Fry Girl Fundamentals
Fry Girl Fundamentals is the leadership podcast that proves the best leadership lessons don't always come from the boardroom.
Hosted by executive leadership consultant Mildred Hill, each episode uncovers practical, honest conversations with leaders from every walk of life—people who have built trust, inspired teams, overcome failure, and discovered what leadership really looks like when no one's watching.
Whether you're leading a healthcare practice, a business, a team, or simply striving to become a better leader, you'll walk away with actionable strategies, fresh perspectives, and the confidence to lead with greater purpose and impact.
Because leadership isn't about where you start. It's about who you become.
Fry Girl Fundamentals
Ep 4: Building Confidence Through Experience
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In this episode of Fry Girl Fundamentals, Mildred sits down with someone who knows her beyond the titles, leadership lessons, and professional accomplishments; her son.
Together, they explore how confidence is built through experience, why growth often requires stepping into situations before you feel completely ready, and the lessons that come from learning as you go. Their conversation offers a unique perspective across two generations and a reminder that confidence isn’t something you start with, it’s something you build through experience.
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Leadership isn't about where you start. It's about who you become.
Welcome to Fry Girl Fundamentals. I'm Mildred Hill. I believe some of life's greatest leadership lessons come from unlikely places. For me, that journey started at the Fry Station. Each week, we'll have honest conversations about leadership, growth, resilience, and the people who shape us along the way. Whether you lead a team, a business, or simply want to become a better version of yourself. I'm glad you're here. Let's get into it. Hi, Noah. Welcome to the show. Super excited to have you on.
SPEAKER_01Morning. Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, for sure. Noah, the reason I wanted you on is because I have heard all of your life. The kid with the million dollar smile, the most optimistic person I know. He makes everyone around him better. He's a natural-born leader, which I know drove you nuts. So talk to us about Noah. You're young, but you carry yourself with a kind of steadiness that a lot of people twice your age are still chasing. Where does that come from?
SPEAKER_01That comes from it comes from a lot of different things. It comes from working, I would say, at an early age. Um as soon as I turned 16. Um, my mom put me in the workforce as soon as possible. I don't think I was allowed around food at the time. So I was I picked up three jobs. I picked up math tutoring, working at a skating rink, and volunteering at the library. Um, and it all kind of started the same summer that I turned 16. So that taught me a lot of time management, but it also put me in front of a lot of people, and I started picking up a lot of people's habits and kind of how they worked and what they wanted out of um somebody who was in service to them. And so I kind of picked up on a lot of what they wanted. Um, and so I feel like once you kind of understand the general consensus of what people are looking for out of you, you can kind of understand the best way to give that to them. And so that once you yeah, sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off, but once you kind of have a general understanding, you can begin to work with a level of comfort and confidence of knowing that you can deliver that.
SPEAKER_00Okay. So talk to me more about the confidence level. Where does that come from? I mean, you mentioned age 16, working three jobs, like, and I know it was, you know, not your choice in the beginning.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. The uh the confidence genuinely comes from trial and error. That is you once you know something works, and once you've seen it work, and once you know you have a solution to almost any problem that can arise, once you've kind of seen enough of something, you can have you can build an internal confidence to know that there's nothing you can't handle when it comes your way. If you know you have the skills to handle an upset customer, client, whatever, then there's no need to be worried about an upset client because you know you have the tools in place to to handle that.
SPEAKER_00What was your system of assessing like what was working and what wasn't working? And how did you know?
SPEAKER_01That's a good question. Um self-reflection massively coming home at the end of the day and knowing how you handled kind of that big situation of the day. Um, like everyone who comes home from a day of work kind of knows that that big event in their day that, you know, either was great or wasn't great. And so self-reflection of how you handled that situation, and also if you have good leadership, you can you can kind of get feedback. Like if a customer goes to your manager, your boss, and was like, hey, the kid back there really kind of handled my situation well, then you know, sometimes that trickles down and you hear that that that honest good feedback and and you can go from there. But I think people have people know, people intrinsically know if they handled a situation well or not. If they have their head on straight, I think it's it's kind of built in. And I think I was just lucky that I got fulfilled by handling situations well, by by interacting with people well. That was just something that I had, like it felt good to solve to solve somebody's problem or to kind of help them through whatever. Um, so I think that that kind of carried me a little extra, extra long way, I would say.
