Silence Doesn’t Pay: Your Q4 Leverage Window w/ Dr. Renee Baker

This is your leverage window. Q4 is when companies lock budgets, finalize promotions, set equity, and protect retention risk. Translation: decisions are being made about you—often without you. If you stay quiet, you’re already behind. In this episode, Dr. Renee Baker joins me to dismantle the myths and give you a real plan to negotiate raises, titles, and equity without begging or breaking.

We tear into the fear narrative—layoffs, headlines, “be grateful and wait your turn.” Gratitude without advocacy is servitude. Silence doesn’t pay. You are the CEO of you, and if you don’t speak up, you’ve handed away your leverage. We talk about why it’s cheaper to keep you than replace you, how bonuses and timing create retention pressure, and how to use that math in your favor.

Then we get tactical. Politics often beats performance, so study the breadcrumbs: who gets promoted, how, and why. Don’t bring a task list to a review—bring outcomes. Learn to quantify impact beyond sales, frame results the way your firm rewards them, and ask the right questions in your 1:1s so your leaders carry the right story into the room when you’re not there.

We close with two heavy hitters: titles and “no.” Titles drive pay bands and access—use them. If they say no, convert it into a timeline, criteria, and checkpoints. If that’s not respected, that’s your signal. This is not about ego. It’s about equity, mobility, and your next seat at the table.

Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sN9-MechYpM

Connect with Dr. Renee Baker:
 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsreneebaker/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ItsReneeBaker/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsreneebaker

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@itsreneebaker

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DrReneeBaker

As always we ask you to comment, DM, whatever it takes to have a conversation to help you take the next step in your journey, reach out on any platform!

Twitter, FaceBook, Instagram, Tiktok, Linkedin

DISCLOSURE: Awards and rankings by third parties are not indicative of future performance or client investment success. Past performance does not guarantee future results. All investment strategies carry profit/loss potential and cannot eliminate investment risks. Information discussed may not reflect current positions/recommendations. While believed accurate, Black Mammoth does not guarantee information accuracy. This broadcast is not a solicitation for securities transactions or personalized investment advice. Tax/estate planning information is general - consult professionals for specific situations. Full disclosures at www.blackmammoth.com.

Chapters

• 0:00 Leverage season: why Q4 decisions matter
• 1:05 How companies really decide comp at year-end
• 5:25 Speak up: fear, layoffs, and why silence doesn’t pay
• 8:10 Myth: “Be grateful and wait your turn”
• 12:05 Myth: “Raises aren’t possible this year”
• 15:10 Inflation & “cheaper to keep ’em” (your retention leverage)
• 18:40 Politics vs performance: read the breadcrumbs
• 28:45 Job Titles = access, pay bands, and mobility
• 32:55 If they say no: timelines, criteria, and next moves

Transcript

Dr. Renee Baker: 0:22

Well then it's time.

Stoy Hall: 0:29

Our career moves that raise negotiations, promotions, makes kind, wanna vomit a little bit. You don't really know how to talk about it. You don't even know if you truly are valued enough to ask for it. Well, hey, today's episode we're gonna get in all to that with Dr. Renee Baker'cause she's amazing. She has that background from the corporate world and there's no better time to start thinking about it as we go into the next year and preparing yourself for that conversation. So Renee, welcome back.

Dr. Renee Baker: 0:56

Oh, thank you so much for having me. Soy. This is such an important topic and I'm glad to be here to share just a bit of my perspective on it.

Stoy Hall: 1:06

So let's, let's dive right into it and let's go from kind of the top part of it, right, with, with the, the corporate side of things and what they think around this time. So, q depending on obviously, when their, their fiscal year ends, but let's go with traditional. This is Q4. We got Q1 coming up. Where are they at in the thinking of, okay, I've got these employees that are coming up on their annuals or their five year or whatever, where's their brain at, um, in terms of comp and and comp structure now?

