An Agency Story
An Agency Story
How Employee Turnover is a Growth Strategy - Trio Solutions
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How Employee Turnover is a Growth Strategy
Letting go of great team members may feel like a setback, but what if it’s the key to long-term growth? In this episode, Jessica Munday, founder of Trio Solutions, shares how she’s built a thriving agency by empowering her team, embracing turnover, and creating opportunities beyond the walls of her business.
Inside this episode:
- Why mentorship is your agency’s hidden retention strategy
- How former employees can become future partners
- What agency owners get wrong about loyalty and team-building
- The culture shift that turns short-term hires into long-term advocates
- A refreshing perspective on navigating change and evolving with your team
Welcome to An Agency Story podcast where we share real stories of marketing agency owners from around the world. From the excitement of starting up the first big sale, passion, doubt, fear, freedom, and the emotional rollercoaster of growth, hear it all on An Agency Story podcast. An Agency Story podcast is hosted by Russel Dubree, successful agency owner with an eight figure exit turned business coach. Enjoy the next agency story.
Russel:What if creating a path for your team to leave was actually a strategy to grow your business? Welcome to An Agency Story podcast, I'm your host Russel. Our guest for this episode is Jessica Munday, founder of Trio Solutions, a Charleston based agency that's been thriving for nearly 25 years. Jessica's not only built a lasting business in an ever-changing industry, but also created a culture where people grow, leave, return, and even become business partners. We will talk about the nuance of learning your critical role in that process and why moving on from your agency can be a positive catalyst for growth. This conversation just might change how you view your next resignation letter. And be sure to listen all the way to the end to see if Jessica got her Super Bowl prediction correct. Enjoy the story. Welcome to the show today everyone. I have Jessica Munday with Trio Solutions with us here today. Thank you so much for being on the show, Jessica.
Jessica:Thank you for the invitation.
Russel:I'm excited to have a conversation. You're on the what, somewhere on the East Coast? Where are you at today?
Jessica:In beautiful Charleston, which all oftentimes is ranked the number one city in the world, in case you didn't know.
Russel:Number one, I mean, I am actually a big fan of Charleston. I see why this could be a statement to be made. Okay. For all the people that might visit or have visited Charleston, what is, what is something they absolutely have to do?
Jessica:Downtown is so, so historic. The food is incredible. The scenery, the beaches, the people, uh, there's just, there's so much history. The boat life, um, fishing, surfing, there's so much to do and it's just a great hospitable place to live, work, and play.
Russel:Now real hot seat question. Best place. Where do they have to eat?
Jessica:Oh, Halls Chophouse. Highly recommend.
Russel:I have not been there. All right. Add it to the list. Well now we've got some travel recommendations and, and we're only a minute into this. Real quick to set the stage, if you don't mind sharing. What does Trio do and who do you do it for?
Jessica:Trio provides transformative marketing to small businesses and nonprofits, and the trio is marketing, events and web.
Russel:Very succinct. It sounds like you have been at this a while. the, When was the company founded?
Jessica:2001. I tell people I started when I was five.
Russel:I imagine then there is no shortage of experience that you can share and being, being at this, you're almost, you and the business are almost 25.
Jessica:That's right.
Russel:But before we get into all the things that, uh, you, you can share about your agency life, tell us about young Jessica, um, pre 2001, what were her hopes, goals and dreams that she was looking for in the world?
Jessica:Oh gosh. Young Jessica, so I grew up in Asheville. Grew up in the mountains of North Carolina, and I always wanted to be in the advertising and marketing field. I had an opportunity to shadow someone when I was in high school who worked for a PR agency and absolutely loved watching what she did, and I immediately went home. Applied for the University of South Carolina School of Journalism, got in, and truly the rest is history. I actually am one of those strange people that knew exactly what they wanted to do, graduating and going into college, and have been doing it ever since.
Russel:I love a good story like that and you know, it just made me think of while you're sharing that, they need to do more high school shadowing experiences. I shadowed a doctor, I think,'cause I think I wanted to be a doctor when I was in high school and I learned that day that I did not want to be a doctor. Your path that worked out good to decide what you want to do, but I'm sure it can be helpful for young, young folks to figure out what they don't want to do. Kudos to where you went to school or however that came about for you.
