Kc Rossi 0:02
Are you ready to scale your business in a way that's aligned with your soul, and profitable? I'm Kc Rossi, a business and leadership coach. I've been a full time entrepreneur for 30 years and love business. I help conscious leaders increase their impact and optimize their lives. Join me each week for tips and deep conversations on cultivating confidence, increasing your visibility, elevating your vibration, and leading with purpose without burning out. Let's go. My guest today is Christina Frey. Christina is a marketing consultant, author and creator of the generosity practice mindset work. She helps brilliant mission based entrepreneurs look smart and get hired. She published the book, The generosity practice 40 days to unstoppable. And I love my time with Christina because she just is fun, and she's zany. And she keeps her life interesting, and then integrates that with her business, which I think is absolutely brilliant. She's also put in a lot of time and energy and research into developing a very unique signature frameworks, one being the marketing archetypes and we'll get more into that. I hope you enjoy today's episode. Hey, Kristina, welcome to the show. Thanks, Casey. Yeah, I'm really excited to have you here. I know that you are a branding and marketing genius. And we all need a little magic when it comes to presenting ourselves to the world, knowing how to speak about what we do really effectively. And I love the fact that you're approaches this, like human to human interaction, which I think we often can just get caught up in our routine or following the next shiny object. And so I can't wait to dive in with you. Yeah, I've need to let's do this. Alright, sounds awesome. So my first question is, what do you think holds most of us back and I know this is a general statement, but when it comes to truly marketing as humans.
Christina Frei 2:06
So one thing that I've been studying for about six years is something I now call the innate marketing genius, right? So it's like, what? I have an innate marketing genius, like that can't be true. And I have worked with enough entrepreneurs to say, Yes, pretty much everyone has this. And my sense is, and let me just say what it is, it basically indicates your deepest why when you help other people, and it's not your profession, it's your human to human connection with others. So you might be the one that loves to make it safe for others to thrive. Or like yourself, you had taken that assessment, and you find that you're a steady presence. And that just means like, you love assuring people, they have what they need to move forward, and you offer that stuff for them. So I just I know, there's a lot of assessments out there. There's a lot of like self awareness tools and things like that. This is particularly about serving others with joy. And when you tap into that fuel, it's a lot easier to be human. I mean, I can go on, but I'll pause there for
Kc Rossi 3:09
Yeah, absolutely. No, I love that. You mentioned that. And I do feel like our audience are forever learners. And so like we have our hands raised for all the assessments, we want to learn about ourselves. And I'm wondering, how do we make sense of it all? How do we implement it? How do we embody the amazing nuggets instead of jumping to the next shiny quiz?
Christina Frei 3:32
Yeah, that is the context, that's why I do what I do is the challenge of focusing. And I do want to say what kind of steps are involved when you don't focus? Because I think that helps, you know, rein yourself in a little bit like, we need reasons to focus, it's hard, it's hard to do. So what I can tell you is that if you give yourself a chance to really sink into your deep value to others, and then you create your messaging from that place, and then you put some thought into what's the most powerful way and most empowering way that I can get out there on a consistent basis, like a marketing lifestyle, such that I'm interfacing with other humans changing their lives, and then getting great clients because I'm empowering them to take action at the same time, right. So that that's kind of the process of it all, and the results of it all. So I'm just here to tell you like, yes, it's always going to be tempting to do Instagram reels. It's always going to be tempting to do a new email campaign that's like glitzier than the last person's. But what you're missing out on is the true transformative power of what you can offer the world and the clients that would respond to you because of it.
Kc Rossi 4:46
Absolutely. Would you be able to give us an example of what it looks like in real life when a marketer is so zoomed in to their strengths and how they provide value?
