Kelsey L. Schulz is an entertainment attorney with a super busy job - she's the senior counsel for female-driven media company Kin Community, managing all of their talent, vendor, and crew agreements, distribution and licensing deals, COVID-19 industry regulations, and advising on all corporate, pre-litigation, production, and intellectual property matters. It's a big job, but if anyone can handle it, it's Kelsey. 

We talk about how she got into this area of law and her advice for others looking to get into the entertainment industry, be it music, TV, film, or theater law, either on the talent or the production side. Kelsey's the mom of the cutest baby ever, and we talk about her advice for other new moms with big jobs and how she manages all of the important things in her life. 

Another big part of Kelsey's life is volunteer work and philanthropy. She volunteers weekly with Chrysalis, helping people in Los Angeles find jobs and reenter the workforce. We have a really honest discussion about Kelsey's expectations for how she thought she'd be able to help people as an attorney, why doing pro bono work wasn't realistic, and why she decided to work with Chrysalis on job preparation and readiness instead.

Kelsey is such an inspiration and I was so happy to get the chance to chat with her! Find her on LinkedIn here. 

00:05:00: What is Kelsey's job and where does she work?

00:06:10: What has her career trajectory looked like?

00:09:32: What is the day-to-day of a busy entertainment attorney?

00:17:48: What's the difference between being an attorney for talent, a production company, an agency, and the other different niches in the entertainment industry?

00:24:52: What are some of the misconceptions about Kelsey's job? 

00:28:42: What are the rewards and challenges of Kelsey's job?

00:31:12: What does she look for when hiring staff?

00:34:48: What type of nonprofit work does she do?

00:43:23: How does someone advance as an entertainment lawyer - what does that look like?

00:50:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Kelsey give to her younger self? What were some of her biggest career mistakes and what did she learn from them? 

01:02:00: Listener questions and our lightening round 

Do you remember studying for the SATs or ACTs and how mind-numbingly boring it was? Kalyan Ray-Mazumder does. He's a perfect-scoring SAT/ACT tutor who has taught over 10,000 hours of test prep while working as a professional Off-Broadway/film actor. He realized that his students learned better when they were laughing and enjoying the material - and their improved scores followed. 

While working on his MBA at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business, he founded Prepmedians, which is at the intersection of test prep and comedian. Through SNL Weekend Update and comedy-style segments, Kalyan and his team help their students, laugh, learn, and crush the SAT/ACT.

With over 220k followers on TikTok, Prepmedians is totally disrupting the staid test prep game. Kalyan and I talk about how he got here, the rewards and challenges of his business, how he markets it to students, and his advice to building a business.

00:04:13: What's Kalyan's job and where does he work?

00:08:27: What has his career trajectory looked like? Kalyan tells us how as a professional actor in NYC, he was disappointed at the stereotypical range of "brown" roles available and how Prepmedians allows him represent his identity in a positive way. 

00:14:00: What does Kalyan's day-to-day look like?

00:18:50: What does he look for when building a team?

00:21:00: We talk about how remote learning has changed in the face of COVID-19.

00:26:00: What misconceptions do people have about the test prep industry?

00:29:00: What are the rewards and challenges of his job?

00:35:51: Kalyan's advice to someone building a business with or without an MBA.

00:40:00: How does Kalyan market his business? What has and hasn't worked? 

00:48:12: Back to the future - what advice would Kalyan give to his younger self?

00:54:16: What advice would Kalyan give to his younger self?

00:57:18: Listener questions and our lightning round. 

 

Makeda Mutema-Newton is a talented and super smart event strategist and the founder of Events Unlocked. She helps creative entrepreneurs plan profitable workshops, retreats, and conferences with attendee experience at their core.

She's written a 200+ page book with a detailed step-by-step guide on planning your event, and has tons of resources available at her site. She focuses on helping entrepreneurs plan an event that'll be both hugely valuable for attendees AND turn a profit for the person planning it. 

Makeda has worked so hard on her business, and I'm so excited to see it grow over the years. We talk about everything from how she got started to a detailed step-by-step of the most common mistakes people make when planning their conference, retreat, or workshop.

00:03:15: What's Makeda's job and what does she do?

00:08:44: What has her career trajectory looked like?

00:16:30: What are the rewards and challenges of her business?

00:23:00: How does she market her business?

00:41:00: What are the most common mistakes people make when planning their event?

00:50:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Makeda give to her younger self?

00:54:34: A Day in the Life: What does her day to day look like? Then, our listener questions and a lightning round. 

Caroline Ballerstedt saw a lot of people in her city of Providence, Rhode Island struggling with homelessness, addiction, and a lack of services like safe housing, access to food, and harm reduction care. Instead of saying, "I'm not a social worker," or "I'm not qualified to help," or "I don't know how to help," she just.... started doing it. Caroline works a full-time job in the medical field, but fit her outreach work into her evenings and weekends. She's a testament to the fact that you can do good things even without a specific degree or job title. 

