The Do, Delegate and Drop Framework That Changed How This CMO Lives and Leads

How do you build a meaningful career, lead at a high level and still host the playdate for your kids?

In this episode of Women I Want You to Know by Andrea L. Johnston™ Podcast, Andrea sits down with Kathryn Cook, Chief Marketing Officer at Alloy, an identity and fraud prevention platform that helps financial institutions onboard customers safely and prevent fraud.

Over the course of a 15-year career spanning biotech, life sciences and fintech, Kathryn built a reputation for turning complex ideas into clear, compelling stories. In this conversation, she shares not only how she shaped her career path, but also how she approaches leadership, motherhood and ambition with intention.

Andrea and Kathryn explore the practical decisions required to sustain high performance over time. Kathryn shares how she protects her energy, sets priorities and how she built support systems for work and home.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why Kathryn chose “consistency” as her word of the year.
• How the Do-Delegate-Drop framework helps her protect time and focus.
• Why saying yes before you feel ready can accelerate career growth.
• How Kathryn transitioned from biotech to fintech by leaning into storytelling.
• Why internship and agency experience provide critical career foundations.
• How she views outsourcing at home as a strategic leadership decision.
• What AI can accelerate and where human judgment still matters.
• Why intentional community with other working women supports success.

This episode is for the woman navigating leadership, family responsibilities, career progression and the ongoing pressure to perform at a high level without losing herself in the process.

Links and Resources:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathrynwcook
https://www.fuelforfemalefounders.com/
https://www.alloy.com
Read Kathryn’s WIWYTK feature on LinkedIn

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hi, I'm Andrea Johnston, entrepreneur, communications leader, and a believer in the power of women and the unlimited potential in all of us. On Women I Want You To Know, we shine a light on real women who are breaking barriers, blazing new trails, and redefining what leadership looks like. These are real conversations about ambition, drive, difficult choices, and impact. The kind you won't hear anywhere else. Because every woman's story has the power to propel another from dream to reality. This is Women I Want You To Know. Hi everyone, and welcome back to Women I Want You To Know. I'm Andrea Johnston, and I am so excited to share today's episode with you. We have Catherine Cook, who is the chief marketing officer at financial technology company Alloy with us today. And she's built an incredible career over the last 15 plus years in marketing and communications. But one of the things I'm really excited for you to hear today is some of the hard-earned lessons in scaling your life. Catherine is a working mom, and she has so many pearls of wisdom to impart on us on the scaling of your life. And you're going to hear more about how she navigates trade-offs and how she thinks about dropping the things that maybe aren't the best use of time. So so much goodness here from Catherine. Catherine is also a graduate from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. And she has worked in biotech, life sciences, fintech, and really done some pretty incredible things in her career. So without further ado, I'm so excited to welcome Catherine. We are so happy to have you here, Catherine. Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. I know that whenever a new year gets underway, there's always so many things that we're juggling and thinking about in terms of home and family and work. As you are in 2026, what are some of your top kind of priorities as you think about work and family? Oh, I love that.

SPEAKER_00 2:07

I love the new year. I actually love the the opportunity to reset and set new goals and reflect on the past year. So I was doing some of this last week and thinking about what are my goals for this year. And so I do have a few and I bucket them in like personal and professional, financial travel. And so we do have a few in each category, but I'll say like an overarching goal. My word for this year is consistency. Because I think this year for me, it's all about not necessarily radical change or radical transformation. It's how can I consistently show up each and every day as a mother, a wipe, a leader? How can I show up for myself? How can I consistently do the things I know I need to be doing each and every day? Small things, but consistently that's what adds up to big impact. So that's my word of the year. And that's kind of like the through line across all of those different goals for me.

SPEAKER_01 3:04

I love that. And I think consistency is so underrated. So I'm so glad to hear that that's your focus for this year because sometimes it's not about that transformation. It's just about continuing the momentum you've already got. So that's exciting. Well, I've known you for quite a few years now. And when we first met, you were working in the biopharma communications arena. And since then, you've really evolved your career. You've become this incredible expert in fintech. You've led these different global teams. It's really awe-inspiring to see where your career has taken you. Tell us a little bit about the work you're doing now and your role at Alloy.

