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This is a Maisie Media Production.Hello, most awesome one.It's your girl Ayana checking in.And as most of us know, podcasting has experienced this surge of popularity.And since I've been podcasting since 2017, one could imagine that I'm sitting on
a bit of content, and I decided to resurface some of that content.So in these next episodes that you'll hear, I'm going through, pulling out some of the best bits from some of our guests, and I'm going to reintroduce you to them,
Or for some of you, this may be your first time hearing it.Either way, I wanted to pull out things that I thought would serve you.
I always try to have your back in these Switch, Pivot, or Quit moments, these life change experiences, the trials and tribulations that we all go through.
So I really, truly, and genuinely hope that what you're about to hear will help you along your Switch, Pivot, or Quit journey. On today's show, we are chatting with fellow podcaster, Kylie Carr.
She is the host of Beyond the Business Suit, and you definitely want to pop over to her show, also available on iTunes, because you can check out the interview that her and I did for her show as well.
Kylie is also the CEO of the Asbury Group, an organization specializing in leadership development as well as executive image presence, and branding.
Having spent over 15 years working for and with some of the world's most recognizable companies and brands, she now advises the executives behind such brands, propelling them toward greater impact and influence.
Kylie holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA from Emory University.
When she's not coaching clients or speaking at conferences and corporations, Kylie can be, just as I said, found hosting her podcast, Beyond the Business Suit, where she's interviewed powerful women in business,
best-selling authors, and industry experts.Kylie's advice to executive and executive-bound women has been featured in numerous publications including Forbes, Fortune, and Monster.com, just to name a few.
You don't want to miss this conversation because we also have a very special treat for you at the end. Just keep listening.OK, so we have a treat for you today.First, I want to go ahead and welcome our special guest, Kylie Carr.Welcome to the show.
Thank you so much for having me.
Yes.I'm so excited because you guys don't know this, but we're going to do something a little bit different.So first, we're going to have our normal switch, pivot, or quit chat with Kylie.Then we are going to welcome in one of our SPQ VIPs.
And she is going to have an opportunity to ask Kylie a couple questions.Her name is Charmaine and she is awesomeness and you'll meet her in a bit.Alrighty, so let's hop into our conversation with Kylie.
Kylie, as you know, we talk all about the Switch, Pivot or Quit process here on the Switch, Pivot or Quit podcast.So I want you to share a little bit about your SPQ with us and sort of what your background is.
Sure.So I have made a switch, a pivot, and quit in my career.Just some high-level overview on my background.
I spent over 15 years in corporate America, left in 2013 and started my own business and really started my practice because I realized there were so many things that helped impinged women.
from advancing in their career that weren't talked about in performance reviews or in the classroom.And I wanted to create my business to serve women who needed guidance in this area.But I'll get to that.So let me start with my quit.
I made my quit back in 2008. time.I left a job where I was getting paid well, doing interesting work, but it really wasn't in my passion area.And Barack Obama was just elected.
And my best friend and I had been talking about creating something for Black women, professional Black women, something media related.And we felt, you know what, this is a moment This is a time to do it.
So I left my job moved from dallas where I was living to new york where my Now husband then boyfriend lived and it was a couple of hours away from my best friend And we spent the next eight months figuring out what we wanted to do now.
That's not really a good strategy as a We probably should have figured that out before I left my job.Right.So about eight months in, we had created a web series.We created a digital magazine, but the savings was running dry really quickly.
And I went back into corporate America until 2013. My switch was, as I mentioned, in 2013.And what I didn't mention is that I was leading a marketing department.And unfortunately, it was a situation where a lot of life things were happening.
I was planning my wedding.My mom, unfortunately, was ill and was dying of cancer. I was leading this marketing department with a team all across the country.And honestly, my heart wasn't in it because my focus was on my family and my life events.
In a conversation with my boss, we were talking about how I can manage all of these things.And she said, actually, we have a new CEO and he wants to move you to Philadelphia.
