[00:00:40] KC Rossi: My guest today is Audrey. Audrey is the chief content officer and co-producer for amplify voices, the cohost alongside NFL coach, Pete Carroll for the Amplify Voices podcast, and host of the Unlikely podcast.
All on leadership. I loved my time with Audrey. She really allowed me. Perspective shift. When it came to vulnerability and storytelling. So I know that you are going to get a lot out of this conversation. We talk about the strengths of being a powerful leader, as well as the importance of human connection and how storytelling allows us to evoke emotion.
So not only can. Have other people self-identify to our story, but moreover feel something have an experience. And like I said, what I experienced was perspective shifts. And I think, especially in this time when we are in a paradigm shift on a global basis positive perspective shifts are one of the most powerful things that we can have not only in our own personal development and growth but so there can be a positive ripple effect moving away in, through and in our circle.
So I know you're going to enjoy this episode. I would love to hear your aha moments.
[00:02:05] Kc Rossi: Hey, Audrey. Welcome to the show.
[00:02:09] Audrey Cavenecia: Thank you.
[00:02:14] Kc Rossi: It's great to have you here. I am curious what drove you to start the Amplify Voices, because I know that you also have conversations from the heart, which is going to be what we're going to be having today together. And I'm curious what drove you to that show?
[00:02:30] Yeah. It's really a flagship podcast for the whole company. So I recently started a company with Pete Carroll legendary NFL coach of the Seattle Seahawks. And. And we're not doing a single podcast about sports. So a lot of people are like what? But there's a reason behind it.
Because we're, multi-faceted people, our purposes serve many sides of our self-expression. And for Pete Carroll, he had been a long time doing philanthropy work and impact work around. Human potential and purpose and coming from your heart. And very specifically, which is very important is while a lot of people do work like that, we haven't seen.
A man who's in just about the most cutting cutthroat competitive field you could possibly be in, which is sports and still be somebody for decades and decades who said, yeah, but if. Coming from the heart. If you don't care for people, the way you care for your own family, you're not going to get the best from them.
So while he is someone who is out to win, he's also someone who has demonstrated effectively that you don't need to compromise your values. To win. So when we met, I thought, oh my gosh, you know, it would be so great. If you could be the foundation of storytelling and you are somebody who, your team members and philanthropy from black to brown, to women, to everybody, you've been somebody who sees the real person.
You see. Spirit you see their soul. And what if we can have a media company built on that doing podcasts and all different kinds of content where we can quote unquote, amplify other voices and give them the opportunity. Yeah. So, so Peter and I even at, in ourselves with this first podcast, our flagship.
Amplified versus conversations from the heart tagline. We're really a demonstration of inclusion. I don't, I didn't even know who he was. I don't come from an interest in a sports background. We've never been two people who danced in each other's industries or have ever, you know, totally different backgrounds, totally different human beings coming together with another distinct human.
Purely from the heart. And you'll see that while there may be differences while we may not agree with ourselves and the guests there never is this experience of divisiveness. There's only an experience of active listening. So it was a really, really awesome. Opportunity. And now my podcast came out now, Unlikely leadership where I'm speaking on expanding the narrative of leadership, and then we have two other coming out and we'll have three other state.
So we're just rolling them out and so different.
[00:05:01] Kc Rossi: Yeah, that's fabulous. And I think to your point of not knowing each other before having two very different backgrounds is going to make a really exciting show because it gives different perspectives. And I think that's going to be super interesting to listen to.
I can't wait to hear your podcasts. A fabulous platform. What do you like specifically about podcasting as a platform?
[00:05:25] Audrey Cavenecia Okay. There's two things that I, and I do want to say, you know, our podcast came out June 6th and we just won a prestigious award. So we're really excited. That's amazing the mark on platinum word.
Right. But but I say that of course, to be proud of me and the team and the work that we did and sharing our own hearts. But I say that because. It ties into what I love about podcasts. And also because to me, I think we need proof of concept that we don't need to be yelling at each other and have a bunch of drama to get numbers and get success and all of that.
There's no need to compromise. And especially now going forward, we're seeing a huge paradigm shift in what leadership is, who we can be with one another. And this is time to try and.
[00:06:15] Kc Rossi: Have you read my mind the minute you said that I was like, that is the old paradigm and everyone's ready to shift. And I think especially post 2020, and when the COVID outbreak, you know, came about, we are really wanting a new narrative.
We want that connection and it's really time. It's time to ditch witch. What doesn't make us feel good, which is the trauma and the drama. So I love that. And I know one of your key skills is storytelling and I personally would love to get better at that. I tend to stay in teacher mode often. And so I'm very curious, not only for myself, but for the listeners, what do you feel makes an excellent story.
If you had to even give us three components, what makes a great story?
[00:06:45] Audrey Cavenecia: Great. Okay. So first I'm going to just tell you what I love about podcast, because I want to make sure that for the listeners, I complete what you've asked me and I'll all roll right into what makes a great story in the components, from my perspective what I loved and why I fell in love with podcasting.
Cause I had never even listened to a single podcast. When I decided to go that direction with a media company, we were going to kick off the documentaries, but with the pandemic, it was. Wasn't accessible to get team members together and all of the policies and regulations around it. So I pivoted and of course, pivoting in a world that I haven't been in yet was a [00:07:30] bit tricky, but you know, working with people and telling stories is all the same, no matter what medium you go in to.
So I just quickly went through a learning curve, but here's why I fell in love with podcasting because right now we are so maxed out. We are so impacted by the news around us. We're so impacted coming out of COVID and for many of us, we found out. New arguments to have a family members. We didn't even realize we had a different perspective on a lot of people lost their friends, not only in real, like in life, but also in disagreements where they've closed the door.
And I mean, there was just so much the uncertainty that we're dealing with every day. Do we go back to work? Do we not? Should I leave this state that I'm in? Should I, should I stay? Should I change what I'm doing? I mean, it's a lot. Podcasting I realized is the only medium in storytelling where you're not tethered to anything, meaning I don't have to sit physically and stare at the book and I can't walk at the same time and read, or I don't have to sit in front of my computer to watch something.
Or I have to sit in front of my TV to watch this documentary with podcasts. And you can play with your children. You can include your children. You can listen with your partner. You could take a walk or run, you can lay down and just relax and rest and think of that, that time. That's so personal to you and important to you to have something that just empowers you or allows you to just step outside your own perspective and expand it.
[00:09:10] Audrey Cavenecia: I then was like, oh, I'm so about podcasting. So I just want you to complete that because I did think it's an important part of being of service to people. And that's how we're looking at it is grading. Of service to people and their wellbeing.
[00:09:55] Kc Rossi: Yeah. No, thank you. I appreciate you circling, circling to that.
I sometimes get ahead of myself and I have an exciting guest, so I, I appreciate, I love that. And I agree with you. I've been podcasting for three years. I feel like it's a powerful platform to spread your message. I also think it's incredibly convenient as you said to take in and I feel it's also a very intimate way to take information many times, you're you even have the earbuds right in your head.
