OnlyFounders
Honestly real conversations with founders who are building businesses, communities, and movements while breaking patterns, and leading with radical truth. No varnish. No script. Just showing up as humanly possible with your host, Anne Gillaspie.
Anne is the CEO & founder of Fix & Form | A Denver Branding Firm, co-founder of 10toLaunch, building launch ready brands in just ten days, and Anne Speaks where she activates global audiences with bold keynote speaking. She is raising three incredible kids with her partner in crime in Denver, Colorado.
OnlyFounders
063: The Power of Experience, Adapting to AI, and Building Your Next Chapter with Adrienne Arieff
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
In this episode, Anne and Matt sit down with PR veteran and brand strategist Adrienne Arieff to discuss her journey from running a successful firm for a decade to launching a brand-new, mission-driven venture. Adrienne gets real about the harsh realities of industry shifts and job loss, sharing why she firmly believes that age and experience are actually professional superpowers rather than liabilities. The group dives into how Adrienne successfully integrated AI into her consulting workflow to stay highly competitive, the compounding value of a strong professional network, and she gives an exclusive first look at her "Next Chapter Shift" program—an eight-week cohort designed to help midlife women navigate major personal and professional transitions to build their ultimate "life resume."
🚨 Stuff You’ll Want to Remember:
- "If you're coming from a place of fear, you are not going to be as creative and you are certainly not going to be as productive." — Adrienne
- "The older you are, I do feel that you have the ability to say no comfortably, which allows you to filter out the things that you are more aligned on." — Anne
- "Anytime you're going zero to one, it's impossible to figure out where you're going in one year anyway, right? Because you don't even know if your hypothesis is right." — Matt
📡 Where to Find Us
Hello, welcome to this episode of OnlyFounders. I'm so excited to have you guys with us today and our guest, Adrian Arif. Adrian, how are you? I'm good. Great to be here. Good, good. I'm Anne, as you guys know. Matt. Hey Matt. Matt's joining us from Houston today. Well, we are in sunny LA and I love being here because Colorado.
SPEAKER_05I wish I was in LA. LA sounds really good right now.
SPEAKER_01It is really good today. It just feels strange because it's winter, but it feels like summer. But that's California living for you.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, it's really versatile. I actually love it because it's very much like Colorado. So sometimes you'll get the 60 degree, and then sometimes you get the snow at 10. You just don't know. But here it's like elevated another 20 degrees. So it's hot. We're very overdressed. We should definitely be in tank tops.
SPEAKER_05It's like a dry, it's dry heat though.
SPEAKER_03It's not like it is dry heat. That's why I think I can survive here because it's not super muggy. No.
SPEAKER_05Houston is uh super humid.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yeah. Houston is a no-go for me. If I'm in Houston for longer than two days, I'm out. I have to go. Out. I'm done. Down and out. Yeah, we're out. Well, I am so excited to talk to Adrienne with you guys today because she has an amazing story of her career thus far and all of the successes that she's seen and all of the challenges and opportunities that we're going to talk to you about on OnlyFounders. But really, we are going to talk about this something very mission-driven, and I'll let her explain. But it's a course that she has coming out that we can't wait to talk to you guys about. So before we do that, I want to know what if you were to say your own bio, how would you introduce yourself?
SPEAKER_01My own bio. Okay, I'm gonna give you a shortened one. Um all right, I am a brand marketer. I have I my I started off as a PR girl. I was the PR girl uh in style and fashion, all things, anything you can think of, design fashion style. And that was 20 years of my life. So that's behind me. Now I've taken some of that and uh brought fashion and style to 2026 through a lot of work that I'm doing with a company called My I Doctor. I still do work with Adidas, I still do quite a work with venture companies, venture firms, I should say, their portfolio companies. And I do a ton of brand work uh with them. Uh overhaul a lot of new businesses, a lot of startups, and uh bring them into the now, into the zeitgeist of culture. My bio, I really start my roots are in PR. Uh that industry is changing so much, as you probably know. So I had my own firm, I worked in lifestyle PR, I was on a TV show as a lifestyle expert. I did all these kinds of the things and stuff, and then I realized around 2015 that all of the sudden I wasn't getting a ton of business. I'm like, oh, I either need to overhaul my business, but I had an offer for an acquisition, or I just have this acquisition and do what I do well for this other company. So I I went with that instead of overhauling my business because I was ready for something different. I really wanted to work with not be the big boss and just be one of a team of like an executive group. So that worked out really well. Uh, the timing was great. So did that, and I have spent basically that was the first 10, 12 years was PR, and then it has launched into content and brand strategy, and so that that's what I'm working on these days, and some side gigs with what we'll talk about the next chapter collective and this course that I'm launching soon. And um, and then just yeah, and we'll see where the conversation takes us.
SPEAKER_03Okay, question. So your PR firm, how old were you when you started that?
