Emily Merrell  00:04

Welcome to the sixth degree Podcast, the podcast where we grill our guests about the things that make them tick and find out how human connection plays a role in their life. I’m your host, Emily Merrell.

Lindsey Julian  00:20

I’m your host, Emily Merrell. And today I am so excited to have my friend client. Overall, one of my favorite humans, Lindsey Julian. She is a communications coach and consultant. And I’m so excited to have her on our podcast. Lindsay, welcome to the show.

00:38

Thanks. I’m so excited to be here.

Lindsey Julian  00:41

And can I can I tell the world what what this is?

00:45

Yeah, I’m curious to know what it is your first

Lindsey Julian  00:48

podcast? Oh, yes.

00:50

Yes.

Lindsey Julian  00:53

Well, I mentioned I really love. I love being people’s first. I love being people’s first podcasts. And I think what’s so nice about it is interviewing friends and being able to talk with friends and have like authentic real conversations. So no posturing here. Just be yourself. And we’ll dive in.

01:13

Absolutely. Okay.

Lindsey Julian  01:15

I’m ready. Well, my first question for you, Miss Lindsay, is just I want to know more about you. We I know personally, you were a horse girl, as a kid, but tell me like who is Lindsey Julian and what led you to where you work today?

01:31

Yeah, so I’ll give you a Reader’s Digest version, but it all comes full circle. So as it relates to my career went to Cal Poly, Central Coast happiest place on earth in my opinion. But I studied journalism there and it was a requirement at poli to have an internship for credits to graduate. And so I put my resume together and I marched all five foot one of me into one of the local marketing agencies and handed my resume over to a woman who is now my client today. So again, coming full circle, but that was what started my whole career in marketing communications. For them I built out like multifaceted digital marketing campaign for some cool stuff with celebrities and a lot of influential nonprofits and then found my way over to another agency representing Samsung and then got brought over to Samsung and house did a bunch of Homestuck their crisis comms thought leadership building things of that nature and then went to a startup and then in April of last year, I was like, You know what, ready to take a bet on myself and walked away from corporate took a solid 30 days and for my business in May I was

Lindsey Julian  03:01

your birthday in May two it was a big in May.

03:05

The fourth was when I formed my LLC So may the fourth be with me? Oh my god,

Lindsey Julian  03:11

I love you know that that businesses have an astrology chart to them.

03:17

Who I did not know that but you know me love the Whoo.

Lindsey Julian  03:21

Yeah. So you can like actually look up and do your you can see like, what your business is rising sign is you can see a little bit more about the future of it. Yeah, like you know, a little homework tonight assuming some astrology reading for your for your business. I haven’t done it for mine. I honestly, I have no idea. I don’t I’m sure I can look at the conception date. But I haven’t done it.

03:45

Either because I was talking to someone who I met through SDS and she was like this crazy that you know all of your dates, but all of my dates have significant meaning to me. So I guess that’s why they resonate. But I would be interested to look at the astrology of it.

Lindsey Julian  04:03

You’ve got a Taurus business, you know, stubborn money driven a lot about Yeah, if you’re curious, go into it. I think it’d be a fun homework. But lens I love I love the fact that a requirement of your college was basically the catalyst to getting you to where you are today. So had that internship not been something that was required of you. Your whole life trajectory could have been changed could have been different. And when you think about the agency work, how like one thing led to the other. There’s something so beautiful about business that way and community having your back and now working with the person that first hired hired you, how is it felt, starting your business and how is your community played a role in now, the fact that you’ve left corporate and so many different ways?

04:58

One first and foremost is just amazing to see these people that you’ve built connections with and maybe haven’t spoken to, in years, just show up and want to see what’s best for you and want to know how they can help. So that’s just overarching community, you know, people really want to see you succeed. And so when that imposter syndrome creeps in, and I start having these thoughts of like, oh, maybe I shouldn’t post that. And then you see this outpouring of love and support, it’s incredible. But a few specific examples to community showing up. Why one or two of my previous bosses in my career are now mentors, one of which has been a beta client at the beginning of me starting my business and like, reviewing my website, copy for me, and weighing in on ways to optimize it. So that’s been incredible. I joined ReadySet, coach, and dreamers and doers and having that community of women and 60 degrees society, like all these different entrepreneur networks have been incredible of these women like showing up and supporting other women, and again, wanting to see what’s best for you. And then, yeah, just these prior colleague connections have turned into friendships and clients. And it’s so cool to help them elevate on their entrepreneur, journey as these founders and help them like get their arms around their business from a communications perspective, and really get the word out and help them scale.