Dr. Renee Baker: 1:35

Yeah, so, um, like you said, it, it depends and I think we, we really need to start looking at this time of the year as the, the leverage window, right? We need to start really thinking about. Our value beyond our, our job description. So here's the reality. I wanna just set the stage and, and answer your question, but here's the reality. Um, and I'm gonna speak from the lens of Mia as as a woman. Um, women are still earning about 83, 80 4 cents. Per dollar compared to men even in the same occupation. Okay. The data is out there, and when we think about it, no matter man or woman, the one thing that is not going to get away from us is inflation. And that is the one thing that's gonna magnify the gap because essentials your childcare, uh, food, gas, um, housing takes a lot of our pay. So to your question, the year end is when. Decisions are made, right? This is when budgets, um, are usually decided upon based on where you are. Um. If you are an employee who gets equity, that decisions are made. Um, promotions are usually locked in beforehand. So companies are looking at this as the opportunity to, what I say is they will take care of the people that they value, right? So this is, they're looking at retention risk because another thing that happens is at the end of the year, um, especially for those of us that are in finance, and depending on, again. Um, at some of my companies, the end of the year in December was when bonuses were paid, right? So there's that retention risk. So that's, this is the opportunity, right? That this is your leverage. That's why we're gonna call it, this is the leverage window, because especially now, um, listen, the, the. People, the cost of rere replacing talent is like 1.5 to 2% of the salary. So I don't say that this is the time to start thinking about it. This is the time to be about it. And in, in a way, I'll say that we're beyond the, the part of reflection. This is now the leverage season because if you stay silent now. You are already behind. And I think if you're just starting a conversation, you are, you're behind, you're, you need to be having these conversations. Um, earlier at the beginning of the year, and I, and I remember being, um, in, in a corporate environment and not realizing that that was the case. I thought that when we would have the conversation around performance, that's when the decision was made. I didn't know. So once I know better, I, I did better. And I, I want the, the people that are watching that are listening that to know that this is an ongoing conversations. By the time you got to, you get to your performance review, the decision has been made. There are people that are having conversations talking about your performance all year. And, um, when they get in the room and they talk about who is the better and every, all the leaders are negotiating your value. You need to make sure that they are equipped with the information that's gonna best position you against everyone else that is competing to retain their talent. So hopefully I answered, uh, your question, but this, we need to start thinking about ourselves as valuable all year round, not just at performance season.

Stoy Hall: 5:02

But Renee, I'm afraid with all of uh uh, the jobs reports coming out, there's so many less jobs. There's so many more people getting laid off. There's gonna be a bunch of layoffs, by the way, coming one. One. We see it from Wells Fargo. We're gonna see it a lot more come one, one of 2026. I'm afraid to have those conversations. I'm afraid to show my value and come say something because you know I'm gonna get fired. What do you have to say to that?

Dr. Renee Baker: 5:27

Well, here's what I'll say to that. I would hope that. We learn to speak up because silence does not pay. And if you don't advocate for yourself as much as we trust and you know, love our companies and we respect and appreciate our leaders, we are responsible for our own selves. We are the captain of our own ships. You are the CEO of you. And if you. Remain silent. If you live in fear, then you are, you are really putting yourself in one of the worst positions because listen, there's a lot of noise out here and that's why I said we wanna value ourselves beyond our job descriptions. Even some of the best companies, we believe that we're too big to fail, have failed, and no job. Um, listen, the reality is jobs and corporations. Don't provide as much stability as we may trust and think. And I don't say that to be negative. I say that for awareness and hopefully what is they? They say fear is fear of evidence appearing real. You don't know what is possible until you speak up and. I'll say this. I have been that person. I have been the person who was afraid to speak up for myself, and it never served me. Trust me, it never served me. It wasn't until I decided to speak up and speak out that I. The value of what I represented started to be seen. So yes, I get it. But talk to someone that you trust work I, I, I, it's hard for me to say, to get over it because that's a lot of internal work, but I promise you, I promise you this, I don't care how great of an employee you are, I don't care how much work you do, I am here to tell you what is not going to be told. Here's the myth that we are gonna debunk right now. No one is gonna advocate for you more than you advocate for yourself, and if advocating for yourself means that you'll get removed, take that ad, take that rejection as protection, and then go into the next opportunity with more value. I understand that that might be a fearful place to be, but we are in the world. I say we are already in 2026, and there are so many opportunities that are untapped and potential opportunities that we can lean into if we value ourselves enough. But if we don't value enough, ourselves enough to speak up for ourselves, then we are already putting ourselves behind and we're putting ourselves as a disservice.