From chicago where I was living and you and your team we want to have all of our major functions in philadelphia We know what's going on with your mom.
We'll wait till she gets better Now if you don't want to move that's a different conversation, but we want to move you and in that moment I realized there was no way I was not interested even in the least to move and come to find out I ended up leaving my last day was a friday and the next monday my mom passed away
And by the way, my husband had been planning on leaving his job.So he left two days after my mom passed away.So within a week, everything changed.So I was able to take that time to figure out what it was that I wanted to do with my career next.
And honestly, didn't even think about going back into corporate, even though had a great corporate career, was really successful and all that great stuff.
But as I mentioned earlier, I really wanted to spend this phase of my career to help women in their careers. And then finally, my pivot is something that I'm right now going through a little bit.
So when I first started my practice, I was focused on image consulting and personal branding consulting and some speaking engagements. focused on one clients a lot.And now I'm to the point where I still have some one-on-one clients and I love them.
I love working with them.I learned so much from them.But I'm seeing a lot of growth with working with groups of women and groups of corporate women.
So I'm seeing my business pivoting toward more corporate relationships and creating experiences for women leaders, honestly.
I'm feeling a big pull to see more black women in senior leadership, particularly in the C-suite, whether it's in corporate America or starting their own ventures and being equipped to do so.
So that's a long answer to your question, but- I love it though.
You touched on a couple things, but one of the things that I want to circle back to is just being in a space of figuring out what sort of your next moves will look like.
What was that experience like for you and what did you find yourself doing to help you get on the other side of figuring out what that next step was going to actually be?
I'm a person who is pretty intuitive. So when I think about things like this and think about big moves and I'm making big moves, there's the head and then there's the gut.
So I lean towards and really hone in and listen to what my intuition is telling me.And I do believe that we all have the answers and that our intuition or inner guide or really, honestly, God, the God within us is what can lead us to the next steps.
At the same time, there's also the head too.I'm still an analytical person to a certain extent. I do like to plan.I do like to think about what makes sense.
So for instance, when I left corporate and I was trying to figure out what type of business I was going to create, I went through an exercise of understanding what am I really good at? What are my true talents and skills and gifts?
What do people come to me for?
So there was that analysis and planning portion of that approach, but then also I had to listen to what my gut was telling me, what my intuition was telling me in terms of, there are many ways that I could have gone, but where was I being led and really getting quiet and still to be able to clearly hear what my intuition was telling me?
So there's a lot of women that you work with in terms of their branding and their image and the role that sort of plays in the corporate space and in how you present and show up as a professional, whether it be corporate or entrepreneurial.
So I want you to just talk to us a bit about what was the draw for you in feeling like there was a need to marry these things together. helping women in this way and what does that sort of look like in your business?
So one of the reasons why I got into this work was because there were so many women who I would come across who were really good at what they did.They were smart and had a ton of credentials.
But when it came down to showing up, they weren't showing up as their best selves.And as a result, their careers weren't growing as quickly as other people around them.And they didn't understand why.
And what was happening was they were focusing on, let me do a good job and let me get these degrees and these certifications, but not thinking about their, you know, executive presence, as people call it, how are they showing up as a leader?
Could people see them? in a leadership position even before they were there or maybe as they were gaining the experience, could they make it to that next level or two or three levels beyond that?
And I was finding that I could look at someone and observe them and not only just look at them in their appearance, but observe them and see what they were bringing to the table
but also notice when they weren't showing up with a strong presence, why that was holding them back.Whereas they would think, oh, my boss must not like me.This company is against me.
And they weren't seeing how their presence was impacting their progress.
So if you were talking to someone or maybe you can share with us one of the common solutions or one of the biggest problems or problem areas that you see for women, because when I think of styling and getting people ready, obviously I think of the outward appearance, but are there other things that we should be considering when we're trying to show up as someone that seems to be capable of a leadership position?
So when I think about presence, I have a program called Power Presence.We focus on five different things.We focus on understanding what their personal power is.So there are over 7 billion people in this world.
