Personal Branding Is About To Change Forever. Here’s How to Get Ahead

If you're posting content building a personal brand, you probably notice it is harder than ever to stand out on social media. There's just so much noise out there. The people that are winning are using a formula for this. It's not just by accident. There's actually a process that you can do to basically dominate the competition on social. So for today's episode, we have a really special guest. It's my good friend Giselle Ugarte. And she's built a strong personal brand herself. She's also a national speaker and she has clients, multiple industries all over the world. She's helped them build a powerful personal brand, but more importantly, tie it to business results, influence.

It's not about how many people know you, it's about how many of the right people believe that you know them.

Well. Thank you so much for being here.

I'm glad to be here. I'm glad that you're my friend. You know, what I always believe is so important for people to know about our friendship is the fact that I spoke at your first, if not one of the first forward events. The room honestly looked a lot like this one. There weren't very many people there. There were no special effects. The crew was little to maybe non existent. And what I just love so much about our friendship is that oftentime you think that you want to make friends with the person who's on the stage and that's great and probably. But also the best people who you can make friends with are the collaborators and the ones who are building at the same place that you're at. They're in the trenches with you, they're struggling with you. They're making the same mistakes, they have the same fears. They're at that place where you're parallel or maybe just above or just below each other, where they have strengths that might be your weaknesses and you have strengths that might be their weaknesses. And when you see each other continuing to grow and to build, or maybe you falter and it's, hey, let me, let me cheer you on, let me pray for you, let me. And. And are some of the most valuable friendships that you can make. So especially those of you who are in the room, like, look around the room, these were people who decided to buy the ticket, who decided to make the investment in themselves. These are the types of people who you're going to have the biggest return on your friendship, on your relationships. You can depend on them. And so to watch you grow, brother has been so inspiring. I'm so, so, so proud of you. And the impact that you've made. My goodness, what a blessing you are to this world.

Thank you so much for saying that. That's awesome. And also, just so you know the type of person Giselle is, we were doing our event and then I think we were just going through this. And even like the week before the event, I had some crazy shit happen personally and all this stuff, and she's like, hey, Hope, everything's great and I'm coming anyways to support you. And like, I don't even think you could be there the whole time, but you just showed up and hanged hang out with everybody. You're not even speaking at the event. And she just came to support us and be there and just be awesome. And so thank you so much for all that you do, which is awesome. And then honestly, just for being here today, this is great. This is another example of that.

I flew in at 6am I think I flew out at 6pm and so many people were like, oh my gosh, are you speaking? Are. Are you the surprise guest? I'm like, no, I'm. I'm just here hiding in the back, cheering on my friends. I don't, I don't need anyone to take a picture with me. I don't need to be recognized. I don't know, it's.

But still, people did want to. They did want to take their pictures.

Of course. Of course, of course. But I just, I wanted to be there for, for you especially having everything that went on and whenever I can be of value to, to someone or just show love and appreciation for someone, that's, you know, that's what it's all about.

Yes. Thank you so much. And so this is really important as, as you guys level up and people listening or watching as well, like, think about who are the connections. And so I've had the most lift in my business from a small number of powerful connections and so you can spread yourself in and network. And part of content is like, yes, I want to reach. I want to wide mass appeal and reach as many people as I can and build my personal brand. That's awesome. But also think about who are the few people who I'd love to invest in being there and, and really going above and beyond for reaching out more often. Not just when you need something, but just to check in and see if you could help. Giselle's that type of person. She'll just reach out. Hey, you need anything? Can I help with anything? Hey, I'm in town. You need help. And those are the type of people who you want in your corner. And I would do the same for her and other people in our community of like, hey, who can I really invest in? And though you will find that those are the people who connect you with the biggest opportunities. We had a guy at our event last time, he made his whole talk on the relationship model and he was like, hey, you guys thought I was going to talk about tech and AI and content and I'm just going to tell you to build 10 powerful relationships and those 10 relationships are going to change your life.