Christina Frei 4:57
Sure, so a current client is a financial adviser. And when he first hired me, he was, you know, he's one of these people that is so smart and so good at what they do. And he actually had a pretty full client base. But what he wanted to do was shake it up a little bit and become a different kind of leader in his community. And maybe he was a little bored with, you know, just doing the same thing, even though he loves his clients, right. So now, after having gone through the process with me, I do this program called the compelling expert program. So, but we work together over a couple years now he does a podcast. And what that does, he does these like snippets of expertise about things people are really stressed out about. And so, you know, he's the guy that's a little bit like Yoda, where, you know, He'll calm you down and make you realize that, if you just listen to yourself, you're going to have the wisdom that you need. And you'll get through this, he's actually a fellow steady presents like yourself. And, like, if you're worried about having enough money to buy a home, or you know, how the how to finance your kids education, and just other big things like that, or just daily expenses, they keep increasing. He's the one who as soon as he opens his mouth, it's just like, wow, I don't even know that there's a problem. It's just a situation that requires a plan. And he constantly shows that in his short and sweet nugget podcasts of 15 minutes on massive topics that stress people out. Not only that, so its value, its value, consistent value for the community. But it's a good healthy challenge for him. And he's interested in that. And it's like creating a little talk every week or two. So he's, I mean, he reflects back to me that it's like, wow, I just, this was hard when it started. But now I'm really getting to the hang of it. And you know, then there's the wider benefit of saying that you do a podcast, and then people, new people finding him, like all the marketing, things you want to have happen, are starting to kick in. So yeah, all good.
Kc Rossi 7:01
So cool. So the last time you and I had a face to face that you muscle tested what my marketing archetype was, and I'm interested in all the ways that you integrate Woo into your business.
Christina Frei 7:17
So the first thing I focus on is mindset. So you know, we'll put the archetypes over here for a second. But the first thing is, mindset, I developed something about 20 years ago, when I was doing a deep dive training like spiritual training thing in Berkeley, California. And I now call it the generosity practice. And this is basically allowing you to be really creative and generative about how you love helping the world, people, you know, group of people, one person, etc, etc. Like, you just really rise to the potential of generosity every single day. And what that has, I have found with every client I've ever worked with, and to feel steady I did in five countries, that it makes you unstoppable. It's like, if you're excited to go out and serve, but you just sent out a bunch of emails that no one opened, you don't care, like, you're still gonna keep going, because you can't wait to help people. So that's number one. And, oh, I just got a book written about this stuff last year. So I'm just gonna promo that for a sec. So just the generosity practice book. Anyway, so that that's number one. And then number two is I found that a deeper level of that particular work revealed these archetypes I know I'm connecting a lot of dots here. But it's, you know, if you really lean into how you joyfully serve others, maybe what you discover is you're like, oh my god, I'm a nurturer. I love making it safe for other people to thrive, or I'm a celebrator. I love bringing the good life, and I have this flair. I'm kind of geeking out on my own stuff right now. But like,
Kc Rossi 8:49
but that's the fun of it is this passion. And I love to hear the how the dots are connected, because that's the journey. You know, we keep asking yourself, what's next? What's next. And it's all this layered process. So I celebrate pivots and reiterations. And just the continued layered process that we all have. So that's amazing. I You mentioned deep why and that's one of the listeners favorite topics here. I have an episode on it as well. And I get a lot of questions about deep why I would love to hear your riff on it.
Christina Frei 9:20
Okay. Yeah. And what I love about this particular angle of it is it's very clear that your deep Why is always in service to others, or to something bigger than yourself, right? It's not like what's fascinating about you, or, you know, what you're stressed out about the most? It's like, no, it's like how you're meant to help people in a general way, beautiful way. So I would say that that kind of why is is energizing and galvanizing and clarifying and if you can have fun. I know it's weird to say that have fun with your why. But that's sort of the work that I've been doing is helping people have fun and get like loose with their you know, just, you know, roll with it. How How do you like, okay? The reason I'm going this direction is that every single day when somebody sits down and spends the 10 minutes to do this mindset work, right, you close your eyes, you go to your happy place, and then you're just sort of hanging out just contemplating like, what is it? What what would really sort of break my heart open or knock my socks off around like the potential of offering? And it can get weird, right? Like sometimes you give out piles of dirt, and you don't know why. And that's okay. What I'm interested in is, how are you feeling? When you've given out a bunch of dirt? Are you feeling like you're on fire, and you can't wait to help people because a lot of personal practices are like this beautiful sanctuary over here on this side of the fence, mee, Mee Mee, and then you have to go out and serve. And it's like a punch in the face sometimes. So this practice is really like, wow, I'm super excited to get out there and help others. I can't wait to open my eyes and actually go do it. Yeah,
Kc Rossi 11:08
absolutely. It's so interesting. I was on a mastermind this morning. And two out of the four women that were on the call successful women making six figures or more, either pivoting or, you know, ready to take it to the next level. two out of four were struggling with my heart is broken open, I'm ready to serve. Where are the people? How do I do it? There was like a stuck point. I'm wondering what kind of tips tips or strategies you have for people that like they are connected, they've done the work, they want that fulfillment of not only helping others, but just like that regenerated energy that when I'm helping someone else, that it's going to come back and I can help more, and it's going to be this beautiful, positive ripple effect. But that it's like, where are the peeps that need most help?