SPEAKER_01God, that's a good question. Uh let's see. Well, I am 11. No, um, okay. I started that company when I was 30. Okay, and how long did you have it? Until I was 40.
SPEAKER_03Ooh, okay. So, did you have team members, partners, anybody with you? Or was this?
SPEAKER_01One partner, Natalia, who actually worked on where we met, circle pro painters with me. She was she is great and was great. We're still very much in touch. Uh, I had her as a partner, and I had at any given time three to ten people working for me. Cool.
SPEAKER_03Then I skipped over how Adrian and I know each other. So this was a great reminder. Um, I also wanted to include Adrienne and I have known each other actually for about 15 years, but when we came back and got reunited, we hadn't really spoken in all of that time. So back when I was working with SurterPro Painters, she also was hired in to work on brand with SurterPro and PR. Um, and we had met just in that creative space of managing the brand at SurterPro together. And then she popped up in my LinkedIn recently, and then we just kind of hit it off and had this conversation and said, Oh my gosh, A, we need to be friends, and B, I need you on the show. So that is how Adrienne and I know each other, which is why I often say on this show that when you collect good people, you keep them, and when you build relationships and they come back around, there's an energy and there's a reason why certain people stay in your circles. And I would say Adrien is a great example.
SPEAKER_01Cheers to that. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03Yep. Um, so that is how we were you're even here today. Um, okay, so PR company, and then when you were growing your PR company and you felt that you were kind of like tapped out, I would say, or just ready for something different. How long had you been feeling that before you actually made that shift after 10 years?
SPEAKER_01That is a great question.
SPEAKER_03Uh, probably a year and a half. Interesting. I was ready. So you sat in that for a good year and a half, and then you were waiting for the right opportunity to come.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it was a combination. I had been so deeply committed and in love with my company and the people that were a big part of it, that it was foreign to me that all of a sudden I was feeling this itch for something different. And I know a lot of that itch was a changing market, and and the the industry had changed so much that I was changing, and so I was trying to figure out what that looked like and what that looked like was to have an acquisition and to see and be open to what was next.
SPEAKER_03Mm-hmm. Love that. So let's talk about after the PR firm, and then now you're working as this brand consultant on all of these brand things. Why the shift from PR to branding? What it was it what you expected, or what made you give up more of the PR side and just be a brand girl?
SPEAKER_01So now that I've been in the workplace for longer than I care to admit or even really digest, I think 10 years. Yeah, I think a career evolves. I think some people stay, like an architect or a lawyer, maybe you're always an architect or a lawyer, and and that evolves in a different way. Um she wants to be in the podcast. Um industries just change, and I fell into PR because I loved it. I actually studied communications in college. And then I don't know, I all of a sudden there were less magazines and then blogs were taking over. I think it's an interesting subject what you mention in terms of when you know it's time to leave a job. Uh, and I have found that every job I have left or been forced to leave because I have I have also been fired twice. And now that those women, I'm spacing on their names, wrote that book, it's all the cool girls get fired. I'm like, hmm, I've been fired. I've been laid off twice as well. Yeah, and you know what? Every time you get laid off and or fired, uh you learn so much from it, and you think to yourself, oh wait, I actually kind of knew that was coming.
SPEAKER_03And it was a blessing in disguise. Always because you probably wouldn't have left when they forced you out. No. And then you see all of the things that happened because you were no longer there at that time. And it challenges you to grow, but it's really uncomfortable.
SPEAKER_01It's really uncomfortable and it doesn't feel great right when it's happening. But then when you kind of lean into it and do the work, then you're like, okay, I get it. I'm okay. This is this is all right.
SPEAKER_03So I think when you have a layoff and you have to be replaced or just eliminated in that position with where you are, I think it's actually really good to realize as just an employee anywhere or as a leader anywhere that you can be versatile with your people and you can also pivot as needed, and you can't be afraid with the relationships that you have to make those decisions. I think for me on the other end of it, going through two layoffs, uh, not only was it beneficial for me, but at the time it sucked. It was so shitty, it was awful. But the growing that came after that, I would have not left. I would have just stayed in that job and been a bit more complacent for a while. But it forces that change earlier. But then on the flip side of that, as a CEO and a business founder, and I'm navigating the people as well now on the other side of it, I'm saying they're gonna be okay because I've experienced it on the other side. If you have to let somebody go, while it is hard, it's a hard conversation to have, I think it actually makes you a better boss when you go through it because then you say, I know that that's shitty, it's not great, and we have to handle it with tact and care, but also they're gonna be okay.
SPEAKER_01And also, age and experience uh are a beautiful thing. Uh, I I'm it it's a bit of a uh a sad reality when you understand that ageism exists in every single industry. Uh however, it can also be your greatest asset.
SPEAKER_05All right, hold on, guys. Uh one second. Uh someone's microphone is dragging a lot.
SPEAKER_03Oh.
SPEAKER_05It's I don't know which one.
SPEAKER_03It could be my hair. Maybe it's on your back.
