Divas That Care Network

Closing The Year With Purpose

• Divas That Care Network • Season 15 • Episode 61

Share episode

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 28:49

Come and listen to our Host, Candace Gish, as she chats with today's guest, Nicole Rodrigues, for our “End of Year, Beginning of Me” Podcast Series.
A powerfully themed mini-series helping women close the year with clarity and step into the next one with grounded self-love and vision.

Nicole Rodrigues, founder and CEO of NRPR Group, is a recognized public relations expert, digital and social media marketing and crisis communication pro with 24+ years of experience under her belt. In her tenure, she has developed and successfully executed strategic campaigns for some of the biggest names in business including: Yahoo!, Dolby, Sony Pictures
Entertainment, Sony PlayStation, Hulu, M-GO, Toon Hero, Demand Media, Heal, MOBITV, Los Angeles Comic Con and the Oakland (now Las Vegas) Raiders. Amongst some of the most notable campaigns she was charged with, Nicole ran the first and only official mommy blogger campaign for Yahoo!, she devised and launched the PR strategy for all of Hulu first original
shows, and she helped develop YouTube’s creator and influencer PR strategy to produce more impactful campaigns at the forefront of the creator economy boom.

Nicole has repeatedly been recognized as an innovative leader in her industry, being a regular Crisis Communications guest expert on Access Hollywood and most recently as a Bulldog Reporter PR Awards Leader of the Year (Agency) and Ragans Top Agencies Awards Top Agency Leader (2022). She has also been honored with a Stevie Award winner for Communications, Investor Relations, or PR Executive of the Year(2021). She was also awarded
PR Daily’s “PR Professional of the Year” Award (2019), Bulldog Reporter’s “Stars of PR - PR Professional Who Makes a Difference” Award (2018), a Gold Award for “Public or Media Relations Professional of the Year” in Bulldog Reporters “Stars of PR,” and PR News’ Top 50 Game Changers in Public Relations (2017). These awards are confirmation of her mission to meaningfully disrupt the way in which public relations are done in the modern era.

Nicole is also the author of Beverly Hills Boss, a business and life skills book aimed at helping others, like herself, who dream of leading despite any humble beginnings or obstacles. Through her book, readers gain inspiration and actionable insight for growing as a person and in their careers.
Nicole takes great pride in being a former NFL cheerleader, having spent several years cheering for the famed Oakland Raiders. Today, she continues to cheer on her “new team” at NRPR and is a graduate from San Jose State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations.
She earned her MBA at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. While attending business school, Nicole was an Admissions Rep on class council and graduated in the top 15% of her class. She earned her MBA with a concentration in entrepreneurship, which she chose purposely to ensure she was learning more skills to help her clients manage the ups and downs of starting, growing and scaling a business.

https://x.com/NicoleRPR

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolerpr/

We talk with NRPR Group CEO Nicole Rodriguez about moving from survival mode to sustainable leadership while building an authentic, long-game PR strategy rooted in truth, alignment and earned media. We share practical ways to set standards, protect reputation, and design for peace, health and growth.

• why earned media beats hype for lasting trust
• how to align PR with real business goals
• when to say no and protect standards
• building narratives from milestones and proof
• the shift from urgency to sustainability
• designing a 10 to 20 year horizon
• allowing support and leaving survival mode
• mentorship’s role in purpose and confidence
• social media’s impact on executive visibility

Please send, share, even

For more Divas That Care Network Episodes visit www.divasthatcare.com

SPEAKER_00:

It's Divas That Care Radio. Stories, strategies, and ideas to inspire positive change. Welcome to Divas That Care, a network of women committed to making our world a better place for everyone. This is a global movement for women, by women, engaged in a collaborative effort to create a better world for future generations. To find out more about the movement, visit divas that care.com after the show. Right now, though, stay tuned for another jolt of inspiration.

SPEAKER_01:

