The Exchanges

Q How long did you work like that, where it was like a dollar in, a dollar out, a dollar in, a dollar out?

A For a long time, Cody, no one would invest in me. Okay. So I had to do it on credit card debt and a line of credit for 10 years. I bootstrapped this business. And so every single dollar I made, I had to figure out, okay, how am I going to reinvest it and get the biggest ROI I can on that dollar? What I love about it is it made me incredibly scrappy. And as I run a billion dollar business today, I still have that scrappy startup mindset. And I'm so thoughtful about how we spend our money, What we're spending it on. What are we doing and thinking about it? And everyone I hire, I really remind them, like, I remember when I couldn't afford a second set of tools, folks. So before we just throw out, you know, a million dollars on this project, let's bid it out. Let's really think about what we're doing. What are we going to get in return for this? Why are we doing it? And it's kind of having that, you know, when you start with nothing and you build it, you never forget how hard that is.

AI assessment note: “for 10 years. I bootstrapped this business.”

Q You're like, calm down. He's fine. He's good. He's good. So what, what makes a good salesperson? You mentioned authentic, but if you were like, all right, if you want to get good at sales, this is what you need to do. What would you say?

A I think you need to come in. You need to be articulate what it is you're trying to sell in a very short sentence, right? Be very clear. Be very concise with your pitch and eye contact. And then ask questions. If they're saying no to you, this is the greatest opportunity for information. To me, that is on in the mirror, meaning the conversation has just got it started. So you say, no, you don't want the collection. I go, okay, well, what did you, what didn't you see today that you would have liked to see? What can I show you next time? Cause I've already now setting the appointment for the next time I'm coming back. When I come back in spring with my next season, I'd like to know what I could, could bring that you might be more excited about seeing. What other designers are you buying that you're really excited about? Can you tell me what it is about them that you like? So all of a sudden my sales call became this information source that I'm now going to take back with me and learn from and then come back to. And I promise most of those no's turned into a yes because of that. I didn't go, okay, oh, you don't like me. Okay. Bye. And then we're going to see you again. It was, I'm going to learn and I'm going to win a yes from you. And I'm going to keep trying. And there was, I would said cupcakes and cookies to buyers in the early days. Um, you know, if it was a spring theme, I'd …

AI assessment note: “You need to be articulate what it is you're trying to sell in a very short sentence”

Q operate as if. So do you think there is a way for somebody who is listening right now that's like, Lord, my brain doesn't work that way. You know, when I, when I get punched in the face, I stay down. It makes me sad. I'm like, how does that even happen? You know, is there somebody, if they're listening right now, how do you brainwash your way into success?

A You know, it's, it's really We are our worst enemies. People say that a lot of time. Our minds, you know, the, the power of what if, right? We, we let the power of what if I would have done this instead of this, or what if I would have married Joe instead of John, or what, you know, we can, we can spiral ourselves into complete paralysis by letting the what ifs control our mindset, right? And so we are our worst enemy. So when we are in those moments, this is where I get, and this is the competitive thing again. Somebody hurts you, or says something, or, you know, something doesn't go the way you want it to go. In that moment, you have a choice. I'm gonna let them win. I'm gonna let them have all of the power. I'm gonna let them force me to stop loving again, or believing in myself again, or trying again. I'm gonna give that to that person, or that thing that just happened to me, or I'm gonna take the control back, and I'm going to get up right now, and I'm going to remember who I am, what I can do, What I am capable of. And I'm not going to look in the rearview mirror anymore. I'm going to look forward. And I'm going to remember that. And I think when you have that shift of do you, are you going to allow that person or that thing that happened to you control your future? Or are you going to take it as fuel to absolutely go forward in a powerful and strong way? That's the choic…

AI assessment note: “In that moment, you have a choice... I'm gonna take the control back”

Q and, and we, You know, climbed the corporate ladder or built our businesses or whatever. And then I think there are a lot of, of women that I talk to at least, it's the number one thing they want to talk about. They're like, I'm successful in my career. I'm, I'm motoring, but like, will it be possible for me to find love and a man that can handle it?

A One, I mean, there are people out there, there are men out there and then women out there too, right? Like it goes both ways, right? And it's like, you can't just be the girl boss in every situation. Like there's masculine and feminine, right? And like, I can be totally tough girl boss, making the decisions, doing all the things, but there's moments when I want to come in and I want to be more of the feminine side of me. And I want him to like, honey, you decide what we're having for dinner tonight or where we're going to go. Like, I don't want to have to make all the decisions. And it's nice to be able to have that dynamic and be able to know that you can have that ebb and flow in a relationship and that you're in a safe place to do that. Um, there's nothing more powerful than that. And it's important to like, you know, look, I hadn't gotten it right all the time. And I look at you and, you know, you've, you've known your guy for a long time. And I have friends that have had relationships that, you know, they've had since they were in high school or college and like, wow, like that's amazing. But I also think we need to give each other grace. Not everything works out the way we always wanted to. No one goes into a marriage or any type of relationship thinking it's going to end. We're all hopeful, right?

AI assessment note: “there are people out there, there are men out there”

Q How do you come up with crazy ways to get attention without spending tons of money?

A Well, you don't need tons of money. You just need creativity. And you need to not be afraid to, you know, like, I think so many people are like afraid, like, oh my God, I'm going to get laughed at, or that could be, as my twelve-year-old says, cringe. Um, you know, that could be so cringe. Um, but you've got to be able to just go out there and have fun and not care. You know, stop caring what everybody else thinks. Be disruptive. That's the only way you're going to make it in business today is you have to be disruptive. I say it all the time. This is one of my slogans. If you're doing what everybody else is doing, you've already failed. You have to do it with your own fingerprint, your own voice, and you have to do it in a disruptive way. I love to use the example of the blue man group. Okay. How many like acts are out there in the world, right? That are like competing, like just like jewelry, right? Or all these other industries. These guys said, I'm going to paint our bodies blue. We're gonna go on the streets, and we're gonna dance, and we're gonna do our thing. Blue Man Group became, because they were disruptive. They did something that other people would go, what in the world is happening? But it caused attention. It created excitement. Activity bred activity, and it bred bookings, and it, it built a whole business for them. So don't be afraid to be a little crazy.

AI assessment note: “You just need creativity. And you need to not be afraid”