Episode 315: Quitting Corporate America, Accomplishing Goals Through Fear, & Betting On Yourself with Kim Rittberg

Kim Rittberg 0:02

My husband and I are singing like Katy Perry. And all of a sudden, my daughter walks up and she grabs a mic and starts belting it out. I was like, Oh my god. This is what we all hope for is like, knowing the fear, feeling the fear and doing it anyway, because the fear never goes away.

Intro 0:21

T-Minus 10 seconds. Welcome to the journey to launch podcast with your host jameelah. So frogs as a money expert who walks her talk, she helps brave juniors like you get out of debt, save, invest and build real Whoa. Join her on the journey to launch to financial freedom 4321

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If you want the episode show notes for this episode, go to journey to launch comm or click the description of wherever you're listening to this episode. In the show notes, you'll get the transcribed version of the conversation, the links that we mentioned and so much more. Also, whether you are an OG journeyer, or brand new to the podcast, I've created a free jumpstart guide to help you on your financial freedom journey. It includes the top episodes to listen to stages to go through to reach financial freedom, resources and so much more. You can go to journey to launch that comm slash jumpstart to get your guide right now. Okay, let's hop into the episode.

Jamila Souffrant 1:33

Hi journeyers. This week we have a guest that I'm so excited to speak to her name is Kim Rydberg she helps independent professionals and brands be better on camera and make unforgettable video and podcast content to grow their business. She's an award winning video and content expert working across social media TV, digital videos, and podcast. She spent 15 years as a media executive at Netflix, People Magazine and in TV news and launched the first ever video unit for Us Weekly. She also hosts the mom's exit interview podcast, which was spurred by her decision to quit corporate and launch her own business. I'm so excited to chat with you, Kim. So welcome to the show.

Kim Rittberg 2:14

Thank you for having me. All right.

Jamila Souffrant 2:16

So Kim, one of the main reasons I was so excited to talk to you and I feel like this will be been a benefit for everyone listening, especially moms, parents and women, is because of your amazing story of building this corporate career, which I would love to learn more about, and your decision to leave it and go out on your own. And that is not an easy feat. That takes a lot of guts. And from my experience, I know that too. So I am so excited to hear because I know you help coach and talk women through this a change like that. And I suspect we have a lot of listeners journeyers who feel maybe stuck or they want to maybe exit in a few years. I mean, this podcast is about financial independence, where ultimately you don't do anything that you don't want to do. But in the meantime to do something you love on your own terms. For life. That's the goal. So Kim, take us back a little bit about and talk to us a little bit about your career because it sounds exciting. Like all of the things that you worked on previously.

Kim Rittberg 3:10

Yeah, so the beginning of my career, I was a TV news producer. So that basically means like I would write, I would direct basically for news and red carpet. So some of it was like fun and glamorous. And some of it was really grueling. Like, you get up at 5am. And you fly somewhere, you tell the story, and you're back at midnight. Like it's fun, but it's hard. I basically learned how to storytel. And that was the beginning of my career. It was really fun. And that was TV, eventually I sort of smelled that digital video was going to be the next big thing. Like I could feel it. And I felt like I could do something there. Like there was opportunity because not every it wasn't so saturated. And so I got to be the head of video for Us Weekly and not just a boss, which, you know, being a boss pretty good. But I got to actually build a business for them within their business. They didn't have video, so I got to turn a conference room into a TV studio, which pretty much no business owners now everyone has to do. Like everyone is now tasked with turning their office into a studio for social media. And so I got to do the creative, the staffing, the operations with people obviously working for me, but like I was the boss of it. And it was really, really exciting. I joke that I had two babies, my baby Lily, and my baby, US Weekly video team. And it really was like I started that job pregnant. And then two years and I was having my second child. And so it was it was like an amazing like dream job. It really was I got to just build a business within a business and also like nurture a team and really get to see accomplishments. Sometimes jobs like you know you're doing well, but there's no benchmark. There were benchmarks and I could see that. And then really the turning point came basically Us Weekly was getting acquired, and acquisitions are always messy. And this one basically they were buying it they decided to buy it for $100 million, which honestly at that point was a lot of money for a print magazine, because print is declining. And the owners were like, Kim, you know, we're really, we're just so excited, because of the video unit that you built. It's a big part of the reason that we bought it. I'm like, okay, like, that's amazing. I felt like such a huge success. Then I'm finding myself delivering my second child, like in the hospital room, delivering my second child working. Because basically, what I got out of the 100 million dollars was I got to, quote unquote, keep my job, I got the same salary, the same title, basically, half of my team was quitting, and all of my pure executives are being fired. And I'm actually nine months pregnant. Like, truly, it was like one of those times where I was like, in the hospital, looking around, and I'm like, I thought I was successful. Like, this is what it is like, this is success. I'm in the hospital room during like one of the most important moments of my life. And I'm scrolling on my phone trying to like, fill resumes and handle staffing stuff. And I just realized, like, it's okay to say, Yes, I had this amazing moment in my career. But no, I think there's a different way to live.

