➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Michele Roderick has been living with multiple sclerosis for 30 years. She had her first symptoms at 19, built a top one percent worldwide pharmaceutical sales career, helped build a brokerage for a decade, and then co-founded Now Nation with Courtney Twiss inside eXp Realty two and a half years ago. In this episode, Michele breaks down the ideal week framework for designing a business that works for your life first, why no is a complete sentence and how to say it without apologizing, where the deals are already hiding in the contacts on your phone, and what great co-leadership actually looks like when two people know their strengths and set their egos aside. Her X factor? The ability to connect with people. This conversation is warm, practical, and one of the most honest coaching conversations I have had on the show.

Timestamps
0:00 - Intro: Michele Roderick, Co-Founder of Now Nation
 0:41 - Business Today: Supporting Now Nation's 100 Agents
 1:13 - What Now Nation Is Inside eXp Realty
 1:21 - MS Diagnosis: 30 Years Living With Multiple Sclerosis
 2:31 - First Symptoms at 19 and the Road to Diagnosis
 3:00 - How MS Fueled Her Drive to Succeed
 3:29 - Pharmaceutical Sales Top One Percent in the World
 3:59 - The Hustle Culture Problem in Real Estate
 5:03 - Coaching the Actions That Break the Hustle Cycle
 5:48 - The Ideal Week Framework: Start With 168 Hours
 6:10 - Deduct Your Non-Negotiables First
 6:53 - What Are Your Four Working Hours Really Worth?
 7:28 - Stop Attending Things Just to Make an Appearance
 8:00 - Expending Energy You Do Not Have
 8:29 - There Is Nothing Left for the People You Love
 8:54 - Design Your Ideal Week on the Front End
9:24 - You Do Not Owe Anyone an Explanation
 9:44 - Has It Gotten Easier to Say No?
 10:19 - How to Say No Without Apologizing
 10:22 - No Is a Complete Sentence
 11:11 - Coaching an Agent on Declining an Invitation
 11:30 - Setting Boundaries With Clients Too
 12:01 - Partnership With Courtney Twiss: 12 Years Together
 12:30 - Integrator vs. Broker: Playing to Your Strengths
 13:16 - What Great Co-Leadership Actually Looks Like
 13:34 - We Innately Feel Like We Have to Do It All
 14:06 - Know Your Strengths and Set Your Ego Aside
 14:28 - Setting Your Ego Aside Is a Leadership Superpower
 15:05 - Ask for Help Inside Your Partnership
 15:30 - There Are Deals in That Phone Right Now
 16:10 - How Many Contacts Do You Have?
 16:44 - Are They in Your CRM?
 17:10 - Go Get the Deals. Call the People.
 17:39 - The Challenge to Every Agent Listening
 18:35 - What Is Your X Factor, Michele?
 18:55 - The Ability to Connect With People: A Beautiful Spirit
 19:15 - Social Media From Zero to Fire in Two and a Half Years
 20:10 - How to Find Michele Roderick: Ask the General

Key Takeaways
Michele has been managing MS for 30 years and built multiple successful careers alongside it.

Design your ideal week on the front end, not around what is left over.
Start with 168 hours. Subtract sleep, family time, and non-negotiables. Build your business inside what remains.

No is a complete sentence. You do not owe anyone an explanation.
The right response to an invitation you cannot accept: I looked at my calendar and unfortunately that does not fit this week.

You do not need to apologize for having boundaries with clients either.

The deals are already in your phone. Open your contacts. How many do you have?

Get them into your CRM. Start calling. The business is right there.

Great co-leadership requires knowing your strengths and setting your ego aside.

Setting your ego aside is a leadership superpower.

Ask for help inside your partnerships. That is part of what makes them work.

Michele's X factor: the ability to connect with people.

She built her entire social media presence from zero in two and a half years.

