WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.080 Welcome to Milestone Moments, the show where 00:00:03.080 --> 00:00:05.960 we explore the journeys that lead to success. 00:00:06.620 --> 00:00:10.220 I'm Sheila Slick, your host and founder of Five 00:00:10.220 --> 00:00:13.859 Milestones. In every episode, we will bring you 00:00:13.859 --> 00:00:17.100 insights from the minds of entrepreneurs, leaders 00:00:17.100 --> 00:00:20.820 and experts who will share not just their expertise, 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:24.120 but the milestone moments that have reshaped 00:00:24.120 --> 00:00:27.039 their journeys and led to significant achievements. 00:00:27.960 --> 00:00:30.359 So if you're looking for motivation, you're in 00:00:30.359 --> 00:00:33.560 the right place. Subscribe now and discover the 00:00:33.560 --> 00:00:40.359 milestones that mark the path to success. Welcome 00:00:40.359 --> 00:00:43.700 to another episode of Milestone Moments in Business 00:00:43.700 --> 00:00:46.840 and Leadership. I'm your host, Sheila Slick. 00:00:46.840 --> 00:00:52.520 And today, my super special guest is Julie Loken. 00:00:53.130 --> 00:00:57.530 J .D. She is a visibility strategist and she's 00:00:57.530 --> 00:01:01.369 the CEO of the Media Casters, where she helps 00:01:01.369 --> 00:01:05.950 visionary entrepreneurs turn big ideas into bold 00:01:05.950 --> 00:01:11.060 visibility. As founder of CreativeCon. Chicago's 00:01:11.060 --> 00:01:15.180 annual Visibility Summit, and host of the Get 00:01:15.180 --> 00:01:18.920 Obsessed podcast, Julie blends legal insights, 00:01:19.379 --> 00:01:23.439 branding expertise, and storytelling brilliance 00:01:23.439 --> 00:01:27.859 to amplify underestimated voices. She's also 00:01:27.859 --> 00:01:31.099 a best -selling author of the Hustle Smart series. 00:01:31.620 --> 00:01:36.260 She's a certified life coach and the mother of 00:01:36.260 --> 00:01:42.810 not one, not two, not three, but four boys. Welcome 00:01:42.810 --> 00:01:46.590 to the show, Julie. Thank you, Sheila. You did 00:01:46.590 --> 00:01:49.790 your research and obviously I'm a hoarder of 00:01:49.790 --> 00:01:53.450 experiences and children. So thank you. That's 00:01:53.450 --> 00:01:56.049 going to be an entire different episode. Like 00:01:56.049 --> 00:01:59.469 we could almost even start a podcast just based 00:01:59.469 --> 00:02:03.049 on some of the conversations we've had. You went 00:02:03.049 --> 00:02:06.849 to law school, you got a JD, yet you're not practicing 00:02:06.849 --> 00:02:10.740 law. You instead have built a career amplifying 00:02:10.740 --> 00:02:13.699 other people's voices, whether it be through 00:02:13.699 --> 00:02:17.300 media, through podcasting, even publishing. So 00:02:17.300 --> 00:02:20.599 what was that pivotal moment when you realized 00:02:20.599 --> 00:02:23.840 that you didn't want to practice law and do these 00:02:23.840 --> 00:02:29.180 other things instead? So that's an amazing kind 00:02:29.180 --> 00:02:33.580 of question. And not many people even know that 00:02:33.580 --> 00:02:38.620 I'm trained as an attorney. I come from a long 00:02:38.620 --> 00:02:42.379 lineage of male attorneys. Both of my grandfathers 00:02:42.379 --> 00:02:44.759 are attorneys. My father's an attorney. Everyone 00:02:44.759 --> 00:02:46.939 seems to be an attorney. We don't even have one 00:02:46.939 --> 00:02:49.699 plumber in our family. And I thought to myself, 00:02:49.900 --> 00:02:52.039 Julie, you are going to be the first woman attorney 00:02:52.039 --> 00:02:54.340 in the family. So I'm like, OK, let's sign up 00:02:54.340 --> 00:02:57.020 to be an attorney. I don't even know how I passed 00:02:57.020 --> 00:03:00.400 the LSATs to get into law school, but I did. 00:03:00.759 --> 00:03:05.289 And I would say three fourths during. Law school. 