There is no one else in this world who has the same experiences and talents. talents, gifts, and skills that you have.
I help my clients understand what it is that is theirs to offer to the world that's different than anyone else to help them to dial that up.That's one thing.Also, understanding what their personal brand is.How do they want to show up in the world?
How do they want people to describe them?What do they want to stand for in the minds of others? Confidence is a huge piece.Like I was just mentioning, many women in particular focus on getting the skills and the experience.
And because they feel like, oh, I will be more confident when I have more skills.It's actually the confidence that will give people the trust that you have the skills and that you can produce the quality work and that you can show up.
So confidence is extremely important. we talk about communication.So what you say, how you say it, so verbal and vocal, visual, which we'll talk about a little bit more in a bit, as well as behavioral.So how is your body language?
How are you physically showing up in the world?How do you take up space?And how does that impact how others perceive you?And then finally, your appearance.
And when I talk about appearance in this day and age, that means how you show up in person, but also how you show up online.We get seven seconds to make a first impression in person.
200 milliseconds to show someone whether or not you're trustworthy and competent, which are really important leadership indicators.And then online, we only get 40 milliseconds.That's it.40 milliseconds to make a first impression.
So when somebody goes for our LinkedIn profile, they've already sized us up.
So do you have any tips for maybe how people can improve their digital presence, namely something like their LinkedIn?
So on LinkedIn, there are a few areas that are really important to focus on.Number one is your profile photo.So you should have one.So not having a profile photo is not an option.Right.You want people to see who you are.
And over 70% of people search for someone online, typically on LinkedIn or Google before they meet them for the first time professionally. or that you can at least let somebody pick you out of a coffee shop if they're meeting you there, right?Right.
The summary section is one that many people overlook.This is your opportunity to explain who you are, share your point of view, and give people an overview of who you are and what you're about.
One way that I've seen this work really well, I have a friend who started her career in TV production.So she spent over 10 years in TV production, and then made a pivot to working in marketing.So she was working in digital marketing.
Look at her LinkedIn profile, look at her experience and say, okay, she was working in television production and now she's working in digital marketing.That doesn't make sense.
So she used her summary section as an opportunity to say, I worked for my first 10 years in television with some of the greatest storytellers or interviewers like Oprah Winfrey and Diane Sawyer and Barbara Walters.
Now, I help brands tell their stories using the most powerful platforms out there."That she connected the dots.
So the summary section could be a bio, but it also could be a point of view or a personal statement in the first person to explain some of your background to someone who is coming to your LinkedIn profile page.
With the experience, you want to make sure that you keep the experience updated.
It doesn't have to be a one-to-one match to your resume, but it should show some of your accomplishments and give people at least a high-level overview of the work that you do.
And so in the endorsements and skills section, there is so many people think that, oh, I can only list the skills where I have received endorsements.
And we've all seen, we've all seen, oh, do you endorse this person for these skills will appear in our LinkedIn profile page.You can also select which skills you want to be listed there.So for instance, if you are making a career switch,
Maybe no one knows that you are an amazing personal branding strategist because you've been working in for the past years.So you can actually put that you can add those skills to your LinkedIn profile, even if no one has endorsed you.
I know you're locked inside and soaking up all this goodness, but hold on for me just one minute or maybe two while we hear from our sponsors.
The sun's shining, birds are singing, and all feels right in the world.
Until the season changes and suddenly you lose your motivation to get out of bed.In fact, one in five people experience some form of depression no matter the season or time of year.
At the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, our vision is to build a mentally healthy nation for all because we want you to live your best life and be your best you all year round.
Please visit mentallyhealthynation.org to learn more.
The changing of seasons can affect how you feel.One in five people experience some form of depression, no matter the time of year.
At the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, our vision is to build a mentally healthy nation for all.Visit mentallyhealthynation.org to learn more.
So if someone is in the corporate space and maybe they're having a challenging time with a manager or something of that nature, what would you say to that person in terms of what they can do on their end to try and navigate that space to come out on top and be the most successful that they can be in that space?