Stoy Hall: 8:20

We sure are. Now, as we get into myth busting, let's, let's continue that train. All right, next segment is what society and media are saying. Let's bust a little bit of these myths in these things. So start with the first one. This one, this could, I definitely, this is like an older generation one. I promise you.'cause when I say it, everyone's gonna go, yep, yep, that's right. That sounds about right. But here it is. Just be grateful and wait your turn.

Dr. Renee Baker: 8:42

Oh, I, I've, oh, um, I, that's not a trigger anymore because of therapy, but here's what I'll say. We have to look into. We're gonna debunk that as well, because, oh, gratitude. You just gotta be grateful. I used to be that person. I'm just grateful. I'm just so grateful to, to be here. This is just such a, a wonderful culture. But let's look into the data. McKenzie 2024, only. Sense of women are already getting promoted. So there are people out here doing more, doing less than what you do and already being promoted. Right? So I don't even, let's not make this about gender. The reality is we will have to. Speak up and waiting does not close the gap. That's not gonna close the gap. That's not gonna help you with inflation. That's not gonna help you with, um, wages. That's not gonna help you shift into who it is that you're supposed to be. So gratitude and advocacy can coexist. You can be grateful and you can advocate for yourself. They can co-exist because when we negotiate for ourselves and we sponsor others, we begin to create a ripple effect, and we start building pathways for ourselves and for others. So listen, gratitude without advocacy is servitude, and you can be thankful and still make your move, but I, I, I can be grateful. But I don't have to utilize that gratitude as a means to underestimate the value that we bring to the table. Now, I understand that, you know, a lot of us are taught that, you know, just be grateful. You, yeah. You have a job. And when you read the reports, right, you're hearing about all these layoffs. You know, like, I'm afraid I have this fear. I'm just so grateful. But let me just tell you, um. Gratitude is, is, is not gonna pay your bills. Um, uh, gratitude, especially in the workplace. I'm not speaking about gratitude as a whole, but I'm telling you, waiting does not close the gap. And, and I promise you, if I would have waited for somebody to bestow upon me the wait, my turn, I would not be in this position that I sit in today owning my power, owning my space, and owning my voice, because I gotta tell you. When they tell you that, usually they don't, they don't value you because the people they value, they're not telling that to. And no one is going to, no one is going to tell you the truth about that.

Stoy Hall: 11:29

You're not wrong. You're not wrong. And being a business owner, right, we're owners, this is what we gotta do. This next one is interesting'cause I think it, it depends, um, a little bit. You as a business owner, me as a business owner, my clients, like if we actually said this, we would provide facts and truth behind it.'cause we truly care about our employees as close to family as possible. However, in majority of businesses in the corporate world, there's more to this one. So that being said is you go in, you talk, you have a chat with your manager, whoever your business owner, and they go, raises just aren't possible this year. They're just not possible. I'm gonna be.