Jamila Souffrant 6:10

You know, I want to go back a little bit about you launching this business within a business and this idea that you brought to Us Weekly, because, in general, right, we if you're working in corporate America, and you have an idea that you think would work really well, how do you get that through? How did you get that idea through to be able to launch it for someone right now listening and says, Well, I think I have a creative idea. And maybe it's something they do outside of it. But like, hey, think about a podcast, I think my company needs a podcast. How did you get this through? To make the executives listen to you and give you the money to start it?

Kim Rittberg 6:44

That's such a good question. Because I had the idea. And I had a friend who worked there. And I was like, Rebecca, please introduce me to the editor in chief, I really know I can do it. Like sometimes in your life, you feel insecure? And you question yourself, and this was not it. Like I was like, I have TV experience. I have TV news experience. I have red carpet experience. Like I could just see that I could do it. And I thought they didn't have it.

Jamila Souffrant 7:06

So you weren't working there yet. Okay, so this is different. I thought you were working within the company and launch it. So this was you actually pitching. Okay, so that that brings me to another question, which I'll just pack on now is how do you know they weren't gonna steal the idea? And like, do it without you? But answer that one? Yeah. That's,

Kim Rittberg 7:20

These are like the perfect question. So basically, I told my friend, I'm like, You need to introduce me to the editor in chief, please. I was like, You're not doing video. Like I can make video happen for you. I know I can. And basically, I got an interview. And I wasn't hired. So basically, they hired someone like more junior for less money, just like a one, a one man band. As they say she shot she edited. That's not enough to build a real video unit for a national outlet. So a year later, he was like, he asked my friend, Hey, who's that girl who came in last last year? Can you please bring her back? We're going to interview for real to like, really do this properly. So he had remembered that I came in the year before. And then they knew they wanted to, at that point, build the video unit. They didn't know how big it should be how whatever. Like they didn't have the nuts and bolts, but they knew they needed a leader. So then I got brought back to interview for like, what was the proper job that I wanted?

Jamila Souffrant 8:12

You know, I love that. Because sometimes, you know, I'm guilty of this too, where you may feel like, what if an idea gets stolen, so you don't put it out? You don't go for it, where it's just like nothing can be stolen, what's yours is yours. And even if it doesn't come to fruition right away, like it will circle back or come back in another way. That's even better.

Kim Rittberg 8:31

Yeah, and I agree with you, I felt like I feel like my special sauce isn't this item or this technology or this tool, like I am my special sauce, like I have 15 years of knowledge. And I'm a really good leader. And I can inspire people and make them want to work hard and be a part of the team. So I wasn't, I wasn't necessarily afraid that they would steal the idea. They already knew they wanted a video unit. But I do think that speaks to I know a lot of times, people feel very burned by and I have to getting like a homework assignment for an interview. And I had to do a really long like a 10 page deck to tell them what I would do that could have gotten stolen. And you're right about that. Like, absolutely, they could have stolen my ideas, and you're not really protected. And that sucks. But there is that point. It's like that's kind of the way it is. And I'm not saying it's right. It's definitely not right. And this was also like a few years ago. But that was out there. I did put my ideas on paper, and I did give it to them as the final round. I do ask like, how many people are you considering? Because I'm not going to do a homework assignment. If there's four contenders. That's too much work, it was a lot of time for me to put the deck together. I had another job at that point. So I think there's something to be said for that. And now that I'm a consultant, I would never do that. Sometimes I have people who want me to pitch on something and I give them like a very top level pitch. I'm like, I get paid for my ideas. So I'm not going to give you my ideas for free. I feel very strongly about that.

Jamila Souffrant 9:49

Well, it's I'm glad you made that distinction. Now that you're putting you're more in a position of power. And even if you don't feel like you are like it's important to advocate or at least protect yourself in this way. Now going back to that moment when you were giving birth or in the hospital and realizing that this wasn't the life you want, even though it seems like you've built this kind of dream had this dream job, but now it's not the same as a dream environment. So then what were your steps to eventually leave? Like, what were you thinking that you were going to do? How did you prepare yourself to do that financially? What did that look like?