SPEAKER_00You mentioned self-reflection. What do you say to the person who doesn't really know what that looks like? And then I always felt like the other part of self-reflection is owning it. So how what do you say to the person who's like what what does that even look like?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, self-reflection, that first step is owning it and accountability. Um yeah, having having three jobs, three different bosses. Um the first the first step is is owning up to how you handled the situation, if you handled it well or you didn't. And at that point, with enough of those owning up moments within yourself, you kind of just learn to choose to continue to go down the path of success or the path of of best outcome. Um but yeah, and self-reflection doesn't have to be this long sit-down meditative whatever. It can be while you're still on the job, like after after you had that interaction of um maybe I can be a little bit softer with this, with this person, or you know, just just looking at all sorts of different angles and understanding the the other possible ways um to to try something.
SPEAKER_00For sure. No, I um I hear something back there. Can you share with us who we hear?
SPEAKER_01Oh, um, that's my dog Vanta. I just adopted her. She is an absolute treat. She's uh yeah, she's been my my new favorite coworker. I would say I work from home, so nice new new co-worker supervisor. She keeps me on top, so it's pretty nice.
SPEAKER_00I love that. I know the audience is gonna see, but your face did a complete 180, total shame. And that is what people, that's exactly what people call you on that million dollar smile, just big energy. Noah, let's talk a little bit more about mindset. What is one thing about your mindset that people your age would probably push back on?
SPEAKER_01Ooh. Age, my generation is so weird, is so mixed in a way. We're we're a really I feel like we're like we're a very turning point generation. I would my first thought was to say like just doing hard things, like just getting things done no matter what, to like getting what needs to be done done. But I don't know if that's true. As I get older, I'm really starting to see my generation kind of handle business. They're really they'll they'll get after it, they'll get after they'll get after the stuff that needs to be done. So I would alter that and say more in a pursuit of greatness. More I don't think my generation consumes enough information, I would say. So that's that's something I really try to do. I really try to consume intentional media, whatever it is, um, just to either to either reset or ground me or to move forward. Um, those are kind of my two purposes for for media. So I think that would probably probably be a a mindset that they would push back on. Like, why do you need to consume, why do you need to retain information? Why would you bring something in when you can just look it up? When you can just, you know, reach for the resource when you need it instead of having that internal building that internal resource uh bank, I guess.
SPEAKER_00Let's sit right there for two reasons. You know, I never have more than one question. Uh one is where did the love of learning come from? Which I happen to know about you. And the second question is, what is your take about AI and its role in in life and uh in the professional space as a tech guy?
SPEAKER_01Okay, yeah. Where did my uh love of learning come from? Um again, I don't really think I had a choice to love it until I chose to love it, I guess. I was always in a learning space. I was um in a pretty rigorous academic field growing, or not field, but academic environment growing up. Um I went to a pretty academically challenging private school. I also did Kumon, which is it's not it's not for when you're behind, it's to help you get ahead, which I know there's a a lot of mixed thoughts about it, or or people just don't really understand it. But so it was it was school on top of school, I'll say it like that. And it was it was strictly math, which is a very methodical subject, which is how I now operate, is very methodical and very logical process. But that's um yeah, just kind of the that full culmination of you can't really escape it. Uh it's it is what it is. It it became um it became a natural, it became a norm, it became the baseline. And once something becomes the baseline, it becomes a lot easier. As soon as you almost automate that, as soon as you automate a process, it um you can I guess turn your energy towards other things, um, which is kind of how I move in life. But once you automate learning, um, you can turn your energy from, oh, I don't like learning, oh, this is annoying. You can turn it to actually finding what you like about it, what your interests are, what's um how you can do it better more efficiently. Um so I think that's where the love of learning came in. Once I once I kind of understood that I wasn't gonna get away from it, um, and I I got to I got to turn turn it towards what do I like about it. And most people would say like you would you learn to love it once you see the fruit of its labor or once you once you get to see its outcome. But you don't sometimes you don't get that until much later, much, much later. Like even from I would say just the the the gap of high school, you I was I was loving learning, but I wasn't seeing its outcome. I wasn't seeing its its quote unquote payoff. Um even in until now, I was just talking with my girlfriend. I was like, I miss reading for fun. I miss reading for like for for like academic gain, like having to to to crack open a textbook, you know, like we there we had that bit of nostalgia there that uh that we really enjoyed. And and that's just kind of a flash of of seeing the love of learning um and kind of seeing its its pay off. Um and to answer your second question about AI, that is a mixed bag. It is a a very broad topic. Um, I actually took a data ethics class in in college and really enjoyed that. Um and I think AI and the role of business can be great and is great. Um there's it's a very nuanced question what it what AI needs to even function right. Data centers and and water and kind of all the the big topic buzzwords that you see at the the top of the headline can really skew people's view on it. Um as far as I know and how I kind of my mindset towards AI, I think we should start it slow and we should start it with the small things. It should be kind of like I mentioned earlier, it should be automating the little things so that we can turn our energy towards other things. I don't think we have a whole lot of regulations on it. I think it's a it's a it's a new world, it's a new landscape. It's a it's a it is a new vast and dangerous landscape that is just blazing forward unstopped, unchecked. Um so there's there's that.