Dr. Renee Baker: 12:09

Kind when I say this and they say, I'm gonna hold your hand with a napkin in between when I tell you this. Um, let's look at the data. Let's talk, let's talk about the reality. Um, that's rarely true across the board. That is rarely true across the board. Have you ever seen an executive, for the most part, not get it raised by millions? Look at your annual reports if you work for a pub public company. How many, how many executives, races are not possible for you, but executives almost always get adjustments, right? So, and um, if you think about CEO pay that continues to rise and now listen, we're not, we're not comparing the two, but the CEOs, the Fed, we wanna make sure they retain, but. The CEO pay is outpacing inflation, which is currently what, what around 2.9%. So CEOs are getting paid what, 13, 14, 15%. And, and then they're telling you that that budgets were, were too tight? Um, no. No. I, I don't, I don't, no. If they're telling you that there's, I will tell you this, there's always money. When they want you, when they, when they, when they value. And inflation makes it harder for companies to ignore the retention risk. They know that if they lose you, that costs more than adjusting your salary. And they only really tell that people if so when they tell you, raises aren't possible this year. I say this with so much respect. It is, it's not possible for you and then you need to decide. When you know better, you do better. And then you need to decide how are you gonna move? How will you make that move? Are you gonna choose yourself or are you gonna suffer in in gratitude? So we always say pain of gain or pay of same. I don't know about you story, but I, I think we're on this. I think we, I can speak for us when we say we're on the, we are on the side of pain of gain and if we have to be a little bit uncomfortable, dust off that resume. If we need to be a little bit uncomfortable and start networking or posting more on LinkedIn or or, or negotiating, we have to do that because that is such a myth. Raises are not. Possible this year. The only way I trust that is when not one person in an entire company doesn't get a raise. Not the CEO just got 13%. Oh, but raises are not possible. On my on, on the, what's the average salary? We're like 80,000. I don't know. We're in finance, so I always think six figures, but. If there it is not possible for you, but they can get millions then, then you, they already told you you might not just be paying attention.

Stoy Hall: 14:57

Yeah, exactly. They told you, you keep bringing up inflation and I wanna hit upon this part. I know we're kind of off our skirt a little bit, but inflation. Inflation means a lot of things. Yes. We're talking about it in twofold. Right now we're talking about inflation because of the bills we all have personally, food costs going insane. Housing's outrageous. You know, utilities are going through the roof right now too. We're talking about that inflation. But also on the business side, we're talking about inflation. And I don't mean the logistics and the materials, I'm talking about the employee, the thing that they care about the most for leverage purposes. That's right. And so when you're talking about kind of your leverage and, and your value and it being leveraged season, really people, that's what we're talking about because replace you is going to cost them more, not in just salary. They have to train you, train be more. Right? All of that creates more so it's actually cheaper for them to retain you. Yeah. Cheaper to keep'em. You keep right up, right? Like and you know, you have to people, we have to understand that that is the power. Of which you have. That's right. And that is no matter what, like if you Googled it, look at Glassdoor, don't care. The new hires coming in are going to make more than you have right now. Yes. And to me, from a negotiation tool, that's a very easy way to ask for more just immediately and just be like, Hey, I provide value. You don't have to train me yet. You're paying me 5, 10, 15, whatever. The percentage is less than if you had to replace me right now. And that's a really.

Dr. Renee Baker: 16:26

That's a really good point, and I, and, and thank you soy for, for highlighting that and, and framing it in that way because we have to understand that it is much. Cheaper to keep us. So when you see companies celebrating that the employee have been there for 5, 10, 25 years, um, that's because it is cheaper to keep them and it's cheaper for so many different reasons. If you bring in. Um, depending on the role, right? Like all things being equal, we're gonna depend on the role, not a person who went from being, um, we love the stories when someone was like the janitor and now they're the CEO. But if you stay at a job and you have incremental raises over time, more than likely there are people who are coming in and making less than you. I mean, make it more than you and you're probably making less because you're just there. It's not even really compounding, right? So that's another negotiation tool, especially when you're there, especially when you're a loyal employee. You've been there, you've done your work, a negotiate. Because oftentimes also, this is kind of like a kind, I was like, come on in and let me just tell you a little secret. Leaders know who is gonna be loyal no matter what. They know. They know that you're just so grateful and that you're going to be there and you're going to accept the status quo because they know that they have that fear. You have to have your own value and your own power, because the question will be, are you seen as a cost or as a priority? And if you are focused on the retention risk, you'll recognize that you. Are more of a priority than a cost.

Stoy Hall: 18:10

Absolutely. Well, let's dive into the, the, your point of view.'cause we're kind of flirting with that already. Okay. So let's get outta the myth busting. Let's get into your mind what you operate with in all of your experiences on this, on these next sets and, and people. This is something that you need to listen to on a very deep level. We've given you a lot of stuff already, but like this next set is really going to allow you, hopefully the confidence, but some of the ability to know what to do next. So let's first start with, we're talking about value. We're talking about my impact as your employee type situation, right? How does someone that. Maybe is in a role that isn't direct to sales. Right. That's very, that's quantifiable. Very easy. Yeah. Right. Um, what do, how do other people see and say, okay, how do I quantify my role? And then how do I present that as impactful to my management?

