How Women Influencers Are Changing the Game in the Trades | Podcast Ep. 173 | Toolbox for the Trades

Hello, contractors, and welcome to Toolbox for the Trades. My name is Jackie Aubel, and today I'm chatting with Kelsey Wittenberg, aka the spicy sparky Kelsey on TikTok. Kelsey is an electrician at Wayfield Group Contracting. She joins me on the show today to talk about her rise to social media stardom, what it's like being a female tech, and why she loves working for her current employer. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I do. You. Kelsey Wittenberg, you are an electrician at Wayfield Group Contracting. I found you because you are the spicy Sparky Kelsey on TikTok. You have over 32,000 followers. I'm so excited to have you here. Welcome to Toolbox for the Trades.

I am so excited to be here.

I cannot wait to get into it with you. I have to be real with everyone listening. I found you because one of my friends reposted your TikToks and it was all about you encouraging women to join the trades. So I can't. I really. I'm just so excited. I feel like I'm shaking. But we're going to kick this off with a icebreaker question, which is a question I used to ask on this show. Retired it for a bit, but I'm bringing it back. If you could choose a song to be the soundtrack of your life, what would it be and why?

Gosh, that's such a hard question. Because it just depends on which friend you would ask. Right. They would all be giving you a different answer. So, you know, you'd get one that's like, oh, probably that song let's start a Riot. And then, like, wildest her, which is a country song, and there's probably a few with some choice words in it that, you know, fit the kind of female that I can be at work. So I don't know that there's one song that quite fits, but.

Okay, so there's a sound.

I need to find a. I need to find an artist who can write a song about some blue collar women. Oh, there's more of that.

I think you need to put that challenge out there. I think that could be a really fun TikTok campaign. Just throwing it out there. Oh, my gosh.

I'm taking notes.

Take it. Take notes. All right, well, let's get into it. How did you get into the trades? Because you been an electrician for how many years now?

Four years in May.

Four years in May. Okay. How did you get into.

Fell in my lap. One of those God things. For me, I was a freshly single mom. Freshly divorced. I was working at a factory and doing a bunch of side work. And the guy that I was dating at the time, we went to go pick up material from a friend of his and he and I were just chit chatting and he was like, hey, you should call my girlfriend. She owns an electrical company. She would hire you just because you're a girl. And I was like, people don't do that. Like, I'm pretty sure that's illegal. You can't. Like, no. And he was like, no, seriously, like, if you can make it out here building decks, working nights, like, if you can handle that, you could totally handle being an electrician. Just call her. And I was like, whatever. Like, maybe we'll see. And I sat on it a little bit more and I'm like, I don't know anything about electricity. Like, I could plug in my cell phone charger and I can turn on a light switch, but I know nothing about electricity. Like, what? And finally I was like, you know what, I'll just call her and I'll see what this is about. I'll. I don't, you know, I'll just ask her some questions, let her tell me about it. I called her and she was like, hey, why don't you come do a working interview? I was like, that sounds cool. I actually love that idea. So on a random Wednesday, I went and worked for her in a commercial setting and she showed me how blueprints work and made fun of me all day long on how badly I was using wire strippers and explained circuitry to me. And I just fell in love with it. I was like, this makes sense to me, like circuitry and the math and how things are run. And having had a custom woodworking, I used to make custom furniture before this, before I got divorced. And so it's like the 20 step process, like made sense in my head. So to then turn it over into electrical made sense. And after a full day work, I was like, yeah, I think I'd like to do this for a long time. And she was like, okay, do you want to work tomorrow? And I was like, well, I need. No, I need childcare, but I can start on Monday. That was four years ago.

Dang, that's awesome. And I love the idea of a working interview because then you got to see what the day to day would actually look like. And you were able to see like, okay, is this something I actually want to be doing?

Yeah, I think it's such a great idea. I wish more companies would do it because somebody can Ask you, like, do you think you can do this? Do you think you can do that? Like, and you'd be like, probably, I think so. Like, I will give it a good old college try, but you never know till you know. And I think working interviews are such a great idea. I wish more people did them.

Yeah. So tell me, like, what was it like those first few months in the trade? Like you mentioned, this woman was making fun of how you were using wire strippers, wire cutters, and like, so how did your, how did you kind of get those technical skills? What were those first few months like?

