S4:E75 (VIDEO)🎙️LIVE with Joyce Feustel (Multi Tracks Audio)

Hi, I'm John Maxwell. When the top companies in the world are looking for trainers, speakers, and coaches, there's one name that stands above the rest, and that's Maxwell Leadership. Our certified team members have gotten proven results for companies all over the globe, and our reputation I'm proud to say is second to none. Some of our members have risen to the top of their profession, including the one you're going to meet today. I proudly introduce you to my friend, Bob Fabien Zinga. Welcome to the Leadership and Success Podcast with your host, Coach BZ. If you need to develop into a better leader, this podcast is for you. If you want to achieve a greater level of success, This podcast is for you. His mentor, Dr. John C. Maxwell, said it best: Everything rises and falls on leadership. We hope to inspire you today and provide you with an insight that has the potential to positively impact the trajectory of your life. Welcome to the Leadership and Success Podcast. Greeting, I'm Joyce Fuestel, founder of Boomer's Social Media Tutor. Over the past 10 years, I have tutored over 1,200 business owners and job seekers on LinkedIn and Facebook. By using my services, they become more productive and effective with their use of social media, especially on LinkedIn. Over 300 of my clients have written me recommendations on LinkedIn, making me the most recommended LinkedIn tutor in the Denver metro area. In addition, Influence Digest Media named me as one of the top 15 LinkedIn experts in Denver in 2023. As someone who trained to be a teacher, it truly touches me when I see my clients have those light bulb moments as they start to understand how to use a social media site or get better at it if they're already on it. It is so incredibly rewarding for me to see this transformation in my clients as a result of working with me. After just a couple of sessions, they start to look forward to using the site like LinkedIn or Facebook instead of dreading spending time on it. They are proud of how they show up in these sites, navigate them with ease, and share such thoughtful and well-written posts. And I'm proud too.

All right everyone, uh, this is Coach Bizzy. Thank you so much for being with us today. Uh, first and foremost, uh, let's start with our moment of gratitude like we do every episode. I like to take just a moment, less than a minute, to be grateful for one and only one thing. If you can join me, uh, with that practice, please. If you can, close your eyes, maybe put yourself in your happy place, and if you need to, take a deep breath and think about one thing that you are grateful for today. Today I think I am so grateful for the miracle of social media. By being able to network with people not only across America but around the world, meeting great people like Joyce, who's gonna be talking to us today and share from her experience, her wisdom, and everything. She has so much to give to the audience today, and I want you to pay attention. So if you would, type on the comment what you are grateful for today, and also let us know where you are coming from, which city, state, countries outside of the US. And also, please like the post and tag someone who's going to be— you think will benefit from the podcast today. And also repost it within your feed. And if you have a question for Joyce, please go ahead and type it in the comments. So I am so glad that you are here. So you did just heard Joyce there for a second. Let me and give a quick introduction before I bring her on. So Joss is the founder of Boomer Social Media Tutor. She has helped over 1,000 professionals, especially those 55 years old and above, unlock the power of LinkedIn to grow their visibility, build stronger connections, and step into opportunity with confidence. Actually, we have a very special gift for you just for watching this podcast live today. You're gonna get it toward the end of the podcast. So please stay tuned. So she's also a longtime Toastmaster leader, author, and speaker. Her story of reinvention at age 64 proves it's never too late to thrive. So join us for a powerful conversation about leadership, resilience, and how to make LinkedIn simple, easy, and fun. Please help me welcome, ladies and gentlemen, Joyce Furstall. How are you doing today, Joyce? Welcome to the Leadership and Success Podcast. Very, very good to have you.

Bonus! I'm really glad Chris Irving recommended. Fantastic. You— wow, like friends already like that.

Absolutely. So to get started, can you tell us something about— oh, first, um, is there, uh, something you want to share? Are you grateful for one thing today?

Well, I'm grateful for my health, which isn't exactly 100% today, but normally I have a lot of energy, a lot of stamina, And I have, for a 76-year-old woman, really excellent health.

Wow.

Not to brag, but why not?

Yes, health is definitely extremely important. I remember in Bolivia, I injured my back a few years ago. There was a time I couldn't hardly get out of bed, right? It doesn't matter how much wealth you have, friends, or anything else. If you don't have your health, you really have absolutely nothing. So thank goodness for that. So another question I'd like to ask just to get started, What is something about you that most people may not know about?

I went to country school for 4 years, grades 1, 2, 3, 4. This was in the late '50s. I started in 1955 when I was 6, and it was a pretty unhappy time in my life. My parents were trying to get that darn school closed. There were a lot of local politics involved, so I ended up being in this rather difficult situation with just a handful, maybe 7 or 8 other kids.

Wow.

Yeah, it was hard. It was hard socially, but I'll tell you what, you learn a lot when you were like a little first and second grader and you can listen in on the upper level kids' classes. So that was maybe a high part, you know, high side. Mrs. was nice enough, but it wasn't good for my social skills.

Wow, that is, uh, interesting. Yeah, I don't think I would have guessed it. So can you share your journey from education and sales into founding Boomer Social Media and kind of what inspired you to take such a leap at age 64?

Well, you bet. So I grew up in Wisconsin on a dairy farm about 50 miles from Green Bay. Most people who know anything about football have heard of Green Bay, about 100 miles north of Milwaukee. At any rate, my mom had been a teacher. My grandpa, Bondi, graduated from the University of Wisconsin, where I later went to school, in 1915.

Wow.

Teacher and a principal. On my mother's side of the family, all 5 of them— 4 girls, mind you, born between 1917 and 1927— all got college degrees. 3 got master's degrees.

That's amazing.

