are going to transition your pet to a new food after this, or maybe not, there is no shame or guilt. This is not Stacy and Sarah telling listeners what you need to do. However, this is knowledge for you to be empowered to make your own choices. Neither Stacy or Sarah are medical professionals, and information on this podcast should not be treated as medical advice. Sarah thought it would be interesting to answer Ashley's question with the ancestral diet approach. This is so consistent with how we approach food. Meeting the body's nutrient needs is the primary criterion for a healthy diet. So what are the nutritional needs of a dog? And what is the ancestral diet that would help to meet those?   Let's Start with Wolves So let's start talking about what wolves eat. (17:34) Dogs and the modern gray wolf share a common extinct ancestor. There is great debate among biologists about whether or not dogs and wolves are the same species. Some biologists believe that dogs are a subspecies of the gray wolf. While other biologists believe that they are their own species and that wolves and dogs are separate species. Wolves are scavengers and hunters, and they really eat anything they can get. They always eat the whole animal, and organ meat is the first thing they consume. The highest levels in the pack get the most nutritious diet so they stay the healthiest and the fittest. Then they eat the ribs, a lot of small bones, and nearly all of the hide. Even the large bones are gnawed on. The other thing that Sarah found really interesting is that by eating the stomachs and the intestines they are getting a fair amount of partially digested plant matter. They also eat grass. Researchers believe that wolves eat grass to purge the intestines of parasites. The earliest evidence of dog domestication is about 40,000 years old. And the earliest proof of domesticated dogs is about 14,000 years old. Domestication has more points of change, in terms of genetics, than agriculture does in humans. The genetic differences refer to changes in the nervous system, and it is thought that these are all underlying the behavioral changes that were central to dog domestication. There are also ten genes that have changed that all have key roles in digestion and fat metabolism. These genetic changes show a dog's ability to digest starch relative to the wolf. There are these well-measured changes in dogs compared to wolves that have made them more adapted to eating more starch. This doesn't mean that starches are the foundation for their optimal diet. However, it implies that they need a little bit more starch and carbohydrate than the wolf.   Facultative Carnivores So not a grain-based diet, as dogs are still considered facultative carnivores. (25:29) Facultative carnivores are species that are not strict carnivores. They eat some plant foods in addition to animal foods. However, they can't thrive on a truly omnivorous diet. They still need to eat a dominant amount of calories from meat. But they are well adapted and still need a small amount of their diet to come from plants. Where science is pointing is that really the optimal diet for dogs is similar to wolves, with a whole-prey, whole-animal, approach.  Eating really every bit of the animal that is edible. This should probably make up 85% of the diet, with a variety of plants making up the other 15%. Which leads really well into the question of raw vegetables versus cooked. Sarah shared on the research she did and specifically pointed out the details found from this study. They showed that the safety profile of raw diets is very high. Stacy asked about the risks associated with raw dog food being contaminated and recalled. Sarah pointed out that there have been tons of recalls on grain dog food. Stacy noted that it is helpful to be armed with information when you visit the vet. If your vet isn't working for you, remember that they are providing a service to you and you are choosing to go there. You can always find another one when you feel that their beliefs don't align with your beliefs. Sarah shared some data on the recall rate for dog food. Raw diets are highly digestible.  Processed kibble diets were not as digestible.  There was a 10% difference between the two. High quality cooked diets were also found to be highly digestible. So it wasn't a question about whether or not the ingredients were raw, so much as how processed they were. Sarah also referred to this study. Personally, Sarah cares much more about the quality and processing of the ingredients, instead of whether or not each ingredient is cooked or raw. This thesis also went into how the fiber content of food impacted digestibility. This made a case for animal fiber. You don't want too much fiber, which decreases digestibility. However, you do need some fiber, which should come from some plant foods. When Sarah was doing this research she was expecting that they would be better adapted to consume cooked diets, and she shared why.   Grain-Free Foods and Diet-Induced Dilated Cardiomyopathy The other part of Ashley's question asks about the link between grain-free food and diet-induced dilated cardiomyopathy.(43:38) This was a huge research point for Sarah because she doesn't allow gluten in her house. In July 2018, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public notification about an uptick of reports of canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) – a type of heart disease that can lead to congestive heart failure. Symptoms include enlarged heart, decreased energy, lethargy, cough, difficulty breathing, loss of appetite, and episodes of collapse. However, many dogs will not show symptoms of the disease right away. If you suspect that your dog is affected, consult your veterinarian immediately. In the FDA’s July 2019 update on diet and canine heart disease, they examined labels of dog food products reported in DCM cases to determine whether the foods were “grain-free” (defined as no corn, soy, wheat, rice, barley or other grains). They also looked at whether the foods contained peas, lentils, chickpeas, beans, or potatoes (including sweet potatoes). Their report states that 91 percent of foods reported in DCM cases were grain-free, 93 percent of reported foods contained peas and/or lentils, and 42 percent contained potatoes/sweet potatoes. 91% were eating grain-free food.  This is research that is ongoing. The most likely mechanism is that that is some kind of antinutrient in legumes blocking taurine absorption. Taurine is an amino acid found exclusively in meat. It is not considered an essential nutrient for dogs because they can synthesize their own. Some breeds appear to be predisposed to taurine deficiency from low-taurine diets. Taurine deficiency is one potential cause of DCM. Golden retrievers made up 20% of the effected dogs from diet-induced dilated cardiomyopathy.  There were a ton of other breeds represented in the findings. Many of the dogs have responded to taurine supplements, even if they didn't appear to be taurine deficient. Taurine supplementation may be more effective as a prophylactic than a treatment, but this still needs to be studied. So the culprit isn't necessarily the lack of grains in the diet, but the fact that grain-free don't automatically mean good, high-quality, or nutritionally balanced. Remember, this is still an active area of research. Look for options where legumes, especially peas and lentils aren’t in the top 10 ingredients. Taurine is naturally high in organ meat. There are no gluten-free dog foods that are also grain-free. 77 million dogs in USA, DCM reported in 560 probably under-reporting but still very low incidence. CF 50% of dogs will get cancer in their lifetime.   What Sarah Feeds Soka Sarah is looking to reduce the risk of everything bad that can happen to her. (55:21) This was an area of high-importance to Sarah when they were preparing to get a dog, and she did a ton of research on her options. Sarah was looking for dog food that was nutrient-dense, with a whole prey ratio of animal ingredients at 85%. Probiotics were also on her wishlist. She was also looking for a food that didn't have too much protein. Too much protein can be hard on a dog's kidneys, so Sarah was looking for a brand with no more than 40% protein. If the brand had legumes, they had to be at least eleven ingredients down. The other thing that Sarah is doing is giving her pup a mixed diet so that not every meal is kibble.  She is buying a different flavor every time, of the same brand that she found. Then Sarah is also doing a rehydrated freeze-dried food, which preserves nutrients better than the canning process. So her dog is getting one wet can food meal a day.  In addition, Sarah's dog is receiving training treats and chews. The brand that Sarah selected is Orijen. However, they are not the only good brand out there. Orijen checked every single box of what Sarah was looking for, which was such a relief to find.  On the advice of her vet, Sarah is also giving Soka a taurine supplement.  The supplement is vetriscience cardio strength, which contains Carnitine, Taurine, Glycine, vitamin E, EPA, coQ10, GLA, vitamin B9, Magnesium, Potassium, and Selenium.  Sarah is mixing things up with training treats and Soka's favorite is pastured turkey breast, cooked in the Instant Pot. The other high-quality training treats that Soka likes are Grizzly’s Smoked Wild Salmon, Pupford Liver Training Treats, and Pupford Sweet Potato. And Sarah just ordered Vital Essential Freeze-Dried Minnows and is excited to have her dog try those. Sarah shared some of her training tricks and current approach.  So with, a focus on a nutrient-dense approach, the whole-prey ratio, and then round out her diet with mixed, diverse add-ins. Sarah rounds it out with as many high-quality ingredients, using different training treats each time. Soka is also getting natural chews like grass-fed beef bone (K9 Connoisseur), naturally-shed deer antler (Whitetail Naturals), and beef trachea.  Everything that Sarah is doing with Soka is about nutrient-density and nutrient variety, which are the same principles of how she chooses her own foods.  Stacy loves that all of the brands they pick are helping with the sustainability and the respecting of animals that she feels so passionate about with our food supply chain. Eating nose to tail is so important. Thank you dogs for helping us respect the whole animal!   What Stacy Feeds Penny Like Stacy mentioned, they really struggled for almost a year in figuring out what to feed Penny. (1:06:05) They started off transitioning her to a higher quality kibble because she came to them on the fast food of dog food kibble.  The easiest thing was kibble since that is what she was used to. They found Stella & Chewy's and they put her on a puppy kibble to start. Stacy didn't want her to be on kibble longterm.  However, to get her to like it they would mix in ghee or very gelatinous broth or homemade gravy. They were trying to also help her be less underweight. The problem though was that Penny grew accustomed to things tasting delicious and when they tried to feed her dry kibble alone she wouldn't eat it.  While Penny is extremely motivated for treats, her food is an entirely different thing.  One time she went for almost four days without eating.  The process of trying to modify Penny's diet felt a lot like sleep training.  Sarah pointed out that it is very important to recognize that there is no one way. There are always going to be exceptions, and you need to do what feels best for you and your pet.  They eventually started adding a stew from Stella & Chewy's on top of the kibble and then mixed it up.  However, this was an expensive route. Stacy's dog is very high maintenance with food. Penny was underweight, and it was very important for them to figure out how to get her to eat something that was both healthful, as well as nutrient-dense for weight-gain promoting purposes. Eventually they were able to find a long-term approach for Penny that she absolutely loves and is so much easier for them.  They now feed Penny freeze-dried patties from Stella & Chewy's. These patties also have taurine added to them, kelp, and are very clean for a dog. They crumple up the patties and add a little bit of hot water.  Ninety percent of the time they also add two spoonfuls of rice for her.  Penny is still on the low side of what is considered her normal weight.  Her rice is cooked in broth once a week, and saved in the fridge for meals. They trust and really like Stella & Chewy's, and best of all Penny really likes their stuff.   Closing Thoughts Stacy shared stories on Penny's pickiness when it comes to even training tricks. (1:16:40) Sarah shared on Soka's adventures with trying to bring home pine cones to eat. Soka even has a pile spot where she collects things she finds.  She is still learning what things are toys.  As they wrap up this episode, Sarah wants to mention that Soka does have her own Instagram account. Stacy considered making Penny her own Instagram account but decided not to.  She felt like she couldn't manage another Instagram account.  This show was very focused on dog food so if you need the same rundown on cats, let Stacy and Sarah know.  They both have been longtime cat owners, and both feed their cats Orijen. Stacy uses Amazon Subscribe & Save to get the best deals on Penny's food and treats.  This episode was not sponsored by any of the brands mentioned.  As always, Stacy and Sarah tell listeners what they use and why in a genuine way.  We will be back again next week, and very much appreciate you being here! Thanks for listening! (1:24:23)

Websites are like cars - you can't drive them forever. You have to change the oil, you have to fill up the gas, you've got to rotate the tires. These are things that you're going to do with your website, and the frequency with which you do them will improve the shelf life of your website. Transcription Hello again this is Monica Pitts - Welcome to Marketing with Purpose. With me today to finish up our two part podcast about how long websites last and how to make them last longer is Mrs. Stacy Brockmeier. 0:17 Hey guys. 0:19 So Stacy is our resident expert consultant slash sales lady. Wearer of all the hats. And she regularly reviews websites and helps people decide what they can do to make them last longer. We discussed in the last episode, how long a website will probably be good for, and we decided at this point, like three to six years, three to six years. Yep, yep. And we also went on a total rants about cell phones and stuff that was very fun for us and hopefully... 0:53 User expectations and stuff. 0:55 It really turned into user expectations. So if you are wondering if your website needs to be updated, there are lots of different ways that you can get this information. The first part - Well, and all of it is really understanding user expectations really, ah, see all the way back around. So how do I define user expectations when it comes to being online? I feel like there's two ways one is using your gut and doing a little bit of like elbow grease research. And then the next would be going concrete and running a bunch of tests. So let's start with using your gut. 1:38 Yeah, so there are different styles for different industries, you know, whether they're advanced industries or service based industries, or really any industry has a little bit of a different style, and then their users expect different functionality out of that site. 1:55 Yeah. One of the things that I try to do annually is an...so most years, I get it done. I go out and I look for great websites. So I already have a list of great websites that I've reviewed before. And then I search for services in different areas of the United States. And I make a list of all the websites that I think are cool. And then I go through them and I write them and I say, Okay, this website gets a 5on usability and this website gets a 2 on X, Y, and Z right? Because I have all the criteria listed out for what makes that type of website great in industry. 2:37 What's great, what could be improved upon just a little bit. 2:40 Yeah, and then as

When you budget for a big project, like a website redesign, you might wonder, “How long until I have to budget for this again?” Odds are good the cost of web development is more now than it was when you originally had your website built. That makes “How long does a website last?” a super valid question, and one that I hope I can shed some light on today. Read More Transcription 0:01Hello again this is Monica Pitts - Welcome to Marketing with Purpose. With me today is the one and the only - Mrs. Stacy Brockmeier. We are going to tackle kind of a…I don't want to say it's nasty. It's not nasty, but it's hard. So websites are kind of like cars. Okay, you get one. And you know you're not going to drive it forever. But it's a little bit easier to understand how long a car is gonna last. 0:30Yeah, there's no odometer on the car. Websites don't have that. 0:45When you're getting ready to make a purchase, like a website, people are asking themselves like how, how long is it going to last? What does it look like budgeting for this thing? Now it might not be your first one but the web is evolving and it won't be your last. Absolutely. So Stacy, when people ask you, let's say, five years ago, if people asked you how long the website would last, what would you say? 1:11Definitely five years ago, I would have said, Oh, five to 10 years. 1:16What would you say now though? 1:17Three to six. It changes so quickly. So even just think about your cell phone. What did your cell phone look like 10 years ago? Mine was a flip phone. Maybe that was around the time razors are really cool. 10 years ago? Is that maybe a little bit longer? Anyways… It might've been 15, I'm gonna have to look it up. But I'm thinking I might have had the iPhone 4S or four. Oh, not 10 years ago. 10 years ago? No way. I definitely still had a flip phone. Sort or I had this like a slide thing. Yeah, it was one of those 10 years ago, I definitely did not have an iPhone yet. So we're saying, Oh my gosh, total tangent. I just saw an ad for a dual face phone. Like on the front and the back? No, it's like you have two screens, and they're one on top of each other. And then you slide it out. And so you have two monitors. It's like a dual monitor setup, a dual monitor setup on my phone. That's what it looks like. Think about what things are going to be like in 10 years. What's going to be like in 10 years if

Today, we thought we would talk about heartbreak, specifically, how to break up with your web designer. Sounds better than breaking up with your boyfriend, right? Which, of course, we're not encouraging you to do. We'll let that be your own decision. Read More Transcription 0:00 Hello again this is Monica Pitts Welcome to marketing with purpose. And today I don't have Katie with me. It's, I mean, you might miss her but I promise you that you're going to love Stacy Brock Meyer who is with me today she is a may create wearer of many hats and one of the hats that she wears extremely well for our company is sales and consulting. Today, Stacy and I are staring out this dreary window and it's raining and sad feeling outside. And so we thought we would talk about heartbreak, how 0:37 to break up with people. 0:39 Yeah, how to end relationships. 0:42 So sad with web designers. 0:46 We're gonna teach you how to break up with your web designer. 0:49 And that sounds like way less bad than breaking up with your boyfriend. Really. 0:54 We're not going to encourage you to do that. We'll let that be your own decision. 1:00 So Stacy, tell me about where the journey starts when I'm ready to move on to a new company to build my new website. What do I need to do first? 1:11 Yeah, so I think that the very first thing you need to do is understand where you're at right now. And so to do that, you have to review that contract, you have to understand what you own, what the company owns, what you have access to even, and also how long you have to give that company before you can end your services. So a lot of those are 30 days, you have to give 30 day notice before your hosting 1:40 before they'll stop billing you. 1:42 Yes, and there's multiple parts that might be listed underneath the contract. Things like your hosting space, but also your rights to your files, your code, and even the images that they may have used in your website. You might not be able to use those images in your new website.  

He knows INVESTMENTS! Stacy Chitty Managing Partner of Blue Vault Partners LLC I've always said that you know, take any corporation in America, they didn't start out the way that they are today. It took a long period of time to develop into what they are today. Blue Vault is no different. We started out with one idea, a simple idea. We gonna cover non-trading REITs and we gonna tell a little bit about their performance metrics and we gonna keep advisors and broker-dealers and asset managers and others in the industry better informed. That was the one singularly focused idea that we had but we've obviously grown from that point in time and we had to. If we did not adapt, then we wouldn't be here today. - So Stacy, thank you so much for coming up. I'm so super exited about this episode and the reason why is because, when we talk about investing, we talk about REITs and a lot of things like that so, I wanted to kinda get to know you a little bit. So, give me your background, how did you get started on this? - Now okay well, thank you for being here Chris, I appreciate it. I've been in the industry about 23 years. I started in January of 1997. So, I joined a firm based out of Norcross called Wells Real Estate Funds and really didn't know what I was getting into when I joined the firm. I knew it had something to do with real estate and something to do with investing and I liked the aspect of both. - [Chris] Yeah. So, the German by the name of Leo Wales that I had known for a few years and that's how I originally got into the industry and I learned or found out that I enjoyed it. - Did you like study finance or how did you before that? No, I did not study finance. I was a, it's really not what we do financiers is technically not yet but I was, I had just recently worked for someone at the time who was a former Congressman well, who was a Congressman, Saxby Chambliss was a former US Congressman. He later became senator of Georgia. But I was his finance director. That's just a fancy word for helping him raise capital, helping him raise money sorry, not capital, helping him raise money for his re-election and so, that's one of the ways that I had gotten to know Leo and I had an interest in politics but didn't wanna work in it any longer. So, I left and Leo was one of the first individuals that I called. So I remember, the Executive Director of Wells, he like told me one day, " You know Stacy, this is really not, "you know this is "really not real estate, "this is more about investors, "this is more of the "securities industry." So, I had a big learning curve but that was interesting to me, it was a pivot from politics into the securities industry and that's how I got started. - Hmm, so specifically, so let's talk about that like, what does that look like as opposed to just like buying a house or like those types of like, buying just properties and renting them out? Like what is that, when you are investing in securities and doing that type of stuff?