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Google Business Profiles across eXp Realty were being suspended and deleted without warning in 2026. Years of hard-earned client reviews gone overnight. Google support telling agents their cases were closed or that they were not even eligible to have a profile. In this episode, Seth Siegler, eXp's Chief Innovation Officer, breaks down exactly what happened, why it was happening to virtual businesses across the industry, how eXp escalated directly to a leader at Google Search to get a fix in place, and what every affected agent needs to do right now. The fix is real, it is working, and no eXp agent should have to accept a suspended or deleted profile as a final outcome.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro: The Google Business Profile Crisis
0:31 - What Was Happening to eXp Agent Profiles
1:00 - Years of Reviews Gone Overnight
1:20 - Why Google Was Doing It (Bots and Fake AI Businesses)
2:00 - The Pendulum Swung Too Far
2:30 - Google Support Was Giving Wrong Information
3:00 - eXp Escalates: Leo and Seth Get to Google Search Leadership
3:45 - Why Scale and Partnerships Matter in Moments Like This
4:30 - The Fix: A Direct Line Above Google Support
5:00 - The Five-Minute Form in The Hub App Store
5:45 - Profiles Coming Back to Life
6:15 - What Every Affected Agent Needs to Do Right Now
7:00 - No Agent Has to Accept a Closed Case
7:30 - It Is Good to Have Scale

Key Takeaways

Google Business Profiles were suspended due to a crackdown on AI-generated fake businesses, not anything agents did wrong.

Any virtual business including every eXp agent is eligible for a Google Business Profile.

Google support telling agents they are ineligible is incorrect.

eXp escalated directly to Google Search product leadership, bypassing support entirely.

There is a five-minute form in The Hub App Store. Search for Google and fill it out.

The form goes directly to the Google team handling eXp agent profiles.

Profiles are actively being reinstated.

Do not accept a closed case. Reach out to eXp directly.

It is good to have scale. Use it.

Glenn Sanford built the first version of The Hub himself using AI tools and zero traditional coding. Seth Siegler, eXp's Chief Innovation Officer, took it from there. In this episode, Seth breaks down the full story of how The Hub came to be, what it is today, and how to access it. He also walks through the Google Business Profile crisis that hit eXp agents earlier this year, how eXp went directly to Google Search leadership to get a fix in place, and what every affected agent needs to do right now. Plus Seth shares the two mental frameworks he uses for every innovation decision and why the barrier to building AI native business systems is basically gone.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro: Seth Siegler, Chief Innovation Officer at eXp Realty
 0:45 - The Hub: How It Started (Workplace Retired, Slack Was Not Enough)
 1:30 - Glenn Sanford Heard the Agents and Built the Solution Himself
 2:15 - Vibe Coding: Building With Lovable, Claude Code and AI Tools
 3:00 - The First Version Unveiled at DXP Fall 2025
 3:30 - Tell It to the Robot: The Right Way to Think About AI Building
 4:15 - The Hub Today: App Store, Feeds, Groups, Referrals
 5:00 - How to Access The Hub (exprealty.com Login)
 5:30 - The Hub Is a Platform With an API, Not Just a Tool
 6:00 - Customizable Feeds: Up to Four Different Views
 6:45 - The Hub App Store: Canva, House Canary and More
 7:30 - Google Business Profile Crisis: What Happened
 8:15 - Profiles Suspended and Deleted, Years of Reviews Gone
 9:00 - Why Google Was Doing It (AI Bots Flooding Business Profiles)
 9:45 - Seth and Leo Escalate to Google Search Leadership
 10:30 - The Direct Pipeline Fix: A Form in The Hub App Store
 11:15 - Profiles Coming Back to Life
 12:00 - What Any eXp Agent With a Suspended Profile Should Do Now
 12:30 - Switching to Innovation: What Seth Is Most Excited About
 13:00 - Sim.AI and the Accessibility of Agentic AI Systems
 13:45 - If I Were Starting Over Today: The First Framework
 14:30 - Who Would Be My Worst Competitor: The Second Framework
 15:15 - The Barrier to Building With AI Is Basically Gone
 15:45 - Real Estate Is Ahead of Every Other Industry in This Conversation
 16:15 - eXp Is Ahead of Real Estate

