Million-Dollar Personal Branding With Talyn Rahman-Figueroa

Your personal brand can be worth millions, but only if it's built on something real. This week, I'm joined by Talyn Rahman-Figueroa, the Fairy Boss Mother, to talk about what it really takes to create a brand that attracts the right people and stands the test of time.

We discuss the difference between branding and PR, how to uncover the story that makes your business memorable, why niching down actually expands your opportunities, and how higher pricing can help you attract better clients. Talyn also shares practical advice on creating a recognizable brand, showing up consistently, setting healthy boundaries, and avoiding burnout while growing your visibility.

If you're ready to stop blending in and start building a brand that reflects your true value, this episode is for you.

If you enjoyed this conversation, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with another entrepreneur who needs to hear it.

Thank you to our generous sponsors!

True Fashionistas – SWFL’s largest designer resale store, where fashion meets sustainability.

Golden Acorn Publishing (formerly O’Leary Publishing) – Empowering authors to tell their stories and publish with purpose.

Reinvention Studio Lab – A creative hub for transformation, innovation, and bold new beginnings.

Wizard of Ads - Online marketing that will have you at the top of the search.

Visit us at jenniferannjohnson.com and learn how Jennifer can help you build the life you dream of with her online academy, blog, one-on-one coaching, and a variety of other resources!

Transcript

Jennifer Johnson 0:38

In today's business world, your personal brand is essential. The most successful entrepreneurs understand that they themselves are their most valuable asset. And building a powerful personal brand can be worth millions. But creating an authentic, compelling personal brand requires strategy, diplomacy, and understanding how to navigate complex business relationships, all while staying true to who you are. Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Talyn Rahman-Figueroa. Yes. AKA the Fairy Boss Mother.

Why Personal Brand Matters

Jennifer Johnson 1:14

She doesn't just build brands, she builds multimillion dollar personal brands. She started out behind the scenes advising politicians and diplomats on how to present themselves in public. And then she stepped away to build her own business. We're going to explore how she helps entrepreneurs transform themselves into million-dollar assets and how her background in diplomacy influences her approach to building personal branding. Thank you so much for joining me today.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 1:46

Jennifer, it's such a pleasure meeting you today. And I have to say, you and I have coordinated so well with the Pinks.

Jennifer Johnson 1:52

We have, haven't we?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 1:54

Telepathically.

Jennifer Johnson 1:55

Perfectly. And Talyn, I may refer you to as the fairy boss mother as we go on in this conversation.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 2:03

Yes, yes, yes.

Jennifer Johnson 2:04

That's how people do that. I really love the fairy boss mother theme and talk about branding your own business. That is pretty cool. So I I really want to start this out by talking about your background in diplomacy. Yeah. Because that was a very cool story. And if you have a moment to share with our audience what your background was in diplomacy, then we'll delve right in.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 2:28

Yeah, sure. I mean, it's not an it's not a very usual story to get into diplomacy and then personal branding. But I was one of those individuals, very much an extra per extrovert. I wanted to travel around the world. I wanted to represent something, not just myself or some corporation. So diplomacy was one of the best fits for me.

Diplomacy To Branding Pivot

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 2:48

Now, unfortunately, the reality hit like a truck. While I was training as a diplomat, I realized there was a lot of ethical dilemmas that I just couldn't get over. You know, things like hey, if your government changes and you don't like the head of state and you still have to represent their voice piece, then you're pretty much stuck. There was no I in diplomacy, it's always a we. So I was I would be completely invisible, and who likes being invisible? And the other thing was I just didn't think I was the best fit in representing just the government. I was very much a people person, and I was as a diplomat, you're very much representing a government, a voice, the person who's leading, as opposed to the people you're supposed to represent. So I pivoted, and then I just started to get into actually helping politicians and diplomats themselves with their personal brand because if they're going to be representing while they're abroad, they had to show themselves in the best light possible. And a lot of them, you know, the Shanifar, they forget why they started, and I would pull them right the way back.