Welcome everyone and welcome back to the Divas That Care. My name is Candice Gish. If this is your very first time tuning into the Divas That Care, a huge welcome. We've been doing this now for 15, almost 16 years now. We are listening to in over 30 countries around the world. Oh my goodness. And it has just been a blast. You know, with the new year coming upon us here for 2026, I'm just overwhelmed with emotion of gratitude for our guests, for our hosts, for our tribe of amazing women around the world that have really been with us through thick and thin. We've been doing these podcasting series this last six months, and they've been absolutely phenomenal. I just love how people have been embracing them. We are trying to do things a little bit differently, just so that spice things up once in a while. And we are doing a podcasting series right now called End of Year, Beginning of Me. So this podcast series is about a powerfully themed mini-series helping women close the year with clarity and step into the next one with grounded self-love and vision. And I am beyond excited because I'm going to be interviewing an amazing woman. The reason why I'm excited about this is that I've had the opportunity to interview people that they have recommended to me. So I thought it was really cool to be able to now interview the CEO. And her name is Nicole Rodriguez. And Nicole, I am so excited to have you on the Divas at Care. So welcome.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, thank you. Yeah, it's great to be here. And, you know, yes, we've had so many clients on your awesome podcast that I just think uh it it makes sense now. And I'm I'm happy to be able to share. And um, yeah, just very proud of your your journey and your growth as well. So it's been really nice to be watching sort of behind the scenes, right? And um so yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean, and we do appreciate you. And I'm excited because I'm I'm actually looking forward to understanding the vision of why you decided to do this. But before we kind of dive into that, Nicole, would you mind introducing yourself to our listeners today?

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely, yes. So my name is Nicole Rodriguez, and uh I am the CEO and founder of NRPR Group. Um we are a boutique agency in headquartered in Beverly Hills, but we have um offices and team members all over the US. And what we do is, you know, rather than just say it's traditional PR, we really are um more than that. We're the bridge between media and our clients. And I think nowadays that is so important, right? That earned media sort of um narrative that people are building around their companies, their journeys, the thought leaders, um, helping them through crisis situations. Um, you know, we really become family with our clients and uh we're celebrating almost 12 years. So um congratulations. Thank you. Yeah, it's it's really crazy to just look back. Um, but yeah, so we're just about 12 years old, but I've been doing this for 26 years. Um, I absolutely love it. And yeah, we really just help, I would say specifically tech companies, um, just different thought leaders, uh, consumer products companies, entertainment companies, and uh, you know, we we help all of them really just get their story told authentically through media who will listen and care, like you.

SPEAKER_01:

I love that. You know, I think that's really important. I absolutely love your vision there. I will ask you though, how did you get into this?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, that's a great question. I really think that it was my calling, Candace, to be honest. Um, when I was in college or when I went to undergrad, um I didn't quite know exactly what I wanted to do. I thought maybe broadcast journalism, maybe marketing, maybe advertising, maybe sales, right? Like just something that involved writing and strategy and people. And um it was actually my broadcast journalism professor who I took a couple, you know, I was in his class and we were maybe a couple weeks into it. And uh, you know, because he wanted to know everyone, you know, what are your what's your journey and how can this role or how can this class help you with your future roles? And I had said, Oh, I'm thinking broadcast journalism, and I guess we got to know each other, right? And he's he pulled me aside. He said, you know, Nicole, I not that I don't think you'd be great in broadcast journalism. I really think that you need to consider public relations. And I was like, I don't even know what that is. Like, what do you mean? And yeah, I'm a freshman in college, right? So um he he basically, and this was my spring semester, he said, Do me a favor, before you declare your major, take public relations 101 with Professor Martinelli. And the reason I say that is because she's the hardest, but she's also the best. She's really good, and she's going to, you know, she's gonna be critical of your work, be prepared for all of this, right? And he kind of gave me a really great heads up, and he's like, she's a colleague of mine, but I have a lot of respect. I took her class, I'm telling you, Candace, within the first three weeks, I was like, this is what I'm supposed to do. And because she took it so seriously, she's like, listen, the way a company presents itself to the world can make or break it. And and it just she made it so interesting to me. And I knew that I wouldn't be limited by industry, right? I could take this into sports, tech, I could take it in whatever. And I was my undergrad was at San Jose State. So we were in the epicenter of technology. And um, just along the way, I'll tell you, angels and blessings just came along to make my career, you know, what it is now and where I'm at now. And that's why I believe in mentorship so much. You know, I want to find those other people who still understand the value of relationships, earned media. Um, we're living in a world now where people just want to take shortcuts. And uh, you know, you find that sometimes the longer way is the shorter way in the long run because we have such wonderful relationships with media who have been around, you know, journalism is a is still a very important thing. Um, so yeah, I just I think it was just my calling, and um I've I've enjoyed it for for 26 years.

SPEAKER_01:

I love that. I love that powerful statement. I love that you had a professor that inspired you, and that makes it real because you understand if you if we have people like that that really showcase the possibilities and why, then anything is possible. And she really sounds like she really inspired you to do everything that you're doing now.

SPEAKER_02:

Yes, absolutely. And that's why I'm like, you know, when when youngsters, I can call them youngsters now, uh go into college and they don't have a plan. If you know where you want to go, the plan is going to find you as long as you remain intentional.