Caroline started cooking big batches of hot vegan meals and giving them out to people living on the streets of her community. She then started creating safe injection kits, carrying around essential supplies like tampons, socks, and hand sanitizer, and her biweekly evening outreach became Compassion Kitchen Providence. 

Caroline doesn't see herself as a savior, and is loath to take the spotlight (but I'm willing to shine it on her and say she's incredible). She sees the people in her community first as people, and believes in meeting them where they are, listening to them, and giving them love, support, a hot meal, and a friendly ear. 

We talk a lot about the concept of harm reduction, which can be a controversial topic in the field of outreach and addiction. Caroline tells us why she believes that harm reduction is a more effective, safe approach than abstinence, what macro policies she think would help the homeless/unhoused population in her city, and her advice to people looking to do harm reduction outreach in their own communities. 

Compassion Kitchen Instagram

Compassion Kitchen Wish List

00:06:00: What is outreach work?  What does Caroline do?

00:10:53: What does she bring with her?

00:15:00: What is harm reduction, anyway?

00:23:00: What are the most important needs she sees in her community - food? Tents? Clothing? Personal hygiene products like sanitizer and toothpaste?

00:29:00: What, on a macro policy level, does she think will help with the issues of safe housing and addiction?

00:38:00: What are some misconceptions about outreach work and harm reduction?

00:40:35: How does she get all the supplies she brings?

00:46:00: What are the rewards and challenges of this work?

00:50:00: What's her advice to people looking to do outreach work in their own community?

00:58:00: Back to the Future, Listener Questions, and Lightning Round

Tori Horowitz is the founder and estate director of CanyonHaus, the coolest real estate agency in LA. Tori is a marketing genius and has crafted a really cool, bohemian, artistic brand for her company, and has built it into a successful business with a really talented team. 

She was born and raised in West LA and has an intimate knowledge of the city, especially the Laurel Canyon area where she lives and works (she shares some of this cool history in the episode). After a career as an actress, writer, and talent rep, she got into real estate and prospered despite the 2008 recession. Her Masters degree in Spiritual Psychology gives her a more thoughtful, intuitive approach to the sometimes cutthroat world of LA real estate.

In this episode we discuss how Tori transitioned into real estate, how she uses her creative talent in this career, how she built up CanyonHaus and hired a team, and how she's been able to thrive even during recessions and pandemics. Throw in some Los Angeles history and hidden gems and some very good advice about dreaming big, and you have one of our favorite episodes yet!

 

00:03:50: What’s Tori’s job and where does she work?

00:05:44: How did she identify and fill such a great niche?

00:08:11: What was her last 9-5 and what’s her career trajectory looked like?

00:21:14: What are the rewards and challenges of her business?

00:34:08: How does she market CanyonHaus - what’s worked and what hasn’t?

00:43:05: How has she been able to be flexible enough to be successful during recessions and pandemics?

00:50:30: Back to the Future and Listener Questions

I've been a huge fan of the amazing Meghann Rosales of Austin-based Nails Y'all for years, and was so excited to chat with her about all things art, nails, beauty, and business. 

Meghann is a lifelong artist, but started her career in the classroom, teaching history to high school students. She's now a renowned nail artist who in her words, "paints tiny pictures on nails." Meghann's sense of humor and talent means that these tiny pictures range from "boobs doing things" to "the saddest Christmas in the world" to hidden vaginas, entire seascapes, art deco fans, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and so, so much more.

Meghann takes individual appointments but also is hired for huge events like Austin City Limits and SXSW, as well as smaller events like bachelorette and birthday parties (sometimes with half-naked butlers in attendance, too).

00:04:00: What is Meghann's job and where does she work?

00:06:00: What has her career trajectory looked like?

00:10:39: What's her usual process for an appointment, and for brainstorming such unique nail art?

00:18:13: How does she market her business - what's worked and what hasn't? 

00:22:00: What's her favorite event she's ever worked?

00:35:00: What misconceptions are there about being a nail artist, or about manicures in general? Is dip powder really "good" for your nails?

00:46:00: What are the challenges and rewards of her business?

00:42:00: How can people support the beauty industry during the pandemic?

00:59:00: What advice would Meghann give to her younger self?

01:05:00: Our Listener Questions and Lightning Round

 

Kim Grevler is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and certified Life Coach who changes her clients' lives, careers, and relationships for the better. She's the woman behind selfishladies and is all about learning how to set and keep your boundaries. 

During the pandemic, a lot of us are feeling like we're struggling to keep up in so many parts of our lives, and Kim is here to give you the no-bullshit advice you need to feel better. 

Kim educates and coaches women to first notice how they are operating under fear guilt and obligation to others, and then to understand how the self doubt, resentment and anger that follows is linked to their lack of boundaries and thus lack of confidence and comfort. The work her clients do is challenging, but if committed, they emerge with a new perspective and improved behaviors in your life and relationships.