Jennifer Johnson 4:01

Wow. So I'm sure this is proving very valuable in what you're doing today, but how do the skills that you learned in your diplomacy uh journey translate into what you're doing now?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 4:14

Yeah, you know, it's really funny. I get asked that a lot. The one thing people don't realize is you get trained by the best when you're joining the government. You know, I was trained by the chief of MI5, which is our Secret Service. We learned body language, we learned how to look the part, we learned how to blend in, but we also knew how to stand out with our voice and how and what we said. Because your voice and your

Nonverbal Cues And Active Listening

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 4:38

words matter more than anything. But you also have to understand non-verbal communication, what you don't say in the silence speaks more volume than what you do say that comes out of your mouth. And all of that, I use all of that with my clients. Absolutely. Even people who join my podcast, The Fairy Boss Mother Show, they don't realize I'm really looking out for the things that are being unsaid. And that's that's when the I call it elbow dropping. I I make them feel that pain because that's where the real story lies.

Jennifer Johnson 5:10

And that's really hard sometimes because that is active listening. That's really what that is. To listen to what's not being said, but is kind of lurking over here. Is that one of the skills that you you teach your entrepreneurs?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 5:26

Yeah, so I don't, I'm not a coach. I very much do build personal brands for my clients. But what happens while someone is in the process of working with me is they see themselves as a different version of who they are. Because they know I'm really good at what I do, I should be valued more, I know that I can make a change because entrepreneurs, honestly, we we are entrepreneurs because we want to make an impact. It's not just about the money. Because if it was about the money, we could have done something completely different that isn't a you know 24-hour thing and you're alone a lot of the times. But we want to make an impact in the people that we want to help, but they just don't know how to talk about themselves, you know?

Jennifer Johnson 6:10

That's true because it goes into my next thought of I think as a personal brand, and I can say this coming from myself as well. Sometimes we feel like if we toot our own horn and talk about all the things that, oh, I've been published here, I've done this, I've done that, that we feel like it's too promotional, or or I'm someone's gonna take me as being um just full of myself. How there's gotta be, there's a fine line, and how do you walk that fine line? How do you advise your clients to walk that fine line?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 6:44

Yeah, I mean, that's the same thing that I did with the politicians and diplomats. You couldn't call them by their name, Jennifer. You had to call them by a title, you know, your excellency, your whatever, whatever title they had, that's the salutation that we use. So already their identity was stripped because we had to use a barrier, or you know, a barrier was created. And I think entrepreneurs have that same effect. A lot of entrepreneurs they create a distance with their clients because they just like, well, I'll say we because it feels safe, even though you're the only person working in your business. And then, of course, you mention, well, if I get published,

The Aha Story Beats PR

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 7:20

or if so-and-so has been speaking with me, you're tooting your own horn. That is not personal branding, that's that's public relations. Now, what I do, Jennifer, is what was the real reason that you're starting what you're doing? Because there was something pivotal in your life that made you go, you know what? I'm tired of this BS. I want to do this now because I've gone through it and now I want to help people. And that's how a lot of businesses start up. So I take it a step back and say, what was your aha moment? That, Jennifer, that is the story that you should be selling. Not, well, you know, a thousand people have used me and I've got this many followers. That I don't care about that. I don't care how much money you make. How much do you value your history? And because you've been through something and now you're selling that solution, that's the real reason why you're the expert and why people should come to you. That's your personal brand.

Jennifer Johnson 8:19

So, Talyn, how do you is it just having the talk you just had with me? Or how do you because a lot of people are gonna say what I just said, they're going to think that their personal brand ties back to? I mean, I've had this conversation with so many people, right? My my personal brands, my colors, my font, my this, my that, my that, the that, the. So how do you explain to them? How do you tell them and get them out of the headspace that this is not your personal brand? This is what really entails your personal brand. How do you get them out of that?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 8:54

Okay, so let's make it really, really easy, right? You mentioned colors and fonts and whatever. That is your packaging. That is what people see. Now, your personal brand in the simplest form is personal, right? What is personal to you that you want to share to the rest of the world? Now, I'm not saying you have to be a reality TV show and tell everyone about your business, you know, what you ate for breakfast, what you know, what you're doing with your kids, what you do after work, it doesn't matter. What you are really sharing is this very personal thing happened to me, and that is the catalyst to why I've started this business. And I've been there, I've done that, I have the solution. Now I can help you because you're stuck in the same solution I was 10, 20, 30 years ago, or however long it was. That's what your personal brand is. You have to really, you it's really like targeting that like bullseye and zoning in on it. And that's what you didn't repeat over and over again. Everything else is packaging.