SPEAKER_05It's yeah, it's it's um Oh, it's Adrian's? Yeah, it needs it, it was moving a lot, so I was like, I it was hard to hear. Oh, maybe good.
SPEAKER_01Is that better?
SPEAKER_05Yeah, it was just like when you were moving, it was I couldn't hear you.
SPEAKER_03Oh, interesting. Can you hear us now? We're good, we're good.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Sorry to interrupt. It's completely.
SPEAKER_01I think it's really important. I think that you know, we hear so much about ageism. Uh that's a big thing in uh everyone I talk to these days. And I used to kind of put my nose up to it, like, oh, it's just because people aren't doing the work or whatever. And then I experienced it and I was definitely doing the work, and I was like, oh, wait, ageism is real. And so I think that well, if there's ageism and you're in a certain role where that's coming into play, then that's not your job. That's not maybe where you're supposed to be. And that you should really think of age and experience as a resource and as a superpower. So I really am a big believer in that because in the current role, or one of my clients, I should say, that's taking up the bulk of my time, uh, my eye doctor, the woman who's the CEO of the company is uh, you know, a woman who's had a full career. Um, she's a little bit older than me. I respect her madly. I love working for her, and she just works hard. And I love working for a woman that also uh has a lot of age and sorry, has a lot of experience and and just a beautiful career that I can, you know, jump into and work with her and learn from her.
SPEAKER_03I think that's profound being a woman in the workplace, to work for a woman who has had more experience than you and you can actually learn from because it's it's rare.
SPEAKER_04Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03I've mostly worked for men, to be honest, in my career. And while that is still wonderful, especially if you have great men that I've been able to work for, there's also been some men that have not been so great to work for. But I think just being a female and having that female leadership above you to guide and to bring you forward and to partner with you, that's really, really remarkable because there aren't too many female CEOs. We're hoping to change that, but it's really nice when you have that leadership and you can see their experience. And I really do think it helps combat the ageism uh shift and the culture that's going on with especially women. You know, men, it looks more prestigious, and this is just my own opinion, so you can throw it out with the garbage. But, you know, when you are a male over 55, it's like you're expected to be the C-suite, you're expected to be the boss, it's fine. There's not a lot of ageism there, but for women, it seems like when you're above 55, there is more of that. Oh, well, I don't know if she would make a great leader. Is she gonna be focused? And I don't know about menopause, and it's really it's bullshit. But I've worked with a lot of women in the ageism space as well who are combating ageism, and I do think it's really unfair. It's just about the equality in the workplace anyway.
SPEAKER_01You know, it's but I I think it's I'm I'm even interrupting you because I feel so passionate about Liz. If you love your job and you're 30, 40, 50, 60, uh, it just doesn't matter. I mean, as I told you, I just uh before we started this podcast today, uh I did two days, a two-day shoot. I worked in two days about close to 24 hours. Even though I am tired today, I also feel ridiculously energized. So no company or client is missing out at all on my skills or my experience or my energy or whatever because I'm older. If anything, I had more energy than a lot of the 25-year-olds on set. And I have a very strong work ethic. And so I just I think it's like what you said, just absolute bullshit.
SPEAKER_03Amen to that. I think if your work is giving you life as your work is, absolutely. It doesn't even matter the age that you are. I think there's a lot of really ill um conceived notion of like, okay, well, this person, because they're older, might not give it everything, or they might be more tired, or they might be run down. It's like, no, no, no, no, no. I think the older you are, it is your superpower because you have aligned so much of what you should be doing and what you want to be doing. And you can actually align yourself better with those jobs, whether they're contract or whether they're a client of yours, however that uh business structure is set up for you, you can bring in and you can navigate things and you also can say no to more things with experience. And you, the older you are, I do feel that you have the ability to say no comfortably, which allows you to filter out the things that you are more aligned on. So, yeah, you are bringing fucking amazing energy to the clients and the work that you're doing because you're saying yes to the things that you know you have bandwidth for. So it doesn't really matter about the age thing. So, did you want to talk any? Is this just a feminist conversation every year? Did you want to let that happen?
SPEAKER_05No, I I think um really where I'm thinking, like where my head's at is like where are you finding the biggest struggles in your branding business? Because I'm more curious of like I know a lot of branding, marketing agency, like whatever asterisk, they're basically consultants for businesses that help in marketing. A lot of them are struggling. So I'm curious, like, what are you seeing? What are you um experiencing in the market at the tail end of 2025 and now coming into 2026? Because I know a lot of folks that are struggling, even just dissolving their businesses. Um, where do you where are you on on that stuff?