Education, super, super emphasized. So I figured, you know, when it's 1967 and you're a girl, you can take on one hand maybe what you could do with a college degree. So I figured I'd be a teacher, but sadly, when I did student teaching for English, that was terrible. Then I taught health because I got another degree in health education, and I didn't like that either. So I washed out pretty quickly as a teacher because I don't like structure and rules and bells. I would not do well in the military, I'm just telling you. So at any rate, I kind of wandered career-wise. I did find this lovely young man Got married in 1972, April Fool's Day, a fun day for an anniversary. And so I did different kinds of work, and then we had a baby in '80 and another two girls, one in '84. So I was out of the workforce for quite some time, but— and I was in local elected office, which hopefully there's— I have an answer for the question, the second part. So I wasn't just sitting around making cookies or something. I'm not that domestic. But I wasn't working for pay. So we get out here to Denver in 1995. I was 46 years old, trying to figure out what to do when I grew up. And someone said I might be good at working at a Chamber of Commerce because of my energetic, peppy— you say that, I think, only with old people, right? Do you call a younger person peppy? Great. So I went and actually I landed a job in sales, my first sales job with the Chamber of Commerce. And I went on to work for the Better Business Bureau, Also worked for the University of Phoenix in enrollment and a place called the College for Financial Planning in enrollment. Well, it was at the last job where I was from '06 to '14— '06 to '13— that my manager noticed when our college rolled out social media in 2010 that I was the most enthusiastic chatter-upper of Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. This is right before Instagram. Well, golly, That was pretty interesting at 61 to be that with it, right?

Yes.

He goes on to tell me, Joyce, I've been thinking, since you're so good at getting our students, as we call them at the college for financial planning, our students engaged with our social media, have you ever thought of helping other people, especially in your baby boomer age group, help them understand social media like you do? I'm like, oh, come on, no, I just know enough to get them to like our page. Oh no, he goes, 'You could do so much more. You really could.' Wow. And that's how I came to— I worked 3 more years. It was a side hustle. I didn't actually even charge money. I just kind of figured I better, I better learn about social media. So reading books and reading blogs and all kinds of things, following people on LinkedIn who I respected. Yeah. So I launched this full-time in 2013 at the age of 64.

And talking about books and resources, I think there is this one book that you really like by Sam Walton.

Oh yeah, I have it right here too. Show people. Sandra Wong, I met her really by, really by chance, and she's amazing. She is. She's written books like you see. She is so down to earth. She's got so many insights. Of any one person to follow on LinkedIn, I say Sandra Wong.

Wow, that, that is just awesome. And by the way, we have heard from Lynn Williams. She said coming in from Philly, and she's grateful. Oh, Lynn's here! Oh, golly!

Oh my God, I'm glad you were able to come. She's a pretty sharp cookie me too on LinkedIn.

Yeah, so if you can tell us one thing you are grateful for and also if you have a question for Joyce. Thank you so much for being here with us. So my next question for you, uh, many professionals fear change, right? Especially later in life. So what gave you the courage to reinvent yourself?

Well, you know what's interesting? You would say it just like that. When I worked at the College for Financial Planning, a lot of my clients that I set up with financial planning courses certificates were older. They already had their certificate as to say a certified financial planner or some other certificate, and they needed continuing education. So somehow I would— how I think maybe came out that I was older than my voice sounds. So say I was like at that time late 50s, early 60s, and they go, wow, you sound like in your 40s or 30s. I said, oh yes, yes. And then I said, well, how old are you? And then he'd say like 75 or something. I said, what?

What?

You're still— why are you still working? And then they said something really profound, like, why not? If you have your wits about you and you have a job, especially like theirs, it doesn't have a lot of physicality to it.

Yes.

And you love what you do and you're making a difference in people's lives, why in the heck would you retire?

Wow, that is really something. Because I was born and I grew up in Africa. I came to the US when I was about 17 years old. And the way I grew up, one of our customs was really filial piety, right? We really have great respect for our elders. But basically, if someone is as old as my mom and dad, I consider them like an uncle or an aunt. But anyway, I was really shocked when I became a commanding officer in the most powerful Navy in the world, right there at the Global Network Operations Security Center in Suffolk, Virginia. I was working with like 5 different generations in my unit, from baby boomers all the way down to Gen Z. So my kids, I'm Gen X myself. So it's really a challenge in 2025 or 2024 being able to work with not just 2 or 3, but like 5 different generations of people with different needs and weaknesses and strengths and things. It's really, I don't know, I think it's challenging. It is awesome. But yeah, it's just great to to live in an era where that is possible. And especially, you know, what I think is the wisdom I can get from the baby boomer generation who decided to remain in the workforce. So that is great. So another question I have for you is, how do you balance time between focusing on your business and your responsibility as a leader within your community and business organization?

I will say that is a challenge. Because I'm the kind of person that's always got my hand up when they need something to be done. So I have to figure out, I think, when do I need to get things done for work, like during the day usually. So I block out part of Monday and part of Friday on my calendar for business development, other kinds of follow-up. So I make sure that I have that set aside. So a lot of the follow-up things I do with my Toastmasters clubs or also my different business organizations where I'm in leadership, I can do that at night. Now luckily I have— I'll just say it out loud— a low-maintenance husband. I once said that to him on our wedding anniversary. That was really a poor choice of circumstance. But I will say he's very self-reliant. Also, we have an adult child, Annie, lives here too. So he's got Annie for companionship to watch football or do whatever, be together. So, and I have a lot of stamina and energy. My dad had so much stamina, so much— wow, dairy farmer guy. He, he was amazing. He just, he could do so many things in such a short time. And so that's how I balance it. So it's a matter of priorities. I have a very homemade little handwritten list in little quadrants of what I have to do each week for each different kind of segment of my life. So with housework being pretty much not even on the list, so that also helps. I mean, I do go to the grocery store, but I don't clean often.

That is, that is quite fascinating. So who influenced you to take on leadership roles?