Kim Rittberg 10:22

So then the very next day, I started my business, and I was a millionaire. Like, I always want to make up some amazing sound bite. But the truth is, it took me another two years, and two very mentally challenging jobs. There were a few steps I had, like I started, I started networking, not for jobs, but for clarity and information. I really thought about this, I sort of started weighing my desire and my fear. So like, My desire was to have a career that I was passionate about, and like, like I love, I like what I do, like, I feel lucky to get paid to be creative. And I knew I wanted more control and flexibility. But my fear was like, no one's going to pay me for that, and I'm going to be poor, I'm gonna have no money. So my fear was that I didn't understand the business side of it to like, know where these clients existed. And, but I started just like, balancing that and weighing the desire and the fear. And then after I took a second job, I knew that that Job was going to be the last job, I had a deadline in my mind, I said at the end of this job, and it was a job that like, I really struggled through, like I every quarter was like, I need to quit. This is really bad for my self esteem. And I had that deadline in my head, I said, the second This job's over, it's over. And I'm starting to make business. I don't know what that means. I don't know what this business is going to look like. I'm gonna figure it out. And so I did financially plan a lot. I sat down with my husband, we did a lot of Google Sheets, we had a lot of worksheets, baby. So my husband, I will say, is very good with numbers. Like, he's really good at that. And I am okay. I'm not like the best. But I basically sat down was like, what if I earn X dollars? And what if I earn y dollars? How will that pay for the kids school? How will that pay for vacations? Like, both of our salaries? Like what do we need to make? How Little can I make basically, if I work for myself, like, what's the bottom, and I think seeing it in black and white really helped me understand that I do need to earn money, but I couldn't feel like I could do this. And so that was some of the financial planning, I did realize, you know, I'm not gonna have a 401 K, like, there were conscious things that I did think about. But some of it's a lifestyle choice and realizing like I didn't want to miss that moment in the hospital was really, really an epiphany, it really was. And that honestly, the US Weekly job was probably one of my best jobs. Like, the job itself was amazing. It was when I realized it was over was when I was in the hospital, it was just like, this job is never going to be what it was six months ago. This is not what I want. There is no flexibility here. There is no work from home Fridays, this was pre COVID. And so once I realized that, like that sort of cracked open this idea that like I have to find a new way.

Jamila Souffrant 13:06

Yeah, you know, being becoming a parent, even in the beginning, say even just being pregnant. It does something for you. You know, I feel like in that way, sometimes I think, while having kids definitely changes your lifestyle, you know, it's no longer you focused, right? Like, it's them focus family focused. And there's like limitations and restrictions around what you can do, right? Like, I can't just get up and go, right, I have to like be here to pick them up by two unless, you know, we find like a babysitter. And or it's just, it's more coordination, but in the same regard, that credit each of my children, for pushing me forward to do something, right, like the first one also like, like, made me want to search out how I was going to leave my corporate job, which led me to the financial independence, movement, and figuring out how to change my finances around, and so on, and so on. So I find that, you know, like, children are just becoming responsible for someone else. And that can go maybe even as being a caregiver for an older parent, or maybe a sibling that special needs, like, having that responsibility outside of yourself makes you want to step up and do something differently. Because I don't know that I would made the choices I made without having had kids I might have, I might have been slower to react or to do things.

Kim Rittberg 14:18

I agree with you so much. And I think for me, some of it is self awareness. Like basically, I don't know anything about hustle. Like, I don't know anything like my dad was an immigrant. He was like a workaholic. I have that in me. And I think that for me, it's actually hard for me to pull back like, it's hard for me to say, Fridays, I do no client work. I do some work. But I take a tennis class like wow, that's hard for me because I'm not trained for that. But taking a step back and saying once I started to get that taste of a little more freedom, I was like, oh my god, I love that. Sometimes I could get my kids through school and like grab an ice cream with them. Wow, that is so special to me. But I never would have envisioned that before. It wasn't something that drove me like, I was someone in my 20s, I had immediate job and a side hustle. Like I always filled my hours. And once I had kids, I'm like, Oh, I like these kids. I like these kids. They're cool. I want to be with them, you know, and I think it really realigned My heart is to say, how do I get the things out of my career that I do like and want to hold on to, but in a different package?

Jamila Souffrant 15:27

Right, right. So with that, right, you now have decided after two years, and I'd like that you said like, it wasn't immediate, even though you had this feeling that the US Weekly job wasn't gonna work out, you still took other jobs. And that also didn't work. And that's what happens to like, it's not instant taneous that you get, you know, the, your business your that's making you money, like it takes time. So what did it look like, you know, you have the skill set based on your corporate experience, because I also find that there are so many people listening, I'm just like, what they do for their corporate job, their corporate job could not function without that role, or it brings so much value and energy to their current role that if they wanted to build a separate business that does that, externally, for other companies, they'd probably make more money and have more flexibility. But how did you know? And how did you build out your offerings to find that sweet spot of what worked?

Kim Rittberg 16:22

Yeah, it has shifted a little bit. So basically, at first, I just was like, Who will pay me money for what I'm good at. I didn't necessarily have like a suite of products. You know, I made a website, I got a professional email address, I put an LLC together. But basically, I networked into getting a three day a week consulting gig. And I liked that that was great. I worked with a big media organization. And that got me into I was basically doing a very similar thing that I did before. executive producing digital video content, like doing really polished, branded content, coming up with cool ideas for new series, and then actually launching podcasts, which was cool, because I got to get into the podcasting world. So that was great. But as time has evolved, I actually realize I didn't realize this before, because, honestly, sometimes we like don't really know what's out there. We don't know, we don't know, I have evolved this now and teaching business owners. So lawyers, real estate agents, small business owners, how to grow their leads, their credibility, their income, their business, with video and podcasts. So basically, I have like real estate agents, lawyers and doctors, small business owners who come to me, and I do group coaching, and also one on one packages, and I teach them, like, I teach them what I know about social video, podcasts. And generally marketing like it's, it's not just like you make one video, get a client. It's like a whole strategy of marketing, basically through content. So now I have that. And that's something I've been, like growing into over the past year or two. And I'm now doing more group coaching, and more one on one. And now I'm also doing speaking engagements based on that. So it's really evolved from being like, how do I make money? Get me out of this corporate world 3d week consulting into like, a new business where I teach people about that?