SPEAKER_01Uh you know, it sometimes it's just luck and being in the right place at the right time. I am not struggling as we sit here today, uh, but I would have had a totally different storyline eight months ago. Uh I have adapted to AI in my case with brand marketing. I have Claude and Chat GBT in my workflow with how I deal with content. So I act as like a chief brand officer and lead brand for this company and a couple other clients, but also uh the way that I write and produce is a lot more the quantities are much more now. Uh where I think the job I have today would have two years ago been maybe three people. But I it's not that I'm working harder, it's that I'm utilizing uh AI into my workflow so I'm able to do more. So I think the hole or this gaping hole that a lot of people need to figure out is how do you incorporate AI into workflow, into your workflow? How do you make yourself smarter and more efficient so you don't, if you are struggling in brand, um, how you can show up uh a little bit differently uh with AI in your workflow, knowing that you're not selling out? Uh you're just working a little bit differently using these new tools that if you're not using them, you're simply behind and you won't get the job because it's just not the world we live in today.
SPEAKER_05So, how is how is the wisdom that you've accumulated in brand beating out the 25-year-olds that are also using AI, kind of using as a shortcut? Because like I see that in in other industries where it's like a lot of the time AI is kind of creating um a bridge between those who are experienced and those who are not. Um and what's happening, it's normalizing it. And that's why like people coming out of college are finding really hard time to get a job because companies are requiring experience because all you need is a little bit of experience to become senior level. If you have no experience, it's really hard to make anything. But if you have a lot of wisdom and a lot of like institutional knowledge, I've seen cases where that even becomes a more of a superpower than it was before. So my question to you is is that true for you and and how?
SPEAKER_01It's it's a hundred percent true, is I am able to lead uh in many ways that a 25-year-old or 35-year-old for that matter couldn't lead. Uh, and I'm really confident in that. Again, what we were talking about a little bit about age and experience, that is a superpower. So I think if you make it a weakness, it will become a weakness because I know everyone says, oh, they're an expert after like one blog post or whatever, and people don't even know what a blog is anymore. So, you know, uh I think I would, if a 25-year-old was competing with me for the same job and they got the job, then it clearly wasn't the right role for me. I was just consulting for the past year with a startup that I admired deeply on rethinking education. They hired a lot of young people. We're all super smart, brainiacs, amazing. Uh, their workflow was quite different from mine and how they produced. Uh, I don't know if it was workflow, just the output or something, was quite different. And I would say the 25-year-olds got the role long term. They didn't renew this contract with me this year, but I actually was okay with it because I thought the work I did with them is done. They really liked the work. I really like the work, but they have decided to go with that 25-year-old model. And I think for them it's working. So I think it's just business by business, case by case, because this was a young startup.
SPEAKER_00Hey, okay, está bien. Gracias. Isolencio también.
SPEAKER_01Um sorry. So I think I'm gonna just say my thought again. I think that you have to take a step back if possible, and think about who's interviewing who's interviewing you for what consulting role or job, and be really true to yourself, because if it's a bunch of young people interviewing you, uh, and they say it's a young organization that is you'll you'll get a vibe, you know what I mean? And then I just don't think you should go after the opportunity. I think it's probably not worth your time, and that's really hard to digest that pill. But we have to be very, and trust me, I've messed up so I mean I went on this phone interview. I think they did nine loops of interviews with me, and then they did hire, I think, a 30-year-old. And you know what? I looked at her LinkedIn, and you know what? I was like, actually, I think she may have been the better off. She's great, yeah. She's so great. I'd hire her. I've done that before too.
SPEAKER_03I literally would like to know who got a job that I didn't get. And I go look at their LinkedIn, I'm like, oh, good for you.
SPEAKER_01Like, you totally know that it's a good hire. Yeah, so that's definitely happened to me. And it and then you actually sometimes feel a little better because you think, oh wait, I actually would have hired that person too. Exactly. So I think it's just case by case. I mean, it just it's sometimes it's the luck, it's also the relationships we have sometimes. Sometimes I just hire people and I don't even interview them. I just hire them in one second, literally, because I'm like, oh, they'll do the job great. I've worked with them before, done. Yeah. You have this consulting gig or this job or whatever. So I think it's a good lesson in relationship building and maintaining, too. Just like it did, it's a few factors. So, yes, it's a scary time in our industry. Brand marketing has completely shifted. There's a ton of AI, a lot of it's terrifying. Yeah. And yeah, all you can do is keep reading. Reading, keep learning, keep being curious, and and that's that's all you can do. But if you don't lean into what's happening into culture in our world, um then you will fall behind and you will not get hired, and someone else will get that job.
SPEAKER_05Where are you so oh go ahead then?
SPEAKER_03Go ahead, Matt. No, your turn.
SPEAKER_05Um well I was just kind of segueing into like where what what are your next initiatives? Because it sounds like you guys you're also working on the side. Let's talk.
SPEAKER_03That's where I was going to. Let's talk about this workshop because I'm really curious about it. This whole program that Adrian's putting together, which it's talking exactly, it sounds like what we're talking about of a little bit of ageism in there too. Um, but I want you to share with us how this came to be first and then talk to us about it. But how, how and why. What what motivated you to start this program now?
SPEAKER_01Uh well, I'm so excited to talk about because I really haven't talked about it at all yet.
