Road to Radical Visibility Show/Podcast
Road to Radical Visibility Show/Podcast
Coming Out, Self-Trust and Courage to be Your True Self. Get Ready to Be Inspired!
What a freaking remarkable journey!
Kendall shares her journey of being a political journalist covering the tumultuous 2016 Trump presidential election and finding herself at a crossroads of identity, "seeing my own truth mirrored in the stories I was reporting, yet constrained by the professional need to keep personal opinions out of the narrative".
In this episode of Road to Radical Visibility we unpack the intricate interplay of personal and professional lives with Kendall, a former political journalist and now community manager. Kendall, a Philadelphia native now living in Tel Aviv with her wife, shares her journey of self-trust that led her to here truth about her sexuality and later transition to the tech world.
What if acknowledging your personal truth could lead to more profound connections with others?
It's a question we explore in the context of Kendall's journey and my own experiences during the 2016 election. We delve into the concept of radical visibility, the power of speaking your truth and the liberating impact it can have on your life and relationships.
Together, Kendall and I discuss our coming out experiences - her’s in Iowa and mine in Redding, CA. Kendall shares her realizations while traversing the vibrant streets of NYC. We talk about the importance of visibility and representation, highlighting the need to see people like yourself in order to feel like you can be yourself.
Kendall shares her passion for empowering others to share their stories. As the community manager Kendall's goal is to create a diverse and inclusive community.
This episode is a testament to the power of being honest with oneself, following our unique paths and living life 100% as yourself.
Are you ready to investigate or step into the world of podcasting? Reach out to me. Riverside.fm is the BEST platform for video and audio podcasting, hands down. I have tried all of the and well it does everything and they are upping their game every week. They provide freaking fantastic customer services to boot! I have been with them from the time they started and well I won't go anywhere else. You can check them out here: https://riverside.fm/?utm_campaign=campaign_1&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=rewardful&via=59d807
Have questions about starting your own podcast? Hit me up on any of my social media channels or email me at rachelfreemonsowers@gmail.com.
Want to connect and find out more about Kendall? Click the links below.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kendall.breitman/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kendall_breitman/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KendallBreitman
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kbreitman/
Did you have an Ah-Ha moment from this episode? I would love to hear about it! No seriously, I want to hear from you! Send me a DM or email at rachel@rachelfreemonsowers.com.
Watch more self-empowering content on my YouTube Channel.
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#LGBTQ+ #LGBTQ+business #visibilitymatters #timetoshine #RoadtoRadicalVisibility #RachelFreemonSowers
Iowa is a, you know, a big political state.
Speaker 1:So I went to Iowa quite a bit.
Speaker 1:And there was a night before I went to Iowa that I was with my partner at the time, my boyfriend and I just kind of thought to myself like later on that night, like it was my moment of like saying it out loud to myself.
Speaker 1:It was like a growing voice. I started, I was in New York, I was seeing queer couples all around me and I started to like kind of feel this a little bit of jealousy a bit, or like I would look at them and like feel something and I couldn't identify it. And then I kept like kind of putting this voice down. And then it was the night before I went to Iowa and I thought to myself like you're and it was a moment that I said it out like out loud in my head, I say that like you're gay and the moment that I said that it felt kind of like this flood of just like all of the wind taken out of me in this like really like weighty type of way where all of this weight was taken off of me, and it clicked, the same way that I felt later on when I said you don't want to be in journalism anymore, that you want to move to to Tel Aviv, like it was a similar type of feeling.
Speaker 2:Hello, beautiful people, just a little warning listening to the Road to Radical Visibility podcast may result in you feeling confident, af Bring from the expectations and opinions of others and give you the ability to create ultimate self-trust in who you are, what you say and how you show up in every part of your life. I guarantee you this episode will empower you to be 100% yourself 100% of the time. No shame or guilt needed. Now let's dive in. Hello, my beautiful friends, and welcome to another episode of Road to Radical Visibility. My name is Rachel Freeman-Sowers, also known as the Break Free Bitch, because I am passionate about helping people in the LGBTQ plus and female communities break free from the toxic social constructs, opinions, expectations and beliefs that have been holding them back from experiencing their life exactly the way that they want to. And if you've hung out here for very long, you'll know that my professional and my personal motto is being 100% yourself, 100% of the time. No shame or guilt needed.