SPEAKER_00 3:42

You're a big inspiration for me and a reason why I'm here where I am today, quite frankly. Transitioning from biotech to fintech. Very different industries, but they actually have a lot in common. They both are heavily regulated industries. They both have a lot of their own jargon. They are both pretty complex. But I think what is consistent across both of those, there's that word consistency again, is the fact that a lot of my job is how do I translate all of that information or technical terms or jargon and really boil it down to a story that resonates with people that is simple and easy to understand and really helps connect to, you know, whether it's the patient or the consumer or the customer. And so I think that's been something that has really carried throughout my career, right? That sort of storytelling aspect and taking what could be really complex science or data or information and trying to simplify it in a way that really resonates with the key audience. So that's one thing that has really served me across all of those industries. I think for, you know, me, I'm really, I've been at Alloway about 18 months now, which has flown by. And I was really excited when I started having conversations with them. I was really, you know, attracted to their culture, one, and and just seeing so many other women in leadership roles at their executive level, on the board, you know, throughout the organization. That was really exciting for me. And also just the opportunity and the problems they were solving. So I at the end of the day, Halloway is really focused on helping our clients prevent fraud and helping our clients to onboard their customers safely and seamlessly so that when we are all banking every day, we can feel like our money is safe. To me, that was really inspiring, the work that they were doing, because we all know fraud is rising and even more so with AI now and scams. And so the opportunity to have a meaningful impact on something like that really resonated with me. So I think those two factors, you know, the culture of the company and the opportunity that they were really tackling and the challenges that they're solving is what got me super excited to join them last year as their CMO.

SPEAKER_01 5:46

I think that's such a great reminder, too, because I think sometimes people are so intimidated by technology or by the concept of something like fintech. And yet it is so important to have safeguards and protection like what your company is doing. So I think it's just a great reminder, too, of how it much it has to really integrate into our life. Thank you for sharing that. I'm wondering too if you'd be willing to share a little bit about your career journey and sort of how you got to where you are, some of the choices you've made, things that you've done.

SPEAKER_00 6:14

Yes. Well, I one will say I was one of those probably rare kids growing up that kind of always knew what I wanted to do. I didn't necessarily say CMO. That wasn't a term, right, that I knew or used when I was a middle schooler, but I always knew I wanted to be in communications. I always loved to write. I loved to read. I would like the story competition when I was in fifth grade. I loved advertising. And so I always knew I wanted to go somewhat into that industry. And in school at Carolina, go to our heels, one of the best things I did was a lot of internships. When I when I talk to early talent now or meet with prospective candidates or just get connected to people, my number one advice is internships, internships, internships. More than your GPA, that real world experience is so impactful and so powerful. So, you know, I had a lot of internships of different kinds when I was in school. That was really incredible. And then I started my early career on the agency side. Another thing that I think is so, so great if you are interested at all in marketing or communications is getting that agency experience. Like nothing prepares you for your career than being exposed to all these different clients, different types of work. Some of the most talented people you'll ever be around, you know, come from an agency environment. And so I think spending the first eight or nine years of my career with an agency was a huge training ground for me and helped me really find my strength in where I really excelled and where I wanted to focus. So when I sort of went to my first in-house client and joined Encino, I felt like I was really able to make a meaningful impact. So I think, you know, a couple of things are internships, agencies I'm a huge proponent of. And then general advice is say yes. You know, I think a lot of times women, and I have definitely been guilty of this in the past, we doubt ourselves or we're like, we're not ready for that, or I'm not sure I'm qualified for that, or I don't know how to do that. I've never done that thing before. And so we we back away from opportunities. And the best thing I can say is if given an opportunity, say yes. You we can figure it out later. Call me, we'll talk it through, we'll figure it out. Take that trip, take that client, be a part of that pitch, you know, whatever it may be, soak it up and say yes. Don't let the doubt get in the way and stop you from doing something that could have just an incredible impact on your career. At Encino, I came in in one role and I just said yes all along the way. And it just grew and grew and grew. It wasn't anything that I even roadmapped or could have planned. It was just being open to whatever came my way and whatever they needed and being willing to jump in and tackle it.

