Fresh Leaf Forever
Looking to equip yourself to tackle today's pressing issues - Mental Health, Climate Change, Wellness, and other real-world challenges ?
We are a multi-genre show diving into what matters to you, helping you gain new perspectives.
Our diverse lineup of high caliber guests (Gen X to Gen Z'ers), provide actionable insights that'll transform your journey.
You get to Listen, Ponder, Change - for the better !!
Fresh Leaf Forever
Career Growth: How to unleash your true potential and gain recognition
What drives a successful career transformation from chemical engineering to an acclaimed business owner, author and TEDx speaker? Meet our guest Alicia Butler Pierre, who opens up about the pivotal moments in her life, including her timely move from New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina, and how listening to her inner voice guided her career choices. Join us as we delve into Alicia's story of trusting her gut and the profound impact it had on her personal and professional life.
It's a conversation highlighting the importance of self-worth, intuition, and seizing opportunities. The episode explores overcoming obscurity, the significance of networking, and insights for young professionals.
Here are some focus areas from this chat-
• Alicia's career evolution from engineering to entrepreneurship
• The impact of intuition in career decision-making
• Understanding and combating obscurity and talent suppression
• The role of self-limiting beliefs in career progression
• Recognizing and leveraging opportunities for growth
• The benefits of networking and mentorship in career acceleration
• Strategies for effective relocation to boost career success
• Defining personal success beyond monetary aspects and achieving fulfillment
• Resources for young professionals entering the job market
• Overview of her trademark Kasennu methodology for small businesses
Learn how resilience and authenticity can turn obstacles into stepping stones for success. Through some vibrant storytelling, discover how passion, persistence, and authentic connections lead to fulfillment and a truly successful life.
Start for FREE
Enjoy PIOR Living products
Enjoy PIOR Living products at a 20% discount and free shipping on orders over $75 Code FLF20
OurPlace Cookware
Shop versatile, aesthetic cookware sets/appliances from OurPlace.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Videos on YouTube channel.
Follow host Vai on socials - Instagram , YouTube, LinkedIn for thought leadership content.
Head to my website for enlightening blogs & service offerings.
This podcast comes to you from Listen Ponder Change LLC, founded by Vai Kumar.Every support the show contribution is much appreciated !!
Subscribe https://www.buzzsprout.com/1436179/support and help us amplify our voice and reach!
Welcome to Freshly Forever, a podcast that gives you fascinating insights week after week. Here's your host, vaikumar. Hey folks, welcome to another episode on podcast Freshly Forever. Today we have the pleasure of talking to Alicia Butler-Pierre. She is a book author, business founder and, most recently, she's a TEDx speaker as well. Good morning, alicia. How's it going over there? Good?
Speaker 2:morning Vi. I'm doing very well. How are you doing?
Speaker 1:Well, great. And incidentally, alicia is a famous podcaster as well, so the Business Infrastructure Podcast and the Scale Tales Podcast. So it just gives me so much joy talking to a fellow podcaster as well. So it just gives me so much joy talking to a fellow podcaster as well.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, and I'm excited to be here. Thank you so much for sharing your platform with me. I appreciate that.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. We are just reaching listeners in over 100 countries in all continents of the globe, and it's just you know. I think the power of podcasting is priceless.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, and congratulations. That is quite an accomplishment 100 countries.
Speaker 1:Thank you, thank you, and yeah, I mean, it's just growing by the day, right? So we say a number today and then this afternoon when we go, look, it'll be something else. So that's the power of social media and the messaging, and so all of the benefit. So that's precisely the reason you and I are sitting down together today, because we are going to talk mainly focusing on your TED Talk, and you have beautifully brought out a great message for people in career as to how not to say get stuck, how not to get stuck. So why don't we get started here by giving listeners an account of your journey, alicia.
Speaker 2:Okay, well, there's different angles that I can use, but I will start with, since we're talking about the TEDx talk and the fact that it's about, as you mentioned, career, and sometimes you get stuck. So for me, my career started out as a chemical engineer. I was working in different chemical plants and oil refineries in Louisiana, which is where I'm originally from, and I knew I didn't want to spend the rest of my career doing that type of work. So it didn't take me long to realize that. But I didn't know what I wanted to do and what happened is one of my jobs. I used to work at a company called Monsanto and, for those who are into the agricultural line of work, you've definitely heard of Monsanto before. So that was my first job as an engineer out of university, and I remember, vi, that there would be an accountant who would come and visit us once a month and she would bring these really thick stacks of paper, these financial reports and it was like she was speaking another language things like balance sheets and debt to equity ratios and receivables, and I just it was truly like a foreign language and I realized I did not understand business. I knew how to be an engineer. I didn't understand the business decisions that were driving the things that I was being asked to do every day, working as an engineer.