SPEAKER_03It's completely this is the first, this is a first look.
SPEAKER_01This is the first look. Uh and I I have to to give you a little, I know I sent you, I showed you the the intro. Uh and we're still recording. So I hired a production team, and I thought, well, let me first step back. So when I did get laid off, again, what you're talking about, about yeah, my the company I was working at before was like, sorry, you're out. So I had to really take a look at where I was in my job and my life, or jobless, I should say. And uh I was burnt out. And I literally had a pitch like a week later, and I forgot the guy's name of the interview, and that was embarrassing. And then I submitted a proposal and forgot his name again.
SPEAKER_03And that was your nervous system's way of saying, This is the same old work that we don't want to be doing anymore. Yeah. So stop. Yes.
SPEAKER_01It was really embarrassing. Oh, and in the meeting after I left, he didn't see this as far as I know. I tripped on my pant leg. I had these really wide leg pants, and I like face planted on concrete. And I was like, wow, I really need a break. And I was so sad. I literally went to like this frozen yogurt place nearby with a child, like eating my ice cream cones.
SPEAKER_02So sad. I love that you shared that story though. You have to find comfort in something. Okay, so frozen yogurt balanced you balanced you out. Okay. Now you're jobless. Yeah, tears in a bathtub. We don't need that much of a visual.
SPEAKER_01So, so um, it took a little while. It took a few months, you know, for sure, of um a little bit of soul searching, a lot of walking, like what you and I are talking about, the power of a good walk and some fresh air and oxygen to the brain. Uh, and also having a deep realization when fear is at the uh what is it, frontal lobe of your brain or whatever, it doesn't work. Uh, if you're coming from a place of fear, you are not going to be as creative and you were certainly not going to be as productive. So once the fear kind of pushed away and I finally got a consulting role and I realized it wasn't just doom and gloom, uh, I started to slowly, and this position that I got was like a two-month project, but I got to be a co-producer and writer for a short independent film on um inequalities in the food system and culture of food. It was super interesting. So it opened up my mind to it inspired me. And so that was really cool to just take on a project. Uh, and and I was collecting unemployment. It was very real, you know, it was it was hard. But that brought me back to life. And I'm forever grateful for the woman who brought me onto that project too, because we had done quite a bit of work together and she was like, this is perfect for you. Just learn how to produce and write a script and do this. Okay, yes. I just learned because I had some how to be a writer, I'd already written a couple books and whatever. So yeah, that worked out. But then, okay, so a little bit of that, a little bit of this, a little bit of soul searching, and then I just thought after several conversations, because I was also in this kind of phase of networking, a lot of the men and women I was talking to were really talking about what is their kind of next move, their next iteration, their next chapter. And then it started to become abundantly clear to me that this was a thing.
SPEAKER_02Kids are going to college, parents are dying, people are losing their jobs, industries are evaporating, you know, that journalism is like going down the toilet gloom. Doom gloom here.
SPEAKER_01Exactly, doom gloom. And I was really becoming doom and gloom. So I was like, all right, I gotta do something about this. So then I started to see all these, I was being targeted on Instagram, all these women talking about you can make a million dollars doing X or fitness and take this vitamin, you'll lose 20 pounds or GLP1 or whatever, all this crap. And I was like, well, everyone else is talking about something. I want to own the space of next chapter and what that looks like for women in midlife. Their kids have gone to college, what's next? You've lost your job, what's next? So my lane is not the menopause or the fitness, but you've lost your job or your kids have gone to college. So now, what is your purpose and your intention in in work or in life? And so that is what kind of inspired this uh to help women in this particular lane, but also um just to have interesting conversations like we're doing with women uh in different phases of their life. And and then I I mentioned this before, the other piece of it was I also this is gonna be totally different subject. I wanted to have a little bit of a legacy for my kids to have some video of me talking to interesting women. I have twin girls, they're teenagers. When my mom unfortunately passed away, I had no footage of her uh except a bunch of photos, which I cherish. So I thought, oh, now I can have all this great video with all these women talking to them about all sorts of interesting topics. And then this course module, the next chapter shift program. Uh, I can't think of anything uh better for my kids to at least have something of me when I'm not here. So I thought, okay, this works. If it doesn't, if it doesn't, you know, go gangbusters crazy on sales or whatever, I can monetize it with my children at least. So that was kind of my I love that.
SPEAKER_03Okay, so next chapter shift program. That's it. So we're talking about next chapter and we're talking about what you're going to gain when you go through it. So, what does the program look and feel like? Describe that to us.
SPEAKER_01So the program uh takes you through uh eight weeks. Uh each week is a different course module around this kind of this shift. Uh so we have each week you have to be accountable for these workbooks. Uh, it's from purpose to confidence to hobbies and interests, etc. It just goes on and on about these shifts.