Jessica:Thank you. I couldn't agree more. I actually love having interns, um, whether that's a high school student or college student, and it's honestly been one of my favorite things as a agency owner. Just feeling like I'm providing an opportunity, whether or not they go into the field or not, but you know, life's all about experiences and just to be able to open our company doors to the next generation of professionals is something that I, I really, really enjoy doing.
Russel:And That's such a great perspective and it's 2025. We gotta have hands-on learning and you know, there's all kinds of information sources out there that don't need to come from education and, and businesses are the best place that, that they can taste it, touch it, feel it, whatever that needs to look like and, and learn from the folks that know how to do it well. Set the stage then for college graduation on this clear cut path. How did we get up to the point where you actually started your agency?
Jessica:Actually I had a personal situation going on, um, in my life while I was going through college, and that is I started to take care of my grandfather. So I had a lot of exposure to the healthcare industry. Talk about people having an impact in your life. His caseworker actually was just such an incredible person and she knew I was interested in marketing, but I also just felt this tug toward the healthcare industry. She said, have you ever thought about getting your master's in healthcare administration but going in to do marketing? So I actually ended up looking into that and that's where I, I landed. Most of my graduate school colleagues were aspiring to be CEOs of hospitals. But I was aspiring to be a chief marketing officer of a health system. That was a defining moment where I ended up where I am now.
Russel:Did you actually pursue that path of, of going and working in the healthcare system before you started the agency?
Jessica:I did, and it happened to be in the late nineties, which also was a time when this little thing called the internet was coming on the scene and healthcare was trying to figure out how to navigate. Banking and travel industries had already figured out how to make it interactive and I just jumped in with both feet and taught myself how to code and loved the fact that it bridged technology and communications. Ended up becoming a webmaster at a pediatric hospital in their marketing department. That was the skillset that ended up allowing me to say, I think people might pay me to tell them what they should do, and so that, that hospital became my very first client.
Russel:Okay. Webmaster, man, I haven't heard that term in a, in a hot minute, but I kind of, we need that to come back. Everything seems to always go in cycles. Can we bring Webmaster back?
Jessica:Oh God, I'm to, I'm so aging myself at the moment.
Russel:No, I remember these days, right? You'd probably see it at the bottom of a website, Webmaster, and it'd be a name or, or a company or something like that, right next to the little click counter of how many visits that site was getting. There's the younger folks out there saying, wow, what a world.
Jessica:Exactly. I tell my kids all the time, I said, you know what? I'm so grateful. If I could give you one gift in life, it would be to have known life before the internet and social media. To have that perspective is, I feel, feel like nowadays is such a gift. Young kids nowadays will never know that.
Russel:It is really two different worlds. I don't know if you could probably track back, and I'm a history major by the way. I've tracked back too far into or track any time in history. We had just such a dichotomy between a generational shift of just the onslaught of technology that has occurred in the difference between the, the younger generation of today and our generation. I always ask myself like would I, would I want to have grown up in this world of social media and cell phones and videos and stuff? I don't know the answer to that quite honestly. I'm thinking maybe no.
Jessica:I don't disagree. I find myself truly having a love-hate relationship with it because on one hand it puts food on my table because in today's age, as you know, it's rare that you're gonna have any type of marketing strategy that really doesn't include some type of social media, digital component. But at the same breath, being a history major, you know, like with each time something was invented and introduced to society, it changed the dynamics of the marketing, advertising, communications, profession, and industry.
Russel:So true. I guess one of the things I'm fascinated about, just hearing your story, I mean, I just love this very strategic path it seems like you were on at such a young age. Was the plan in that path? I know you, you were highlighting this a little bit, to ultimately own your own business or were you thinking, no, I'm gonna be a career person? When did that transition or thought come to say, maybe I'll go do this on my own?
Jessica:I think people often debate whether or not entrepreneurs are born or made, did I know early on that I wanted to set my sights on something bigger than what I was doing? Absolutely. Did I know when I was that junior in high school that I was gonna own my own agency? No, I didn't. However, when I reflect back on my younger self, I clearly remember entrepreneurial things I was doing that I do think led me to where I, I was. And on one hand, I have worked really hard to get where I'm at, but on the other, I think those are traits that I was born with.