Look, you have to mess up a lot of times to learn how to do things efficiently and effectively. And that's just how it is. It's the way that you move your hands, it's the way that your muscles are trained to use a tool. And each tool is different. And so to learn how to use a tool that you've never used before, you just have to try it. And then once you do it and you're doing it repetitively over and over and over again, then you learn how to do things effectively. And that's really all it is. But you have to mess up. You have to struggle. And because if you don't struggle, you don't respect or appreciate growth. You just have to learn, you have to learn the hard way. And then it sticks.

Yeah, you have to get shocked a couple times, I imagine.

I try not to. I, I, I am the spicy Sparky, but I try and leave the spicy for not, not that sidebar.

There was a point in my life where I was with, I still have one friend who's, who still does these, but you know, like tough mudders, like mud runs and stuff.

Yeah.

So there was a time where I was tricked into doing one of these and they've got those, those obstacles that have live wires in them. Do you know about this?

Yes.

And let me tell you, when I got shocked with a live wire, I wanted to cry. I was so, I was like, that really hurt. Like, I just was so shocked. Haha. But truly about how like jolting and weird it was.

It, it does, it spasms you. I get, I don't run. And I would not choose to go and torture myself, like for those who, who do. Bless your heart. Like, you're one of God's favorites. I love that for you. But absolutely not. I will not run. I swim. Swimming laps is my piece, but so I'm running. It's, I would be the first to die in a zombie apocalypse for sure.

I Don't know, maybe you could like there's some sort of, I don't know. We're getting off track. Let's stick with electrical for a while. So what type of electrical work do you do now?

I do industrial now. So industrial where I'm at is water and wastewater and so we work on water and wastewater treatment facilities. I do a lot of like vaults and water towers and water tanks and pump stations and lift stations and all of the things that are along the water pipeline and the water processing treatment, everything that comes along with electrical and the water processing scope of things.

So you were with that first business for a while that kind of brought you into electrical and then you had helped. You've been at Wakefield Group contracting for about two years you said, right?

Yeah, when I very first started out, I did residential and small commercial. And I love, love, love, still to this day, love residential service. I love troubleshooting. I don't love new construction as much as I love service work. And some people are going to think that I'm absolutely crazy. But I personally love the troubleshooting in my brain like understanding the problem and being able to apply what I know and all of those things to then be able to solve that problem is. It's like the challenge of it just makes my brain so happy and it's so satisfying. So when I first started out I did residential. Then I switched over. I started literally right before COVID It was the May before COVID hit. I was so blessed to start that way because I was able to have a stable job. We were the essential workers. Right. So we were the only ones that were still working through Covid. And when that December hit, our business slowed down tremendously and I needed something that had a little bit more hours. So I was recruited to go work for an oil and gas company. So I used to build new pads and that was a trip. And but I also like when oil and gas was slow, I would build custom like multi million dollar homes which was also a trip. It was so cool. And then at the end of that I had been on a project where I was working like 14 hour days, six days a week. And that was really hard as a single mom. And my childcare had canceled because she went and got another job. And I took a week off to try and get it together. I was like, I got to figure out this mom thing. I can't go to work if I don't have childcare, so I need to get childcare. So I took a week off. I had my finals Wayfield called me, I had an interview. I literally had my final on Monday, had my job interview on Tuesday. They offered me the job that afternoon, sent over the paperwork. Wednesday, Thursday I quit my job and I was like, I don't have childcare to come back and work a 14 hour day. So I would love to put my two weeks notice in, but I literally can't. And I started Wayfield the next week. I've never not given a two weeks notice. I feel bad about it, but. And then I started Wayfield the next week and it's been the greatest change I have ever made in my entire life.

That is awesome. You mentioned that one of the things you really liked about Wakefield is that they had other female techs before you. Like you weren't the first female tech and that was something that you really liked about them, right?

Yes. So when I talked to Wayfield, where I was at in life, I thought that I wanted to be a project manager. I had been looking at like college programs to do construction management, different things because I was like, maybe I just am not built to be in the field. Maybe I being being a single mom, working 12 hour days, all of these things, I'm missing out on so much. Maybe I just need to try something else. Right. So when I interviewed with Wayfield, I had asked about being a PM and getting into the office and stuff like that and they were so receptive to that. They were like, yeah, you know what, we have female PMs who were electricians and were in the field and then they chose for one reason or another to move into the office. So if project management is something that you genuinely want to do, we can totally facilitate that. We would like you to be in the field a little bit, figure out what you like, figure out where you fit in and then from there we can move you into the office. And I was like, that's so cool. That was what drew me to them was the opportunities for growth, the opportunities to see what could be more fitting for who I am. And then I started in with my journeyman who I still work with now. The two of us have been linked up for the last two years and we've been doing small projects and I get to do some really, really cool stuff and it's been heaven. I have never been happier.