So it's like we are up close and personal. I love when they're raw and real, you know, I mean, that's the thing. My show is unedited. It's like. Here, here. It is. Here is a real conversation. So thank you for sharing that, that perspective. I appreciate it.
[00:10:26] Audrey Cavenecia: Yeah. And, and just from even gender and color, considering we're dealing with so much of that male, female, and black, white, and all of that, you know, not everybody has an, a great relationship with a man in their life or a woman in their life.
There's a lot of history of betrayal and resentment and breakdowns. I read the other day from one of the reports that less than 75% of white people even had a person of color, a black person in their network. That's a lot. So how do you deal with the changes that are happening in society when you don't have an intimate relationship to sort of talk through it and experience new things they're conceptual for you?
They're not real. Podcasts, like you said, coming into your ear, give you an opportunity to almost be at the table together. Like we are your friends because we are people forget that we live on the same planet. We are neighbors, we are neighbors. And I think it's time that we start learning how to be good neighbors.
All of us, right. As a medium.
[00:10:40 ] Kc Rossi: It does. It does. And I think Audrey, to your point, when we're talking about sensitive topics like diversity, inclusivity, race, especially as you mentioned, a large majority may not even have diverse friends in their network. Listening to other people have a conversation and be real and bring in all different points of view is such a great way to one be informed.
And two, it doesn't feel intimidating because I have to tell you, like when you aren't exposed and yes, it's absolutely our responsibility to become educated. And I think that's one of the beautiful ways that we can become educated through podcasts, but otherwise, there is this kind of sense of fear. I know that.
For myself, especially like when black lives matter came out and it was really strong and people were making them like Instagram profiles, you know, like a black square and I didn't do anything and it didn't mention anything. And my virtual assistant like waited about three, four days and she's like, I think your audience is waiting for you to say something.
And I was like, oh, and she's like, silence is a stand. And it was so powerful for me because I was like, oh my gosh, like, Really took that in like that really sat with me. And it really started a lot of education and opening my mind for, for several months that, that particular instance, and I feel like one of the other turning points was listening to a Reverend Michael Bernard Beckwith and he was talking about that and just hearing him.
And the way that he approached the subject with so much grace and it was about soul to soul connection. It had nothing to do with race, color, gender, nothing. And that I think again, it's like when you can hear other voices making sense of some of the things rambling in your head. Boom. Everything comes together.
So I appreciate you bringing that up.
[00:12:55] Audrey Cavenecia: Yeah. And I, you know, that is a tricky subject and I know we're going to get right into storytelling so I will roll it. It is a distinct thing. I come from a extreme, extreme mix. My mother is blonde hair, blue eyes, white from Germany. My dad is dark skinned kinky hair from south America.
So that's African Latin, native American background. Right. And they both came to the United States. So I'm, first-generation from immigrants. I'm got this totally. Polar opposites of race and culture and differences. And all of that, I really do feel that, you know, part of our own narratives is not about what we do or what we do to make money or what we need to do to change things.
I think it's about digging deep into our experiences and saying, what unique way did I come into the world where I can see things distinctly through my lens. But if I share with others, it'll expand their view, their experiences and their outcomes. So I actually embodied these totally polar opposites working together and being totally not on the same side in agreement, but still loving one another.
So I can't not see my white community, my native American community, the Latin community, the Asian community, the black community. I cannot not see them and stand the ability to acknowledge and relish their differences to apologize and take responsibility for where certain people have been left out and also to, you know, have a sense of accountability and love all rolled up into one and to not have just one side that I'm looking at life.
And while at the same time, knowing that there are other people be they, my mom even experienced calling me up. And what did you think about the black lives matter marches, you know, asking me. And I think that was a really big thing for us, is not to have some assumption that her perspective was the right perspective, but that she wanted to hear where I was coming from and what it felt like for me, I thought that was so powerful.
[00:15:00] And there's, there's no right at the end of that conversation, there was. A shared experience. And I didn't think of it that way. Let me walk away and think about that. So, okay. So going into storytelling you know, it's interesting because I love storytelling, not just for the sake of my love of it. I, I fell in love with storytelling because again, my dad coming from another country, a lot of people that come from another country have a relationship with the United States through cinema.
And so am I, my dad. I think he's inflated these, I'm not going to birthdays, but my dad's around the seventies, eighties right in there. And so you think of that time of cinema, you know, having $1 to go to the cinema and that's all, that's what there is. And, and, and those actors were all okay. All right. For the most part, were Caucasian.
So his even dream woman that was, he was very, very shaped by that narrative. So when he came to the United States, you know, he falls in love with the equivalent of a Kim Novak. Right. And so with, with his interests and when we were growing up, my, my dad. Wasn't the most emotional person. Wasn't the kind of person that would be like, oh, come here.
[00:16:15] I love you. He expressed his love through sitting down and watching movies. So when, when it would be time with dad and time with the family, he'd be like, okay, it wouldn't be one movie. It would be three movies in a row. And it wouldn't just be watching a movie as a little girl. He would like, what did you think of that?
Why did you think that happened? What did you, if you would say that with a really heavy accent and I started not only. Taking the journey of living inside of characters, but actually doing the critical thinking of the humanity that was there. And so as I grew up and I got an interest in their tank business, I was in the entertainment business.
I had a strange segue out of that. Then I returned back to storytelling, which was the training and developing leaders around the world. I got into executive training and then I brought the two kinds of worlds together. And what that gave me was something really unique, which, which was, I fought. Being somebody who had been so steeped in storytelling and cinema and theater, and then going into the quote-unquote business corporate world and seeing the impact of people standing up and how leaders can affect communities can affect cultures, can affect the bottom line and bringing the two together.
I saw you know, what's missing so much and why force has to be used. Y favoritism has to be used is because they're all shortcuts to what we're not doing, which is storytelling. We don't lead with storytelling. We don't say, okay, this, this young person right here doesn't seem to be learning the same way.
[00:17:55] How can I tap into their story? Or how can I tell a story about math or how can I. Or, you know, I've got people on my team who are not showing up on time. They're not falling through how can I tell a story or bring in a story so they can see the world differently? Because obviously when people are not good at something, it's not because they don't want to be good at it.
And what's worse is if they're the person who's not good at something, everybody else is then on top of it, they have the human reaction of something's wrong with. Definitely. I must be a dumb idiot or something. And what do they do? They start acting out. They start leaving. They go from job to job or cut class or whatever, you know, or in relationships, you can kind of lay on it, everything you want, but storytelling allows us to connect.
So in terms of breaking down key elements, here's why first. To tell a story is to not be descriptive. So a lot of people go like this when I say, well, I did tell a story. And I said, no, you didn't. And I go, yes, I did watch you know, I used to be a happy person. And then I went through a bunch of problems.
[00:18:45] It was really troubling to me, but now I found out that, you know, I can be both happy, but I can also express my pain. And so, you know, they kind of tell it like that, where you get this sort of swash of an overview, but that's not storytelling. I in my mind, I was just observing what you were telling me, but I didn't feel it.
[00:19:10] I didn't see myself in it. How you tell a story is it has to have a time place. Smell experience. So it's very different to say. I remember the day when I was nine years old and I had just gotten this sweater and, and, and I was, I was putting on a sweater and it didn't fit and I just felt so bad. And one of the buttons popped up and I just looked at my mom and my mom looked at me.