Speaker 2:And today's guest oh, I can't, I just cannot wait. I have just this excitement kind of rolling around in my chest, and this is the first time she's hearing this, so I'm just going for it, but I feel like it's going to be a whole different perspective than what we've ever brought to the show before. So I can't wait to get this conversation started. But before I go ahead and do that, let me read her bio to you. My guest today is Kendall. She is a Philadelphia native who moved five years ago to live with her wife in Tel Aviv and after working as a political journalist covering US national politics. Thank you so much. That has to be difficult for places like Bloomberg and NBC.
Speaker 2:she now works as the community manager at Riversidefm, which is the platform we're using to record this and that I use to record all of the Roger Radical visibility. If you don't use it yet, you should be using Riversidefm. Okay, so I met Kendall through Riverside. She actually asked to highlight me in the month of June for Pride Month and I was like hell yes, that is always a hell, yes, help me welcome Kendall to the show. Well, thanks so much for being here.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for having me. I've been really looking forward to having this conversation since we originally started talking, so, yeah, happy to be here.
Speaker 2:It was almost an automatic connection for me. I don't it might not have been for you, but like it was like we had just this energy. It was really great yeah.
Speaker 1:I completely agree. No, it was. The feeling was mutual, Don't worry.
Speaker 2:Okay, so the first question I ask every single guest on the show is what does radical visibility mean to you?
Speaker 1:Yeah, no. So I think that's a really great question. I've been thinking about that a lot and I don't know if I'd exactly know the definition of it. I mean, I think to me it's about being radically yourself. It's about being radically yourself in front of other people. I think that it's. I think the hardest part of radical visibility is actually being radically visible to yourself. If I'm being completely honest, kind of admitting to yourself how you actually feel and kind of saying that out loud in your head, if that makes any sense, and then projecting that and having kind of the courage, the bravery, the acceptance in yourself to project that outwardly to other people, if that makes sense.
Speaker 2:It makes total sense and I love that so much. You were probably the first guest so far that has said this piece about being radically visible to yourself, and that really is the most courageous and brave part of radical visibility, because it can be difficult to look into those depths and those deep parts of you that you've been talked to shame or be guilty of or for, exactly.
Speaker 1:No, and I actually think that when I think about times where I was radically visible to in life, I think really the hardest step for me it was when I was thinking about this podcast. It's just. The hardest step for me was always kind of like coming out to myself in a way, admitting to myself that it's how I feel, because I think that we work ourselves up that we feel a certain way, and then it's really about once you admit it to yourself that you feel a certain way. At least for me, I think that that's when the visibility starts, because then you see it, there's a click that kind of happens, at least for me and in kind of my mind, and it leads to me being able to be radically visible to other people.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love that click that happens in your mind Also, knowing that that click happens in the heart at the same time. That's how I've experienced it and my clients. It's like it's almost like now. There's no they. They reach the point where what they were craving and how they wanted to interact in the world is actually how they're interacting and it comes from such that deeper place. But it's often the mind that will stop us from toxic social constructs, beliefs, opinions and expectations that have been given to us that are never ours in the first place.
Speaker 1:I have experience of that with work. I have experience of that with my own coming out story. I've experienced that with my moving. They all included these moments that I just had to sit down with myself and first admit it in my head before I was able to really move forward. And I found that that was also the hardest part, because it was once that happened, it was just easier to talk to people about it.