So, so freaking awesome. I could really talk to you about so many different things. I mean, I just also want to pause and say because you have two kids, you said I was newly single, mom, newly divorced, was trying to find my path and like this career just, like, hit you in the face and it seems like it's provided you with so many opportunities and you keep saying, like, it just made sense in my brain.

Just.

It worked for me. And I just. I'm so happy for you. I don't really know you, but I'm just so happy for you. And, like, this is one of the things I love about the trades. And this is why I love geeking out about the trades on this podcast, why I'm so grateful Service Titan gives me this opportunity, because, yeah, it's awesome.

It is awesome. And it's something that I never considered, you know, like, when I had my woodworking business, it also just kind of fell in my lap. It just became a thing. I am. What of those people that I'm a learn it all. I'm hungry. I'm never just going to sit still and sedentary is not really something that works for me. So this has been something that I've been able to grow into, something that I never envisioned it to be. And I never envisioned to have a TikTok following. I never envisioned to be teaching. I never envisioned to be somebody who is in a company to where they're like, our intention for you is to be the first female superintendent in the company. I never envisioned my life as that. And it's so, so humbling to be in this position. It's so humbling.

That's awesome. All right, well, you mentioned it, TikTok. We gotta freaking talk about it. So you have. I found I was going through your TikTok before because I wanted to ask you about a couple of them. One of your most viral TikToks. Just 1.3 million views are taken away, which is such a bummer when it is chronically. If anyone else is as chronically on TikTok as I am, you'll know the pain of. What was it like, Universal Group that pulled all the music from TikTok? By the time this airs, it may have been resolved. But you have this one TikTok that says when the other trades have been calling you big guy all day, and then you finally drop your mask to answer that. And then I'm assuming, like, they actually see, oh, my gosh, that's. That's not a guy. I want to know what's it actually like to be on a work site as a female technician?

You know, honestly, it's just depends on the job site. It's comical. If you have a good sense of humor and you're not going to take it personally, it's comical because, like, there's some job sites where the guys just like, welcome you right in and okay, so for example, I went on this job site recently. I had the flap underneath my car. It's not the mud, I don't know anything about cars, but there's like a flap under my car. It was dragging and I was like, it's just going to fall off or it's going to magically fix itself. That's just the female in me. Right. And I get onto this job site, I'm there 22 days, and one of the guys on the construction crew was like, hey, I got blocks in my car. Let me fix your car for you. I was like, really? I appreciate that so much. I don't even know your name, but, like, thank you so much for taking care of me. And I tell my coworkers, I'm like, that is so nice to be a female. I have all these husbands that are just like, you're a typical female. Like, you're just gonna drive your car till your wheels fall off and not know what to do. And they're just like, let me take care of you. And then you get onto other job sites and people just stare at you. Like, you have like something crazy written on your forehead. Like you're just like, had the plague or something. You know, you're doing your job and you turn around and everybody's just like. Immediately like, what was it? I wasn't staring. And you're like, what? I'm just a girl doing my job. I'm not this like, alien concept. So it really just depends on the job site. Sometimes it's really, really cool. Some guys hate it and don't want you there. And sometimes guys just think that you are. They just can't function because you're there.

Sure. How do you adjust to that? Like, what do you do when you get into those situations where, oh, I'm really, really.

I am really, really good at being oblivious.

Yeah. So you just put like horse blinders on.

I stopped caring. The thing is, is like, other people's opinion of me, other people's feelings towards me being there. Other people's like, weird isms of the fact that they're like, late, you're hat. Andrew. Hard working. As if those two things can't go hand in hand. But, like, you just like, it doesn't affect my ability to do my job. It doesn't affect my ability to be good in my job. It doesn't affect my ability to work a full day. So if you Want to let it affect your full day, Go right ahead. You can be non productive, but it doesn't affect my ability to be non productive. If it becomes an issue, then I will resolve it. But other than that, it's. It's just. I just ignore it.

Yeah, it's like what other people think about me isn't really my business.

Yeah, I don't care. It doesn't affect me.

Yeah.

Unless you're paying my bills, buying my food, or, you know, bringing me joy in my life, I don't really give two thoughts to what your opinion is.