Dr. Renee Baker: 19:08

Yeah, this, this is one of the things that I, we really need to lean into it because this is one of the areas that I really struggle with in the beginning, right? So when you think about you're quantifying your, um, your impacts, you are navigating. Your the politics and you need to have a plan. So much of these wage gaps are, are unexplained, right? There's always these hidden underground, uh, situations. We all have this underground. Most organizations have an underground culture, right? And that when I say politics are real, that's not just what we see in government. It's really even in organizations, right? So depending on who you are, you sales, like you said, is quantifiable, but you have to be understanding. You're not going to go into a performance review, just kinda listing, I did this, well, I did this well, what I learned, what I learned the hard way. So you don't have to learn is that. You have to understand what gets rewarded, what gets uh, done may get rewarded, but it's not about that. It's understanding and studying how the firm works and what or what the organization, how they work, and what they find to be. Valuable success leaves breadcrumbs, promotions, leave breadcrumbs, watch and learn who gets elevated and how. And then you wanna go in and build your plan around outcomes that your culture rewards. Not just hard work. Hard work. I used to think soy. I used to think that. I work hard, nobody can outwork me. I wore it as a badge. But let me tell you, there was no prizes. Understanding the way your organization moves and listen, some are very clear. Like if you have very, I've been, or organizations and worked in firms, that they have very clear metrics on what it takes to move to the next. Level, there's still gonna be some underground, um, un unstated rules. There's maybe a little bit of bias in there, but it was clear. Then I've also worked at organizations where you're thinking, how did this person, I'm you're, scratch your head off, scratching my head too. How is this person you're promoted when I had this laundry list of things and outcomes that I've achieved, but yet. They don't have that. That's because that's not what the value is. The value may be something else. So here's what I'll say for the action for people to do now know and study your organization. It is so much value and just kind of being quiet sometimes and watching how people move. Ask questions, watch who's being promoted. Watch how they're getting promoted. A lot of times if some of these promotions and some of these companies, they don't even tell you they tap. They tap who, who they want, and then you have to decide if you're gonna wait to be tapped or you're gonna tap out. Because the reality is not all organizations operate the same when it comes to coming into a meeting. And don't come into and listen, I don't care which kind of organization you work into, trust me, you need to show how what you have done has shown, turned into real. Outcomes for the organization. And it's not just the minimum. If the objective of your job description is okay, I'm going to meet with so many clients per year. Okay. And so what, and I met with those clients. I exceeded that, and here are the outcomes that came from it. Too often we walk into meetings with PowerPoint presentations to tell people how great we are, and they already made a decision. You talking about, you're talking about PowerPoint presentation. Other people are talking about profits, so you need to make sure you're not walking into a meeting. With a PowerPoint presentation and telling them how great you are, you need to be walking in. Here's the outcomes I achieved. Here's the bottom line that I achieved. Here's how I've done it in conjunction to what they said. And here's a tricky thing. Most organizations will also say, do a self evaluation. Just tell, tell me about yourself and listen, I, I used to be that person I, I learned so you don't have to. You going into that self-evaluation and saying, I did this. I, I had this great campaign, I did this. No, that is not the way to do it. Trust me. I wish I knew this sooner. You need to understand the dynamics of how people work. That's why when you go into, you know, when you start your performance evaluation and your selfie washed evaluation, when you have one-on-ones with your, your leader every month or every two weeks, make sure they have'em. If they don't have'em, that's also a signal. Pay attention to the breadcrumbs. If they don't wanna meet with you, pay attention to the breadcrumbs. Not walking into those meetings asking well, or just with a laundry list of here's what I did, here's what I did, here's what I did. Start asking questions. How can I further our goals within the organization? What are some of the outcomes that you're hoping to achieve that I can help to support you? I used to ask, how do people perceive me when I'm not in the room? Right? Like, start asking real questions and maybe listen more than you speak. In those situations, because there's a lot when you have a MA, and I've had these type of, I'll call them managers, not leaders, but I've had those type of individuals who will just not give you anything. They're not giving you anything that's also a breadcrumb. They're telling you that they don't value you and you can, I've done a lot of work for people who just didn't see me and they were not going to. Give me my, just do. No matter what I said and did, so I had to make a decision. I wasn't gonna be tapped. So I needed to tap out and it is okay. It's not failure. I always say Now, I used to think that. Quitters never win. Now I say winners know when to quit. And what's one of my favorite songs is, um, the Gambler. When you gotta know When to hold them, know when to fold them, know when to walk away, and know when to run. That's when it is, you know, uh, the breadcrumbs is happening all year round. So don't wait. Please don't wait until the end of the year to start having these conversations. Keep folders of your successes. Um, a lot of times, um, I never felt comfortable. Uh, advocating or, or I remember somebody saying, uh, be humble. That meant be quiet because you're running too much. And I, and I, I turned that on its head. But the reality is you need to be keeping, the scorecard is always rolling. You need to be acting as if you're going to performance review every time you're meeting with your leader or your manager. And if you have a great manager, they will guide you. But if they don't, that's a breadcrumb. So pay attention. To the breadcrumbs, navigate the politics because it's more politics than performance oftentimes. And I wish, I wish somebody helped me understand that sooner. But quantifying your impact is gonna be different things to different individuals. And sometimes your impact is just how you play the game.