Oh, well, I'll start with my mom and dad. My mom and dad were co-presidents of the PTA in our little town of Manimal, Wisconsin. Once I got to go to town school. Yay me! And my dad was moderator of the church board. My mom was the head of the Sunday school. My grandpa was on— and I think my dad too— on our local town, local town board. My mom was on the library board. I always thought that everybody did that, that that's the rent you pay, you know, for being on this place called Earth. So yeah, it was really my parents.

That is amazing. So, uh, how do you, uh, mentor newer leaders?

Well, that's a really powerful question because one of my challenges is that I want to just do stuff rather than hand it off to someone and say, okay, go for it. I spend time with them on Zoom. I answer their questions. I show them if they have to go to a certain website to do something, how it goes. And then I just give them all kinds of positive feedback or constructive criticism as needed. I mean, right now, Bizzy, I'm in a Toastmasters club that most of the members, I would say probably 75%, are under the age of 45. And our entire leadership team, all Gen Zs and millennials except for me, have only been in the club for less than a year, some for just 6 months. Yes, isn't that something? And so it's really being a good role model for them and saying, okay, here's how it goes. Oh wow, I love the way you redid the budget to the treasurer. It looks so much— I like so much better than what I did. So, wow. Yeah, just— we— well, the first part is to recruit them. Yes, right. You got the, you know, and I have a knack for that. I know how to twist an arm so it doesn't totally hurt, just to kind of hurts a little. I learned how to do that in the League of Women Voters. I put a lot of time into that group when I was back in Madison, where I went to college and stayed till 1995. So I've learned a lot of those leadership techniques, if you want to call them, from other leaders. Just watch them.

That is really, really fascinating. So what about LinkedIn? You are so fired up about LinkedIn, and you've been named top 15 LinkedIn expert in Denver. That is just amazing. What's up with that?

Great question. When I was introduced to LinkedIn by becoming part of the International Toastmasters LinkedIn group, that's when I really fell in love with LinkedIn. This is 2008. I was in a leadership role beyond my club. I was in charge of all the club coaches, I think. So I'm looking for other people who geek out on Toastmasters like I do, and they are there all over the world. And there was this guy from, I think, Dubai who had a question about something, and I had an answer. And we got to communicating through email. We never did anything like Zoom or anything else like that. No, we didn't. And it was all email. And he would call me his Toastmasters mentor. And I just thought it was so touching that you can impact people all over the world and they can impact you. And to me, LinkedIn is so much more robust. So much more healthy, so much more professional and education— educational than Facebook. Facebook has its place, but I'm an educator by training. I'm hardwired as an educator. So that's why I feel LinkedIn gives us so many opportunities to learn things.

Wow. And talking about, uh, multiple generations, I know my kids, they're all Gen Zs. They left Facebook once their grandparents got on it.

Yeah, there's two kind of old-fashioned.

Yeah, so talking about LinkedIn, so there is a gift we're going to be giving everyone. You've written this book, 9 Ways to Stand Out on LinkedIn. So that's an ebook we're going to be giving away today. Uh, what is one timeless tip, uh, and one new tip that professionals should apply to today from the 6th edition of, of your book?

What is one tip that's in that 6th edition?

Yes.

A really basic one. In your LinkedIn profile, it shouldn't have a bunch of random letters and numbers after your name. You look like a rookie.

Yes.

What is that about? But most people don't even know that that might make them look like a rookie, or even where to go to customize— is the proper term— their LinkedIn URL. That's what I did. I showed them that first chapter, I believe. Right up there.

So, uh, how can leaders use LinkedIn not just for visibility but also for influence and connection?

Well, I think the first thing is it's who you connect with. So you want to go back to the basics. So a leader needs to be in touch with other leaders. So you could go and use the search function, for example, look for a job title of somebody you want to get to know. Look for the industry they're in. Go to— you want a second-level person, meaning you're not connected to them yet, and then see who the shared connections are and ask. I like to ask that person to introduce me to the person I found in the search results. Now, if you're bold— and I'm pretty bold, but not that bold— to just click on the connect button and say, oh, I hope they like me. I hope they say yes. I don't know. One of the tricky things that LinkedIn has done recently, frankly it pisses me off, is that you can only send a note with an invite 5 times a month, mind you, 5 times a month. Otherwise you have to pony up $40 a month minimum for the career level of premium. LinkedIn money grab here.. But anyway, what I would do, if you know that person, I would email them and say, I'm sending you a LinkedIn invite.

Yes.

So you know to expect it. So I think I would also— well, I think the groups aren't as active as they used to be, but that's another place to go. There might be some group that is more active than others. You can find leaders there. And also look who your people— go to your feed, and this could be somewhat random, course, but see who other people, uh, what thought leaders they're following, what authors they repost their stuff. You could go— if you have maybe 5, 10 people in this inner circle of yours, like me, that would be Sandra Long, for example.

Yeah.

And see who she— go to her activity and see what she's up to. See, there's Sandra, right? So I go into LinkedIn, I scroll down to activity and see who she's talking about.

Yes.

Would that be another way to find some like-minded people.

Wow, that is just great. So you've also been a Toastmasters Master Leader for about 30 years, and I used to belong to the one in Palo Alto. How has public speaking shaped your leadership and confidence?

Well, you can't be a good leader without being a strong communicator. I mean, just, that's just the truth. Now I'm going to broaden communication beyond public speaking. To listening, to giving feedback one-to-one. As you know, in Toastmasters, that section of the meeting happens where someone is assigned in advance to a speaker, and they get up for 2 to 3 minutes and tell the speaker what they did well and where they could improve. And people expect it. So therefore, it's helped me. I had a manager once say, no one takes my criticism. As well as you do, and that's because of Toastmasters.

Wow.