Speaker 2:I decided to go back to school to pursue my MBA, and I was working full time during the day, going to school at night, and I have to be honest with you, it opened up a completely new world for me. I no longer saw anything the same. Engineering was one thing, but commerce was something else, because commerce was all around me. Well, shortly after I completed my MBA studies, I just had this intuition, this gut feeling that I needed to move out of New Orleans quick, fast and in a hurry. And I listened to that intuitive thought and thankfully, I'm glad that I did, because that led to my decision to relocate to Atlanta.
Speaker 2:And here's what's interesting. I was deciding between New York City and Atlanta. Oh, you wouldn't want to be in New York. Well, here's the thing. So I went to Tulane University for my MBA. They have a huge alumni network in New York City. It would have been very easy for me to get a job there. It would have been very easy for me to get a job there. But here's the thing they actually do an event that they call the Freeman Days in New York. So the name of their business school is the AB Freeman School of Business, and this Freeman Days in New York is really like a field trip, an opportunity for MBA students to visit with other alumni at their respective companies, wherever they were working. So it was then that I finally got a taste of what it would be like to work and live in New York, and I decided that was not for me.
Speaker 1:Yeah not everyone's cup of tea, I guess.
Speaker 2:Yeah, not everyone's cup of tea, I guess you know. Just seeing how many hours people were working and they still couldn't afford to live in Manhattan, that was just. I couldn't wrap my brain around that Because I was living in New Orleans and I had my own home, I had my own car, and the thought of leaving all of that to go live in someone else's basement Didn't want to do that. So I instead moved to Atlanta. But, interestingly, I only knew one person when I moved here and then, sure enough, six months later, hurricane Katrina happened in New Orleans. So it was very good that I, that I did listen to that intuition and that's something that I want to encourage your listeners Follow your gut instinct. If you have an intuitive thought and it just doesn't leave, you should explore that, act on it. And sometimes it might seem really, really crazy, but you just never know. And I think one of the worst things in life is to live a life of regret wondering what could have happened if only you had done a certain thing.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, I mean, it's always important to listen to your inner voice. Right, there's something that's telling you. That's kind of, you know, helping you see a different perspective.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. And when I arrived, I thought I was going to get a job at Coca-Cola. You know, you live here in the Atlanta area, also, they're headquartered here and that didn't happen either. And so after about six I'm sorry, 60 days of searching online for work and this was right at the point when everything was shifting to online. So you know, I'm old enough to remember literally typing letters to apply for jobs. But by 2005, everything was moving online, where you fill out applications online. And I was filling out all of these applications for jobs, wasn't hearing anything back, and so I decided you know what, for the amount of time, effort and energy that I'm spending looking for a job working for someone else, I could spend that same time, effort and energy creating my own business around my own skill set. And that's how my company started, equilibria, and it has evolved and shifted over the years into what it is today. So, coming up on 20 years in a couple of months, that's great. That's great. That's just congratulations again.
Speaker 1:So that's thank you, this is a great story and I know our focus is primarily your TED Talk. And then you bring out beautifully in terms of career trajectory you have talked about your own, you know, listening to your inner voice and kind of moving out of Louisiana After exploring New York, you decided Atlanta is better and you came here In terms of obscurity, talent suppression and dealing with it. How would you say one should go about it, alicia? I know I mean, yeah, you, like I said, the TED Talk is beautiful. You just bring all that out. But just that you and I are talking in person. Why don't I have you share your perspective?
Speaker 2:Sure. So I think obscurity is one of the greatest threats that we have when we have these talents or these ideas and we want to share it with people, and sometimes it's suppressed. Oftentimes you may find that you have great ideas and people are constantly suppressing those ideas, and that suppression can come in a number of ways. But I want to first point out that you know, a lot of times we think we're good at something but we may not really be that good at it.
Speaker 1:Oh, every day is a learning journey, right.
Speaker 2:But, however, the reason why I used the story of Jimi Hendrix in my TEDx talk is because this is a clear example of someone who had an immense amount of talent, yet he suffered with obscurity when he was performing in the United States, at least when his career first started.
Speaker 2:A lot of times you may be suppressed because of jealousy or hatred. People know that you're good at what you do and therefore they want to kind of suppress you, they want to put you down, they want to put you in the background and you remain a best kept secret, if you will. Then there are other times when people may actually acknowledge that you are, my goodness, you're so talented at what you do. How do you come up with these things? But yet they won't pay you what your talent is actually worth. And then again there are just all kinds of other factors where you just keep trying and you're hitting a brick wall every single time. And so that's why I started thinking about it and I said well, like Jimi Hendrix, sometimes it requires moving to a different space and place where your talents can be recognized, and not just recognized but rewarded accordingly, absolutely.