Stoy Hall: 26:08

Yeah. And that's it. It's key. It's a game. It's a game. It's a game. You gotta understand it's the game and you're playing it no matter if you know you're playing it or not. And so you need to understand that. And I also want to throw in initiative and having initiative. So once you've, you've learned the culture, you figure it out how things are operating, who does what, and what they're looking for is then to take the initiative on certain things and just do it.

Dr. Renee Baker: 26:34

Yes. Just

Stoy Hall: 26:34

get it done. Right. Because then when you ask, your manager comes and says, Hey, I was thinking we need to do this. You just say, I've already done it, it's done here. That provides a lot more for you. However, caveat to that, don't always do the initiative stuff. Don't do too much. Right. It's a balancing act.'cause it's a game. You need to give them a little bit, a little taste. Yes. Be like, Hey, I can Yep, yep. See Uhhuh, you're gonna have to pay me more. You, you're gonna have to change my title. You, whatever that scenario is for you, you gotta play that game. So I, I love that you called it a game.

Dr. Renee Baker: 27:06

Yeah. It's a, it's a game. And I, I wish that, you know. They say Don't hate the player, hate the game, but don't hate the game. Play it. Um, and once you learn how to play it and you bring that, that validation and you execute.'cause can't nobody argue with, with somebody to execute. But like you said, I remember somebody specifically telling me, you do too much. Stop doing too much. You do too much. And that wasn't just me being too much, it was like I'm working way too hard and I didn't pay attention at first. And then they came back and they said, you're doing too much. That's your problem. And I said, okay, I get it. So stop waiting for somebody else to notice you also is'cause you're giving away your power. Be that person. But don't, don't too, do too much. And every game and every culture is different and everything that you do along the way is leaving you data. Date about the culture, date, about the politics and data, about whether or not you need the whole fold, walk away or run.

Stoy Hall: 28:02

And there's another key part to this and, and this is where we'll end this segment is when we didn't talk much about this at all. Mm-hmm. Is the title in some corporate settings, the title automatically comes with equity comp, all the things. Um, talk to us a little more about title.'cause I'm not a title person. I don't give two shits about titles. Don't care. Don't ever care about it. But I know in the corporate setting, like specific titles come with specific things. Yes. And so sometimes it's not about asking for a comp or some equity or any of that. It's trying to ask and get in the pipeline of the right title because that title then automatically comes with those.