I think that's a great way to think about it. What would you say to people who. Because, you know, I actually spoke. This is. This is kind of groundbreaking, Kelsey. I. Today, this morning I spoke to an h, a female H vac tech turned owner in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. So I am just FYI, this is going to be like episode 170 something. In 170 episodes of this show, I've only been able to have one other female tech on. And the fact that I now had interviewed two female techs back to back is just fills my heart with joy. What should owner operators know about or what should. Like what should your boss or what do you wish more owners knew about, like the female tech experience? Like, what should people be mindful of if they're sending women out into the field and potentially that they're dealing with this kind of. I mean, you said you're so good at it, being oblivious, but in my mind I'm thinking that's still got to take up some mental capacity for you. Right? Like just having. Yeah, it does sense the air, you.

Know, I will tell you what my journeyman does for me that nobody else has done for me. That is the game changer and why I'm so obsessed with my company. He has my back no matter what. A hundred percent I have dealt with. There's one guy in my company that challenged every single thing that I said. And he would make me rework everything twice and three times and finally I lost it on him and I chewed him out. And I was like, nobody else second guesses my work or my ability to do good work the way that you do. And I said, and I'm done with it. I am a capable electrician. And I said, and nobody else challenged me this way. If you have an issue with me personally, let's talk about it. If you have an issue with my work, that's fine. But making me rework something because you've changed your mind and you don't do it to anybody else. I was like, that's not cool with me. And he was like, oh, your journeyman doesn't do this? And I was like, no, he just lets me do it. And my journeyman came up and he was like, I let Kelsey handle things her way because she is a competent and capable electrician. And he said, and I trust her judgment. And he was like, fine, okay, then do it your way. And like, I thanked him afterwards. I was like, thank you so much for having my back. And he was like, you're my apprentice. Of course I'm gonna have your back. Like, you are a capable electrician and I think the best thing that you can do, even if you don't necessarily agree with the way that your technician does things, if they are doing it and it is code compliant, it is getting the job done, it is in a timely manner and they are not damaging things or causing problems. Having their back and standing up for them is going to 100% keep them there. Because, like, we already are challenged. We already are fighting an uphill battle. We already are getting second guessed on every level. So know that you have our back. And then if you have to respectfully come back after that and be like, hey, I think I would have handled this a different way. I think I would have run this a different way. I think there was a more efficient way to do this. Next time, let's try this or this or, like, here's some constructive criticism. Here's some constructive feedback. I want to turn this into a learning opportunity. That's cool. That's going to get you a whole lot farther with women than anything else. Because we can come, we can handle that multifaceted feedback and function of the work relationship. Right? But to have our back and to say, I know that you're capable, I know that you can do this a hundred times over, you'll have my loyalty, you will have my desire to work hard for you. I will show up for you a hundred times over. Compared to somebody who's going to challenge me.

I love that. Oh, my gosh. I wish I could just, like, sound clip, sound bite. That. That was perfect. That was. I'm obsessed with that answer. Going back to TikTok real quick. So I want to talk about going viral on TikTok as an electrician. How did you even get started with social media?

Oh, my gosh. So when I worked in oil and gas, they don't want you filming anything on the job sites. So I didn't, I didn't really? Talk about being an electrician. I kind of made a few jokes about being blue collar, but for the most part, it was just a creative outlet. You know, I copied sounds, I did voiceovers here, there. It was not a big deal. One of the guys that I worked with had like 60,000 followers, and his whole thing was thirst traps, right? So he would make fun of me that I didn't even have a thousand followers. And I was like, okay, bet, bet. I'm gonna get a thousand followers. I'm gonna be able to go live like you. Just watch, okay? So my whole goal was just to get to a thousand followers. Okay? That was a big deal. So got to a thousand followers, and then I ended up switching over to Wayfield. Once I got to Wayfield, I started posting a little bit more. WAYFIELD Found my TikTok. We had a talking to about it. They asked me not to call grown men bitches in the company hard hat. And I was like, I think that that's a very fair request. I totally understand that. And they were like, so your punishment is, is that you're gonna help the company with their TikTok and our other social media and recruiting. And I was like, oh, that sounds so fun. So I ended up doing that. They were cool with it. Honestly, my co workers are some of my number one fans, and they're the coolest people about it. The video that you were talking about was my first real viral video. And it was like a two second clip that I snuck in at work. And I was like, this is dumb. Nobody's gonna like it. It's whatever. And then it went viral and I hit 10,000 followers at that point. And so to me, I was like, 10,000 followers.