Speaker 1:I'm just thinking slightly differently as well, Just prompts me to ask this as I just go over my thoughts Are self-limiting beliefs in any way contributing to, say, someone feeling oh, kind of limiting themselves and kind of also feeling is talent suppression also arising, perhaps from self-limiting beliefs?
Speaker 2:also arising perhaps from self-limiting beliefs. Absolutely Self-limiting beliefs can start as a result of constantly being put down, being criticized. That certainly helps with your self-limiting beliefs. And then when you, just you know, rejection is tough, when you're constantly being rejected. And rejection can come in multiple ways, whether it's a job application, whether it's you know, you ask, you do ask for more money, and that is rejected. So rejection comes in a variety of forms and so, again, it can.
Speaker 2:It can be very tough to not take these things personally and to just conclude well, you know what?
Speaker 2:Maybe I'm not that good at it, maybe I don't deserve more, maybe I should just stay here and be quiet and just kind of keep to myself and keep my head down and continue to suffer and continue to to suffer. So so, yes, self-limiting beliefs are very damaging and detrimental and and it's all energy I mean, I don't know if we can, you know, from a metaphysical perspective, it's, it's all energy and people. It's a very dangerous cycle, because you may start off thinking I'm really good at this and I know I'm good at it, but then as people start to, you know, as you start to deal with the rejection and the suppression and constantly being undervalued, then you start to develop those self-limiting beliefs. Being undervalued, then you start to develop those self-limiting beliefs and then other people start to feed off of that energy that you're carrying about yourself and so, because they sense that you're suffering from FOMO or you're suffering from any other form of self-limiting belief, they just give you more of what you're starting to think about yourself.
Speaker 2:So it's a very dangerous vicious cycle and that's why, again, oftentimes it might mean going somewhere different. Where you're around, different people starting over to get out of that cycle. And I understand not everyone can physically relocate I do understand that. But that is the beauty of tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams and Google Meet is that we have the ability. Now we have the technologies that allow us to put ourselves, whether remotely or in person, into other places where we can be around other people.
Speaker 1:Exactly. So how, then, is seeing opportunity important and using that as a catalyst for growth, because even your case is a classic example, right?
Speaker 2:Because even your case is a classic example. Right, opportunity isn't always presented in a safe, predictable package. So opportunity usually and again I'll go back to I'll use Jimi Hendrix as an example. Think about it. Here's this person, this struggling musician in the US. Someone sees him perform at this very tiny venue in New York City and offers him an opportunity, but he doesn't know that it's going to be an opportunity that will literally change the trajectory of his career. It's just, you know, sometimes when your back is against the wall, you just say, okay, I'm already as low as I can, get sure I'll go for it. So he arrives in London, england, with literally 20 cents a dime in each of his shoes and the clothes on his back, and then within a year he's a phenomenon throughout Europe.
Speaker 2:For myself, the opportunity to the opportunity to sometimes you create your own opportunities. For me it was okay, this intuitive thought get out of New Orleans, you know, get out, and get out as quickly as you can. And then, once I arrived in Atlanta, I just started meeting people and different people would tell me about different things, whether it be certain networking groups or certain professional organizations that they thought I should try out. I remained open-minded, and I think that is the key. People will throw all kinds of things at you. Not everything will turn out to be an opportunity, but you go for it anyway. Try it out, because you never know which one of those things will actually turn into an opportunity that literally could change everything.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so true. I think no one can discount the possibility of any single connection or any single meeting, because you never know. That's why I keep emphasizing, even on this very show, learning is an everyday journey. You are going to walk out of that meeting learning something which can trigger even your own thoughts in a different direction, steer you and help you pivot right, and that can possibly lead to, I think, whatever else. I wanted to focus next, which is career acceleration due to relocation. Right, so your journey, and then the example that you bring out, jimi Hendrix carrier acceleration due to relocation. What are the prospects that one can see? And then again, when is it apt for someone to even consider relocation, kind of like the matrix that you bring out.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, I will certainly say there are things that could influence whether or not you just pack up everything and leave. Obviously, your age, you know, I was 29, 28, 29 when I made that decision, so I was a lot younger and it was easier, frankly, for me to just kind of pick up and leave. But I am mindful of the fact that people have other responsibilities as well. You might have your family, you know, you might have children, you might have a spouse, so it may not be that easy to just leave behind your life of comfort and venture into the unknown. What I recommend for people now and this is what I do myself as well leverage these social networks. Start joining groups. I'm not on Facebook, but I am very active on LinkedIn. That's how you and I met on LinkedIn. That's how you and I met.