Speaker 2:Well, so we were talking a little bit before the show about being a journalist. You said you were a journalist in 2016. I can't imagine what that was like, and if we're talking about it in the concept of radical visibility, I mean, everyone in the US was kind of freaking the fuck out. I mean, let's just be completely honest about things that were happening on both sides whatever sides, that was right. Everyone was in this chaos. Here you are a journalist and how like, what was that experience like for you?
Speaker 1:Yeah, that says it all everyone If you're not watching the video.
Speaker 2:You should go check out the video minute six minutes 10 seconds. Look at Kindle space, that will explain it all.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So I mean it was. It was really interesting for a lot of reasons. So 2016, I was covering the what ended up being the Trump presidential election, but I was covering for Bloomberg all the presidential candidates at the time, and there still is also a show time show called the circus. I was working with, working with the host of that, and it was a lot about behind the scenes of the presidential campaign. So I got to have a really cool behind the scenes look at every presidential campaign, whereas a lot of the time you only get kind of one candidate. So when I was doing that there, that also coincided with me coming out.
Speaker 1:So there was a lot going on in the 2016 campaign, a lot happening, yeah, oh, my gosh, yeah, yeah, I constantly joke that if I would ever write a book, they would have to be the time where I came out to myself while I was in Iowa because, like, that was just interesting. So we'll get to that story, I'm sure. But so, basically, I'm coming out, I'm covering the 2016 presidential campaign and the being a journalist is kind of like, in a way, like the opposite in my mind, of radical visibility. You're really just there to tell other people's stories, to hear other people's stories. So if I had an opinion, I'm really like, as far as journalism, really an old school kind of journalist, in the way that I think that there are too many opinions stated that I think that it doesn't let people form their own opinion. So I was really of the mindset of I want to listen to these stories and I want to get the story out of it. Like, if people are ignoring some of the more salacious things that Trump is saying, why is that? What? What is driving them to vote this way? And that's the story Like is it economics? Is it that these people haven't gotten a pay raise in years? Like trying to get those stories out.
Speaker 1:And to be a journalist for me was really about being invisible in a way, like I'm not supposed to say my opinion, I'm not supposed to agree, disagree. So it was really observing and I think that that was difficult at times but actually made me see things clearer at other times, where it didn't feel like there was one side against another. It was just being able to see people for their struggles, their needs, their wants. So that was. But then also, of course, it's always hard to be interviewing somebody and kind of have to nod your head as they're saying something that could be disparaging to you, could kind of trigger you in some way and you just it's your job to just stand there and then communicate that story and almost pass that story on. And how, how, like, how, balancing beneficial how beneficial is a story to be passed on? How damaging could the story be to pass on those kind of things? So it was kind of a, in that way, a practice of like radical invisibility.
Speaker 2:It makes total sense and like, oh my gosh, as you're speaking, I was like I never I don't, I won't say never, cause I was in those positions, not as a journalist, but as a therapist for sure where you're just sitting there nodding, you're listening to their story, you're listening to all their beliefs about possibly you and where, who you are, where you come from, how you live your life, you know being a part of a marginalized community, and you're and that was like the hardest part for me was like I can't stand by and just do this thing anymore. I, I, I don't want to keep my mouth shut about things anymore. So, wow, like it was difficult, yeah, and yeah, I just can't. I just can't fathom doing that now. So what? How did you leave? What made you leave? I mean, what was what's the story behind not going from a journalist to now being a community manager at Riversidefm?
Speaker 1:Yeah. So actually it's funny because then that's another story of radical visibility. So this is all happening. I'm in journalism.