Jamila Souffrant 18:12

Yeah, well, I see the evolution there that you started with, maybe more similar your customers, when you first left for more like the media companies, the big companies that you work for being a consultant, but then you started to like niche down and find that there is a gap between like the professionals like this thing, like if you You're such a creative space, you know how great people connect with media, like videos and podcasts. But then you find out all these amazing professionals who have the services to offer. They're doing it his rational way, right? They they're not doing video, they're not doing podcast, so I'm sure like, being able to find that that sweet spot was great. And I feel like this to meet gaps like that, that are out there that you can people can find as customers for something.

Kim Rittberg 18:55

Agreed. And I think that one of the really interesting things is I tried to make it really clear to people like to my clients, my coaching clients, video is not just like, oh, it's like a fun thing. I put up a video hopefully someone like, video is a crucial part of bringing in new clients and income. Because I think how we see social media is what we're used to using it as our personal life. So we just like postings, but video can be so much more than that, because it can reignite old relationships. Basically, if you met someone five years ago, 10 years ago, 15 years ago, maybe through a corporate job, maybe through somewhere you used to live, you can reignite that relationship on social media and bring them into your now professional, like offering. Same thing with like new new relationships. If you have a good strategy and how you're using your video on social media, you can meet completely new people from all across the country who can be clients and you just have to have that strategy of like, how do I make this content lead to people like no interest in me? And so I think that's like a really interesting aspect of it that you can actually grow your business, grow your income. That's what I've seen from my clients. They don't they're not necessarily aware of all the amazing ways it can help. And so many people feel overwhelmed by the burden of like, create content, create content, create content, and it's like, no, you can make less content and you just have to make it more targeted, you have to make it really well thought out. So that you're not in this like churn content creation, machine burnout.

Jamila Souffrant 20:16

Yeah, well, so let's let me just talk about some tips for some side hustlers or full time entrepreneurs listening, that, you know, they want this to either be their full time thing, it is their full time thing, but they want to make more money so they can reach their lifestyle and financial goals. How can they use video to their benefit? What are some strategies for them?

Kim Rittberg 20:34

Yeah, so I have a framework that I call the Messi framework, both because I'm a little messy, but it's a good, it's a good acronym. And basically, this is the framework I recommend to business owners. So the M is for message. Basically, you want to understand both your brand message and also your message in that video. Like, it can't be some long complicated thing, you're not a professor a lectern, you're a person delivering one message in one video, the E is for easy to understand. Basically, you're going to ask your seven year old neighbor and your grandma. And if they both understand what you're talking about, perfect, like you have a great message. If it's too complicated, maybe you're using too many complicated terms, you got to boil that down. And it's not because listeners aren't smart, it's more just, we're in an attention served economy, you have to really hit the point quickly. So that n message easy to understand s strategy. Strategy is everything. Basically, it can be a structure, or it can be how you think about it. But like, don't just start pressing record, like, that's a major, major thing because your time and your money will go away. And you're just not going to have much to show for it. So basically come up with a plan of what your what your message is, who your ideal client is, and then base your content around that. A lot of times people just start filming because they're like, I heard I'm supposed to make video. And that's not a great use of your time and your money. Even if you're saying, well, it's not expensive, it's just my iPhone, but your time is valuable, you know, so you have to, you have to really be conscious of that. The second S is a smile, because you're on camera. If you're running a business, it doesn't matter if you're selling products, you're selling soaps or shoes, or you're a service provider or a real estate agent. Like you have to put yourself on camera, because people buy from people they don't buy from brands they buy from people and building those relationships. Like we are actually lucky that we can make a video and introduce ourselves to people from around the country without leaving our house. So you like really leaning into that is and people who are doing it are having a competitive advantage. So I think if you're not comfortable on camera, you have to start practicing. Like you have to start talking to your phone, you have to start showing up, whether it's Instagram stories are LinkedIn or wherever. Tick tock, whatever. And then the last letter is why there's my favorite one, probably why you are a journalist, tricky with the lie. But basically, you're a journalist, all of your content should come from that place of teaching, or having someone feel the three E's. It should be educational, emotional or entertaining. Your content such a small percentage itself, you should think about like what would a journalist put out there, what would be a good headline that you would read an article about what would be a good video hook that would make you want to watch. So coming from that journalistic standpoint, and not the 20% off? Just Listed? Black Friday sale, it's okay to have that mixed in. But that's not your whole social media strategy. That's not your whole video strategy. So it's just I think that's like, the biggest point is just to remember, if all you're doing a selling, you're not building that, like no interest.