Speaker 2:And if there is a particular city, if there is a particular state or a province, if there's another country that you keep reading and hearing about that particular place, if you aren't able to visit that place, start connecting with people who are already there and be genuine about it and say listen, I keep hearing about Toronto, canada, and I'm hearing all of these great things about it. I've been doing my own research online. I've watched videos on YouTube about other expats who have relocated to Toronto and now I want to connect be very intentional about connecting with other people who are also in that area. Would you mind having a Zoom call with me where I can just ask you about what it's like to do business there, or what is it like as a software developer to move to Toronto? What is it like to be, you know, a nurse? Whatever? Whatever your profession or your career is, connect with people first. Then maybe, if you, if, if your budget allows for it, you can actually arrange to travel to that place and really get a sense of what would it be like to move here, what are the job prospects? Could my career flourish here? And then it's ultimately your decision as to whether or not you decide to physically relocate.
Speaker 2:But again, I want to stress to everyone who's listening to us or watching us right now we have the beauty of being able to use these digital technologies where we, you can still. I can still stay in Atlanta and I can literally network with people around the world. The only barrier are our time zone differences. Sometimes, you know when I'm talking to people who are in Singapore or Australia, I have to be up very, very early in the morning or really really late at night, but if you want, the question we all have to ask ourselves is how badly do we want this? Now, there's one other thing I should point out.
Speaker 2:There is something to be said about in-person, face-to-face interactions. I've met so many people just through my podcast as you have as well, vi. You have listeners in over 100 countries. We meet people from literally all over the world, and there are people that I make some of my guests, that I've made fantastic connections with, but it wasn't until I was able to actually visit with them in person in some of these different countries that things really took off, and they took off very quickly. So please don't underestimate the power of connecting in person. It is very important. Nothing beats face-to-face interaction. However, if your finances, your budget, just simply don't allow for that right now, just take comfort in knowing you still can develop very good relationships working relationships remotely.
Speaker 1:Oh, yes, absolutely. I think we all have to start somewhere, and you have given listeners a great starting point. So what, then, are the key attributes? Or rather, what are the attributes in terms of being able to identify that hey, okay, this could be my career path. We talked about opportunity, and then we also need some advocates, some resources and all of that right.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. I think of it as a formula. And you're right First you have to have the talent, you have to have a talent. So this isn't necessarily about just immigrating to another country for the sake of immigrating. That's not what we're talking about resources and the opportunity and the advocates to take that, to go from idea to actual implementation, and then you might just have, you know, that pure raw talent. You're just really good at what you do, whether you're an artist of some sort or, again, a software developer or a business coach, whatever it is. Whatever your talent is in, you should have an advocate. How do you find that advocate? An advocate can come in a number of ways, a number of unexpected ways. I'm going to share my mentor, a story about my mentor and how we met. Her name is Essie Escobedo and she recently sold her business. She's now officially retired and Essie and I met about two.
Speaker 2:I think I was here in Atlanta for two years, so I was still very new to the city. I was a part of a networking group that was called Power Corps and we would meet once a week from seven. We would meet really early in the morning, from 7am to 830. And there was a lady that was a part of my networking group at that time and she told me that she wanted to introduce me to one of her business colleagues. I said, okay, sure, again, just being open, keeping an open mind, being open to meeting any and everyone because I'm still so new to the city. Well, that person that she wanted me to meet was Essie, and I'll never forget it.
Speaker 2:We met at a restaurant for lunch and Essie just took a liking to me. She really took me under her wing. She started to mentor me. I didn't ask her. She saw something in me that, truthfully, I didn't even see in myself. Who would have thought that this random lunch meeting would have evolved into what has now turned into gosh, like an 18-year friendship? I call her my fairy godmother. I call her my fairy godmother.
Speaker 2:Rightfully so. Yes, once she started spending more time around me and asking me questions and learning more about what I could do, she started to tell as many people as she could and I never asked her to so she was and is a true advocate. This is someone where you don't have to beg them to help you. They already see it in you. They already see your raw, untapped talent, and that advocate may very well also be plugged into the resources that are required to take your talent from obscurity to the world, knowing who you are.
Speaker 1:Well, that's powerful. That's powerful. I was actually going to add even earlier, when you mentioned set up Zoom calls, you know, even if the location is not reachable, just so, and request that hey, I would like to know more information, and so on and so forth, I was definitely going to say, yeah, that could very well turn into a mentor for you. So what starts as a regular connection could end up being much more than that, right?
Speaker 2:So I have another story, if I may just share this really quickly.
