Your Leadership Brand Is a Culture Signal with Christine Blosdale

Your leadership brand isn’t just what you say about yourself. It’s what people believe about you based on what they experience.

In this episode of Culture Secrets, Chellie Phillips sits down with Christine Blosdale, The Expert Authority Coach, to explore how leadership brand, visibility, authenticity, and trust all shape the culture leaders create.

Christine shares why becoming a “go-to authority” isn’t about ego or self-promotion — it’s about owning your expertise, communicating clearly, and showing up in a way that builds confidence and connection. Together, Chellie and Christine talk about the signals leaders send, how story builds trust, why imposter syndrome often appears when we’re asked to stretch, and how leaders can become more intentional about the way their teams experience them.

You’ll hear Christine’s personal stories about learning the power of voice and feedback from her mother, stepping into unexpected leadership as a radio station general manager, and discovering how visibility can create deeper trust when it’s grounded in service instead of self-promotion.

If you’ve ever wondered how your presence, communication, consistency, and visibility impact your team, this conversation will help you think differently about your leadership brand — and the culture it creates.

Key Takeaways

• Your leadership brand is not what you claim — it’s what people experience.
• Visibility builds trust when it is grounded in service, not ego.
• Leaders send signals every day through tone, energy, consistency, and action.
• Imposter syndrome often shows up when we are being asked to grow.
• Story helps people understand your credibility, values, and leadership journey.
• Trust grows when leaders are approachable and willing to do the work alongside their teams.
• Clear communication is one of the strongest foundations of leadership authority.

Listeners can connect with Christine through her main website:

ExpertAuthorityCoach.com

That’s where you can learn more about her books, coaching, resources, and her work as The Expert Authority Coach. She also mentioned her book, The Expert Authority Code, which is available on Amazon in Kindle and paperback formats.

For anyone who wants to book a complimentary 30-minute chat with her, she shared this link: chatwithchristineb.com

Thanks for listening. Grab the book the original podcast is based on at https://mybook.to/culturesecrets . Want more quick leadership tips? Sign up for my FREE bi-weekly newsletter: Coffee, Culture and Common Sense.  

Check out my website www.chelliephillips.com for more great content. Follow me on LinkedIn.  