SPEAKER_01:

I agree with you completely. My daughter tells me that she's in college right now, and she's like, she has these mentors and they are inspiring her because she really didn't know what she wanted to do. And I'm so grateful and thankful that there's people there that have those conversations with her so that she can open her eyes to the world around her and see that anything is possible.

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01:

So tell me a little bit more about your business, because everybody, what it is that you do with your clients.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. So, you know, the first thing I do is I I get to know the clients even in sort of let's let's say before they're my clients. And the reason for that is because just like with any relationship, you want to make sure that there's a alignment and understanding. And I think that um, you know, there have been instances where with clients I've said, you know, either you guys aren't ready, or here's what you need to do to be ready, or wait a minute, this might not be aligned, but let me introduce you here. The reason I do that is because I am not in the business of making money. That's not my goal. My goal is to create a bond with my client, get to know their business and their business goals so that we can create and craft meaningful narratives that are also based on truth, that are based on authenticity. People see that. I think people forget, you know, we humans are not dumb. You know, we we might have like, okay, cool, bright, shiny object. This looks great. And that's what advertising is for, right? Making it fun and easy. And oh, this is on sale. When you are making a decision about a brand nowadays, too, so much of what that brand is or who the leaders are are now taking center stage. We lived in a time back in the day where you didn't know the of the Jeff Bezos's, you didn't know a lot of the people's names. They were like the Wizard of Oz behind the curtain. And now with social media, digital marketing, all of these things, if you're a leader or a brand, you can't escape. So there has to be someone who, almost like um image police, are managing that with and for you. And so getting to know my clients at step one, getting to understand their actual business goals, you know, you don't want PR just for the sake of like, hey, make me famous. You know, it's I actually have a vision. This is where we're going in the next two to five years. This is how we need to get there. Well, guiding your, let's say, your fans, your um your consumers, you know, the people that you are trying to basically attract, even investors, you have got to sort of breadcrumb them your narrative in a way that helps them understand, follow, and want to continue. And so that's really what I do with my clients. It's not about, hey, let me just get you one great podcast interview and then that's it. That that's that's not enough. It's how are we going to look at your business and say, have you hit some milestones that you're proud of that the world should know? All right, well, how do we celebrate that in a way that makes people interested? Okay, and what else have you done? Oh, you added somebody to your board. Give me all of the nuggets so that I can work on aiming and firing at a ton of different media that makes sense so that people understand you and want to follow along on the journey and they become loyalists. And that's really what I help our clients do.

SPEAKER_01:

It is sometimes hard to get your vision out there. It's sometimes hard to share that story and to surround yourself with individuals that would understand that. Sometimes it takes a long period of time, but if you had somebody like you in your corner assisting you and giving you tips and this is what we need to do, you could have got your message out there a lot quicker.