Speaker 2:So I have been teaching a Lean Six Sigma course at Purdue University going up into my fourth year now. I'm going up into my fourth year now and, by the way, that opportunity came when I was taking my studies to become certified as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt one of my instructors. He was a phenomenal instructor. He is a phenomenal instructor and he would always make himself available to his students by saying and keep in mind, this was completely remote, 100% remote online learning and he would often offer to us, as students, the opportunity to get on a phone call with him to talk through if we were having difficulty with a particular topic or we just needed to brainstorm on some things, you know, for a particular assignment. Well, john and I remained in touch even after I had taken my course, about 10 years later. Keep this in mind. 10 years later, john contacted me and he said Alicia Purdue is looking for another Lean Six Sigma instructor. Are you interested? Because if you say yes, all you have to do is say yes. I've already told them about you. Here's another advocate who presented an opportunity and the resources. Everything was already lined up. All I had to do was say yes. I didn't have to sell myself to these folks. I didn't have to tell them about my credentials. He had already advocated for me. It was literally a matter of us getting on a Zoom call and them asking are you interested? And I said yes.
Speaker 2:I would have never imagined that I would become an instructor, but now here I am and I absolutely love it. And that would never have happened had I not maintained that relationship with him, constantly letting him know what I was working on. He's watching everything I'm doing and you know what's funny? Vi, john and I, it's been now 12 or 13 years that we've known each other. We still have never met in person. He lives in California, I'm in Georgia. Wow, we have never met. We have never met.
Speaker 2:So it is possible. Everyone. I'm telling you the other great thing about social media whichever platform you use whether it's TikTok, facebook, instagram, linkedin showcase your work, showcase your talent so that people can see you and they're watching you. You never know who is watching you, who's listening to you on your podcast or on YouTube, and when that moment comes, you might have advocates out there that you don't even know exist, but when they hear about an opportunity, that advocate will show up in your life and say Vi, I know you don't know me, but I've been watching you for the past five years on YouTube and I think this would be a great opportunity for you.
Speaker 1:That's how it happens Right, there are the outcomes right the reward, the recognition and the respect.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, yeah, and it's tough to keep going when you aren't sure that people are even paying attention. Is anybody listening? Does anybody see me? Because, again, you're in obscurity, right, and so that's that's why these different social platforms that's how it can be used for good is to to show what you can do and how it is of value. It's of value to someone out there. You just have to keep showing up. But as long as we allow those self-limiting beliefs that you were talking about earlier, as long as we allow those self-limiting beliefs to to grip, to have a grip on us, no one will know about us.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so we have to show up as well, and being authentic is important right. Show up authentically.
Speaker 2:People will, especially with the proliferation of AI. You must have your own voice. I think people like us, who have original thought, original ideas, original, creative ways of doing our work, we are going to become a rare. We're going to become like a rare, precious gem, because more and more people are relying on AI and you can tell when they're using it. You can tell it's not their own voice, it's not their own words and they may have an opportunity presented to them and then they can't perform because they've been relying on machinery to do things for them, to think things for them. Have original thought. Don't be afraid to be creative. Use AI as an assistant, but don't use it to replace your voice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, couldn't have said that any better in terms of showing up authentically. And it's also important not to get lost in the process, right? You just cannot think, oh, my career trajectory is not good, I just want to go upwards, and upwards, and upwards, and so maybe I'll pick up and move. That's just not the solution. That's not what we are talking about. Right? You need some parameters First. You need some talent. And when we say talent, we are not saying, oh, you just have to be outrageously special, you just have to have some experience, you have to have some backing to qualify what you can do or demonstrate what you can do, right? So how do you think typically people get lost in the process and how can someone just make sure that they kind of foolproof that situation?
Speaker 2:I don't know if it can be foolproofed 100 percent, but Sometimes this is going to sound really odd, but it's the truth. It's what I've found to be true. Whenever you are getting closer and closer to a breakthrough, don't be surprised if bad things start happening. Different challenges, different obstacles it's merely a test. It's a test to understand how badly do you want this? Because if you want it badly, anything worth having is worth fighting for. It is worth fighting for and if you can get onto the other side of that, I guarantee you it would have all been worth it.
Speaker 2:I'll share another example, just giving a TEDx talk. This is something I've wanted to do and I have pursued actively for five years by over 150 rejected applications. So we were talking about rejections, right? I came close to being on the stage twice during COVID Twice. Both times the event organizers canceled the event. The first time it was canceled two weeks before the event was supposed to take place and the second time it was canceled two months before the event was supposed to take place.
Speaker 2:Now, I don't know if people listening to this realize it, but there is a lot of work that goes into preparing for your TEDx talk. There were multiple rehearsals. We're practicing every single Saturday on a Zoom call. We're getting together and practicing and then to hear all of a sudden that it's just canceled. That's hard, it's heartbreaking. Oh, of course, of course, yes. So I got very, very, very discouraged and I spent 2023, I just said I don't want to look at, I don't even want to hear the word Ted, I'm over this, it's not supposed to happen.