00:03:05.370 --> 00:03:07.889 I took I went to law school part time because 00:03:07.889 --> 00:03:10.750 I started when I was 27. I went into the workforce, 00:03:11.129 --> 00:03:14.610 kind of realized I wanted to do something different, 00:03:14.729 --> 00:03:17.590 was feeling my way around it. I was married and 00:03:17.590 --> 00:03:22.469 I was pregnant and I was in my criminal law final 00:03:22.469 --> 00:03:26.169 exam and started going into labor during my final 00:03:26.169 --> 00:03:29.310 exam. And I was like, oh, oh. I don't know if 00:03:29.310 --> 00:03:31.569 this is what I really want to be doing. It's 00:03:31.569 --> 00:03:33.469 not really for me. I want to help people. I want 00:03:33.469 --> 00:03:36.169 to do other things. I think I just went to do 00:03:36.169 --> 00:03:38.430 this to prove a point that I could actually graduate 00:03:38.430 --> 00:03:40.870 law school and become a lawyer because I wanted 00:03:40.870 --> 00:03:43.169 to do this for my family. So it was a few years 00:03:43.169 --> 00:03:45.810 of reckoning, figuring out who I was. I knew 00:03:45.810 --> 00:03:47.930 I always wanted to be a mother, obviously, four 00:03:47.930 --> 00:03:51.909 boys later. I didn't know I wanted to be an entrepreneur. 00:03:51.969 --> 00:03:54.789 My father was an excellent role model as he built 00:03:54.789 --> 00:03:59.710 a huge law firm in Chicago. But I didn't know 00:03:59.710 --> 00:04:01.750 how to articulate it in my mind. There was no 00:04:01.750 --> 00:04:04.550 such thing as being an entrepreneur major back 00:04:04.550 --> 00:04:09.990 in the day. So I didn't know really what it was 00:04:09.990 --> 00:04:14.169 until I hit about 40. And then I was like, bing, 00:04:14.169 --> 00:04:15.870 bing, bing. That is what I want to do. I want 00:04:15.870 --> 00:04:18.569 to be an entrepreneur. It was a long, slow process. 00:04:18.649 --> 00:04:20.949 Being a lawyer, yes, it was a great foundation 00:04:20.949 --> 00:04:24.389 to learn how to be discerning, how to negotiate, 00:04:24.610 --> 00:04:27.449 how to read, how to be. how to negotiate issues, 00:04:27.629 --> 00:04:30.810 how to look at a contract, how to communicate 00:04:30.810 --> 00:04:33.250 with people on a professional level that nobody 00:04:33.250 --> 00:04:36.129 else can understand. Yeah, and I didn't really 00:04:36.129 --> 00:04:38.509 want to get into the courtroom. I didn't really 00:04:38.509 --> 00:04:40.970 want to practice law because it is a grind. I 00:04:40.970 --> 00:04:42.670 didn't want to work for 80 hours a week with 00:04:42.670 --> 00:04:48.550 a little baby. So I started my own business online, 00:04:48.670 --> 00:04:51.790 which people weren't really doing that at that 00:04:51.790 --> 00:04:54.269 time. Sheila, and I don't know, did you have 00:04:54.269 --> 00:04:58.300 an online business, Sheila? back in the day I 00:04:58.300 --> 00:05:01.879 did but before I share that okay sorry I always 00:05:01.879 --> 00:05:04.079 turn the tables because I'm a podcaster too so 00:05:04.079 --> 00:05:06.899 I I had to warn you like I start interviewing 00:05:06.899 --> 00:05:10.379 the podcaster so just stop me sorry no this is 00:05:10.379 --> 00:05:13.819 great I just want to know what happened with 00:05:13.819 --> 00:05:16.839 the exam you obviously passed it because you 00:05:16.839 --> 00:05:19.579 earned the law degree but did you complete the 00:05:19.579 --> 00:05:23.000 test at that moment while in oh yeah yeah yeah 00:05:23.000 --> 00:05:26.550 I know No, I did. I slowed down that labor. It's 00:05:26.550 --> 00:05:28.790 funny. That's the son that I was pregnant with. 00:05:29.110 --> 00:05:32.949 He's actually in school right now for criminal 00:05:32.949 --> 00:05:35.750 justice. This is funny. I didn't I'm getting 00:05:35.750 --> 00:05:37.110 the goosebumps. I didn't even think about it 00:05:37.110 --> 00:05:40.490 right now. He's a junior in college. He's studying 00:05:40.490 --> 00:05:43.389 criminal justice and he's going to he's applying 00:05:43.389 --> 00:05:46.850 to law school. So isn't that weird? I was in 00:05:46.850 --> 00:05:49.839 law school. Well, it's maybe where he began, 00:05:50.100 --> 00:05:52.660 you know, where he started being born. Yeah, 00:05:52.759 --> 00:05:56.800 I got a B on that test. I remember I got a B 00:05:56.800 --> 00:05:58.839 on that test. So I'm like, oh, I should have 00:05:58.839 --> 00:06:01.360 got an A. But yeah, I had him shortly thereafter. 00:06:01.699 --> 00:06:04.779 But yeah, that's funny. I said a male professor 00:06:04.779 --> 00:06:08.839 or a female professor. It was a male. Yeah, a 00:06:08.839 --> 00:06:11.100 lot of male professors. I feel like it was male 00:06:11.100 --> 00:06:14.019 heavy for sure. Did he know you were in labor? 