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely. Absolutely. And you absolutely get it. I I love it. And I think that one of the things that has always set us apart was, you know, I'm the type of person where yes, I I my undergrad, um I went to school for PR, but as I was learning PR, it was right at the beginning of social media sort of sprouting. And so I was very blessed, I think that when I started to do PR, at one point I worked, you know, with the Raiders and um the when we were in Oakland, and that was at a time when like Twitter popped up. And I remember, you know, working with like the web team as well, because it's all part of marketing, right? PR. And they're like, hey, should we do this Twitter thing? So having to get into social media at the beginning of it also kind of pushed me into marketing. And then it I started working with entrepreneurs and new business, you know, um ventures. And so then I decided to get my MBA because I was working with so many entrepreneurs who from the ground up needed to start businesses and had no idea how to get themselves out there. All of them were like, I think we need PR, but at one point it's like, okay, you think you need PR, but why? So I think for us, we see the whole business. We don't just see PR, right? I went my to get my MBA so I could learn what goes on in the minds of the entrepreneurs who are shaping the future and building companies that are shaping the future. And how do I help them know at what point to insert digital marketing, advertising, PR? How does it all work together, right? And being able to do that and guide them when our clients, especially clients who are building new companies, are coming to us, they know they have someone who isn't just looking at how I can get them into a story. It's here's how your whole business needs to look. And smart PR is going to always amplify the company's strengths. And it's also going to help them truly understand how are you solving the world's problems? Why should anybody care? And making an egg, you know, an executive truly think that through, that's fun, right? So it's um, I don't know, I really tell clients too look, your reputation, I look at it like it's my own. If you become my client, my name is associated with you. And I take my own reputation very seriously, right? So we're very proactive in the architecture that we kind of build for our clients around what true reputation do you want to build and how do we protect that? So you don't always get a lot of PR people who look at it that way. Um, but again, it's like I said, it's it was my calling. So I take the whole thing very seriously. And I think that's also why, you know, we've been blessed for almost 12 years to just have really solid and loyal clients.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes. And it's a word of mouth, right? You build up your business, and that's how a big successful business is run. I think that's fantastic. So, with our podcast series being the end of year, beginning of me, and we're getting close to 2026, let's talk strategy here. You know, we've got a lot of listeners around the world that um look to us for advice, and um they're looking for people like you. So let's talk about that. Can you kind of share with us your ideas and why it would be important for going leaving this year and going into the new year with kind of a sense of purpose or a sense like a direction to go in?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, thank you. And I I think now is is such a perfect time for all of this. You know, as I look back and you know, I know that we're going to be hitting that 12-year mark. Um, I think back to day one where you know that you have a plan and you know you have to go with it. Um, I had a vision at the beginning, and um I had been able to see that vision through in so many ways. But I think I've been really sort of delightfully surprised that, you know, the pressure I was putting on myself, I would say, in the first five years to just like create and survive. What happened was it was like create, create, survive, survive, get this going. Gotta get to this point. I'm a very goal-oriented person. And I feel like there are a lot of successful women in my circle that I know who have experienced that same sense of like, I don't know what it is, but I feel this crazy sense of urgency, and I need to keep going, and I need to keep. What happens is we find ourselves fighting, just fighting and going, and not just fighting with, you know, whatever, it's really ourselves and um this goal that we have to hit. We gotta get to this. And and I realize that a decade later, Nicole, you can breathe. You are totally okay. You don't have to feel like you're in survival mode. You have set a good foundation. What have you learned? Where have you made mistakes? Where do you now just want to get out of survival mode and be at peace and know that you've built something you can be proud of? Know that you have standards for your clients. We always have, right? We've always been the type of company where I've never been afraid to say no if something didn't feel like it was aligned. But I think I'm much better at it now, stronger, knowing exactly what we've done, what we bring to the table, what clients will experience. That sense of confidence in NRPR is over a decade old. And that is something that, like, I really now am almost firming up the foundation. You'd think that in the first two years, like, you gotta do it, build the foundation, did it. I think the first few years were just infrastructure. And here I thought, oh, I'm I'm laying a full foundation. The foundation really starts now with emotional foundation, relationship foundation, health foundation, you know, in building my business almost 12 years, I lost uh family members. And you realize that in that time that you lose the family members, I had the whole world when they were here, and there were things that I missed because I was so busy surviving and trying to get my business to a certain stage where I look back now and I say there were things that I could have missed just to be in those moments more, and I think that 2026 is the year peace and foundation solidify that my family will actually come first. And that as a mom, you know, with a child now that I could say is college graduated, and I'm so proud of her, I was surviving to make sure she had everything. And I think that now the universe is saying, You did good, mom. You need to now take care of you, take care of your health, spend time with your adult child, you know, make sure that you're doing that. I definitely did that when she was younger. But she was watching mom build in foundation survival mode. And what I want her to see is you know the fruits of the labor paying off and mom enjoying this latter half. And I think 2026 is really the year for that. I'm in a really solid and awesome relationship with someone that I just absolutely admire and adore. And he doesn't mind that I work, but I it's the funny thing is I tell him I am actually trying to relax now. I have a team that has been with me for so long. I am so blessed, they know what to do. So it's such a different type of vision. But what 2025 actually taught me was that the foundation starts now, almost 10 years later, you know, the infrastructure, when you get that going well, and this is advice that I'll give to any of your listeners when you have good infrastructure, your business can grow. When you feel good about that infrastructure, start laying the cement and set the foundation so that you can grow and be at peace and know that you have something steady underneath your feet.

SPEAKER_01:

Nicole, I just need to thank you for that. That was absolutely beautiful. It's and it's funny that you said that because that's kind of what I've been feeling this year, also. And I don't know if it's something in the universe, what it is, but I don't know if it's us being women and we want to make sure that we're doing everything correctly and we're we're building and we're making sure everybody is looked after at the same time as we're trying to build something successful. It it takes away from us and it we're not meaning to. And people are like, Well, do you take a break? Do you ever sit down? Do you ever do this? I'm like, I'm always worried, you know, worried for the fact that I want everybody to be okay. But at the same time, I looked at this year too, and I said, I need to do more for me. I need to start relaxing because life is unpredictable. We don't know what's going to be around the corner. And I want to make sure I enjoy things. And it's not that I haven't, I've enjoyed every moment of my life, you know, the ups, the downs and everything. But I want to take time for me to love me, to be with me. And and I think in that aspect, you know, and and and you understand you've got a daughter, showing my daughters that it's okay to love themselves for who they are and everything around them. So I applaud you so much for that because that's kind of image or mirroring myself in a lot of ways that I've been feeling that. And I said that to myself, and I actually told my husband that I said, you know, I'm gonna be spending more time, I'm gonna be taking a step back from a lot of things. And 2026 is is a little bit more focused on the things that I want to do.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. I love it. Yay! Yeah, no, we're we're in a similar place. I love it, you know, and and what I'm looking at now is, you know, what I'm designing for my life is gonna take me to the next 20 to 30 years. Yes, not just the next quarter, which I think, or quarter or year, which is how my brain worked, I think, in the first 10. Okay, what are we gonna do next quarter? What about the you know, next year? Now it's what are we doing to make sure that one, we can still, you know, continue and you know what makes the team happy? But you know, how wonderful will it be to say, you know, we've celebrated 20 years. That's eight years from now. So it's it's a different mindset, right? I feel like I'm no longer building from pressure. It's now just building for sustainability, happiness, well-roundedness, choosing, you know, the the people around me and what we do to expand very, just very carefully with much longer range, I think, in mind. Like the intention is so different. I'm just in it feels good to be done surviving and really to be like, I can live now and I have a business under my feet. I have enough experience to know certain things, right? And so anyway, I just I love that we're yeah, on a similar, similar trajectory.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, this is wonderful. And gosh, Nicole, I hope that you come back on the Divaset Care again. I would love to have a longer conversation with you, you know, dive into some other topics that I think that you could really inspire our listeners.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, I would love that. And I'm happy anytime, you know. I think, you know, especially for women who are listening right now, you know, depending on where you're at in your journey as an entrepreneur, as a professional, wherever it, you know, it might be, um what I what I really hope they'll take away is, you know, you'll know when you're in survival mode, when your brain is telling you you have to handle it alone.

unknown:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Right? You're you're gonna survive, move out of the way, I'll do it. And being able to truly say, I'm gonna allow myself to receive support, partnership, you know, and in all the ways, professionally and um I would say personally, you allow yourself to love yourself, be loved, and and stand with people. I I don't think we were created in this world to do things alone, right? Especially us women, we are nurturers by nature, and when we feel ourselves out of that, you know you're in survival mode. And you gotta take, you know, take stock about what's what's around you because naturally, yeah, we're thinking about everybody else but ourselves. But that is how we should be looking for. If I am thinking about I'm handling this alone, how do I take a breath, find those people who who kind of you know help support me and make sure that I know I don't have to? And I think it's one of the best ways to love yourself, right?

SPEAKER_01:

I can agree more. Thank you so much, Nicole. This has been such a great time. I do want to ask you though, could you give us your social media so that our listeners can get in touch with you?

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely. So if you want to um follow NRPR group and the things that we're doing, that is at N R P R Group across all social media. Um, me personally at Nicole R P R. That's N-I-C-O-L-E R P R. Um, yeah, that's that's me. And our website is nrprgroup.com. Very simple. And um yeah, we look forward to anybody that we can help or whatever. And I hope that this podcast uh does does help uh your listeners.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh my goodness, it definitely will be. And I do, I as I said, I want to thank you also for all the amazing um individuals that you have sent our way. Uh we've enjoyed having them on the Diva Zet Care. It is just wonderful when we're able to collaborate with amazing women like yourself and to inspire others. So thank you again for everything that you were doing out there, Nicole.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, my pleasure. Listen, it it was a calling. So I I just feel like I'm I'm doing doing the work that I was meant to do and uh enjoying it.

SPEAKER_01:

I think you were definitely doing that. So thank you again. And I just want to do a big shout out also to all of our listeners. Thank you so much for being with us, being our tribe for all these years. Um, please send, share, uh, even like this podcast to as many people as you can. Like this is what it's all about is what can we do? How can we inspire others? Uh, this podcast series, the end of year and beginning of me, has so many amazing hosts. We have a lot of different guests that we have been bring bringing on. And a lot of these shows are gonna bring you to tears. A lot of people want to be inspire you. Um, and they're just great. So please check everybody out. And definitely if you can connect with as many of these guests on these podcasts, we would really appreciate it. So, again, thank you to Nicole. Thank you to all of our amazing listeners, and remember to do something kind. Until next time, everyone.

SPEAKER_00:

Thanks for listening. This show was brought to you by Divas That Care. Connect with us on Facebook, on Instagram, and of course on divas that care.com, where you can subscribe to our newsletter so you don't miss a thing.