Speaker 2:And then, at the beginning of of twenty twenty four, I said you know what? I need to change my perspective. I need to think about this differently. There's, I suspect, that Because I have three, I have, I have three different ideas that I was shopping around and I told my assistant. I said wouldn't it be funny that the one that I'm referring to as the Jimmy effect, the positive effects of relocation on your career wouldn't it be funny if I actually ended up giving that talk outside of the US? We started shopping that idea around to different TEDx franchises throughout the US, kept getting rejected, rejected, rejected, rejected. I finally told my assistant this was last. This was in April, I'm sorry, may of 2024. I said okay, we need to go outside of the US. Let's start applying outside of the US. Vi, I kid you, not within 48 hours.
Speaker 2:I was accepted in Helsinki, finland of all places, to talk about the Jimmy effect. And it was just. We laughed, my assistant and I. We laugh about this all the time because five years. And then I finally said let's try something different, let's go outside of the U? S? And, sure enough, the idea was picked up right away. So, um and so, getting back to the question about it being foolproof, the bad, the obstacles I don't want to say the bad things, the obstacles and the challenges will happen. Something else that happened right before the TEDx event happened, which was in October 2024, was the date, the day that the that I was able to deliver this talk. I was a victim of a major bank scam that completely depleted my business's bank account and the bank did not want to give me my money back. So I had all I had a lot of obstacles going on in the background, that's not an easy situation.
Speaker 2:Leading up to giving this talk. But I still got on the stage, I still flew across the Atlantic Ocean to deliver that talk and then, when I came back to the US, I was finally able to resolve that issue. So I just want to encourage those who are listening to me, because I don't want to tell this story and make it all seem like, oh, everything just happened and it was lovely, and my life completely changed and it was great and I met all the people that I needed to meet and they helped me and they no, no, no, no, no.
Speaker 2:There were a lot of obstacles. In fact, when I the day that I moved from New Orleans to Atlanta, I was served papers. I was being sued by a tenant I used to rent out part of my home and the former tenant I was served papers, I was sued and I had to come back to New Orleans about two months after I moved to appear in court and the case was dismissed because it was bogus. But that happened Literally. We were loading up the truck and I was served with papers. We were loading up the truck and I was served with papers.
Speaker 2:So, again, some people, if that happened to them, they would have been like oh my God, see, this is a sign that I should not, I need to stay here, I need to stay in my little box. This is a sign. But see, I interpreted the opposite way, like, no, this is resistance and I'm going to push through this because resistance builds muscle. Okay, you don't get to have big, bulky muscles without resisting against weight. So, metaphorically, the same happens for us in life. It's not a bed of roses. It's not always a straight, narrow path. We can plan all day, every day, and it means nothing. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:So we talk about critiques, who can remain your roadblock. There can be resistance in other forms, like you mentioned, but once you have the talent, basically the experience, you just need to explore, bring up your authentic self. So there is people noticing. There are people noticing all the time, and so showing up authentically leads to someone even advocating, just like you said, and that brings more opportunity knocking on your door. And definitely, with opportunity and all the resources that you can tap into to just execute that successfully, comes reward and recognition and the result that you are hoping for couldn't have brought out any better. That's just beautiful. And what about the science behind increased self-worth and the positive impact that it can have on one's well-being? Mental health is such a huge parameter these days and everyone is like super stressed at work and whatnot. So the science behind increased self-worth, alicia.
Speaker 2:Yes, there have been scientific studies and you know, keep in mind, I'm by no means a neuroscientist, but I have read several studies that talk about the positive effects of relocation and, honestly, vi it could be something as simple as taking a walk in the park, going somewhere different, having a change of scenery, a change in environment. How many times have you been stuck trying to think of a solution or figure your way out of something, whether it's the problem you're trying to solve in your business, in your career, at work, personally, and if you just go to a park and you walk around and you're outside, you're in nature, and you walk around a little bit and you feel refreshed and all of a sudden the answer may come to you, but as long as you're in it, in that same environment, you're stuck. So there are all kinds of neuroscience studies that have explored not only what relocation can do for you, the positive effects, because there can be some negative effects of relocation, especially if you relocate against your will. But if you are willingly relocating, there are amiss benefits, because you have the benefit not only of exploring a new environment. It's like discovering new things, the joy that comes with exploring new neighborhoods, exploring new places to eat, new places to drink coffee or tea, new places to meet friends, potential new friends.