Well for those of you that are joining us, we are here in the warrior divas real talk for real women Facebook group and we are doing our show we're adapting to our ever changing society. We are being emotionally connected in a social distancing world so Today, I am excited about the show we have for you We but before we get started, I wanted to let you know that if you're watching this in the group, you can invite other people to join us in the group to watch it. comment in the comment section, give a little like a little love. Leave one of the emoticons if we make it happy, sad or mad, any of that in the in the group. And I want to welcome our guests today and just a few moments, they're gonna let us know a little bit about themselves. And then as we go through the show, you'll get to learn a little bit more about them. As I said, I'm Angie Monroe, I am the host of the show. This show airs every Tuesday from 11am to 1pm Central Standard Time on fishbowl radio network and then you can find it starting at 3pm on all the podcast social networking sites. So if you hear something you like today or or you really want somebody else listen to that's the great way to share it. Plus, it'll be here in the group as well. So We're going to start off we've got Stacey up in the top we've got Janet Stacey wave. Janet under Stacey. We've got misty right next to Stacey to Janet and then we got cam. I don't know how it's showing up on everybody. thing. I guess mine's a little bit different. So getting yelled away. So I want y'all to we're gonna start with Stacey and kind of go in that order. So Stacy if you will, kind of give us a who you are, what your occupation is, where you're located and what you're passionate about. My name is Stacey Penny when I am the owner of Alexander medical Spa in Hurst, Texas. I'm also very involved in the Chamber of Commerce. I'm on the board of directors. I'm also on the board of directors for central arts of Bedford and Hearst. I like being involved in the community. That's one of my passions. I love helping other people. I like to be involved in charities. I also am passionate about learning. And I like to learn from other people. I like to learn from books. And I like to learn from doing. And this is my first podcast so I'm learning right now. Awesome. All right, we have Janet Janet, tell us a little bit Hey, Shay break out and dance or when I was live that and you did that sway app yesterday, didn't you? Yes, I had 500 views as people actually think I can dance that good which is really awesome. Yeah, I can't really dance that good y'all. Okay, my name is Janet Manor and I live in the middle of nowhere Kansas. I used to live in Texas and I miss you guys miss all the Texas hair and all the beauty of Texas women. And not that I don't love my Kansas ladies, but I do miss Texas and and I am retired but I still passionate about helping People, I I take a lot of phone calls and do a lot of praying for people still people call me for that a lot. And I teach a Bible study class of about 25 women every Monday night. So that's I'm really passionate about studying the Bible. I have the time, most of the time now to do it. And so a very busy life up until this point. So it's been, it's a blessing to be able to sit and sit in word and he's, we just did James Bible study. And so he's prepared us for a time as this to consider it all joy to be in this trial. That's where we are. And as women and all the people that we love and care for are going to follow our lead. You're just really that's the truth and our families. So trying to keep it all joyful here, and it's not being unrealistic, but now's the time to shine. Ladies, now's the time to shine. So absolutely, absolutely. Misty, how about you? Hi, I missed you. I'm the owner of picture perfect brows and beauty and co founder of expanded woman. And you know, I, I'm located but for Texas By the way, and I'm super passionate about people, connecting others and also just empowering other women building confidence. Those are the things and I'm very woman centric as well. So I definitely think we aligned in that way, Angie. Absolutely. So Kim, Kim get started. Marcel reviver talk about her so much, but many of y'all have not ever really officially met her. So this is Kim. Hi, Kim. I'm Kim. And I'm in Grapevine, Texas. And um, I, for a long time have been a small business owner had a graphic design business out of my house. Really Long time since 2015, I've been doing ministry and biblical counseling with women and I graduated last November with my certification to be a biblical counselor. And so, out of that, hopefully a ministry is being birthed. But, you know, God had different plans for how 2020 is gonna go so I'm just my word for the year was restart. Um, I know that I'm still very passionate about women seeing women healed, broken hearts restored, just walking in freedom and and the path that God has for them. So that's my true passion and how that shows up and what that looks like kind of ebbs and flows. As I think I'm growing and maturing in the Lord, so we'll see what he has for next. Yeah, it's interesting because without planning it tonight, we ended up with two of the ladies on the show that have helped me with my external beauty. We got misty and Stacy that have helped me with the external beauty. And then Janet and Kim have helped me with my spiritual beauty over the last several years of my life, and I tell the story about mending the soul all the time and how much I hated that class but loved that class. And Janet's the one that kind of I brought it up to her one day and she goes you're in my class period, you know it's done now I was like, Okay, what did I get myself into? So and then all that you've seen growing with divas impact the magazine The the beautiful flyers and all the thing, the logo for warrior divas all of that has been done by Kim. So pm is the previous creative genius behind all of that. So Mary, and I just get to come up with great, crazy ideas and go, Hey, friends, let's have some fun. But so, you know, Kim has been on isolation a little bit longer than the rest of us. And I'll let her share a little bit about that as we go on. But we were just talking about what is the purpose of the show? What are we wanting to do with the show? And yes, I'm not touching my face. I'm touching my hair. So don't anybody freak out about Corona on me because I'm putting my hair in my house. But, you know, our biggest thing is we want to be somebody that shines a light. So we realized that when you are socially isolated, you don't need to be emotionally isolated. And so we're going to start doing more and more things like this inside the group. Just to have a fun way Friday night, we're going to have a pajama party inside the group everybody show up, we're going to open up the zoom live thing. Let everybody jump on, we'll have a little dance party on there, we'll do a whole bunch of fun stuff inside the group. With that, just because moms and women married single with kids without kids, we all just need to blow off steam at some point, right? Ah. So part of what we're wanting to be is shine that light, we're going to do that and a lot of spiritual ways. We're going to do that in a lot of emotional ways. We're going to do that in a lot of fun ways. So Friday night will be instead of a divas night out it will be a divas night in so you will start seeing us talking about that later on this week. And we'll do one of those each week until we're set free and then we'll start having divas nights out because we'll be building relationships behind the scenes. So somebody somebody had a post up the other day, one of the single people I know was talking said, Wait a minute, you mean I actually got to talk to somebody and get to know them first before I go on a real date. So we're going to take the opportunity to get to know you and we want to talk with, you know, the girls here, I want you to realize that it's not just me in this group. There's other amazing women in this group that can leave things up and talk with you and encourage you and inspire you. And that's what we're all here to do. So this morning, I shared in the group, the john Maxwell video about leadership, and I was live streaming watch parties in this group and another group and trying to leave the notes in there and I do have the notes I'll put them in the notes in a file here inside the group from that section once I get them cleaned up to where other people can kind of interpret my notes as I typed them up, but they're still a little wonky and You know, it was great because he was speaking to leaders. Now tomorrow, he's going to be talking and tomorrow and to say he's going to be talking, turning adversity into advantage. And we're going to kind of kick that off tonight talking about what we as women are thinking and doing and feeling, and, and all of that. So what I want you to know is, we're women here, we may be sitting in a somewhat good situation. I don't know everybody's situation here. But I do know all these women, I don't know all their stories. But I do know all these women. And I do know that they are women that lead with love, they leave with graciousness, they don't lead with fear, they lead with joy. And that's why I was so excited that they joined us on the show today. So as we get going, we're going to start off with emotional health. So first off, we're going to do a temperature check of everybody on the call. So how are you Feeling what's going on? For some of us, it's day one for some of us. What, 90 Kim? Boy? So, um, you know, let's start. Let's start with Kim. Since she's been the longest Kim, how are you feeling? I you know, I'm actually feeling really good. I think that, you know, my journey started on January 2 with my quadruple bypass. So, I think I went through some emotional shock that kind of first month, like, I came home from the hospital on the fifth. And physically, I did great. But emotionally there were some really tough days. The it's not fair. This shouldn't have happened to me, like, you know, this was just completely out of nowhere and I didn't fit the profile and you Still, so, for me, it was sort of having to deal with a lot of the I'm having to come to acceptance with what is my new normal, I had to come to the fact that, you know, I don't know what my future is gonna look like and I gotta be okay with that now, you know, I don't know how this is, is gonna go it's a progressive disease. So new normal looks totally different. And then just even changing everyday habits I have to work out I have to eat completely different. And so there was a lot of that morning I can't eat a cheeseburger and my pepperoni pizza with extra cheese anymore. Took me a month and you know, but then I started discovering new foods, and I learned that I kind of did like working out and You know, you start to accept some stuff and roll your eyes when you said that can you rolled your eyes? here's the here's the funny truth is, it is like ripping teeth out to get me to start working out like getting on the treadmill. But I can tell about eight minutes in. Like, I don't know if it's the dopa mean or what happens chemically but then I start liking it and my 20 minute workout I'm noticing is going 3035 40 minutes like I'm, I actually feel good I feel better. I it's, it really is starting to shift and that was something I didn't expect at all. And then I even started lifting weights this week. And that was completely something I never thought I would be here year was restart and so in every way I've had to restart So it is kind of neat that here God sort of prepared me because I haven't been leaving the house that much I was social isolating already cuz you know you're immunocompromised and healing and and really restricted on what you can do for a while so, you know, I think the Lord was like No Let's prepare her for the corona virus apocalypse just a few months so you know that's where where I'm at I think my husband thinks I'm insane cuz I have bought enough food for the apocalypse and then even like ordering online the dog snacks and dog food so he called it the dog Apocalypse Now as they are delivering that but we're good over here in grapevine. Good Yeah, yeah. So So misty. What about you what's going on in your world I know there's you. You've been doing a lot inside our community as well to take care of the emotional health of some of our community. Yes, there's there's an organization that our chamber has called leadership hgb. And you're a part of the class this year and y'all had a big event planned. The next one, I had to get scrapped because of everything that's going on. But your group in your class just pivoted so beautifully to really attend to what's going on in our community. So I want you to talk a little bit about how it affects you, but what you've been doing to help those around us. Sure, sure. So um, yesterday, you know, worse I'm a salon and permanent makeup company. So yesterday we find out that we had to close the shut down, so Okay, no more livelihood. Don't have the option of unemployment. So, you know, there's a little bit of that fear factor, but I've really been through this whole thing kind of tapped into books and motivational podcasts and things to just kind of get my mindset, right, because you know how that goes. But I refuse to let the devil get me and let him fill me the women are so I honestly feel way more calm than I thought I would, knowing, knowing what's going on. And it helps me to help other people during this time too. So our group has put together another group that basically, we currently call it Corona virus. Press help us here AGV. So for this whole ATV area, and let me tell you a little bit about the project that we started off with. There was a mirror a wall that was painted on next to a company where some Hispanic people owned it and somebody graffiti I hate Mexicans on the wall. So our proud our program was to create a mural, which we did. And it looks amazing. The mural is the map of the HTV area. And we painted over the I hate Mexican. And it just turned out to be so beautiful. Unfortunately, we don't get to show it off yet, but we will eventually. But it is a great reminder of all the community resources that are available in the area. So our secondary thing was to have community resource fair at the same time for the mural unveiling. So instead of doing that, and on this coronavirus, hgb we took it virtual since we cannot really be together. Um, and basically we set out you know, different resources for people what's available, we set up you know, grocery updates and activity websites and all the different things that our community could come together and we made it a needs profile, so we can help those and there's another side project to where we set up little news people Paper stands and put products in there like toilet paper and toothpaste and and just some resources for people to just grab if they need it and also where people can donate goods as well. So it's been really good to help kind of take my mind off that of what's going on around me and helping others. Well, let me see what what's the HTV stand for? GPS you list Bedford? Okay. I thought much better the three cities. Yeah. So it's kind of like our little suburb area. Yeah. Yep. I just want to make sure I knew that was Sam. Yeah. And one of the one of the beautiful parts of it is if you're talking and somebody asked a question about the corona virus or different things like that, they don't want a lot of speculation in the group. One of the rules is the group is to cite your cite your source. So we just we want to make sure that we're citing our sources at all times. So that right there is huge for turning that to for what they're doing, because, you know, everybody can go out there and speculate and do random what is a conspiracy theorist? A lot of that there there is a lot of that so and I think john even said it today he goes first off if the media is your source you need to get a different source World Health Organization to you know, CDC go to places and get get it straight, quote unquote, from the horse's mouth so yeah, so Janet, what about your world? How is things going in your world? I know you've got a little space between the all the normal most of the time Yeah, well, there's still lines that are Sam's and there's still lines in our stores and people are still hoarding the toilet paper. And so I our little group, we we set up in the basement and we social distance to each other enough, but we're making masks You know, the ladies can so I can't so but we're cutting. We're doing okay. I mean, I'm so grateful for the you know, we have our phones and we can still talk and have this group and zoom and Facebook each other and FaceTime each other. I mean, what, what would we you know, I'm so grateful. I'm so grateful for that because emotionally and you know, if it all goes down, we're all gonna, it's gonna be a little more difficult, but this way we can stay connected and so I'm grateful that we have that, you know, that's really good. As far as I can see, we're a bunch of can i say i'm not going to use curse words but really a bunch of really tough American women. And that's starting to come out we have this Christian toughness I don't even know the warrior divas perfect because I just see a bunch of Lady she's got it together. You know, they, you know, people are sick people are isolated, you know, but they're still just kind of keeping it together and I'm just really proud of the people that I know in my life. I know there's other people who are struggling financially lost jobs, and they're still, you know, just carrying on helping their neighbor. It's just incredible, really incredible to watch. So I'm blessed in that regard because all I see is good stuff. That's all I see. I don't see any nonsense yet. So I'm grateful I got tickled watching the Facebook means or something the other day one of the guys goes I don't even know why we still have farmers and all that stuff. Why don't they just go to the store and buy this stuff that they want from the store? And then somebody else's if we have to, if we have to hunt for our food, I don't even know where Doritos lives. And you know, I love the tongue and cheek of it, but it's because of that tongue in cheek. I've had people reach out to me and going Hey, could you tell me how do I make mac and cheese with ah crap. You know, they need to know how to make their Is what mac and cheese they know they've got the ingredients for it they just don't know how to put it all together so you know trying to be some of those women that has some of these answers together not just mean not just you yeah but you know how to be creative and like my guests on my leading moment show on Thursday said he goes Guess what? He goes the store still have plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables on the shelves, because everybody's buying all the junk food all the company. Now don't eat junk food. You can. Yeah, and then another thing he brought up that misty I was going to tell you might be I'll send you a picture for it. That might be a good thing to post in your group was if it's got the wick symbol on it, that the women and children that are eating off of that wick that's only the only cheese and milk and eggs and things that they can buy cereal that they can buy. So if you have a choice, choose something other than that, but don't wipe Yeah, the witnesses are limited. That sounds like that is just huge. So I've been repeating that and shouting that as often as I can. So I just I took a picture of one of the wick signs the other day and said we need to post about this and I have it That's good. So I'll send you the picture lets you post about it and then I'll share it in post about it too. So all right, Stacy. So you're kind of in the same boat that misty is in yesterday, six o'clock and a face to face interaction. And then you know, what, what are you going to be doing? How are you emotionally handling this pivot? Well, I had already made the decision on Thursday or Friday that I was going to close before before we were closed. Because I have employees that have children. I'm all of them. But most of my people because I'm an anti aging are older. They shouldn't be coming to see me. Some of them are secret still mentioned He's messaging me, Hey, I'm working from home, can you can you get that treatment done to my eyes and we won't tell anybody, you know, just show up at the office. I still have that going on, because people want still want to get their stuff done. But I mean, I'm a mom and I have four children, I really don't need to get sick, what are they gonna do without me. And in the grand scheme of things, I have a roof over my head, I have food, even if my my business falls apart, which it won't. And I need to be here for my kids and my family. They're the most important thing. So I had already chosen, but I have gone through many different emotions throughout the last couple of weeks. I was kind of in the know about certain things beforehand because my brother works for a city and he's in a director position. So he was telling me about closed downs before they were starting to be announced. And so I was wearing before everybody else and I feel good right now I feel the things that I feel are like, I'm excited that I'm going to get to see my kids. I'm a working mom. I'm a mom that has owned a business for almost 20 years. So I have been busy. This whole time. My kids don't see me as much as some other moms get to get to see their kids. My kids are very what they were asking yesterday, where are you home so early? You know, why did you What's going on? Why is mom here? And so I'm anxious to see what it's going to be like when I'm here the entire week with him because, you know, they, they don't they only have that when I'm on vacation. I'm anxious to see I'm anxious to cook food. You know, I because I own a spa. I come home later. So sometimes a lot of times our food is you know what Costco made that my husband gets put in the oven before I got here. So I'm excited about getting to make some things and getting to do some art projects. That's what I'm Putting my focus in. Now I know, I have a list of things that I can get done remotely, to move my business forward. But every time I think about my list, I also think about, I know that I'm going to be okay. What can I do to help people that are probably not going to be okay? Yeah, that's good. There's so many people that work in a restaurant that are paycheck to paycheck. You know, I have a business savings account. I can cover my bills for a while. at my office. My husband works from home. He we're not going to lose any income from him at all. So what can I do to help other people? That's what I've been thinking about. Yeah. But I, I mean, I'm my, my biggest fear is, I don't know how to not be busy. I know I was thinking the same thing. I think how do I think that problem So maybe I can figure out how to be busy doing more things that are fun. The other thing that I think all of us are going to figure out how to be busy at home organizing and whatever else we can think of. We should people like me and Missy who take care of people all day long. We don't take care of ourselves as much. Right? So we should probably think about doing some self care. Mm hmm. Already on that? Yeah. Are you? Mm hmm. No, I watched your list. I can say I can tell you that. I used to be super busy. And I'm not super busy. Now. As much as I was when I lived in Texas. Also, I've had six months of my husband being retired at home. How's that? Because I'm worried about two weeks in with my husband. And there is an adjustment and he's a I'm married to a really nice man. It's still an adjustment. So you will have those moments, right, honestly. And I just say, I'm gonna go in my room and be by myself, you know, I just take that time, but you learn to do other things when you're not busy working or taking care of kids, like, I still help with my grandkids too. So, you know, I'm trying to do art projects and find things. I mean, I've already raised my kids and I'm having to rethink how do I do all this care at home for these kids. And so, but the business that you have when you're outside working versus coming home, I will say it's an adjustment but you're you guys are creative women, and you're hard working and so you're going to find things to fill your time you think, Oh, I'm gonna retired and I'm not gonna be as busy. That's not true. You just find different things to do because you're productive and because you like helping and because you like doing, you will find other things to do. I mean, that's just, it's God's good that way. He does give us other things and God help us all might instead of hit water, you might have to have some wine and let's be honest Vodka, I'm just kidding. Really. wine, take yourself, take your bath. But you know, God's gonna give you what you need when you need it. I mean, it's amazing. So you think I'm gonna have all this free time no other people are gonna come and look to you for things they're gonna call you. They call you and come to you because they know they can't. And they know you're going to answer they know you're going to cry with them when they cry, and you're gonna laugh when they laugh. And they know that if they call you you'll answer Now, I'm not saying being emotionally available for everybody all the time, but you find new things to do is I guess the point, you know, and and what you said God will find what you need when you need it. So the past probably three or four months, I've been training a new employee and then my employee of nine or 10 years is moving on and it's been really difficult. I've been working six, seven days a week, so maybe this is what I needed. Trying to stay home