Transcript

Unknown: 0:06

If workplace culture is your jam, you're in the right place. Check out this episode of Culture Secrets, the podcast dedicated to creating workplaces where both employees and the companies thrive. We talk a lot on Culture Secrets about the signals leaders send through their words, their actions, their visibility, and the way they show up when no one is handing them a script, and whether we realize it or not, all of these signals become part of our leadership brand. But a leadership brand isn't about creating a polished image or becoming the loudest person in the room, it's about what people have come to expect from you, are you consistent? Are you credible? Do your actions align with what you say and what matters? And does the way you show up build trust, or does it quietly chip away at it? Today's guest, Christine Blosdale, helps entrepreneurs, business owners, and professionals move from being overlooked to becoming recognized as go-to authorities in their fields, known as the Expert Authority Coach, Christine specializes in personal branding, visibility, authentic communication, podcasting, and helping people overcome the imposter syndrome that can keep them from owning our expertise. In our conversation today, we're bringing her expertise into this leadership and workplace culture space. We're going to talk about how your leadership brand affects the people around you, the difference between authenticity and performance, why visibility matters, even when self-promotion makes you uncomfortable, and how becoming known for what you value can both strengthen your influence and the culture inside your organization. Because your leadership brand isn't simply what you say about yourself, it's what people believe about you based on what they experience. So, Christine, welcome to Culture Secrets. I am so glad that you're here. Will you tell my listeners who you are and why we think this is such a great conversation for leaders to be having? Oh, first of all, thank you for having me. I'm very excited to be here, and it is absolutely so important. You know, I'm, I'm called the expert authority coach, and expert authority - there's no arrogance to it or ego attached to it. It just means that you're really confident in your skills and what you, what you bring to the table, right? So, if that's your organization, if that's a company, if that's a community, it's having that confidence that what you bring to the table is going to help people or help your business. So I'm excited to talk about this, and I know that you're an author yourself, as I am. I love creating books, and that's one of one of the key things in increasing your expert authority, and especially for leadership, it is so important to write that book, and it doesn't have to be a big book, it could be a tiny book. My first book was a, was, I think it was 35 pages, it was called Your Amazing Itty Bitty Podcast Book, and this, at the time that it was published, it was a very hot topic, and so it went to number one. It was a number one bestseller, and it was just a little tiny book, but that bestseller status also, in the eyes of people that came into my world, it just kind of raised me up a little bit, as, oh, she's somebody that knows all about podcasting. So, whatever your subject matter is, whatever your passion is. I really want to encourage you to write that book. If you're in a leadership position, it really helps. It really does. I mean, it's kind of crazy how it changes the way other people look at you, and things that you can be saying for years. All of a sudden, just because it's in a book form, suddenly, like, oh, it's important, it's in a book, and I'm like, that's the same thing I've been saying out loud. Yes, I think it's also interesting. Is that you and I share a similar background. We were both in radio, both in journalism, before getting into that, and so storytelling, I think, is something that probably comes pretty natural to us, because we've been doing it for a long time. But I think the stories that we have inside us and the stories that we share with others really go, they take it a step farther in helping people realize who we are and what we do and what we care about and what we're passionate about. Tell me a little bit, what do you think story plays into building your brand and being able to share the stories of who you are? It's vitally important, and it doesn't matter if you're in a corporate environment or if you're an entrepreneur, if you're a solopreneur, story is so important because people can visualize when you're talking about something that you've experienced, people can relate to you because they can visualize that story, so I tend to. I love when I'm on podcast shows, I actually love talking about my mother, and, and folks will say, have you, did you always want to be a coach? How did you know? You know, how did you get into the coaching, and especially business coaching and branding? And I said. Know what, ever since I was really little, I always.. I was that kid who saw something that was, that was wrong or weird, and I tried to fix it right. So I was that kid that, when we were eating out at dinner, we could be in an Italian restaurant, and I'm so excited to go out to dinner with my mom, but then I'd be.. I'd look across the way, I look on the wall, and there'd be a painting, right, and it would be just a little off, just a little, but it drove me crazy, and I was a kid that would get up and walk over and adjust the painting, and that's what I do now as an adult with my clients, is I go over and I adjust the painting, so that might be their website, they might, they might think, "Oh, I'm clearly saying who I am and what I do in my experience, but as somebody who adjusts those paintings since I was little, I could take a look at it, and I can go, "You know what, you're what you're putting out there is not