Jamila Souffrant 23:39

Yeah. So you know, I'm thinking about maybe they work in corporate America, or they work as a teacher. So they're building a business as a tutor, as an example. And so we're telling, they're listening now. And they're like, alright, well, Kim is saying, I need to be on video more. So I do have an Instagram and maybe so you do recommend like they they create a separate business, Instagram versus their personal?

Kim Rittberg 24:02

I think that's such a good question. It's, it's really hard to answer. It's definitely case by case. I mean, it depends how close your personal and your business are. So like, if people know you're a fitness fanatic, and then you're starting a fitness company, like I think it's okay to just like turn that into a creator or a business account. If people know you as a fitness fanatic. And actually, your business is like a cleaning business. It's not aligned. And I think you kind of waste all of the followers that have you personally, they're like, why is this all about vacuum cleaners? I think generally though, if you're having a business you should have a business or a creator account, because you're going to end up attracting your ideal clients to that and that's who you want.

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Jamila Souffrant 25:26

And so now they're like, alright, I created the new separate account and told all my friends and family to follow. And so they're starting to create this content and video or they want to and they're scared because I find that even as a seasoned business owner, I still find it like just more heavy to show up on camera all the time. So what do you say to the the inner thoughts or the pressure for people who don't want to do that? They don't want to put their they don't want to put their face out there. They're just like, why can I just sell my thing without having to be the face of it? Or put my face in the camera? What do you say to that?

Kim Rittberg 25:59

I like to say that it's not that you can't grow your business without showing up on camera, but you'll supercharge your business if you do, basically. So I have another framework about being on camera. I've really thought this out I like really think about as I do a lot of on camera coaching. And so this, I feel like in the past year, I've tried to systematize my thoughts to teach people better. Basically, one of the biggest keys to being on camera is preparation. And so this framework I call patch, so the P is for preparation, basically, it's not just preparing for what you're going to say. But it's the mental preparation. So a lot of us don't even want to be on camera. Because basically we're worried about judgment. We're at an impostor syndrome, we have in our minds, we make up all these stories, like people are going to judge us and make fun of us. They're not, basically we're fighting for attention. So like, you're lucky and you're even getting that attention, you're generally not. If someone is judging you, it's basically from a negative place in their own life, and it's not about you. So the P is really important that being prepared both your mindset preparation, and your message preparation is going to get you halfway there. Because people get nervous when they haven't prepared. Of course, you're nervous, you don't know what you're gonna say, you know, not many of us are good off the cuff. So the next one is a be authentic. It's like a really funny buzzword. But the truth is, the standard to be on camera used to be like you have to be like an anchor on TV or recorder or pageant person. People like real people. Now they're used to seeing real people, they prefer real people. And so understanding this is my really, really, really important thing to listen to. So listen to this chip. When you're recording video, when that red light comes on, it like steals a little bit of your soul, it steals a little bit of your energy. And knowing that I think is really helpful, because when you're trying to be authentic, you're trying to like return to the real you on camera. And that takes work. We all feel a little bit stiff or a little bit off when the camera goes on. And even understanding that is better. Because people are like, Oh, why do I not seem like myself, I'm like you do, it just takes time to be the real you on camera. And there's nothing but time that can make that better. And then T is turn off distractions. Basically, when you're going to film, do not disturb. Everything's off. Like, don't be checking your email because you just have to like focus on what you're filming, you have to focus on bringing your energy remembering your message, the seeds for confidence. I mean, you can fake it till you make it. But the truth is trying to be more confident about yourself because you're awesome. Someone asked me the other day, like, Oh, what do you think about fake it till you make it? I'm like, you can fake it. But like, You got to work on your confidence because I think it's more of a life skill and rather than just a camera skill. And one of the things I think is helpful for the competence is really tap into yourself. Like ask your friends, ask your family, like what do they love about you look at your accomplishments, things that you've won, or just personal accomplishments, if you've had, you're a badass and I think a lot of times like we forget that we get into the world of comparison itis you're doing this, if you're showing up on it you to grow your business, you are awesome. Not many people are doing it. You should give yourself a pat on the back and be like I'm awesome. So that's a really important thing is the confidence and the last last part is the age so we have pa tch so prepare, be authentic, turn off distractions be confident the H is for harness your energy. Basically, some people are a little low energy. Some people have high energy, that's fine. It's understanding how your energy is so that when you're going on camera, you're balancing it out. So someone like me, I'm like a fast talking New Yorker. So I have the slow down a little bit and I have to be harnessing that and someone who's lower energy has to raise their energy up and then the last bit about energy is like play some fun music so that you're like excited to be on camera and smile. Because a lot of times you see somebody like turn on the camera and they look like someone just died. You're like No, no, like be excited to be here.