00:06:14.120 --> 00:06:16.699 I'm just fascinated. Oh, probably because I was 00:06:16.699 --> 00:06:18.860 like. Oh, well, I was huge, first of all. And 00:06:18.860 --> 00:06:22.959 I was like, oh, God. And I was probably rocking 00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:24.899 back and forth. And I probably looked miserable. 00:06:24.899 --> 00:06:28.019 I was in the first row. And I was like, probably 00:06:28.019 --> 00:06:31.639 rocking back and forth, like horribly uncomfortable, 00:06:32.160 --> 00:06:35.120 you know. So he probably recognized that I looked 00:06:35.120 --> 00:06:37.540 horribly uncomfortable. He's like, do you need 00:06:37.540 --> 00:06:40.779 to step outside? And I'm like, I'm OK. I'm going 00:06:40.779 --> 00:06:44.100 to finish this exam. So that's when I kind of 00:06:44.100 --> 00:06:47.850 realized I was maybe. this might not be for me, 00:06:47.889 --> 00:06:50.410 but I, I recognized three -fourths through law 00:06:50.410 --> 00:06:54.430 school that I didn't choose this for myself. 00:06:54.529 --> 00:06:57.750 I was trying to prove a point, but I had to finish 00:06:57.750 --> 00:06:59.970 because that would be ridiculous if I didn't 00:06:59.970 --> 00:07:03.089 finish law school. And then I started my, really 00:07:03.089 --> 00:07:05.709 started my family and it just didn't make sense. 00:07:06.050 --> 00:07:08.870 You know, as I graduated and walked through the 00:07:08.870 --> 00:07:11.810 podium, my father, who was an attorney, he handed 00:07:11.810 --> 00:07:15.509 me my diploma and I had to tell him I Didn't 00:07:15.509 --> 00:07:18.209 want to be an attorney. And that was hard, but 00:07:18.209 --> 00:07:20.230 he understood and has supported me ever since. 00:07:20.350 --> 00:07:24.110 So you'll get to meet him in February. Yes, because 00:07:24.110 --> 00:07:27.629 I am attending CreativeCon and I look forward 00:07:27.629 --> 00:07:30.910 to meeting you in person. Yeah. So your question 00:07:30.910 --> 00:07:36.230 to me was, did I ever do online e -commerce? 00:07:36.610 --> 00:07:40.579 Yeah. So my first business. I was always meant 00:07:40.579 --> 00:07:43.800 to be an entrepreneur because I'm a fourth generation 00:07:43.800 --> 00:07:46.680 entrepreneur. And I thought, you know, just talking 00:07:46.680 --> 00:07:48.600 about business and being part of the business, 00:07:48.660 --> 00:07:51.079 I would sometimes work summer jobs in the family 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:53.939 business. All my grandparents had businesses, 00:07:54.079 --> 00:07:55.860 my parents. So I thought that was just part of 00:07:55.860 --> 00:07:59.819 the normal conversation. So for me, it was what 00:07:59.819 --> 00:08:06.060 kind of business do you want to do? Now, my husband, 00:08:06.339 --> 00:08:10.720 he's also. an entrepreneur. And actually one 00:08:10.720 --> 00:08:13.139 of his two majors was entrepreneurship. So it 00:08:13.139 --> 00:08:15.160 was a match made in heaven. It was just a matter 00:08:15.160 --> 00:08:18.879 of what company are we going to start? And he 00:08:18.879 --> 00:08:21.279 had a business plan in hand by the time he graduated 00:08:21.279 --> 00:08:24.480 college. And that business has yet to be formed. 00:08:25.000 --> 00:08:28.360 But opportunity knocked and we found ourselves 00:08:28.360 --> 00:08:32.480 moving overseas. And our first company was a 00:08:32.480 --> 00:08:36.080 cultured marble manufacturing. And my second 00:08:36.080 --> 00:08:38.860 company that I co -founded, because I got pregnant 00:08:38.860 --> 00:08:40.679 during that first one, didn't want to be around 00:08:40.679 --> 00:08:43.879 chemicals and factory and construction sites, 00:08:44.120 --> 00:08:47.100 was with my grandmother and my mother. And it 00:08:47.100 --> 00:08:50.519 was a retail jewelry company. But when the internet 00:08:50.519 --> 00:08:52.940 was introduced, it was a window to the world. 