what you think. Okay, what I see is xyz, and I know what you're wanting to put out there is this, but this is what I'm getting, and this is what the general public's getting. And I also tell my tell stories of how, when I was really young, I would watch my mom get ready. Now I'm 61 going on 62 and back in the day, my mom, she was divorced from my father, had no money, had no child support, so she had to work, and she had to work at nights, and my mother was from Morocco, from Casablanca, so she was this beautiful, most beautiful thing I've ever.. I mean, I, I thought my mother was the most beautiful mother ever, and she's like a cross between Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Lauren and Cher, if you, if you blended, put them in a blender, that sounds kind of gross, but if you put them all together, that was my mom with a French Moroccan accent, and so I would just sit, as like five year old Christine, I would just sit there and watch her get ready and talk to her, and she would get all dressed up and everything, and put her makeup on, and dress, and put her outfit on, and she would say, Ma Shallie, How do I look, and I would go, I go, Well, I love, love the wig, your makeup's on point, you know, I didn't say on point, but I said, your makeup is great, and then I said, oh, but those boots, I don't think those boots are maybe the white go-go boots would go good with that outfit, and change this top to the, and do you know what she would do, she would change, so at a really young age I got the impression that my opinion mattered, and for a little kid having that trust from your parent, who you adore, and knowing that they would change based on your likes and your opinion was huge, and I carried that throughout throughout my life. Now, that story that I just told you, I tell you, I tell a lot of audiences when I'm doing public speaking, when I'm talking to podcast hosts like yourself, and they say, like, how, how is it that you have this, this gift, and you're so confident in it. Well, I tell that story, and, and the audience can imagine themselves being right there with me, or they can imagine themselves maybe when they were little, they thought their mother was the most beautiful thing in the world, and their mom did something or said something to them that made them feel worthy, and that's why I tell that story. Plus, whenever I say it, my mother, my mother has passed since somewhat recently, I feel her right away, I feel her energy right away, and I take her with me whenever I'm speaking, whenever I'm doing anything, and I know we're gonna, we might hopefully talk about a bit about imposter syndrome, but I want to also let our listeners know that if you ever do experience imposter syndrome, or you're doing something that feels uncomfortable and stretchy, call in your the loved ones. If it might be your grandmother, might be your, your mother, but somebody who made you feel safe, and when you fell down and scraped your knee, maybe they just kissed it, and it was all better. It does. I said, I'm so.. I lost my parents recently, in the last couple of years, too, and I was a daddy's girl, and so I talk a lot about my dad and how he shaped my view, but he was an entrepreneur, had his own business for years, and everything, and so I grew up going to work with him, how he treated his customers, how he treated his employees, how he built that business, and everything, and so I find myself now incorporating him into the stories that I tell and how that that changed my perception, or how it created the perception of how things should be done for me, so I can totally relate to what you're saying. When it comes to that, the other thing I want to, I want to tie back into what you, you mentioned when you were talking about adjusting the painting, because I think that also ties into something I talk. Out a lot, and then that is that leaders all send signals, and so we need to be very conscious of those signals that we're sending, and how we tweak things, and how we do things. So maybe take it along that line, because there's signals, kind of like what you're talking about, build that trust that we have in the people that are around us, and that are that our employees have in us as those leaders that are leading them through, you know, day in and day out decisions that need to be made. What are some of the biggest signals that a leader's personal brand sends to their team that they need to be conscious of? Oh, you know, and, and not to get woo woo, and because there's nothing woo woo about it, it's fact. We, we all have an energy, we all have a vibe that we put out. Okay, and you know, when you, if you're at a party or something, and somebody walks in, there's something about them that, wow, immediately as soon as they come in, you don't know who they are, but you have this pull, you need to, you need to find out who this person is, right? Or somebody walks in and you're like, I don't know, I don't, I don't know, but I just, and I don't really like their, their vibe, their energy, there's something about them, we have to realize as, as leaders, that we put out an energy, it's a bat signal, and we need to take stock in what that energy is. Are you coming to the table with an authoritarian type of energy, where it's my way or the highway, kids, right? Or are you coming in with a warm and inviting energy that you're gonna, we're all gonna roll up our sleeves today, and we're gonna, we're gonna figure out some things, things that aren't working, we're gonna take a look at, but we're gonna focus also on the things that are working, we're gonna remind ourselves that this is going really well, instead of it all being negative, right? So you have to be take stock of your energy, and that's in your brand as well. You know, you're, you're, you're.. I have.. I have a photo that I know that you probably saw this with my media