SPEAKER_00We're gonna tread lightly from the girl.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00I don't watch news, I don't read the paper, I don't yeah, I don't know anything. So um I'm looking at your big smile and I'm thinking about you know your level of positivity, and it can look easy from the outside looking in, but what does it actually cost you to maintain it?
SPEAKER_01Oh um, it costs me my own selfish choices. Um, you have to deny yourself a lot of those kind of um those kind of quick reactions or quick whatever um sometimes, not definitely not all the time, but it costs it costs, you know, leaning into leaning into the self when it feels good. Uh when it feels good to to be sad or to be upset about a situation, um, which are allowed for sure, but within their own space and capacity is is what I've seen works the best. Um But at the end of the day, the reward of again of how it makes people feel, of how it of how it eases people's aura almost around you, uh really does outweigh that. And it it honestly offers a level of control around a situation, which I really enjoy. Intense situations when the other person is not choosing to choosing to choose, um, when you yourself are choosing to to choose, that that offers a level of control. Um, and not in a bad way, but like a true control in a situation can be really helpful to help guide guide a situation in a in a proper path. So that kind of reward really offsets, you know. Oh, I don't get to be upset, or I don't get to say that super witty thing I have uh that's just loaded in the chamber. I don't I don't get to do that, but it's worth it. It's always worth it.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, no, I've known you for 24 and a half-ish years, and you said something, and I remember looking over at you in the car and like telling you, it's okay, like if you're like not to be happy. I feel like you were always on, and it drove me crazy because I never really knew how you felt. I felt like I didn't really know how you felt, but I could always, to your point, read your aura. Um, I would go super slow on Old Waco Drive just to get an extra 10 minutes with you on that three mile road. And for those of you who are wondering, like, how do I know this? Noah Hill is actually my son. And um he literally is one of the happiest, most optimistic. My first phone call when the day is bad. Um I don't want to get emotional. Um, but with that, Noah, how do you really overcome, like keep this positive outlook? Like there has to be a personal cost to you.
SPEAKER_01Um I've kind of always been this way. I haven't noticed a I would I'm gonna come back to the personal cost because I can I would love to reflect on that as I answer that. But how have I how have I done it this long? It was was that the question? How have I have I done it this long? I mean again, it just becomes easy once you once you kind of continue to choose it, and it's it really is natural. It's not it really is how I feel about most situations or how I approach most situations. And I've as I've come to learn, nothing is really that serious. There's nothing nothing is really ever that serious. There's nothing that can't be handled, there's nothing that can't really be um, I guess, approached. There's nothing, there's there's nothing. There's I feel like we a lot of us are in this place where things feel dire, things feel very um, very, very finite, very, very hard end, very, this is an obstacle that can't be moved or broken or adjusted or what have you. Is it's not things are things are much simpler than we realize, and the solution or approach we can take to things can be simple and easy. And I think a lot of situations in life are much more low consequence than we than we realize. Um so that's kind of once at least for again, this is what works for me. I definitely don't want to generalize that because there are some high consequence things, but even in even in the I feel like in those high consequence situations, there's just you have your options, you choose what you do with them, and and even if that option doesn't work, there's more options in that next situation that you can do to pivot or to turn back or go forward even stronger, you know. So it's I think I think there's nothing that can't really be done.