00:08:52.960 --> 00:08:54.960 And I was living overseas. So I was like, well, 00:08:55.000 --> 00:08:59.120 how can we export our designs using this fascinating 00:08:59.120 --> 00:09:05.220 new tool? And I became so fascinated, would be 00:09:05.220 --> 00:09:08.299 the word, by this new window to the world that 00:09:08.299 --> 00:09:11.659 it actually led me to learn how to code a few 00:09:11.659 --> 00:09:16.299 years later when the mobile application was introduced. 00:09:16.460 --> 00:09:21.200 And by that point, I was a mother of two. So 00:09:21.200 --> 00:09:24.820 I started creating educational apps. I had wanted 00:09:24.820 --> 00:09:27.980 a master's degree, but being a mother and having... 00:09:28.519 --> 00:09:31.279 You know, the company overseas, it was like, 00:09:31.379 --> 00:09:34.039 are you having a midlife crisis is what they 00:09:34.039 --> 00:09:37.360 would ask me. And I said, no, I've always just 00:09:37.360 --> 00:09:39.659 wanted to break my own glass ceiling. Now, not 00:09:39.659 --> 00:09:42.840 with a law degree, but with a master's degree. 00:09:42.960 --> 00:09:45.379 None of the women in our family had achieved 00:09:45.379 --> 00:09:48.899 a master's degree. I self -taught myself pretty 00:09:48.899 --> 00:09:51.460 much how to code. And before you knew it, I started 00:09:51.460 --> 00:09:54.639 making apps. But I was a jeweler with mother 00:09:54.639 --> 00:09:58.039 and grandmother. So four years into that, a university 00:09:58.039 --> 00:10:01.799 called me in and said, NASA is having a hackathon. 00:10:01.860 --> 00:10:06.019 And we know that you are someone that has learned 00:10:06.019 --> 00:10:09.519 how to code. Can you participate? And I thought, 00:10:09.539 --> 00:10:16.029 a hackathon? NASA? No, no, no. And next day I 00:10:16.029 --> 00:10:18.250 went in after my kids were like, mother, you've 00:10:18.250 --> 00:10:20.570 taught us that you can't fail if you don't try 00:10:20.570 --> 00:10:23.250 and you're not trying. So to our surprise, NASA 00:10:23.250 --> 00:10:26.830 gave us a global honorable mention. That's how 00:10:26.830 --> 00:10:29.529 I got into IT many, many, many years ago. And 00:10:29.529 --> 00:10:31.450 that's what I do today. That's my story, Julie. 00:10:32.629 --> 00:10:35.769 That's an incredible story. I love that. When 00:10:35.769 --> 00:10:40.190 you said you realized that you didn't want law, 00:10:40.370 --> 00:10:43.850 that that's what you're. You know, family, perhaps 00:10:43.850 --> 00:10:46.549 kind of like with me with entrepreneurship, that 00:10:46.549 --> 00:10:49.350 was what you were meant to do. I think that's 00:10:49.350 --> 00:10:51.629 a common pattern sometimes with parents, right, 00:10:51.690 --> 00:10:55.309 is, oh, this is what you should do. I raise my 00:10:55.309 --> 00:10:58.409 kids differently, which we had that conversation. 00:10:58.490 --> 00:11:02.210 It was in today's day and age, right? Do you 00:11:02.210 --> 00:11:05.409 do you? What works for you? You don't need a 00:11:05.409 --> 00:11:08.620 college degree if you don't want one. You can 00:11:08.620 --> 00:11:11.779 do just fine with a master's or a bachelor's 00:11:11.779 --> 00:11:14.360 or go for that Ph .D. I think that the world 00:11:14.360 --> 00:11:17.980 has changed so much in these decades that there's 00:11:17.980 --> 00:11:22.039 opportunities. Right. And I have even told my 00:11:22.039 --> 00:11:25.200 kids because I think since I've graduated college, 00:11:25.440 --> 00:11:28.620 it was just so natural that you go to high school 00:11:28.620 --> 00:11:30.820 and you go to college. There's no ifs, ands or 00:11:30.820 --> 00:11:33.700 buts, at least how I grew up and where I grew 00:11:33.700 --> 00:11:39.250 up. And now I see it so differently because the 00:11:39.250 --> 00:11:42.450 idea of college has become such a business. Now, 00:11:42.549 --> 00:11:45.950 I've had one graduate from college, one's in 00:11:45.950 --> 00:11:48.870 college, one's getting ready to go to college, 00:11:48.889 --> 00:11:51.490 and I have one in the backseat. You know, he's 00:11:51.490 --> 00:11:55.429 still young, but not necessarily. I think every 00:11:55.429 --> 00:11:59.309 college isn't for everybody. And I wouldn't be 00:11:59.309 --> 00:12:02.429 sad if one of my kids decided not to go to college. 