SPEAKER_03Does it address the whole person? Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So everyone's a little different, obviously. Everyone is different. Uh so it addresses the whole person, and and I have there are two levels. One is just it's pre-recorded, uh, and then you just have to be a little bit self-directed and self-motivated. The other one, uh, we have cohorts of six women, and then we meet once a week, and and then we also have one-to-ones.
SPEAKER_03So oh, I love that.
SPEAKER_01So you have two options. I have two options.
SPEAKER_03So more self-guided if you just want no bullshit, you gotta just go on airplane. And that's the more affordable option.
SPEAKER_01Yes. And then the other one.
SPEAKER_05So what's the goal output? What's the out like the end result?
SPEAKER_01Like what are what are the end result is you'll have a blueprint for what your next the the end result is you could have a bull, a blue what is wrong with the it's the tired today. You're tired. I am tired. I haven't slept at all. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Or I slept a little bit. Um, the end result is that you would have a blueprint for what your life could look like next, both work and personally and professionally.
SPEAKER_03So it's almost like um, what is this? So, Ben, this morning actually, Ben Whitehair, our another show guest, uh, was talking about you have a life resume. This is actually sounding a lot like that. So you have a blueprint for what that life resume is gonna go to next. And so he talks about having a life resume. And I don't know if it's called that specifically, but it is it's a resume of your entire person. It's a whole person resume instead of just your work. Um, and I loved that whole concept. And we've talked about that, and I know he's delivered a speech on that.
SPEAKER_01And so this message is like phase two of the life resume. So you have this kind of first couple weeks we help you put together uh an iteration of a life resume. But the most important thing again, once you have that life resume in some shape or form, how do you execute upon it? How do you stay committed? It's that rinse and repeat and that commitment, commitment, commitment. Too many people think it's just like a quick fix, but it's not. It's something that you work on every single day or it doesn't work.
SPEAKER_03Okay. And so how granular do you get into the weeds with these women of actually executing, maybe starting that business or filing for the LLC or something like that? Very, very yeah, very so it's literally it's not just the ideating around it, it's the ideating and the implementing.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and giving them all the tools and the referrals.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, we have and so you also connect them with people in your network. So it's also leveraging your network, which now at this point in your career is vast. Yes. You're very well connected. So then that's also a selling point, which I think is huge. This actually combats the whole ageism culture too. The more established you are in your career, the more great people you've collected. And I'm a people collector. I think in your life, when you find those good people, they circle back, and that's what makes your power as an older person in work. That's what you're giving them access to is the connections and the introductions. And it's people. We know that jobs are created with people.
SPEAKER_01100% and anyone that I like and respect, I always say my network is your network. I want everyone to succeed. I'm like the biggest or a very big hype girl for most people. And the only per the only time I'm not a hype girl is if it's someone that you know crossed me at some stage or another.
SPEAKER_02No, bitch.
SPEAKER_03You don't get out of here. Don't get out of my bad side here. That's funny. Um, I'm the same way. I I operate very much so of my network is is your network, and I'm happy to connect. And I think that's actually what helps us grow. It's like that working in gratitude. Absolutely. But it's being grateful for the connections and people that you've had along the way. And then, oh, you should talk to so and so and like the podcast. And I'm like, Do you have a good producer? Yeah, but I'll take other recs. Like I know so many amazing ones. So it's like, you know, anytime you can hear a trigger of someone who you think of, I think there's a reason. I very much believe that there's a reason that um we have people placed on our minds at certain times. And when you're talking to someone and you go, oh, that person, there's a reason that person is there. So just connect them and you never know what's going to happen with it. Um, but that's really beautiful, not only going through the executing and the implementing, and then also the people and the introductions and the network within this course and this whole program of I'm also going to learn from you.
SPEAKER_01I like to say it's like Adrian and Friends. That's right, producers are like this is this is Adrian and Friends, and that's how we're positioned. And also this producer I've worked with. You know, I interviewed 15 producers for this role to help me produce this. I knew that if I tried to do it myself, it wouldn't be where I wanted it to go because I simply don't have the skill set smart to make it what I want it to be and what I think its potential could be. And this guy, Patrick, has completely turned my vision into a reality, and I'm so grateful for that too. He just How did you meet Patrick? Well, I went on to Google, I did it the old-fashioned way. I no one could really help me in this case. I said I need a masterclass type producer, and it just wasn't in my network for whatever reason. So I went on Google and I just in Chat GBT and I literally kept calling, calling, calling. And I think I talked to 15-ish people. Wow. Hired one guy, and then it's funny, I hired him, and then something I don't even remember what happened, but I just asked for a couple things, and he said I was asking for too much, even though it was in our scope of work and a contract that I signed. So that didn't. I said maybe we should just quit while we're ahead. And then he Patrick was my second choice, and I told him, and now I'm so glad because he is absolutely where I want to go.
SPEAKER_03Wow. So you found your person by a cold search.