a little. I think the Lord, the Lord's just sending an adjustment, you know, we've been prepared for this time, as a time we're all prepared for this time we've been placed here. It's not a coincidence that we're all women and Esther's at this time. And you know, you'll find your inner Esther, and you'll, you know, God's gonna put people in front of us, and he's going to give us what we need when we need it. And even if you're a single mom, and you ask for help, just ask for help, because this older ladies are willing to, you know, even if, you know, we, we can watch them on a park bench. We don't have to, we don't have to be in the same room with them. But we can actually watch a kid for an hour or whatever. I mean, you can do that outside. We don't you can, you know, you can do that. So that'll work. Well. And I think another thing that a lot of people don't think about is because we have had this happen in the middle of all the social technology we have you're really not as alone as you could have been. So we have a lot of resources to reach out to talk to ask questions. And you can do it in private message, you can do it over email, you can do it on a Facebook post, whatever it is. And we met I went to a event last fall, where they talked about it was last fall last summer sometime where they were talking about abusive relationships. And I'm going to bring it up during this part because we're about shifting to family dynamics. And, you know, I'm married to a great guy. We've been in business together for seven years. I had my own business before that, but he's had his plumbing business for seven years. So we've worked together. So being home alone together hasn't really sunk into us. And he's part of the essential forces so it he probably won't be home as much as some of the other ones. But on the other side of it, there are women that are trapped at home. home with their monster, there are children that are trapped at home with their monster. So my my point to all this is, is if you're a woman, and you're listening to this, and you're trapped in a situation like that, we are the women that are saying, you can reach out to us, we are the Oregon, saying you can reach out to us. We want you to get stronger. We want to help you get a plan together, we want to get you out of that situation. We will pull all of our resources together to help with that. But we have to know that's what you're involved in and what's what's going on. And we don't want to put you in a date a more dangerous situation while you're trying to get out of that situation. So we will help find ways to do that safely for you and everyone involved. So, again, that's a little side note, but I feel it's important because when we start talking a lot down, you know, that's, I mean holidays is when domestic violence calls go up. It's just Police statistics statistics see YouTube can be a professional speaker. It is a real life statistic that that's when they go up. So it's it's something that I'm not hearing any of the media talk about or any of the police departments talk about. I'm hearing about the police departments being exposed to things and police forces dwindling because of all this. So therefore, it behooves us as warrior divas to do what we can and do our part and be that resource for women. So Alright, so we're going to talk about families you know, we're kind of almost empty nesters. Now, every time we think we're empty nester, one bounce back. I don't know what it is for Allie and cannon and the twins live a little bit down the road but they were here yesterday and they and today doing laundry because their washer and dryers best. It's so kicked them all out of the house before we got on the call tonight and then set myself to a shop to do some what we call arts and crafts time. So mainly I just need a girl time. We all need Girl. Girl time we all get it. How are you? How are you planning to balance the family time with your work time or with your own? Your own sanity? Like Janet hiding in a closet. No, no. So who wants to go first on that one? Don't everybody speak it? Well, I will. And I don't really have I decided since today was my first like real day off in the quarantine and that I was gonna relax today and just enjoy the day with my family. And you know, we ran real quick to the salon. I grabbed all the essentials that I could do self care on myself. So when it's not podcasting I'm gonna do some micro needling and you know things to make myself feel better and look better to, why not? before you make before you make decisions, make sure we talk about the other procedures that we need to do because we need to put them in. Okay? Put them in the calendar. That's where I was going with this is I'm going to kind of create, you know, a plan each day, I'm like, we're gonna work out we're gonna, all those things I'm not doing right now. That's what we're getting. And I would really like to take the time, like even a family workout and you know, spend some more time doing yoga, which I haven't done in a really long time, but I enjoy. So and I get to do more cooking because I'd actually like cooking for my family and things like that. So all of those are, I'm kind of excited. I told my my kids yesterday, I was like, Hey, guys, I'm gonna be home for like, at least three weeks, you know, probably. And my younger son was like, yeah, you know, he really misses me but my older one is He's like, he could care less to be honest. He's like, I'm in my room playing video games with everyone else. So it's pretty much the same dynamic. I have a feeling that my, my spouse will be probably quarantined as of Monday I'm thinking because he works in Dallas County. And they've, you know, done the whole, what is it, um, shelter you have to stay in your, in your house, basically. So, um, I have a feeling they'll be closed on Monday. So then he'll be home and we're not used to seeing each other all the time, even though I love him and adore him. And we're probably gonna have to keep our space social distancing to know. Like you do your thing and go play watch your car shows and I'll go do my thing and work for a little bit. Because I plan on not stop working. I do have things in place for that. So maybe spend a few times a few hours a day working and a few few hours a day spending extra time with my family. The new normal right the new normal Yeah. Yeah. Well Scott actually started working from home last week. So with me being immunocompromised he had got special permission to already work from home once this kind of started blowing up the week before so um, we've had a week now to adjust and so I have you know, my office downstairs, we set him up, his office is upstairs and with the door he can shut and it's gone real well except, you know, the 10 year old who doesn't understand that you know, she's used to when Daddy's home he's played ad so he's fun dad. So he getting her to understand that daddy's actually working eight to five, Monday through Friday and and what those boundaries are kinda look at I think it's been a harder adjustment on Avery than it actually has. Me and Scott to be honest with you, um, one thing I thought was funny in our world is trying to leave God outside if it's sunny we we've gone for walks, we walked three days last week, we went outside and walked, walked to the park, trying to let her play and be a kid. You know, everyone's gone home school crazy. And we just decided, you know, she's gonna learn if she's not missing anything. You know, we did a couple of things, but we just sort of let her be at home and learn how to FaceTime friends like this, this whole environments different for her and I think it's harder on a nine year old, who's used to that consistent schedule. If I get up I go to school. I'm at school till this time and then I have my activities and then boom, it's like spring break, and then everything she does got canceled. So for us, I think it was just letting her have a week to just downshift and deal with that emotional impact without dumping. Now learn. Honor, you know, so I think this week will be an interesting week and how do we now sort of bring in to all this mix the homeschool thing and make sure she doesn't fall too behind? And I just don't intend on being too overbearing about it. And maybe I'm maybe I'm weird that way, but I figured she's ahead. She's smart. Let her just kind of enjoy what she can and do. I mean, do the things they're going to ask you to do but i'm not i'm just not I always said I was arts and crafts. Mom, not school mom. So, you know, like who which one of us can even teach Common Core math. Let's just be honest about that. Like, I can't. So there's only gonna be so much as a mom, I can do anyway because I know. I'm not trained as an educator. So I feel like you guys need to quit coughing I'm getting nervous now. Far away. We're social distance. We're good. All right. Yeah. Well, well, Stacy, what about your kids? You've got school aged kids as well. How are they have they hasn't even hit them yet that they don't have school. And yes, let me talk. You know, I have two sets of kids. So I have a kid that's 29 and 19. And then I have kids that are nine and eight. So and I'm still a mom to both sets. It's a kind of separate though, because the two the 29 and the 19 year old just moved in together in a tent. To an apartment in Bedford, they really like it. And so like I've been helping them I was there yesterday still unboxing stuff. They've been there a month but they have some boxes that they still haven't unlocked. And one of them I will not say which one was waiting for mommy to come by and not the younger one to help him get his stuff on. I mean I'm still momming them I'm still I'm telling them to stay home I brought some masks and some gloves and some Lysol to their apartment yesterday. It's two boys. So having to be mom still mom them even though they're older without being overbearing, and they have been staying home though I'm so excited for them. Because usually they don't listen. And I I kind of taught them the things that they need to do for cleaning. And if they do have to go somewhere like you're not supposed, like even touching the thing when you're done. Getting gas, you really shouldn't be touching that you need to put so that's why I bought brought them some gloves, throw the gloves away after you get your gas before you get in your car. So I have that situation. And then here at my house I have my two girls that are nine, about to be nine and eight and set I'm sorry, eight and seven right now. They have for the entire week. They have been doing homeschool. But kind of haphazardly, you know. They've been doing prodigy and Adventure Time and ABC mouse. But starting tomorrow, they go to a charter school international leadership of Texas. They're actually going to be doing the zoom meetings and they're with their teachers. And we had to do all the technology today. They both they both their school was giving out Chromebooks to the students that don't already have them. We have Chromebooks. They we got them for cursive missed last year. My husband's in it. He thought they needed to learn how to use a mouse. So he bought them Chromebooks. And so they're going to start their zoom meetings. I'm worried about my eight year old because she's dyslexic. And she really needs some extra care. But her dyslexic teacher is going to be on zoom meetings with her too. So I'm excited to see how it's gonna happen because I know it's a new normal for them, too. They have this charter school has 20 schools throughout Texas. So they're doing the zoom meetings with all the schools at the same time. I'm wondering how smooth it's going to do the first day we'll see. And I'm still going to be doing some work also. I'm still going to be on my computer. I have an internship program that I'm working on for the Chamber of Commerce. And then recently, we still have right you can we have time to work on that missing. And then Angie and I are also we are on the leadership Alumni Association, the same leadership class that misty is currently in. Angie and I have already been through the leadership program. And we are on this leadership, steering leadership alumni steering committee. So we're going to try to help put social media together helps steer our alumni helps steer our alumni, we can make sure that our alumni stay still engaged in the chamber after they've gone through leadership. We want our alumni to be leaders in the community. We want our alumni to be part of boards, board of directors in hcb area, and we want them to be the leader. So Angie and I are trying to figure out how to still work on that. A little foreign to them and and challenge them both a little bit. And so I'm going to be working on that and then I like I said, I don't know what I'm going to be doing here. busy. I don't I'm going to keep myself busy doing things I'm not sure how it's gonna go. It's It's my mind is like, do I set up a whole plan of all of these art projects that we're going to get done? Do I cook like so many meals? I haven't decided which things I want to be busy doing. I know. I'm going to figure out how to be busy though. Oh, yeah, yeah, I think we all figure that out really easily, don't we? Yeah, yes. What about you, Misty? Oh, how to how to figure out how to not be busy. Well, what about the kids? What are they doing and shifting through right now? How are they? How are they still on spring break. So they really are, and Burnsville has not figured out what they're doing yet. They're trying Monday, we're supposed to pick up Chromebooks for those who don't have access to social media or like tablets or internet and that type of thing. So we're we're just waiting for them to give us more direction. Right now they're just having a free for all to be honest with you. They're playing video games are eating all the snacks you know that a house in the home that have a 12 year old and a 17 year old boy and then a seven year old stepdaughter so she's here this weekend hanging out with us and that's really cool because normally we don't get to have her all weekend we only get to have our own Sundays and one one night during the week so this will be some extra time we can all spend with her too. Also, I just signed up enough to do the snap ology Lego daily challenge. You seen those but so he made the pirate ship today with his Lego so those are things trying to keep him busy, but they're bored already. I think. Yeah. Well Janet, you're kind of like me, you you've kind of moved on from the little kids at home but you also have grandkids that are around and I know I know Alyssa was doing homeschooling so but Alyssa is also expecting to So that's how I'm a baby in about eight weeks. Yeah, so you're gonna be probably doing some pitch hitting won't Yeah. So yeah, it's it's that new that grandma role which I have adult children, that's still the mean, which I can totally relate to. which is way, way more than I thought it would ever be. It's kind of interesting, but I will say it's just a blessing to have grandkids and we're expecting a new baby boy and I've been able to hear somebody come in here now that I'm talking about these grandkids. And I'm surprised they haven't come in yet. Honestly, I am too hot. And so I don't know. We're finding new things to do. I'm, I'm stealing all the ideas on Facebook and people are putting so many amazing ideas out there. We're doing all that we're just praying for some warm weather. So we can kind of get outside here in Kansas. It's still really cold. We have one nice day and then we have three or four bad days. So I'm waiting for that. But I think getting outside helps you guys. We're not we can get outside, we're allowed to go outside. It's like you can't get outside. I think sort of everybody doing the electronics, take a walk, do something get outside, it's healthy and mentally. And I know one of the small towns here, they were putting the bear the stuffed bears in the windows so that people could go around and find the bears the little kids, find the bears. But find something to do, you know, go on a scavenger hunt, and give them a list of things to go outside. outside. Is that your best bet for a while even if it's cold go outside. I mean, that's, we've missed having our kids outside, they're in school all day. You know, they go do things all day. Now you have an opportunity to kind of reset, like kimsey word, you know, reset, it was a reset, that we use that restart. We said, yeah. Yeah, we had to reset after 911 and we survived all that economically. And we you know, we lost a A lot of stuff after 911 My husband was a pilot that got, you know, furloughed and, you know, this too will all pass but go outside. I mean, family wise, mentally wise, you know, do something outside and you know, the sunshine is good for you the virus dies at 180 degrees I don't know. Right? It's vitamin D and vitamin C are anti viral and so mentally get out some put it on your list to go outside every day and take a walk, do what you have to do, but get them outside. I think it's important. Well, part of the arts and crafts Mike's doing is I bought a boat last summer that's my boat. It's not his boat. It's my boat. It's it can be ours but it's my boat. And so he was just doing some of the last minute touches to make sure it was boat ready because that's one thing we can do. We can go out on the lake we can go in that's socially distances you from quite a few people just being out on the lake. One of the other things that I'm glad you brought up the 911 thing because I've been thinking a lot about that this week. You know, there's a our kids Janet's and my kids and they see you've got one up there too. They were born. And they were in school when 911 happened, you know, so they, Janet and I have children that serve in our country and And me too. I'm a part of a military moms group that has paratroopers that are coming back to the states that are going straight into quarantine. They're not getting the big welcome home. They're not getting all of the pomp and circumstance that goes on with that they're going here's a tent and they're like, I just came from a tent. So the ones that go through the tent, they they're, they're putting them into isolation, barracks and things like that. But you know, Cody, my son is supposed To be leaving the country at some point this week, I was supposed to be in Orlando from Friday until this following this coming Friday, from last Friday till this coming Friday. And then I was going over to spend time with Cody at his duty station before he left the country for six months. And so I had to change tickets. And as I'm changing the tickets, I'm already having the emotions well up about 911. I came out of nowhere. And when the when the planes stopped flying, I didn't sleep for those three days. Because I was I've grown up in ulis. I'm so used to hearing the planes fly, that when the planes weren't flying, it was eerily deafening to me. Yeah, so when the first pilot took off from DFW Airport, I was one of them out there with the guy that had the big American flag and we were listening to the air traffic controllers, talk to the pilots and send them off. And, and so we knew when that happened that our world was forever changed. And we're already we've we immediately saw changes in how security was done and how things were handled security on the cockpit doors, TSA, all of that immediately changed. And one of my friends that's a writer and manages a lot of freelance writers for Thomas Nelson publishing, put out a suggestion the other day to start making notes of the things that you see that may be changing. And I thought that was a really good thing. So in the industry, you're in, in the in your child's life, what was something that was so normal, a week, a month last year, that is either not going to be around or something abnormal. Moving forward, we've been talking about putting Chromebooks and students hands in every student having a laptop or a tablet for years. And it takes a crisis like this to realize that we should have stopped talking about it and just done it. You know, so what does that look like? What are some of the things? I'm going to throw out? One of the things that I thought that I've already thought of with universal pushing movies straight to DVD, I mean, not DVD but DVR, straight to the streaming services, there may not be a major need for theaters anymore. Big Box theaters, wow. At least a drastically reduced number of them. So what's something that you can look at that you're looking at now and you can start thinking maybe it's going to shift medical supplies. Right now China makes most of our medical supplies and I was told by someone who their company, she's a salesperson for the company that that supplies hospitals. And before like, she was telling me Probably, I don't know, a month and a half two months ago. Make sure you buy all the needles that you're going to need for the next year by all the gloves you're going to need for the next year. She said, we're not even telling our hospitals this yet. But there's one ship coming from China right now full of medical supplies, and that's the last one for a while. She said it, it's going to be changed for an entire year. And because they're not working, they're not able to work. They're not making medical supplies. And so now we see here, we are incredibly dependent on China. medical supplies also they they do a lot of our medication too. They do a lot of our What is it called? The one that is not the brand name. Generic Jay did a lot of our generics. And we might run out of certain medications because they do a lot of our generics. They make most of our Tylenol Not the time, like the generic Tylenol, they make most of our generic generic Tylenol. So what I see 85% of her antibiotics, right? So like, we change that, hopefully we change it, we learned the hard lesson and we change it now, well, then I was thinking ramp up, you know, we just ramp up and we do what we do. You know, hopefully that's gonna happen. Well, and we the, the other issue is, are we willing to pay more for it, because the labor in China is much cheaper. And if we make it here, we're going to have to pay our workers enough. So that we can, it will have to pay a little bit more for it because we have to pay our workers so that they can live in the United States. So that's an issue. But I think that we were as a country, we're going to have to look at all the things that were dependent on other countries, and we're going to have to see what we can do to not have this happen to us again. Yeah, Misty Kim. What do y'all have to say? Something that Scott and I were talking about is how, like we had never done online grocery shopping. Like you know, I buy stuff from Amazon but I'm talking about like, ordering your food from like imperfect foods calm or like ordering all your meat from Purdue farms.com like changing the way you grocery shop like we have had, cuz I'm immunocompromised and it's not good for us to get out at all. I'm in that super, super crazy high risk group. So we've been having delivery, delivering all our groceries and like today, we got an email from one service saying that they've had to suspend new members because they're so overloaded right now with new people and I'm thinking wow, this this could come pletely change the grocery store industry because we're so used to going out to the grocery store to get stuff and how many of us will come to realize that we like having stuff delivered on Friday because I go so far, I think it's great. It's not much more money than you know, going to the grocery store. And it's super convenient to order your groceries over three days, and then wham, it shows up at your door. So that was one thing we really thought about how this could really just be a societal change of just like people ordering groceries online, and then maybe there won't be a storefront on every corner the way you see now. Yeah, I think Walmart pickup is the best thing ever invented. Yeah, I love it. Well, like even before, if you haven't done that you need to start. No way. Don't Well in our neighborhood, we live in a older established neighborhood. And it was built when the in the 60s when people were coming in building the airport here, so a lot of pilots and air traffic controllers and things live in our neighborhood. And on our street. There's like three of us that are new newly to the neighborhood. The rest are all original homeowners. So it's it's an older generation and older demographic. And they've kind of gotten into the Facebook group and mastered that Facebook group but some of them are starting to get out there and master that online ordering. It's challenging them to be technology savvy right now. But the beautiful part is is those that are younger in the neighborhood that are going to the stores will say, I'm going to go to the store on Friday. If you have a pickup, put my name down, I'll pick it up for you still keeping some of our older neighborhood neighbors from going out into getting getting out and Not being where they don't need to be so it's really interesting then you talked about the bear thing the other day while ago we did the Shamrock challenge in our neighborhood for a scavenger hunt. And then we we started seeing the kids doing the chalk art out on the on the driveways sending positive messages to people. So you know, it's it's finding different things. Missy What do you think about you anything you can think of that shifting or changing that? Well, I see to like two sides of it, you know, you see the people that are kind of going crazy and taking advantage of the situation but then I also see more people being kind and you know, thinking of others before themselves and like the you know, compromised or the older people that they can they can help them