00:12:02.940 --> 00:12:05.580 They need a direction. But I think entrepreneurship 00:12:05.580 --> 00:12:10.179 is such a big, big component now. I think these 00:12:10.179 --> 00:12:13.600 kids have ideas if they have a mentor, if they 00:12:13.600 --> 00:12:16.799 have a vocation. And Gary Vee, in a conversation 00:12:16.799 --> 00:12:19.899 I had with Gary Vaynerchuk, he was one that really 00:12:19.899 --> 00:12:23.100 opened my eyes to it. Just in today's world, 00:12:23.200 --> 00:12:26.940 you don't necessarily need to walk out with $200 00:12:26.940 --> 00:12:30.649 ,000 of debt and you're working at. McDonald's, 00:12:30.649 --> 00:12:32.750 no offense to people who work at McDonald's, 00:12:32.750 --> 00:12:35.830 but walking out with $200 ,000 of debt and working 00:12:35.830 --> 00:12:39.309 a minimum wage job is very commonplace these 00:12:39.309 --> 00:12:42.210 days when you really have an idea, a spark surrounding 00:12:42.210 --> 00:12:46.769 yourself with people and a vocation or you have 00:12:46.769 --> 00:12:48.929 an idea. There are so many other options now 00:12:48.929 --> 00:12:52.289 besides college. I think we were, yeah, college, 00:12:52.389 --> 00:12:55.049 college, college, but kids aren't making the 00:12:55.049 --> 00:12:57.830 money or doing the things they really truly want 00:12:57.830 --> 00:13:01.279 to. That being said, I'm not sure college is 00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:05.580 for every single person these days. And I think 00:13:05.580 --> 00:13:08.720 men or women, we really got to listen to our 00:13:08.720 --> 00:13:11.080 hearts. What do we love to do? Because I've seen 00:13:11.080 --> 00:13:14.179 so many people miserable in those golden handcuffs 00:13:14.179 --> 00:13:17.340 for so many years that are in that job, in that 00:13:17.340 --> 00:13:19.580 job, and they hate it. How many friends do you 00:13:19.580 --> 00:13:22.539 have that complain about their nine to five and 00:13:22.539 --> 00:13:25.100 they can't get out of it because they need their 00:13:25.100 --> 00:13:27.779 benefits? They need their health insurance. They 00:13:27.779 --> 00:13:31.379 have their 401ks. There's no escape. They have 00:13:31.379 --> 00:13:35.320 those golden handcuffs. There's no escape. They 00:13:35.320 --> 00:13:38.779 didn't listen to their heart. And they've lived 00:13:38.779 --> 00:13:42.840 that life. And, you know, they have regrets. 00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:45.879 So I don't want at least my children to live 00:13:45.879 --> 00:13:49.340 with those regrets. Nor you. You got to think 00:13:49.340 --> 00:13:51.340 about you, too, now that the kids are growing. 00:13:51.740 --> 00:13:53.460 Yeah, I don't live. That's one thing I don't 00:13:53.460 --> 00:13:56.080 live with. I don't live with regrets, obviously. 00:13:57.120 --> 00:14:00.840 With my introduction, you can tell I just jump 00:14:00.840 --> 00:14:03.759 in with two feet, as long as I'm not making anybody 00:14:03.759 --> 00:14:07.320 else suffer with my decisions. I want to learn 00:14:07.320 --> 00:14:10.820 more about how you amplify underestimated voices. 00:14:10.980 --> 00:14:14.500 What does that mean? And what's your why behind 00:14:14.500 --> 00:14:19.659 that? I technically I'm a media strategist, so 00:14:19.659 --> 00:14:23.019 I see things that other people don't, especially 00:14:23.019 --> 00:14:28.460 people in business. I'm a PR strategist, plain 00:14:28.460 --> 00:14:33.700 and simple. I work with all businesses from Fortune 00:14:33.700 --> 00:14:38.799 500 companies to people who've worked in the 00:14:38.799 --> 00:14:43.320 White House to reality television stars to solopreneurs, 00:14:43.320 --> 00:14:47.820 just the whole gamut. But I elevate their voices 00:14:47.820 --> 00:14:52.659 through not social media, but earned media. So 00:14:52.659 --> 00:14:58.029 the difference is social media. I feel like I 00:14:58.029 --> 00:15:00.830 make people angry when I say this. Social media 00:15:00.830 --> 00:15:02.789 to me is the lowest hanging fruit. Everyone can 00:15:02.789 --> 00:15:05.970 do it. And you are pretty much brainwashed to 00:15:05.970 --> 00:15:09.429 just be on social media 24 -7. You lose so much 00:15:09.429 --> 00:15:11.330 time. You think, oh, you're going to become famous. 