SPEAKER_01 8:58

I think that is so important. And I really hope the women listening to this will take that advice because saying yes, even if you don't think you're ready, is so important. Sometimes you just have to take the plunge. And you may not feel as confident as you want to, or you may not think the timing is perfect, but it's never going to be, right? So you just have to go for it. I love that.

SPEAKER_00 9:19

There is all of that data that says, you know, a man will look at a job description and if he checks like two of the qualifications, they're going to apply. And a woman won't apply for a job unless she hits like every single one of them. It's the same thing even within our current roles, though, right? Like even in your current job, if someone's like, this isn't a gap, or we need somebody to handle this, like you kind of shy away from it, or I haven't done that thing before, or maybe it's something you see, and then no one's even asking for someone to solve yet, but you see a way that it could be better. And instead of like waiting for someone else to figure it out, like, hey, let me just take that on. I'd love to show you how I think this can be improved. And I think now I'm a lot more comfortable doing that and saying that and over the years. But I think in the beginning, as a woman, again, it's just natural for us to kind of wait and wait for someone to someone else to tell us what to do or to take that step.

SPEAKER_01 10:15

Yeah. And to feel like we have to be like at this really high standard all the time. When to your point, sometimes men look at it and say, well, I'm 50% of the standard, so I'm still gonna go for it. So why shouldn't we? I also want to go back to your point on internships because as someone who has two recent college grads, that's so like top of mind for me because they both got their jobs from internships they did while they were in college. So I mean, I a hundred percent agree with you. That was my own experience as well. But I also feel like for especially for our listeners and those of you that run companies or in positions where you can create internship programs, I think that's another thing that we should all work to try to foster and nurture because I'm seeing it's more and more difficult for these kids to get internships. They're fewer and fewer now with AI. It's kind of changing what the entry-level landscape looks like. So I also think there's a tremendous opportunity for us and our collective experience and wisdom to try to create opportunities for young people in order to get that internship lessons learned.

SPEAKER_00 11:20

I think that's a really, really great challenge and call out at Encino, where I was previously, we built a really robust internship program. And they are a company that invests in interns that has a great program that really brings in talent and gives them opportunities and real experience. And I think, you know, that was something that we just sort of built and developed and now is very formalized. And actually, that's at other companies, it's not the same way at Alloy, right? We haven't gotten that level. So I think it's a good challenge. I need to, you know, walk the walk too to help ensure that we create those opportunities for future professionals.

SPEAKER_01 11:57

I do too. I mean, it's something I really want to do this summer is like develop an internship program because I agree with you. And especially in communications and marketing, like it's such an exciting time to be in this field, right? Things are changing rapidly.

SPEAKER_00 12:09

I need someone to come teach me all the time. You're teaching me. Teach me. Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 12:14

Teach me. I couldn't agree more. Well, thank you. Another thing that I love that we've always had in common, or at least for the last several years, is being moms. And I have always admired the way you've approached motherhood and work and how you've thought about trying to, I'm not gonna even say balance, but manage those things. And you talk a lot about some of the choices you make and and how you think about that. Can you share that with our audience?