Russel:When was the day then that you woke up and said, all right, bye corporate world, I'm, I'm starting my own business? Was there an event or just what made you decide that ultimately?
Jessica:I think just like anything in life, there was, you know, another personal milestone going on. I had met my husband, um, my boyfriend at the time, and he was a boat captain and in addition to Trio, he and I also own a sport fishing charter company here in Charleston. He had gotten the opportunity, we'd just gotten engaged, and he had gotten an opportunity to work on a really nice sport fishing boat that was gonna be in tournaments, based in Charleston. We had moved away, um, at the time,'cause I was in the Virginia Beach area. So I had to make a decision. Was I staying in Virginia Beach and having a long distance marriage or was I gonna move back to Charleston? I went to my boss at the time and this, I love this because I was doing remote work before remote work was even a thing.
Russel:Before Zoom. This is even before, or what? Was there even like a, a program like that back then? I feel like the early days was like GoToMeeting or something. Was that even around?
Jessica:I don't know, maybe there was something in Netscape or something like that.
Russel:Now we're name dropping all the old stuff.
Jessica:Yeah. Oh, my Gateway computer.
Russel:Yes. There you go.
Jessica:Um. And I went to my boss and just said, you know, I love what I do, but I really could do it remotely. I could dial in on my dial up connection. We worked out a deal where I would come up one week outta the month, have all my meetings with the departments, and then I would go back to Charleston and I would work from home doing the actual work. We did that for almost a year. That was also the impetus of, okay, I'm, I'm going to start this business. I need to have a business license. Again, the rest is history,'cause that was in April 2001.
Russel:Was it that, that drudgery of kind of almost like a hybrid setup, like a hybrid commute setup, is it the drudgery of, of going back and forth and saying, I, I need this flexibility? Or is it really just the realization that, hey, I think I can do this and here I go?
Jessica:I think it was the realization of, hey, I can do this. Kind of what I mentioned earlier, you know, this was uncharted territory, so there, there truly wasn't that many people ahead of me that knew more than I did about what it was we were doing because we were all learning a lot like we are doing today with AI. The similarities in how, uh, quickly and how people were trying to navigate, how's this internet gonna impact my business and help me do business better? The similarities with that and AI are just fascinating to me But I, I knew I could do it, and I knew that I think people will pay me to tell them what they need to do. Then I went and got another children's hospital to be my client, and then it just snowballed from there, and so early on we had a lot of healthcare clients.
Russel:Okay. And was that more intentional for you, just because that's the space you knew and you thought, hey, this is a good, smart business play? Or was it just serendipitous that that's who you knew and that's where your network was? That scale of serendipity or intention, how, how do you look back at that?
Jessica:I think it's really a combination of both because my heart has always been in giving back to the community and you know, trying to do good in the world through whatever your skillset is. A lot of healthcare, especially children's hospitals, are nonprofit entities in and of themselves. It was like I was getting the best of both worlds'cause I was utilizing my master's degree in healthcare administration. I was in the marketing field, I was investing in learning about this new technology and it was, had a philanthropic component to it. I really do love working with children's hospitals for that and for that that purpose. But over the years, uh, we've certainly diversified and work with all kinds of industries now.
Russel:Okay. So I guess, you're almost 25 years old. Can you think back as like, any major pivot moments along that journey where you either had to or wanted to or, anything stand out?
Jessica:Yes, there, there are certainly a few. When I grew to, I had to move outta my home office and get an office space to accommodate my staff and my team members. That was a big, pivotal moment. We quickly outgrew that space and then had to get a larger office. We were so excited because we bought the next office, and that was in 2007. We all know what happened, 2008, 2009. That was a very scary moment as a marketing agency owner and, an entrepreneur and a real estate owner, that had a lot of people that no surprise, guess what budget gets cut oftentimes first? The marketing budget. Navigating those times, um, was very hard. We did it. It proved our resilience and as soon as that was behind us, I can look back now and see all these new doors opened. And that was became an exciting time. You had to go down to come up, go through the valleys to get to the peaks. That was definitely one.