00:15:11.450 --> 00:15:13.830 You're going to become rich. But it's really 00:15:13.830 --> 00:15:15.990 the earned media. It's getting in the press, 00:15:16.169 --> 00:15:20.590 in the mainstream press that really elevates 00:15:20.590 --> 00:15:23.269 your brand reputation. That's where I elevate 00:15:23.269 --> 00:15:26.159 them. Why did I get into this? Well, I'm a journalist 00:15:26.159 --> 00:15:29.299 at heart. I love writing. My background is in 00:15:29.299 --> 00:15:31.700 journalism. That's what I went to school with. 00:15:31.779 --> 00:15:34.639 I've always been a writer and I've always elevated 00:15:34.639 --> 00:15:39.360 other people because I technically, if you really 00:15:39.360 --> 00:15:41.659 want to go back to it, I never had a voice. I 00:15:41.659 --> 00:15:44.179 was always told to shut up. Not by my family. 00:15:44.220 --> 00:15:46.600 My family always elevated me, but I was always 00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:51.330 quirky, weird, not weird, but I was always. and 00:15:51.330 --> 00:15:55.110 loud and like, ooh, and different and always 00:15:55.110 --> 00:15:59.649 just, you know, I just had no filter, really. 00:15:59.789 --> 00:16:04.129 I just said what I thought and was very creative. 00:16:04.370 --> 00:16:07.149 And people just didn't get it. Everyone wants 00:16:07.149 --> 00:16:09.470 to follow a certain line, and I just didn't. 00:16:09.470 --> 00:16:11.309 I would be like, let's do this, let's do that. 00:16:12.110 --> 00:16:16.269 Still to this day, people say that, and I decided, 00:16:16.289 --> 00:16:19.769 you know, I'm going to let my voice shine. I 00:16:19.769 --> 00:16:22.909 like to see other people's voices shine. And 00:16:22.909 --> 00:16:26.750 I love to see people's voices shine on a really 00:16:26.750 --> 00:16:31.830 big scale. That's why I do what I do. So now 00:16:31.830 --> 00:16:37.570 give us one trick, one action we can take to 00:16:37.570 --> 00:16:40.769 get out of the social media and live with that 00:16:40.769 --> 00:16:43.590 bigger, better opportunity that you mentioned. 00:16:43.870 --> 00:16:47.220 And you really don't, I mean. You do need someone 00:16:47.220 --> 00:16:50.080 like me consistently, but you don't need me. 00:16:50.120 --> 00:16:55.019 You can do your own PR if you want to. For example, 00:16:55.200 --> 00:17:00.080 you can go on X, aka Twitter, and you want to 00:17:00.080 --> 00:17:03.220 become friends with journalists. So Twitter is, 00:17:03.340 --> 00:17:05.720 if you like social media, and I'm, you know, 00:17:05.720 --> 00:17:07.740 I'm telling you to go on social media. If you 00:17:07.740 --> 00:17:11.160 like social media, look for the hashtag journo 00:17:11.160 --> 00:17:17.220 requests, hashtag journo requests. That's J -O 00:17:17.220 --> 00:17:22.839 -U -R -N -O -R -E -Q -U -E -S -T -S. And that's 00:17:22.839 --> 00:17:25.660 a great hashtag. If journalists are looking for 00:17:25.660 --> 00:17:28.940 quotes or experts, they are on Twitter and you 00:17:28.940 --> 00:17:31.200 can just see maybe they're looking for you and 00:17:31.200 --> 00:17:34.420 just pitch them. Pitch journalists or go on muckrack 00:17:34.420 --> 00:17:39.160 .com. That's where all the journalists are. I'm 00:17:39.160 --> 00:17:41.740 verified on muckrack. And find the journalist 00:17:41.740 --> 00:17:44.240 that speaks to you, your expertise, and that's 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:46.059 where you can pitch them. Start pitching journalists. 00:17:46.200 --> 00:17:48.519 Don't tell them all about you. Know what they're 00:17:48.519 --> 00:17:51.380 talking about. Send them a short snippet, whatever 00:17:51.380 --> 00:17:53.660 you're doing, whatever you're an expert with. 00:17:53.759 --> 00:17:55.839 But become friends with those journalists. And 00:17:55.839 --> 00:17:57.700 those are two little snippets. And I'm happy 00:17:57.700 --> 00:17:59.640 to give you some more so you can put them in 00:17:59.640 --> 00:18:02.829 your show notes if you want. Anything you want 00:18:02.829 --> 00:18:05.529 to share on my share notes. So now let's talk 00:18:05.529 --> 00:18:09.470 about CreativeCon. My favorite topic, by the 00:18:09.470 --> 00:18:12.849 way. Well, it is coming up. And I'm so excited 00:18:12.849 --> 00:18:15.470 I get to meet you in person. So I want to hear 00:18:15.470 --> 00:18:18.690 all about it. How did this concept come up and 00:18:18.690 --> 00:18:22.230 what made you want to create it? This is its 00:18:22.230 --> 00:18:25.069 third year. This year is really the explosion 00:18:25.069 --> 00:18:29.109 year. And it is like planning a wedding every 00:18:29.109 --> 00:18:32.579 single year. And I'm not kidding. It is one time 00:18:32.579 --> 00:18:35.440 a year live event. We have a beautiful venue 00:18:35.440 --> 00:18:40.099 downtown Chicago. Perfect location. That's besides 00:18:40.099 --> 00:18:44.000 the point. But we have a gathering of entrepreneurs, 00:18:44.519 --> 00:18:47.680 small businesses, solopreneurs who are looking 00:18:47.680 --> 00:18:51.579 to up level their businesses and brands who are 00:18:51.579 --> 00:18:56.440 looking to be around real thought leaders. who 00:18:56.440 --> 00:18:59.319 are looking to meet and touch, not touch in a 00:18:59.319 --> 00:19:03.000 creepy way, but touch thought leaders and network 00:19:03.000 --> 00:19:06.839 like heck. Network, network, network. Because 00:19:06.839 --> 00:19:11.059 one thing I know is all the conferences I go 00:19:11.059 --> 00:19:14.039 to, it's like you sit there in a seat, you listen 00:19:14.039 --> 00:19:16.980 to person after person after person, pitch, pitch, 00:19:17.059 --> 00:19:20.740 pitch, pitch, and then you go home. The biggest 00:19:20.740 --> 00:19:24.799 thing I take away from most conferences is the 00:19:24.799 --> 00:19:28.319 Rolodex of network of people I meet at the most. 00:19:28.380 --> 00:19:31.819 You forget everything else. So I want to eliminate 00:19:31.819 --> 00:19:35.279 that velvet rope. I want you to meet people, 00:19:35.400 --> 00:19:37.839 have conversations with people, even the people 00:19:37.839 --> 00:19:41.799 on stage, and create a community. It becomes 00:19:41.799 --> 00:19:45.039 the community thereafter that you have not just 00:19:45.039 --> 00:19:47.960 that day, but thereafter. People that you can't 00:19:47.960 --> 00:19:51.140 quit. That was the onus for me by going to all 00:19:51.140 --> 00:19:53.980 these conferences. It was five years ago, six 00:19:53.980 --> 00:19:56.460 years ago. I started in my head and brought on 00:19:56.460 --> 00:19:59.480 Dom Domaski, and we slowly brought a team we 00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:03.119 trusted, and it's grown. And now this year, Jim 00:20:03.119 --> 00:20:06.500 Quick, the renowned brain coach, David Meltzer 00:20:06.500 --> 00:20:09.440 is coming again, Justin Guarini from American 00:20:09.440 --> 00:20:12.500 Idol, Kim Walsh Phillips, just VaynerX, the president 00:20:12.500 --> 00:20:16.119 of VaynerX, Gary Vaynerchuk's partner, going 00:20:16.119 --> 00:20:18.259 to be there. Great amount of great speakers. 00:20:18.839 --> 00:20:21.460 And it's for entrepreneurs and small businesses 00:20:21.460 --> 00:20:24.480 who want to level up in a very personalized way. 00:20:24.680 --> 00:20:28.240 So the event begins on a Friday. There's a networking 00:20:28.240 --> 00:20:32.680 event on that Friday. Then it's all day Saturday 00:20:32.680 --> 00:20:36.940 and it runs through Sunday. Now, I got the VIP 00:20:36.940 --> 00:20:40.519 ticket, so I'm really excited to be able to join 00:20:40.519 --> 00:20:43.480 some of these events. And the venue looks absolutely 00:20:43.480 --> 00:20:49.170 stunning. So where can the audience? Learn more 00:20:49.170 --> 00:20:53.930 or buy those tickets to be able to join us at 00:20:53.930 --> 00:20:57.490 CreativeCon. Well, if you want to meet Sheila 00:20:57.490 --> 00:21:01.890 Slick in person, join us. Get your ticket because 00:21:01.890 --> 00:21:03.529 Sheila's, first of all, going to be there and 00:21:03.529 --> 00:21:05.210 she's a VIP. We're going to roll out the red 00:21:05.210 --> 00:21:10.930 carpet for her at www .creativecon .com, C -R 00:21:10.930 --> 00:21:16.009 -E -8, the number eight, T -I -V -E, con, C -O 00:21:16.009 --> 00:21:21.089 -N, dot com. CreativeCon .com. And it's going 00:21:21.089 --> 00:21:23.990 to be amazing. And every person feels like a 00:21:23.990 --> 00:21:26.349 VIP when they walk through those doors. It's 00:21:26.349 --> 00:21:28.829 going to be super fun. A lot of surprises, a 00:21:28.829 --> 00:21:31.890 lot of snacks, fun, networking, and amazing thought 00:21:31.890 --> 00:21:33.970 leaders that you will get to meet personally. 