kit, but I have an image of myself that has opened more doors because of the energy that it emits the photo is not me, just, you know, sitting, you know, with a suit and a serious look in the camera with my arms crossed, you know, very right. The photo that I use on, I use it on all my branding, is me wearing headphones, wearing in front of a microphone, but it's not so much that it's the expression on my face, you can't even see my eyes, my eyeballs, because my eyes are like I have this expression on my face, my mouth is wide open. Okay, but it's an expression of joy, it's ecstatic, it's yeah, I'm here. We're doing this right, so that puts out an energy, a vibe, an imprint that is very different, as if I was standing there, very serious, adorable, but still very serious, right? So it's, and it makes people, it's actually quite approachable. I have so many people say I reached out to you based on that photo, so we have to be very much aware of that imprint that we're putting out there. It's in what we say, it's in what we write, what we, how we communicate, all of those things. So, yeah, it's being aware is the best. That's the first part. Be aware, talk about self-awareness being so important for leaders, and so I think a lot of us struggle with that. It's like, how do people really see us based on, I see myself this way, but how am I putting it out there for everybody else to see us? I also think a lot of leaders think like a personal brand, a leadership brand, a lot of time comes off as self-promotional, like it's just something that in the business world I need to be thought of as this professional. I don't need to be all about me and being self-promoting, but yes, absolutely. I think it's important for that person to have that professional or that leadership brand. So, how can leaders do you think how can they build a brand that feels authentic instead of maybe performative, or how can they create one that is designed to help them grow their teams? Yes, so I, for my, the folks that are in my world, I work with them, and we create a press kit for them, a media kit hand in hand. I take, I usually sit down with them for about two hours and go over all of the stuff. Now, on a press kit or media kit, it's not, you know, what college you went to and what degrees you have, necessarily. Sometimes that plays in, but it's really about the gems that you have from your career, the hype. Points, the things that maybe also, if you, if you worked for particular organizations or companies in certain industries, it's really important to make sure you mention that in your mini bio. A mini bio is just, it's something that's quick that people can scan over, can read, can look at, and they get a snapshot of you, okay, and we don't need to go on it. It doesn't need to be a novel. As a matter of fact, less is more. You don't need to go on and on and on and on and on about all of your accomplishments, and it's not about being arrogant or egotistical. It's about informing the person who's looking at that media kit or reading the copy about who you are, your bio, it's giving them an insight into who you are and why you're well equipped to be the leader. Okay, why you're well equipped to lead your organization or your company, and why people should have faith in you. Okay, so we want to, we want to back up all of those things. I tend to also really love testimonials from people that have, that have worked with me, so that could be, it could even be people within your organization that can attest to testify about your leadership skills, but it's also people that you have worked with in a professional setting, instead of you saying how great you are, it's very powerful when someone else says how great you are. So, it's being very strategic with those things, and again, you want people to walk away with your media kit, your press kit, you want them to walk away with something that is like it's a snapshot of who you are, so they get that flavor of your style and your accomplishments, and there's, there's no, you don't have to worry about it being egotistical. I'm here in Australia, and when I first came here six years ago, well, that was back and forth quite a bit, but I permanently moved here six years ago during Covid. When I first came here, what it was interesting was that people here in Australia, they have this thing called the tall poppy syndrome. I don't know if you're familiar with that. The tall poppy syndrome is basically don't be too flashy, don't tell people that you're really good at what you do, because you're gonna, you're gonna look like you're better than other people. It's gonna, it's gonna be the, the opinion people are gonna think, oh, she's just saying that she's better than us, right? Well, in certain cases, you want to tell people that you're really good at what you do, not that you're better, but here in Australia, for a very long time, they had that, they're getting over that now. Now they're actually sinking money into marketing and branding, right? But I mean, if you're gonna go see, let's say you're gonna go, if you're getting a divorce and you need to get a divorce attorney, do you want somebody who's like okay, or do you want like somebody who's really good at what they do, or the best in their industry. Same thing, open heart surgery. I kind of want the, I want the surgeon who's really good at what they do, not just somebody who just fits in, right? So that's what we do, is we, we craft that, that bio, and let people know, give them a good snapshot of you with your highlights, and, and, but there's again, there's no ego attached to it. I tell people all the time, you talking about your expertise or what you've accomplished, I said it can be done in a way that's not boastful and bragging, or like, because you know, like I'm a good southern girl, and like, yourself, don't talk about yourself like it, and like that's bad