Speaker 1:I ended up moving from after the 2016 election wrapped up that was kind of the end of the show that I was working on with Bloomberg and then I moved over to MSNBC. I was working with a few, a few shows there, and there was this kind of like I liked what I was doing, but I wasn't. I was realizing that to be in this world was like you have to completely throw yourself at this world. It was a 24 seven job and the more that I was getting into it, the more that I was realizing that that's maybe not where my heart was. At the same time, I actually went on a trip. I went on a trip to Israel and which I, my friend, two of my friends have kind of like convinced me to go. I hadn't wanted to go and they're like no, we're going to do it together. So we ended up going and I met somebody there. That somebody is now my wife, the reason that I moved to Tel Aviv. So we had met in, we had met around the time, during the time that I was at NBC and I had gone to visit her. She had gone to visit, she had come to visit me, and it was just slowly becoming apparent to me that that's kind of I was young, I didn't own anything. It was kind of like a moment of I've made these connections in politics that I can go try this out and if I didn't like it I could always come back. But when I say that that was a road to well, part of my road to radical visibility, it's because I had really in my head kind of chalked up this idea that you're a political journalist in the age of Trump Trump was just elected and you get all the time especially you're at NBC, you're at like a bigger name place it's. You get all the time people saying like wow, that's so cool that you're doing that, that's amazing that you're doing that.
Speaker 1:And I started to realize that, like it was, it wasn't that I was so happy in doing that. It's that that I really liked how kind of how I appeared in other people's eyes. You know how my job appeared in other people's eyes and yeah, and so I was. Yeah, I just I think that it drove me. It was like I'm a political journalist, I'm working for NBC it's the biggest story in the world right now and I'm covering it and that is incredibly cool. But I think that that kept me there for a little bit longer than I was happy, just because I was so excited about that fact. So then there was another moment of visibility to me where I looked in myself and said are you happy? And then I also had to look at myself and say what would make you happy.
Speaker 1:And the idea of moving to the set of the world, like quitting my job to be with kind of like I mean I had we had been long distance for like a year, but kind of somebody that I barely really knew in like such a like in the way that I know her now. It was this kind of admitting to myself that, like, am I going to drop this thing? That like that everyone around me has kind of built up to be so exciting and cool, which it was for something that I found really exciting and cool, but also might have seemed a little bit crazy to other people to just like drop your job and do that. And so that was another moment where I kind of said in my own head, when I say about coming, like coming out with these, with with these ideas in your to yourself it was. It wasn't until I said to myself like you want to move, like you want to do this, stop and just do it. That I kind of moved.
Speaker 1:And then from there I I started working in content. I couldn't work in political journalism here because I don't know the language and I didn't know enough about the politics at that time. So it wasn't something that I analysis, this wasn't something that I wanted to get into. And then I realized that what I loved about journalism was taking those stories and meeting the people and going around and talking to people, and I really love the community like meeting communities. So when Riverside approached me about a community job, it was something I'd never thought of, but realized that that's actually something that really makes me excited.
Speaker 2:Well, I know, so yeah that's my long-winded answer.
Speaker 2:Well, it's a great answer because I know so many of my community and whoever listens to this podcast is going to see themselves in you and that moment when, oh, I've arrived, I've, I'm doing this thing that I have always thought I've wanted to do and it has, um, perceived right, it has it has these things that everyone's like congratulations, like great job, you have, like this perfect thing, what a great.
Speaker 2:And yes, you can like doing that. And, at the same time, noticing how, at times, we're such an intention with intention with ourselves internally, because we want more or we want something different, and people are looking at you like, why would you give this up? I've had so many more people that I've been able to work with and meet in Washington DC and that has got to be one of the hardest places to say this is not what I want to do, especially if you're in a political realm, because everything there is like high pressure, from what I can gather from my clients who talk about this is what I'm supposed to love doing. I've reached this spot in Washington DC and I mean we're talking foreign diplomats and everything, and they're like I'm here and I don't want I it's yes, I'm grateful and at the same time, it's not feeding my soul, like it's not doing what I want to do and following my own heart.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and you're surrounded by people that it is feeding their soul, like there are some people that are really born for that and then they're, and so to kind of look around it's kind of like yeah, we're all excited to be here, right. It's like it's that kind of kind of feeling that you're like yeah, I'm definitely excited to be here, and so it's kind of admitting to yourself like maybe I'm not. It's kind of it's it's scary to like say to yourself like am I happy? You know, yeah, Well, okay.