SPEAKER_00 12:40

I don't really like the word balance either because uh, you know, I don't, I think that's outdated. So I, I don't know, a few years ago, my husband, Richard and I, we just started talking more about what are the things we're gonna prioritize. So I I call it like a 3D framework for, you know, we always have frameworks at our jobs. And so I think about the things in my life as what are the things that are really important that I'm going to do because there are priorities. What am I going to delegate? And what am I going to drop? And because you can't do it all and you can't be everywhere. And if you try to, you're going to fail everything and drive yourself crazy. And everybody around you too. Cause nobody wants to be with somebody that's like on, you know, chaos all the time. So, you know, for us, like for me, a few of the things that we really prioritize that I say, okay, these are the things that are important that I'm going to do and invest my time in. It is my kids, it is my career, it's our health. I can't delegate that. Like I have to get myself to the gym or the spin studio or go on that walk. So those are a few examples. Community is really important for me. And so showing up for my community and friends and those relationships. And then on the delegate side, there's things you have to do. But maybe there's better ways to do them than yourself, right? Scaling and helping outsource. So I do not have a green thumb. Uh, we have a gardener and a landscaper, and I don't, I don't touch our yard, couldn't tell you how to trim a rose bush. We have a full-time housekeeper. She's amazing. She's like a part of our family. And don't do laundry. That is something that has to be done. But we've decided to invest in in outsourcing there. And then on the drop, it's probably controversial. For I don't know how people are going to respond to this. Other listeners, something that I decided to drop was being involved in my children's school, not in their school wing. I'm involved in their school wing. And but in terms of like volunteering, chaperoning a field trip, going to a PTA meeting, it's not for me. And so I just have to say I'm dropping that. That's not part, that's not how I'm going to choose my to spend my time. There are other people that that brings them joy. And so that's an example of something that I'm like, I have no guilt. You have to say I'm dropping it. So I'm not gonna have guilt about it either. I'm just not, that is not something that I'm going to do. I will donate to the classroom. I'm always like, every year with the teacher, what do you need? What's your Amazon wish list? I will get it to you. But in terms of, you know, showing up every week to work in the library, that's not where my time and and and energy is best suited.

SPEAKER_01 15:06

And I admire that so much. And I think it is so important for us as women to be comfortable making those choices because everything in life is trade-offs. And I know you, I know what an involved mom you are. So by choosing what things you drop, my perception is it allows you to then invest fully in the things that stay in your line of focus. And I think that's really important because otherwise, as you said earlier, you spread yourself so thin, you drive yourself crazy, feeling like, how am I gonna do this all? It becomes a lot of anxiety. You don't show up as your best self. So I really think that is such a strategic way to think about managing your life and your work. And I've often said to people, like, I wish I had more of Catherine in me in terms of the scaling your life. Like, I love what you said about the housekeeping and the way that you think about the gardening and the landscaping. I mean, there are so many things that I'm not talented at. And it's so smart to just say, okay, then let's get the help we need. I love that. So I really hope people listening will take that advice and feel like this is the added permission maybe they need to do some of that for themselves.

SPEAKER_00 16:12

Yes. It again, no guilt here and no judgment. And someone else's list of of what they're gonna invest in and do versus delegate versus drop may look very different. And the whole point is as long as you're intentional about it and as long as it's what's true to you, right? And what serves you in your life, like you have all the permission in the world to do the things that are important for you and to drop and not do the things that don't. And that's okay. And so I think we have to just say that, and that changes over time, right? In a few years, it may look different. I may come back to you, Andrea, and be like, gosh, I'm really, I gotta get, I gotta show up now and be at the school. It's a different age. We're in a different era. We need to start shop rooning those dances.

SPEAKER_01 16:54

I'm worried.

SPEAKER_00 16:56

Gotta go on the field trips now, right? It may be very different in a few years because seasons change. But for now, that is like, I think in general, the approach, and we should look at it on a continuous basis. But that's what allows me, uh to your point, to kind of try to show up as my best self in those areas that are really important and be present in the, you know, be present where you're present.

SPEAKER_01 17:17

Another thing that I think is really interesting in your world in particular, but it's certainly affecting everyone, and it's affecting all of us as communications professionals, is how we're seeing AI show up in our lives and in our work, right? And especially with you being in FinTech and I'm sure dealing with AI and all types of facets of your work life. Talk to me about how you see AI influencing your work and our professional world as communicators.