you know, and even yesterday I had made a video on Facebook just letting everybody know I had to close down and you know that we'll be back and and you know Kind of reassuring them, but I got more reassurance for myself is like yes, you will be back and you're going to be stronger than ever. So just that support of people is just pretty amazing. I really have found that and I think it was always there but people are so busy. Yeah, that we don't take the time to share that stuff. So good, positive, that's a good positive thing. You know, if we just come back together, we were divided in a nation, maybe we'll come back together a little bit more. Seems like in times of crisis, that's what we do. Right? And I'm just do you remember after 911? After how, one day, the next day everyone had a flag out? Right? Everyone had a flag out, come together. Everyone was coming together. And maybe that's what is gonna happen right now. Because I'm seeing a lot of people want to do things for others more than ever. Well, and we're seeing we're seeing bipartisanship. up like we've never seen since 99. I mean, we're seeing a lot of things. They may not agree on a lot of the other things still, but they're putting that to the side, they're pushing all that to the side to be able to take care of a nation right now. And the the beautiful part is what I'm seeing on social media is, like you said, people are sharing positive encouraging messages to people. Especially when they see that they've got the resiliency to come back. You know, there's, there's, there's a few people that I know of that have gotten on Facebook and light of messages of what's happening in their area and stuff. And they're blasting you know, and you can tell they're angry and they're bitter and they're in there getting all it'll be okay or it's happening to everybody. You know, you're not in this alone and they're they're getting better back. It's, I guess the beauty thing I want to remind people is in times of crisis is when your squeeze I can't remember if john said or one of the other people said that the virtual thing that I shared with you all today, those sessions with john, he allowed us to share publicly. But behind that we've got all the other trainers that are part of the organization doing live videos with us all day long for the next three days. So I've been watching a bunch of videos live this week. But one of the things I said is when you're squeezed in a time of crisis, what's inside of you is going to come out and so you're getting on and good or bad. Yeah, good or bad. It's coming out. And the What are you made of? Are you made of a I'm defeated? This happened to me mentality Are you made of a you know, pull your bootstraps up Rosie the Riveter we can do it type mentality. And, you know, I'm a Rosie the Riveter lover. So yeah. You know, I'm one of those that I don't think this happens to us. I think we find ways to reinvent ourselves in and reestablish ourselves and we find times during this time to, to be leaders in that dark world we shine that light, we say, you know, you may not feel like you've got a safe place to go. I've got a wing right here. You can take shelter here and bit here a little bit. I'm going to push you out of this nest because you are going to fly even if you have to grow your wings on the way down. You are going to fly you know. And that's, that's what I get from the strong women. I surround myself and all four of you are the strong women I've surrounded myself. Janet has said it to me before there was tell somebody, what was it a while back. The when the twins were born, they just turned what six, so six years ago, I was kinda in the middle of it. I was Sleepless in Seattle or Bedford or her Wherever I was, I was, you know, brain numb. And I think Kim might be able to relate to this a little bit to it. I didn't know enough to reach out and ask for help at that time, because I was just doing what was in front of me. Yeah. And Janet said, you know, I've told she told me flat, because I've told you before, and I'll tell you again, all you have to do is ask for help, and help will be there. But I was still in my own mind of will these people relying on me, so I have to be the stopping point. I'm not the stopping point. I'm a flow through point. Yeah, that's good. We have to be reminded that we are a flow through point of the Holy Spirit of our love of what we fill ourselves with so that we can flow out to those that we are feeding and and loving and nurturing. And we can't nurture something if we are not in a nurturing mindset. It's so I used to imagine that A bunch of people that walk around those little squeezy stress balls, eyes and the ears pop. Like everybody is this Yeah. Yeah, you know, even me, I know I I've touched him with cam quite a bit right when she first got home I went and spent days there and stuff like that. But then even this week I went, Oh my god, it's been a week since we've texted What is going on? Why has she not reached out to me? Is everything okay? And her well, why haven't we gone to? Lee? I'm like, Okay, first off, am I being a bad friend? Am I this? Yeah. But I have to put all those negative things are behind and not say Well, I didn't talk to her this past week. She's probably mad at me because then those mental games will play and then you won't reach out and then you're emotionally distancing and isolating. And they're over there. Just going. No, thanks. It's been good. I was wondering where you're at. I just knew you'd circle around when you weren't busy again. And I was here like, Oh, well. How many I know I'm not the only one that has ever done this? Because I have heard other women tell me this. So, um, you know, as we're talking through some of the some of these, you know, I want to start looking at what are some of the best you have seen in people through this. This scenario, we talked a little bit about how our jobs are changing through all of this already. But you know, what, what are some of the best the most positive things that you've seen in people? Through this? We were What was it? Stacy, we were on a call the other day for the leadership alumni. And, you know, we've got some people on our steering committee who were on the front lines of this and they're just exhausted, right? When they're being told and I'm not saying who they are, where they're from, but when they're being told to pack a bag to bring to work because they don't know if they'll be able to go home. Right. You know, And this is just the beginning of what we're expecting to be a bigger surge and you know, so you know, what are some ways that you could you see positive coming out of it? I know there's other people that are what is it one groups donating every you can go on and put your beer order in. But if you put throw in an extra beer, a four pack or a six pack to your order and donate it to the Fort Bragg soldiers that are coming. That's hilarious. I'm like, okay, that's funny. But you know, what, what are some? What are some of the other things that you you're seeing and hearing? One of the one of the things that I thought was awesome, is we talked about it earlier is when our leadership htb, pivoted, and decided that they wanted to start a group to help the HIV community by posting the things that are most needed. And nobody told them they had to do that. Nobody told them that since their event was called closed down that they had to pivot, they just made a choice. And that's what happens whenever you start building leaders is they lead and that's what they did. So the first thing that I did when I was probably the seventh person invited in the group, and if you guys don't know, I am the, the sponsor of that group. So yes, I am the sponsor of leadership. So she's, she's a black, so I'm like, no, no. So I'm like, when I when I look at it, when I see them doing such great things, I get very excited because I'm invested into it right now. I get so excited about creating leaders and when whenever I get to help, and this is what they decide to do, I'm excited. So I was like, almost in tears, like, Oh, my God, look what, look what they're doing. And I immediately started texting. Rochelle Ross, who is the steering committee leader and said, Oh my god, do you see what they're doing? Like, this is great. Do you see What your Do you see what your what your teaching is making happen in our community? So that that's one of the biggest things that I've seen. And, you know, the last time I looked, I don't know how many people you have in the group now, but there was almost 1000 people in the group when I was blessed. Let me check Where's like under there was like, yeah, there was one I was looking it up 1.4. Okay, so what I mean, that's awesome. All of these people that all live in the HDB area, are able to look and they haven't categorized it into sections. So you can see restaurants you can see this you can see where you can get food, if you don't have food. You can see what food pantries are still are still giving you food. I mean, I just thought that that was so awesome. So that was one of the great things and if you look at the feeds inside the group, people that know nothing of what hcb leadership is are talking discussing. I invited one of my clients to the group who's been living in hers for like 30 years and she was very She posted something and she she got into message. Did you see how great my posts and to see all the people that were? So I mean, it's bringing people together. I thought that that was really awesome. And then and then I also see, like everyone is really trying to go to these mom and pop restaurants and buy food to go local. So I really love that I'm doing it also. But I think that that's great. Those are the things that I've noticed. Yeah. Here's another thing. You know, there's a lot of us who have diabetes, there's a lot of us who have high blood pressure. There's a lot of us who have asthma, those underlying health conditions that make getting the corona virus, you know, more dangerous for, you know, it's going to be more than a cold it could go wonky real quick. So what I've seen is just even after two months of friends and church ladies and just people rallying around my family through the heart stuff you know we didn't want for a meal for about eight weeks. Um we had more food and we knew what to do with we had friends cleaning our house take down our Christmas decorations. I mean you name it it was we had handyman come over and help Scott with cocking a tub. I mean, just you name it, it was done. And those same people now who know that I'm immunocompromised are texting me. Hey, I'm going to Costco. Hey, I have a friend run into Sam's Can I drop food off at your front door. So I just think seeing how humans are so generous. And kind and sweet and people are sending me, you know, we're still sending you extra prayers during this time. Just even that is just so touching and and you know, it just got me thinking, How can I reach out no knowing I'm stuck at home so now I'm with food delivery service. I've texted my neighbors and I'm like, Hey, we're having food delivered on Friday. I'm placing an order this day. Do you guys need me to order you guys anything so trying to help in the way I can. But just if you're able and be mindful of your friends who might be having to isolate more that just even going to a grocery store puts them at risk, right? Because I can't really leave the house at this point then, you know, my husband is stuck and because if he goes out and gets it and brings it in. So being mindful of the immuno compromised and how just if you're going to the store check in, or if a neighbor has run out of toilet paper or needs eggs, be willing to go put it at their front door, just be mindful of that stuff. And I've just seen it in spades more than I can even say, we have felt so blessed and just seeing God's goodness through human beings in such ways I never expected over these last couple of months. Well, and that goes back to those boxes that you're putting out to missing because you know, there's some people that may never ask for help or want to go to a place and get help but that they can go open that box nonchalantly get out what they need are, you know, I had somebody what say, Well, I only had some beans. So I went and put the beans in the box and I grabbed the the whatever Else it was that they needed, you know, and I was like, well, that's awesome that that what you needed was in that box, you know, and maybe somebody else needed those beans, you know. So finding a way to love on people where they're at, you know, with whatever skills or talents you have. Janet, I'm gonna come to you next, but I'm going to preface it with this because on Monday, we were hearing a lot of people, Mike's one of Mike's friends from high school took one of those blue rolls of paper towels, and he is he makes knives, homemade knives. And so he cut one of those rolls in half and he goes, look, I'm making toilet paper, you know? And Mike's like, Yeah, go ahead and do that. Because, you know, once they start flushing that down the drains it's

The framework I use to build frameworks; and create content, courses and products. On this episode Russell gives an amazing run through how to teach with a framework of four simple steps. Here are some of the awesome things in this episode: What it means to teach a framework. What the difference is between strategy and tactic. And why a webinar only has three steps instead of four, and which step you skip. So listen here to find out how to teach effectively. ---Transcript--- What’s up everybody, this is Russell Brunson. Welcome back to the Marketing Secrets podcast. Today I am on my kids segway driving around in a circle in front of my yard. And it’s a beautiful day and I keep going around in circles thinking about life and things and I thought I got an idea, I’m going to share it with everybody today. So I hope you don’t mind, but with that said I’m going to be talking to you guys about a pattern to help create better content, better courses, better products, and all around make you more prolific and make people stick around to listen to you over and over and over again. So let’s queue up the theme song, I’ll be right back. Alright, so my wife and I had this amazing experience last week to go out to Stacy and Paul’s relationship breakthrough retreat in New Jersey, which is fun because I served my mission for my church in New Jersey, so I lived there for two years, and it’s the first time I’ve really been back since then. So it was kind of fun to go to Jersey. But even more fun to go to an event as an attendee. So I sat there, and their, Stacy and Paul, if you know them, they spoke at Funnel Hacking Live, Stacy was onstage twice there and just someone who we met two years ago, she joined my inner circle and it’s been so much fun watching their growth and I love what they teach and what they do, and I wanted to go and help strengthen my relationship with my wife, my kids, my employees, people around me. And it was amazing. Anyway, that was awesome. I was sitting there watching them teach and it was fun because I know how I teach and everyone’s got different teaching styles, but I was watching some of the similarities, and some things they do the same as me, some things they do different. But one thing that was like the core foundation that they do, that I do, that I think most great teachers do, is that they each have their own framework. So Stacy and Paul will have their framework for what demand a relationship is, and how to break that. And then they have their framework for masculine and feminine and the framework for all these different things. And their course is teaching these different frameworks they kind of created, which is very similar to me. You look at the dotcom secrets book, it’s a whole bunch of different frameworks. Every framework for me has a doodle, because I’m a doodler. So it’s like, here’s the framework, here’s the doodle, and I teach off the doodle. You know, all the books I’ve written are that way, most of the trainings I do it that way, and the courses and all the stuff is usually based off of a framework. And for any of you guys who are creating info products or courses or teaching or anything, I’m curious, do you have your own framework? If not there’s the big sign. You have to have a framework. What’s your unique proprietary way you teach something? So framework can be anything, you know Stacy and Paul it’s usually like, the five step system to blah. And mine is always like, here’s the doodle and let me explain it. And I explain all the different pieces of the doodle until you have this visual picture. And what’s nice when you have a framework is people can then take that framework and it locks into their brain. So for me, if you look at any of the doodles in my books, if you’ve read the books and I’ve explained the framework, you look at that and you’re like, “Oh yeah, that’s the framework. That’s the secret formula. There’s the perfect webinar. There’s the heroes two journeys.” All the different frameworks I teach all for me are doodles. They don’t have to be doodles, but that’s how I do my frameworks, right. So the framework is there. I remember two years ago I was at this mastermind meeting and Brendon Burchard was there, and Brendon was teaching his 7 day launch strategy and he was drawing up on the whiteboard as he’s explaining it, and he keeps coming back to it. And I remember he said something, he said, “Your framework’s your savior. You have your framework, you’re teaching, if you get stuck you look back at your framework like, oh yeah, this is where I left off, this is where I left off.” And it’s interesting for me, I can teach a two minute YouTube video on any of my frameworks, but I can also teach a two hour event, or a two day seminar on any of my frameworks, it’s just how much detail do I go into it. “Here’s the doodle, let me explain it real quick. Boom, you got it. Or let me explain step number one, then let me tell you a story, then we go deeper into the story, and then let me show you examples.” So you can go deeper and deeper and deeper into a framework. So what’s nice, when you have a framework, if someone’s like, “Okay, you’ve got a ten minute presentation, can you do it?” I’m like, “Yes.” Or “hey, I need you to do a two day event on this, can you do it?” “Yes.” The answer is yes both times because I just take the framework and then how deep you elaborate is the only difference.  I learned that actually when I was, I remember, where was I? Oh it was before I went on my mission to New Jersey, I had a teacher and he talked about how do you actually give a talk in church? In my church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the members, there’s no pastor that gets paid to speak, so every single week they pick somebody else from the congregation, “You’re teaching this week on faith or on Christ or whatever.” So you gotta get up, so what he taught is basically the same thing. You make a framework and then the framework is like, here are the 4 things I’m going to talk about, or the 6 things or the 8 things or whatever,  and then you just teach it. And if you’ve got 3 mintues then you just teach it really fast. If you’ve got 30 minutes you fill in stories and examples, but the framework stays the same. So that concept of framework is huge, so that’s the first step here, is having this framework. So the next step that I would look at for you, I was doodling this out the other day, I was like, “How do I teach my frameworks?” And I’m probably doing it right now, and it’s one of those things that you do it for so long it becomes just the habit of how you speak. So I was trying to sit down and reverse engineer it, how do I do it? A lot of this stuff didn’t come for me from reading a book, it came from me standing on stage for the last 15 years teaching concepts over and over again. The first few times, nobody understanding, then getting a little better and a little better. Just the tweaks and the changes that happen as you get better at becoming a teacher. You know what’s funny that reminds me of? I’m not sure if you guys know Rachel Hollis, but she’s awesome. She’s like the biggest social influencer in the world right now, her books are selling like crazy and she’s awesome. I had a chance to hang out with them in Puerto Rico a little while ago, but what’s cool is that Collette and I went and watched their, they have a documentary, I think it’s called Built for More. And in the documentary she showed her, the ten years before she became Rachel Hollis speaking, she’s on front of the stage with note cards, nervously looking at note cards as she’s talking. And you know, now you see her onstage and she’s up there with 75,000 women jumping and screaming and she’s in her zone. But it started with her nervously looking at note cards. For me it was the same thing, it was me awkwardly in my shirt and tie and glasses and my shaved head, standing in front of people trying to get them to understand the concepts, explaining them over and over and over. And figuring out new ways to tell the story, new ways to do it, new ways to do it, until the point where I am now. And I’m not saying I’m the end all, be all. I’m sure I’ll continue to evolve and grow as I keep playing this game, and keep having fun teaching and educating and coaching. But as I was sitting down this weekend during Stacy and Paul’s event, I was trying to think through, “how do I teach concepts?” and I wrote down these things, first step is the framework, here’s the framework of what we’re going to be teaching, like I just explained. And the second step is, I tell a story, what’s the story? And the story is how did I discover this piece of the framework? That’s the initial story. What I see people do, the mistake they make a lot of times, “Step number one is this.” And start teaching it. The problem is if you just teach a concept people are like, “Oh, cool.” And they don’t take the, they don’t value the concept enough yet. So for you, you’ve got to take them on a journey like, “Let me tell you what I had to go through to get this nugget for you. And now he’s telling the story of how I got there. In fact, this podcast, I wasn’t trying to do this consciously, but how did I lead this podcast? I told you guys the story of my mission and of understanding frameworks, I went through the whole journey of how I understood this concept of framework. And by my taking on this journey, of what I had to go through, the pains I had to go through to discover and learn this key, then all the sudden you’re like, “Oh my gosh, now I value the thing that will come next.” So if you don’t tell the origin story of how you learned the thing, people just don’t value it. They’re like, ‘Oh yeah of course. That’s the thing, you need a framework Russell. That makes sense.’ No, you missed it. You heard me say it but you missed it because I didn’t build up the value in the journey I had to go through to discover this before I gave it to you. So I tell this story, build up the value, and now I’m like, boom, here’s this nugget. And the nugget is the framework, the nugget is whatever, whatever your thing is, the first step of your framework. Then the next phase, you move into the strategy. So the strategy, an easy way to remember this, this is the what. So what is it? Okay, let me tell you the what. So I explain the what and try to paint this picture, this is what it is. So I paint this beautiful picture and you’re like, “Oh cool, that is awesome.’ So you have the strategy, the what, you understand this is what it is. Then the third step now is you shift from strategy or the what to this is now the tactical, how do you do it. So I teach the concept of, here’s this thing called a framework, and now you understand, cool, I need a framework, now let me tell you how. And I walk you through the tactical. Step number one, which is holy crap, literally what I’m doing right now. I’m walking you through a four step tactical process. So I tell, ah, this is so cool. This is like a dream inside of a dream, I wasn’t planning on doing this, but this is so cool. So you tell the story of the pain you went through to discover the thing, then you share the what it is, the strategy, then you go into the how, which is the tactical step by step thing, which we’re doing right now. So number three is you telling the tactical step by step, this is how you do it. The difference between strategy and tactic, strategy is what is it, tactical is how do you do it. So I’m telling people how to do it. And then the third and last step then, is to show examples to create belief. So I explained it and like, let me show you guys some example. So for example, Stacy and Paul with their framework, they have this really cool framework that’s called Demand Relationship, which is the core foundation of their entire company. So when they got up they started talking about marriage and relationships and the problem and what’s wrong, and they go through this whole concept called demand relationship, and the problem, they shared that. And everyone’s like, “Oh my gosh, that’s what I’m doing. I have this problem with demand relationship.” And they get it, right. They have that aha and then from their they share the rest of their framework, which is like, this is the opposite of demand relationship, this is how we heal it. So that’s the four step strategy of how you do it. Step number one, tell the origin story about how you discovered the thing. Number two you share the what, the strategy of what it is, number three you show the tactical how-to of how it is, then number four you show examples of other people doing this in real life, so they can see it and be like, “Oh my gosh, this is so cool.” And it makes sense and solidifies it in their mind, they’ve seen other people doing it and now they believe it and they can actually believe that they can do it themselves. It’s funny, if you look at the one funnel away challenge, you know a lot of the, it’s crazy on a macro and micro. If you look at macro level, week number one is belief week, which is me telling the story of how I discovered this stuff. Week number two is the next week, we talk about the how, and then week three we go into the what, which is actually building the funnel. Then week number four… Anyway, it’s crazy. From a macro for four weeks of the one funnel away challenge, goes through this process. Then the micro each of the trainings are the same way. Initially, I do the first training, which we always tell people is the strategy, but really it’s me telling the story about how I figured out the strategy, then I share the strategy, then Julie Stoian comes in with videos showing the tactical, here’s how to do step one, step two, step three. And then Stephen comes into break the beliefs, share the story, share the examples, and push people to the next level. So dang, it works. Anyway, that gets me excited, I’m going to do a whole, I should do a whole training. This could become a whole book. See, now I can take that four step framework I just gave you guys and that could become a book, become a course, become a training, become a webinar, it could become a YouTube video, it could become all those things. One kind of interesting side note, if you look at the perfect webinar, how that framework is scripted. When you do a webinar and you’re selling somebody, you tell the origin stories, that’s step one. You tell the strategy of what they need to do, but you skip the third step, which is here’s how you do it. Whatever you’re selling is typically the third step. Like I remember when I was doing the first perfect webinar event, teaching that concept to everybody, a bunch of people in the room were getting stuck on it. And they were getting stuck like, “Russell you said don’t teach, but you’re teaching here.” And I was like, “You don’t understand, you teach…” I didn’t know how to answer it, and Kaelin Poulin who had been killing it with the perfect webinar, I think she was at that time at $10 million in sales from a perfect webinar, selling like a $150 product. She was like, “No, you don’t understand. On the webinar you teach the what, your product teaches the how.” So your webinar teaches the strategy, your course teaches the how to do it. So that part of the framework is left out, and that’s what drives them because they see, “Oh my gosh, get it, I need a funnel. I need a framework.” I need whatever the thing is, it’s like, “I need to do it. I don’t know how to do it. They need to tell me. I need to give them money to invest in the course to be able to learn how to actually do it.” So I wanted to give that as a framework for a lot of reasons, number one is it’s super useful. Number two, I use it in podcasts, I use it in trainings, I use it in videos, we use it in courses, we use it in so many different places. So for a lot of you guys, the question I get a lot of times is, “Hey, if I’m creating a course, what do I say? What do I teach? Do I just teach it?” It’s like, kind of, but you have to take a step back. Step one, build out your framework. Step two, teach a strategy. Step three, teach a tactical. Step four, show examples to build the belief. If each of your modules in your course has that, that is an amazing course. If each of your chapters in your book have that, that would become an amazing book. If each of the videos you post on youtube have that framework, it will become amazing. It’s just the framework that works. Anyway, I hope that helps you guys. That’s all I got. I’m going to go in and go play with my kids because it’s Saturday, and I think the battery on the little segway is dying now, so I hope this one helps you guys. If you love it and you got something from it, please take a screenshot of this, post it on Facebook, social media, instagram, wherever you post your stuff, tag me, and use #marketingsecrets. I love to see those comments, it’s really fun seeing those pop up in my feeds. And I do read all of them, so if you tag me it’ll show up in my feed and I’ll see it. So this is your time to have an audience with me, for me to listen to exactly what you want me to say. That’s basically the only way people can get through to me nowadays, because I basically shut off all other sources of communication, because there’s too many people trying to communicate with me. So that’s the best way, show up in my feed. And you do that by taking a picture, tagging me, and leaving a comment about what it was you got, the value you got, and I appreciate that. So thanks everybody, with that said, I’ll talk to you all soon. Bye everybody.

Sales And Belief – Behind the scenes of the two comma club awards, the two comma club presentation, and all the other cool things that happened on day #3. On today’s episode Russell recaps day three of Funnel Hacking Live 2019. Here are some of the amazing things you will hear in this episode: Find out what all the speakers spoke about. See what TV show everyone at the event was able to watch and how Clickfunnels is involved. And find out why the event is choreographed the way it is, and why they try to keep the order of speakers a little secret. So listen here to find out what happened on day 3 of Funnel Hacking Live 2019. ---Transcript--- What’s up everybody? This is Russell Brunson, welcome back to day number three of Funnel Hacking Live, the recap, the breakdown. I hope you enjoyed day number one and two. If you haven’t listened to those yet, go check out those, and then make sure you get your ticket at FunnelHackingLive.com, we’ve sold out every year in a row. And now you’ve got some time to start planning and preparing. So you might as well get your ticket now and then prepare your babysitting, get it on your calendar and all that kind of stuff. Because every single year people are like, “Oh if I would have known when it was happening, then I wouldn’t have missed it.” You know now, you have been warned. So get your ticket to Funnel Hacking Live. With that said, let’s queue up the theme song and I will see you guys in a second. Alright, welcome back. So day number one was deep into the foundation, day number two we talked about funnels and traffic and stuff like that, day number three, which was Friday, this is when we start getting into selling and the Two Comma Club and the future, which is really fun. So the way it started is the very first person up was Mr. Myron Golden and if you don’t know Myron, man, there are few people on this planet that, every time he talks it’s just like gold falls out of his mouth. I love him, I respect him, I’m so grateful for him. And he spoke about how to sell and he totally shifted people’s minds. And it’s interesting because a lot of people, he did this whole, I wish I could show you the whole presentation. Dang it, why weren’t you there? If you were there, thank you for being there. But he talked about how money is measured more in time than in wealth. He said that if you make a million bucks, are you rich? It depends on how fast you make it. He said if you make a million bucks in the next four years, that’s $25,000 a year, are you rich? No. but if you make a million dollars in the next 12 months, are you rich? Yes. It’s the same amount of money, but it’s the time. And it’s funny, he did this whole joke about, he’s like, that’s why when someone says, “Is this a get rich quick scheme?” He said, “It better be or I don’t want part of it, because I could make a million bucks in the next 40 years, or I can make it in the next year.” But it’s understanding that and just so many things breaking people’s mindset about what’s possible with money and wealth. Ugh, so cool. So Myron killed it as always. After that, Jim Edwards came out in a huge blow up unicorn outfit. It was interesting because his presentation was on copy right. In fact, his title was make them thirsty and then sell them a drink. That was the title of his presentation and he came out there and did his thing, but what’s interesting is, it was so cool because it was probably the most emotional presentation of the whole thing. I’m not going to try and tell the stories because I don’t want to ruin them. But he was telling stories about what money has made possible and how he was literally able to save his son’s life. It was amazing and emotional. And then afterwards he had me come back out onstage because, I can’t remember exactly, I’m probably going to mess up the story, and I apologize if Jim’s listening to this, but it was 8,700 something dollars of what he was making per year, back in the day. And then that’s how much he needed to help people. So he actually had me come out on stage and he gave me a check for the exact same amount to give to OUR, and it was just really symbolic of what’s possible when you do these things. Possible how money can change people’s lives, and it was really, really cool. So Jim killed it, people were crying and it was funny and fun and he’s just awesome. I love Jim. After that, then we had Eyana Golden and talk about email story selling. I wanted to do an email session for years, and I never have because we just haven’t, I don’t know, it just hasn’t worked right yet. But Eyana’s been in my inner circle with her boyfriend James for the last couple of years and always paid attention. She had her own business and other things, and recently, over the last year and a half, 2 years, she started writing emails for herself, like doing story selling emails and getting good at them. Then she started doing it for other people, then she did a bunch for me as well. She became really, really good at this. And I wanted people to hear for a couple of reasons. Number one, we need to become better story tellers, we need to become better at sending out emails, telling stories, and I think her presentation nailed that. The second part is, I think it’s interesting, and this is kind of like, she didn’t talk about this specifically, but I hope people kind of got this. There’s so many pieces in this business. There’s the traffic and funnels and design and email, and all these things. And she took just one piece of that, she took the piece of, “I’m going to become really good at email story selling.” And she geeked out on it and mastered it, studied it and became great at that one piece. And then she started doing that for herself and made more money. Then she started doing it for other people, and again I don’t know how much money she’s making right now, but a year ago when I was talking to her about it she’s like, “Yeah, I just passed $30,000 a month writing emails for people.” And I’m like, $30,000 a month as a person who just writes emails. That’s insane. For anybody, as you’re going through, if you were to learn one skill inside of Funnel Hacking Live, you can take that skill and become a master at it, and then charge people to do it for them for their funnels. That’s what Eyana did and has this huge thriving business now, writing emails for other people. Anyway, I wanted to share that for two reasons. Number one is the skill set to learn, number two is understanding, grasping that. Master one of these skills and become the expert at that, and it creates a whole new huge income streaming business for you. After Eyana got done, then Brendon Burchard went up. And it’s funny because Brendon, the last day we had him doing his high performance presentation, which is fun and high energy. And here he’s teaching a more nerdy funnel one, how he does his 7 day launch funnel. And I was like, “Man, my people will love you and respect you more if you do this first because then they understand you’re one of us. You do funnels just like us.” So he laid out the framework for his 7 day launch funnel, which was really cool. Same funnel that he taught this to me almost 2 years ago now. Actually it was 2 years from right now, this month. It was right when I was launching my Expert Secrets book. So we actually did the Expert Secrets book and then did the 7 day launch right afterwards. And we netted a quick million bucks from that. So he showed the whole funnel and walked it through, which was really cool as well. And then after that, then Miss Julie Stoian got up, and she gave a really special presentation, I was really excited for it. We called it Freelancers Secrets to how to start your own agency. How to, if you don’t have a business or a product yet, how do you start this game? How do you get this thing all kicked off? And you do it by starting your own agency. And she came and gave this presentation on how she started when she was a single mom and all these things and bills and all these problems. And what does she do? And she’s like, “Well, I learned these skills and then I started being a freelancer, and then I did for it other people. Then I made someone in the Two Comma Club. Then I started using the skills for my own things. And now I’m doing it for Russell’s company.” And she shared this whole journey. I think for most people they’re like, if you don’t know where to start, you start by being a freelancer. You start by doing that. That’s where you begin at. And she, the presentation was so good, I want to make everyone in our community watch it. It was so, so, so good. She just nailed it. And I felt bad for her, she was so funny. She’s like, after Brendon got done she’s like, “Why do I have to speak after Brendon? That’s not fair.” But she held her own and just killed it, it was amazing. So then after that, oh and she showed the trailer for a new TV show coming out called Freelancer Secrets, which is hilarious. So we showed that. Then everyone went to lunch and when they came back from lunch, we had two of the guys from JK studios, which if you ever watch Studio C, Studio C is like clean comedy. If you go to YouTube and just type in Studio C, it’s like the best comedy for your kids to watch. Every Sunday my kids are like, “I want to watch TV.” And we’re like, “You can only watch Studio C.” Because it’s like, I don’t know, 10 seasons of like clean sketch comedy. It’s amazing. But they recently, all the founders of Studio C ended up leaving and starting their own company called JK Studios and we sponsored their very first show and it’s called Freelancers Secrets and it’s kind of fun. So part of the sponsor thing, we get to weave Clickfunnels into some of the things they’re doing. They have one episode where they actually built a funnel inside of Clickfunnels. So they had the first episode done, so we actually got to show it. We had Matt Meese and Stacey Harkey actually come onstage and set up and tell about it, and we watched the episode. It was so funny, so awesome. So you’ll get to see 8 episodes this year of Freelancers, which is a TV show we’re sponsoring, an online TV show, and they weave Clickfunnels into it, which is so cool, so fun. Anyway, so that, we watched that with everybody. So that got done, then we did the presentations. And we started with the inner circle members, everyone who won inner circle member of the month came up onstage and we awarded inner circle member of the year, which was Dave Lindenbaum, which is awesome. Then after that we did our affiliate dream car winners, brought them onstage. And we did Two Comma Club award winners, and we had 200+ people come onstage and win a Two Comma Club. And then we did Two Comma Club X, which we had a new 25, I can’t remember the exact numbers, 25 people won Two Comma Club X, meaning they made over 10 million dollars in a funnel. And we did this huge award ceremony, which was amazing and fun, and pictures with everybody. I always tell people, this is like the Oscars, the Emmy’s of entrepreneurship, and it’s just fun. And it’s crazy, every single year I’m always thinking, people are not going to come to this session, they’re going to stay out in the hallway or whatever. But it’s crazy, every year the entire year is filled and people sit there quiet for an hour and a half and we give awards. And I think for most people it’s this time to sit back and reflect like, yes, I hit the award or I didn’t. And what do I gotta do for next year to be able to get this. And it’s just like, I don’t know, it’s special. It’s one of my favorite parts about Funnel Hacking Live. So we gave everyone the awards and then when it got done we did a quick break. Then we came back and I did a presentation called Secrets of the Two Comma Club, which is like, the people who have been getting the Two Comma Club, what do they know that you don’t know? If you’re not here yet, there’s something they know. So we have to understand what they know and believe what they believe if we’re going to do it. So instead of me just doing a whole presentation, I brought some amazing people from the inner circle to come up and tell parts of the story, things that they believe that I think everyone has to believe if they’re actually going to do it right. So first I had Chris Warrick, he came up and he talked about forgiveness.  A lot of people aren’t successful because they haven’t forgiven themselves, or they haven’t forgiven other people and they hold that resentment back, which keeps them from moving forward. And Chris, you guys heard I did a podcast episode a little while ago, I shared him speaking at Inner Circle about forgiveness it was insanely amazing. So he did a whole presentation on that. And he had everyone do this forgiveness prayer, which was so cool. It was amazing, other than I got three people who complained that we prayed in an event. But you know, that’s what we do. It’s my event so I will, I didn’t know Chris was going to pray, but I’m grateful he did. We had other people, I had one guy message, “I’m an atheist. The first time I ever prayed in my life and it changed everything for me.” And other things, it was just a really special experience. So Chris came and talked about forgiveness, that was the first thing. You have to forgive yourself if you are going to move forward. That was number one. Then James P Friell got up and talked about an identity shift. He talked about when he wanted to become a drummer he sucked at drumming, but he was like, “If I’m going to become a drummer, I have to act like a drummer. So I bought drumsticks and drum clothes, and bought this stuff and I got lessons. I had to become, I had to shift my identity to become a drummer if I was going to become a drummer.” A lot of people want to lose weight, but they like, “Oh I’m going to lose weight, I’m going to lose weight.” But until they shift their identity to, “I’m someone who is fit, I’m someone who’s in shape.” It’s almost impossible to lose weight. So the next lesson was like, you have to actually shift your identity to like, “I’m a marketer. I’m a funnel builder. I’m a funnel hacker.” If you don’t shift your identity, you can come to these events all you want, but until you shift your identity, you’re never going to have the results and success you want. So Chris talked about forgiveness and James talked about shifting your identity. Then number three, I have them out of order here, I think number three was Stacy Martino. I had her come up and talk about your seventh power of community. And she has this cool concept called right hand, left hand, which I may have her do a whole podcast on that in the future. But it’s really just a really cool thing. Like, here’s your family in one hand, who you love, but they’re not into personal development and marketing and these kind of things over here. And it doesn’t make them bad, it makes them great. And then in the left hand are the people who are in your tribe, your community who are like obsessed with you. If you’re like, ‘I’m going on a juice cleanse.” And they’re like, ‘Sweet, I’ll do it too.” And they’re all excited. She said a lot of times, if you take your left hand and right hand and put them together, it crushes the people in the middle. You have to understand that it causes conflict. A lot of times we try to do that, we go home to our friends and family who we love, who are amazing, and we’re trying to be like, “Hey come juice cleanse with me. Read this book. You should go to this training course.” And we just kind of bombard our personal development stuff on people and they feel alienated and it causes separations. We have to understand that the people in your left hand, those are the people who love that stuff, geek out with them. The people in your right hand, you don’t try to shove these things down their throat, you just try to be an example to them. And if you’re an example some will come and follow you and others won’t and that’s okay. But it’s just understanding which hand the people you’re dealing with are. So you can understand, these are my community who I focus on this stuff, these are the people I love over here. It was just such a key, important part because a lot of people get those things mixed up, which causes the problems why they don’t succeed. So Stacy talked about that, then Myron Golden came up and talked about making a covenant. Like how do you actually make a commitment and covenant as opposed to a contract. And you have to covenant with yourself if you’re going to actually have success. He talked about that whole thing of like, you have to make a covenant and a commitment if you’re going to actually be successful. And it was amazing. And Stephen Larsen came up and talked about Just In Time Learning. You don’t have to go and read 50 books to be successful, it’s like, understand the steps, what’s the next step, and then just geek out and learn exactly what you need to learn to do that next step and that’s it, because too many entrepreneurs are trying to read a book a week and trying to listen to 400 podcasts a week. And it’s like, no, no, no. When you’re a CEO and you’re running a business you can read a book a week. But when you’re an entrepreneur in the startup phase, you’re going to be focusing on what’s the next step and just put 100% of your effort, time and energy into that next step and just focus on that, which is amazing. So he did that and then I kind of had them all go down and I did a presentation on the who not the how, which I was really, really proud of. And then the waffle, which I’m not going to get into that on this podcast, it might be confusing. But it was a whole concept of understanding it’s not about learning how to do all these things, it’s understanding who are the people you need to be able to get to your vision and how do you get there the fastest. And it was really fun. We did that whole presentation. And then we sold, once a year we sell the Two Comma Club X coaching program. And what’s cool, everyone that renewed from last year, I gave them huge watches, which really symbolically meant a lot to me and we got them designed to be Clickfunnels watches. So we gave them to all of them. And then we said, “Everyone who’s got a Clickfunnels watch come up on stage.” And over 300 people from the audience came up onstage with me. And I said, “This is your tribe. If you decide to come with us, this is your tribe here.” And I said, “Who’s your mentor?” and I brought up the coaching staff, “These are your coaches and mentors and this is your tribe. These are the people who support you to get you to the Two Comma Club by next year.” So it was super overwhelming. It was way more people than I thought as we brought them onstage, which was really cool. Then they all sat down and I did this presentation and made them an offer for Two Comma Club X, which turned out amazing. So that was awesome. Then we broke for dinner, and after dinner we had another session where people who took the Two Comma Club last year and had success, they came back and shared their stories from stage, which was amazing. And then a lot of people signed up for Two Comma Club X coaching at that point. And that was Friday. So that was the third day, such a good day. So many cool things, from the belief, to selling, to stories, to all the pieces. It was amazing. I love how we choreograph these events. I hope you guys realize how much time, effort and energy goes into that for how all the pieces go together and how one thing breaks the belief in the next thing. It’s the reason why people don’t sit in the hall networking, because they would miss the whole storyline. People are like, “Why don’t you publish who all the speakers are going to be what time?” And I’m like, because I don’t want you guys to, “I’m going to go to this one. I don’t need that one. I don’t need Julie’s freelancer secrets because I have my own business.” No, you need it. There’s so many things that she taught that are so essential for you to understand the next piece of the puzzle. So that’s why we’re kind of more secret about who’s speaking, when they’re speaking, because I want people there for every single session because they all build upon each other. They’re strategically placed in a way to get people the experience they need. So that was the crazy day number three at Funnel Hacking Live. Tomorrow I’m going to talk about Day number four. There was some controversy at day number four, there was some crazy stuff, there’s up and downs, and I’m going to walk you guys through all that. And I will tell you how many people have joined Two Comma Club X coaching program if you’re interested. So with that said, if you haven’t got your tickets to Funnel Hacking Live yet, seriously what are you waiting for? It’s time to commit. Make a covenant to yourself that you’re going to come and you’re going to be part of this community because this tribe, this community they are here to support you. They love you and they care about you, but you’ve gotta make the leap of faith and come. So with that said, go to funnelhackinglive.com and get your tickets. And I will see you guys tomorrow on day number four of four of Funnel Hacking Live. Thanks everybody.