Jennifer Johnson 12:22

So now going into that, I know that, and correct me if I'm wrong, on your podcasts, you actually interactively work with people. Is that correct? Yeah on uh on this very topic. So what does it mean to turn your to turn yourself into a million-dollar brand?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 12:41

Yeah, I love that question. So a million-dollar brand isn't how much money you have in the bank, it's very much about your value. So do people see you as the dollar store or do they see you as Harrods? There's a big difference, and all of that is about confidence, it's about what you say, who you say it to, and then what the end piece is. You know, um, there's a lot of mistakes entrepreneurs make when they talk about, well, I want to help everyone, or you know, I do so much and I don't know how to narrow down and I don't know how to niche down. If you do not niche down or at least specialize in something, you're not gonna be helping anyone. And then as a result, no one really knows what you stand for, what your values are. And Jennifer, the best thing that I do for a lot of people who come on my podcast is here's the mirror. I literally just do this. There's a look in the mirror. Oh my gosh! And then you're like, oh my god, I never realized that that's my client. I'm like, yeah, your client is you, your client is you, and if you do not recognize the person in the mirror, then let's unwrap that and figure out who this person is and why you don't recognize that person anymore, because that person's not you anymore.

Jennifer Johnson 13:57

Right. Ah my gosh. So, you know, you mentioned about whether you're the dollar store or your Herod's. Right. So that is an interesting topic in and of itself because sometimes people do position themselves to be the cheaper version, and you should really be over here. Yeah. Is doing your framework get them to be where they're really should be worth.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 14:30

Yeah, you know, a lot of entrepreneurs are too scared to raise their price because they feel like they're gonna lose clients. Good, lose those clients because those clients were number one a headache, number two, asking too much of your time and your and your resources, and they will always ask for more without ever opening up their wallets. So you don't really want them, right? Really, you don't want them. At the beginning, maybe, but as you evolve in your business, this is how you lead to burnout because you have a line of crappy clients who just do not respect you. You want to work with people who do respect you, who trust you, who say, you know what, Jennifer is the queen of what she's doing. There's no one else I want to work with. And when you position yourself as the only choice for that person, they are not gonna look anywhere else. And guess what? If you are too expensive, you get on their bucket list and saying, you know what? I know you charge a crazy amount, but you're worth it. And people said that to me. I do have people saying, okay, you're expensive,

Million-Dollar Value And Niching Down

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 15:33

but I see why. Because you're raising your value and they will eventually come to me. Or I might have to say, Hey, remember that conversation we had? Let's bring you back because I think you're ready. You have to show faith that they are in the right position to be able to work with you. But you need confidence to be able to do that.

Jennifer Johnson 15:53

So, Talan, you're bringing back memories for me because I can remember when I when I let go one of my one of my clients way back when, and people looked at me, they thought I was crazy. And I'm like, no, because this is going to be there's gonna be problem, there's one problem, then it's another and another and another. Exactly. It's not worth it. It's it we just don't align. And you have to be, like you said, compet enough to draw the line in the sand and say, no, I'm done. Yeah. So that you can fill that with people who actually do align.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 16:25

Yeah.

Jennifer Johnson 16:25

Yeah.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 16:26

So your $200 client is now worth $1,500. Same parts, you know, same work, or maybe slightly more evolved. You're adding one extra client, and you've just removed the headache of filling in that 200 client with like eight of them.

Jennifer Johnson 16:43

Right. Yeah. So in your time working with entrepreneurs, what do you feel are the one or one or two biggest mistakes that that individuals make that do devalue their brand or don't bring them into the in front of the right audience? What are they doing?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 17:01

I don't think they feel like they are important enough in their business. Honestly, that's my that's my most candid response. They always say, you know, I want to talk about my business. So, you know, my business name is boss diploma. I don't think people really know that because now I've branded myself as the fairy boss mother. Right. Um, and that's something that's very memorable. People don't really, you know, if they don't know my name, that's fine. But I now have created kind of like an avatar of myself for public consumption. And I don't think a lot of entrepreneurs do that enough because the most popular people who are absolutely killing it in their business, the first thing they work on and invest in is their personal brand. They know exactly what they're saying, they rinse and repeat that. That consistency is golden. Because think about it. I mean, let's use another example, Jennifer, right? Um, the most basic personal branding is the way you dress yourself, right? Your visual image. Most people get that wrong because they wake up and going, oh, I've got nothing to wear, even though the closet's like bursting with like clothes, and then they dress with their emotions, and then the next day they do the same thing, and then you're thinking, oh my god, who am I going to talk to today? I have no idea. And that inconsistency shows, and that's when you're devaluing yourself because I don't know who you are right now, even though, like, imagine you and I know each other for a long time, Jennifer, but you're dressing with your emotions, you just go with the flow in the moment. There's no strategy behind you, right? And that's what happens when you don't have a personal brand.