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Tom Bohn is six months into his role as CEO of Inman, and what he is building for the next chapter of real estate's most iconic media brand is worth paying attention to. Recorded live at Inman Connect, his first as CEO, Tom breaks down Inman 2.0 (the Bloomberg Terminal for residential real estate), a new AI tool that turns any Inman article into a localized video script agents can ship straight to their socials, a mission to recruit 1000 citizen journalists from every street corner in the country, what has surprised him most about the real estate industry, why AI doom and gloom is clickbait, and the one thing he believes defines his X factor as a leader.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro: Tom Bohn at His First Inman Connect as CEO
0:34 - How Is It Going? First Impressions of the Community
0:51 - Wendy's History with Inman: 25 Years and Counting
1:19 - What Drew Tom to the Inman Opportunity
1:43 - Going Into Great Brands That Think Their Best Days Are Behind Them
2:09 - Building on Brad Inman's Foundation
2:51 - News Is a Commodity Now: The Problem Inman Is Solving
3:06 - Inman 2.0: What Does That Actually Mean?
3:52 - The Bloomberg Terminal for Residential Real Estate
4:25 - Five Things You Need to Know Every Morning
5:04 - The AI Green Screen Widget: Turning Articles Into Local Video Scripts
5:56 - You Green Screen Inman Articles? Let's Make It Easier.
6:00 - The Bloomberg Terminal Deep Dive
6:58 - What Does This Mean for the Everyday Agent?
7:34 - The Citizen Journalist Mission: 1000 Storytellers on Every Street Corner
8:04 - Why Agents Know Things No Newsroom Can Know
8:44 - The Call to Arms: Everyone Said Yes
9:39 - Changing Culture One Person at a Time
10:47 - Sometimes Leadership Means Making Hard Decisions
11:34 - Obsessed with Serving the Local Agent
11:39 - What Surprised Tom Most About Real Estate
11:47 - The Collaboration That Shocked Him
13:05 - Agents Share Their Playbooks (And Why That Works)
13:50 - Inman 2.0 as an Online Community
14:28 - Rapid Fire: Podcasts Tom Listens To
14:51 - UFOs, Near Death Experiences and Area 52 Podcast
15:32 - Tom's Son: Actor, Executive Producer, Horror Film
16:44 - Thoughts on Gen Z Work Ethic (He Disagrees With the Critics)
17:19 - Tom's Take on AI (Hint: Doomsday Is Clickbait)
18:34 - AI Breakthroughs in Health, Environment and Technology
19:01 - What Tom Wants the Industry Saying About Inman in 12 Months
19:30 - The Last Question: What Is Your X Factor?
19:44 - I Know What I Do Not Know: Humility as a Superpower
20:10 - Wendy's Book: Leverage Your X-Factor

Key Takeaways

News is a commodity. Inman 2.0 is the answer.

The Bloomberg Terminal vision means one platform agents live in all day, not just check occasionally.

The AI green screen widget turns any Inman article into a localized video script for your market.

Inman wants 1000 citizen journalists on every street corner telling the stories no newsroom can.

Culture changes one person at a time. Sometimes adding. Sometimes subtracting. Always intentional.

Real estate collaboration surprised Tom more than anything. No one said no.

Agents are more entrepreneurially sophisticated on social media than any other industry.

AI doom and gloom is clickbait. The breakthroughs coming are bigger than anything in our lifetimes.

Tom's X factor: knowing what he does not know and believing his next day will always be better than his last.

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Optimized YouTube Description
Courtney Twiss opened her brokerage six weeks after her third daughter was born, built Twiss Realty Group into one of the top brokerages in the Yosemite foothills, co-founded Now Nation, and along the way picked up a lending company, a commercial fencing business, and a boutique hotel that started as an $84,000 duplex. In this episode, Courtney breaks down the entrepreneurial mindset behind all of it, why she pivoted away from a ten year plan to dominate California, what it means to build a network without ego or noise, how she uses Claude to filter email and connect to Canva through AI integrations, and why becoming visible to AI search is the next frontier for real estate agents.
Timestamps