SPEAKER_01Yes, which not by a recommendation. Terrible. I am so scared of cold search. Me too. I mean, okay, really quickly, can I do a little side story of a bad? This is a hilarious bad side search or cold search, cold search. Yeah. I had, I host film parties in my backyard because I love just because it's all in the hills and whatever. So I I wanted uh a Reclettes a pre-ski theme. So Reclets are this hot melted cheese that you sometimes have after you ski and it's hot cheese and it melts in your mouth. It's really fun to eat after a cold day of skiing. It's my it's big in Switzerland. Anyways, I wasn't I wanted to bring Switzerland to Los Angeles. So I look for a Reclletes caterer on Google because it's a random thing. Yeah. I find one. So what happens, Day of? The guy's like, well, I don't really have uh the Reclettes machine. Oh, you said you did. But I can I can fry up the cheese, but we aren't gonna provide any food. I was like, wait, a caterer who's not gonna provide any food? So I just ended up going all over town finding the Reclettes and the bread and whatever. Not but Reclettes cheese is a little bit rare too. So I found it all. But literally, this guy, this Google is the worst Google referral. I wish I remembered their name. Oh, I do, but I'm not gonna incriminate anybody. Not gonna bash them on the other. I'm not gonna bash them. I thought about it. I did one bad review to the company, and that was enough. Just yeah. Uh and uh he his people, his one person showed up, uh, and they charged me catering rates for food and and the materials and everything, but literally one person showed up, and we supplied the food, the knife, the pan, and the table.
SPEAKER_03What did they even do? They staffed the thing.
SPEAKER_01One person staffed it for the whole thing. So I was like, okay, I'm never doing Google, uh Google cold search again. So in this case, it was the worst. So I don't know. I think usually you should go for a referral through a friend or a colleague.
SPEAKER_03But I love that you have a success story with a cold search because I don't hear that often.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, this cold search was epic. I mean, it hasn't come out yet, but it looks pretty. I don't want to jinx it, but I have high hopes. The recless less so.
SPEAKER_03But yeah, so you've already seen some early success. You just did like a A-B testing, you said, and you already had six signups.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, which is well, which is incredible.
SPEAKER_03You shouldn't even launch yet. It's in March, and you already have six interest. I mean, that's incredible. Congratulations. That's that means that that means that it's a good course, it means it's a good material, good content, and the marketing for it is great. And I'm assuming that's because you were smart, you hired Patrick, you hired help. And to know because of your experience, I am not the person who's gonna make this successful the way I want it to be. You have to find the right people to come on board. 100%. So now you're like the CEO and the founder of this program. Let's say, and I and Matt, I'll give you some time to talk too. I'm like, we're just like over here having fun trying. So let's say this program, you've already not even launched and you have six, okay, which is huge. Because you said you have a core of six, so that's like one. You've already sold one. So um two years from now, what does this look like? Are you still? Let's say the program takes off. Bandwidth. Are you still doing this program and the brand consulting? What wins?
SPEAKER_01What do you think? That's a good question. Um, I am one of those people who do not have one year, two year, three-year, four-year plan and has worked very much in my favor to date. Um, I in a perfect world, I would love the cohorts to grow. Uh, in terms of a KPI, uh, it really depends on how much time I can devote to it. Right now, I can devote enough time to properly serve one cohort. Okay. Uh if my consulting work becomes less, I can then increase the cohorts. So I don't know exactly. I think eventually the goal, two years, three years, or four years, I am not sure, would be to have probably four or five cohorts and to have graduates and to really grow this program into into an online course module that people take seriously, that I evolve, that I have additional workbooks that people really were like, oh, that really helped me land my next role or really got me out of a rough patch. That that is my goal.
SPEAKER_03And then it would really be Adrian and Friends because it's Adrian and your friends leading the other cohorts and you're also giving your network.
SPEAKER_05Go ahead, Matt. That's a good answer because anything anytime you're going zero to one, it's impossible to figure out where you're going in one year anyway, right? Because you don't even know if your hypothesis is right. You kind of tell you have to test it, and then once you go through one iteration, you pivot to another iteration pivot. Maybe you're right the first time, and that's great. But that's a smart answer. Like that comes from your experiences. Usually if you start trying to plan two, three years out and you're starting at zero, it's I don't know. It's like most 99.9% of the time, that's whatever you plan is out the window anyway.
SPEAKER_03It's just a test. So you're trialing it. That's exactly right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we'll see what we'll see how it goes. And yeah, eventually, if it were to take off, I would love other people to do these cohorts with me. And that that's again, Adrian and Friends, like you said, it would be really fun.
SPEAKER_03It just it rolls. The brand actually works for both. It's Adrian and Friends with your network. Absolutely. The introductions, and it's Adrian and Friends that now the friends are also leading you through what Adrian has created, which is a great, a great progression. It's almost like you could do these first groups of um cohorts going through the program, and then you could have a second course that's almost like a certification in addition to for becoming the leader to lead your own cohort.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03And then it's almost like a licensing model, but not, but it's like, hey, you can take the next chapter of I mean, it's your own. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I mean, that's exactly like where my head was going initially. I mean, you have to have a vision overall, but I also want to start small, make it really, really good before it turns into anything. So it's gonna take a little time, and I'm not in a hurry either. I don't believe in quick fixes or shortcuts. And I don't think AI is a shortcut either. I think it's just a tool.