Jennifer Johnson 18:40

I love that. Can you share with our viewers or listeners and viewers? Because they may not know what an avatar is.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 18:48

So an avatar is another version of you that you show publicly. So, for example, you know, I'm a I call myself a soldier. I'm not, you know, the wife, the mother, the entrepreneur. I have two businesses. Um, so not only do I do personal branding, but behind the scenes I do real estate, um, I buy properties, but that's not the version of me that I talk to online, it's the fairy boss mother. So it's who, which version of you are you willing to talk about? And that is the person that you show up. It's almost like you're performing for your audience.

Jennifer Johnson 19:21

Sure.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 19:22

Right? But you need to be consistent. You can't just say, you know what, today I'm going to create content about breakfast and food and nutrition when you've never ever talked about that before. Right. Because then all of a sudden your audience is gonna go, that's not the reason why I'm following you, or the reason why I'm I'm interested in you. And now you flip-flop, I'm not interested anymore, and boom, you've just shut your audience down.

Jennifer Johnson 19:43

It goes back to being authentic. And I think for some people, it's really hard to figure out. They may have a very um broad base of things that they're interested in and things that they want to do, but to really distill it down and to figure out what message, like you said, do you really want to convey to people? What is it? That's a hard process. And is that something that you go through? Is that a process that you go through with them? What does that look like as they're trying to figure themselves out?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 20:16

Yeah. Um, so yes, I have a very easy question um answer to that. So I have the boss diplomat code. When I build million-dollar personal brands for my clients, Jennifer, I do it in a hundred days. That is my process. In a hundred days, you will be leveling up into the one, you know, the million-dollar version of yourself in your business. And it always starts with the foundation of who you are, what you represent, and what you want to show off. So, for me, for example, um the reason why foundation is so important is because it is so easy for us entrepreneurs to get pulled in a million different directions. And then you realize I have no time for myself, I don't have time for self-care, I don't have time to work out, I don't have time to do basic human things that we need as entrepreneurs, and your foundation is pivotal. So for me, um the foundation of my brand, and this is something that I don't often show, but it is a core part of my my personal brand now is I I wake up at five o'clock in the morning. I hate it, I do hate it, I admit it. Hate it to death because I'm a night owl.

Jennifer Johnson 21:27

Oh, that would be why.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 21:29

But I'm also a parent, so it's like, oh, okay. So I wake up at five. The first thing I do, Jennifer, is boxing. So that's that's a really cool part of but um me, not my brand, me. And then um something else I do for myself is qigong. So that's a softer version of like Tai Chi Ancient Arts.

Jennifer Johnson 21:49

Oh wow.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 21:49

I'm actually showing these

Consistency Avatar And Brand Identity

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 21:51

now in my content because it's like in order for me to be a million-dollar brand, I need roots that is so deep that no one can pull out. So, what are the things that keeps you grounded, rooted, and stay firm so you don't burn out? And that is one of the biggest things that I build is the foundation. Before you start to build the skyscraper, which is your butt, which is your million-dollar personal brand.

Jennifer Johnson 22:15

That's a wonderful analogy. Building those roots, growing those roots, so no, you can't it can't be pulled out from under you.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 22:22

Yeah, I mean, think about it. When you're building a skyscraper, your foundation has to be like oh so deep. I can't even like it needs to be wicked deep. That is gonna be the hardest part of your personal brand. And then once your the foundation is deep enough, you've got really deep roots that no one can pull out, and then your skyscraper, then you have to start laying up your skyscraper, and your skyscraper can be well, it can't be 10 floors, that's not skyscraper, it could be 60 floors, it could be 120 floors, like the sky's the limit. But guess what? Your personal brand evolves with you every single year. So the more experiences you have, the more you know, life lessons you get, the higher you're stacking your personal brand because it it moves with you.