Speaker 2:So all of those feelings can work to your benefit, so that it serves as positive environmental stimuli if you are away from friends and family, because, as much as your friends and family may love you, they also may be trying to keep you close because they're fearful for you.
Speaker 2:They love you, but they are fearful that you won't be able to succeed and they want to keep you where you are. When you are away from friends and family, you have no choice but to rely on yourself, on your talent, and again, you don't have the distractions that also can come along with certain friends and family members as well. So I'm not advocating that you shouldn't be around your family. I want to be very clear about that. But these are some of the reasons why people are sometimes able to have their careers accelerate when they move away from familiar surroundings and familiar situations. It's because they realize I have no one to depend on or no one to rely on but myself, and I don't have certain distractions either, so I can really focus on honing my talent and getting it out there for others to see and experience.
Speaker 1:And you're kind of getting out of your comfort zone, right? You know, moving to a new place, you're trying to get comfortable doing the uncomfortable. I always, you know, love saying that as well, and it's a personal mantra for me too. How else does success look like from relocation? You kind of gave us a few pointers here, but overall, how can success look like from relocation?
Speaker 2:So I'll give a more general, my general view on success. I view success as being able to wake up every day doing work that you love on your terms and you're able to financially sustain yourself. For me it's not about a numerical figure oh, if I make $3.5 million every year, that's success for me. But success looks different for all of us. For me it's I am blessed to be able to do work that I truly love, where I am adding value to other people and their businesses, creating opportunities for others, and I can go to bed at night with a clear conscious knowing that I did the absolute best that I could do given a certain situation. That is success to me and it just keeps you know you pay it forward and it just keeps you know you pay it forward.
Speaker 1:So, yes, and relocation can very much be a part of that, to kind of trigger that success happening in your life. Yeah, that's again. You know. Your definition of success certainly resonates a lot with me. I truly believe that one should pursue their passion, and as long as, yes, we all need to put bread and butter on the table, so we just need to sustain ourselves in terms of being able to eat and fund ourselves financially. But to the extent that we are able to meet our goals and and be self-sufficient, and I think success definitely comes from truly nurturing your passion, and and seeing that you can put a smile on somebody else's face by helping them out is, I think, it's much more of a satisfaction and I think that truly defines what success means, right? Because as long as you can tap into your creativity, use your determination and show up authentically, I think there's there's just no better feeling than that. That's just me. What do you think, alicia?
Speaker 2:I agree with you. I look at some people who others may say, yes, they're successful, again based on the amount of money that they make, the type of house that they live in, the type of car that they drive, and a lot of those people are miserable that they drive, and a lot of those people are miserable, they're miserable. There are people who work long hours because they have to, and they're miserable. Then there are those of us who are working long hours but it doesn't even feel like it's a lot of hours because we're truly doing what we love. It doesn't even really feel like work.
Speaker 2:In the building where my office is, one of my office mates called me this morning and he said it's dark outside. I can see the light on in your office because there's glass everywhere, as you can see here behind me. But it was funny because he was driving past the building and he called me and he said it's seven o'clock in the morning. What are you doing over there? It's still dark outside and I was like, hey, man, the early bird gets the worm right, but it doesn't feel like it, doesn't?
Speaker 2:People often talk about the hours that I work, but it truly doesn't feel like work because I can just be doing something and before I know it's five hours, five hours have passed. But I'm doing it out of the passion that you were just talking about and the the, the joy that comes as a result of being able to work, and I I do recognize the blessing in being able to do work that you love on your terms, because so many people, there's so many people who can't say that. So I I recognize how fortunate I am and I absolutely do not take that for granted at all mm-hmm and just um.
Speaker 1:A note for the benefit of Janseys who are just in their initial stages in career or who are just about embarking on their career trajectory. We have kind of talked about people in careers if they are stuck as to what measures they can take and so on and so forth. But what about any other tools, resources, any other tips that you would offer Alicia, in terms of people that are just getting started with?
Speaker 2:their career? And thank you for this question because I'm troubled by and not to paint a group with a broad stroke. I don't want to do that regarding the Gen Z population, because there's a certain sensitivity that many of them have that makes them unable to deal with adversity, to deal with the extreme rejection. You know they've grown up in a culture where everyone receives a trophy, but you and I didn't grow up in a culture like that, and so my heart goes out to them because when rejection comes, it can sting in a very damaging way for them, like oh, you didn't place. You didn't win first, second or third place at the science fair. You know you didn't place at all.