So I think that's, that's something overlooked. Then to go to the obvious public speaking, I had my biggest public speaking experience in maybe ever, but certainly close to maybe the biggest one, over 150 people. That's big for me. Wow. At a conference. I'll show you a little picture here. Here I am. Let it off with the business development section. Yeah, I talked about LinkedIn to people who are Certified Senior Advisors. Wow. People who care enough about older people to master a very complex body of knowledge, take an exam, and then they can say CSA, Certified Senior Advisors. Wow. With the seniors in, like, say, skilled nursing communities or assisted living or placing them into those, or there may be a lawyer or financial person. Or a realtor. A lot of realtors there.

Wow.

They laughed at all the funny parts. Oh my God, I practiced that speech every single day for a week. Wow. So I had the timing down just right, and it was so much fun. All weekend, people come up to me and go, oh my gosh, that was so helpful. I learned so much. Oh, would you have a picture with me? Wow, he's a rock star.

Oh my God, you are a rock star. You have like over 300 recommendations. I think you are one person— because I'm connected to about 30,000 people on LinkedIn— you are one person that has more recommendations than anybody I know, including people like Tony Robbins who have like millions of people following them. How do you do that? That's just incredible. When I grow up, I want to be just like you.

Yeah, you got to ask for it. You got to ask for it. You got to ask for your Google reviews. I made a plan, I think it was a year ago, not this year, '24. I had 44 legal— was it 44? I wanted to double it. I wanted to go to 88 Google reviews by December of '24. I was over 100.

Wow.

About 100, I think, 10. So what do you do is you simply ask. Now, sometimes they're not gonna go through. Also, I do a lot of pro bono helping people. Yes. Not as much as I did at one point. So if they are all like, oh my gosh, it was so helpful, I wish I could do something, thank you I said, well, you could just write me a review.

Yes. Wow, that's just fascinating because you serve in leadership all across several Denver business organizations. So why is community involvement so important to you?

I feel that going back to my mom and dad, if you're going to be part of a group, you may as well contribute to it. You may as well find a way to find what fits you. And also, you need to know when to step down. Like, I was the president of a chapter of a business-to-business group for several years, and I knew it was time for other leadership. So this gentleman now is our president. I've stepped down to be the program chair, which is something I love to do, like get the speakers, line them up. So I feel that I get more out of it, you know, when I'm more like at the front of the room or somewhere around kind of nurturing the group. And it just makes sense to me to have a, you know, but you got the tricky part is you got to not get grouped out because you know then you got to sleep, you know. So yeah, I just, I just feel it's a, it's in my world, it's a value system of mine.

Okay, so we are ending, uh, segment 1. We're about to go to the second segment. Is there, uh, a question I should have asked you for the first segment that I haven't asked yet. Anything you wanted to share?

Um, well, maybe just— I think I've already said the answer to this, but just talk briefly about LinkedIn versus Facebook. When I started out, I thought I'd be doing almost equally Facebook and LinkedIn, and I taught classes on both, even on Pinterest, at a local educational program center. But over the years, I have found that LinkedIn is really where my heart is. It's where I learn the most. It has the most utility for job seekers and business owners, and it's also the place where there's a lot of ignorance. So many people need to know about LinkedIn. So there's a lot of different pieces coming together to make LinkedIn be the place where I think it makes the most sense for me to focus.

Okay, I want to ask you a question as a way to add value back I've noticed you are not yet a top voice on LinkedIn. Is there anything I or my audience can do to have LinkedIn give you that blue badge, top voice?

Oh, I, I'm not, you know, like Chris Irving has that, uh, I'm not as familiar with it because you've got a good credential yourself on LinkedIn. I think a lot of it is who you follow and who you comment on and being very intentional Frankly, that's not my style.

Okay, but at least I want everybody who's listening now, please go to LinkedIn and Joyce Fauzel slash social media trainer. Okay, everybody follow her, and then when she posts, like all of her content.

I love her people, right? I'm sorry, I'm misunderstanding a little bit. Please do connect. Don't just follow me. You don't want to be someone kind of— no, no, you want to connect with me. Heck, at that conference, I went back to my hotel room that night, I had 40 new LinkedIn. Wow. I'd love to see that come out of this podcast because I have 40 new friends. So that's the most important thing for me, is people simply reach out and connect.

That is beautiful. But, but I know at some point LinkedIn is gonna stop people from connecting to you. I think the limit is 30,000. Like, like me now, I, I have to— like, for me to connect with, with you, I had to disconnect with somebody else.

No kidding, have you hit a max?

Yeah, 30,000 followers, that's it.

Whoa.

Yeah, now anybody can follow you, that's unlimited, but that's true, following is not limited. First-degree connection, yeah, you are really— I mean, they don't make any exception whatsoever, it's one for one. Okay, let's get into our second segment. What is the greatest lesson you think you have learned so far?

I would say patience. If I didn't have those two little girls in the 1980s, I wouldn't be nearly as patient because I can be kind of hard-ass. You know, my top— I saw your strengths, your strengths of the CliftonStrengths, StrengthsFinder from that, and we both have Connectedness. That softens the Activator. It does, I think, because it's more spiritual, it's deeper. And then I have Positivity, Communication, and Winning Others Over. But I would say patience.

Wow, that is, that is quite insightful. And what do you think is the secret of your success, especially past 64?

Well, I think those 17 years in sales, I will say I was more— I call myself a B-minus salesperson. It wasn't any hotshot. There. But I have that stamina. I don't give up, and I have persistence and consistency too. They're related, separate. So if you're going to be successful, you have to be persistent. And so they said no, but they didn't say no forever. So keep, keep trying to make that connection, make that sale, whatever you're looking for.

Don't take no for an answer. That is powerful. So what do you think is one of the greatest leadership lessons or advice that you've ever received?