Jennifer Johnson 23:08

So you mentioned, you know, now you're starting to show your audience the fact that you do boxing and and your personal stuff, the stuff that is for you. Yeah, I know that people are probably thinking, oh my gosh, that is so vulnerable, that's so personal. How do you work with your clients on building the boundaries,

Foundation Rituals And Burnout Proofing

Jennifer Johnson 23:29

however? Because with like anything, there needs to be boundaries. How do you how do you navigate that?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 23:37

Yeah, boundaries is super important. And it's not just boundaries, it's also what I call the visibility protocol. So this is going back in my diplomacy days where you need to make sure that you're not just filming everything, but you're also protecting what you're showing on camera. So, for example, never share your location or show street signs or or things that's going to give away your physical location because you make yourself extra vulnerable when you're doing that, right? And people don't think about that. But um, going back to you know the boxing and qigong for me, the reason why I'm showing that it's because a lot of people talk about oh burnout, burnout, burnout, burnout. So, how do you avoid burnout before it becomes a problem? And this is why I'm showing off that part of me, because for me, that's part of my code now, it's just what I do, right? And because this is just what I do, expect to expect me to do this every day now because it's just part of my brand. So it I mean, what is the one thing that you love doing for yourself, Jennifer? Let's see.

Jennifer Johnson 24:40

Oh my gosh. There's two things I love shopping and I love taking baths.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 24:45

Okay, okay, okay, yeah. I mean, that's something that is very you. So the things that keeps you grounded, it could be anything, right? For me, it's what it's something physical. For you, it's I mean, taking baths and shopping, the shopping part that's something that you can actively. Like dynamically show off, right?

Jennifer Johnson 25:05

Right.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 25:05

And see and say this is quintessentially Jennifer now. Right.

Jennifer Johnson 25:09

And it's it's really self-care. Right. Right. Which shows, you know, if you're talking the talk, you better walk the walk, right? And exactly. Exactly. So in all of this, with building your personal brand, how does storytelling and narratives tie in with everything?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 25:29

Yeah, everything is a story. You'll have so many stories about things you have to share, not just about your clients, because sometimes it's not about your clients, it's about what you've done to get over the things that your clients are struggling with. Right? So the very first question you asked me was, okay, diplomacy and now personal branding, how? Right? People are going to be naturally curious about the basic questions. If you're able to nail down those basic questions that people are always going to be curious about, that's your story. That's your story.

Jennifer Johnson 26:02

And create that narrative so you can have it on replay every time they ask, because you will be asked.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 26:07

You will be asked. And guess what? Then you have just nailed down your narrative for yourself and you control that narrative, Jennifer. No one else does.

Jennifer Johnson 26:16

That's a very good point. Absolutely. So as you are building your brand, you're building your million-dollar brand, and you're getting this information out to your what platforms do you suggest people use? And I know everyone's gonna be a little bit different, but are there any platforms that work better than others for amplifying your message?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 26:39

Yeah, just like personal branding is personal. So one platform can work really well for one type of business and not for someone else. So it depends. Um, I think content is very important when it comes to branding. So you have to decide are you a are you comfortable being on camera or audio only or just written text? I think once you decide on what format you want your content, then you can decide, well, if it's written, then I need to make sure my blog is my website is doing really, really well. So you don't have to worry about social media or Instagram, but LinkedIn could be something great because that's a lot of written text. If you're visual and you want to show your face off, then Instagram and um you know YouTube could be a really great platform. So again, it's a personal choice and go deep into that because your audience will always find you. And then, of course, Jennifer, doing podcasts like this is great because you're borrowing someone else's audience and you're not just recreating from scratch.

Jennifer Johnson 27:40

You know, Talyn, I'm glad you mentioned that. You said go deep. I think one of, in my opinion, one of the mistakes that people make is it's kind of a spray and play. Let me be everywhere. Yeah, let me just do them all. But then what happens when you do them all? You give them this much effort. What do you say about that? Don't do it.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 28:00

It's a waste of time. It's a waste of time. It's the same thing as saying, I help everyone. Well, if you help everyone, you help no one, right? Right, right. So it's the same thing. You're just wasting and you're just burning so much energy on stuff that at the end of the day, we have a business, which means we need to make money from it, right? So that's what did you call it? The spray and play. It's like it's literally like throwing spaghetti at the wall and what's gonna stick. Nothing because

Narrative Control Platforms And Focus

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 28:33

you have to clean that mess up.