Holy smokes.

What is. What is this? Like 10,000 people are following me. And then I had another one. I was making fun of a safety guy that went viral. I think it had like 600,000 likes on it and got to like 15, and then I got to 20, and then I had two in the last month that I had one that hit 3 million about PTO. And I have two that went a little bit more viral. And Now I'm at 30 and I'm like, what in the world is going on? It's just I was like, I was normal. I am not normal. I am chaos. But I was like, I'm just like over here doing my Kelsey thing, and people love it. So it's created some really cool doors that have opened for me and some opportunities that I never thought in my lifetime I would be on a podcast and it's so cool. But it's been a platform that's been amazing.

That is.

That just started as a creative outlet and then it's just kind of become a thing.

That's so awesome. I honestly, the more stories you tell me about wefield, the more I just like them as a company. It sounds like they've been such champions of you. And I mean, there's one way they could have gone when they found your TikTok, which is like, how dare you? You better not post blah, blah, blah, blah. But the fact that they were like, okay, we're going to give you some light parameters when you're wearing our merchandise, but other than that, how can you help us? That's so freaking brilliant. Like, that's what you have to start doing. In my opinion.

It's really cool. It's been great. And I know that there are people who get into trouble for their social media and I think that because I've turned it into something for good. While I do do a lot of crap talking and I do do a lot of sassing on my social media, I also do a lot of good from it as well. I've recruited to Wayfield for it. I've advocated for Wayfield for it. I have advocated for women specifically, like, number one, above and beyond. It's just become this platform that has allowed me to have a voice where I wouldn't get that other places. And I think that at the end of the day, while I do joke around a lot, I'm very sassy a lot. It's respectable and it has been a force for good, I guess. And a lot of people really love to support.

Comes up as very authentic. That's what it comes off as to me, because, like, it's your own personal channel. And so I get like, the sass and the sarcasm. I'm still, like, figuring out my TikTok. I've had it for like four, four years, like, figuring out what they have.

To do with it. So weird.

It's such a weird platform.

I'm like, do I. Do I want to be like some of these other women, like Carly the Sparky or Lexia Brew, who their whole platform is. Is 100% electrical and they're these, like, powerhouse of women. And I'm like, God, that you just talk about tools and you talk about electrical and you obviously are so smart. I'm like, do I want to go into that? And I kind of rattled myself into that for a little while and I'm like, this doesn't feel authentic to. And then I kind of swing the other way where it's just all jokes and all voiceovers. And then I'm like, no, but I want to be. I want to incorporate the electrical. And so it kind of swings back and forth. It is a weird balance of figuring out, like, what do people want to see? What is me? Like, you know, there's a while where I was like, I just. This doesn't feel like me. So then I just went and I was like, you know what? I'm just going to put myself out there. I'm going to be as authentically me as I can. We're going to see if people drop off. We're going to see if people grow. This last month I posted like two or three rants just about random stuff, right? The one that you found me on about how I get a couple job offers a week. And you know, you should be. If you're not in the trades, you should be because there's job stability. That was just a one off rant and it blew up. I got a ton of followers from that and I got a ton of followers from just what felt like being me. And that was really rewarding in that something that I'm passionate about is speaking to people and something that I love, that has blessed my life, that has helped me provide for my children, that has brought me purpose, that has brought me a passion, that has connected me with a community and a company that I love. I get to now have this platform to share that and to motivate people and to tell them how good life can be. And that's really cool because the comments that I get and the feedback that I get and the messages that I get, you know, I weed out the ones that are weird, but, like, there's a lot of women that are in there that are like, I want your advice. Thank you so much for motivating me. Thank you for this. I love that you're advocating. How do I do this? You know, like, it's because of you that I decided to try this. And like, holy moly. I have something that I like that just is like paying my bills is motivating other people. That's insane. That's insane. The coolest thing about the whole TikTok fiasco.

Yeah, I 100 agree with you. And one of my questions was like, what's your feedback? So it sounds like you do get a couple of weird ones. I mean, it's the Internet after all, but it sounds like you get a lot of Positive engagement with strangers. And you're inspiring a lot of people. That's got to fill your cup.