Jamila Souffrant 29:53

Yeah, you know, I thinking about as you were talking there's a I think his name is Keith. He's usually he's on tick tock, and he reviews food. If he's from Las Vegas, it's very popular. He has like over a million probably subscribers goes viral all the time and helps food places get more business and because he reviews the food and like people love him, if you watch his videos like he is saw himself, but I think he has an anxiety disorder or something he says so he talks very directly or plainly, but you can tell he's just being himself, like he's not putting on like, has this hype energy, and he's trying to review the food, you know, different way he's like, but people love kind of like the straight he's just like sitting in and talking straight in the camera, and being honest with his views, and he's taken off. Now, it might not be everyone's desire to like become a mega, you know, internet star like the way he has become. But there's so much of us that like just by being ourselves and even, let's just say in corporate, you know, it's a little tricky, because there's some reasons why people don't feel like they can show up as themselves in corporate America. But you'd be surprised like how just by being you like what that opens up, people will be like, I didn't know that about you, or it just separates you from everyone else who's pretending to be something else.

Kim Rittberg 31:07

I agree with you so much on that. And I feel like you see it through your podcast. I have a podcast also an I it took me a while to open up more. I've been corporate for so long, I had been used to being like, there's fun Kim on the weekends, who took an improv class. And then there's, and then there's corporate Kim, who wears blazers, you know. And I think that the more I've been real Kim, like real Kim, to be smart, can help you grow your business can speak on a stage to 300 people, but she can also crack a joke and be loose. And that can be the same person. But it takes a while to like, you know, we're talking about authenticity, it actually takes a while to be comfortable being your real self more publicly. It took me a while to be my authentic self, even in an office setting. Because when I was like leading a team in a meeting, I felt like I had to be like button duck Chimp, and like impersonate someone else, you know. And so I think that we all feel that and I definitely felt that the beginning of my podcast and even showing up on social media, the beginning videos of me and I'm someone who trains people to be on camera. I was a stiff version of myself and the first episode of the podcast, I was like, Hi, this is Kim Rydberg Kendrick Berg, mom's exit interview, you know, you're practicing your version of you.

Jamila Souffrant 32:17

Well, you know, it's funny because I after all these years, I've been podcasting since 2017. It's 2023. And I still get nervous when especially when I do solo episodes, I always tell my audience my journey is this. And the mistakes part of it or not knowing everything also is a part of showing up as yourself because I realized that all if I in my head, I'm like, this is gonna sound stupid. If I ask this question, it's gonna sound like I don't know what I'm talking about. And I'm messing up stumbling on my words, or why do you say like, so many times, like, those things don't happen to me all the time. And you know, I'm making an effort to be bold, or at least be courageous about sharing that I'm feeling that way. Because I just know, there's someone listening to me, who thinks like, Jamil, you're the most like, articulate, eloquent person, so smart. And I'm like, I feel that way too. But there are some times where I feel like I don't have a clue of what's going on. And I want someone who feels like that, too, that they don't know what's going on to know that if I can do this, there is a strong chance that you can also because whatever is stopping you that insecurity, like we all have it at least I'll admit that I still have it and but I just don't let it stop me. So I just want anyone listening. Like it's in you for a reason, whatever thought whatever idea to step into that even if you don't feel like you said confident just yet, but you got to do it until you become confident you have to practice that.

Kim Rittberg 33:33

I think it took me probably 12 months to launch my podcast. I want to remind you, I am a professional maker of video and podcasts. So it's not that I didn't have the skills like I knew how to make a podcast. But I was really really afraid of putting my voice out there because I had been a very successful media executive being like the puppeteer of a voice of brand. channelling the voice of X media organization. When it came time to like put my own voice out there. I heard so many of those negative thoughts, like people gonna think you're trying to be an influencer, like, no one's gonna listen like all of those voices. And this is I'm honest about it. I'm more honest about it now because I realize like it's helpful to people. If all you post is like your curated photos on social, it's not helpful to people. The truth is, it took me a long time to launch my own podcast. I absolutely thought nobody would listen first I thought, What if people say bad things about the podcast? And then I thought, what if no one even listens enough to say bad things? But But honestly, I think like, over the past few years since launching the podcast and putting myself out there more on social my business has been booming because I'm putting myself out there more and see with my clients like I have these real estate agents and I'm working with them on these like really specific strategies. I'm putting themselves out on social they're getting all this a crazy referral business because they're on social people from across the country, Vegas, California, sending them business other people are having like reigniting old clients because of what they're Making on social. And for me, I've gotten paid speaking gigs this year, like that never happened before. It's because I'm putting myself out there on my own podcast, but on other people's podcasts, and I never ever honestly, there's so much of my business this year, never would have unlocked it. If I didn't put myself on podcasts and social media, social video,

Jamila Souffrant 35:17

right? You just got to put yourself out there.