Lindsey Julian  06:39

I think it’s so fun when you see the people that you grew up with, or maybe were interning at the same time as you or were your peers in corporate. And then they’ve also gone off, and they’ve branched off and created their own thing. And I always wondered this, when I saw celebrities who were like besties, with other celebrities, or founders who are besties. And they’re like, they came up at the same time, they rose up together. And that’s what you were doing with these peers and these past clients, these past losses, all of the things are kind of rising collectively, which is so cool to think about. Yes, I love that.

07:16

I love thinking about it that way, because both of them have, you know, one’s a part owner of one business that other founded the business. And so it is pretty cool to be on this journey together. And also, we’re all figuring it out as we go. And so to have that safe space to lean in and be like, Hey, how did you do this? Or, you know, and to be able to be vulnerable? And be like, I don’t know, I’m asking for help. has been really nice

Lindsey Julian  07:43

to do you think of 90% of entrepreneurship is googling the answer. Like, I’m not quite sure what she means by client avatar. Let me kind of piece it together. And you’re like, oh, yeah, client avatar. I know what that is. Or OPM, and you’re like, silently googling. Yeah. But then when the next

08:06

do like everyone uses different language, communications. And so having consistent language is key. So we’re all on the same page here. But yes, Avatar, persona, ideal client. Anything else? Either the same thing

Lindsey Julian  08:23

I’m I’m unsure might be good to see in the vein, though of the same language. So what is a role? What is the role of a thought leadership and communications coach and consultant? What do they do? What do you do? Better?

08:39

Yeah, I so I held for two sides of the coin, one with internal communication. So helping mission driven founders or executives set their vision and their values within their organization, and then ensure that that vision is clearly and consistently communicated. From the top down and the bottom, right, like it’s a two way conversation, which is crucial. And so really make sure that their employees are informed and invested in that vision so that they could become these natural word of mouth advocates for that brand. And then externally, I help these mission driven founders and executives build up their thought leadership and build authority building content, whether it be through blogs, social posts, securing media placements, buy lines, things of that nature and get really clear on their core message and their story to humanize their brand so that people have that attachment to them. And that you know, always said no like and trust factor, but it really does help people know them and and see them as a human rather than product and fee. teachers.

Lindsey Julian  10:01

So you’re saying Elon Musk needs to hire you?

10:05

Right? This? No, he’s my ideal client, but I wouldn’t be able to help them. Yes.

Lindsey Julian  10:14

Pasadena is a little all over the place, right?

10:18

He’s not building in that crisis. cotton’s help. Yes. Yeah. He needs a really good. Where’s

Lindsey Julian  10:25

Olivia Pope when we need her

10:29

show. I missed that show. I haven’t watched it.

Lindsey Julian  10:33

It’s weird to think that was like an old show now. Felt so knew when I was here. I always love watching shows and just looking at complete squirrel but looking at their cell phones and being like, Oh my God, this was an old show. This is a flip phone show. Yeah. Or Blackberry.

10:51

I loved my Blackberry. Yeah, rest in peace.

Lindsey Julian  10:55

But in that same vein, I love the fact that you’re talking about the, you know, the consistency and having a brand. Having the founder of a brand to be a face and be a person and you see all these brands where you’re like, Who created this brand? I want to know who’s behind it. Can you do you have any examples off the top of your head of brands that you think do it really well with the founder?

11:21

Well, I love Sara Blakely. Spanx. I follow her religiously on LinkedIn. So not only with her brand’s story, but consistently showing up same with like Arianna Huffington, love both those ladies continuously follow them. So I think those are two people that are doing it really well and highlight not only why their business exists, but like who is behind that business. And not only them, but showing their employees behind the business like the team that makes this thing come to life. So I just love that they’re purpose driven and passionate and that like these could be for profit businesses, but you still lean into your why? So that you show that you exist beyond your bottom line. To me, that’s who I want to be drawing in is the people that feel passionately about their people and their purpose.

Lindsey Julian  12:17

I completely agree. It definitely motivates you. When you have a decision to buy between two brands. And you’re like, Oh, I really love this founder. I love her story. Oh, she has a giveback component. Blake from Tom’s like his story, I think was what got us all involved with Tom’s are excited about Tom’s

12:37

Yeah, I agree completely. If you’re sitting on a shelf next year competitor, and you know the person behind the product next to the competitor that just has a fantastic label, you’re typically going to draw for the one that you have a closer attachment to. So it does help building up that that human element specially as we’re moving into a world full of AI. To know that there’s like these people that built this product and knowing why they built the product is really cool.

Lindsey Julian  13:15

So you’re saying Jack chat GPT is not going to have a founders, actually, they’ll probably have a phenomenal founders.