Russel:I'm kind of hazy'cause our agency was just starting up during that timeframe and we were kind of young and maybe naive to the market other than just knowing it was going on. We didn't have a big business at that time, so there wasn't a lot to affect per se. But I remember it being like a two, three, maybe even four year period before it seemed like business was, was turning the, going back up as you shared earlier. Kind of to that end, right? I think some folks, we got a microcosm of this during the pandemic era. Within a year's timeframe, we had this full collapse and then climb back up, and a lot of people got to experience this rapid pivot. Maybe even along the lines of what you were saying new doors open, what were some of those new doors that opened up for you on the backside of that tumultuous time period?
Jessica:Just like we talked about earlier, social media. That was also the time that Facebook and Twitter were introduced and I'm very proud to say that our agency was one of the first agencies to even offer social media management in our marketplace. We started to see the power of this communication tool. We started to see more brands, uh, go onto the platforms and it wasn't just friends and family. I would say that opened a big door because a significant amount of our, uh, business now is, whether it's organic social media management or paid, and the number of platforms obviously has grown. It was just those two and then obviously LinkedIn, but now there's, multiple ones. But that was definitely a game changer in the industry.
Russel:Sounds like you may have missed the, the, you may have missed MySpace marketing. Which it's probably a good thing that you didn't, didn't spend any time there.
Jessica:I think I still have my account open. I don't know that I ever closed it.
Russel:I can't remember. I tried to log in a few years ago and they changed what it was so drastically that I don't even, I wanna say it was like a music thing or something I can't even remember now. Rest in peace, MySpace, the OG platform. One of the things I'm, I'm curious about is, you said you started out with a heavy emphasis in healthcare and hospitals and that sort of thing, but then eventually diversified more. What was the thought process behind diversifying? Because you don't too often hear that per se. You hear people diversify, go more narrow, but you don't necessarily always hear the stories of the other direction.
Jessica:I would say we ended up getting some private schools for clients, and yes, they oftentimes are, have a nonprofit component or a philanthropic foundation, associated with it. But certainly getting into the private education space, that opened up some really great opportunities. One of our favorite clients that we just really enjoy working with is an all boys Catholic high school in Staten Island, believe it or not, and they were celebrating their hundredth anniversary and hired us to help do the branding and their centennial campaign and event, and that led to referrals to other private schools and so that one grew. Then also I think just because I was personally getting into real estate, I was referred to some individuals that were in the home building and real estate development space. We got into that and word of mouth and referrals continued within those different industries and have just continued to grow. It was nice to diversify because I do, even though they're different industries, you really can learn from the different industries.
Russel:That's such a great lesson because a lot of folks, there's just so much talk and so much movement in the space to take an industry and make that your focus. Which is good, or it can be helpful I think for, for, to refine expertise and whatnot. But I like that approach and I think that seems very similar to how we evolved, is we never put a stake in the ground as, in a particular industry. We definitely always liked the cause-based stuff, but it's almost like these just different waves would come by and we would do a museum and then more museums would be interested. And I think that's a good way you can get some of the advantages of maybe not being super narrow, but if you just take those waves and ride'em and do good work and then you jump on, jump onto the next wave. I don't know if you surf in Charleston. I'm not a surfer, but that's how I envision surfing going.
Jessica:Yes, I don't surf, my kids surf. But yes, I totally get what you're saying. It's been an incredible ride and I have no regrets. I would do it all over again. I definitely learned some lessons along the way, but my philosophy has always been, from day one, to work hard, enjoy life and make a difference. That is still the philosophy and the culture that I have at, not just Trio, but my other businesses as well. I just think we have an opportunity to move the needle on whatever it is that you're touching. Do that, but have fun doing it.
Russel:There you go. Name of the game. Do good work, have fun doing it, and we don't need to complicate it any more than that, even though we might try from time to time. Uh, I mean, I have to ask the question. Someone that's been in this business as long as you have, what, give us a nugget of what's a good lesson learned that you can share with the folks at home today?
Jessica:A good lesson learned would be, oh my gosh, there's a lot. Letting go of the vine is a good thing. Surrounding yourself with dedicated people that want to be there with you and be part of your team and empower them and mentor them, and just give people the space to be great at what their skillset is. And When you have a multifaceted full service marketing agency and you really come together as a team, you can do some really great work and that's cool.