manners, like you don't do that kind of thing, but then on the flip side, you get, well, if you don't toot your own horn, nobody's gonna toot it for you. So, there's a balance between this kind of things, like you can do it in a way that doesn't come across as, hey, look at me, I'm the best there is, but you can be very straightforward with what it is, and that kind of thing. And I think that's something important for leaders to remember, is like you need for your team to know what you've been through, what has made you what you are, what you've, what you've worked through, the steps that you've taken, why they should embrace what you're teaching them and what you're telling them, and that kind of thing. And so I think teams are really looking for that consistency and knowing that hey, the version that I'm getting of this leader is who's going to show up every day, and they can, I can really live in to what they're telling me, because it's coming from a place of knowledge, and so thinking as you were talking, as like I've got a new activity I need to do with people now, said I need to make them do their one sheet, or as a leader, like you know, like I have my one sheet for my podcast, my books, and all this other kind of stuff, but I've never thought about it in terms of how would people see you and how would they describe you as a leader, and I think that'd be a great workshop activity I won't do, but I Changes, it's so powerful, and incorporate story to incorporate story when you are doing, when you're communicating, not so much on your media kit, I wouldn't necessarily, but incorporate story, so you know when I'm talking to groups who are like. Same, you know, in a management level, right, and and they've reached a very high level in management positions. I talk about how the fact, where I got, I got asked to, I worked at a radio station for 20 years in Los Angeles, and I was, I worked myself up the ranks, right, I mean, from volunteer to part-time, trying to, you know, create a unit, making sure that we were all union and that we were union paid, and we had decent workers' rights, and, but I was a worker bee, right? I was, and I had so many different general managers that came in, and I saw what they did. I saw how they weren't connecting with the staff. I saw how they would shut their door and never come out. I saw that they didn't even know what people did, so it was very easy for them to, when they needed to cut, you know, people's positions. It was easy for them to let people go up, you know, we need to let you go, it's a budget thing. Oh, but they didn't even know what these people did, so there was a disconnect, and that is something that is.. it happens in so many organizations. There was this huge disconnect between the people that actually make up your business, your company, your organization, and do all the work, most of the work, and then you, as a leader, if you're, if there's no connection when you are going in through tough times, and you need people, maybe you need people to stay behind a little bit tonight, you need people working on a deadline, they're not going to be so apt to do, want to do that, they're like, you know what, it's 5o'clock and per regulation, it's 5o'clock I get to go home. If you want the, the, your, your cabin crew to to rally behind you when there is a situation, when there's good times and bad, you need to have that connection with them. I'm not saying to become best friends with them, but to, to be able to relate to them. So, what happened with me was that I had worked for so many years, I was on air, I was a producer, I was an on-air host, I was a fundraiser, I worked myself up and to be development director because I raised a lot of money for the station, I was very good at fundraising. One day they asked me, the national office said we're having problems again with our manager, our general manager, we need to have somebody come in, just for a couple, just for a week, two weeks, we just need somebody to be at the helm of the station, and we went around the station, and everybody said, we said, Who do you trust, and they all said Christine. So, we're asking you, would you be, would you be willing to be the general manager for a very short time? We promise, but we need to have somebody stable and somebody that people trust. So, imposter syndrome hit me for right away. I was like, are you kidding? I am not. I don't. I could not a balance sheet, you know, FCC regulations and budgets, and oh my god, we have a board of directors. What? No, I don't, but everybody trusts you, Christine. So I got to be general manager, not for a week or two, full year, that's the way I go. So it was a full year, and people did it, and the thing is, is that when I came in, I did not come in with a power grab. I did not come in and say, "Oh, those people that maybe didn't treat me so well, you're on the chopping block. As a matter of fact, they were waiting for that shoe to drop, but when I came in, I just realized, I told people I know what you do, I know how important it is within the organization. So I'm going to give you the tools to make your job better, but I know what you do. I see you, and that's hugely important. It's so important. I think that trust is the biggest. If you ask characteristic that's most important for a leader to have, is it being able to build that trust with their team. I think that's probably, probably one of the top five, if not the top one thing that you can do for your team. We teased at the beginning, and you mentioned it there about imposter syndrome, and it does seem to show up a lot for people in leadership roles, especially some of our teams that have been around for a little while, maybe moving into roles that they may be the good producer in this area, but then they get handed an opportunity, like you as general manager of a station, and you're like, all of a