Jennifer Johnson 28:36

Right. No one wants to do that. Yeah, it doesn't work, but I think a lot of people think because they heard it somewhere. Someone on some, you know, some expert somewhere told them, you know, you just do it all on all the channels and you got it all covered. Yeah, and I learned long ago that I could probably do two channels well, and that was it.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 28:58

Exactly. You have to go deep. And then that way you can spend a little bit more extra money putting ads and promotions behind it to like amplify and boost the work that you're doing. You can't do that with like 10 channels.

Jennifer Johnson 29:13

Right.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 29:13

You'll be expensive and it'll be really stupid if you do. Yeah.

Jennifer Johnson 29:18

Social media posting. Yeah. So going into how you measure the success of building your personal branding is how do you determine what your ROI is on this, your return on investment?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 29:32

Yeah. So this is a really tricky one because your personal brand evolves the more you do it. But I'll give you an example of a client of mine. Um, she's based in Barbados, she sells uh candles for a living, but these are candles that are quintessentially like Barbadian.

Jennifer Johnson 29:47

Okay.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 29:48

And these smells, these scents are very much tied to her own history, like the things that she grew up with. Um, one of the most famous things she said to me was um when people think of the Caribbean, they think of mangoes and coconuts and pineapples, but Caribbean people don't go to the beach and they don't eat fruit. So why the hell are we right? So why are we showing off these like things that are typically Caribbean when the average Caribbean doesn't do any of that? So for her, once we built a brand, the first, the only thing she kept talking to me about was, I'm a six-figure business, I'm gonna be a seven, seven-figure business, eight-figure business. And all I said to her was, I don't care about how much money you make. How much, how much do you value yourself? And she couldn't put a number on her own self-worth. And now when she talks about the journey she's been through, the reasons why she's you know, she's created those scents, there's a personal story behind it. And now she's walking around like I feel like a million-dollar brand right now. I feel it. It's not something you but and and when you see how she talks about her brand, it's completely different from a year ago to the point where she's completely reset all of her content. She's like, I don't want to even show that version of me anymore.

Jennifer Johnson 31:06

Isn't that amazing to see that transformation?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 31:09

Yeah.

Jennifer Johnson 31:09

That's that's pretty awesome. So as we wrap up, what is one insight from your diplomacy years and your diplomacy background that has influenced your approach to personal branding and your business today?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 31:26

Yeah, you have to look at people, look at what they're not saying, and don't be afraid to pull that version of them out. And I think that's my skill set, that's what I do. Um, you know, a lot of people get stuck in the corporate jargon, talking about oh, the processes and you know, the money and the systems and the models. And I'm thinking, but where are you in your business? I don't see that. You're not talking about the reason why you started, other than I want to make money, I don't care. I don't care how much money you're making in your business. But what are you doing to connect with people in a way that's meaningful and isn't just like a today? I'm gonna show you three things on three ways of doing X, Y, and Z. Like everyone talks like that. But when you're speaking from the heart and you are being vulnerable, I think the thing is, Jennifer, people are scared to be vulnerable because they're scared of that feedback and that rejection.

Jennifer Johnson 32:23

That's true.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 32:23

Embrace it. The more you embrace that, the more powerful you feel and become.

Jennifer Johnson 32:28

Right.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 32:29

Because that feedback is gonna only make you

ROI Example And Vulnerability Muscle

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 32:31

better, right?

Jennifer Johnson 32:33

Right.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 32:33

Even if you do get feedback and it stinks, so what? You've just toughened up a bit.

Jennifer Johnson 32:38

That's very true. Yeah, it's very true.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 32:41

No one teaches you that as an entrepreneur.

Jennifer Johnson 32:43

You know what? No, and and being an entrepreneur, you have to have your skin has to be pretty tough because I you never know what a customer is gonna come out and say. You never know what's gonna get thrown at you from any which direction, and you have to have thick skin to repel that and and deal with whatever it is. So I totally agree with that. So, Talyn, we're gonna head into the final four. Four questions that I ask every guest that's on my show because I always get a different answer, typically. Okay, for all of these. So, my first one what is your favorite book that you have read and what was it that made it stick with you?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 33:22