When I saw that question— thanks for sending me these, of course— I took myself back to 1980. I was running for political office.

Really?

Yes, Madison, Wisconsin, the county board. Wow. In that state, it's kind of like the city council. It's not a full-time job. You have your day job You have county board. And someone said to me, talk about yourself only. Talk about the positive parts of you. This is so powerful in this day and age. Do not go negative on your opponent. Don't even bring him or her up.

Hmm.

To me, that's a good leadership lesson. And obviously you want to care about other people too. We'll get to that.

Yes.

And stuff. But I say don't diss people. Don't be negative.

That is a great, great wisdom. So as a leader, uh, what are you learning right now?

ChatGPT. Yeah, I use it for this thing. I'll tell you, you asked for a lot of information, pal. If it wasn't for ChatGPT, I wouldn't have had—

Wow, that is really amazing because I think a couple of years ago where it pretty much, you revolutionize every industries in the world. And again, it's really wonderful to see people who really keep up with the technology, especially baby boomers generation, really showing us that it is never too late to learn.

Never too late to learn cool stuff. Yeah, complexity or perplexity, I'm sorry, Claude, whatever your preference is. I like ChatGPT. I started with ChatGPT, it's very commonly used. So I call her Athena when I remember. Athena, did you know Athena is a daughter of Zeus? She's the goddess of wisdom and strategy. It's a cool name, right? I relate to that. I'm like that. I'm like her.

That's pretty cool. And also, Lynn Williams says, uh, Linky friends are the best. It's an amazing community.

Thanks, Lynn.

Wonderful. So, uh, most people, they look at your life, your career, and all of the great things you have done on all of the awards you've received, but I know that, you know, I have a coin here. I think I have it here. Yeah, here it is. On one side it says success, on the other side it says failure. So I really believe success and failures really are two sides of the same coin. So how has failure shaped your life?

Humbles you. It always humbles you. That election, the first election when I ran, I won.

Wisconsin.

And when I ran again, I lost. And that's when you have your name in the paper that you've lost, and you're sitting at the bar with your 3 closest friends and nobody else is there to cry in the beer with you. And so that's always— it's just so humbling. And you got to kind of reset. Okay, so I didn't get what I thought I wanted. Must be something better. I remember when my son-in-law didn't get into medical school the first time, someone told me, this or something better. No, I didn't say that to him. I just wanted to— felt a little personal. But every day I pray for this or something better, for him to get in, and he did the second time.

Wow.

Also, I have been seeking board positions where I was not selected, and that also was humbling. That says, well, this isn't the time and place for Joyce to be in this particular role of leadership.

Yes.

So you just have to regroup and just see what you might need to do, skills you need to learn, attitude to change.

Wow, that is good to know, uh, persistence and especially learning from your past experiences. Yeah, I guess I think it was JFK, right, who said that success is a bad teacher, right? And, uh, failure is an orphan, but success has many fathers. Yeah, people don't learn very much when they keep succeeding, but when you fail, you can really learn a lot from it. And get—

yeah, yeah, yeah.

Wow. Okay, so who are some of your thought leaders, people that you follow and that we should follow as well? I know one, I know one. You already mentioned there a couple of times.

Yeah, another gentleman, um, who was my earliest big-time connection is Wayne Breitbart. And Wayne wrote a book called The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success.

Wow.

And he's out of Milwaukee. I remember he found me on LinkedIn when I was just a little like rookie kid just getting going. Ah. And we have met several times. My Aunt Betty lived in Milwaukee. We would meet up for dinner and stuff before she passed away. And he's always telling me, I'm your biggest cheerleader, you know.

Yes.

He's such a fan of mine and I'm a fan of his. So yeah, he's another one. And then when it comes to networking, I wanted to give a shout out Beth— oh, Simon Sinek. Yeah, but locally here, Beth Bowen, who is the head of the She Leads group, that Supporting Hearts in Enterprise is a leads group for women, um, and that who have their own business or business development, have a lot of respect for her. Well, you're going to pull up Simon Sinek. Well, Simon, you're sort of like Maxwell, you know, he's a legend. I mean, look at his followers. Holy shit.

Yeah, yeah, I believe he has the second most popular popular TED Talk ever, more than 90 million.

Oh yeah, I was thinking it might be first, but it's right up there. Yeah, anybody who has any— you know, there's sort of like a Steve Jobs in a certain way. Yeah, yeah, just that kind of a, um, game changer.

Absolutely.

A person. Oh yeah. Oh, and Stephen Covey, I probably have his book over here that I read back in the '90s. Isn't that when that came out?

Yeah, yeah.

I, I always like the first one the best. There were other ones that he wrote, but that, I mean, like, you know, Keep the End in Mind, and so many just core principles of life. Yeah, he's amazing.

That's, that's wonderful. So, well, what about books? Which, which books would you recommend to my audience?

I think we talked about them, the Seven Habits and the Strengths Finder. Okay, so there's several of that. You know, the first one was Now Discover Your Strengths, and then subsequent books have come out.

Yes.

So I think if you're into like personal development kinds of things, I think that's good. There's also, um, like, this is a good one. Oh, this is by Tom Rath. That's a grandson of Donald Clifton. Your Bucket. That's a really cool one. Um, I, I— there's just so many of the whole bookshelves computer.

That—

yeah, I mean, I, I like to read, and I recently read this fiction book. Well, yes, talk about The Go-Giver. Oh my God, that is the most beautiful parable I've ever read, and it's so basic and so profound. Yes. And I've lived that way ever since I can remember. So I read that and go, yeah, well, big deal, you know. It's validated. It put words into my head that I did have, per se.

Yeah, because this year alone, at least 3 people have mentioned this book on this podcast. And another book too, they mention a lot. No, it's not this one. It's this one.