Dr. Renee Baker: 28:41

Oh yeah. I mean, and I've never heard anybody that has a title say that titles don't matter. It's usually the ones who, I mean, I'll say, I was like, I used to say, well, titles don't matter. You can call me whatever you want, just pay me. But here's why. Here's how, why It does matter in certain situations. Because the reality is datas they drive pay bands, right? Like those titles do that. Recruiters, like, if you have the wrong title, I remember working at a firm, the title meant something different. Um, recruiting filters. You know, people are looking right? So that matters. And it's that external credibility. You have to have some gravitas and when you show up, so it matters to people. That's why people say to you, so what do you do? What is your title? Where did you go to school? They're looking for ways to, to validate you, and sometimes the title will do that. And influence is sometimes invisible without that title being attached to it. So securing the title is not about ego. And when somebody says, uh, red flag. Titles don't matter. Red flag. They're only telling you that because they want you to think smaller. It's not about ego, it's about equity, and it's about protecting your future, future proofing yourself, protecting your future, your earnings, your mobility, and the seat at the next table. I had a career coach tell me once that whenever you're looking for a new role, you're not looking for the next role. You actually position yourself for the role after that. So you all know kind of leapfrog and, and think ahead. Position yourself ahead. So influence gets you a pause, applause. Titles will get you access and that's why uh, titles matter in certain spaces and, and we're in finance story and you know. You are gonna have a very different conversation with an associate versus the managing director or the head of, or the senior vice president of, and titles matter and different things. You have senior vice presidents that are technically should be associates, but that don't worry about that. All we know is that their title is giving them access, so don't play with that title if they're gonna. Gimme the title, sometimes gimme the title, um, and, uh, I'll, I'll make it work for me. So yes, titles, they, they do matter. And every time a person says that titles don't matter, they're never the ones that don't have it already.

Stoy Hall: 31:00

Exactly. You about killed me with that. Senior vice president stuff. Banks are the worst with titles, folks. They have, they have big names for people that are essentially just frontline associates. That's right. Let's be real. You got so many damn layers, so many vice presidents of, of name the department and you're like, come on now,

Dr. Renee Baker: 31:20

come on now. And, and, and here's what I, I wanna say too, because I was just having this conversation with one of my mentees. Titles don't cost them anything. So if they're gonna tell you that, okay, you don't have the money. Okay, gimme the title because then I know I can, what I can do with the title. And they're, listen to this like, Renee, stop. Don't tell them, then gimme the title. I'll work that title because then I can leverage that to get the money. But if you telling me no money and no title titles don't cost organizations in the thing, they'll tell you that, oh, um, oh, we can't, we can't give you that title, please. Meanwhile, they just dropping. Senior vice president, head of two people who were like barely outta college. Right? Absolutely.

Stoy Hall: 32:05

So, yeah,

Dr. Renee Baker: 32:07

absolutely.

Stoy Hall: 32:08

Well, I love di diving into your brain. I can't wait to keep doing that, but let's, let's leave everyone with, uh, a co a couple actionable steps here. Yes. Um, and I think at least this one we might get to the other, but I think this is the most important one because as humans, this is the hardest thing to deal with when we get told no. Oh, and you're gonna hear no more often than you hear. Yes. So what are some actionable steps when you have you, you've prepped everything. You, you've, you've done your PowerPoint, please don't do PowerPoint. Uh, you've br or you brought everything to the table, showed your value. Um, maybe you asked for title, maybe you just asked for comp. Who knows? But you get told no. What should the immediate next steps be?