All of my pain just left. I didn't feel like a chubby kid. I didn't feel, you know, pathetic. I looked at my mom and I knew it [00:19:35] was going to be okay. I knew I was okay. And we just started laughing. Like, that's a story.
[00:19:35] Kc Rossi: And it's so funny. I mean, even though you're just making up up on the cuff, like I just got chills.
So I mean, it's ridiculous, but it is, that is the component of igniting emotion. And again, that brings us with that human connection. I am so curious, why don't we do more of it, especially in the corporate arenas or in our entrepreneurial life? Is it fear? What, what holds people back from sharing story or cultivating story?
[00:19:55] Audrey Cavenecia: Vulnerability.
Vulnerability because, and this is a nut, then we can go right back to what my unlikely leadership podcast about and expanding the narrative, which is we, we have been fed this narrative that we've been constrained inside of, which is fake it till you make it. And like you have it together. Only share about the good stuff and the accomplishments.
And meanwhile, in the background, we're in pain or there are things we're going through. And we feel that we have to keep that private. And I'm not saying everybody should post all their business online. I'm definitely not subscribing to that. But what that's done is it's made us look at people as, wow. I wish I could be like them. That's the leader. And what we've seen in the last few years with this, you know, me too movement and other, other kind of tearing leaders down off their pedestal.
It has, yes, there's been some really bad behavior that we've rewarded because of results in business. And we look, the other people look the other way because while they're producing the result, but also there's been this level of expectation. Like my goodness, you're being really hard on people like hitting cancel culture.
Maybe, maybe not so much doing cancel culture. Maybe it's paused. Yeah. Maybe it's pause culture. Maybe some people just need to take a pause for a second to do what to take care of themselves because clearly the behavior is coming from somewhere.
[00:22:30] So I think that storytelling, when you go to storytelling, you think of how, even how you, you said that I just made up a story, became clearly off the top of my head and the comparisons, but, but that you felt goosebumps and that's because.
I let myself be present to a human experience and I shared it with you. And while the story itself may not resonate for you or have been your life, the feeling of being feeling uncomfortable or feeling like not accepted or feeling like [00:22:55] something's wrong with you is a human universal experience. We all can relate to that.
And I believe we need to start, which is what I do in my podcast consistently, as I talk about. Experiences. I talk about moments in time where leaders have had this break and belonging. This kind of experience happened to him and they allowed it to fuse into their leadership and expand them instead of be something that they fixed and covered up or anything like that.
And we need all those as in leadership skills. So storytelling is really powerful. I also don't think that anybody's really put together a storytelling. I believe in the way that we have our businesses set up is for us to look at storytelling like, That's marketing, right?
[00:23:15] Kc Rossi Like the humble brag or yeah, the, the, the posts that are supposed to kind of be vulnerable there's again, I think manipulation
[00:23:45] Audrey Cavenecia: Even manipulation, like, and, and you see it.
Cool. You know, we all start out fully self express. There's no baby. That goes, oh, I don't like drawing. I'm not good at it. I am only into it. We see this emerge in their personalities in terms of their skillsets, but we're all creative. We all have the capacity to create, but even traditional schools, especially in the United States, kind of sets you up to pit in silos to say, I am not creating.
I am in math or I am creative. I'm not good at math. And then that's even how our businesses are divided up. Engineers sales over here, marketing is over there. They have their little fights that they do.
[00:24:35] Kc Rossi: And it's so interesting because you know, as popular. Brene Brown is with all of her work and shame, research and vulnerability.
And we love it and she's got tons of followers and we gravitate towards people who take down the mask. We want to have that connection with people, but it's almost like, well, that's great for them. You know, I can be on this side and enjoy it. And. What do you think our listeners can do? If they're like, yes, I'm nodding my head.
That's awesome. To kind of breakthrough some of that [ fear of their own sharing of their own vulnerability.
[00:25:00] Audrey Cavenecia: I think, you know, what's so great about it is it's a pre. I don't think people can, you know, there's not like a workshop you've taken and you're great at storytelling. It doesn't work like that because it requires you to reveal something about yourself and no workshop can teach you that they can teach you the structure.
But I think in sometimes, especially with vulnerable practices. The more education you get it's counter-intuitive sometimes because then you get to in your head about all the things, you know, and now it's a different version of constraining you, right? Like, why do I know all this stuff? Why do I still not feel free?
What people will find if they practice and what I mean by practices, this check with yourself and you too Kc, just check with yourself for a moment and think when was the last time that I had experienced that I was talking to somebody. And there was this kind of feeling I even had in my gut or my chest where I was like, oh, I really want to tell them this.
I really want to share this about myself. And then you're like, oh no, no, no, I don't. If I say that, I don't know how they're going to look at me. And you didn't, we've all had that experience many times, right? There's no one, even for myself included who doesn't, who doesn't just like, who goes around saying everything that's on their mind.
[00:26:15] But those to me, I feel are almost like the universe or God or whatever people believe in or your own truth. I feel like it's like knocking on the door to say, Hey, this, this is the next step for you. Yeah. It's, it's the reminder to say, you know, how you've been asking for that freedom, you know, how you've been, trying to figure out what your life is supposed to be about, you know, how you were trying to figure out like how to ask for that raise or, you know, start your own business or do your own jewelry line or whatever it is.
[00:26:40] This, this right here. This moment right here is your one step. The one brick laid for you to be in that next space. So many of us just shut that down. And then we keep trying to do the jewelry and trying to get the raise or don't say anything, or the worst one is, well, if I get this together, then I'll be myself.
And this is a big thing around body image, especially for women or, or, or the way that we speak or, or whether or not we have the proper education. There's so much where we use an outside. Something like our wait for education for experience. And we say, I don't get to the meat until I do those things because then people will accept me.
But if now is the only moment that you'll ever experience freedom, not later, there is no such thing as being free to be you later. . Yes. It's only happened in this moment and you get the triggers all day long. So one of the practices that I did, I'll just give you an example back in the day, when, in terms of sharing oneself, so that you can get to that space of storytelling is I did practices that.
[00:27:55] So much has to do with me, sharing myself, but had to do with things that I thought on my mind that I suppressed myself about lifted. For instance, if I'm standing in a line, which I know a lot about because of the pandemic, we're not standing in line anymore, but like this was before. So if I'm standing in line and there let's say is a woman that I think is.
Just how she's still put together. I think she looks good, completely amazing. Typically a have that thought, but I'd be like, I'm going to be some weirdo standing in line and like talking to this woman, it's justno, and I started doing that. I started doing like don't don't. Monitor yourself, Audrey and, and edit to yourself.
Constantly allow yourself to connect with this person and gratitude and expressing acknowledgments. It's actually a really great way to start to feel yourself. And then if you could start to do that to say, wow, excuse me. Ma'am like, you look really amazing. I love that. No matter how they respond to it.