13:24

But to that end, I think like what’s interesting about what I do is I really help uncover the distinct you factor. No Robin, robot or AI can replace and really weave in the storytelling elements of your unique experiences and what has made you who you are today and why you built the brand that you built. That can’t be replicated, your unique experience and your unique path and journey cannot be replicated. And so while I do believe chat GPT can be used as a framework for like, long form copywriting or things of that nature. To me, it’s just that like you weave in the elements of you that can then make that an E replicable

Lindsey Julian  14:17

piece of content. Completely agree. You can’t you can’t replicate that human element. Well, you can but you can’t. You can’t replicate it. So thinking about your clients or founders out there, and I’m sure this is frustrating. It’s like, I imagine this is like a pilot when you see someone fly poorly or whatnot, you’re like, oh, you should be doing better. But what are the biggest mistakes you see your clients doing or not doing when it comes to showing up as a leader?

14:50

Yeah, so I’ll break it down by external, internal and overarching. So externally, one of the biggest things that I see people doing when it comes to their niche is which this works if you want to zero in on one theme specifically, but if you’re trying to build a personal brand, people want to know, again, the human behind the brand. So the niche is you. So I could be a horse lover and nature lovers self care enthusiast, while also being an expert and communications, I am not just an expert and communications. And so when you highlight all of those things that make you you, again, that unique factor, you’re opening the door to this handshake to bring in multiple ideal clients who maybe not out the gate immediately resonated with your content about communications, but they’re also an eater lover. And so now they have this other interest that gets them to attach to you. And then over time, as you start to build up that credibility in comps as an example for me, then you have this like relationship and this attachment, and it’s easier to sell in. Does that make sense? That makes a lot of sense. So then, you know, if

Lindsey Julian  16:17

you knowing all of this and humanizing yourself, what, what are some ways that founders that are listening or people that like me, I think of myself actually, as an example having six degrees society, but also there’s a founder behind six degrees society, we’re not just nebulous events company that’s running or networking company that’s running. I tried to put my face into things. But how can people who are like, I don’t, I don’t even know, I don’t even know where to begin? This is so overwhelming for me, I should I just have a candle company like, do

16:51

they need to know Me too? How do we implement those changes are those optimizations. So a lot of people call them content pillars. But I would just think about the three to four things that make you you so as an example of my content pillars, I love mindset and personal development. So mindset hacks are my morning rituals, or my fitness routine, things like that, that keep me sane and operating in my business. And then my career. So from an education perspective, I can shine light on communications tactics, things that tips and tricks, things that I’m talking with you hear about today. And then travel and nature, I love being outside that also intertwines with mindset, but places I’m going things I’m meeting people, I’m meeting all of that stuff. So just think about, like, what makes you who you are, and break those down into three to four umbrella categories that you can speak to regularly. And you can say one thing, 1000 different ways. And you’ll start to see like these moments of inspiration coming to you, oh, this is something that someone else might find valuable and helpful. So just break it down into big umbrella categories, and then start to think of the different content elements underneath those that can turn into posts. From there.

Lindsey Julian  18:28

I think that’s great. And also incorporating, I think, here as a coach, and just as a consumer to thinking about, a lot of people feel like they always have to be selling or they always have to be promoting their product. And this is a great reminder and a great just kind of check of where you are to remember to also be talking about you and talking about the brand or talking about what lights you up, it doesn’t have to be sell, sell, sell, because I don’t know about humans, but I usually don’t follow those companies that sell, sell, sell, notify, notify, notify. It feels really inauthentic to me.

19:11

Yeah, so I tend to follow completely agree, I tend to follow the 8020 rule. So 80% of value, serving your audience. Also knowing very clearly who your audience is. So when you’re writing your posts, you know exactly the purpose for what you’re writing and how it might resonate with them. And then 20% is sell and buy sell you can do it directly outright. Or you can weave it in naturally to a storytelling post that then is like at the end has that that compelling CTA but you’ve pulled the reader in and got them to move from line to line before you make your pitch.

Lindsey Julian  19:54

Yes, amen. So you’re listening and you’re like, oh, yeah, I need to be doing this. This is a great Eat assignment and a great piece of homework for you to take away. Just to look at what you are selling and how you’re communicating with your audience. And does it feel? Does it feel like a conversation? Or does it? Does it feel like a boardroom? Does it feel very stuffy and formal? You might want to reevaluate it or alter the way that you’re talking. Okay, lens. My my question that I’ve been dying to ask you are, why are you so passionate about helping brands figure this out? Like, did you have corporate experience that led you here? Or are you just someone that loves stories?