Christina Frei 11:54
Yeah, well, I love that question. Because what I'm realizing as you're asking it, it's they their challenge now is to maintain the connection to their heart, as they meet the world, period, end of story. It's not just about finding the right clients, it's about being able to what, like, increase the size of your influence, and maintaining the heart open, because we're all going to get are heartbroken. By rejection, by confusion by whatever it is, right? Can you your job now is to find your own leadership and keep making those choices. And, you know, that's nice that you feel great now, and I'm not minimizing that. But now it's just taking it up a notch and wider, just helping more people. And I would say a huge thing that helps with that is to recognize that you consistency is the name of the game, right? Once you figure out how you want to get out there, just doing on a regular basis. And so therefore, think of marketing as a lifestyle. That's, that's how I work with my clients. It's like a lifestyle, like, every single day, you're going to spend an hour on this to keep growing your business, even if you've been in business for five years. So what's it going to be? Are you going to be scattered all over the social media channels and really not have much to say? Or are you going to have this way of staying relevant to the people you serve? And really thinking about your clients and then doing a podcast on it doing a talk on it, like having interviews like you're doing right. And it's like, wow, she you know, she's constantly thinking of new ways to serve and having ideas to help me and moving me forward. Like I'm a huge believer in the transformative power of conversation and dialogue. And just like any kind of marketing, if you're doing it right helps you organize your thinking, yes, because right even as a business owner, who knows their target market, things are changing all the time, your clients are always going to come to you with new versions of the issues. So do you have a way to constantly chime in on those, that's not going to be like little cute blurbs on Instagram, we need more than that.
Kc Rossi 14:03
I love that so much. And you know, the whole fact of staying the same is just so boring, it's not going to work anymore. And I love your point to being relevant constantly being on that cutting edge. And in order to do that, you've got to be doing some serious personal development work on a daily basis. Because in order to have that flow, that regeneration of creative ideas, and even being able to manifest content for an hour a day, you've got to be doing some really cool things you've got to have like your big listening ears on. So I'm wondering what you personally do when it comes to personal development and self growth that you marry into your daily business life?
Christina Frei 14:45
Sure, so one thing I'll just mention my cold dips now. That's really the biggest personal development thing. I've been doing mindset stuff forever. It's like drinking water. So the challenge for me now is you know I'm in Boston, and it's February. And the water is now just getting below 40. And so twice a week, I meet a bunch of people in a parking lot by a beach. And we just all encourage each other to go in and spend two minutes in the water. And it is two minutes of Hell, I'm not gonna lie, but we're just, you know, in the time of still lockdowns, right, and caution and fear that's contagious, I believe. This is the opposite of that. And it kicks my butt really, really hard. I went into the water during an ice storm on Friday. I'm not sure that was a great idea. But I did it.
Kc Rossi 15:42
I think that's the time that I saw you in your car, and you were shaking, your like lips were almost blue. And it was the first video that I saw you and I loved it. I loved it so much. And I was like, Oh, it kind of clicked. Like the whole marketing for humans clicked because they saw it in real life. And I related to it. And I just thought immediately, even though it was a short video, I'm like, this is a chick that gets it. She walks her talk. She's pushing her personal boundaries and sharing it with us. And it absolutely wanted wanted it like stimulated, wanting to know more about you to connect on LinkedIn to follow you. So I feel like that was just what you teach in motion, like in real real life. Yeah,
Christina Frei 16:23
I'm so glad you're I mean, honestly, I, I didn't know if I should post it. Because as you might have seen in the beginning of the post, I'm like, I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I actually went in. You might not trust my judgment from now on. But here's how it went.