I got to be free in that moment because I had a thought that was authentic to me and I actually shared it. That's awesome. If you start to do that practice, you'll start to close the gap of your own experiences in the moment where someone cuts you off at work and you don't go, oh, I'm so upset. They do this all the time.
You'll actually be. Excuse me. I'm sorry. But I was actually in the middle of things. Something I really loved to finish is that work for everybody because there's just one thing I really wanted to say like, oh my goodness. And you start little by little by little changing the way people see you. Not because they're wrong and not because you need to be fixed, but because it was there for you all.
[00:29:25 Kc Rossi ]Absolutely. And not only does it ignite your personal power, it actually amplifies your respect. And it gives people around you the permission to do the same. We know that feeling back to when you were saying, when we suppressive voice, which is that spirit or soul full you're bubbling up inside of us, it is literally like choking it down and suppressing it when we don't allow ourselves to use our voice. So I love that you gave that concrete example because we can start doing those little micro-actions like complimenting someone. And when we do people light up and again, it brings in that human connection, which we are all craving and you know, that's gonna make their day better. And maybe they're going to then do that.
When they see something either when they have to put a boundary down or say, Hey, wait, I was in the middle of something or a compliment. So I really love how you tied that together. You mentioned leadership a couple of times I heard a few qualities coming through. What I would assume you would think a good leader is based on what you just said, which would be communication and vulnerability.
What other qualities do you feel makes an excellent.
[00:30:40 ]Yeah, that's really great. So you know, a lot of people don't understand there's a number of things. So one is the way that we listen. So much of us feel like as leaders we've been in the, in the dying paradigm, the shifting paradigm, we shouldn't say dime.
That sounds negative, but the shifting paradigm that we've seen so much you know delegating to people, telling them what to do and, you know, micromanaging them or, or putting them through management systems or whatever it is. So much of that is a lot of energy on the side of the leader. But if you just think about that, if.
If I think about a leader in a sense of like a faucet. So you only have one place where water is coming from, which would be fine if you're going to wash the dishes. But if you're going to spread water to an entire land, oh boy, I think you need more than one place that it's coming from. And this is the problem that we have with the leadership being actually active listening, being able to listen to people in a way.
Not, what do I need to do to tell you to do your job or do your job well, but what do you need from me and the team to empower you? Which requires me to what, listen more and ask more questions than it does for me to speak more. That is a big practice because automatically even myself included every meeting, every interaction, every problem, every, I just find everybody comes to.
I've got to say something, I've got to oversee something. And while those things are true, I'm always checking with myself. Is there a balance here? Am I talking all the time? If I'm talking all the time, something's off because I'm not really developing this team, what you want to see with your leader, with your other rising up leaders and with your team is you want to see building a culture of self generative.
People coming to you with like, Hey Audrey, we have this breakdown. And here's three solutions that I thought, oh great. Now we're having an engaging thing. What do I do? Do, what do I do? This is a problem. What do you wait? Can you look at it to tell what you know? So I'm always putting it back on. How do you think that would go in there or checking in with process and flow and saying, how is it going so far?
Am I interjecting myself too much? Or you feel like I'm taking away your, oh, okay. I got it. I'll, I'll stop, you know, jumping in emails to like hear back from you to see how you would handle it. Okay. And constantly just check. And sometimes when I feel that the the space is too tense, it just happened last week.
I know it's time for me to share my own experience. It's to share what currently right now, as a leader, am I honestly afraid about, you know, like, Hey, we haven't hit the bottom line of XYZ the last few weeks I'm actually concerned or afraid that we're not going to do it. And so I start getting. Edgy and aggressive and, you know, I'm sure the impact on you guys.
[00:30:25] Do you guys feel suppressed or you're wondering, or you're scrambling. And so I just want to hear from you, has it been that way for you? And once you start hearing from them, you're like, oh wow, it's important for leaders to get that, how their behavior affects people, not just the accolades of leadership, but actually the impact of the responsibility.
I think one is leaders have to really practice what we talked about in the beginning, which is share your whole self, not your habit together. Walk in and tell people what to do. Leave self that, that doesn't really create anything other than regurgitating the same old stuff. How you create innovative outside of the box experiences is when you, you yourself are.
And when you build a. Of people that are authentically themselves. If you don't agree with how somebody is as a leader, it's an opportunity for you to see like where in my past has this type of behavior affected me negatively. Oh my gosh, that person Jessica on my team reminds me of my aunt, who I hate.
And then you start, that's the place you come from, accountability. And you notice. No, when I've had those kinds of conversations, I find out I am like the sister that they resent and they are like the aunt that I, you know, so you kind of go, oh gosh, there's some humanity in that. And how can I start to be more effective with this type of personality that I was never respected with before?
That's a, you know, I know it's, it's tough, but it's actually very exciting because it's crashing. Yeah, it's totally refreshing.
[00:35:00] Kc Rossi: I mean, just hearing you describe the scenario of being able to come in, speak to your team, share some feelings that are going on for you, ask for input, be willing to pivot. I mean, it's, I just feel like that is. Create such a powerful culture and that people really feel heard and that they, their input gets implemented. You know, it's not just one way is the only way it's like, great. How do we collaborate to really make this powerful, to get to those goals and meet the bottom line. So I love it. It really does feel like a breath of fresh air.
I think you're doing amazing work. I think it’s very cool to hear some of your personal story, as far as the diverse background and all the different pieces that you brought together. It feels very strong into the ying yang synergy, as far as your entertainment mixing with the corporate. I love having that mashup in that blend and, and just even like your, where your mom's from, where your dad's from, like you just have a lot of really cool.
Lens coming in and it's just, it's making a beautiful experience for us as listeners to feel and experience your wisdom. So thank you so, so much for being here.
[00:36:00] Audrey Thank you. I really appreciate it. I really you know, it's interesting. I, by nature am pretty much constituted as an introvert, but I have such a passion for what's possible. Does my own practice that I practiced for so long, being able to talk to people, being able to be myself, being able to be in front of a room and being able to speak up and be half of something. So much practice has gone into this. I know at this point, a lot of people were like, wow, you feel so natural.
And you're so comfortable. And I'm like, wow, that's, that's a few days of work, but I'm always present. When I connect with someone, how happy I am to connect with people. You know, that's not just in my circle, but just outside. So I appreciate that opportunity as well.
[00:36:40] Kc Rossi: Yeah, I love that we have a lot of introvert listeners. And so I'm so glad that you share that because it not only inspires us to know that through practice, we do have unlimited possibilities and you are a radiant exemplar of that. How can people learn more about you, your world and your podcasts?
[00:37:05] Audrey Cavenecia: Okay, great. Yeah. If you just go to amplifyvoices.io everything, is there, all the transcripts to the, if people just want to read instead of listen, or you can listen or we're on really any platform.
So it's unlikely leadership with Audrey or it's Amplified voices with Pete Carroll and myself.
[00:37:28] Kc Rossi: Amazing. Awesome. I'll make sure to put the links in the show notes, it's been a total pleasure, Audrey. I can't wait to connect again and until we do breathe joy
[00:37:55] Audrey Cavenecia: Oh, thank you so much.
[00:37:30] Kc Rossi Bye bye. Bye.