SPEAKER_00 17:43

I mean, it is you can't have a conversation, you know, today without talking about AI. At Alloy, we have an enterprise-wide chat GPT license. I am in there every single day. I mean, I use it every single day. And I'm constantly sort of pushing and challenging my team to test, to iterate, to experiment with it, try different use cases and then share what's working and what's not. We're very thoughtful about avoiding AI slot because you can tell now when you go on LinkedIn, it is a dead giveaway of someone just straight up copied from Chat GPT. Couldn't agree more. Yep. You can spot it a mile away, and that's not authentic. So I don't, you know, I always say I don't think AI is going to replace our work. I do think it should help speed up our work in certain areas. It should help us get to that kind of like rough first draft a lot faster. But I don't believe that it's going to replace the need for good communications, the need for strong marketing professionals, the need for good taste and thought and attention to detail. And in fact, you need it more because of AI. And that's where that human element comes in. So that's sort of how we approach it internally within the marketing work at Alloy. And it is test and experiment, share, learn, try, but don't rely.

SPEAKER_01 18:59

I love that. And I think you mentioned earlier about storytelling. And to me, that is still the uniquely human gift we have is storytelling and connect emotionally. And a lot of the AI stuff that I see, while it is getting more sophisticated, it's still very robotic. And you still see a lot of like certain phrases where you're like, that doesn't even make sense in that context. You know, it's just a cool phrase, but it actually isn't adding any value or connection to your audience. So, you know, we'll see how things get.

SPEAKER_00 19:27

And there's M-dashes everywhere. And it's unfortunate because I actually love an M-dash. Not anymore. I won't use them anymore. Now everybody's gonna say chat GTP right now. And I gotta take the M-dash out. But like that was actually a thing I really loved and used. So, but yeah, when you see it like five times in one paragraph, you know, it's a pretty dead giveaway that Chat GPT was the author.

SPEAKER_01 19:48

Yeah, and I'm like, whatever happened to colons and like other forms of punctuation, they just disappeared. Yeah, that's so classic. But I I agree and I feel really good that as communicators, there's still a role for us and our, you know, our jobs are still really important. And I think your point, which is also worth underscoring, is the authenticity piece of it. Because when your writing comes from a place of passion and purpose and meaning, it really shows. It really shows. And when you believe in what you're doing and the work you're doing and the brand positioning of your company, like all of that really shines through as communicators. Absolutely. When you think about community, which I know is something that you mentioned earlier that's important to you. And I love that you've been in a book club forever, as far as I can recall. Love my book club. How important is community and those kind of social circles and your friends? Like, how does that influence your world and how you show up, both at work and in life?

SPEAKER_00 20:50

So, so much. You know, I'm fortunate I have a close-knit group of girlfriends that we grew up together. We've been best friends since elementary school. So I don't want to, you know, age myself, but 30 plus years. We have a great neighborhood we live in here, lots of wonderful families. What I have really proactively sought out as an adult is unity with other working women. Because I think, you know, there's there's the friends that we have because we grew up together and those are so sacred. There's the friends we have because of proximity. You know, again, you live in the neighborhood or your kids' friends, parents, and you also really get off and get along with them and love them. But for me, I think something that's been really special that I've just really thrived on over the last few years is that connection and intentional community with other working moms. And the book club is one example. So I've been a part of this book club for several years. There's six of us, and we are all professional. So there's a couple of doctors, a couple of lawyers, a couple corporate execs, and we all have children and we get together. We do actually read the books, by the way. We all actually also love to read, but we we come. Together every six weeks or so and have dinner. And we talk about the books, we talk about our favorite podcast, we talk about travel, what's going on at work. And it's just, it is so filling. I mean, I can leave the dinner at 9:30 at night and I'm like wide awake because I'm so energized. So those type of connections, I have others that I've formed that were former colleagues, and we've all gone off to other companies and roles now, but are still very close. And they are some of my closest friends and mentors and confidants that again, you can talk to in a way, whether it's, you know, venting about what's going on at work or challenge you're having with a team member or saying, hey, I've got this like conversation coming up with my boss. Can I kind of role-play with you? How have you handled this? And you can lament childcare struggles or, you know, other things that you're going through that I think they identify with in a way that maybe not everybody else in your community does. So for me, you know, I feel very fortunate to have such a wonderful group of women around me that also have similar professional journeys or paths and careers that are important to them. And being able to share in those experiences and support one another through those experiences has been incredibly powerful for me.