00:21:34.609 --> 00:21:37.549 You will leave a changed person entrepreneur. 00:21:38.410 --> 00:21:41.009 Before I let you go, I want to learn all about 00:21:41.009 --> 00:21:46.299 your podcast. So you have three podcasts. I do. 00:21:46.440 --> 00:21:49.839 I have three podcasts. The first podcast is called 00:21:49.839 --> 00:21:54.299 Get Obsessed. It is the flagship podcast in my 00:21:54.299 --> 00:21:57.039 arsenal of podcasts. It is a personal development 00:21:57.039 --> 00:22:01.779 podcast. It has been just a joy to do that. My 00:22:01.779 --> 00:22:04.480 second podcast is called the Creative Entrepreneur 00:22:04.480 --> 00:22:08.099 Podcast. It is a reflection of my love for business. 00:22:08.220 --> 00:22:11.359 I do that with my partner, Dom Domasky. It is 00:22:11.359 --> 00:22:14.880 a reflection of CreativeCon as well. It is branded 00:22:14.880 --> 00:22:18.940 with CreativeCon, and we've been doing that three, 00:22:19.119 --> 00:22:22.440 four years, I would say four years. And the third 00:22:22.440 --> 00:22:25.519 one is a true crime podcast, which really has 00:22:25.519 --> 00:22:27.799 not launched because it's an investigative podcast 00:22:27.799 --> 00:22:30.500 about an unsolved murder here in the suburbs 00:22:30.500 --> 00:22:33.279 of Chicago. So stay tuned because we're going 00:22:33.279 --> 00:22:35.440 to solve that murder. It's called Murder in Morton 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:38.559 Grove. So you're going to put your legal hat 00:22:38.559 --> 00:22:42.480 on for that one? Well, it's more like investigative 00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:45.740 journalist hat. You know, just trying to figure 00:22:45.740 --> 00:22:48.759 out who murdered these two high school girls 00:22:48.759 --> 00:22:52.440 back in 1979. And I pretty much know who did 00:22:52.440 --> 00:22:55.420 it. But, you know, you need the evidence. You 00:22:55.420 --> 00:22:57.640 can't convict somebody without the evidence. 00:22:58.359 --> 00:23:03.019 And that's the sticking point. And the sad part 00:23:03.019 --> 00:23:07.480 is I want this solved before the families die 00:23:07.480 --> 00:23:12.119 because it's 45 years old. That's the sad part. 00:23:12.220 --> 00:23:14.480 So you are using your legal hat. I heard you 00:23:14.480 --> 00:23:18.079 use the word evidence. That's legal terminology, 00:23:18.339 --> 00:23:23.819 Julie. Maybe I am. Maybe I am. My last question 00:23:23.819 --> 00:23:28.259 is, what is the one thing that you think most 00:23:28.259 --> 00:23:32.940 people get wrong about building authentic visibility 00:23:32.940 --> 00:23:38.160 today? I touched on it a little bit. Social media 00:23:38.160 --> 00:23:40.900 is important. It is a component. to building 00:23:40.900 --> 00:23:44.099 a brand. You need it. It's great to build your 00:23:44.099 --> 00:23:47.299 domain authority. I'm not diminishing that, but 00:23:47.299 --> 00:23:49.440 it's not the only thing. People forget about 00:23:49.440 --> 00:23:52.640 earned media. You need to have a Google knowledge 00:23:52.640 --> 00:23:55.119 panel, which means Google recognizes you. You 00:23:55.119 --> 00:23:57.720 want to be able to be searched. If people can't 00:23:57.720 --> 00:24:00.660 find you on Google, you know, why are you building 00:24:00.660 --> 00:24:03.500 a business? So don't forget the other things. 00:24:03.960 --> 00:24:06.799 Earned media, getting in the press, getting on 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:11.619 TV, getting... exposure on many different levels. 00:24:12.119 --> 00:24:17.200 So do dabble in social media, but don't focus 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:20.559 totally on that. Well, thank you so much for 00:24:20.559 --> 00:24:24.259 joining me today, Julie. Thank you, Sheila. It's 00:24:24.259 --> 00:24:27.099 been amazing. I adore you and I'm honored to 00:24:27.099 --> 00:24:29.799 be here. Thank you all for tuning in to another 00:24:29.799 --> 00:24:32.539 episode of Milestone Moments in Business and 00:24:32.539 --> 00:24:34.400 Leadership. Until next time.