Oh yes, that's great.

How to Win Friends and Influence People. That's one of yours too, right?

Oh yeah. See, my dad was just— he could talk to anybody, anywhere, about anything. Big, big old BSer. In a good way. In a good way. We'd be on a trip and we'd be standing in line. He compulsively was talking to people next to us in line because he was like that. He always was curious about others. Here's a little trick he taught me. Now, of course, it's different because my dad was born in 1920. So he'd like to know how old a lady was. Is she going to tell you? No. But he had this little trick. He'd say, oh, so I graduated in 1939. When did you graduate?

And they'll tell you. Yes.

Isn't that so cool?

Yeah, that means they were 17, right? Or 18 at the time.

You know, my dad was in sales too. See, my dad never would have been a farmer except for his father made him do it. So in the wintertime, he'd go out and sell seed corn— S-E-E-D corn— to other farmers. And it was so great because he could use all his natural attributes, like in that book. He had such a great time.

Man, that is really a book that is quite a classic, Dale Carnegie. And you also mentioned this one, Atomic Habits by James Clear.

I'll tell you, that's a tough one for me because I'm not, as I said earlier, I'm not that structured. I don't like rules. But Atomic Habits really makes you think about how you spend your time. And how I like the way they would combine things.

Yes.

Just basic stuff. Just to remember, like when I put on my earrings, then I should put on my hearing aids. Okay, it sounds really elemental, but sometimes I forget my hearing aids.

Yes, yeah, you said basics. That's, that's really what gets me sometimes. Success is really basic. It's really simple. It's really easy. It's not complicated at all, but you have to be consistent like you, you mentioned earlier. Do it every single day and then you will see a result. But the thing is, most people They kind of know it in their head, right? But not in their heart, and they don't actually do it. It's like, oh yeah, yeah, I already know that. Yeah, but you already know that, but you've never done it, so you don't know it yet, right?

No, not until you inhabit it.

Putting it in practice, right? Mm-hmm. So if you could choose 3 people to have dinner with, who would you choose and why?

Abraham Lincoln.

Mm-hmm.

Have you ever read the book about his life? It was made into a movie. Team of Rivals. Oh my God, I just cried all the way at the end. I knew the ending, you know. Yes, it was so powerful. And I would think— I am brought up as a Christian, still really practicing Christian. Uh, Jesus, he was a pretty amazing guy. I mean, you sit down one-on-one with him, oh my gosh, that would be— and then I was thinking, I thought, gosh, I had a woman out of this. Then someone— I thought of Margaret Mead and the way she impacted the world and really push the edges of life. So I think that would be another person.

Wow, that is really, really, really cool. Okay, we already talked about books. Uh, what about, uh, I don't know, uh, YouTube channels? It looks like you're on YouTube quite a bit. Yeah, a pretty good channel yourself.

I don't really watch a lot of YouTube except my own.

Yes.

Um, right, so I, um, but I do know that the Toastmasters has a great YouTube channel. It's the official Toastmasters, um, podcast, which comes through, through YouTube, or maybe as a separate YouTube. I know their podcast is not— yes, has been just audio. I got to meet, well, virtually, the guy who's been doing this podcast for years. It was so interesting because he interviews like the president of the organization and winners of that big world championship of public speaking. And that's really cool. So I'm not the best person to go to for podcasts.

I think you also mentioned the YouTube channel for LinkedIn Learning, right?

Oh yeah, yeah, that would be good.

Wow, impressive. Okay, what about movies?

Well, you know, my all-time favorite movie is Gandhi. And there's that whole thing, uh, you are the ones that you've been waiting for.

Yes, yes.

And the courage that he had in very challenging times and the way he helped to shape a whole nation. I mean, kind of right up there with Jesus, you know. I mean, the sense of the impact that he had in this very humble way was so remarkable. And those The film score from— I mean, the music from that is so beautiful. Sort of like Cherries of Fire. Yes, there's another one I really like just for the kind of the epic nature of it. And then, um, yeah, Julia and Julia. That's fun because Julia Child didn't get into cooking like right away. She's sort of like other people who didn't come to it to midlife, and that's such a fun way it was constructed. Is— I like that for me a lot. Meryl Streep, who is actually just 6 months younger than me, she's one of my big heroes. Yeah. Now this movie, if people haven't seen it, they should go, because here's a guy thrust into leadership when his brother decides he's going to go off to America with his true love. And here he is, this stutterer, having to give radio addresses. This was what, during the World War II, I think?

Yeah.

Yeah. And he had this coach And oh my gosh, the way it was so authentic. I mean, I think, yes, the way they showed him and the way they would have him like swear and stuff. Yes, it was so funny. Yeah, yeah, that's just— oh, and this one, look at these ladies and think about what it was like for them in the '60s behind the scenes making this huge difference in the space program.

Man.

Walk like to the back 40 to go to the bathroom. So just the discrimination they had, but their— and their camaraderie as a team, it was, it was remarkable.

Very good. Are there any songs that you would recommend? Does that mean much?

Oh, the songs. Yeah, I had those here. Um, oh, I wrote back and summed up the— well, the big one is Climb Every Mountain. Yes, from, from Sound of Music.

Oh yeah, uh, this one.

Let's talk about these others first.

Yes, Leslie, Leslie Garrett sings it.

So let's talk about Carole King. Carole King, I used to listen to her music when I was ironing in the basement. That's back, you know, when you iron clothes. Remember, it was a thing in the '70s. At least I was still ironing. And there's something about Carole King, she's so fun and upbeat. And just that, then about the one about being a friend, it was beautiful. It makes you realize you've got people out there. You may not realize that, but they're there. So that was very—

and there was a— and No Mountain High Enough, right?

And that's good. It was really a mix of both people you love, like in Carole King, but then just that you can do things, you can stretch, you can go beyond the expectations. So I like that.