SPEAKER_03I totally agree with that. We've talked a lot about AI on our show. Matt is an AI expert, and I think I think you are for and standards, you are an amazing AI user. Um, but I definitely don't think it's a shortcut. I think when it's implemented in the right way, like you said, and you get really smart with it and you use it as a tool in your toolbox, it makes you such an effective employee, worker, consultant, business leader, and it should stay there. It should stay in that box, it should not be um replacing the creativity of your mind. Um, where is this workshop program going to exist? How can people access it? And and with that, what is the the barrier to entry for someone? Is it is it like a fit thing in addition to them just signing up and buying it? Do you actually have like a discovery call with them to see if they would be a good fit or what does that onboarding look like?
SPEAKER_01So there will be a website. Uh actually they're creating it right now. I don't even think you'll I'll I'll be able to know like next week because they're creating you'll edit this part out. I love it. Edit this part out. I will say the website. Okay, there will be a website which we'll have at the end of this podcast. Uh so we'd love for anyone that's interested to sign on to learn more. Uh there will be a discovery call option. Uh, but typically you can just anyone can sign up. It's catered towards primarily women, but if a man wants to sign up, I would never shut them up. Okay, that's good to know. And then again, there's pre-recorded and anyone can sign up for that. I don't think you need a discovery call, but it's available if needed. And then the cohort, I really feel like would would need a good, oh my god, should I tell them to no, it's okay.
SPEAKER_03And I feel like we're we're wrapping soon. Okay, yeah. Yeah, that's okay. There's a lot of good edits in this. You're our our editor is calling.
SPEAKER_05No, it's John will be good. It'll be fine. It's fine.
SPEAKER_03Um, so let's take it to um the discovery call with and for men and women. Let's talk about that.
SPEAKER_01Uh so yeah, there'll be a discovery call um number where people can contact me and then I'll do like a quick 15 minutes so they can have a better, you know, it's a commitment. So if that they'll have a better idea if this course is right for them, I think through the discovery call, and I also think the website, there's an FAQ section, so a lot of these questions will be answered too.
SPEAKER_03I love that. This is great. Matt, did you have any other questions for Adrian?
SPEAKER_05No, I think um, you know, I'm I'm looking forward to see how the cohort kind of works out because the zero to one phase is one of the most exciting but also nervous stages because you're testing out your hypothesis. So if you what you're trying to prove to the market, right, if you if these six individuals I'd be more curious to see, like, okay, after your Course after the the the eight weeks or depending which plan they have, after it's done, where are they? And then follow up again, and then follow up a third time because or second time, because I'm sure like you know, things take time for what they learned or what they know to percolate and then manifest, right? So I'm more curious on that because that will determine are you gonna have a second cohort or not? That will also determine are you undercharging or overcharging, or do you need to scale too? So that is what I'm I'm interested in as a kind of a follow-up actually.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely, Matt. You're right on the money, as they say. I mean, I I also think that my first cohort probably I'll I'll have a lot to learn too in how I work with a cohort because this is also new for me. I've spent my career rebranding and branding small and big companies, and this is similar work, but with people. So I'll I'll have a learning curve as well. And I do agree that there'll be an evolution of this first eight-week module. There'll probably be some sort of phase two of it too, but that's very phase two. We're actually gonna get phase one off the ground.
SPEAKER_05So we have to follow up this podcast, see where your journey is. Yes, we do.
SPEAKER_03We should. I would love that. Okay, Adrian. So for everyone who wants to find you, this is your time to plug everything. Where your channels, websites, anything, where can they find you online just to see more about this um program?
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. So the best place to start is Instagram. So it's next underscore chapter underscore collective. Oh my god, let me do that too again. Yeah, the best place to find us to start is on Instagram, next underscore chapter underscore collective. Uh, we're also on YouTube, so you can find us there as well. Same same URL um on YouTube, and and then you'll be able to get all the other information from there. Love that.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, everything's in the link in bio.
SPEAKER_05Perfect.
SPEAKER_03Yes, everything will be link in bio. That's the the word of the day. Well, Adrian, thank you so much for your time. Thank you. Thank you lovely. Yeah, having today. Great conversation. I love the conversation around empowering women at any age in the workplace, and I love what this next chapter is going to bring to so many people. So it's like a beautiful culmination of all of your experience and your work to help other people. So it's gonna be amazing. We'll have to follow along. That does it for us on OnlyFounders today. Thank you guys for joining us. Matt, thanks for tuning in from Houston. Adrian, thank you so much. And we'll see you guys next time.
SPEAKER_04All right, see you later.