[00:00:40] KC Rossi: My guest today is Audrey. Audrey is the chief content officer and co-producer for amplify voices, the cohost alongside NFL coach, Pete Carroll for the Amplify Voices podcast, and host of the Unlikely podcast.
All on leadership. I loved my time with Audrey. She really allowed me. Perspective shift. When it came to vulnerability and storytelling. So I know that you are going to get a lot out of this conversation. We talk about the strengths of being a powerful leader, as well as the importance of human connection and how storytelling allows us to evoke emotion.
So not only can. Have other people self-identify to our story, but moreover feel something have an experience. And like I said, what I experienced was perspective shifts. And I think, especially in this time when we are in a paradigm shift on a global basis positive perspective shifts are one of the most powerful things that we can have not only in our own personal development and growth but so there can be a positive ripple effect moving away in, through and in our circle.
So I know you're going to enjoy this episode. I would love to hear your aha moments.
[00:02:05] Kc Rossi: Hey, Audrey. Welcome to the show.
[00:02:09] Audrey Cavenecia: Thank you.
[00:02:14] Kc Rossi: It's great to have you here. I am curious what drove you to start the Amplify Voices, because I know that you also have conversations from the heart, which is going to be what we're going to be having today together. And I'm curious what drove you to that show?
[00:02:30] Yeah. It's really a flagship podcast for the whole company. So I recently started a company with Pete Carroll legendary NFL coach of the Seattle Seahawks. And. And we're not doing a single podcast about sports. So a lot of people are like what? But there's a reason behind it.
Because we're, multi-faceted people, our purposes serve many sides of our self-expression. And for Pete Carroll, he had been a long time doing philanthropy work and impact work around. Human potential and purpose and coming from your heart. And very specifically, which is very important is while a lot of people do work like that, we haven't seen.
A man who's in just about the most cutting cutthroat competitive field you could possibly be in, which is sports and still be somebody for decades and decades who said, yeah, but if. Coming from the heart. If you don't care for people, the way you care for your own family, you're not going to get the best from them.
So while he is someone who is out to win, he's also someone who has demonstrated effectively that you don't need to compromise your values. To win. So when we met, I thought, oh my gosh, you know, it would be so great. If you could be the foundation of storytelling and you are somebody who, your team members and philanthropy from black to brown, to women, to everybody, you've been somebody who sees the real person.
You see. Spirit you see their soul. And what if we can have a media company built on that doing podcasts and all different kinds of content where we can quote unquote, amplify other voices and give them the opportunity. Yeah. So, so Peter and I even at, in ourselves with this first podcast, our flagship.
Amplified versus conversations from the heart tagline. We're really a demonstration of inclusion. I don't, I didn't even know who he was. I don't come from an interest in a sports background. We've never been two people who danced in each other's industries or have ever, you know, totally different backgrounds, totally different human beings coming together with another distinct human.
Purely from the heart. And you'll see that while there may be differences while we may not agree with ourselves and the guests there never is this experience of divisiveness. There's only an experience of active listening. So it was a really, really awesome. Opportunity. And now my podcast came out now, Unlikely leadership where I'm speaking on expanding the narrative of leadership, and then we have two other coming out and we'll have three other state.
So we're just rolling them out and so different.
[00:05:01] Kc Rossi: Yeah, that's fabulous. And I think to your point of not knowing each other before having two very different backgrounds is going to make a really exciting show because it gives different perspectives. And I think that's going to be super interesting to listen to.
I can't wait to hear your podcasts. A fabulous platform. What do you like specifically about podcasting as a platform?
[00:05:25] Audrey Cavenecia Okay. There's two things that I, and I do want to say, you know, our podcast came out June 6th and we just won a prestigious award. So we're really excited. That's amazing the mark on platinum word.
Right. But but I say that of course, to be proud of me and the team and the work that we did and sharing our own hearts. But I say that because. It ties into what I love about podcasts. And also because to me, I think we need proof of concept that we don't need to be yelling at each other and have a bunch of drama to get numbers and get success and all of that.
There's no need to compromise. And especially now going forward, we're seeing a huge paradigm shift in what leadership is, who we can be with one another. And this is time to try and.
[00:06:15] Kc Rossi: Have you read my mind the minute you said that I was like, that is the old paradigm and everyone's ready to shift. And I think especially post 2020, and when the COVID outbreak, you know, came about, we are really wanting a new narrative.
We want that connection and it's really time. It's time to ditch witch. What doesn't make us feel good, which is the trauma and the drama. So I love that. And I know one of your key skills is storytelling and I personally would love to get better at that. I tend to stay in teacher mode often. And so I'm very curious, not only for myself, but for the listeners, what do you feel makes an excellent story.
If you had to even give us three components, what makes a great story?
[00:06:45] Audrey Cavenecia: Great. Okay. So first I'm going to just tell you what I love about podcast, because I want to make sure that for the listeners, I complete what you've asked me and I'll all roll right into what makes a great story in the components, from my perspective what I loved and why I fell in love with podcasting.
Cause I had never even listened to a single podcast. When I decided to go that direction with a media company, we were going to kick off the documentaries, but with the pandemic, it was. Wasn't accessible to get team members together and all of the policies and regulations around it. So I pivoted and of course, pivoting in a world that I haven't been in yet was a [00:07:30] bit tricky, but you know, working with people and telling stories is all the same, no matter what medium you go in to.
So I just quickly went through a learning curve, but here's why I fell in love with podcasting because right now we are so maxed out. We are so impacted by the news around us. We're so impacted coming out of COVID and for many of us, we found out. New arguments to have a family members. We didn't even realize we had a different perspective on a lot of people lost their friends, not only in real, like in life, but also in disagreements where they've closed the door.
And I mean, there was just so much the uncertainty that we're dealing with every day. Do we go back to work? Do we not? Should I leave this state that I'm in? Should I, should I stay? Should I change what I'm doing? I mean, it's a lot. Podcasting I realized is the only medium in storytelling where you're not tethered to anything, meaning I don't have to sit physically and stare at the book and I can't walk at the same time and read, or I don't have to sit in front of my computer to watch something.
Or I have to sit in front of my TV to watch this documentary with podcasts. And you can play with your children. You can include your children. You can listen with your partner. You could take a walk or run, you can lay down and just relax and rest and think of that, that time. That's so personal to you and important to you to have something that just empowers you or allows you to just step outside your own perspective and expand it.
[00:09:10] Audrey Cavenecia: I then was like, oh, I'm so about podcasting. So I just want you to complete that because I did think it's an important part of being of service to people. And that's how we're looking at it is grading. Of service to people and their wellbeing.
[00:09:55] Kc Rossi: Yeah. No, thank you. I appreciate you circling, circling to that.
I sometimes get ahead of myself and I have an exciting guest, so I, I appreciate, I love that. And I agree with you. I've been podcasting for three years. I feel like it's a powerful platform to spread your message. I also think it's incredibly convenient as you said to take in and I feel it's also a very intimate way to take information many times, you're you even have the earbuds right in your head.