And the Beatles—

what was the song? The Sun, um, Follow the Sun, or— yeah, that wasn't the right name, but it was very upbeat. That was, I guess, George, um, when he wrote it, Harrison was in a low place, and then it helped him bring him up. We had at our wedding, we had at least— is it In My Life? We had songs from the Beatles in our 1972 wedding. It was a hippie wedding. I wish I had a picture of me in the paisley dress. Um, and it was so— we didn't invite anybody from my conservative town up by Green Bay. Oh my God, no way. They think it wasn't a Unitarian church. They say, does this even count as a wedding? Where's the white dress? Where's the cross? And, you know, where's the crucifix?

Yes.

So yeah, I love The Beatles.

Wow.

You know, I'm born in 1948, so that's— those are my people, you know.

But it's, it's really— there's one attribute about music that that I love so much because there were songs that even my parents or even my grandparents listened to when they were kids that when we grew up, we started to listen to it and then we loved it too. So basically, those people get a new generation of fans, right?

Yeah.

It's like classical music has been played, you know, hundreds of years ago and still today, my kids listen to it and they love it and they really admire. So there's something about music that's just, I don't know, it's universal.

Yeah, it's visceral. It doesn't matter if you speak the language or not, even if you don't necessarily know the words, You want some music? That's true.

That, that is really something. So, uh, is there a song, a book, or a movie that would be your life's theme?

Or I think The Climb Every Mountain. Um, yes, I was looking up, um, this time I went to Chat— not Chat, I went to Google— and I said, tell me the themes of that song. And it said persistence, purpose, and encouraging others to find their new dream. That is a little cool little factoid. I wrote it on a comment to one of your, you know, the post where you mentioned my name. Um, when I graduated high school, 1967, not only did I give the valedictory address because I was the valedictorian, but almost more meaningful to me in a way was getting to be the accompanist to this small ensemble of our singers from our class. Who's saying, "Climb every mountain." Wow. Now keep in mind, historically, Bizzy, this is 1967.

That's amazing.

That's just a few years after Sound of Music came out. And if I talk about that song much, I'll just start to cry. Yes. Because it's so incredibly uplifting.

Wow, that is really, really powerful. So what is one action that you are thinking about taking? That you believe will positively impact your life?

It's going to sound mundane, but I just met earlier this morning with a website designer. So I've had one for a while. She's kind of semi-retired. And Beth Bowen, this wonderful woman who runs this leads group, she said, well, you should get in touch with Crystal DeBoer.

Wow.

D-E-B-O-E-R. Crystal with a C. So then Crystal is going to help me to transform my website for— I mean, in certain key sections where there's not enough what's in it for me, for the reader. Not me, Joyce, but the reader. I have a lot of people going to my website, but they're doing absolutely nothing. You know, they don't look at it and then they leave. Okay, this is not making any money. So I've had different iterations of this website. It looks beautiful. Yeah, it doesn't— the messaging needs to be changed and some of the tabs need to be changed. So Crystal's going to help me get it more fantastic.

And then ChatGPT might help with, with that too. It's pretty incredible how it helps a content creator work a lot faster. And, uh, when you wake up in the morning, what is, uh, one problem you would like to solve?

Well, I would say is to help people look at LinkedIn positively. So many people only go to LinkedIn when they're desperate. They go when they're looking for a job. It's like they've gone to Tinder, like, okay, I guess I better get on Tinder or SilverSingles, my page, to find some partner.

Yes.

And they're like, okay, I gotta force myself, I gotta do this. And now I got my job. Then they just move on off, off of LinkedIn, just like you get your partner, hopefully you leave Tinder.

Yes.

So the thing of it is, LinkedIn is this living, breathing, amazing site that if you believe in the Go Givers principles in giving back, why wouldn't you stay on there and share your wisdom?

Yes.

That's for no good reason other than to give away your best stuff, as my friend likes to call it.

So that is quite—

so I could be more positively— go ahead. Yeah.

So how often do you think people should post on LinkedIn? For me, I post every single day including weekends, but on average, how often do you think people should?

I think the average person that like I counsel and I coach, once a week is fine.

Once a week.

You know, a little bit on LinkedIn can go a very long ways. Really, it can. So many people don't post at all. But what you should be doing in addition is engaging with the posts of other people because that will help to boost their post. And then you can ask occasionally, not every single day, ask other people to go and look at your post, especially if it's connected to them, and say, hey, would you comment on this? Would you repost it? So that's what LinkedIn really is about. The community is about the networking. It's about honoring other people's, you know, wisdom.

Wow. No, that is, that is so, so true. So if you had one and only one day to live, what would you have liked your final contribution to be?

You know, at that point of life, we just lost, um, or really more my husband just lost a dear one. She was almost 100 years old.

Sorry to hear that.

Yeah, I'm so sorry. We went to the funeral. Um, but I would say depending on my health and my, you know, my mental acuity, I would call I would try to at least get in person, like hopefully like my kids and grandkid and, you know, other loved ones would be there. I would— I'd be thinking ahead on this, you know, and I would make sure I would have touched base. My brother-in-law did this before he died of cancer, 57 years old, very, very sad. I would call people and say, I want to let you know that, um, this is my last day and how much you've meant to me, and I hate to go without telling them. Yes, I wouldn't think about business at all.

Yeah, thank you so much for sharing. Okay, we are coming to the end of the podcast. We have about 5 minutes left. So one of the most important questions I think we have for you is, how can we add value back to you? How can we make a difference? You've been so generous with your time and your expertise with Oh yeah, oh sure.