0:00 - Intro: Broker, Investor, Hotel Owner, Now Nation Co-Founder
 0:56 - From Lending to Real Estate: What the Banking World Taught Her
 1:50 - Starting as a Realtor in 2007 (The Short Sale Years)
 2:18 - Knowing She Wanted to Be a Broker from Day One
 3:13 - Being a Young Mom and Teaming Up to Find Flexibility
 4:05 - Opening Her Brokerage Six Weeks After Her Third Daughter Was Born
 4:20 - Growing to Multiple Offices and Joining eXp in 2023
 4:34 - Meeting Don Yocum Through Vistage
 5:37 - The Pivot: Letting Go of the Ten Year Dominate California Plan
 6:48 - Helping Others Get Clarity on Vision vs. Fulfillment
 7:03 - People Have to Be Willing to Let Their Egos Go
 9:10 - What Is Now Nation and How Did It Start
 10:11 - Local Expert With Global Reach (Not an Or, an And)
 10:59 - No Ego, No Pressure, No Noise: Why That Positioning Matters
 12:30 - The Entrepreneurial Spirit Beyond Real Estate
 13:01 - Four Companies: Fencing, Lending, Hotel, Real Estate
 13:57 - The $84,000 Duplex That Became a Boutique Hotel
 14:30 - Advice for Entrepreneurs: Go for It
 15:36 - You Have to Be Willing to Fail More Than Others Even Try
 16:29 - Women in Leadership: Stop Putting Yourself Last
 17:14 - Invest in Yourself, You Will Be a Better Leader for Everyone
 17:50 - Strong Female Leaders Attract Strong Female Leaders
 18:01 - Instagram Strategy and Content Creation Systems
 19:15 - Getting Over the Cringe and Learning to Fly a Drone
 20:04 - Using Claude to Analyze Instagram Content
 21:08 - Claude Integrations: Canva Pro, Email Filtering, Brand Kit
 21:36 - Becoming Visible to AI Search (Not Just Google)
22:16 - Courtney's X Factor: Not Being Afraid to Fail and Go for It
 22:51 - How to Find Courtney: All Things Twiss on Instagram

Key Takeaways
Opening a brokerage with a six-week-old is possible if you know what you want and go for it.
It is not an or, it is an and. Local brand plus eXp equals local expert with global reach.
Let your ego go. The vision you set at the start line may not be the right one for where you are now.

You have to be willing to fail more than other people even try.
Women put themselves last. Investing in yourself is not selfish. It is leadership.
Strong female leaders attract other strong female leaders.
Use Claude to filter email, connect to Canva Pro through integrations, and create content without opening the app manually.

AI search visibility is the next frontier. Agents who optimize for it will have a real edge.
Now Nation is five states, 100 agents, and growing with no ego, no pressure, and no noise.

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Zillow processes more real estate leads than almost anyone on the planet. But knowing what to do with a lead once you have received it is a completely different skill. Jimmy Miller, Zillow's agent enablement expert, spends his days inside that exact problem. His job is helping agents actually convert the opportunity sitting in front of them. In this episode, Jimmy breaks down his core philosophy (make the right thing to do the easy thing to do), the green dot real time browsing signal, how Zillow Pro connects buyer activity data directly into your CRM, the difference between generative and agentic AI explained simply, why the home value conversation is the most underused tool in any agent's database, and what separates agents who thrive on platforms from those who just show up on them. Plus Wendy shares her go-to content recommendation and Jimmy turns the tables with a great question at the end.

Timestamps
0:00 - Intro: What Is Agent Enablement and Why Does It Matter?
 1:04 - Jimmy Miller: More Good Days Than Bad Days
 1:53 - Enablement Is Not Even a Real Word (But It Means Everything)
 2:38 - Make the Right Thing the Easy Thing to Do
 3:32 - A Day in the Life of Agent Enablement at Zillow
 5:13 - Book Smart vs. Agent Smart (Hood of the Car Moment)
 6:48 - What Is Zillow Pro and Why Does It Matter for Agents?
 7:35 - 70% of Buyers and Sellers Use Zillow During Their Transaction
 8:49 - What Is My Agent and How Does Lead Exclusivity Work?
 10:18 - The Timer Problem (And How Zillow Pro Solves It)
 11:46 - No More Countdown Clock. Your Lead Is Yours Permanently.
 14:13 - Real Time Signals: The Green Dot Strategy
 15:44 - How to Use the Green Dot Without Being Creepy
 16:48 - Tenured Agents Know What to Do Next. Here Is How to Get There Faster.
 17:22 - Generative AI vs. Agentic AI Explained Simply
 20:23 - Smart Messages: AI in Your CRM That Knows Your History
 21:39 - The Grocery Store Problem (And Why It Matters)
 22:56 - The One Thing Agents Leave on the Table Most Often
 24:00 - Always Tell People What Their Home Is Worth
 25:35 - The Win-Win Home Value Conversation
 26:07 - What Is Your X Factor, Jimmy?
 26:29 - Say Yes to Everything People Suggest You Consume
 27:25 - How to Find Jimmy Miller and Zillow Academy
 29:49 - Jimmy Turns the Tables: Wendy's Recommendation (Neil Patel)