Russel:What do you think is because empowerment, that has to happen. Unless you want a, a business to be on your back for a good long while, you've got to find ways to empower your team. Easier said than done. But I can kinda hear what you're saying there, that mentorship piece. You were just talking earlier about interns what does that look like more in the active, kind of tactical sense of how do you get started just being a really good mentor and teacher of your team?
Jessica:I actually just, um, was recognized for that. I certainly appreciate the folks on my team who nominated me for this award that was given out locally, and recognizing that that's where my, my heart is in that space. I think the downside is when you bring in young eager minds and you train them and you teach them everything you know, and you see them blossom and then they leave. But that's part of it because it's like they're a little bird and they're gonna fly the nest and then they make you proud. But I think, creating relationships with local colleges and universities. We have a university, here in South Carolina, Clemson, I'm sure people have know of Clemson. I'm a Gamecock, so this is going a long way here, people.
Russel:Uhoh, promoting, promoting the enemy.
Jessica:Clemson has this in-house agency for their students, and I have to say, they do a great job. When the students are selected to be part of the agency within the school, they're getting real world experience and the caliber of their students is really, really strong. I've really enjoyed, um, being connected to that, that university and have reaped the benefits of some great team members because of the program they have.
Russel:There's an old adage out there. It's what is it now, it's gonna come to me. I don't know if this is an actual real quote or, or story or not, but it's, it's used in that context of kind of what you were sharing earlier of what happens if we train our people and they leave, and then do you know what the retort is to that statement?
Jessica:No, what is it?
Russel:Okay. Maybe this is not famous as I thought. What happens if we don't and they stay?
Jessica:Oh gosh. Okay. Touche.
Russel:But I get, I think of agency as such a personal business. We're putting our heart and soul into that. It's our business, the work we're doing is just so much of our minds so I get where this is so personal and where that can feel like a sting. Any words of comfort in just how, how it's okay to let the birds fly from the nest, if we wanna go down that analogy, because the benefits are far better than the, any, any scariness coming from, yes, they might and will leave eventually.
Jessica:I think that's just reality. It is part of a natural progression for, I would say, the majority of professionals out there, because there's, not everybody's an entrepreneur, so not everybody's the business owner sitting in this seat. The majority of the people are your team members who, you know, if you have them for five to seven years, that's a great tenure. It's rare that someone's gonna stay with you as long as you own the company. If you are opening up your doors to further the industry by mentoring and empowering and building up strong marketing professionals, then I think that's a great thing that we can do for our field as a whole.
Russel:Our kind of perspective was on that,'cause we had a very similar philosophy, is we want to be recognized as the place that you're gonna come and grow. That ultimately, we wanna see you be successful. We know that won't always be here one way or the other. We want to catch that moment of success from you for as long as it makes sense to do it, and we all win in that scenario. Maybe that's just incentive to mentor more and train faster so we can get better use out of that that time period. That's the sense of urgency that maybe needs to come rather than train less or don't invest as much.
Jessica:And I would add to that, create a culture that your employees who do leave want to come back. I've had many employees over the years have reached back out and we've discussed opportunities to come back and work for the agency and stayed connected all these years because there's a deep sense of gratitude that our time together was well spent.
Russel:That is a good reminder is, especially when you do train'em from younger, they don't really know an alternative out there. They don't know how bad that world can be and go let'em find out for a minute. That's actually a really good thing because it brings a whole new perspective. We had multiple stories like that as well. Great reminder, for folks out there. I've gotta ask, sounds like you still enjoy what you do. Bring a lot of energy to it, a lot of passion, which might not always be the case for folks that have been doing things even half the amount of time as you've been running an agency. What's the secret sauce there? How do you keep that passion alive every single day?