#96: Kicking Ass & Taking Names With Stacy A. Cross Jenn T Grace:              You are listening to the Personal Branding for the LGBTQ Professional Podcast, episode 96.   Introduction:              Welcome to the Personal Branding for the LGBTQ Professional Podcast; the podcast dedicated to helping LGBTQ professionals and business owners grow their business and careers through the power of leveraging their LGBTQ identities in their personal brand. You'll learn how to market your products and services both broadly, and within the LGBTQ community. You'll hear from incredible guests who are leveraging the power of their identity for good, as well as those who haven't yet started, and everyone in between. And now your host. She teaches straight people how to market to gay people, and gay people how to market themselves. Your professional lesbian, Jenn - with two N's - T Grace.   Jenn T Grace:              Hello and welcome to episode number 96 of the podcast. I am your host, Jenn T Grace, and as we near the end of October, as I promised I have another interview for you. Today's interview is with Stacy Cross, she is the founder of Comfort Killers, and this was probably one of the most high energy interviews that I have done in a very long time. So Stacy really got into a lot of mindset conversation, we talked a lot about personal branding, and how she has developed and created her personal brand over the last six months. You will walk away from this I believe inspired, but then also perhaps equally as exhausted because it was a really high energy conversation. So I really hope that you enjoy this. If you would like to see a transcript, or you would like links directly to anything that Stacy and I discussed, you can go to the blog at www.JennTGrace.com/96 for episode number 96. And if you would like to get in touch with Stacy or you have any n that you would like for me to hear, you can do so at pretty much Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn; all of those places I'm at Jenn T. Grace. Or if you'd like you can send me an email at Jenn@jenntgrace.com. Regardless of how you'd like to get in touch with me, please, please do. I’m happy to make an introduction to Stacy I'm happy to make, or if you just have general comments or feedback I always want to hear from you. It is never a wrong time to reach out so please, please do. And with that being said I'm going to cut the introduction short and get right into this conversation with Stacy.                                     So let's just start from the top, and let everyone know who you are, where you're located, what you do, and how you got to this place in time.   Stacy A Cross:             What, where, when, and how.   Jenn T Grace:              You name it, all of it.   Stacy A Cross:             Well thank you so much for having me on your podcast. I appreciate it greatly. I am Stacy A. Cross, and there is no E in my name, and I am currently living in Philadelphia, moved here roughly about three and a half years ago, been here since, ready to be nimble again and move on. I move with opportunity. I am the owner and founder of the company The Comfort Killers, and I know it sounds negative Jenn, but in this case two negatives does equal a positive. The comfort- to me being comfortable is such a negative word, and of course killers is a negative word. But the comfort killers is what we do, and we provide products, and solution, and content, and services to those seeking success through personal development, and I've been living it so the value is in my experience. And that's who I am, my mission is huge, my mission in life is to teach millions how to get uncomfortable, to think better, to live better, and to act better. And that's who I am in just a nutshell.   Jenn T Grace:              I love it. So how did you get to the place where you decided that you were going to go with Comfort Killers? All possible negativity aside, what was the impetus to say it's comfort that really is what's getting in people's way? What was your kind of revelation around that word specifically?   Stacy A Cross:             Definitely, because I believe that tradition and conventional wisdom led us to this comfortable life, right? We want to go to high school, get that great diploma, then take that diploma, go to college, get another diploma, then go off into the workforce, then of course get the picket fence with the home, get the kids, get the dog, get the car, and go to a couple baby showers in between, and be happy with a few vacations. That's a comfortable life. I wasn't even at that comfort level, but the revelation, the 'aha' moment in my life was realizing that I want so much more, but I don't know how to attain it because going through this comfortable path, I've been just getting this same type of result, these same outcomes. So what is it going to take? So I look for inspiration and motivation outside of me at one time, this external. So I was going to a seminar and on Valentine's Day in 2016 I went to one seminar, pumped everyone else up, and for me I just wasn't getting pumped up. I wasn't feeling it. And I was like, 'But I'm a motivated person already.' And then I realized you know what? I'm going to walk out of this seminar. I'm going to take a step back and walk out and I'm not going to feel guilty about it. I remember the day clearly because I did feel guilty about it, but I said, 'What can I do differently that I haven't been doing,' and that was one answer was get uncomfortable. Do what people won't do. Do the dirt, and that's what I've done, and I've built a company. So upon coming home from the seminar that day, I wrote so many articles, I created the company in one day. I started writing a Comfort Killers handbook which I finished in 24 hours, and then things just started happening, result-based things. And I realized, 'Wow doing the opposite of comfort really allowed me to grow in my space,' and I think more people should apply their lives to living an uncomfortable lifestyle.   Jenn T Grace:              Wow, I feel like you are saying so much with the time already, so we've been recording for like four minutes at this point. I feel like people can immediately get a sense of your energy level which is through the roof, and you're really motivated, and you're out to like kick ass and take names. Where do you see the direction and your ability to kind of be branding yourself with this? Because Comfort Killers is a really kind of perhaps polarizing type of statement for people who are stuck in their comfort zones. How are you finding other people who really just need maybe that kick in the ass to kind of get them going, or really have you be their personal motivator? Where are you finding those people? Are they reluctant to hear the phrase of 'Comfort Killer'? Do you find that you have to explain what comfort killing is? I know that's a lot of questions in one shot, but hit me.   Stacy A Cross:             I understand where you're going with this, and yes, in the beginning it was like, 'Okay well how am I going to explain this?' It's easy to naturally just say The Comfort Killers, I am Stacy Cross, and there is no 'E' in my name, but then there's got to be some explaining. Okay what is it that I really do? I want to motivate people, I want to teach people how to get uncomfortable. It's been a blessing so far where people are naturally drawn to this idea of change. They want to change, they're in a place that I could easily explain to them that I was in the same place, so it comes from my story, and what my story relates to is a sense of addiction. I was a gambler, I didn't even know it. Right? So I had to overcome that but thought I didn't want to go to an AA meeting, right? So- and I came from a place of procrastination. I've started and stopped so much times that it became known that if Stacy says something it's probably not going to be done. It takes a while to reverse that aspect. So when people arrive at my domain, when people arrive at my face, when people come to me or essentially I go to them, I have this big humongous story, this personal story that I've written that I believe is so relatable to any facet of anyone's life that's willing to change. But here's the deal, change doesn't come easily, right? The seeds have to be planted. So I only work with people that have planted these seeds and that are willing to take the next steps, because the next course of action definitely is an accountability action; you have to want it, you have to go for it. So how do I purposely drive myself to these people? I put it in my articles, my website, all that jazz. Or really when you're talking to me face-to-face, I don't give you back pats. I'm not in the game to make you feel good. Tony Robbins even turned me down from going to Business Mastery. He said I needed more credit. I understand it, here's the deal, I am not here to say everything that everyone already said, it's been said. If you could motivate yourself from that, that's fine, but the reason you came to me is because none of it worked.   Jenn T Grace:              I love all of that, and so I feel like it takes a really strong personality to be able to say, "Listen this is where I'm sharing my story, and it's not all roses. I was known for not actually following through with whatever it is." How are you leveraging that aspect in terms of maybe relating with the people that you're working with to say, "Listen you're coming from the same place that I came from, and now I'm going to be able to navigate you through this because I personally went through it." Because I think a lot of coaches out there, and strategists, and people who are counseling, and motivating; they don't have that real credible story behind them.   Stacy A Cross:             Right and I think it also goes with the niche. The people that I'm focused on are the people that- my story, right? So I say, okay if I had some addiction problem, I could probably help people overcome addiction let's say without taking more pills, without doing this, without going to AA meetings. I'm not giving health advice, I'm not trying to say, "Do this instead of doing this," I don't know their level of problems, but my goal is to leverage the motivation and the power within. I want to spark something inside that's already been there, but people- it's so filtered, the veil is over their face, they can't see. So when they come to me what I say is just the value is in my experience. And that hurt me for a while because you know I have friends that I've grown up with and I'm trying to tell them something, and I know that if Tony Robbins or Zig Zig or Jim Rohn, they tell them that same thing, they jump up. But since they know me, and since I'm their friend, they don't have that same type of action. And what I've done with that is just cut them off. So I'm known to cut people off, right if they're not on my same path. But in business when someone comes to me and they're not ready, I kind of cut them off. But here's the deal, I give them so much content, Jenn. I give so much free content through all my channels, and online, and I actually have my open calendar where people could click it and then call me for thirty minutes of call. So I'm willing to listen, I'm willing to see if the seeds are planted, and that's what's different than anyone else, where you could go to anyone else and they don't have that type of story. They're only really listening to your call and asking you for money at the end of it.   Jenn T Grace:              So how are you building your personal brand? Because like I said you already have such a distinctive personality, and a very motivating personality, you have a very kind of strong drawing the line in the sand way in which you communicate, which is 'I'm not pussyfooting around, I'm not going to deal with your bullshit. You're hiring me to help fix what hasn't worked for you.' And I know that you're saying that you're putting out a lot of content, so from a personal branding side of things, how has that process worked for you, and were you always kind of the- to some degree I guess in your face like no bullshit type of person? Or have you had to evolve that as you've been evolving kind of your personal brand?   Stacy A Cross:             The latter, I had to evolve that because I realized that time is limited, and I have to get a short sweet concise story. So what do I do to build my personal brand? In each of the avenues where you contact me in Twitter, in whatever the case may be, wherever you know about Stacy A. Cross, it's always Stacy A. Cross but there's no 'E' in my name. It's always that story that's driven behind it. So my idea is continue sharing the story but change the people, don't change the story. So it's cementing that story and confronting the realities of my story, which was the biggest part for me. Do I want to tell people I was addicted to gambling? Probably not, but it helps and it's a major part of my quest and my story. So with defining who I am, the brand Stacy A. Cross, and evolving into that, and it has taken awhile and it's shaped itself, and now I could say, 'Okay I'm ready to move to the next step as this brand, Stacy A. Cross.' Versus just as a company and the person behind the brand.   Jenn T Grace:              So now when you think about the long term- so you are Stacy A. Cross, with no 'E,' in addition to the found of Comfort Killers. Are you thinking long-term that it's important to you from a personal branding standpoint to really be focusing on building your name as a thought leader, as a content creator, as a content curator, and where does that leave Comfort Killers kind of in the wake of how quickly you're kind of moving through things right now?   Stacy A Cross:             That's a great question because sometimes I have to take a minute to strategize again, right? Because I want both to move simultaneously in the same direction, because without me there is no Comfort Killer. So how do I interject both the personal brand as well as that main scope of the company? And I believe that that's been the struggle, right? So I strategize probably once or twice a day if what I'm doing will outlive the Comfort Killers or will it move together symbiotically? And what I've found out is the easiest way for me to attack that is to keep tying in the value which is the experience within the company. So all my products, they range from me, they stem from me. I wish I had www.StacyACross.com and thought of that the minute I walked out of the seminar but I don't. I have The Comfort Killers because I had to get uncomfortable. So that- The Comfort Killers is Stacy essentially, and what I'm trying to do is move both together in alignment.   Jenn T Grace:              Interesting. Yeah I feel like there's all kinds of challenges- benefits and challenges that kind of come with all of what you're saying.   Stacy A Cross:             Yeah.   Jenn T Grace:              So as a just kind of side note, when I first was setting out to really actually define my personal brand, kind of put the stake in the ground of this is what I stand for, I was already doing what I was doing for years and years, and then finally I was like, well I just need to like really morph this into focusing on me as that personal brand and as that central point, regardless of what company, or contract, or wherever I'm working, and who I'm working for, or who's working with me, et cetera. When I decided that I was going to go for my name, the domain www.JennGrace.com just didn't exist which is why I ended up doing www.JennTGrace.com. It was not because I have any love for putting the T in, it was literally that the URL was not available.   Stacy A Cross:             Someone got uncomfortable before you did with www.JennGrace.com, they took it.   Jenn T Grace:              Yeah which is a bunch of bull. But so when you were looking for yours, was it because Stacy A. Cross didn't exist, or Stacy Cross, or some variation didn't exist that you just decided, 'I'm going to go with Comfort Killers.' Or was there some other factor that was involved in that decision?   Stacy A Cross:             And you know that's a good question. I did try to obtain Stacy Cross because that's my name, and of course that was gone to a photographer, which she's amazing, she does great work. And then but I always say she got uncomfortable before I did, and by the time I came around and got uncomfortable and said, 'You know what? I've got to build me up now,' Stacy A. Cross was available and I do own that domain. But here's the thing with The Comfort Killers, I always was kind of like I want this movement to take shape, but I want to be the leader of it, and I want to lead leaders, and I want to create more leaders. I don't need any followers. And so The Comfort Killers is such a tagline that will punch you in the face that says, 'Okay I want to be a comfort killer, how can I be down?' But now just transitioning into the Stacy A. Cross because people like my page more than they like The Comfort Killers' page, they identify with the person more than they identify with an entity. So now it's my calling to say how do I either tie the two in front, or just keep going with the tagline, but me being the first stop? And I understand that pivotal point that's going to come where it says Stacy A. Cross is bigger than The Comfort Killers.   Jenn T Grace:              Absolutely, that's kind of why I was asking thinking because you have a magnetic personality that people are going to be drawn to that, and it doesn't require explanation when someone’s introducing you, or you're being referred to somebody, or somehow there's a third party conversation happening about you. There's no explanation, it's just Stacy A. Cross, and then whatever number of descriptors might be included, versus Comfort Killers which does require a little explanation, but to the same point I still think that the name is really strong and I know when we were being introduced to each other I was like, 'What the hell is going on?' Like I have not met somebody that is so blunt, so kind of in your face, but in a down to earth type of way. Because I feel like there's a lot of people out there who are kind of screaming from the stage, and they're blunt, and this, that and the other, but yet they're not relatable, and I feel like you have a good way of blending both of those balances.   Stacy A Cross:             Thank you, thank you very much.   Jenn T Grace:              So thinking about personal branding, and somebody who might be listening to this, and we're talking about your brand is Stacy A. Cross, mine's Jenn T. Grace, like there's obviously the commonality there in and of itself. What would you say is like the number one- maybe the first step that somebody might be thinking like, 'Okay I have a business right now, I'm known for being the founder of this business, or the CEO of this business, but I really need to start making that pivotal change into really focusing on me as a personal brand.' In your experience, what would you say is that first kind of- maybe even just a baby step that people need to take to start figuring out what that might look like?   Stacy A Cross:             That's a great question. What I've done, and just to even get me to this point, is open conversation more about yourself, and kind of key in your actual things that tie your story together. And there could be four or five things because every one is important, and I think really over the three or four things, you have to know that you're important, that you have something to say. And the confidence that comes with that when you are the authority in your domain, in your space, then you are confident to project your story. So the first things that I've done is start opening my opinion about things. And not in a mean way, or not in anything, I just stood firm with who I was, and opened my opinion. So I just really opened the channels and started being me 100% of the time. What I've done to identify or what someone could do to identify their personal brand and to kind of have that stake in the ground that says, 'Okay this is me,' the first thing to do is get your domain- I mean tangible things, is get a domain name and come across as an authority in whatever field, or whatever industry, or whatever niche that you are a part of. Right? So what I've done is started talking about things that haven't been working in this personal development space, in self-improvement space, and I was very serious about it. I wasn't there to converse, I was there to tell and to show who I was through my arguments, or through my opinions, and that's really all it took. Now I'm the industry leader in that space of if you're talking about uncomfortable, if you're talking about discomfort, if you're talking about growth, you have Stacy A. Cross and her name, she'll know what to talk about.   Jenn T Grace:              What was your process for really just identifying like, 'this is my niche'? Like how did you really- like I know that we talked about how you came up with Comfort Killers and how you defined that, but like to come to the place to recognize like, 'this is my niche, this is my calling,' I feel like it's a process for a lot of people and there's an evolution for how to kind of come to terms with like, 'okay this is what I stand for.' Did you have any exercise that you went through? Did you have a coach who navigated you? Or did it just kind of- I don't know, hit you one day of, 'this is it.'   