Key Takeaways:
Make the right thing to do the easy thing to do. That is agent enablement in one sentence.
70% of buyers and sellers in the U.S. use Zillow during their transaction.
My Agent removes the countdown timer and makes a lead yours permanently on Zillow.
The green dot means a lead is actively browsing right now. That is the moment to reach out.
Tenured agents know what to do next. Smart tools give newer agents that same confidence.
Generative AI is the back and forth you have with ChatGPT or Claude. Agentic AI is like hiring a VA and letting it work in the background.
Smart messages let AI draft follow-ups using your full conversation history, including email, calls, and texts, all in one place.
The most underused conversation in any agent's database is telling people what their home is worth.
Best case it becomes a listing. Worst case the client feels great. There is no downside.

Jimmy's X factor: say yes to every book, show, or podcast anyone recommends. The things you do not love teach you why other people do.
Zillow Academy courses are free. Log in with your Zillow account and start there.

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Sean Soderstrom, founder and CEO of Courted, has built one of the most quoted data sources in real estate — and his numbers tell a story most brokerages aren't tracking closely enough. The average outgoing agent's production was $2.11 million. The average incoming agent replacing them produced $1.44 million. That's a 46% productivity gap. In this episode, Sean walks through his path from joining Compass when it had just 10 agents to co-leading McKinsey's residential real estate practice to founding Courted, why headcount is the wrong metric for brokerages to chase, why the sales manager might have the hardest job in the industry, why middle-tier producers are the most profitable (and most overlooked) segment of any roster, and what the data says about where brokerage M&A and agent migration are heading next.

Timestamps
0:00 - Intro: Sean Soderstrom, Founder & CEO of Courted
1:12 - From Compass to McKinsey to Founder
2:04 - The Moment Recruiting Became a Data Problem
3:50 - Taking the Leap into Entrepreneurship
6:23 - Starting with Data, Not Workflow
8:05 - Predictive Analytics Before It Was Called AI
8:58 - Early Pivots: Listening to the Wrong VC Feedback
10:55 - The Hammer Looking for a Nail
12:25 - Macro Pivots vs. Micro Pivots in Building Tech
13:40 - An AI Company Building AI Products for AI Users
14:06 - Why Recruiting and Retention Are Treated as Separate Strategies
14:48 - The Sales Manager: Hardest Job in the Industry
16:55 - Net Recruited Volume vs. Headcount Goals
17:58 - The 46% Production Gap (The "In and Out" Report)
18:51 - Why Losing Two and Hiring Two Isn't a Win
19:29 - Headcount Doesn't Tie to the P&L
20:10 - The Fixed Cost of Every Agent ($5K-$12K/Year)
21:09 - Team Leaders Make the Same Mistake
22:08 - Why Middle-Tier Producers Are Most Profitable (and Most Overlooked)
23:13 - Hot Topics: Mergers, Consolidation, and Industry Trends
24:50 - The Economics Behind Brokerage Profit Margin Decline
25:42 - Why Well-Capitalized Companies Are Acquiring Now
26:46 - Will M&A Continue Through the Year?
27:47 - Agent Migration Trends Within "Houses of Brands"
28:35 - Top 100 Brands Only Account for 59% of the Market
29:35 - Why the Agent Gets Chosen Before the Brand
30:42 - How to Find Sean Soderstrom and Courted