So it's like we are up close and personal. I love when they're raw and real, you know, I mean, that's the thing. My show is unedited. It's like. Here, here. It is. Here is a real conversation. So thank you for sharing that, that perspective. I appreciate it.
[00:10:26] Audrey Cavenecia: Yeah. And, and just from even gender and color, considering we're dealing with so much of that male, female, and black, white, and all of that, you know, not everybody has an, a great relationship with a man in their life or a woman in their life.
There's a lot of history of betrayal and resentment and breakdowns. I read the other day from one of the reports that less than 75% of white people even had a person of color, a black person in their network. That's a lot. So how do you deal with the changes that are happening in society when you don't have an intimate relationship to sort of talk through it and experience new things they're conceptual for you?
They're not real. Podcasts, like you said, coming into your ear, give you an opportunity to almost be at the table together. Like we are your friends because we are people forget that we live on the same planet. We are neighbors, we are neighbors. And I think it's time that we start learning how to be good neighbors.
All of us, right. As a medium.
[00:10:40 ] Kc Rossi: It does. It does. And I think Audrey, to your point, when we're talking about sensitive topics like diversity, inclusivity, race, especially as you mentioned, a large majority may not even have diverse friends in their network. Listening to other people have a conversation and be real and bring in all different points of view is such a great way to one be informed.
And two, it doesn't feel intimidating because I have to tell you, like when you aren't exposed and yes, it's absolutely our responsibility to become educated. And I think that's one of the beautiful ways that we can become educated through podcasts, but otherwise, there is this kind of sense of fear. I know that.
For myself, especially like when black lives matter came out and it was really strong and people were making them like Instagram profiles, you know, like a black square and I didn't do anything and it didn't mention anything. And my virtual assistant like waited about three, four days and she's like, I think your audience is waiting for you to say something.
And I was like, oh, and she's like, silence is a stand. And it was so powerful for me because I was like, oh my gosh, like, Really took that in like that really sat with me. And it really started a lot of education and opening my mind for, for several months that, that particular instance, and I feel like one of the other turning points was listening to a Reverend Michael Bernard Beckwith and he was talking about that and just hearing him.
And the way that he approached the subject with so much grace and it was about soul to soul connection. It had nothing to do with race, color, gender, nothing. And that I think again, it's like when you can hear other voices making sense of some of the things rambling in your head. Boom. Everything comes together.
So I appreciate you bringing that up.
[00:12:55] Audrey Cavenecia: Yeah. And I, you know, that is a tricky subject and I know we're going to get right into storytelling so I will roll it. It is a distinct thing. I come from a extreme, extreme mix. My mother is blonde hair, blue eyes, white from Germany. My dad is dark skinned kinky hair from south America.
So that's African Latin, native American background. Right. And they both came to the United States. So I'm, first-generation from immigrants. I'm got this totally. Polar opposites of race and culture and differences. And all of that, I really do feel that, you know, part of our own narratives is not about what we do or what we do to make money or what we need to do to change things.
I think it's about digging deep into our experiences and saying, what unique way did I come into the world where I can see things distinctly through my lens. But if I share with others, it'll expand their view, their experiences and their outcomes. So I actually embodied these totally polar opposites working together and being totally not on the same side in agreement, but still loving one another.
So I can't not see my white community, my native American community, the Latin community, the Asian community, the black community. I cannot not see them and stand the ability to acknowledge and relish their differences to apologize and take responsibility for where certain people have been left out and also to, you know, have a sense of accountability and love all rolled up into one and to not have just one side that I'm looking at life.
And while at the same time, knowing that there are other people be they, my mom even experienced calling me up. And what did you think about the black lives matter marches, you know, asking me. And I think that was a really big thing for us, is not to have some assumption that her perspective was the right perspective, but that she wanted to hear where I was coming from and what it felt like for me, I thought that was so powerful.
[00:15:00] And there's, there's no right at the end of that conversation, there was. A shared experience. And I didn't think of it that way. Let me walk away and think about that. So, okay. So going into storytelling you know, it's interesting because I love storytelling, not just for the sake of my love of it. I, I fell in love with storytelling because again, my dad coming from another country, a lot of people that come from another country have a relationship with the United States through cinema.
And so am I, my dad. I think he's inflated these, I'm not going to birthdays, but my dad's around the seventies, eighties right in there. And so you think of that time of cinema, you know, having $1 to go to the cinema and that's all, that's what there is. And, and, and those actors were all okay. All right. For the most part, were Caucasian.
So his even dream woman that was, he was very, very shaped by that narrative. So when he came to the United States, you know, he falls in love with the equivalent of a Kim Novak. Right. And so with, with his interests and when we were growing up, my, my dad. Wasn't the most emotional person. Wasn't the kind of person that would be like, oh, come here.
[00:16:15] I love you. He expressed his love through sitting down and watching movies. So when, when it would be time with dad and time with the family, he'd be like, okay, it wouldn't be one movie. It would be three movies in a row. And it wouldn't just be watching a movie as a little girl. He would like, what did you think of that?
Why did you think that happened? What did you, if you would say that with a really heavy accent and I started not only. Taking the journey of living inside of characters, but actually doing the critical thinking of the humanity that was there. And so as I grew up and I got an interest in their tank business, I was in the entertainment business.
I had a strange segue out of that. Then I returned back to storytelling, which was the training and developing leaders around the world. I got into executive training and then I brought the two kinds of worlds together. And what that gave me was something really unique, which, which was, I fought. Being somebody who had been so steeped in storytelling and cinema and theater, and then going into the quote-unquote business corporate world and seeing the impact of people standing up and how leaders can affect communities can affect cultures, can affect the bottom line and bringing the two together.
I saw you know, what's missing so much and why force has to be used. Y favoritism has to be used is because they're all shortcuts to what we're not doing, which is storytelling. We don't lead with storytelling. We don't say, okay, this, this young person right here doesn't seem to be learning the same way.
[00:17:55] How can I tap into their story? Or how can I tell a story about math or how can I. Or, you know, I've got people on my team who are not showing up on time. They're not falling through how can I tell a story or bring in a story so they can see the world differently? Because obviously when people are not good at something, it's not because they don't want to be good at it.
And what's worse is if they're the person who's not good at something, everybody else is then on top of it, they have the human reaction of something's wrong with. Definitely. I must be a dumb idiot or something. And what do they do? They start acting out. They start leaving. They go from job to job or cut class or whatever, you know, or in relationships, you can kind of lay on it, everything you want, but storytelling allows us to connect.
So in terms of breaking down key elements, here's why first. To tell a story is to not be descriptive. So a lot of people go like this when I say, well, I did tell a story. And I said, no, you didn't. And I go, yes, I did watch you know, I used to be a happy person. And then I went through a bunch of problems.
[00:18:45] It was really troubling to me, but now I found out that, you know, I can be both happy, but I can also express my pain. And so, you know, they kind of tell it like that, where you get this sort of swash of an overview, but that's not storytelling. I in my mind, I was just observing what you were telling me, but I didn't feel it.
[00:19:10] I didn't see myself in it. How you tell a story is it has to have a time place. Smell experience. So it's very different to say. I remember the day when I was nine years old and I had just gotten this sweater and, and, and I was, I was putting on a sweater and it didn't fit and I just felt so bad. And one of the buttons popped up and I just looked at my mom and my mom looked at me.