Kc Rossi 16:39
But the thing is the cool part about that, like why else to share why it resonated with me, because I I don't want to just live a boring, static humming along with the status quo life. And so when I saw that you were like doing something kind of so countercultural. I was like, yes, Rule Breaker rebel, someone that thinks outside of the box, I love it. And that's the kind of like energy that it stimulated.
Christina Frei 17:05
Oh, that's awesome. Yeah, I'll say that, I will also say one thing I'd like to incorporate that has been really, really tough just to be real. And that is some kind of creative practice, where I'm like, working with the watercolors or writing a story or like, whatever it is, I am meant, like, it just feeds my very soul to make an artistic mess, and just generate something. And I'm stuck about it. Like, I don't know, if it's the pandemic, I'm just like, No, I don't want to do it. Like I have this, like little gremlin or troll in myself that is just refusing. So that's a cutting edge place for me to.
Kc Rossi 17:46
Yeah, absolutely. And I think to like, part of that is, especially as high achievers, I think we put so many shows on ourselves. And it's like, here's, you know, I'm going to do this because we always have a way that it connects the.to something else, like, I'm going to do this. So it enhances my creative creativity, or I'm going to like journal every day, because it's going to help me be you know, getting into the writer, habit and all of those things. And I feel like, we are productive enough, you know, we don't need more bliss, we are good. And I think it's like, okay, to grant herself that permission that if we're not feeling it, we'll just put it off to the side. And when it's organic and right for us, it we will have that passion, it'll bubble up, and we're just gonna be like, Oh, I actually really want to do that not because I have to. And I know that because I've been in the personal development space for a lot of years for myself. And what I found was I was starting to make it like a to do list I was having, like morning routines as long as my arm. And I literally it took having my own coach to say like, wait a second here, like how much of this is joy? Like, how much of this is you just thinking like, these are the things that are gonna make me perfect in the realm of X, Y and Z. And so literally, my homework was to wipe the slate clear, which gave me so much anxiety like What do you mean? How can I take those 30 things that I do a day and not do them? So yeah, so I'm just I'm going off on a tangent, but I think it's really important because so much of this. Like, even if we're marketing from an authentic place, there's still a pretty big to do list. And even though we're trying to bring like our integrated self and have a work life balance and do things in a joyful way, so we don't burn out. There's still a lot to do in a day. So we almost have to just pick and choose if you will, like only go to the things that really light us up. What are your thoughts on that?
Christina Frei 19:43
Yeah, I do have something to say about that. That's why when I when I meet with someone and go, you know, I'm working with them on their marketing. There are two things that I take incredibly seriously. Number one is when they're going through this deep process of uncovering their their unique archetype it's not just taking the assessment where you find out your, your genius type, but it's like their unique archetype, that it's really easy to fool yourself, that this is how you want us to help others, right? We all want to. I mean, I would imagine that some of the people listening to this are what I call service providers. And if you're like that, you want to be all things to all people, you just want to get out and help. So what I'm really focused on in those sessions is like, okay, there's alignment here, but there's not alignment over here. So let's keep focusing on the alignment so that the archetype that comes through is absolutely your truth. And it's sometimes hard to admit. But it's awesome when we discover it, right? Like, it's like, oh, my gosh, I am now on fire. It's not just to do practice, like this is like a deeper version of that, that I can bring into my messaging. And like, that's my life is just take those deep archetypes and that translate it into messaging and strategy decisions. So that's number one. Let's make sure it's real. And number two, is, when we pick the strategy, it better reflect what you truly need as a business owner, and also how you naturally connect with other humans, aside from just your archetype. So I take that very seriously, I spend like an hour and a half having a deep dive chat. And here's the good news. Everybody has, I'm just gonna go on record and say this, because I did not know this six years ago, I kind of like made it up as I went along. And I'm realizing is really true, which is, each of us has the perfect, rich expertise building strategy, that will show us that our best reflects how we love to be with people, you know, and get clients get the right clients. You don't have to believe me, I've just seen it over and over, it's like a miracle, even really, right? Like go on a walk and put that out there and see what percolates. Like there's a strategy for you right now, you don't have to stay with it forever. But it can be this healthy core of what you do for all the rest of your marketing.