Key Takeaways
Average outgoing agent production: $2.11M. Average incoming: $1.44M. A 46% gap.
Headcount doesn't tie to the P&L — net recruited volume does
The sales manager is effectively the CFO, COO, CHRO, and CRO of their office
Every agent carries a fixed cost of $5,000–$12,000/year, even non-producers
Middle-tier producers are the most profitable — and most overlooked — segment
High-split top producers are often less profitable than they appear
Recruiting and retention should be one strategy, not two
Brokerage M&A is likely to continue due to declining margins and rising team economics
Top 100 brands account for only 59% of the U.S. market
Consumers choose the agent first, the brand second
The right way to build a product: get sharp on the problem before talking solutions

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

Amanda Miller did not enter real estate the way most people do. She came from a corporate retail career — eight years at Gap Incorporated and a director of training and development role at Tilly's — before making the leap into real estate in 2018. Four months into her new career, her business partner had a health emergency and stepped away. She inherited 37 pending transactions and a full pipeline. She called it the duck strategy: gliding on top of the water, paddling furiously underneath. She figured it out — and that experience became the foundation of everything she has built since. Today Amanda is a broker associate at EXP Realty, founder of Valley Real Property in Fresno, California, and the newly appointed chair of the EXP Pride Network inside OneEXP. In this episode, Amanda talks about building 13,000 Instagram followers through authentic humanized content, her equity-focused business philosophy (all her favorite EQs: equality, equity, and emotional intelligence), why she stepped into the Pride Network chair role, and her belief that change happens with movements, not moments.

Timestamps
0:00 - Intro: Amanda Miller, Broker Associate, EXP Pride Network Chair
1:00 - From Retail to Real Estate: The Background
2:30 - Single Mom, Corporate Climb, Gap and Tilly's
4:00 - Allowing Yourself the Space to Adopt the Risk
5:15 - Shadowing Warren: Pitching a Job Before Getting Licensed
7:00 - The Duck Strategy: 37 Pending Transactions in Month Four
9:00 - Building a Name in the Local Market
10:30 - Why Instagram? Using a Tool You Can Use Well
12:00 - Professional and Polished + Humanized on Repeat
13:30 - Cold Chicken and Watermelon: 30 Comments by Morning
15:00 - Authentic Content Outperforms Polished Every Time
16:15 - Community: The Personal Board of Directors
17:45 - Equity Strategy: All Her Favorite EQs
19:30 - Equality, Equity, and Emotional Intelligence
21:00 - The EXP Pride Network: Why Timing Felt Right
22:30 - Raising the Rainbow Flag as Visibility and Responsibility
24:00 - Change Happens with Movements, Not Moments
25:30 - Open Dialogue Over Defense
27:00 - Meeting People Where They Are: Amanda's X Factor
28:30 - How to Find Amanda Miller

Key Takeaways
The duck strategy: gliding on top, paddling furiously underneath
Make yourself visible before you feel ready — that is what opens every door
Pitch the role that doesn't exist yet — Amanda did it twice in corporate and once in real estate
13,000 Instagram followers built on professional content humanized on repeat
Cold chicken at 8pm got 30 comments — authentic beats polished every time
All her favorite EQs: equality, equity, and emotional intelligence
Equity in relationships, community, and physical assets — her full business philosophy
Build a personal board of directors — eliminate draining and negative energy intentionally
Change happens with movements, not moments
Open dialogue and education create more change than argument and defense
Meeting people where they are is both a relationship skill and a business strategy
X factor: external perspective and gaining trust by acknowledging where someone is

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

What happens when an accomplished woman in real estate decides her career isn't the whole of who she is? She competes in a pageant. And she wins.

In this episode of X-Factor Marketing, I sit down with Qadra Evans — a leader and connector I've known for years in the real estate industry — who recently won the title of Mrs. Montana 2026. Now she's heading to Mrs. America, and she's sharing everything: the preparation, the discipline, the platform, and the mindset that made it all possible.

This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt like their job title was starting to swallow their identity. It's proof that you can be excellent at your career and still have room to chase something else — something that's purely, boldly yours.