SPEAKER_00Um you're gonna say it. Um we'd love to hear you say it.
SPEAKER_01There is a book out there that is called Everything Is Figure Outtable, which is quite true. I did read, and again, just kind of reinforce that that um that ideology that everything is figure outable. There's really nothing you can't can't understand. Like I said, you can move forward stronger, you can pivot, turn back, you have options, and nothing, nothing can't be figured out.
SPEAKER_00Love it. Now uh let's circle back to reading. You mentioned working at a library, you mentioned heavy reading for school, but I can remember you holding a book and a toothbrush. I can remember you holding a book at the dinner table and having to tell you, hey, can you put that down so you can eat? I remember after a basketball tournament, and it was either a hard W, I'm sorry, yeah, a hard win or a really crappy loss. Your mood was always the same. You picked up your book, and it's like it never happened. Talk to me about you and your relationship with books.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's that's pretty accurate. Used to get mad at me for getting spaghetti stains. Any food in the books. Um, and I would hope we never got an email or they would talk to us about, you know, please stop getting food in our books, but never happened, so I think we survived. Um, yeah, I books are as I've gotten older, I've understood books um a lot differently. Of course, when you're younger, there's stories, they're great stories. Um, and again, God, I'm gonna sound old, but this is this is pre phones, PlayStation 3. I hadn't unlocked that yet. So it was it was all I had. Um, and so it was just again, it was great stories. Um, great. Um I really enjoyed writing styles. I picked up on writing styles and tone really early. So I've really got to understand what I liked about an author and what I didn't like about certain authors. So that was fun. But yeah, books I've as I've gotten older, um, kind of as I went through middle school, high school, um, you know, general education, I really started to view books as a collection of the time and place that they were in. That um is something really cool, especially now as we get older and we start to reminisce about like, oh, the 2010s were like such a great time, like the 2012, 2016 um like era that we're that we're in right now that that social media is is really um embracing. Um you really can start to look at books and really remember and understand that they really are time capsules and of their time. Um whether that be fiction, nonfiction, like they're telling a story of that time and of that place and of that time. And that's really fascinating to me. I enjoy it's it's it's history keeping in a sense. Um, like the Percy Jackson books, 39 Clues books, like really like all that young YA fiction. Like it sounds crazy, but those are those are history books. That's what that's what we were enjoying at the time, and that's where our entertainment value and enjoyment was in. And I think that can can say a lot about a culture and a time, but overall, I really enjoy books because of their concreteness. It's a very concrete object, it's it represents standing the test of time. It's not, you don't have to pay a subscription for it, it's not, there's no ads when you read it, it's just it is what it is. It's a it's a very intentional piece of media that I really value and find value in. So, but yeah, growing up reading, loved it, loved the stories. But as I got older and started to like read for information, read to like pull something out intentionally, um, I found value in that. And it just feels different when it's an intentional piece of media that's meant to stand for a long time and meant to be around you and meant to meant to be come back to. I reread a lot of books. Um I'll I'll go out and grab new ones, but I'm a big rereader. Um, and I I find I find worth in that going back to a piece of media, a piece of literature in a different place in your life and gaining something new, um, and and and and pulling something different out of it based on where you're at in your environment and your situation. And I think that is something that is becoming lost almost.
SPEAKER_00That way you won't let me get rid of the books in the closet or the hallway or the boxes.