Dr. Renee Baker: 32:50

Uh, so let's say, say if no. So I believe if no, that means. Not now. Is that the beginning of not now. Like, because no one's in both of those? Not now. Um, so if no, then, okay. Okay. And so let's document a timeline. So what's the, what's the criteria to get me to, yes. If not now, when, if not me. Who? So if not now, then you need to, you need to get a clear timeline of, of when, and pay attention to this because some places, some individuals, some leaders. Not all will string you along. Some people honor that. So you have to decide whether or not that no means ultimately a yes. And if it does, they will help you map out a timeline. I've never met anyone who wants you to win, not help you win. And if not, evaluate whether this role still aligns with your career path. Because also know this, sometimes it's no. But if you take this job that takes you way off of your, your desired outcomes and they're staring you. Down the wrong path and don't be so thirsty that you willing to drink from any title, any cup. So no. Sometimes that gives you the data that you need and no will tell you if it's not the no. It's what comes after the no. So just to wrap it up, if it's no, it is okay if not now when, let's map out a timeframe. Okay. And then honor that. If they tell you six months, I would be on that every, every month. Okay, where are we? How are we working? Are we closer? Are we getting there? Um, and if they don't, then you need to use that again as data. This is a breadcrumb and you need to evaluate if this aligns with your career path, because notes doesn't mean never to me. It might be not yet, or it might be. Uh, not now, but it's not yet. It's also not now. But it might be that not for you. So unless you let it become a always No, it is just data to give you a roadmap to figure out No, no to you or no to me. Because if not, no. To me, it's gonna be a yes to me. It might be a no to you when I move on outta here, but I say that with respect'cause that's not for everybody. But you know, I, I have a, I've had a lot of great leaders who said, we can't do that right now because of politics mostly, but let's map out a timeline and here's some things that you can do to win. So ask for that feedback.

Stoy Hall: 35:24

Ask Absolutely. And use it that way, folks. Yes. Don't get emotional about the, no. You're gonna get emotional, but don't be stuck on it. Learn from it and continue on. Well. Renee, I appreciate you always, always do. Um, do you got anything going on in the RBI group right now? Like anything coming out? Anything hot new for, uh, this holiday season?

Dr. Renee Baker: 35:43

Oh, yeah. Well, there's so much. There's always things going on in the RBI group and in the RBI world. Uh, but the reality is we are leaning heavily into ways that we can help individuals and advisors grow, right? Grow their business where we're leaning heavily into, um. Technology, uh, AI is one of them. And I always say emerging Technolo technologies because even if you're not an AI person, it is showing up everywhere. So we're really leaning into that. And, you know, and personally, I have a book coming out called Abundance Unleash, which will be, uh, released uh, in about a month. So, and that, and that talks about a lot of the topics that we discussed, my journey and, um, incorporate the lessons that I learned and how I had to look through. Abundance, which can sound a little bit woo, but no, this is about living a full life and learn using the, leverage, the lessons as leverage to live and create a life that, that you love. But listen, I learned some hard, hard lessons so that you don't have to. So that's going on and, you know, people can always follow along on, on LinkedIn and go to, uh, the website, which is the rbi group.com or renee baker.com. But yeah, we are, we are always going and I'm so excited. We are in Q4. Um, but already in our world, we're already in 2026.

Stoy Hall: 37:04

Absolutely. So everybody, Hey, go get her book. Uh, it'll be, I don't know, description. I might put a button here. I don't know. They'll figure it out. But go get the book for sure and learn and learn and learn a lot because as much as we do all of our content and we keep speaking, we do all this stuff, it's because we don't want you to go through what we went through and we don't want you to learn our way. Now we all have to learn our own hard ways, but let make it a little easier for yourself. And, and just pay attention a little bit. So, again, appreciate you get our book. Um, until next time.

Black Mammoth: 37:49

The proceeding program was sponsored by Black Mammoth. Any awards, rankings, or recognition by unaffiliated third parties or publications are in no way indicative of the advisor's future performance or any individual client's investment success. No award ranking or recognition should be construed as a current or past endorsement of black mammoth. Information regarding specific awards, rankings, or recognitions is available on the Black Mammoth website, www.black mammoth.com. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss Investment strategies such as asset allocation, diversification, or rebalancing do not assure or guarantee better performance and cannot eliminate the risk of investment losses. There are no guarantees that a portfolio employing these or any other strategy will outperform a portfolio that does not engage in such strategies. This broadcast should not be construed by any client or prospective client as a solicitation to affect or attempt to affect transactions and securities or the rendering of personalized investment advice due to various factors including changing market conditions. The information discussed in this broadcast may no longer be reflective of current positions or recommendations. Information presented is believed to be factual and up to date. Black mammoth do not guarantee its accuracy and it should not be regarded as a complete analysis of the subjects discussed. The tax and the state planning information discussed is general in nature and is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal or tax advice. Listeners should consult an attorney or tax professional regarding their specific legal or tax situation. Past performance is not indicative of future results.