Speaker 2:So you mentioned a little bit earlier in the show you're covering all this stuff 2016 presidential election you're telling these stories, you're seeing disparities all the while. You mentioned that. This is also the time that you came out Like how did you, how did I? Wanted to do this with my fingers, and if you're watching, if you're listening to the podcast, I'm just intermingling them because it's like all of this is at an intersection and you're like okay, what am I choosing?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was a. It was a pretty funny intersection. So basically I had, it was another. We just keep going to these moments. It was another moment. I was actually in a relationship with a guy for five years, all throughout college. I moved to New York for the Bloomberg job and it was like something that I like. My sexuality was something that I thought about, but it was kind of like, no, just, you know you have, you're in this relationship, you're happy, quiet, you know. And then the happen, because you're fine, yeah, just just just get the tan down the road. So then I kind of like I ended up there was there was a night actually this is pretty funny there was a night.
Speaker 1:Iowa is a, you know, a big political state, so I went to Iowa quite a bit. And there was a night before I went to Iowa that I was with my partner at the time, my boyfriend and I just kind of thought to myself like later on that night, like it was, it was my moment of like saying it out loud to myself. It was like a growing voice. I started, I was in New York, I was seeing queer couples all around me and I started to like kind of feel this a little bit of jealousy a bit, or like I would look at them and like feel something and I couldn't identify it. And then I kept like kind of putting this voice down.
Speaker 1:And then it was the night before I went to Iowa and I thought to myself like you're and it was a moment that I said it out like out loud in my head, I say that like you're gay and the moment that I said that it felt kind of like this flood of just like like all of the wind taken out at me in this like really like weighty type of way where all of this weight was taken off of me, and it clicked. The same way that I felt later on when I said you don't want to be internalism anymore, that you want to move to to Tel Aviv, like these. It was a similar type of feeling. And so I went to Iowa and this all happened at like two AM. So you can't really like wake up your boyfriend of five years and say like hey, get up, I'm gay. Well, you can.
Speaker 2:That's how you do it.
Speaker 1:So you can, but you know it's it's. That would have actually been better for the story looking back. But so we kind of just like I went to Iowa for two weeks and was this like in my head about it the whole time being, like, oh my gosh, how do I deal with this when I get back? Came back. We broke up. Then I went to South Carolina for two weeks and it just like it kind of became. It was actually kind of nice because I traveled so much.
Speaker 1:So I didn't feel like there was this transition of being gay, like go like of transitioning to being gay and like my normal life. It was like I was coming to terms with it by myself, on the road, on my own and thinking about it and then not like, like not having to talk about it with anyone If I didn't want to talk about it, like I wasn't near my friends, so much was it didn't have the time to really talk to my family, so much. So it really gave me a lot of time to just like be in my myself and my own head in a way that I think really helped me process that.
Speaker 2:Well, I want to dial back just a little bit, because you mentioned that you went to New York and you started seeing queer couples. You started experiencing people around you that we're living, let's just say on the surface because we don't know any deeper, but we're out there doing whatever. You see them together, they're happy. All the things right and I want to mention this for the audience is that it makes a difference when you can see yourself outside, and what I mean by that is my wife and I, veronica, just went to Seattle and we stayed in Capitol Hill, which is the gay neighborhood up there, and I like, when you're around those kind of people, you feel good, you feel like I can be here, I can hold my wife's hand, I you know, one of the things we saw were trans people just out walking, smiling, all the things, and even gay, the LGBTQ plus community.