Stacy A Cross:             I think I am the outlier, okay? I used to be a rapper and so I was always good with words, and I never found out until now that I was this good with words. And I kind of put my path, and I looked into my path and what leading up to this, and I kind of noted some very pivotal times in my growing up, in my formative years, where people would say certain things and I never thought of it of nothing. But here's the deal, I didn't get a coach, I just believed in myself, and I know it's cliché but I did, and I said, 'You know what? I don't care. I really don't. I don't care who likes me, I don't care who loves me-' I do care who loves me but I don't care what anyone has to say about who this person is. So the process of me building that confidence up was really being serious in my art and my craft and who I was, and understanding that the level of criticism that you're going to get in any area is going to come because first they criticize you, and then they admire you. And I live to that, and I said, 'You know what? I'm willing to get criticized. I'm willing to put it all out on the line for who I am and what's discussed and anything I say.' So what I did, I had to step away from being an amateur, and I had to step away from being a guest here. No, I'm supposed to be here, and it was really a mindset change more than anything because we all have the words inside of us, we could really start talking right now, but it's that mindset switch to let you know that you are the authority, and not an amateur, and not a novice. Even if you're doing novice things at the same time. Because I came out of the struggle, I came out of the dirt, I believe that that's the time that we need to grow because we have the most to say at that time. But really when I stepped out as Stacy A. Cross, not just Stacy Cross, but Stacy A. Cross, I stepped out with authority because I believed I had authority to be here, because I believed that I'm important, and I just walked out. No coach, no navigation, but I did read a lot of books. I did have some mentors that they don't even know me, right? Because I feel like personal development is key because you need to take heed to the clues that was already left. So how does this speaker- let's say, I love The Rock, right? How come he jumps on live, or Facebook live, or any Twitter channel. What's his brand? The Rock, right? How come he has that authority when he speaks? What was the first authority? I started going back, I watched Oprah's first video. I watched Gary V's first video. These guys didn't have anyone cheering them on when their first thing- they were probably scared as hell but they knew they needed to do it, and they knew they needed to be there. So I watched people, I started minding the clues, and believing in myself, and coming out with authority when I spoke about any subject, not just personal growth.   Jenn T Grace:              Everything that you just- the way in which you said it, and what you just said is exactly like blowing up the idea of comfort. Literally everything that just came out of your mouth. So you're obviously very much on brand with what you're talking about. So what were the most pivotal books that you read, if you want to give me two, that really helped you kind of define and further refine your personal brand? Like what were the top two that you can think of.   Stacy A Cross:             Okay the first one would be Jack Canfield's 'The Success Principles because that one straight up had- because there's so many examples given in that book of being comfortable, and I was like, 'Oh my God that was me. That was me. Oh wow, okay people know about you.' And so the Jack Canfield's 'The Success Principles' I always talk about. Love the idea of the inner guidance system which I renamed- because I could do that, the Biological GPS. So I love that, and I love understanding more of it, so I go back to that book multiple times. And the second is 'The Master Key System.' And that has been- it's free on my website, The Comfort Killers, you could just type up. The only book you will ever need because I believe really that's it, and that taught me about the inner world, right? And that the within world defines the world without, and it taught me about the universal principles, and how things need to just work, and things are going to be working without you or not, you could just slide right in there and be a part of the universal laws. And I love that because it's more on the spiritual side and then Jack Canfield was more the hard cold truth about yeah, you bought the dog- you bought the dog, now you complain about the dog. So it's more that tangible practical 3D life. And then of course the Master Key to Success- the Master Key System was more that whole broad spiritual aspect of it, and that balance, and that love, you know? So those are my top two.   Jenn T Grace:              I love that you brought up both of those because I have had guests separately both mention- and it's driving me crazy actually trying to figure out who also recommended 'The Master Key System,' it's going to make me insane until I think of it, but I will. But I like the balance because you're talking in one direction of like tactics and the cold hard truth facts, and then on the other side you're talking about kind of the universe and how- and I have a quote on my wall that says, 'The universe conspires in your favor,' because it absolutely does. And so what degree do you think in your day-to-day that you're applying both kind of sides of this? Kind of the hard fact versus the softer spiritual. Are you- is there a balance daily? Does it kind of fluctuate? Does it depend on your mood? What does that look like for you?   Stacy A Cross:             Well you know in Delaware- I used to live in Delaware and the question will get answered. But I was living in Delaware and I was a heavy meditator, I was meditating, I was trying to do things to help me understand who I was, my higher self, and I was in it. I was in it all the way. And one day I think I meditated a little bit too much because I think I connected to the source, right? The motherland ship. I was there. So it scared the shit out of me. Goosebumps even to this day when I tell that story, and I only tell it in bits and pieces because I believe that that's the best way it can be shared. Just like Twitter. So here's the deal, I'm sitting in there thinking I'm meditating, kind of dozing off but I'm really not, I just went into a deep state of awareness and I couldn't open my eyes, and it was this whole big thing, and my ear was beeping, and it was these tones, and I couldn't- and I said, 'Get me out of here because I'm not ready,' and of course I did, I got out. But after that what happened in Delaware, was I looked up the word Delaware, and I realized there are two words, del and aware. Del of- and then aware. Of awareness. I got my peak state of awareness in Delaware. I will never shun that as a part of my growth because it made me so aware. Everything was beautiful at that point. I could look out and see a leaf, and the leaf would smile, and I was just so far gone. People were like, 'You are now gone,' and I was like, 'But no I'm really ready to start a business. I need to come back.' So what I do now is to keep both sides- because I'm very spiritual, so I muscle tense probably every day. In the shower, out the shower, upon waking, and I say thank you. And it's these little bit size piece of gratitude, bite size piece of awareness, bit size piece of consciousness, and appreciation of who I am and my higher self. And then you get the majority of the beast, right? Because all I have to do is that, give that bite size awareness, bit size love, and I'm already in motion. And then my rest of my day is this whole beautiful thing called business. But throughout the day it's all bite sized consciousness.   Jenn T Grace:              So number one, I feel like there are probably people who routinely meditate and practice mindfulness, and don't ever find that Holy Grail that you found. What would you say to the novice person who is listening to this, and not to say that the universe and kind of spirituality hasn't come up in the podcast before, but it's certainly not like a dominant theme in the podcast. So what would you say to somebody who's listening to this and they're thinking, 'This sounds interesting but I don't necessarily know where to start or what to do,' or they're absolutely petrified based on what you just said. So like what would you say?   Stacy A Cross:             Here's the deal- I was, but there's a sense of calm and love and unconditional love with you in everything, and connectivity knowing that you are everyone. There's a sense of that and I would never give that up. But if you're a novice just like I was, we all once were babies and we needed to crawl, so the deal is what I've done is I just jumped on YouTube- I jumped on YouTube and did guided meditations because I didn't really like that binaural sound coming in, it was too much too fast. So what I did was I just did a morning meditation which was ten minutes, and I started being more interested in it, and I started doing a guided meditation. I think if we force things it doesn't come. Like on that day where I didn't want to just go into a deep meditation, it just happened. It was at that perfect time. And I think everyone has that perfect time, but you have to plant the seeds now because you can't get to that point of awareness (Delaware) sitting in the couch petrified. You can't get to that one but you have to start somewhere. Open up YouTube, learn about your chakras. Learn about what the universe is trying to tell you because I think your personal story comes from your insight, comes from spiritual awareness. Because you have to be aware of who you are, and I think spirituality and going into that deep mindfulness of having those thoughts. You know how hard it is to not think, and that's what I was trying to overcome. I was like, 'You know what? I'm going to do it because I want to just master this thing.' And it was a game to me, and the universe loves playing games with you. So just be prepared to plant seeds now, take it one day at a time. It doesn't have to be three hours like my crazy ass was doing, but it could be five minutes of just total gratitude and just saying thanks, and just saying, 'I am aware, and I am here,' and start with some affirmations and make them real.   Jenn T Grace:              I love all of that. And so I am part of a Mastermind group, and I have a couple of them that I'm actually part of. Some are far more hardcore like the Jack Canfield, like we were saying just very much like hard fact. And then the one that I'm most active in now, there's ten of us, and it's very spiritually centric, and I had a really hard time acclimating to being in this room with these women. There's only one other woman out of the ten of us who was also on like the outside kind of looking in. And not to say that I have not been spiritual, because I have always been a very kind of inner reflective, very deep, very conscious of everything around me, but I would never have thought of it as being like spiritual. Although now of course, it makes far more sense. I'm just very nature centric I guess is the best way of phrasing it. And I go outside and I run almost every day, and I've been training for a marathon which my podcast listeners are all aware of because it's been such a struggle, but I find that I can find that clarity when I'm just outside running, and I'm kind of ignoring everything around me. I recently found a- actually I was introduced to a gentleman named Casey Carter, and his website I believe is called This Epic Life and he has a thirty day meditation- it's not called meditation for dummies, but that's basically how I'm interpreting it. Of here's just this meditation for the lay person, and I just recently started going through it just to like see, and see if I could calm my mind, and it is really, really hard. And I'm only on- I don't know, I might be like day six, and yet I can find that I can calm my mind when I'm moving, but there's something about stillness that I think is what scares the shit out of most people. I think it's the stillness that scares people, and I'm just still trying to figure out how to do it, it's not that it scares me at this point because I'm perfectly fine being alone with my thoughts, which I think a lot of people have a hard time just being alone with their thoughts. I think that's another one of the big things, but I feel like there's so much benefit to business as it relates to all this. So my question to you would be what do you think the biggest benefit that you gained as a result of just being more mindful, and kind of in tune with yourself and your surroundings?   Stacy A Cross:             I believe it's the decision making because I think that the right things always come to me, right? It's for me, it's understanding who I am to a level where if I know my decision making- that was a piece for me that was hard, right? I was always looking to someone else to decide something for me without knowing what I want. But it was just a struggle for me growing up, right? So I think now at the level where I am, knowing that everything for me is for me, and it wouldn't even come to my plate if it's not for me, but understanding what my needs are. Okay? The needs of the business, and being able to decide based on those needs, not this reactional traditional conventional way to decide things. But I mean I'm talking as little as should I have coffee, or should I have tea? Because I had a headache for the past two days, and I know you wanted more business minded, but this is how on a micro scale that I think of things now. I had a headache for the past two days in the morning, I drank coffee, now my body is telling me it doesn't like it, something is going on. Should I drink tea for a week just to test that out? Yes. And those level- and it goes from the micro just of doing those kinds of decision making all the way to should I invest in this- should I invest in this marketing strategy, this person, this coach for business because this A, B and C was the outcome, now my business mind is telling me that something either needs to be changed, what should it be? And it's because of this mindfulness knowing that I'm taking in key factors from who I am, and how I feel, that biological GPS that allows me to make better decisions- business decisions, personal decisions, life decisions much quicker than I used to make crazy 'rational' decisions.   Jenn T Grace:              So how do you think people go from whatever their status quo is in their comfort zone to understanding that you can rely on your gut or your intuition to guide you to a better, more rational decision, even though to some degree in people's minds that might be like a counterintuitive thought.   Stacy A Cross:             Yeah you know what, I always say listen- that's why I said 'rational' because I like irrational. I'm illogical, I shouldn't be here right now, Jenn. Okay? I started this business six months ago and I'm on Grant Cardone TV, they reached out to me, there's so much things happening. If was rational all I would say was, 'Okay I just want to start a business and that's all I'll still be doing.' But irrational thinking, and understanding that it takes some work- it definitely takes some work. Time is of the essence, time is our friend, and the reason why people don't get things done, or they say they don't have no time is because they don't know math, right? Because time is of the essence, truth. So I know I went a little off topic. You're going to have to guide me back because I totally forgot the question.   Jenn T Grace:              You know, I went off the rails with you and I don't remember what the question was.   Stacy A Cross:             I love it! That's what the universe does for us, because whatever it was, that's what needed to be said and we don't have to force anything. And I love that, and I love that this came up because whatever needs to happen always happens, and I believe this to be true.   Jenn T Grace:              I feel that way about people that I come across, introductions that I make, and I feel like I have had a road led with adversity in many, many, many ways, and LGBT is not even one of those factors of kind of the chaos of my past. And I feel like the only thing that gets you to the other side of that chaos is just saying to yourself, 'This is happening for a reason. I don't necessarily need to know what that reason is that this moment, but there is a reason why this is occurring to me right now.' And that I think to some degree can get you through a lot of personal hurdles, but I also think for business because there's a lot to be said about shifting, and adapting, and going in the direction that naturally feels like the best direction for you to go in, even if for all intents and purposes like on the surface, it does not make any sense to the outside.   Stacy A Cross:             Right, I agree. I agree with that 100%. When I first started business'ing I was like- okay I was getting tons of information, and how do I scan that information quickly and make a decision? Or how do I start a business- like how do I do this thing? Friends were saying, 'Do this, it's the marketing. It's this, you've got to get funnels, you've got to click them, you've got to do this,' and I was getting bombarded and it didn't feel right. And it wasn't until I just kind of looked outside and just allowed myself to identify where the needs were in business was when I really started moving, and aligning, and getting results. That's the biggest piece. But I do go through life wondering, asking, 'Okay I know that this is here for a purpose, don't know what the purpose is, but I'm ready for the lesson.' And that's really- and that's really it, and it guides me, and I trust myself. And I mean I think we should trust ourselves a little bit more in business too. Like make a mistake, it's okay. Like I think I did a tweet the other day, the entire sentence was fucked up- the grammar was bad. It's okay. Like it's okay to have a typo. I wrote a book in 24 hours, my eBook in 24 hours- which we don't count, right? I wrote it in 24 hours and there were so many typos in it. I didn't care, I did it and it felt right, and it felt good. And I think sometimes we just have to go, and when we feel that fear and everything inside of us telling us, 'Don't do it, don't go for it,' and that happens in a lot of conventional wisdom and tradition. That's why more people, they don't start businesses because it's so hard to think about it that they don't even actually do it. So my thing is just go for it, feel it, go for it, if it's right, do it.   Jenn T Grace:              And I think that the second piece of that is making it attainable. So if you have some crazy goal, or new business that you're about to start, or kind of a new evolution of your existing business, it's a matter of breaking it down into some kind of tangible baby steps that make it feel less overwhelming so you don't get caught in that frozen place of being paralyzed because you don't know the next step to take, because everything just seems so overwhelming and so daunting.   Stacy A Cross:             It does get that way. And my goal is big, I have big goals, scary goals, unattainable goals, I can't get to them and they scare me, they're monsters. It's on my shoulder, I wake up, I can't even breathe, it's holding me down, these goals are scary. I love big goals because I'd rather fail at a big goal than fail at a tiny puny ass goal, and not even change. Right? So my goal- I'm looking at the book and when you said marathon, I was like, 'Oh shit she just reminded me I've got to go too to run a marathon, and I just ran this morning.' And I'm doing it, and I've got to train for a whole year, and it's crazy, right? And I feel your pain, Jenn. But you already are a runner, I'm coming from just like- I don't even put the ink line up on the damn [Inaudible 00:41:53].   Jenn T Grace:              But guess what? If we go back- and my loyal listeners of this podcast I think have a good sense of the evolution, but if we go back to 2012 and 2013 when I just had- it was like a personal crisis I would call it. Like just a crisis of like what am I doing with my life? And I said, 'Screw this. Ef this, I am not taking anyone's shit anymore, and this is the new me.' And I started when I was running, and I couldn't run for like five seconds without wanting to die. Like it truly was that bad, I could not run for five seconds without feeling like death was setting in. And not to say that that doesn't happen now because it still does, but I think it's the process and the journey. So there's the whole cliché of like enjoy the journey, not the destination, or it's all about the journey and this, that and the other. And to a large degree that is totally the case because I look- my goal was first to be able to run a 5K which is 3.1 miles, and once I was able to do that which took me a while to get to, I was like, 'Alright now I'll do the 10K, and now I'll do the half marathon, and now I'm doing a marathon.' But it requires every single day to be doing something to further you toward that goal that people do not see. So every single day my ass is outside running whether it's inclement weather or not. So yesterday it was freezing, the day before it was raining, like there's always something, it's never just like nice weather, and you have to be out there every day. Nobody knows you're doing it, it's only you who knows that you're doing it because you have the end goal of- like for me the marathon is in January. This weekend I have to run seventeen miles which I have been dreading for the last two weeks. But it is what it is, I have no choice. And in January, on January 8th when I can post my accomplishment of like I finally did it, I ran this 26.2 mile race that I literally couldn't run more than five seconds without wanting to die a couple years ago, that is like the- finally the pinnacle of accomplishment because now people can see that that has happened. But they do not see the two or three years of training daily in the making that actually led to that. So if we apply that to a business lens, it's those day-to-day consistent actions that people are taking that they're not getting credit for, no one's seeing, no one's congratulating them on, that actually gets them to that place of having a successful business. But it takes forever to actually get to, so people have to be patient to some degree to recognize that it isn't an overnight success, and there is no such thing as an overnight success because every single person you ask who has had 'overnight success' will tell you that it took them ten years to get to.   