Kim Rittberg 35:19

You have to put yourself out there. Like it's scary. It doesn't get less scary. Like, I feel like I had this conversation with my daughter she wants we went to do karaoke. And she really hates performing like she hates being watched on a stage. But we go to this diner near rasa, hey, karaoke for kids. And she's like, I want to sing. I'm like, okay, comes time to write her name on the song. And she starts, like her tears start loading up in her eyes. And I could see that she is really struggling because like her desire and her fear, were battling. Basically, she wanted to sing, but she was really afraid. And she, it was like a really emotional moment for her. I looked over, I said, Sweetie, no pressure, you don't have to sing. But I do see in your face, you kind of want to do it. So I think this is a good moment to try to be brave. There's not a lot of people here. And I said, that kid up there who's singing. He's not brave. He loves singing in public. I'm like, You're brave. If you go up there and sing, because you're scared, and you still do it. So I let her said I was like, no problem, no pressure. My husband and I are singing like Katy Perry. And all of a sudden, my daughter walks up, and she grabs a mic and starts belting it out. I was like, oh my god, this is what we all hope for is like, knowing the fear, feeling the fear and doing it anyway. Because the fear never goes away.

Jamila Souffrant 36:37

Yeah, and I love how you give that option, like, you know, still no pressure to do it. That battle of the Fear and Desire. Because if it's all fair, and you know, there's sometimes a system in us telling us that find a safe thing to do. Like it's okay to write. And also realizing what safety is. It's okay, like back down if you're really not ready. But if there is a desire in you go after it. And I do want to talk about small moments in life because I realized we're talking about going on social media and having a video and you didn't bring up my karaoke. And that's like a more like day to day, combating your fair, but just everyday for someone, even if you're not like trying to be a business owner or be on social media, I find for myself even initiating hellos to strangers or a smile is like very scary to me. Like that is also stepping out of your comfort zone. And you know, you'd have to go on stage and talk to 500 People like to do what we're talking about. It's just like these exercises, saying hello to someone first smiling at someone first raising your hand at the meeting, because you have an idea are ways that you can start to challenge and show up more. Where I do think like there is a currency, there is a payoff and not that you're just doing it for more money, or more visibility. But when you do that more, you know the things that you want in life, you know, the race, the more money the more opportunities that that happens more, the more you show up, and put yourself out there in those small ways, too.

Kim Rittberg 37:55

Yeah, I agree. And I think my resolution for like the past few years was about intentionality. being intentional with how I spend my time and the decisions I make and getting out of my comfort zone. And you're right, getting out of my comfort zone. One of my challenges to myself was like, I love art, I've always struggled with like showing my art that might sound off base to someone like, well, if you love it, why wouldn't you want to show it, a part of me feels impostor syndrome saying I'm an artist, because it's been something I haven't done for many years. And so that fell into the frame of something I'm scared of. And so like, to your point, I agree with you, I think it's the idea of challenging yourself in small moments. Like that's what growth is about. And I think that those small moments can be throughout our life. And they're not even necessarily small. Because anytime you're challenging yourself, we don't get those like speak in front of 300 people moments very often. So it's about those other moments in life that we really grow, because those are few and far between. And so I just agree with you so much of it. You can grow in your life in all of these different places. And I think about like I was basically practicing to try to like, get better to practice more public speaking, and I wasn't having a lot of opportunities. And I'm like, You know what, I am at a kindergarten graduation thing. And I have to thank the teachers, I'm going to take that opportunity to practice my public speaking because honestly, even if it's just the parents and teachers, I still get a little nervous, we all get that fight or flight in ourselves. So like even taking those small moments in life that you're like, let me take this as a practicing moment or as a push through moment. So I like that you flagged because it's like those big epiphany moments that come very rarely. And most of the growth in our life comes from struggling through like little things like communicating with a colleague that there's been friction and like I've had so much of that, like this colleague and I are having friction and I need to actually just say to them, Hey, there's friction, what's going on or needing to ask for a raise. Like, there are many times I didn't ask for the raise because I was uncomfortable. And sometimes I'm like, no it No, I have to fight through the discomfort because this matters. This matters to me to my life to my financials and to my self respect, like I deserve this money. So I think that those small moments are really like what It was made of.

Jamila Souffrant 40:01

Yeah. Now, you had a jewelry business. So there's another, even another layer to you like a creative layer to you. Like you said, you're an artist, right? But you had a jewelry business that you decided to stop or shut down. Can you talk a little bit about that side or that career and what led you to pivot and close it down.