It does. It's really cool. I try not to, like, let it go to my head that I, you know, have 30, 000 people following me. You know, like, that's cool. But at the same time, like, I read all of my comments and I try to respond to all of them because I know that when I comment on other people's stuff, I like when they comment back. And I want people to know, like, the reason that I'm here is because of you. Like, the reason that I have this platform is because of you. So I try to respond to most all of my comments. I do fall off on the more viral videos because there's just so many. But love to see people who have been with me for a while, that have been following me for a while, that hype me up. Even on the days where I'm like, that's dumb. Like, nobody's going to care that I posted a video of how to thread 4 inch. Like, you know, people are. They give you their opinion on it and you could receive that in a way of like, they're trying to challenge me or tell me that I'm not doing it right or whatever. But it's also a learning opportunity because it has allowed me access to the brains of so many people who are smarter than me, who do things differently than me. And so I've learned a lot from people who are like, well, that's not how I would do it. This is how I do it. And I'm like, well, that's cool. I've never heard of that. Like, teach me. And then I get tagged and five videos of how to use a hog head, which I didn't know what that was, but. And to me, it's like these people, like, yes, there are your haters that are like, you're such a pick me girl. Being on the Internet, like, you're just, you know, you don't know what you're doing. The guys are doing all the hard work. It's like, thank you, troll, for helping my algorithm. I appreciate you for that. But honestly, the majority of the comments that I get are people who are either genuinely interested and have great questions, people who want, who in return want to share their knowledge, and that's really cool. Or just people who are like, hey, I think you're a cool person. I love this. Like, tell me more. I support you. I think what you're doing is great. Like, I don't get the hate on my comments section the same way that I notice other girls get it and I feel very blessed for that.

Yeah, I mean it really, it's a double edged sword, like, if you want. And this, by the way, like I've toyed with this myself, like in the work I do at Service Titan and other work I've done outside of Service Titan, it's like when you put yourself on the out there as a woman, you're kind of like you're running the risk of getting some really hateful stuff thrown your way. And I sounds like you have done a really great job of just focusing on the net positives.

Yeah, I mean there's a couple that get to me and I'm just like, that's so annoying. I either clap back with some sarcasm and then a lot of times there are guys that have been following me for two years that will jump on the comments and I let them handle it. My followers handle business sometimes better than I handle business. And I'm just like sick of boys. Like, you can have him. And that's pretty cool. But really, like, I think when it comes to social media and one of the things that I wish I could tell more young people about social media is that it's really easy to be mean behind a screen. But people who are being mean to other people, it says more about them than it says about you. People are going to hate you because they want to be you. Hatred is stemmed from jealousy and people who are unhappy are going to try and make it somebody else's problem instead of dealing with their own problem because it's intimidating to deal with your own problems. So when people hate on my stuff on the Internet, they can go right ahead because I don't see them showing up the same way that I show up. I don't see them fighting the same battles that I'm fighting. And that's fine, they've got their own. But like, I don't value your opinion because it does not pay my bills, feed my children, bring me joy. That's a message I wish more people would hear because people are going to troll the Internet. It's just the way it is. It's great for my algorithm. No, I do, I do appreciate it.

I do love the TikTok videos that say, like, please interact with this video so I can make money off of this comment. And the comment is like a total like hateful trolley comment. I think that's so smart.

How often do you post?

Are you posting like multiple times a day?

I try. I Try to post every day.

Okay. But I know it has to be two kids in a full time job. That's just what I'm thinking.

Yeah, I'm really bad about remembering to film what I'm working on because I get to work and I'm like, just busting out my day. And there's so many times where I'm like, gosh darn it, I wish I had filmed that because that was so cool. Like, that was. Oh, man, I would. That would go so viral if I had filmed that. And I did it because that's not where my brain's at. So a lot of times I just kind of do snippets or the voiceovers because it's easier than trying to remember to film my work. But a lot of times I keep stuff in storage. If I'm feeling creative, I'll film a bunch and then keep it for days where I'm not feeling creative. Because you do have to be in a really creative mindset to come up with these things. Like, I think I'm funny every day. My coworkers probably think that I'm extra every day. But to then translate that into making a video that other people are going to like and editing it and posting it, that is. That does take up a decent amount of mental head space and creativity. And if you're like in a slump in a creative block, it's hard to come up with that stuff. And then you're just like, oh, well, that was dumb.

Yeah.

Yeah.

What advice would you give to anyone listening who's like, hey, oh my God, I didn't know I could become an influencer. Doing trades, like doing the trades. Like, maybe I should start this. Like, what would you say to anybody who was interested in kind of going down the same path you have with TikTok?