Speaker 2:In my community we don't do that Like there's some dangers that are in my community where we don't feel safe enough to do that, and it's like it makes a difference. It makes a difference when you see people who are like you, and that is why one of the reasons why this Road to Radical Visibility podcast was even created was because more people like you and I. The more we tell our stories, the more other people can say I can be myself. I can be radically visible to myself as a person who is non-binary, transgender, any part of the LGBTQ plus community or other marginalized communities. Right, I mean, it's so important.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, especially like I always like. It's not when I didn't come out for a bit. It's not because my like I'm very fortunate in the fact that my family has always been supportive, my friends have always been supportive, but I think that it was about I think there's something in seeing, like seeing other people be so visible and feeling that and really letting that kind of sink in and listening to yourself while you see others be that way, that I think it wasn't that I didn't have queer examples, a lot of the people that I hung out with the queer it wasn't like I was in a community that wouldn't have accepted me because they did. It was just about the more that I saw these examples, the more that I saw even just random people just existing in themselves. That like that kind of thing is contagious, like it's just, it's something that you're. It was enviable, it was really enviable to me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I have felt that same way in different parts of my career, in different parts of my life. I don't know, this is the religious programming. I'm like envy, you know, that's one of the 10 commandments that you're not supposed to envy, or whatever. And it's like it's so interesting what's happening in my brain. But it's like, yes, like I want that and it's okay for me to want it. It doesn't, you know, it's okay for me to become who I am meant to be in this world, right.
Speaker 1:Exactly, yeah, when you're talking about also like visibility, like and being able to be out. It also reminds me, like last time that we were in New York like my wife and I would be walking around holding hands or something like that where we were comfortable doing that and we kept joking about how there was like the New York smile is what we were calling it. Is it like, as you were walking by, you have like the, you have the queer people, but you also have the straight people and they kind of smile at you as being like I'm an ally and you're like, yeah, so we're walking and we're noticing that all like and she thought it was the weirdest thing in the world but like all these people are just like. Yeah, it's like kind of felt like that movie where you're like where the guy's like walking into work and everyone's like go get him, john, like it was like this, this, like weird vibe. So we're walking and everyone keeps smiling and we're laughing about it. And then we walked by Tina Fey and she smiled at us.
Speaker 1:Oh, my gosh and we looked at and I didn't even know, like I don't even really notice because, like I didn't register to me.
Speaker 1:And then, like my wife immediately noticed, she was so excited and she looked at me, she was like she think that he gave us the New York smile, like it's such a moment, but it's like this is all to say that I think that people also, even if they don't have that envy they don't like it's about, like that people like to see like it depends where you are for sure, but there's a at least in some places there's this feeling that I think other people also like to see people living their truth. I mean, that's probably very optimistic of me to say, but in small parts of New York there are places where people I think that it's just, I think that even if you are not queer yourself, there's like I think that there is something and I felt it when I wasn't identifying as queer just feeling this excitement towards more people being able to express who they are and be themselves and that happiness kind of hopefully being a bit contagious.
Speaker 2:Well, happiness is contagious and I can tell you radical visibility is contagious. And of course, the radical visibility definition is different for everyone, but for you, even just in this reflection and knowing in my own experiences that when we feel, as corny as it sounds, that we are loving ourselves, that we are accepting every part of ourselves, that we are knowing ourselves and we remove that judgment and shame, you create a different energy from internally inside of you and therefore other people. Your New York smile people would be like and you're like. I don't know what it is, I'm still the same person, but you've opened up and become more expansive to yourself and loving towards yourself by allowing yourself to be radically visible to you. And it shows the energy transfers to other people, absolutely without a doubt.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and this is also. It's not even just the happiness of it. I think that what's also important is I think a really important, like key part of radical visibility is also about being just as visible to yourself when you're saying you're not happy, yeah. Or just as visible to yourself when you're saying this doesn't feel right, or like that helps you get to that happiness. But there really is so much power and also I think that it's really hard, especially with social media, especially as we kind of compare ourselves to other people, especially as you're seeing now. You see the person you went to high school with and what they're doing for work now and like you jumped all of these conclusions and opinions. And I think that there is a really powerful thing, and most of my big life changes were actually spurred from admitting when I was unhappy, and I think that that part there's like this expectation.