sudden, I don't know that I know what I need to know to do what I need to do. So, when it does show up, how do you coach somebody through partly what I think is a little bit of fear sometimes is like, what's going to happen if I do this, and then I screw it up, so how can, how can they live into that and become more visible, and, and, and do it with grace? And then, what's the difference between someone saying, oh no, and you know, like I'm just being very humble, and I don't want to brag, and like, I have this kind of thing, versus hiding from the road. The world, and what you actually had to offer, so imposters. In my experience, imposter syndrome, and I've worked with clients from all over the world, and all different experiences and expertise, and what I have found is that it hits us when we're asked to stretch, when we're asked to do something that we've never done before, or something that is very unique, and we've, we're, we're not super comfortable with it, right? Like this morning, I, I made a cup of coffee, I could have made a cup of coffee with my eyes shut, because I do it every single day, so it's comfortable for me right now. If you asked me to, I don't know, you asked me to make a souffle. I don't know how to make a souffle. I, I know that I know that you've got to be very careful with those things, because they can fall right. But I don't know. Okay. Well, I'll try. If you say you have to make the souffle for somebody, the King of England. Oh my god. Oh, okay. Before I thought I could just look up a recipe for the souffle, but now you're saying that I have to make a souffle for the King of England, and there's going to be all these people, and they're going to be watching me, and what happens if I fail? What happens? So, what happens in our minds is when we're asked to stretch or do something we haven't done before, all of those thoughts come in. Maybe it was when we were little in the playground, we could have all the degrees in the world and all the certifications and everything, but when we were five years old, some kids said, "You're stupid" or "I don't like you, you're ugly, right? They said something, and of course, it was a child on the playground, but what if it was somebody of authority? What if it was a teacher who said something to you, or a parent, even though you go on in life and you become a successful person in business, or those stories are still in your subconscious. So, when you're asked to stretch, what happens immediately is, who am I to do this? Right, I'm stupid, I'm ugly, whatever, whatever those stories are. Also, we're worried about what people are going to say about us and what people think about us. What if I show up? What are people going to say? What if I mess up? What if I fail? What if I stumble? What if I do it wrong? We are so worried about what other people think about us. Okay, instead of actually looking at the task ahead of us and saying, what if I succeed, what if I really like this? So I equate it to a moment in my life, and it happens to overachievers, so if you do suffer from imposter syndrome, congratulations, you're an overachiever. You're the one who wants to get 100% you know, a plus plus on your tests, so you're not somebody that's just laying on the couch eating bon bons, you're actually somebody who goes after things in life, but I equate this to when I, when I did work at that radio station, and I first started as a producer and a writer, so I worked for America Online before, and I came into the station as a writer, and I was producer, so behind the scenes I was never in front of the microphone, and then one day I got asked by the general manager, who said you need to do the 5o'clock drive time show today, and it was like 430 I said, Excuse me, and they said, well, the host of the show, the person that you work for, I don't know, broke their leg or they had the flu or something, they weren't able to be on air to do the show, and I said, well, I can't do it immediately. Imposter syndrome, because I had never done it before. I had never been on air live. I had never had a microphone in front of my face. I was behind the scenes, Christine. So I said, oh no, no, no, I don't think I don't think I can do this. What are people gonna say? What if I mess up? What if, when I go to talk, I can't talk? What are people gonna say? They're gonna make fun of me. All these things went through my head. My job might be on the line. All these things, and they said, well, you don't have any choice, you have to do it, basically. So I had all those imposter syndrome scenario scripts running through my head. Once I realized, okay, you know what? She take the bandage off, just do it. Okay, I'll go, just do it. I went into the studio, was dark. I pulled the microphone next to my mouth. It was stinky, because all these other people had been using it. I put the headphones on, they were also kind of gross and old. And I put the headphones on, and I put the microphone, and I looked at the technician, the board op, like, okay, the on-air light went on, and it was like angels singing in heaven, it was like magic, as soon as that on air light went. On I went, I just started talking, and every word came out beautifully. I connected with the audience. We're in Southern California, we're in Los Angeles, so it's very large, and it's drive time, so all these people listening, for some reason I was able to feel them, and it was amazing, and I loved it. I absolutely loved it. All my fears, all those things went out the door because I was in my zone. And why I say that story is because even though it was uncomfortable and I had fear by stepping through it, that started my whole, a whole new career for me, and I connected to people, and it opened doors and opportunities that I, that I could never see at that moment, and I, and it, it just sent me into a completely different direction, and I'm very