Be genuine. Don't be afraid to post your fails and post what you think is cool. Because, like, I post what I think is cool, other people think that it's cool. And then you kind of start to just figure it out. It's a lot of trial and error of like, what's going to work for you? Just start posting it. Just get it out there because. And find. The other great advice I have is that find people that you would like to be like, people who motivate you, people who have the same type of things that you would want to be associated with. Follow those people and try out some of the things that they do. Create something similar. Don't copy them exactly. Make it your own, but see what works for them. Try it out for yourself. It's a great way to start. But surround yourself with people who are better than you. So people who motivate you, people who are going to keep you performing on a level that you want to be on. Right. So I follow the Lexi Bruce, the Carly's, the Boom Nation, the, you know, Troco, like all the people who post, just really, really cool people. And I'm like, oh God, I love that they posted that video. I never thought about posting that part of my work. I should definitely like incorporate more of that because that is cool. I didn't think that people would actually want to see that and get your motivation from places. If you're following like kittens and puppies on TikTok, totally get it. But it's not really going to motivate you to be funny. Right. Like you have to search out things that are going to be relative to what you do to help motivate you. And also it helps your algorithm.

So totally makes sense. Just like our very first phone call. Kelsey, we are already going over my allotted time. Not over, but we're coming towards the end. Kelsey and I were joking that our brains are very similar and we could just go on in a million different directions when we first spoke. But I know that you right now are teaching apprentices and I want to talk about a little bit about what that's been like for you because obviously community, connection and supporting people is very important to you. So what's it been like for you to teach apprentices?

It's really cool. I never thought that I was going to enjoy it the way that I do. Teaching was not something that I thought was in my wheelhouse. And I was like, I'm going to get annoyed with kids that don't know what they're doing. I'm going to have to babysit them. I'm just going to want to do it myself. Right. It's hard to delegate. But I volunteered to help teach a group of high schoolers at the college for a switching lab. And I was teaching these very punk looking kids. You know, a lot of them had more piercings on their face than I think most people have on their whole body times five. And I was like, oh my gosh, these kids are going to hate it. They're all just juvenile delinquents. This is, oh my gosh is going to be awful. But I took a little time to just teach them, to engage with them, to show them, to help them understand on their level. And then the satisfaction they got from like, holy cow, I did that. I turned that light switch on. I did that. And I was like, you did do that. Like that. Are you so proud of yourself? Like, that's so cool. You did do that. That joy that they had from me teaching them something that was so simple, I was like, hot dang. I think I like teaching. That's. This is not what I expected it to be. And so then I started having apprentices on my job sites. And I've got next week I'm gonna have three brand new apprentices to run by myself and that's gonna be a trip. But like, they're like having children, you know, you just gotta slow down, be a little patient, go let them mess up. As hard as it is and as painful as it is to watch them do it the wrong way, I know that when my journeyman watched me drill holes in this wrong side of a sixteen hundred dollar stainless steel J box, he was just like, okay, well, you mess it up and you get to figure out a way to fix it. And we did, we fixed it together. And he just let me. It was. I still hear about that to this day. But the thing is, is like, you just have to let them mess up. But the joy of seeing them succeed and the joy of them getting to look at their own work and that pride of like, I did, that it makes all of the patience and the gray hair that they give me 100% worth it. And it's one of, I think when you appreciate it for what it is of, like, I'm teaching this next generation of people to love something that I love that's so good to me, and I am influencing people and giving them a way to feed their families and take care of themselves. You learn to appreciate apprentices a little bit more because they challenge you to be better. To teach is to really know. Like, you might know how to do your job, but until you can teach somebody how to do your job, like, you're not really that good at it and it's humbling and it gives you a different outlook when you really appreciate how important apprentices are. I am thoroughly surprised at how much I actually enjoy teaching.

That's awesome. That's so cool. Oh, my God. And it's crazy too, because you've been an electrician for four years and you've already made such an impact in, in your short time between TikTok, between teaching these apprentices. Like, I cannot wait to see where life will take you in another four years or like where you'll be. So this is just very cool. I feel like I'm getting on the ground floor of Kelsey and you're just going to be going up from here. So thank you so much for taking time with me today to chat about your journey and the trades. I find it super inspirational. I know our listeners are going to. Kelsey, thank you so much for your time and thank you for being a guest on Toolbox for the trades.

Yeah, thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it.