20:34

Yes, so, so many, so many different elements for why I’m passionate about what I do one as being an entrepreneur, and passionate about that, because when I was little, I used to wake up at, you know, 6am, with a son, and I would go write business plans for, you know, a book club, or a horse training business or a fashion line, I don’t know, I had so many different ideas. And I still have the notebook with these business plans in it, which is hilarious, but honestly, started with objective my why wanted to bring in. So I always had this entrepreneur spirit. But somewhere along the way, the rat race really pulled me in, and I don’t have anything against the nine to five, I think that works for for many people. But for me, it was no longer serving me in a healthy way. And so I really took time to reevaluate what was going to light me up and bring me joy in a way that was meaningful to me. And that’s when I decided to walk away and start my own thing. And then thinking about what I wanted to do, what I saw throughout my decade long career in communications was, oftentimes, employees internally were an afterthought. They were the last audience to be communicated to, and your people are what are bringing your vision to life, they shouldn’t be the first audience that you’re thinking about. And so what I want to do through my services is to make sure that employees are often informed and involved and bought into the work that they’re doing. And as a result of that help these leaders become better leaders and communicators. So that everyone is, is rowing in the same direction, and completely bought in and has an enhanced experience and an enhance culture and doing so. And externally. I’m passionate about helping people see that they have valuable insights worth telling. And they have unique experiences that no one else can share. And so by putting yourself out there and showing up and sharing your knowledge and your experiences, you have the ability to inspire others, and not only build that credibility for yourself, but make positive change through that, especially if you have this inspiring purpose for your business. And I think that’s where the mindset work comes into play. It’s funny, we were talking about this before we started recording. But you know, I’ve always been the person behind the scenes writing the talking points for these leaders. And that is still what I’m helping to do. But I also am doing this for myself now. And I can completely empathize with these leaders who have this impostor syndrome to show up and share their expertise. It can be scary, but I think vulnerability shows that we’re human. And when you reframe the thought, and you start to see that people really do find value in your expertise and something that might come so simply to you might be something new and profound for another person. So even if you are saying something that has been repeated time and time again, it might be the first time that someone is hearing it. And so just putting yourself out there I think is really important because you never know what opportunities will present themselves. So that was a long answer. What I’m passionate about but yeah, it’s it’s, it lights me up.

Lindsey Julian  24:57

It’s clear and you guys can’t see her but she definitely It is like a Christmas tree right now, that is lit up. But, Linds, one thing that you did say that I want to pull out a little bit more is that feeling of imposter syndrome and that feeling of putting yourself out there as a founder, and the empathy that you have for those people where it is so easy to point fingers and to judge and be like, what’s wrong with them? They have an amazing company, why are they putting themselves out there. But maybe they’re painfully shy or painfully introverted. And the last thing that they want to do is talk about their product, they want to create their product, but they don’t want to talk about their product. So I think that’s just a reminder that it’s okay to be that painfully shy person. But like you lens, overcoming it and taking the steps in the strides to overcome your own

25:51

discomfort. And that’s where having a coach to could be super helpful, I would be holding your hand every step of the way, and making sure that you’re confidently able to show up as who you are, and be prepared with these talking points. Because, honestly, it can be really scary. I told you, I’m drinking my tea right now my calming tea before I came on here. So again, my first podcast, but the more you do it, and the more you show up, the more comfortable it becomes. So yeah, just

Lindsey Julian  26:32

it’s so it’s so true that what you say the more the more you practice, the easier it gets, I think of back to corporate, my corporate days, and they’re like put a presentation together. And I hate putting presentations together. Okay, and I would get overwhelmed. And how do people make pictures pretty and this is before Unsplash. This is before Canva. Like, I just never understood how people had snazzy PowerPoints. So I’d be up there and then like, my slide could come up. And I would just, I would put myself slightly like, I would just feel so uncomfortable talking about what I was talking about. And then yet, when I started six degrees society, and I grabbed a microphone and I was on center stage. It was I felt so at peace with what I was talking about, because it was my message. So as a leader, despite the initial discomfort, I think, again, with practice getting on the stage, you’ve know your product inside and out. That talking about it, you don’t have to answer to a boss that’s gonna say like, you talked about our product incorrectly, or you misrepresented because it’s your product or your business.

27:43

Yeah, and I think one thing that is important to note there and that you sparked for me is, there’s so many different avenues and ways in which you can show up. So do what feels most authentic to you. If it’s writing, then maybe go after social posts and by lines and blogs first to start getting your name out there before you do something really uncomfy like getting on a podcast, or giving a presentation, right? There’s like a myriad of ways that you can show up that feels good to you before you dive into it all at once. And so I think that’s just an important note to remember.