Kim Rittberg 40:20

And this is what I love, by the way, Jamil about your story. Just also the idea of, you can be passionate about something, you can fight through the fear, you can build something and then you can also look and say this isn't working. So when I was in my 20s, basically, when I started my career, I always loved making art. And I felt like, I want to be creative. I want to be able to make money and sell something that is creative. And my mechanism was jewelry, I would wear my jewelry and people would complement it a lot. So finally I thought okay, I should try selling this. So I started selling jewelry at the same time I started working in TV. So both careers were sort of growing at the same time, but in media, I was getting weekly paycheck. My jewelry, it's like you only make what you sell. So it sort of remained my side hustle for a while. I eventually went to an open designer call like a American Idol type of thing for designers at Henry Bendel, which was used to be a really amazing department store in New York City that was featured on Gossip Girl. And that was like having Oprah one interview. I was like, what was Henry Bendel? What like, it made me feel so validated, basically. So I started doing trunk shows there. And I was spending basically my weekend selling jewelry and a department store and my weekdays working as a TV producer. And I loved it. And I was like putting a lot of time and thought into it. I really made good money. And I had a lot of clients. But at some point, I'm like, well, if I'm working seven days a week, especially in the holiday seasons, at that point, I think I was like, I had met my husband and we were getting married. And I was like this, I can't have a full time media career and a side hustle when I have kids like I have to sort of Sunset one of them. And it took me a while to say like, yeah, you know what, I'm okay with like closing this jewelry business. Like I still have the website up just because I love the pieces I made. And I keep it as a reference. And if someone wants to hire me for like a big custom piece, maybe I would but you know, I felt okay with saying this is the thing I loved. This was a thing that fed my creative side. And that's okay to, to close it down. It's okay to say, I don't need this as a part of my career right now. And so I think what I love, and this is something I talk about on my podcast moms exit interview that I love also about your story is, it's okay to pivot. It's okay to change direction, like, what you write is not in stone. And just like your resume, it's just bullets, like your job is bullets on your life resume, you're not defined by your job. You're not defined by your, your wins or your losses. And I think I had to get away from that when I started to run my own business because I had like these, quote, unquote, glamorous jobs with like, you work at Netflix, you are a People magazine, or US Weekly, people will respond to your emails. And so I sort of felt like identity, I was connected to that identity. But you have to realize like we are who we are, and our family and our friends will love us no matter what. And all of those things kind of end up being bullet points on your resume. And whether you choose to shift or pivot, you don't lose the skills you gained. And you don't lose your amazing characteristics that made you successful in one thing, just because you shifted in fact, it's an accumulation of those things. Like why I got to have that amazing job at US Weekly. A little bit of my career was circuitous, like I worked in TV news, but then I worked in like long form TV. And then I switched from news to crime to like, red carpet stuff. And so some people in TV would say, Oh, well, your resume is a little this way and that way and this way, in that way. But actually, it was a combination of those things that actually got me the best job that I had. So I think it's more of like a reframe of, you can have these things. If it doesn't serve you anymore, you can move on, and they can still be a part of you, and they're not your identity. And so that's sort of like the stuff I've been really thinking about for the past many years.

Jamila Souffrant 44:03

Yeah, no, it's beautiful. I mean, we're what are we, other than just the little box experiences that created us, right? Like it's just cumulative. It's not just one that takes it over, or it's bigger than the other.

Kim Rittberg 44:16

And also, like I, you know, I coached my daughter's soccer this season, like we did, like a rec league. And you know, it's funny, I feel like I got the same gratification out of coaching these seven year olds, as I did, from leading a team, these are not going to be like maybe they will, but I'm not talking about like a Olympic level soccer. But these are kids who just want us to like, have more confidence, have fun, learn a little bit. And like, it was such an amazing experience, like the kids really had fun. And they felt good about themselves and they got more confident. And so I think it's like that. It's like, the characteristics I have which is a cheerleader and like a teacher and like a supporter can apply to a lot of things and it doesn't matter sort of where your classroom is or you. If it's for your kids, or if it's for your dog sitting, you know, job. I don't know, I just think you have those traits. They're a part of you and you never lose those.

Jamila Souffrant 45:09

Yes, they can't be taken away. Like, all everything else can like the job titles. Even the money can go come and go sometimes, right? If they're but you what you built your memories, your experiences, your skill set sets, that's there. I love that. Okay, Kim, this was such a great conversation. I loved it. I know my journeyers will love it too. Please tell everyone where they can find out more about you and follow your work.

Kim Rittberg 45:31

Sure. So my name is Kim Rydberg r i, t, t, B, E, R G, and that's my handle everywhere, Instagram and LinkedIn. And if you have a business, you're an expert, you're looking to be on camera more, I have a free download. So it's 10 tips to be amazing on video. And then I also have an extra one about like, how to be more confident on camera. So just follow me on social and I'll send that over to you. But yeah, Kim ripper.com has more about me and I do one on one client work. I do group coaching that I love connecting with new people. I'm very friendly. So feel free to drop me a line.

Jamila Souffrant 46:03

Yes, yes, she is. Well, so if you're listening and this was helpful, or something stood out, I would love to see that on social media. You know, I'm at journey to launch also on Instagram, on Facebook and Twitter. But maybe if you're listening, take a screenshot posted on your Instagram tag journey to launch and tag Kim's Instagram. I will make sure to tag all that in the episode show notes and let us know what you thought. All right, thank you so much. Thanks, Kim.

Kim Rittberg 46:27

Thank you.

Outro 46:30

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