In this episode, you'll hear:
Why Qadra Evans decided to compete — and why she did it for herself, not for anyone else
How she managed a high-demand corporate career alongside 5:30 AM gym sessions, pageant prep, and social media batching
The hardest part of the whole process (hint: it wasn't the swimsuit competition)
Her platform, The House That She Built — and why she's reading books to kindergartners about women in the trades
What Mrs. America actually looks like: 10 days, three outfits a day, and the Super Bowl of pageants
Her X-Factor: being a cheerleader — and what that really means

Resources mentioned:
The House That She Built by Molly Elkwin — available on Amazon
Follow Qadra Evans' journey: @MrsMontana2026 on Instagram
Qadra Evans' website: MrsMontana2026.com
Leverage Your X-Factor by Wendy Forsythe — on Amazon (all proceeds benefit Extend a Hand)

Connect with Wendy:
Instagram: @wendyforsythe
LinkedIn: Wendy Forsythe
Book: Leverage Your X-Factor on Amazon

Timestamps:
0:00 — Introduction
1:40 — Why Qadra Evans decided to compete in Mrs. Montana
3:30 — The preparation: gym, interview practice, and time management
6:00 — The decision and the five months of prep
7:00 — The hardest part: learning to tell your own story
9:30 — Tips for answering questions and pitching yourself
11:00 — What Mrs. America looks like
14:00 — Her platform: The House That She Built
17:00 — Growing up and losing the spark — and what we can do about it
20:00 — Her X-Factor: being a cheerleader

➡️ Download the FREE "Content Creation Realities & Lessons: A Guide to Smarter Strategy": https://stan.store/wendyforsythe

In this episode of X-Factor Marketing, I'm giving you a front-row seat to one of the talks I'm most proud of — my keynote at HousingWire's The Gathering: "The Table Wasn't Built for Us: Stop Asking for a Seat."

I open with the story of Anne Boden — a woman who spent 30 years in UK banking, rose to COO of the country's largest bank, pitched a transformative idea twice, and was ultimately told to retire at 54. Her response? She founded Starling Bank — the UK's first digital bank — which later sold for a billion dollars.

Anne's story is proof that "too late" is a lie we tell ourselves. And it's the entry point for three moves I believe every woman in leadership needs to make right now.

In this episode, you'll learn:
Why fighting for a seat at a table that wasn't built for you is a strategy that's never going to work — and what to do instead
The critical difference between mentorship and sponsorship, and why women need to sponsor each other more aggressively
How to be bold before you feel ready — and why waiting for the perfect moment is costing you opportunities right now
The data behind the gender gap in real estate and mortgage C-suites — and why it's not a pipeline problem
What Anne Boden's story really teaches us about confidence, timing, and building something great

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - Intro: A Different Kind of Episode 
1:15 - Meet Anne Boden: COO to Billion-Dollar Founder 
3:30 - The Middle of the Story Is Where the Lessons Live 
4:45 - The Reality: Talent Pipeline Is Full, C-Suite Hasn't Changed 
5:30 - The Lie We Tell Ourselves (Imposter Syndrome) 
6:15 - 53% of Female Founders Start Outside Their Background 
7:00 - Move 1: Build Your Own Table 
8:30 - Move 2: Advocate for Sponsorship Over Mentorship 
10:15 - The Difference Between a Mentor and a Sponsor 
11:30 - You Can Sponsor from Any Level 
12:00 - Move 3: Be More Bold 
13:30 - We Fight Hard for Everyone Else 
14:15 - Figure It Out on the Go: One of Our Greatest Strengths 
15:00 - Conclusion: Be Like Anne Boden 
16:00 - Leverage Your X-Factor Book + Extend a Hand Charity

🎯 KEY TAKEAWAYS
✔️ The table wasn't built for us — stop fighting for a seat, build your own room 
✔️ Anne Boden was told to retire at 54 and founded a billion-dollar bank instead 
✔️ 53% of female founders start businesses outside their background 
✔️ Female founders over 40 are creating extraordinary opportunities 
✔️ Mentorship guides — sponsorship opens doors 
✔️ A sponsor says your name in rooms you're not in 
✔️ You can sponsor from any level — advocacy changes things 
✔️ We negotiate fiercely for others but not for ourselves 
✔️ Ask for the opportunity before you feel ready — that's how you get it 
✔️ You don't need the perfect plan — figure it out on the go 
✔️ Fight for yourself with the same gusto you fight for everyone else