All of my pain just left. I didn't feel like a chubby kid. I didn't feel, you know, pathetic. I looked at my mom and I knew it [00:19:35] was going to be okay. I knew I was okay. And we just started laughing. Like, that's a story.
[00:19:35] Kc Rossi: And it's so funny. I mean, even though you're just making up up on the cuff, like I just got chills.
So I mean, it's ridiculous, but it is, that is the component of igniting emotion. And again, that brings us with that human connection. I am so curious, why don't we do more of it, especially in the corporate arenas or in our entrepreneurial life? Is it fear? What, what holds people back from sharing story or cultivating story?
[00:19:55] Audrey Cavenecia: Vulnerability.
Vulnerability because, and this is a nut, then we can go right back to what my unlikely leadership podcast about and expanding the narrative, which is we, we have been fed this narrative that we've been constrained inside of, which is fake it till you make it. And like you have it together. Only share about the good stuff and the accomplishments.
And meanwhile, in the background, we're in pain or there are things we're going through. And we feel that we have to keep that private. And I'm not saying everybody should post all their business online. I'm definitely not subscribing to that. But what that's done is it's made us look at people as, wow. I wish I could be like them. That's the leader. And what we've seen in the last few years with this, you know, me too movement and other, other kind of tearing leaders down off their pedestal.
It has, yes, there's been some really bad behavior that we've rewarded because of results in business. And we look, the other people look the other way because while they're producing the result, but also there's been this level of expectation. Like my goodness, you're being really hard on people like hitting cancel culture.
Maybe, maybe not so much doing cancel culture. Maybe it's paused. Yeah. Maybe it's pause culture. Maybe some people just need to take a pause for a second to do what to take care of themselves because clearly the behavior is coming from somewhere.
[00:22:30] So I think that storytelling, when you go to storytelling, you think of how, even how you, you said that I just made up a story, became clearly off the top of my head and the comparisons, but, but that you felt goosebumps and that's because.
I let myself be present to a human experience and I shared it with you. And while the story itself may not resonate for you or have been your life, the feeling of being feeling uncomfortable or feeling like not accepted or feeling like [00:22:55] something's wrong with you is a human universal experience. We all can relate to that.
And I believe we need to start, which is what I do in my podcast consistently, as I talk about. Experiences. I talk about moments in time where leaders have had this break and belonging. This kind of experience happened to him and they allowed it to fuse into their leadership and expand them instead of be something that they fixed and covered up or anything like that.
And we need all those as in leadership skills. So storytelling is really powerful. I also don't think that anybody's really put together a storytelling. I believe in the way that we have our businesses set up is for us to look at storytelling like, That's marketing, right?
[00:23:15] Kc Rossi Like the humble brag or yeah, the, the, the posts that are supposed to kind of be vulnerable there's again, I think manipulation
[00:23:45] Audrey Cavenecia: Even manipulation, like, and, and you see it.
Cool. You know, we all start out fully self express. There's no baby. That goes, oh, I don't like drawing. I'm not good at it. I am only into it. We see this emerge in their personalities in terms of their skillsets, but we're all creative. We all have the capacity to create, but even traditional schools, especially in the United States, kind of sets you up to pit in silos to say, I am not creating.
I am in math or I am creative. I'm not good at math. And then that's even how our businesses are divided up. Engineers sales over here, marketing is over there. They have their little fights that they do.
[00:24:35] Kc Rossi: And it's so interesting because you know, as popular. Brene Brown is with all of her work and shame, research and vulnerability.
And we love it and she's got tons of followers and we gravitate towards people who take down the mask. We want to have that connection with people, but it's almost like, well, that's great for them. You know, I can be on this side and enjoy it. And. What do you think our listeners can do? If they're like, yes, I'm nodding my head.
That's awesome. To kind of breakthrough some of that [ fear of their own sharing of their own vulnerability.
[00:25:00] Audrey Cavenecia: I think, you know, what's so great about it is it's a pre. I don't think people can, you know, there's not like a workshop you've taken and you're great at storytelling. It doesn't work like that because it requires you to reveal something about yourself and no workshop can teach you that they can teach you the structure.
But I think in sometimes, especially with vulnerable practices. The more education you get it's counter-intuitive sometimes because then you get to in your head about all the things, you know, and now it's a different version of constraining you, right? Like, why do I know all this stuff? Why do I still not feel free?
What people will find if they practice and what I mean by practices, this check with yourself and you too Kc, just check with yourself for a moment and think when was the last time that I had experienced that I was talking to somebody. And there was this kind of feeling I even had in my gut or my chest where I was like, oh, I really want to tell them this.
I really want to share this about myself. And then you're like, oh no, no, no, I don't. If I say that, I don't know how they're going to look at me. And you didn't, we've all had that experience many times, right? There's no one, even for myself included who doesn't, who doesn't just like, who goes around saying everything that's on their mind.
[00:26:15] But those to me, I feel are almost like the universe or God or whatever people believe in or your own truth. I feel like it's like knocking on the door to say, Hey, this, this is the next step for you. Yeah. It's, it's the reminder to say, you know, how you've been asking for that freedom, you know, how you've been, trying to figure out what your life is supposed to be about, you know, how you were trying to figure out like how to ask for that raise or, you know, start your own business or do your own jewelry line or whatever it is.
[00:26:40] This, this right here. This moment right here is your one step. The one brick laid for you to be in that next space. So many of us just shut that down. And then we keep trying to do the jewelry and trying to get the raise or don't say anything, or the worst one is, well, if I get this together, then I'll be myself.
And this is a big thing around body image, especially for women or, or, or the way that we speak or, or whether or not we have the proper education. There's so much where we use an outside. Something like our wait for education for experience. And we say, I don't get to the meat until I do those things because then people will accept me.
But if now is the only moment that you'll ever experience freedom, not later, there is no such thing as being free to be you later. . Yes. It's only happened in this moment and you get the triggers all day long. So one of the practices that I did, I'll just give you an example back in the day, when, in terms of sharing oneself, so that you can get to that space of storytelling is I did practices that.
[00:27:55] So much has to do with me, sharing myself, but had to do with things that I thought on my mind that I suppressed myself about lifted. For instance, if I'm standing in a line, which I know a lot about because of the pandemic, we're not standing in line anymore, but like this was before. So if I'm standing in line and there let's say is a woman that I think is.
Just how she's still put together. I think she looks good, completely amazing. Typically a have that thought, but I'd be like, I'm going to be some weirdo standing in line and like talking to this woman, it's justno, and I started doing that. I started doing like don't don't. Monitor yourself, Audrey and, and edit to yourself.
Constantly allow yourself to connect with this person and gratitude and expressing acknowledgments. It's actually a really great way to start to feel yourself. And then if you could start to do that to say, wow, excuse me. Ma'am like, you look really amazing. I love that. No matter how they respond to it.