Speaker 1:I'm a really extroverted person, I am. My old boss used to say that my kind of like resting bitch face was like a smile, like I just was, like if I'm just sitting there, I'll just be like smiling to myself. It's like it's a vibe, and so there's, I think, that like for some people, yeah, it's really been proven to be true and for some people, it's like it's this feeling of like. To me, admitting that I'm unhappy is hard, like it's really difficult and so and it's something that I have to come to myself in All of these decisions, when I talk about coming out, when I talk about moving, when I talk about just like anything, it's all like quitting my job. They were all decisions that I made in my like I didn't discuss with anybody in that decisions Like they were all lifesteps that I came to without discussing with anyone because I knew that I needed to process it in my own head, and I think part of that was because I felt a sense of unhappiness and I had a problem sharing that with other people.
Speaker 2:Well, I think it's one thing, too, that so many people struggle with that I help in particular is that being able to know what they want, what their path is, without all the input, the external input right, we? I mean in the online world. As you well know, you can find anything on a Google search. You can have access to thousands, millions, billions of videos on YouTube, like you can find everything outside of yourself. But the key is finding everything within yourself and knowing what that looks like for you. Knowing what anxiety means for you, like knowing how, knowing what you want to do about something and what is that process that you can lead yourself through to know your answer and really be tuned in with yourself enough to know the answer and then to follow that right, because that's when something breaks free.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think also. I just like sometimes it's hard to know what's happening in yourself when you're kind of looking at all of these other people. I always joke that like like I feel like there's a difficult. There's like some sort of at least for me there was a difficulty when I was coming out because I was thinking like there I was talking about it with a male friend of mine who I'd also identify as gay and he was saying that he was like I feel like it's sometimes a little bit more difficult for lesbians, for women, to come out, because there's this like societal type of thing about like women appreciating other women's beauty. You know, like women more openly will talk about like, oh, that woman's hot, that woman's attractive, where, like, men aren't doing that as much.
Speaker 1:So I think usually like I'm speaking generally but I think that there was a moment where I kind of was like, oh well, I don't feel this way. We all feel this way, like we're all, we all love women. You know, like I was so relying on what other people were saying that then I was kind of like no, no, no, this isn't what you're feeling. You're confused because, like, your friends are straight and they also think that Kendall Jenner is beautiful. You know, that one just popped into my head yeah, I love it.
Speaker 1:It's just like this and I was like kind of dist, like I had this distrust of my own gut because I was seeing what other people were saying. So I think that those kinds of like that's why I also like to bring it back to the first question. It's about kind of being radically visible to yourself. It's also about drought, like taking away what all these other people think and really just sitting with yourself and saying where am I at right now? Don't compare it to what your friends are saying or what other people are saying, like where are you?
Speaker 2:So Well, so now we're gonna come out to this. Now you're a community manager for Riversidefm. That's how we met you are, I mean, like just from our discussions and our exploration of getting to know each other, you know, it seems like it is such a great fit for you. What are you hoping that you're gonna be able to do in this role?
Speaker 1:Oh, so this is not a planned question everyone.
Speaker 2:This is off the cuff.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, every yeah. I mean, what am I planning? I mean for like. I think that part of like I love connecting with people and I want to help people, kind of like I wanna help people in what they're creating. I'm always, like, I've always been a really creative person and I think that first for me, the reason that kind of attracts me to the job besides loving the idea of bringing communities, of bringing people's stories together and understanding and talking with people is that I really needed like the.