Stacy A Cross:             Love that. I love it because yes, it's the dirt. Yes it's the work that no one shows on their Snapchat or on their videos or their documentary films about entrepreneurs. It is the work that comes in between. But here's the deal, just as you were saying that and I'm reading this book 'The Marathon' by Hal Higdon. 88 marathons, some crazy numbers, and he says more people- he took a survey. More people appreciate and respect the training versus the one day of accomplishment because the deal is- and that's the process, and that's what I'm trying to give out, the values and my experience. It's in this day-to-day action. We're going to get the value from what we're doing and what we're talking about even right now because ten years from now, this day, I'll be like, 'Holy shit, I did all of that that one day?' I already had three calls, Jenn, and I know you did too. Three calls. I went out this morning to run. I already read a piece of a book that I'm reading right now, 'Story Selling,' by Nick Nanton and J. W. Dicks. I've already written an article ready to go. I've already- you see it's all of these things but it's tomorrow, it starts it over with a reset button that you press.   Jenn T Grace:              Absolutely, and I think that that is what- it's like every day is truly a marathon of the amount of things that you have to get done, and there are people that don't want to put in that amount of legwork, and that's okay. So not everyone has to own a business, not everyone needs to be developing and growing their personal brand, and that's just a life decision that some people just aren't meant for it, and others are. And no matter where you fall on that spectrum- so if someone is listening to this and they're like, 'Oh hell no, I don't want to have to have made three phone calls, recorded two podcasts, meditated, gone for a run, had lunch with somebody all before like 1:00 in the afternoon,' then that's fine. There's no judgment in that and I think that that's probably the most important word here, is that there's no judgment in any person's decisions to go in any direction that they choose.   Stacy A Cross:             And I love that, but I'm going to just add the caveat. That same person that doesn't want to do that better not complain about their situation later on down the line.   Jenn T Grace:              Agreed. Totally agree, could not agree more with that.   Stacy A Cross:             Don't complain about not having, or not being able to get this, or the world's against you, or not having- I'm not saying your listeners, your listeners are probably wonderful, I believe they are, and they're loyal listeners. I'm talking about the- that's that polarized thing that I don't get, and that's what I give no back pass for, is saying that you have zero time because you have to take the kids to school, you have to walk the dog, and you don't want to do this stuff, but you're watching eighteen hours of the Walking Dead the entire weekend. Don't complain on Monday, don't complain on Monday that you don't have any time. That is all I'm saying.   Jenn T Grace:              I could not agree more, and I will comment on a good example of this, is that this past weekend- so I'm on a very strict training plan to get this marathon done, like there is no room for error at this given juncture in time. And there are plenty of times in the past where it's like, 'Yeah if I move this run it's not a big deal, I can switch this around.' Like right now there's literally no margin of error available. So this past weekend I was only supposed to do four miles which is very kind of simple at this point compared to what I have to be doing of like the seventeen on Saturday. But I checked in with my running buddy and said, "Hey how did your four miles go?" Because on Saturday morning my ass was up and out of my house by 7:30. Mind you I do have a wife, and we do have two children, both of which are very challenging due to mental health related issues, and I'm also running a business, I have something that I'm starting up, I have a ton of shit going on, and I was still able to get the four miles in, I just got up early, went out, did it, came back, and I felt amazing. I checked in with my running partner later that night and she had like fifteen excuses for why she wasn't able to get out and do it. And I'm like, 'Okay one major difference is that I have children and you don't.' That in and of itself makes it somewhat miraculous to get out of the house on a weekend morning without having like some kind of trouble. So I feel like- and there's not judgment to be had in that, but when you're not prepared for whatever it is that is coming. So whether we're talking about something like a physical marathon, or whether we're talking about the success of your business, or whether or not you win an award, or don't win an award, or get some kind of accolade that you've been waiting or; it's those very small decisions on a day-to-day basis that to me are the ones that have the most impact. So if you're making excuses for whatever reason, the excuses are going to be the reasons why you didn't get it done, because you're only making the excuse to yourself because no one else really cares generally speaking around you what your reason for not doing something is, they just see that you didn't do it and they don't really care why. It's you that you're fooling in the grand scheme of things.   Stacy A Cross:             If you want so much as one excuse and think about it, you've got a million, and they're plentiful. So yeah, I agree with that whole concept and I've trained- you don't even know what it's like to live in the house with me because it's brutal in the morning. I'm loud, I want everyone up, we're up and Adam, and you know what? It's changed everyone here, and I like to say that I was influential in that, and what business mind, and our decisions are better now, you know? So yeah, I love that, I appreciate that, and that's what I'm trying to bring value to. It's days like this, it's the training dates that you're doing, it's me going out for a marathon- I don't want to publicly say it because if I publicly say it- I'm going to say it right now.   Jenn T Grace:              Say it.   Stacy A Cross:             If I publicly say I'm going to run a marathon in a year from today- don't send this thing to my email in a year, don't do it. No but I will because I have the book, and I've been running, I've been training for it, but I am like where you were 2012, but that's something that I want to do on a personal achievement level but I know that it's an every day thing, it's a strategic thing, it's you've got to do it when you don't want to, when you feel bad, and I get bad cramps. I don't know about you, but my cramps come and I don't know what to do in the world. But I've trained myself to say that I don't have any pain, and I've been tricking my basal ganglia, I've been changing habits, I've been tricking myself when I feel bad to say, 'You know what? I feel the best in the world and I'm going to go out there,' and it's been amazing so far.   Jenn T Grace:              So as we're about to wrap up, number one, I kid you not I will follow up with you to see if you're training. Do not- you said it, it's in the universe, and now I'm on your ass. This is what I do.   Stacy A Cross:             I love it.   Jenn T Grace:              And number two, I feel like to some degree there's a lot of inspiration to be had for the fact that I know- and I know I had a lot of people in my audience reach out to me to say like how shocked in a way of like going from not being able to breathe running five seconds, to running for five and a half hours. And I feel like it's that type of inspiration- because we can look at elites, we can look at elite athletes, we can look at the Gary Vaynerchuks of the world, we can look at Fortune 500 CEO's and be like, 'Oh wow that's awesome that they're doing that,' but they're not relatable, and I think our conversation to some degree brings it down to a relatable level to say, 'If one of these two yahoo's can get this shit done, then I can get this done,' is how I see it. Like I truly am like, 'If Jenn and Stacy can do this, like you can totally do it too.' So I feel like there's a lot of I think inspiration that can be drawn from being able to honestly accomplish anything if you just break it down into manageable chunks.   Stacy A Cross:             Yes.   Jenn T Grace:              So my final I guess parting question would be is if you could tell the listeners one thing that you think would help them, that they might be able to implement today, what would that one thing be? And then as you're kind of wrapping up, feel free please tell people where they can find you, how you like to be contacted, and all that stuff.   Stacy A Cross:             Yeah. I would say get uncomfortable with your friends, family, job, everything. I mean cut people off that need to be cut off. If you really want to go on a path, and you have identified any negative pieces in your way, any negativity, anything that will hold you back, limitations, and I'm talking even within yourself; cut them off and figure out a way around it instantly. Because I had to do it. I had to change friends, change my number, I do not care anymore. You have to be very confident in that and you cannot be flaky because once you cut someone off you can't go back, and if you go back it better be to tell them how to do the same thing. The deal is I want you guys to be great, and I want you guys to get uncomfortable. There is so much importance with you. I want you, my friends, my comfort pillars, to go about the day knowing that you can conquer anything in your world, in your path, and if you can believe it, you can see it. Stop trying to see things before you can believe them. Believe them first and then I guarantee you it's going to be there right in front of your face, you can actually see it because the veil has been lifted. Ladies and gentlemen, you can find me anywhere because you're never there- no you are always there. I am on Twitter, Stacy A. Cross on everything, okay? Twitter, Snapchat. Like I said, www.StacyACross.com, but you know what? It's not updated and just because you told me, I'm going to update. Facebook, find me there, Stacy Annmarie Cross. I can't believe I did it but I'm telling you my entire governance. Stacy Annmarie Cross on Facebook, and of course the website, the headquarters, the foundation is www.TheComfortKillers.com. That's with 'The,' www.TheComfortKillers.com. You can find me everywhere and I am always here to leave my leaders, I do not like followers, so don't try to follow me on any of these social networks. My email is Stacy@thecomfortkillers.com.   Jenn T Grace:              And that is Stacy without an 'E.'   Stacy A Cross:             There is no 'E' in my name.   Jenn T Grace:              I love it. I have the same challenge with people spelling Jenn wrong, or calling me Jean, or I get a whole bunch of variations because I went off the reservation instead of having just one 'N,' so I get it, I totally get it. Anywho, I so appreciate you and so anyone who's listening to this and they want to find out- you know get all the information that you just talked about, it will be on the blog at www.JennTGrace.com/96, that is for episode number 96. So thank you again, I so appreciate your energy, and if anyone wants to connect with Stacy and would like me to be the one who helps make that happen, just please email me and I will help you do that.   Stacy A Cross:             Love that, thank you so much for having me. I appreciate that, and I'll see you in a year.   Jenn T Grace:              Oh you bet, I'm on it and listeners, please help me keep Stacy accountable to this, because I know I will. Don't you worry, I'm going to put a calendar reminder now.   Stacy A Cross:             Beautiful, thank you so much.   Jenn T Grace:              You are welcome, have a great day.   Stacy A Cross:             You too, bye.   Jenn T Grace:  Thank you for listening to today's podcast. If there are any links from today's show that you are interested in finding, save yourself a step and head on over to www.JennTGrace.com/thepodcast. And there you will find a backlog of all of the past podcast episodes including transcripts, links to articles, reviews, books, you name it. It is all there on the website for your convenience. Additionally if you would like to get in touch with me for any reason, you can head on over to the website and click the contact form, send me a message, you can find me on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter all at JennTGrace. And as always I really appreciate you as a listener, and I highly encourage you to reach out to me whenever you can. Have a great one, and I will talk to you in the next episode.

Stephen is the CEO of Predictive ROI and the host of the Onward Nation podcast. He is the author of two bestselling books, speaker, trainer, and his digital marketing insights have been featured in SUCCESS, Entrepreneur, The Washington Post, Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and other media. Good Morning Onward Nation…I’m Stephen Woessner. And welcome to Episode 322 — where 5-days a week — I interview one of today’s top business owners so we can learn their “recipe for success” — how they built and scaled their business. In fact…have you downloaded our 12 SUCCESS Strategies eBook? It’s a distillation of the best business building advice we have collected from our incredible guests. You can get yours at OnwardNation.com/12download. So for today’s solocast — we are going to continue the momentum we have built over the last two weeks by sharing lessons I learned during my interview — as a guest — on the Business Rescue Road Map podcast. Now, if the name Business Rescue Road Map sounds familiar — you may recall — the host of the brilliant show is Stacy Tuschl — a three-time guest on Onward Nation. Stacy was our guest for Episodes 6, 174, and 287 of Onward Nation. And during each of our interviews — Stacy shared deeper and deeper insights. For example, in Episode 6 — she taught us great lessons about how to prepare for growth — and transparently — connected it back to story when one of her companies grew so fast — it outpaced her and her team’s ability to adapt to the rapid changes. But, they prioritized and successfully rebalanced the ship. In Episode 174 — I asked Stacy to take us deep into platform building — and she generously did. We dug into what Stacy describes as her “three steps to platform building” and how her business strategy is focused on all three — each and every day. Intrigued — I had to learn more — especially with how Stacy’s three steps were baked into the strategy behind her amazing podcast. I wanted to find out how podcasting became a key component to her business strategy. So we had a “Why Podcasting” discussion in Episode 287 — and let me say, Onward Nation — it is rare that a business owner will say — “Oh sure…you want to know the innermost workings of my business — for me to take you deep behind the green curtain so you can learn all my secrets? Absolutely, walk right this way.” But that is what Stacy did in all three episodes — and that is what all of our Onward Nation guests do — each and every day. Pure awesomeness from our guests. If you haven’t listened to — studied — and applied all of the pure awesomeness Stacy Tuschl shared with us during Episodes 6, 174, and 287 — I highly encourage you to add all three episodes to your list of vital priorities. You will be glad you did. And then shortly after Stacy was my guest on Onward Nation — she invited me to be a guest on her podcast called…Business Rescue Road Map…and wow…that was an outstanding conversation. Now she was interviewing me — interesting role reversal — and true to form — Stacy is an incredible host. She has this innate gift of being able to ask the questions she knows her listeners are hoping she will ask. She gracefully guides each guest down the exact right path to make sure her audience learns what needs to be learned during each and every episode. As I am sure you can tell, Onward Nation — I am a bit of a Stacy Tuschl fan. So, when she asked me if I would be guest on her show…I responded with the lesson Jay Baer recently shared with us during Episode 305… “Hell yes, I’ll do that! WOW!” And like Jay said…if we are not letting the “It’s a hell yes, or it’s a no” principle guide our decision making, Onward Nation — then you are saying “yes” way too often. I learned a lot from Stacy when she interviewed me, which is why — in just a moment — we are going to air the full interview as part of today’s solocast. The discussion with Stacy is that impactful. One of the lessons I shared with her audience might even surprise you — when you hear me encourage business owners to “embrace the challenge” and why enjoying those moments of struggle are key to your success — and happiness. Stacy and I also dug into: The story of why my first company failed, how I recovered from losing $100,000 when I was just 28 years old, and how those painful lessons formed the foundation what we have build here at Predictive ROI. Why it is important to be at your best when the fight is the hardest. I am a firm believer, Onward Nation, in never ever giving someone the permission — anyone — to tell me what is so — to tell me what my destiny is. I’ll explain why I am so fixated on this point during the discussion with Stacy — coupled with — how the the transformation of challenges forcing you to become somebody different on your way to accomplishing a goal, that’s what makes this entire process so rewarding — becoming more — becoming the person you always dreamt of becoming, Onward Nation. We also talk about why it is important to think thoughtfully about the things that are important — about the benefits of prayer, meditation, or just general thinking time. Stacy and I wrap up the interview with some things to consider if you happen to be thinking about or contemplating — quitting — throwing in the towel — and closing your business. To be clear, there are oftentimes some really good reasons why a business should close its doors — but it has been my experience — that business owners can be tempted to give up way, way, way too early. So Stacy and I share some thoughts and suggestions to consider — things business owners should really look at before closing their doors. Onward Nation — there’s always a way to build capital. So, I thought the best way for me to share these insights would be to air the full interview. I think you will get a lot out of the discussion. And as always…please let me know what you think. Drop me a line. Thumbs up or thumbs down. One point that I want to make sure I emphasize before we close out for today — during my conversation with Stacy — you heard us offer several recommendations for business owners to consider before closing their doors. And one particular area I have studied even more intensely since being a guest on Stacy’s show is the number of companies — more specifically — the number of business owners who struggle with generating enough leads — high quality leads flowing into their business on a steady basis…like a stream of prospects flowing right into their sales pipeline. In fact, the Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs recently released a study showing that the top goal of 85 percent of today’s companies is lead gen. 85 percent, Onward Nation. Staggering. Here’s today’s reality — there is a gaping hole inside most businesses — and that hole — is the lack of qualified leads within their pipeline. It has been my experience, Onward Nation, in 20+ years of working with business owners all over the country — most do not have a sales pipeline — and the stress of how they will meet this month’s budget — or next quarter’s — can feel crushing at times. I am on a mission to help change that, which is why I shared several pipeline filling steps within Episode 298 several weeks ago. But you know what…when I relistened to the episode — I thought — “Hmmm, I can do better than that — I should have gone here and talked about that — and darn it — I missed this, this, and this. Arrgghhh.” So, I decided to create a masterclass on the 4-steps to Filling Your Sales Pipeline. You will see the full details and all we will cover — in full transparency — in very specific detail — on-screen demonstrations — it will be a very deep dive — so you can take and apply this lead gen recipe immediately inside your business. I look forward to seeing you — virtually at least — on September 21st. So with that…I want to thank you again for taking the time to be here with me today. It is an honor to have you here — thank you for tuning in — I am delighted you chose this episode to be what you listen to, study, and take with you on your morning run, or maybe Onward Nation has become part of your daily commute, or in some other way has become part of your morning routine. I want you to know how much I appreciate you sharing some of your invaluable 86,400 seconds you have in your day with me and the strategies we learn and share each day from today’s top business owners. And please continue to let me know what you think of Onward Nation…good or bad…I always want your feedback. Hit me up on Twitter or LinkedIn — or stop by our Predictive ROI Facebook page — and let us know what you think of the show — thumbs up or thumbs down. Either way — we want to know. Your feedback helps get better. And remember…you can always email me at stephen@onwardnation.com and I reply to every single message. Please let us know how you think we are doing. I look forward to hearing from you. We will be back tomorrow with an incredible encore interview with Nancy Marshall — my word, Onward Nation — you will not want to miss Nancy’s third visit to the show. We took this opportunity to dig deep into Nancy’s book — to dive into several of the exceptional PR strategies within the pages — as well as — Nancy’s business strategy behind the book and how it has become her best business card ever. So…if you have ever thought of writing a book…listen to Nancy Marshall tomorrow…because she lays out her entire strategy in precise detail. Nancy is off-the-charts amazing, Onward Nation. Don’t miss the show. Until then, onward with gusto!