I got to be free in that moment because I had a thought that was authentic to me and I actually shared it. That's awesome. If you start to do that practice, you'll start to close the gap of your own experiences in the moment where someone cuts you off at work and you don't go, oh, I'm so upset. They do this all the time.
You'll actually be. Excuse me. I'm sorry. But I was actually in the middle of things. Something I really loved to finish is that work for everybody because there's just one thing I really wanted to say like, oh my goodness. And you start little by little by little changing the way people see you. Not because they're wrong and not because you need to be fixed, but because it was there for you all.
[00:29:25 Kc Rossi ]Absolutely. And not only does it ignite your personal power, it actually amplifies your respect. And it gives people around you the permission to do the same. We know that feeling back to when you were saying, when we suppressive voice, which is that spirit or soul full you're bubbling up inside of us, it is literally like choking it down and suppressing it when we don't allow ourselves to use our voice. So I love that you gave that concrete example because we can start doing those little micro-actions like complimenting someone. And when we do people light up and again, it brings in that human connection, which we are all craving and you know, that's gonna make their day better. And maybe they're going to then do that.
When they see something either when they have to put a boundary down or say, Hey, wait, I was in the middle of something or a compliment. So I really love how you tied that together. You mentioned leadership a couple of times I heard a few qualities coming through. What I would assume you would think a good leader is based on what you just said, which would be communication and vulnerability.
What other qualities do you feel makes an excellent.
[00:30:40 ]Yeah, that's really great. So you know, a lot of people don't understand there's a number of things. So one is the way that we listen. So much of us feel like as leaders we've been in the, in the dying paradigm, the shifting paradigm, we shouldn't say dime.
That sounds negative, but the shifting paradigm that we've seen so much you know delegating to people, telling them what to do and, you know, micromanaging them or, or putting them through management systems or whatever it is. So much of that is a lot of energy on the side of the leader. But if you just think about that, if.
If I think about a leader in a sense of like a faucet. So you only have one place where water is coming from, which would be fine if you're going to wash the dishes. But if you're going to spread water to an entire land, oh boy, I think you need more than one place that it's coming from. And this is the problem that we have with the leadership being actually active listening, being able to listen to people in a way.
Not, what do I need to do to tell you to do your job or do your job well, but what do you need from me and the team to empower you? Which requires me to what, listen more and ask more questions than it does for me to speak more. That is a big practice because automatically even myself included every meeting, every interaction, every problem, every, I just find everybody comes to.
I've got to say something, I've got to oversee something. And while those things are true, I'm always checking with myself. Is there a balance here? Am I talking all the time? If I'm talking all the time, something's off because I'm not really developing this team, what you want to see with your leader, with your other rising up leaders and with your team is you want to see building a culture of self generative.
People coming to you with like, Hey Audrey, we have this breakdown. And here's three solutions that I thought, oh great. Now we're having an engaging thing. What do I do? Do, what do I do? This is a problem. What do you wait? Can you look at it to tell what you know? So I'm always putting it back on. How do you think that would go in there or checking in with process and flow and saying, how is it going so far?
Am I interjecting myself too much? Or you feel like I'm taking away your, oh, okay. I got it. I'll, I'll stop, you know, jumping in emails to like hear back from you to see how you would handle it. Okay. And constantly just check. And sometimes when I feel that the the space is too tense, it just happened last week.
I know it's time for me to share my own experience. It's to share what currently right now, as a leader, am I honestly afraid about, you know, like, Hey, we haven't hit the bottom line of XYZ the last few weeks I'm actually concerned or afraid that we're not going to do it. And so I start getting. Edgy and aggressive and, you know, I'm sure the impact on you guys.
[00:30:25] Do you guys feel suppressed or you're wondering, or you're scrambling. And so I just want to hear from you, has it been that way for you? And once you start hearing from them, you're like, oh wow, it's important for leaders to get that, how their behavior affects people, not just the accolades of leadership, but actually the impact of the responsibility.
I think one is leaders have to really practice what we talked about in the beginning, which is share your whole self, not your habit together. Walk in and tell people what to do. Leave self that, that doesn't really create anything other than regurgitating the same old stuff. How you create innovative outside of the box experiences is when you, you yourself are.
And when you build a. Of people that are authentically themselves. If you don't agree with how somebody is as a leader, it's an opportunity for you to see like where in my past has this type of behavior affected me negatively. Oh my gosh, that person Jessica on my team reminds me of my aunt, who I hate.
And then you start, that's the place you come from, accountability. And you notice. No, when I've had those kinds of conversations, I find out I am like the sister that they resent and they are like the aunt that I, you know, so you kind of go, oh gosh, there's some humanity in that. And how can I start to be more effective with this type of personality that I was never respected with before?
That's a, you know, I know it's, it's tough, but it's actually very exciting because it's crashing. Yeah, it's totally refreshing.
[00:35:00] Kc Rossi: I mean, just hearing you describe the scenario of being able to come in, speak to your team, share some feelings that are going on for you, ask for input, be willing to pivot. I mean, it's, I just feel like that is. Create such a powerful culture and that people really feel heard and that they, their input gets implemented. You know, it's not just one way is the only way it's like, great. How do we collaborate to really make this powerful, to get to those goals and meet the bottom line. So I love it. It really does feel like a breath of fresh air.
I think you're doing amazing work. I think it’s very cool to hear some of your personal story, as far as the diverse background and all the different pieces that you brought together. It feels very strong into the ying yang synergy, as far as your entertainment mixing with the corporate. I love having that mashup in that blend and, and just even like your, where your mom's from, where your dad's from, like you just have a lot of really cool.
Lens coming in and it's just, it's making a beautiful experience for us as listeners to feel and experience your wisdom. So thank you so, so much for being here.
[00:36:00] Audrey Thank you. I really appreciate it. I really you know, it's interesting. I, by nature am pretty much constituted as an introvert, but I have such a passion for what's possible. Does my own practice that I practiced for so long, being able to talk to people, being able to be myself, being able to be in front of a room and being able to speak up and be half of something. So much practice has gone into this. I know at this point, a lot of people were like, wow, you feel so natural.
And you're so comfortable. And I'm like, wow, that's, that's a few days of work, but I'm always present. When I connect with someone, how happy I am to connect with people. You know, that's not just in my circle, but just outside. So I appreciate that opportunity as well.
[00:36:40] Kc Rossi: Yeah, I love that we have a lot of introvert listeners. And so I'm so glad that you share that because it not only inspires us to know that through practice, we do have unlimited possibilities and you are a radiant exemplar of that. How can people learn more about you, your world and your podcasts?
[00:37:05] Audrey Cavenecia: Okay, great. Yeah. If you just go to amplifyvoices.io everything, is there, all the transcripts to the, if people just want to read instead of listen, or you can listen or we're on really any platform.
So it's unlikely leadership with Audrey or it's Amplified voices with Pete Carroll and myself.
[00:37:28] Kc Rossi: Amazing. Awesome. I'll make sure to put the links in the show notes, it's been a total pleasure, Audrey. I can't wait to connect again and until we do breathe joy
[00:37:55] Audrey Cavenecia: Oh, thank you so much.
[00:37:30] Kc Rossi Bye bye. Bye.