Speaker 1:I really wanted a creative outlet and to be able to talk with other creators, and I think that really one of the beautiful things about this community is that I'm coming from journalism. So journalism is a lot about like you keep your sources and your information close and you're not gonna tell somebody how to be a better journalist as much because you that's kind of your, that's your value in a way. Like it's all about who sources you, what sources, you have everything. And I think that what was surprising to me about the podcasting community is that people were so open to share and make like in order to help other people become better. This is what this is my social media strategy. This is what I do to make my recordings better, that type of thing. And so I really, after talking with community members, in the beginning I was like, oh, people wanna connect, they wanna network. But then when I realized that people wanna connect the network to make themselves better. So my big goal with the community is to help people share stories, because I think that that's the most beautiful thing that you can do. So, whether that's making them more in high quality, maybe that's helping people get different guests, maybe that's about helping them get their reach for their show, I think that my main goal is to really just help people with their creative passion and I think that it's been really rewarding so far to just see that.
Speaker 1:And I know that sounds very much like this kind of like I want to. You know, it's very like what's your weakness? I care too much, but it really is like. I think that that's what drives me. There are some days where I'll get frustrated with things. Then I'll have a call with a user and it's just like, completely like our call, completely just like turn my day around and I'm like, I'm so excited to get to meet all these people and then help them do what they're passionate about, because for a lot of the people in the community I mean, there are a lot of full-time podcasters but there are a lot of people that are side hustling with this and it's just like. I think that it's so like exciting and inspiring, so I kind of want to keep it going.
Speaker 2:I love that and I'm so glad that you're the community manager and part of this Riversidefm community. I've loved Riverside from the moment I started using it and it does make things easier. It makes things more streamlined for my podcast. It makes it for me to be able just like you, you know me connecting with people, me helping people tell their stories, me putting it out there so that people in the world can feel better and become radically visible and be 100% themselves, because the world is a better place when people do that Right. And the diversity is what makes this stuff rich. And the podcast, where it reaches so many more people, makes the world a richer place to live, a more beautiful, experiential place to have a life Right, and I just love that Exactly, yeah.
Speaker 1:And that's the thing that I really love about Riverside, too is that you can like I'm talking from my office, you're talking like it's just like it makes it accessible. Like I don't like when you limit how you can create high quality things like recordings, things like that, it's like it limits the stories that are told, and so when you're able to bring it to somebody's living room, to somebody's office, somebody's bedroom, when you're able to make these kinds of things more accessible, these kinds of platforms, then you're able to provide a platform for more people. You're able to get more stories out there. And I just like selfishly, I just really love listening to podcasts too, and like, the more quality things that are out there, the more stories that I can listen to, you know, the better.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely. Well, I feel like this episode has so many golden nuggets, beautiful moments in it. If you've been listening and or watching the video on the YouTube channel and you've had something that you can resonate with, that you've had something that you're like, oh my gosh, me too. I've felt that before, or I want more of that. Please make sure to leave a comment below. Also, reach out to me and I can also put you in touch with Kindle. Make sure to forward any messages that you guys have of how this podcast and episode has impacted you. Is there anything else you want to add really quick before we wrap this up?
Speaker 1:Yeah, just anyone's welcome to reach out to me. I would love to have a conversation if you relate to this podcast, but also even if you're thinking of starting a podcast. Like I love meeting people, I love talking about it. So I think, open it up to more people and get some more stories out there. So always open and talk about anything I talked about on here or just podcasting in general, because I'd love to love to discuss.
Speaker 2:Awesome, so let people know how they can reach out to you.
Speaker 1:So I am basically on, like I'm on, twitter, linkedin, instagram. You can message. All my profiles are public, I believe, and you can just reach out. Search me by Kindle Brightman. I won't go ahead and spell it here. You can see it in the show, yeah.
Speaker 2:I'll put it on the show.
Speaker 1:Just reach out to me on any social media. Yeah, perfect, and any form of social media. I'm on it all the time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, unfortunately Part of what we do right, Okay, my friends I hope you all enjoyed this episode. I'm going to end it like I end every single episode. Please make sure to stay true to yourself, be kind to others and always, always, always honor the wise one that is within you. I will see you all on the next road to radical visibility. Until then, bye. I'm just here by just being you. I'll see you on the next road to radical visibility. Bye.