grateful for that moment. So that's why I say it's, you know, getting through those, those icky feelings on the other side of it could be something really great, I think. Sometimes, too, because you said you said what you had 30 minutes before you went on air. I think sometimes when we're forced into those situations, like you don't have- you have, you have all the painting that hits initially, but then you don't have time to dwell on it for like two weeks before the actual thing is going to come up with every danger serenade that's going to be, and like, you're just forced to go with it, and then, like, and then, like, okay, I didn't die, it's okay. So I think there's some truth to that too, is that sometimes the best thing is just to get thrown into it, and, and, and just, just see that you can survive it. Well, then also, also something that was very important that happened right before I had gone on air, and this is what I.. this is an exercise I do with my clients who do suffer from imposter syndrome. When it pops up, too, I say this: I say, don't focus on you. I know that's counterintuitive. Yeah, but how do I look? What I'm.. what am I wearing? And all.. what am I gonna say? Okay, don't focus on you, because it's not about you at this point. It's about the people that you claim you want to serve. It's about the people, the organization, the audience, because that's what my, the program director, who had come up to me, said, "If you don't go on air, we have dead air. There's all these people that are tuning in at 5o'clock to hear something, and yes, they're thinking they're going to hear that regular host, but they need to hear you, they need to hear what you, what you have to say, you can do this right. So that's what I tell my clients when they have that. I say, focus on the audience, focus on the people that you say you want to serve. If you're a coach and you want to help, let's say, women in business, if you don't show up because you're worried about what people are going to say about you or think about you, those women in business are not going to get the help that they need, the guidance that they need, and worse, they might go to somebody that could cause harm, right? So take the focus off of you and think about the people that you're going to impact once you do this thing, and it shifts for people, it does, it can shift for people. I think that's so important. I love that you say focus on who you're serving, because I think that is all good leaders do that, the focus becomes on the team and the outcomes and the ultimate success of the organization, not necessarily themselves. And I think that's what makes them successful, and so I think that's a great tie in to for a leader, how does their visibility being able to step into those moments, whether it's online, whether it's in a meeting, even something as simple as a hallway conversation that they're having with somebody. How does that visibility and that willingness to be out there and share shape the culture that people experience inside an organization? It helps develop trust. It really, it really does. I have this saying that's on my website, on every page of my website, and it says, "Remember this: if you're not seen and heard, you're not hired. You need to be seen, you need to be heard, because that also develops trust, and then the trust goes into different opportunities, but it works both ways, right? So it's extremely important to show up, and even if it's like I was talking to you, I said that there was several general managers that would stay in their office, right, and the door was always shut. When I was lucky enough to be general manager for that year, I went around and I said,"My door is always open. Now, there might be times where I have to hunker down. I've got a deadline of something icky that I don't really want to do, but I. It, but, but the door is always open. In other words, if you, it's something that you want to talk about, it's, it's, I'm, I'm always available. But here's the other thing, is that when within that organization, I made sure that they knew that I was not above them. So, if I'm walking down the hall, and this is great for any leader, any position, position of recognition. Here, I'd be walking down the hall, and there would be a piece of trash, you know, watered-up piece of paper on the floor. I would bend down, and I would pick it up. I'd go into the kitchen, notorious place for crazy stuff. Go into the kitchen, coffee cups in the sink. It looked like, you know, looked like pirates were there the night before. This is always in the morning, because the overnight crew would just, you know, apparently that their mamas didn't teach them to wash the dishes. So I would go in, and I would start cleaning, I'd start washing the dishes, and people would come in, and they're like, oh, like, you don't need to do that anymore, you're the general manager, we, you know, we have a cleaning crew. Well, that cleaning crew doesn't come until the night time, okay? And I was like, no, I don't, this is this is a communal, this is our kitchen, and we deserve to have something, you know, clean. Now, of course, I sent out a memo to people saying, "Hey, overnight crew, your slops, let's clean up your act. But the people within the organization saw me rolling up my sleeves and doing something that needed to be done that gave them a great amount of respect, and you, I think a lot of times people in positions of leadership, they think, well, I'm, I made it, I'm at the top, I'm in this position, I deserve people's respect. No, no, no, no, that's not it. Yes, you worked hard, and you are in that position, but you need to earn the respect by, by showing them that there's no job is too big or too, you know, oh, that's beneath me type thing that brings trust, because people are going to come to you, and they'll come to you when there's a problem, and you