SPEAKER_01 23:13

I think it is so important. I mean, that's one of our big beliefs at Women I Want You To Know is the power of community and bringing women of similar purpose, passion, goals together because there is nothing like that feeling of being surrounded by other women who, to your point, share your struggles, share your celebrations. And it's so needed in our life. And I feel like with COVID, we all kind of got in this place where a lot of us were very internally focused and sort of cut off from that from a socialization standpoint. So it is so great to have people reconnecting and really getting out there. I think they say 2025 was one of the biggest years since COVID for in-person gatherings and communication. They're back. Connection and they're back. So yes.

SPEAKER_00 24:00

100% they are back. And I'm so happy about that. I, you know, thrive on in-person communication and interaction and connection. And, you know, had the pleasure of being at one of your dinners for women, I want you to know. And same thing, I left that dinner feeling so inspired and energized and just filled my cup. And that is that's is something you can't, you know, there's a time and a place for virtual events, but you can't replicate what you get when you have a conversation with someone in person live.

SPEAKER_01 24:33

Yeah. And just that energy you feed off of each other, right? It's really special that way. Well, since you, you know, a lot of this centers around your book club, what is the best book that you have read in the last year? What would you recommend to all of us?

SPEAKER_00 24:45

My favorite book from the last year, I might have passed this one on to you actually, would be The God of the Wood.

SPEAKER_01 24:50

Yes, you did.

SPEAKER_00 24:51

It is on my nightstand. It's set in a kind of rural camp in Maine, I believe. But there's there's mystery, there's family, there's welts, there's, you know, a lot of suspense. So I couldn't put that one down. That was a favorite. In general, I love fiction. So I typically read fiction. That's like my escape from work and reality, right? Yeah. So I know people love to recommend business books. I'm I'm good for like maybe one a year, honestly. And I just devour fiction.

SPEAKER_01 25:20

So I'm right there with you. Give me a good beach read any day of the week, and I'm so happy.

SPEAKER_00 25:25

I don't know how you feel about this, Andrea, but I'm also a physical book person. Me too. So again, we're on our devices all day. And you know, laptops and computers and and phones. So at night, I want to I want a book in my hand before bed, and that is a that's the end of a good day for me.

SPEAKER_01 25:41

I couldn't agree more. And there's something just very calming and relaxing about turning the page and feeling the page. And I don't know, it's just very grounding, I feel like. 100%.

SPEAKER_00 25:51

I I'm like you, I have them piled up on my nightstand, but maybe not the most efficient from kind of like a space clutter perspective, but it does bring me a lot of joy. And I I'm not, I'm not, I'm not moving on to your Kindle. I don't want it, I don't need it. Don't give me a nook, just give me a book.

SPEAKER_01 26:07

It's so funny because I walk my dog in the neighborhood, and there's this wonderful older woman. She's in her 80s, and just this morning we were walking our dogs, and she was saying she was rereading a woman of substance and she was reading it on her Kindle. And I was so impressed that she was reading it on her Kindle, but I'm like, I can't go there. Same thing. I need a digital detox at night. I'm all about reading the old school books. I thought it was so cute that she was like, Yeah, I haven't read that one.

SPEAKER_00 26:35

So I might need to I know I said I'm gonna put that on my list.

SPEAKER_01 26:38

Yeah. Well, another thing that I know brings you some joy are your sneaks. I love to use are you still wearing them? How do you feel about them?

SPEAKER_00 26:47

I'm not in them at the moment because I'm working from home today. So I am not currently wearing my sneaks, but I I like to think I was an early adopter of the sneaks. And for people who don't know me, they may not know this, but I am quite petite. So I live in heels. I am sub five feet, and so I am always in the highest.