Jessica:I do love what I do and sometimes I'm like, God, why do you love this so much? Are you ready for something new? But I do. I think it is because I love learning, and this is an industry that is constantly evolving and we don't have the luxury of staying stagnant in how we're gonna help our clients promote their brands in the marketplace and to their stakeholders. Even, I mentioned earlier, AI, like I am just a sponge right now. I can't learn enough, fast enough. Looking back over the past 25 years, there've been, there's a trend there, and on one hand that can be hard because I'm pushing my team to also have a thirst for learning, but. I, I really think being a lifelong learner and just constantly pushing yourself to be innovative is what keeps it fresh.
Russel:I love that. That's almost like a mic drop quote moment. What is it now? You can't learn enough fast enough. That's what you said. That was really a poetic and I think so true. You just gotta love to learn. You really do have to learn to love change and that notion of that I feel like is changing every single day. Maybe even realize that, what I'm kind of hearing you say there is if, if we ever think we're just gonna be there and stay there, then that's probably a recipe for, for some disappointment at, at the very least, nonetheless.
Jessica:Yes. We've been talking kind of about historical milestones and the internet and AI, but can you imagine if our agencies were only recommending to our clients that they advertise on radio and tv and that's it? We would be dinosaurs.
Russel:That's a very poignant, uh, example there. Way to bring it home from the theme of our conversation about, uh, all things past.
Jessica:Or, um, newspaper, news. It is fascinating though when you think about, uh, from a communications perspective and the speed in which these mediums were adopted by society. The newspaper was how everyone was informed, and then radio and then tv, and then the internet and it just, and the, the adoption rate just shrinks and shrinks and shrinks each time.
Russel:It's funny. We worked with the Dallas Morning News, um, here was a client for ours a long way, and they know the exact date where the paper will be 100% obsolete. They measure that by essentially, uh, I'm guessing it's kind of like a what do, what do the insurance people do? What do they call that work? The starts with a, the actuary, actuaries, uh, table about when that customer base will essentially die. And there will be the, the newspaper will be officially gone at that point. I just always thought that was crazy. We just have a, have a sunset date, literally and figuratively for the newspaper.
Jessica:Wow. Did they share it with you, the date?
Russel:Well, I don't know if they did or didn't, um, back then. I don't remember what that date is, but it's probably close. I would prob uh, unfortunately, which I really hate. I always loved the newspaper. That was just such a good, good routine it felt like to just check out the newspaper in the day. We're just dating ourselves left and right.
Jessica:I do think that there is still, you know, power in holding something tangible, you know, in your hands, whether it's you're reading a book or a magazine or the newspaper, but I, I would guess that they have enough data over time with either digital ads or subscription rates for print and digital that they can forecast when one's gonna go down and the other ones completely takes over.
Russel:Good old predictive analytics. Gosh, there's so many fun things that we could, feel like parlay that into, but I guess, I guess we gotta round, round out sometime. Tell me more about, I mean, clearly you, you mentioned it earlier of got some side, other businesses going on and are getting to enjoy life outside of all things agency. What do those ventures look like and how do you find the time?
Jessica:I don't know how I find the time other than I know people make time for things that matter. Being able to support my husband and my family with our fishing charter boat management company is just a joy. I absolutely love it. My oldest son, he's 22, just got his captain's license and is getting his MBA, so I see that possibly that's his opportunity down the road. Short story real quick. My very first employee at Trio is now my business partner for a nonprofit consulting company.
Russel:Oh, that's cool.
Jessica:Yes.
Russel:Wow, that's cool. Those are, again, why I love telling these stories. That's really amazing to give someone to, not only the opportunity you gave them back however many years ago, but to parlay that into their own business opportunity. That's really cool. Name drop the fishing company for all these folks that are gonna come rushing into Charleston now, and as well share a little bit about that nonprofit consulting company.
Jessica:Absolutely. It's Full Circle Fishing Charters and there's obviously a reason it's called Full Circle. There's so many times in life where we look at each other and we're like, oh my gosh, this is so full circle. This is why we named our boat Full Circle and the business. Love to take anybody out on a fishing charter or Harbor Cruise in beautiful Charleston in the low country. Nonprofit consulting is Cloud Nine Nonprofit Advisors, and we are headquartered in sunny South Florida in Fort Lauderdale. My business partner's name's also Jessica and she is a nonprofit force. So if you have a nonprofit, if you're on the board of a nonprofit and you need help dealing with the challenges that nonprofits face raising funds or the impact in the programs they're offering, she and the team that we've developed are phenomenal.