We speak with Kim about how the shadow of fear, guilt, and obligation clouds our judgement and leads to resentment, anger, and unhappiness in all areas of our lives, and how getting to the root of these issues and setting boundaries will make you happier and healthier. We also talk about how she built and marketed her business, and her advice for dealing with workplace issues. 

 

00:07:00 What is Kim's job and where does she work?

00:10:20: What's Kim's career trajectory? How did she go from being an LCSW in a clinical setting to a life coach and business owner?

00:17:48: How is she helping her clients deal with COVID-19 related fears and anxieties?

00:25:00: What are the rewards and challenges of her job?

00:31:40: We talk about the business side of selfishladies.

00:37:50: What advice would Kim give to her younger self?

00:41:40: What are the biggest business mistakes she's made?

00:52:00: Our Lightening Round segment, where she shares "the selfishladies anthem" with us (hint: Whitney Houston is involved). 

 

Kim Grevler is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and certified Life Coach who changes her clients' lives, careers, and relationships for the better. She's the woman behind selfishladies and is all about learning how to set and keep your boundaries. 

During the pandemic, a lot of us are feeling like we're struggling to keep up in so many parts of our lives, and Kim is here to give you the no-bullshit advice you need to feel better.

Celebrity guest alert! We're so excited to chat with the iconic Chris-Tia Donaldson - she's the founder and CEO of natural hair and skincare manufacturer Thank God It's Natural (tgin), a #1 best-selling author of two books, a two-time breast cancer survivor, a Harvard-educated attorney, and the founder of The tgin Foundation. 

Chris-Tia left her corporate job to found tgin and write her first book, Thank God I'm Natural - The Ultimate Job to Caring For and Maintaining Natural Hair. It became a runaway bestseller and was called "The Natural Hair Bible" by Essence, and tgin became a multimillion dollar beauty brand. 

In 2015, Chris-Tia was diagnosed with breast cancer.  During her treatment, she learned that having money could make the difference between living and dying when it came to treating this condition. In her observation, few organizations existed that provided support and social services to help women with transportation, child care, parking, or seeking disability leave from their place of employment. She founded the tgin Foundation to help support women living with the disease. 

Chris-Tia has a new book, This is Only a Test: What Breast Cancer Taught me about Faith, Love, Hair and Business.

She's a true powerhouse, role model, and legend, and we're so excited to have her on the podcast to discuss her business, books, and her story.   00:03:30: What's Chris-Tia's job and what does she do?   00:05:30: How did she get to this point in her career? What's the tgin story?    00:13:00: What was her first book, and what made her want to go from corporate law to beauty?   00:18:03: What does the day-to-day look for a busy CEO? How does she find the right people for her team?   00:22:00: What are some misconceptions about her job? What are the rewards and challenges?   00:27:00: Marketing - what's worked and what hasn't?   00:30:00: Chris-Tia tells us about her new book,

This is Only a Test: What Breast Cancer Taught me about Faith, Love, Hair and Business.

00:37:00: Back to the Future - what advice would Chris-Tia give to her younger self?   00:40:46: Listener Questions and our Lightning Round segment   

Kelly Howard had big dreams of career success, and graduating in the middle of our last economic crisis in 2008 didn't stop her. She hustled as hard as she could to find a PR job in the middle of the Great Recession, and it was all up from there. After working her way up in the industry, she got the opportunity of a lifetime: her boss offered her the chance to acquire the agency she worked at, Post+Beam, and Kelly said yes.

After a successful rebrand, Kelly has built EightSixtySouth into one of LA's premier strategic communications and PR firms. They serve clients across multiple verticals: Strategy, Public Relations, Digital and Influencer Engagement, Social Media, Copywriting and Events.

They've worked with a diverse roster of clients across the fashion, beauty & lifestyle industries, developing multi-faceted, impactful strategies while still focusing on data-driven results. Their expertise includes working with large, national brands such as W Hotels and Men’s Fitness, to boutique brands like The Beach People and Lokai.

Kelly chats with us about the huge leaps she's taken in her career, even when it was scary AF. She also shares the best ways to measure your business's PR ROI, and gives invaluable advice to people looking to break into the industry.

00:02:30: What's Kelly's job and where does she work?

00:04:15: What is PR, anyway? How does it differ from advertising and marketing?

00:11:20: What has Kelly's career trajectory looked like?

00:21:37: What services does a PR firm like EightSixtySouth usually offer?

00:32:45: What are some of Kelly's favorite PR success stories?

00:36:40: How does a PR firm successfully pivot as new technologies and platforms become more popular?

00:42:30: Business owners, listen up: Kelly provides invaluable pitching tips to editors and decision-makers.

00:45:54: How do PR firms measure success?

00:50:00: What are the rewards and challenges of Kelly's job?

00:57:44: Back to the Future: what advice would Kelly give to her younger self

01:03:10: Recent grads, listen up: Kelly gives you a roadmap of how to land your dream job, even in an economic crisis.

01:10:31: Lightning Round