Speaker 2:I highly recommend watching documentaries. I'm not going to suggest reading books, because I know so many people don't read books now, especially that generation but watch documentaries of people that you admire, whether they are musicians, business people, people in your community, if they're famous enough. People in your community, if they're famous enough and there's something that you can watch. Go onto YouTube, search for these people and type the word documentary. After you type in their name. I guarantee you this is what you're going to find. You're going to find stories of tragedy as well as the triumph, you're going to hear the obstacles, the challenges, the turmoil that people had to go through in order to get to where they are today, whatever their career might be in.
Speaker 2:I personally love reading and hearing about and learning about the stories of other successful entrepreneurs, business people. I often look at all titans of any industry, whether it be fashion or food or media science. I just love learning about the journeys of other people and I guarantee you, not once have I read the story of anyone who has had a path that has been straight and narrow and just full of joy and lollipops and rainbows and teddy bears along the way. That's just not how life works. So I think if Gen Z can learn from the stories of people that they already admire, it's going to help them put their own lives and situations they may be going through into better perspective.
Speaker 1:Oh, yeah, I strongly believe. Yeah, it kind of help them see what we all have experienced in terms of just a casual sharing of life incidents and stories in a just a casual conversation and very friendly way. That will help them because they are willing to listen. I definitely find that they are willing to listen. It's not that they want to be on social media 100% of the time. They do want conversation. I think it's also up to the rest of us to be able to engage them in a way that they want to see themselves engaged. I think they want to be seen, heard, and if we give them an opportunity to do that, I think definitely we can achieve common medium in terms of okay, with them being able to listen to us more. So I think they just expect us to meet them at a certain place and if we are able to, I think there's room for a lot more productive conversations and a lot more productivity.
Speaker 1:I don't think I can finish this conversation without talking about the fast growth predicament. That's the reason your book came out and the name of the book. Let me just have you talk about that and the Casano methodology and its impact on small businesses. So, behind the facade how to structure company operations for sustainable success. That's just again like an Amazon bestseller. So the forum is yours, alicia.
Speaker 2:Oh, thank you. Thank you so much for mentioning the book, and it's funny because I'm actively working with someone now to rebrand the book, and part of that is changing the title so that it's easier to find for the people who are looking for those types of solutions. But just quickly, it is a book based on a framework that I've developed over years of working with so many entrepreneurs in different industries, and the framework, as you mentioned, is called Ka-Sinu and, just a little fun fact here, I'm a student of ancient civilizations. That is something that I'm passionate about, and so ancient Egypt is one of those civilizations that I have studied quite a bit about. So Ka is an ancient Egyptian word that means spirit, and then sinu is an ancient Egyptian word that means like twin or clone or similar.
Speaker 2:So the idea is to figure out what is it that makes your business so special, what is it that core talent again, that you've built your business around, and how do we replicate the spirit or the essence of that? So that's why I refer to it as the Casino framework, or methodology, and the book that I wrote is teaching this methodology, but it's doing it in the form of stories. So these are six different stories that chronicle the lives of entrepreneurs who run all kinds of different types of businesses. One is a non-profit, one is a food distribution company, another is a furniture store. So there's a little bit of something in there for any business owner. But the idea was to not teach the information in a dry, boring fashion, but to teach it in the form of storytelling. So that's what the book is about, and again, it's really it's part textbook, part novel, if you will. So it's a more entertaining way of delivering information about how to truly build business infrastructure in your organization.
Speaker 1:Well, awesome, a fascinating conversation. I think we took listeners from how you know they can identify their talent with some experience that they have, how best they can leverage, seeing opportunity that lies ahead of them, make use of the mentors and the resources all the tools that that that's you know available in plenty these days, building a network so much more and ultimately getting paid their worth or getting rewarded, recognized, respected for what they do. We also delve deep into what truly success looks like and how to nurture creativity and determination. Such a fascinating conversation and I'm really thrilled to have sat down and had this chat with you, alicia. If there's anything else that you would like to add, your social media, any contact information, the forum is yours.
Speaker 2:Oh, thank you. I again. I'm very active on LinkedIn, so I encourage anyone who's listening. If you'd love, if you'd like to stay connected, I am accessible. I would love to connect with you. Please send me a direct message Once we do connect on LinkedIn. You can find me at Alicia Butler Pierre. I also have a website by the same name, aliciabutlerpierrecom, and then there's my company's website, which is eqbsystemscom. Awesome, Thank you, Awesome.
Speaker 1:Listeners as always. Follow the podcast. Read the podcast. Leave a review from your podcast app of choice podcast. Leave a review from your podcast app of choice. Follow me on Instagram and YouTube. In fact, this video and so many other podcast videos are available on the YouTube channel at vaipkumar, that's V-A-I-P-K-U-M-A-R, and you can find me on Substack as well, where I post articles and so much more. Until next time with yet another interesting guest and yet another interesting topic. It's me, vai and Alicia, saying so long. Thank you.