want people to come to you when there's an issue before it becomes a bigger issue. Yes, you do. Right. Yeah, absolutely. So I want to kind of wind us up with this last thought, because I always like to leave my listeners with very tangible takeaway from the show. So for leaders who want to be more intentional about building their leadership brand, first, where should they start, and then what's one thing they should stop doing, and one thing that they should start doing more consistently to keep it growing. Well, they should reach out to someone if it's a mentor or a coach that can help guide them. I think that's very important, just to save you time, money, frustration, and all of that, so that somebody from the outside, from the outside looking in, can help you and tell you this is this is what I see, this is how that painting needs to be adjusted, right, very important to get somebody else's opinion from the outside. Okay, number one, number two, the probably the biggest thing that I see is that people are not very clear. I have a new book that's out, it's called The Expert Authority Code, right, and the C O D E in code, the very first thing for the C is it stands for clarity. You have to be crystal clear. This is the most important thing, and this is what I see most. I, night, you know, 90% of businesses, they're not really clear on who they are, who they serve and how they get jobs done, how they work, right, their style, but they need to be really clear. The other thing is ownership, and ownership is saying, you know, what I'm really good at what I do. Can I fix a Maserati? No, can I work on your dental? You know, no, but at what I do, I'm really good, so you can trust me. Now, when I said that, there's no ego attached to it, there's no arrogance. It's I'm very confident in what I do. I've done it a long time, so you can have confidence in my ability, right? D in code is delivery, and that is getting out there, making sure you, you know, create a newsletter in LinkedIn, write those articles. If you are skilled at something, and you're experienced, and you're an expert, show it by writing those articles or creating those videos. Some people are not writers, you know, you're. You know, getting, you've got a film crew in your pocket called the phone, it's a multi million dollar film crew, even the microphone is great, even if you're in the car for lunch, or you're going to the grocery store, start recording right, get seen, get heard, so you can stay hired or you can get better positions, and then, of course, the E in code is elevation, and that's when you all rise. It's not just about you, it's about making sure that you recognize the people that support you and work with you. One kind word to somebody within your organization, or to say, you know what, hey Maggie, I saw what you did, nobody else saw, but I saw what you did, and I got to tell you, I'm really impressed, or I think you did a great job. You have no idea how much, how important that is for people, really, that feedback. Well, Christine, I appreciate you taking the time, starting your morning really early with us today, sharing your knowledge and your passion for branding, and sharing your insights with how our leaders can build their brand a little bit more. So, but before we go, I want you to share with my listeners how they can reach out to you, connect with you, learn more about you, how they can find out more about the code. Just give them a quick rundown of what's the best way to reach out to you. Absolutely, absolutely. Now, and the best way is to go to my website, which is Expert Authority coach.com They can find information about the books, all of the different books that I've written. The Expert Authority code is available on Amazon. It's not an audio book yet. I'm working in on that, but it's available as a Kindle, and also paperback. Kindle, the Kindle version is great, because there's clickable links for the resources that I say. You can't click on a paperback, but that's where you can find that information. And for those that want to have a quick chat with me. I would love to take a look at your painting to see if it's straight on that wall. If it needs a little adjustment, you can book that call in with me. It's complimentary, and it's 30 minutes with you and myself, and we go over your, your business, what you're, what you're doing, how you're, how you're being presented out into the world, and you can book that directly at my calendar, and my calendar link is chat with Christine b.com but you can access all of that by my website, that's the most important thing. All right, well, thanks so much, Christine, I appreciate you, your time today, and the information that you have shared for my listeners, if you've enjoyed this segment, please share it out with people, drop us a comment, subscribe, so that you don't miss the next one coming up, and as I always tell you, make sure you're building that culture, and in this case, growing your leadership brand day in and day out, and make sure you're being conscious about thinking about those things that are going to be how you show up and how people are going to experience you. Thanks, that's all for the Culture Secrets podcast this week, and I look forward to the next time you and I connect. Thanks for listening to this episode of Culture Secrets. If today's conversation resonated with you, we'd love for you to share it with a colleague or friend. And don't forget to subscribe, so you never miss an episode to learn more about building strong people-first workplace cultures, visit chelliephillips.com where you'll find resources, speaking information, and more insights from Chellie. You can also pick up a copy of Culture Secrets at your favorite online or in-person bookseller. Thanks again for listening. And remember, culture isn't something you talk about once it's something you live every day, you