Kc Rossi 22:07
Yeah, I love that. It sounds like a really powerful thing. And I think in the first bullet point of what you focus on of the alignment piece, it is very liberating to hear that because I think many of us are still following that shoulds piece, you know, like, I should show up in X ray, or even you're talking to service providers, and yes, at the heart, their caregivers, and they're just juiced and fueled by helping. And I think sometimes we can get clouded by that all truism. And it could just be a couple degrees off for my alignment. It doesn't make us less of a person if we also want wealth. And I think that a lot of the spiritual entrepreneurs in in my arena, that's the resistance there. It's like, Yeah, but how can I profit on pain? Or yeah, but if I'm doing God's work, you know, how can I charge X, Y, Z for a six month engagement?
Christina Frei 23:01
I have one question, when people bring that up -- Do you bring value to this person? Okay, because if you do, then trust them to want to pay for it. End if story,
Kc Rossi 23:14
Keep it simple. Just distill it down to that. And yeah, I love that. I do think that we can really spin out, you know, with the stories when it comes to that.
Christina Frei 23:25
I mean, I'm totally just going to be, that is how I felt when I began. And I think that's something that we all wrestle with, especially like when you're starting your own jam, there's a lot to wrestle with. And it's Someone once described, starting your business is like, self development on crack or on steroids, you know, you just really have to face yourself. So you know what, I get tons of people wrestle with that conundrum. But as a business owner, you have the lovely privilege of having to get over yourself. You won't make any money.
Kc Rossi 23:58
You have to learn how to get out of your own way and dissolve all those gremlins. You mentioned being in mindset for many years. I'm wondering, is there like a number one most effective mindset tip?
Christina Frei 24:11
Hmm. I mean, you're asking the gal who created the generosity practice. So I, I always just go there it has. When I committed myself to the practice, I have had boundless heart energy and not not, you know, when you're like some people who are just in their heart and not in their head, that can go off the rails, you know what I'm saying? Like, you can want to marry someone who it has killed three people, if you're just No, I just want to say that but like, ever since I committed to this. It's like there's a sunshine in my heart. It's just pleasant. It's there. It's always there. And if you're asking me for one tip, kind of the real question heard all of that is like if you can spend any kind of time thinking about how you love to help people, I don't care what is going on in your life. What is it and be weird about it if you have to like Is today your day, like when people first learn the practice, I have them just come up with fun, nice ideas. Like if they're an elf wandering around their town, they're giving away whatever. It's like, do you want to give away cupcakes today? Do you want to give away like a nice cozy fireplace today? Like, you don't have to be realistic? Just what is it you'd love to offer other humans today? And the more fun you have with that, and the deeper that goes and the more of line that becomes just watch what happens. So I'm gonna I'm gonna stick with that.
Kc Rossi 25:45
Yes, I love I love that. And I would love to invite our listeners to take on that challenge. And to do that, because, you know, this isn't just about theory, it's about putting into practice so we actually can feel something and have an experience and who doesn't want boundless sunshine, heart energy?
Christina Frei 26:05
I need to get a t shirt. Right here. You know,
Kc Rossi 26:09
you have to you have to. It's so um, yeah, that it's, it's perfect. It's perfect. What do you have exciting coming up on the docket this year.