SPEAKER_01Yes. Yes, there are easily 200 books that I just I've I've almost reread every single one of them three times just because there's at just at different stages in my life because I I I understand something differently. When you're young, you read about a high schooler, and that's just like a fantasy. You understand you you you conceptualize a high schooler differently when you're you know fourth, fifth, sixth grade. But then when you get to that high school, you're like, okay, I can understand that high school world more. What nuances can I pull out now that are different from when I read it as a younger kid? And then when you're you know my age, you can look back and be like, ah, high school, you know, and you can kind of get more of a bird's eye view on whatever that that book was talking about. So I think it's a really neat experience. And that's even with even with um more technical literature as well. Um, like even like history books or you know, those self-help books. Um you can when you're young or when you're younger, you may not may not fully get it, but as you get older and you start to develop your own sense of of understanding of the world and how you move throughout the world, um, you can pull out different things, what works, what doesn't. Um, and that's again valuable. It's not the latest trend, it's not whatever's coming up next. It's something that's been hard, fast for a while, and it's it's something that you can refer back to. It's it's firm, it's it's not concrete, it's not always right, but it's something, it's a it's a good firm point of reference that you can come back to.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I'm gonna switch it up a little bit and no pun intended, but and I wasn't planning on talking about this, but um, we are. Okay. So talk to me about, I'll never forget the first time I heard the word code switching. I don't remember, I don't know if you remember where we were and who we were talking to, but why don't you talk to me about the code switching and what it means to you?
SPEAKER_01I'll talk about code switching broadly because I feel like that will have more value. Um I first learned about code switching. I was reading an article online um from Dr. Sarah Gaither at Duke. She uh became a pretty big inspiration for me at the time just because of the research she was doing. She's uh, I believe a sociology head of the sociology department over there at Duke. Don't quote me on that, but she was she was definitely in that department. Um, and I read an article about code switching and specifically it was about race, right? Biracial um people just in general, um, code switching uh due to their environment to either A feel comfortable or B relate to to gather information. There was it was like there's a communications aspect piece about it. Um, about I believe it was interviewing and how to um get the person you were interviewing to be more comfortable. So how do you switch and relate to that? But that is where I first heard about code switching. Um but definitely overall, what is it? Um it's the ab I I mean it truly is an ability and a skill, but it's it's the the process and and and function of switching because it's not personalities, it's it's a very nuanced what it is, buddy. It's it's switching for now for for conversational purposes, we'll call it personalities, but it's it's switching personalities based on your environment to get the best results, which is a scary slippery slope because it can sound manipulative, but well, that's leading into my next question.
SPEAKER_00How often did you code switch? Because you were in an environment and uh at school, in one environment, and in order for you to have windows and mirrors, we played ball in another environment. And at one point you were playing basketball in one environment in Austin, and then in another environment here in Belton, Texas. So, what did that look like for you?
SPEAKER_01Uh it yeah, it was fun. It was fun. I got to I chose to be I chose to be very different um in each of those environments. I I chose to in one environment I got to choose to be different, and another environment I was I didn't get the choice to be different. In the Belton, Texas environment, I didn't I uh I got to choose to be to be different. I got to choose to to kind of be the only black kid there, um, and and pla of course play basketball and and be that guy. But in Austin, I didn't really get to choose to to um be non-black. I was I was immediately the mixed kid, light skinned kid, sometimes white, depending on who was telling a joke. Um But yeah, it was it was fun. I I definitely learned to embrace it. It's um it was fun. It just added I noticed that it added a layer of of of dynamicness, not a word. It created a an extra layer within whatever group I was in that really um diversified it, that really got to add a different layer of humor, enjoyment, comfortability, and it kind of allowed for more references and conversations to be brought up and talked about in both in both groups, in both settings. And I found that um I found that enjoyable. I I got to to really find that um find that find that fruitful, like getting to talk about like free game rap songs in my predominantly white basketball team. Like I again, if I was, you know, if I was quote unquote fitting in and you know just trying to to assimilate to to their norms, we wouldn't have had that discussion or with that that that that conversation, that that openness wouldn't have been there. But because I was, you know, the token black guy, you know, we got to talk about Drake sometimes. And and you know, that was that that probably made them a little bit more comfortable to to know that you know whatever they've got going on can you know we're all the same. We're we're all the same. And you know, over yeah, it was it was fun. It was fun. So I moral of the story is you can you can do both. You can you can choose to to to assimilate and mesh and and and camouflage in with the environment that you're in. Um or you can choose to be different and kind of open up that that that diversity conversation or environment and see where it takes you. But there's no wrong answer. It's it's up it's kind of up to you as a judgment call to to see what you're comfortable with, what you're feeling like that day. It's again low consequence. It's really there's really no no bad outcome, I think.