One thing to keep in mind is that most of us will have a challenging manager.Yeah. We're working with human beings and the biggest piece of advice that I would give is try not to take things personally and try your best to respond instead of react.
And also try your hardest to see the other person's point of view. to think that somebody is against you or that if somebody says something that you don't like or criticize something, we look at it through our lens.
But for instance, if somebody said you did that incorrectly, you need to do it this way.We may think this is the way I do it or I'm learning.Think about it from their perspective.What pressures do they have?Who are they serving?
Oftentimes our bosses are answering to their bosses. we may only have a small slice of understanding of what pressure they're under.I would also try my hardest to find points of connection with that person.
Even if it's a difficult manager, I would try my best to try to connect with them as a person because, again, we're human beings.We're people.
Sometimes especially for people who consider themselves introverts having things like small talk seem real trite and seem surface, but Sometimes when we don't know anything else any other points of connection with somebody we need a small talk That can evolve to learning more about what that person likes and if we can engage with them as a person then sometimes that relationship will help
foster better communication between you so that even if there is a challenge, you already have that rapport.
And it's not that person against me or me against them is, okay, let's try to find some common ground because you know what, I understand a bit of who you are as a person and I really want to try to find some common ground here.
And I think it's harder for people to be rude and nasty when they feel like they've gotten to know you a little bit better as a person.
So you might have to eat a little bit of humble pie to get there and develop that relationship, but it might be worth it in the long run for sure.So for you, when you think about all the things that you've done, what does success mean for you?
or what does it look like for you?
Success for me is about fulfillment, using my gifts to make this world a better place in big and small ways.That's what success means for me.It's not about the money or the notoriety or how many clients and all of that stuff.That's fine.
But I feel like for me, if I'm using my gifts and serving people in a great way, that will give me fulfillment. And if I'm helping to serve and make them better people, then ultimately this world will be a little bit better than the one that I do.
And that feels like success.
We are going to now turn this over to the section where we invite Charmaine in to ask you a couple questions.And Charmaine is somebody who has been around the Switch, Pivot, or Quit community for a while now.
She is someone who is always growing and learning, and that's one thing that I can't stress enough to everyone.
It's not enough to just gather a bit of information and then move with it and think oh i've got it all figured out Charmaine is an educator yet.She's still always learning more.
She's still always taking classes and courses And participating in spaces where she can improve and better herself.So I absolutely commend her for that and And I'm just so proud of her.
So I just want to make that clear before she gets on because she's one of those people who always pushes herself outside of her comfort zone.So I'm excited for you to get a chance to speak with her, Kylie, and we're going to bring her on now.
Okay, so we are now welcoming Charmaine Freeman to the show.Charmaine, how's it going?Introduce yourself to everyone.
It's going great.I'm Charmaine Freeman Green, and I currently run Charmaine's Winter Photography along with being a teacher to high school students.So I'm trying to figure out whether I should be switch pivoting or quitting right now.
So love the podcast and appreciate everything you do with it.
Thank you so much.So now we're going to jump in to your questions for Kylie, because you had a couple of things that you felt like you needed to have answers to.So let's go ahead and jump in there.
OK, so my first question is, what are the three key things to consider when you're defining your personal style?
I have a question for you, Charmaine.Are you talking about your personal style in general or specifically when in work or play or both?
More of the workspace, because I'm thinking about this transition from out of the classroom.This classroom, everybody has what they think a teacher should wear or how they think a teacher should look.
So that's where my mind has been for the last 13 years.And now trying to transition, it's like, I don't even know what my personal style really is because I've been in that teacher quote unquote style for so long.
So the first thing that I would say is to set your intention.So what do you want people to think about you when they think about you?So if I were to ask 10 people who know you to describe you using three adjectives, what do you want them to say?
or when you meet somebody for the first time and wherever you're pivoting towards when you meet them, what do you want to come to mind when they meet you?And your personal style is a great tool to be able to convey that.