Lindsey Julian  28:28

I completely agree. So lens while I could talk to you for about 17 million hours. Can you tell our listeners how they can find out more about you and working with you and your services? Yeah, so

28:43

you can connect with me on LinkedIn. It’s Lindsey Julian, or follow me on Instagram at Lindsay Julian underscore or check me out on my website Lindsey julian.com love it love

Lindsey Julian  28:59

it very very kin consistent in your branding there that she doesn’t have like random numbers thrown in. So Lynn’s one of my favorite parts of the podcast is interviewing my my guests about very random shit. Are you ready?

29:16

So ready to give us a little bit? I’m pretty random. Let’s

Lindsey Julian  29:20

let’s get weird together. So my first question for you is tell us an unknown fun fact about Lindsey Julian.

29:27

Okay, well, I know we’ve alluded to it but horse lover have been since I was three years old when I started writing, and then competed from six years old until 18. So yeah, big, big time horse lover, and didn’t even bring your horse to college with you. Today. I did Jesse. Jesse went wherever I went. And she was a big inspiration for me, starting my business leaving court regret all of that when she passed in 2022. So that was kind of my, my pivotal year.

Lindsey Julian  30:08

That was your What am I doing with my life here? I love it. And also I think your brand should have been called Jessie’s Girl but that’s a different conversation. We can we can do a sub brand. Lens who would be a dream person to be connected with.

30:26

Honestly, I love people. So anyone that is people driven, purpose driven, passionate about what they’re doing. Those are the types of people I want to be drawing in.

Lindsey Julian  30:42

Hmm, okay. We can we can definitely organize that. What? What are you currently watching?

30:49

Okay to watch or not. I’m rewatching Jenny and Giorgio.

Lindsey Julian  30:56

Dress so good. So obsessive. That

30:58

show is just a good, good one to turn on and write stuff in the background while I’m working. The other one. Luke, and I’m a partner just got Apple TV and started watching TED lasso. Welcome. Welcome to the new world. I haven’t been here sooner. But oh my goodness. It is my type of humor to a tee. I love that show. So sweet. We

Lindsey Julian  31:33

have actually another ReadySet coach grad. She has a podcast called biscuits with the boss. I was so cute. It’s really cute. Yeah, it’s official ask questions. But it’s all tied back to Ted last. So you guys know what I’m talking about? You know what I’m talking about. Lindsay, what book are you currently reading or recently read.

31:55

I’m currently reading traction, drinking. I forget who it’s by. But it’s a great book for at the beginning of January, I was feeling a little aimless in my business. And so upfront helps you lay out like your 10 year vision, your three year plan, your one year plan, your 90 day rocks, all of that good stuff, get really clear on your revenue goals and whatnot. So that has been a game changing book traction is what that one was called. I

Lindsey Julian  32:30

think it’s on my bookshelf. So I’m gonna go grab, pick that one up afterwards, grab it right here. I will affect that. What is your favorite emoji?

32:40

Okay, so I went to my phone to look at my most frequently used emojis. It’s 100, the fire hearts and twinkle lights.

Lindsey Julian  32:54

Those are all great ones. I know. I hate this question myself. Because I’m like, I think it just hurts like a lot of hearts for people like I heart Red Heart, everything. And I’m like,

33:03

I get it a little spicy. That that softness? You know, I love it. I think there’s a great

Lindsey Julian  33:11

website. Yeah, I can see the range. I can see where you’re going with that. And then my final question for you is Who gave you permission or inspired you to do the thing you wanted to do with your life?

33:24

Yeah, so I love this question. Because I would say I finally gave myself permission to do what I want to do. I’m starting my own coaching business had been pressing on my heart since 2016. And I often found many excuses to talk myself out of it. And after that pivotal year for me, with losing Jessie, it really put things into perspective that life’s too short, to wake up to something that’s not making me jump out of bed. And so I finally made that decision. There were a lot of different people in there that supported me in taking that leap. But I think ultimately, it came down to me myself and I for pursue.

Emily Merrell  34:21

I feel like this is where the mic is dropped and the music like gets louder me myself, and I just, I love it. I think that’s wonderful. Well, Lindsey, thank you so much for being a guest today on the sixth degree podcast was so fun hearing your story.

Lindsey Julian  34:37

Thanks. And thanks for having me. This was a great first podcast episode.

Emily Merrell  34:41

Everyone remembers their first so hopefully you remember yours. And listeners if you liked today’s episode, give us five stars share with friends write a review, and we’ll see you the next time on the sixth degree with Emily Merrell.