Oh, oh, this is a good one. I have two. Can I share two? Yes, absolutely. No, they're not business marketing books. Throw them out, don't read them. Um, I saw I have two. Um, one is by Evie Pomporas. The book is called Becoming Bulletproof. She is a former FBI agent who was part of the whole 9-11 shenanigan, and um, she talks about how to build resilience, how to you know survey your environment, how to read people, like all of the stuff that I learned as a diplomat, but from an FBI agent point of view, she teaches you all of those strategies, and I think it's incredibly critical for you to learn those skills, especially if you're gonna become a million-dollar personal brand, because you need to be able to have your own like security in place with yourself. So that's the first one. The second one that people don't ex well, people who know me know I will say something like this, but it's a book by an MMA champion called Um, his name is George St. Pierre, and the book is called The Way of the Fight. And again, it's about Way of the Fight. Yeah, it's about discipline, being consistent, shutting down the world to perfect your art. He's very much a lone warrior when it comes to the work he does, but he's a champion for a reason. Again, you can't build a million-dollar brand without shutting down a few of the windows and just being like super dedicated to your art. And he teaches a lot about those strategies that a lot of entrepreneurs can take away.

Jennifer Johnson 34:55

I wrote both of them down.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 34:56

Yeah.

Jennifer Johnson 34:57

I'm going on a trip and I'm going to get those so that I can read those.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 35:01

Learn about the, you know, the martial arts way and then what secret agents do.

Jennifer Johnson 35:06

Right, absolutely. Do you have a favorite quote or piece of advice that you find yourself coming back to time and time again?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 35:14

Yes, okay. I have one on my whiteboard. Let me just read it out. I don't know who said this, but it says, plan like you're gonna live forever. Live like you're gonna die tomorrow.

Jennifer Johnson 35:24

Oh, I love it.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 35:26

Mm-hmm. Which is a bit scary, but if it doesn't scare you, then but you know, it's it's so true.

Jennifer Johnson 35:33

It's very true. What's one habit or practice that's changed your life?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 35:38

Yeah, I think the foundation is what you and I discussed earlier. You know, having my 5 a.m. rituals and having my 9 p.m. rituals has been amazing because before, you know, I'd wake up when my daughter wakes up, I'd go to sleep when I felt like it. As a result, you end up really, really tired. You're not giving enough to yourself, you're not filling up your own cup. And now I'm my my number one priority is my own cup must be filled before I give it out to anyone else because I'm very much someone who gives energy to other people, but I need to be able to like give that energy back to myself.

Jennifer Johnson 36:13

Right. That's a beautiful piece of advice. If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be and

Rapid-Fire Favorites And Where To Follow

Jennifer Johnson 36:19

why?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 36:22

Oh, dang, this is a tough one. Um that's a really hard one for me because um, you know, as someone who worked in diplomacy, I've met some amazing people. Like, for example, I met Desmond Tutu. Um, you know, I sat it's really funny story. Um, he kept saying, you know, come over because we're doing a photo shoot, and there was nowhere to sit, and he kept saying, sit on my lap, sit on my lap. And I just thought, well, that's not very appropriate because back then I was 20 years old.

Jennifer Johnson 36:50

Um oh my gosh.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 36:54

So I kind of sat near him, like on perching, I was sharing his chair, not on his lap. Um, I don't know. I I okay, if there was one person I could like meet and have lunch with, they're not alive anymore. But the one person that I wanted to meet and not alive anymore is the queen. So I didn't get to meet my own queen. So I guess I have to settle for the king now. Hopefully, I get an invite one day.

Jennifer Johnson 37:21

Exactly. Oh my gosh, wouldn't that be so cool? Yeah, yeah, that would be very cool, Talyn. It has been an absolute pleasure having you on today. If our listeners want to get a hold of you, how can they do so?

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 37:35

Hey, you want to watch me build my million-dollar personal brand? Go to Instagram. Um, follow me at boss diplomat. And also, um, I do have my own show called the Fairy Boss Mother Show. So everything you and I discuss, Jennifer, I am looking for a challenging opponent to get into the ring with me. I usually have this on. It's my boxing glove. Oh my god. Look how chatted this is. So it's like get into the ring with me, come into the fairy bossmother show, and let me show you what your million dollar version could look like. Um, so if you want to do that, it's on my website, bossdiplomat.com.

Jennifer Johnson 38:10

Awesome. Thank you so much, Talyn.

Talyn Rahman-Figueroa 38:12

Thank you, Jennifer. This was a pleasure.