Christina Frei 26:20
So I am making friends with the internet. That's what I call it. And what I mean by that, because I don't know when things are going to open up. I mean, here's hoping. But I've, you know, I have all these great habits. I give talks all the time, like I'm out there connecting with humans. But this year, I'm dedicated to two things. One, I am creating like really great, I'm just gonna say it really great SEO friendly articles that allow brand new people to find me in searches. Like right now I'm working on a story brand article with Donald Miller's work, it is kicking my butt so hard, I can't even and even then I love to write love it. So what I'm going to do is like, show how story brand and any marketing genius can play well together. I cannot wait. I can't wait either. That's awesome. And everybody loves that work. And I love it too. So I'm like, let's just play. So that's one. And I'm going to get more search terms from my awesome SEO guy and just keep going on that track of like writing these really hefty articles. Because I got the bandwidth right now. So that's number one. Number two is I want my email list people. Like I love them. That is not always been the case. Sometimes I'm like, What do I do with my email list? Now I'm like, I want you guys to feel supported. Always. So I've decided I'm gonna have regular I call them marketing for humans, community classes. And then also generosity, practice coffee chats, this is like once a quarter once every couple months. Just to like, bring people together and and have them feel like wow, you know, she has a whole schedule this year. I feel supported, even if I'm not ready to work with her like she's there for me. Yeah, so that right, like a container.
Kc Rossi 28:09
That is awesome. Such a great tip. Yeah, I saw the community piece and I thought I really, it's so needed. And I feel like it's, it's even more needed. Now. I know, when I was a guest on your show, we talked a little bit about competition and the rise of the increase of all the coaches, you know, in our space. And I feel like part of what's going to help us stand out is that generosity practice that you wrote the book on, you literally wrote the book on it, and bringing community together, which we're so so thirsty for. And then that consistency piece that you spoke about earlier, just having the sense of security and the sense of belonging with a schedule that's like, oh, I can get into Christina's World this month, in that month and that quarter and I mean, it just touches so many of the things that I think are missing in regular marketing are missing in every you know, launch strategy that's out there right now where it's just like a five day challenge and then sell sell sell, you know, like all the different pieces right it this other way. To me it really speaks to like gentle nurturing, which I love and I just feel like it's really attractive. Like it's a very magnetic way to bring people into your world. And it's it's a way of, of I don't want to say silently selling but it's building trust and relationship which will boomerang back sales. Yeah, naturally.
Christina Frei 29:34
Yeah, that's great. And you're kind of warm in my heart because I'm a nurturer. And you just reflected back that that's what I'm doing. I'm like, Yes,
Kc Rossi 29:42
You nailed it. Oh, this has been so fun. Such a delight. How can people learn more about you and step one one step closer into the Christina world?
Christina Frei 29:55
go to innate marketing genius innate Not everyone uses that word all the time. It's i n n a t. So innate marketing, genius, calm and one step and just look around, I made a real pretty in the last few months so like have fun. But um, one step that you can take is find out what your innate marketing genius type is take the assessment, if you just go in, there's like a menu item you can find it says your marketing archetype, you might be a nurture, an adventure guide, a door opener, a steady presence, like Kc or celebrator.
Kc Rossi 30:31
Awesome, I'll make sure to drop all the links plus the link to your book and in the show notes. And thank you so much for being here. I would like to ask you one final question. And that is if there was just one thing that you wanted our listeners to know, or one piece of your message that you're radiating out into the world, what is it?
Christina Frei 30:51
That you have a natural way of helping other people that brings you to life and that they super appreciate you just need to be open and listening for what that is? What is it? What is it that brings you to life? How can you not wait to help other people no matter what you're going through right now there's always an answer to that question. That's what I got.
Kc Rossi 31:13
I love it. That's awesome. Thank you again, so much for being here. Until next time, my friend breathe joy. I hope you enjoy today's episode with Christina. If so head on over to love the podcast.com/brilliance to rate and review the show. I'm going to be sharing listener feedback today from Lizzie Brayton from the US. Lizzy says five stars, "Great Listen! just checked out Kc's interview with Echo Huang, and I will most definitely be a regular listener of this show. Echo is a fabulous guest with a powerful story and such useful advice. And Kc asked all the right questions you hoped she will and just has a welcoming, enjoyable hosting style. Looking forward to more episodes." Lizzie, thank you so very much for taking the time to share your feedback. It really helps the show and means the world to me. I will also link that episode of the American dream with Echo Huang because it's definitely worth a listen. And Hey folks, if you want to rate or review women developing brilliance, head on over to www.lovethepodcast.com/brilliance Thank you
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