Russel:Love that. What a great story. I know exactly who I'll call next time I come to Charleston because we always do a family fishing trip when we're there and you've just saved me like two hours of Google searching for, to try to find who am I gonna pick to do this? Because there are quite a few options in Charleston for, for fishing, but it's, it's such a great place to do that. Alright, well what a great conversation. Just to round, round this all out, what does the future look like? What is the next 25 years of Trio?
Jessica:As much as I love what I do, I also recognize that I have been doing this for 25 years. I'm not getting any younger. At some point I do have to start thinking about the future. There's opportunities, I've got some great people on my team. Maybe it's an ESOP, maybe it is, you know, my partners there taking over the agency and I serve in an advisory role. Maybe five, 10 years out, it's not a today issue by any means. I would love to do more with my family and be on the boat and just bringing the joy of boating and fishing to as many people as we can. I see Cloud Nine, really that is another bird probably that will go on. I did my part in helping set them up and mentor that team up. I'd love to be in The Bahamas at some point in my future.
Russel:That doesn't sound like a bad place to be. I have no doubt that you'll get there, and I imagine you will still be learning when you do. The last final question then is, and you maybe already started the answer of this, is, are entrepreneurs born or are they made?
Jessica:I think it's truly a combination of, of both. I think you have to be born, it has to be in your DNA to have the resilience and the desire and the drive to be successful. But you also can make or break yourself. Are you making the right decisions to get past the odds of the business not surviving past the three, five year mark? That takes a lot of work and effort and the ability to learn and navigate different times and lead people and deal with people. I'm gonna go with both. That's my final answer.
Russel:Final answer. All right. Regis, did she, did she get it right? No, great, great answer. Great perspective, and, and most people land on the, in the mixed category, so, um, perfectly acceptable. If people wanna know more about Trio, where can they go?
Jessica:It's triosolutions.com or Trio Solutions on all of the social media platforms. Like I mentioned earlier, Full Circle Fishing Charters, and it's ThriveWithCloudNine. That's our handle for the nonprofit consulting company. And then you can find me in Charleston and if anybody wants to come and go have dinner at Halls, I'm game.
Russel:Is that the place you said, that was the, that was the go-to recommendation?
Jessica:Yes, it is fabulous.
Russel:Oh man, it's making me hungry. All right. I'm gonna have to plan my next Charleston trip, wonderful conversation today, Jessica. Thank you so much for taking the time to share just so many little nuggets of wisdom. Really took away the importance of learning, training, mentoring your team, all things that are absolutely critical in this business, and really appreciate you taking the time to share your story today.
Jessica:Thank you for having me, Russel. I've enjoyed our conversation and wish you the best.
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Jessica:Do we wanna talk about who's gonna win the Super Bowl? Are you a Cowboys fan?
Russel:This will be poignant because this will not launch before the episode but I like this. Let's have a conversation about, who's gonna win the Super Bowl, and we're, we're gonna find out if you're right.
Jessica:Oh. Where's my, um, I need my little globe here. My husband is from outside Philadelphia, so my in-laws are all in the suburbs of Philly. My ranking is the Carolina Panthers, the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Kansas City Chiefs. I gotta pull for the Eagles.
Russel:Uh oh. All right. Doesn't sound like a prediction. Sounds like some bias.
Jessica:Yes. Well, A three PI. Look, here's the real deal. I won't be disappointed either way, so it'll be a good game to watch.
Russel:I guess that is true. You can just default to your third, um, favorite team if that happens. All right. So is that, is that, are we dropping the prediction? Is it gonna be the Eagles? Are they gonna win?
Jessica:I'm going with the Eagles. Yes, Saquon Barkley is on fire.
Russel:He is looking good, um, that is for sure. I saw something, it was some crazy stats the other day though, of like, they're basically like Mahomes is, I can't remember all the numbers they were thrown there, but like undefeated if he has more than two weeks of rest. All these other stats that are like, basically like hardly ever lost in this scenario, and not to mention it being a Super Bowl to boot. I don't know. Hopefully it'll be a good game and then we all win if nothing else.
Jessica:Exactly. I love it.