Well, the first thing is to go to my website and look around. Don't just like peek at it, like go and do something, maybe hit on the contact or whatever. Seriously, and especially go over to the tab you're going to provide under the resources, or learning I think it is now, and you can see an ebook. And when you go into that link, then you can download the ebook on your computer, and then you get on my newsletter. My Mailchimp newsletter. Yay for the Mailchimp newsletter! And then speaking of newsletters, LinkedIn has its own hosted-on-LinkedIn newsletter. You may, you may know about it, not everybody may know. So you could go to my LinkedIn profile and you'll see it there under Featured, and you click on that and you could follow that newsletter too. So that would be cool, as we already talked about connecting with So that would be like that. Those would be probably the main things. I have workshops that I do. I'm going to be on vacation in October when I normally have one, so my next Enhance Your LinkedIn Profile workshop is November 14th. I have these from 9 to 10:30 Mountain Time once a month, second Friday, and up to 4 people can come together and get feedback not just from me but from the other people. So cool. Yes, on 3 sections— excuse me— of their LinkedIn profile.

Wow, that is really—

that's in my meetup.

Yes. So for everyone, uh, who heard, so go to boomersocialmediatutor.com/9waysstandlinkedin and you can download this ebook, 9 Ways to Stand Out on LinkedIn. You're gonna get it Absolutely free, and I'm going to be adding the, the link in the comments so everybody can go to it. And thanks again for being with us today. So we are coming toward the end of the podcast, so I want to ask you really quick, what is, uh, the most rewarding aspect of your life experience so far?

I have to say, this sounds really very like another gender— meeting Bruce Feustel, June 1971, wrapping meat I was right after college and we moved in with each other in 1971. You didn't do it, ask your parents. That was like a big deal. And marrying him— my husband is a saint. He is the most nurturing person. He's the smartest person. He is the most insightful person I have ever, ever met. And what's wrong with that? Life would be nothing like it is today. Because of what he wants me and what I learned from him and how he helps me stay a bit humble now and again and how I laugh with him every single day.

That's awesome.

Oh, it's by the grace of God we met.

Wow. How long have you been married now?

53 years.

That is incredible. My wife and I got married in 2001, so 24 years this past July. So when we grow up, we want to be just like you. This is incredible.

Wow.

Okay, so we are coming toward the end. Is there another Is there any question I should have asked you that I haven't asked you?

I feel like we've kind of covered the waterfront. I'm pretty sure. All right. It's been very thorough. Wow.

Very good. So let me ask you then the most important question, I believe, of this podcast for my audience. If you could go back and give a piece of advice to your 17-year-old self standing at the edge of this incredible career you've had, what would you say to the 17-year-old Joyce?

Don't marry your boyfriend. Jim Marcy is not the one for you. You think he is? I dated that boy for 5 years, but he's not. He's not. Don't, don't marry him because there's somebody else who's going to be way better.

Wow.

I don't know, it just comes to mind. Nothing profound.

Well, yes, it is. It is profound because in my experience, marriage is the most significant relationship of your life. Early, because if you marry the wrong person, you're not gonna make it, you're not gonna be happy.

No, being a parent is important too, but you— that's harder. You can have, if you're lucky like we are, married young, 23, we can go into our 80s, 90s together. I mean, that's your best friend.

That is really, really terrific. And again, by the way, Lynn again is saying amen. Commenting creates visibility, discoverability, and credibility.

That's great.

She's right. She's one of your students, right? Mm-hmm. Okay, she learned from the master. Very good, Lynn. Thank you.

She's really good. I mean, Lynn is like a category.

All right, we only have 2 minutes left, so really, really quickly, uh, what did you want to be, uh, when you were a kid?

A teacher.

Teacher. Okay, and what are 3 adjectives describing you as a child?

Say that one more time, dear.

3 adjectives that describe you as a child.

Oh, as a child? Bossy, inquisitive, um, high energy.

Okay, what about as an adult?

Well, high energy and inquisitive. I hope I'm not as bossy.

Okay.

Oh, I would say caring.

Very good. All right, we've made it. It's been exactly 1 hour, and thank you so much for your time. We really do appreciate that. The very last question I'm going to ask is, what is one word that represent our shared experience on this podcast together.

Oh, this experience? Oh, connectedness. Yes, I think the one we had on our Myers— I mean, our CliftonStrengths.

Yes, yes.

Still very connected to you. We've never talked until this podcast. Can you imagine that? I feel like you're my son, you know.

That is right, that is right. Yes, and you are definitely a great leader in the community, and I am so excited, right, inspired by your example. And anybody out there who's watching, it's never too late to learn and to add value. And you really do add great, great value to our LinkedIn community. And I'm so, so grateful. So yeah, I think the word for me would be grateful. So grateful to get to know you, to get to speak to you and learn from your wisdom. So thank you. Thank you so much, Joyce. Really, really appreciate it. Bye. Wow, everyone, this was really, really great. It's as if I've known Joyce all of her life, but really, like she said, we just met last week and Thank you so much to Chris for putting us together. Like I've said before, I've never really met a stranger on LinkedIn. I think everybody I meet is my friend, and it's not just about getting something from someone, right, but adding value to them. What can I do to add value to you? So I will be back here tomorrow, Saturday, and we are going to be talking to the one and only Daniela McCoy. She's a Certified Business Continuity Professional. And you do not want to miss it. And the last thing I'm gonna ask, please write down your 2 to 3 takeaway from the podcast today and type it in the comment. And thanks again for being with us. Goodbye.

Thank you for listening to the Leadership and Success Podcast with your host, Coach BZ. If you like what you heard, please subscribe to our channels and come back for more wisdom nuggets on how you may develop into a better leader and achieve greater levels of success. Leadership is the most critical skill. The world will always need leaders to lead others, deploy the next disruptive technology, or execute a business strategy. You may as well decide on counting yourself among the 21st century leaders. See you right here next time on the Leadership and Success Podcast with Coach BZ.