SPEAKER_01 27:11

You always rock those heels, so you would never know.

SPEAKER_00 27:15

I am always rocking it, and it's funny because alloy is based in New York, and so I travel there frequently, and people are always like, even in New York, I'm like, even in New York, especially in New York, you're gonna find me in my heels and my team there is so funny too, because they've they they just know me as you know, running around the office in my heels. But the sneaks have gotten a lot of mileage. It's probably time to invest in a new pair. But between sneaks and, you know, platform heels and wedges in the summer, you're always gonna see me in something with a a a few inches on it.

SPEAKER_01 27:46

Well, it says a lot that you're still doing that all these years later and your feet are handling it.

SPEAKER_00 27:52

And I know again, this may be one of those things that I have to drop at some point, but it is not any time in the in the near future. It is definitely just a part of the personality that, you know, I just lean into the heels.

SPEAKER_01 28:04

Are there any other things that are on your radar for this year? Any trends or fads or things that either you're excited about or you're like, I'm done?

SPEAKER_00 28:14

Okay. So we had this conversation actually at work yesterday, and we had some new hires, and that was a question we asked all of our new hires is what is a trend you're excited about, but what is something you want to leave behind in 2025? So it was funny to hear the range of answers. So I'm gonna embrace, I'm gonna copy one of my colleagues who said they are ready to leave behind a six, seven trend. That's okay. They're like, can we be done with six, seven? Again, two small kids, it's constant all the time. I'm ready for us to move on from that. One thing I'm excited about as we embark on this year is sort of this like back to, I don't know, back to basics, analog a little bit. I think because AI has had such a hype cycle for a couple of years now. And it's not going away. So I'm not saying that AI is going away. But what I am saying is I think it actually, because of the rise of AI, because of tech, because of device, I mean, all this data about people and their phones now. I am hopeful that there's a little bit of a shift back to basics, back to foundations, back to real connection, real community, authenticity, whether that's in, you know, your writing, your storytelling, your work, how you show up in your life, and and just more authentic, less putting on for, you know, the social media audience or for AI everywhere and having to be the next kind of like AI bandwagon. Whether that's really happening or not, I I'm willing it to happen. And I do think that there is a desire, as we've talked about, for that real connection and community again and being able to have these sort of authentic conversations, just like you've set up today. So I am very excited that that will become a bigger trend in 2026.

SPEAKER_01 30:02

I'm going to join you in manifesting that because that would be just awesome. And I I hope for our children's sake and, you know, the generations beyond that there is more of a compartmentalization of certain technology because it does distract from the deeper connection you can create with people if you're constantly distracted by your phone, or you know, there's a million beeps and different, you know, noises and alerts going off. It's just incredible how distracting it all is. So I love what you're saying, and I'm let's put it in the universe. Put it out there. And make it happen. No, I love that. Is there anything that we haven't touched on that you'd like to communicate to our audience or to the women out there?

SPEAKER_00 30:45

The ability, the authority, the opportunity to build their life, right? And make those choices to be just really intentional. So I think if we can all bring more of that intention into our lives, into our careers, into our families and do that in a way, again, that's true to each and every person. And like everyone here and everyone listening and all of us are have are have that permission. And so, if nothing else, I hope that people will be inspired to be even a little more intentional about the things that they spend their time on, their resources, their money, their energy. I'm gonna quote Taylor Swift to end. She had that podcast she was on last year, and she said, treat your energy as a luxury good. And I thought that was amazing. Like not everyone can afford it.

SPEAKER_01 31:38

I love that. And I think that is such an empowering note to end on. So thank you so much, Catherine. It's been really wonderful to have you here and get a chance to talk and catch up and share so many of your insights and perspectives with our audience today. Thank you so much. This has been so fun. Thank you for being here today and sharing in this inspiring story from Women I Want You To Know. Please leave a review and share this episode with another woman in your life. Enjoy the conversation and connect with us on LinkedIn and Instagram, and keep fueling the future for female founders and leaders. Thank you.