The second thing I would say is to understand your environment. So what is your work environment going to be or who are you going to serve in this new work environment?And what are the norms there?
So you've been working as a teacher and there's certainly a teacher's you know approach to dressing and a pivot or switching careers, then there could be a different norm there.So I would consider that.
And that's not to say that you need to conform to what the norms are, but there is a point where you are expressing yourself as fully as possible without feeling like you're compromising, but also is you're still able to work
Within the context and be accessible and fit within the context of the environment that you're working in And then the final thing that I would ask about are what do you like?
So if you mentioned you're not even sure what your personal style is given the environment that you've been working in
I would say look through some magazines, look online, create a mood board or a personal style vision board that has inspiration of things that you would like that are aligned with those keywords, those adjectives that you want people to think about when they meet you for the first time.
Pinterest board is good for that Charmaine.
Yeah, I think I need to, because people, that's the second or third time someone says something about the Pinterest board.And usually I get lost on Pinterest.That's why I straddle away from it, but it's probably the perfect place to go for this.
I heard it like two or three times.Yes.Cool.I really appreciate that.It makes perfect sense, especially when you put it out like that.
It really does make perfect sense, but it's going to take time for me to actually think through those steps and work through those steps.So I appreciate that.
Yeah.And did you have another follow-up question?Or not even a follow-up question, but your second question?
Well, the second question, she mentioned about the message you wanted to convey when she was answering with the three keys.But it was, how do you ensure your personal sound is sending the message you want to convey?
So if you had anything else to add specific to that.
I would say it really comes down to feedback.As I was asking you, what are those words that you want people to think about when they meet you for the first time, or what do you want people to say about you, people who know you to say about you?
I would ask them.One thing that I ask my clients to do is to actually ask at least 10 people they know to describe them using three words.You can do this through email.I've posted this on my Facebook page before to see what people would say.
And I would get a cross-section of people that you've worked with, people, your family members, friends, a good cross-section of people who have known you for various periods of time.
And even if you have a coworker who just started working with you two months ago, it would be interesting to see what they would say about you.
So this helps you see what people think about you, even though it's not related to your personal style, or it's not directly related to your personal style.You're not asking them, how would you describe my personal style?
But your personal style is a tool to help you communicate who you are and what you're about.
So asking this question and understanding how people will describe you is a good indicator of how you're showing up Great Yeah, i'm gonna have to reach out to some people and that put it on facebook That's a really good one because I have a cross section of people on facebook family friends and former co-workers And I can tag them in it or send them individual messages there.
So that's a good one.Appreciate it You're welcome.I really appreciate the opportunity to ask those questions and now it's time to put those things into action.
Absolutely.Thank you so much Charmaine for joining us and for popping in and asking some great questions.Kylie, before we let you go, thank you for spending time with us.Thank you for sharing your insight and I just love it all.
Thank you so much for joining us as well and let us know or let everyone know where they can find you, keep up with you, all that good stuff.Contact you, everything.
Sure.Thank you so much. I love what you're doing here and the platform you've created, and it's just a pleasure to be able to connect with your audience.So people can connect with me online at my personal website is kyleecarr.com.
That's where you can also find my podcast, Beyond the Business Suit, which you can also find on Apple Podcasts.I'm Kylee Carr everywhere, and that's spelled K-A-I-L-E-I-C-A-R-R.My business website is groupasbury.com.
My company name is The Asbury Group. So group Asbury, A-S-B-U-R-Y dot com is where you can find how I work with companies and individuals to help them show up as the best leaders that they can be.
Awesome.Awesome.Awesome.Thank you so much, ladies.It has been a pleasure.And as always, you guys keep killing it.
The sun shining, birds are singing and all feels right in the world.
until the season changes and suddenly you lose your motivation to get out of bed.In fact, one in five people experience some form of depression no matter the season or time of year.
At the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, our vision is to build a mentally healthy nation for all because we want you to live your best life and be your best you all year round.
Please visit mentallyhealthynation.org to learn more.
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