SPEAKER_00I love that. So, Noah, your mom is coined the fry girl, grew up at the fry station, hardest spot in the restaurant. You um got to work restaurant, but you missed out on the fry station. But knowing what you know about being under the pressure um at the fry station, when you go down fries, the restaurant comes to a complete halt, right? Um, so mastering regulating your emotions um at the fry station because it literally is hot and figuratively it is hot. How do you well, first, what is your fryer moment? What was that moment for you?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I feel like again, the restaurant world is something different. Um, yeah, my probably my first fry, my first fryer station moment, or like my my my core fryer station moment was probably my first lunch rush at um at the good life. Um I worked at Shout out Sam, man. Best pop paws you'll ever have in your life. Um but yeah, I'm I don't know how, and I I ended up being like lunch lead, lunch shift lead for uh a sandwich like cafe, bakery, you know, kind of the whole thing, sandwich soup, salads. Um yeah, uh and we were somehow just right positioned on this main on the main road where we had nurses, we had almost all of Baylor Scott and White call in and place a catering order at least once a week. Um we had we had everybody come in for lunch. It was it was the spot to be. Um and so kind of that first that first day when everything hit, I understood how overwhelming it can be, how upset people can get over a sandwich, and um how methodical you kind of have to be in chaotic situations um to to at least get through it to survive. Um, but it's yeah, it's I mean you and I both know when when as soon as you see the tickets start to fall, it touches the floor, it's a it's it's a different story. Yeah, different story. But having a good team, having a good team helps too. Um, but yeah, that was that was definitely my my event for sure.
SPEAKER_00I love that. So last question now, and then we'll let you get to your day job. But what was it like growing up in a code switching environment from a mom who wouldn't back down, from a mom who is super um how shall we say literal, like right? When I had a problem with you, I picked up a book, I read it, and I was ready to apply it. Um I wasn't gonna even call out the the seven habits that I think you know by heart from writing them. But what was it like to grow up with a mom who just would not let up?
SPEAKER_01Difficult at first, um, difficult at first, but I think you you got on me early enough, or you were really firm enough early enough to where I hit a really honest level of acceptance with what the standard was. And once I hit that level of acceptance, it it wasn't it wasn't so bad. Um, it wasn't so bad. But spending nights in my room rewriting the habits on a clipboard, on a dusty clipboard, was not fun at all, at all. But again, you you definitely have to to to work like inwards with yourself to to hit a level of acceptance of all right, this is my situation, this is this is what's going on. And again, you don't have to understand the outcome, you don't have to understand the positives just yet. But once you hit a level of acceptance of like, okay, this is this is where I'm at, you can start to spend that energy elsewhere. That energy of ugh I hate where I'm at, uh, I'm not happy, I don't get it. You can you can pretty positively turn that energy towards other things. Like, I used to have terrible handwriting. Now people brag about my handwriting all the time. Like you can you can really find your small wins. Like, yes, I hate that I'm sitting here writing and stuck in my room, but you know, this is a cool way to write a W. For the next seven lines, let's work on this W. And it's you you find your small wins. Um but like personally, for you, it was um it was fun. It was fun. You were a great coach, great leader. Um, had the had the hard times, but like like a great, like any great coach, you're you're hard on your team, but you definitely celebrate those victories well. No thank you. Yeah, very big.
SPEAKER_00Noah, thank you. I found a picture of you. You drew this.
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah, I remember that from my art class.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it was not you were really good too. You might want to pick that back up, but no, no, we would love to see your new fur baby before we go. Is she awake or is she asleep?
SPEAKER_01She slumps off on there.
SPEAKER_00Oh my beautiful. Oh goodness. Okay, well, thank you so much, Noah, for giving out.
SPEAKER_01You're very welcome. Yeah. Nice ma'am, next time.
SPEAKER_00Thanks, Noah. Thanks for spending this time with me today. I hope today's conversation reminded you that leadership is built in everyday moments and the way we show up, the way we serve others, and the choices we make when no one's watching. If this episode encouraged you, challenged you, or just made you think differently, I'd love for you to subscribe, share it with someone who's growing as a leader, and join me again next time. Until then, remember leadership isn't about where you start, it's about who you become.