And haven't you found that the, the more that you grow or maybe it's the more that we age or, or maybe it is the more that we build that you realize how maybe before those types of relationships I thought it was important to be reciprocal or that well, what can I get? What can I get from that person? What can I get back? Or, or how? And, and instead if anything I've learned, hey, my love is infinite, infinite. And it's not about tit for tat, like what, what can I get back? It's just you're this person who I truly, truly believe in. How can I support you? How can I help you grow? It's more for me about watching what I can do in the ripple effect that I can create for others versus what can I get back? And the saying that I love, bless and you will be blessed if you can be that person. It's going to come back to you in some way, shape or form. But it doesn't need to be an immediate return in that moment. Especially when there are a lot of you who you have a contagiously referral based business and, and, and so you might think well I, I am so nice to this person, but they never bring any business back to me or they never. Well, hold on a second. What, what is it really costing you to be kind to someone? What is it really costing you to. To check in on somebody and, and see how you can support their goals? You know, unless it really is a take, take, take relationship where they're asking you for things and never doing anything for you in return. You know, the, the network and the relationships and the impact that you will have will be significantly more when you think of it from that lens of who can continue to create more positivity and impact in your world immediately and not just online.

It's funny, the people in our, funny you say that still because the people in our mastermind group who are the most successful, the ones doing the most business, they're quiet about it and one of the guys, I try to put him on spot him, like, hey, Ro, before I bring you up, I'd love to have you teach, but could you just qualify yourself? Like how. I was going to ask him how much he had made or how many transactions he had closed, but it's a non ego room. So I just said, would you just tell us the worst year you had in the last 10 years? And his worst year was like a year that most of us would look up to, you know, and. And then he's incidentally the guy who wants to serve the most. He's out there helping. And so you'll find that a lot of people at the top of the game are actually helping others people win and not like gatekeeping or any of that stuff. And so this is perfect transition because we're talking about content strategy, personal brand, and how to stand out. Incidentally, that is the way to stand out to make sure your content is actually helping people. If you have an offer or a web or a lead magnet or a webinar, it is actually helping people. It's not just a sales thing. It's not transactional. Yes, you should be clear about what is the next step. We were just talking about this with one of the attendees. What is the next step to working with you? Because I do think, like, if you just put good out there and pray that you get paid, like you can't, it's not going to work like that quite so much. It will work, but you should be clear about a call to action and all this stuff. So in this conversation, what we're gonna do is go through a content strategy to stand out, but then how do we transact, translate that into business and getting clients? So first things first. How would you kind of, what advice would you give to the Creator in 2026 to stand out on social and primarily, you know, these are people making content on Instagram, maybe making some YouTube stuff, but are getting lost in the sauce.

Well, my invitation to you is a reframe when it comes to this idea of how can I stand out? We need to go from thinking of standing out as looking for significance versus looking for contribution. And let's explore that for a moment because really when we're saying how do I stand out? We're not even defining it. So let's define what does stand out even mean to you? Oftentimes when we dig deeper, and this is where my performance coach is going to come out, so oftentimes they have to dig deeper because to you, standing out means more followers, more views, more likes. And those are awesome and those are valuable. But let's think about what you actually want to do. Grow your business, provide for your family, make an impact. And so in that sense, let's look at how those work differently between significance and contribution. Significance is you're looking for external validation. Contribution is you know the value you bring. And you can take action on that value, whether it is online or especially off. And when you think about it from the lens of contribution, a great way to stand out is just by simply doing the work and taking what you do online, offline, or finding ways to create even when you're consuming. And let's talk about that for a moment because let's be honest, when those of you are scrolling online, how many of you are consuming more than you're creating? Show of hands. And so we want to be thinking about even if we're consuming, is there a way that we can create? Because yes, it can be in the form of uploading a video or a story or a reel. But there's also other ways that you can create. It's by leaving comments on other people's posts. It's by sending DMs and actually starting real, true, engaging conversations. It might be sending a one to one video to somebody, or sending an email, or God forbid you pick up the phone. Because that's also something really interesting that we're starting to see shift is that content has started to become really one sided as we become more and more socially stupid following the pandemic. What do I mean by that? We think that content is the magic pill that allows for us to grow our business without having to leave our homes or put pants on. And as a result, we've become socially soft and we've forgotten some of the soft skills that got you to be the friendly, magnetic human being that you once were before these crazy social media things happened. And so my clients who are winning are the ones who are going, okay, you know what? In 2026, the way that I build my personal brand, it's not just by creating content, it's by creating proximity. Let me make sure that I'm definitely creating in person events. Let me make sure that I'm finding ways to create community. Let me make sure that I'm creating real time, live conversations, not just the parasocial conversations that we have in our content. When we're delivering value, we have to make sure that people know who we are. Because what we're also going to run into. And granted, I've Been doing this now for almost 20 years, which is crazy. Like what? Like, I had a blog and I had to tell people how to pronounce blog. I was like, they're like, what's B, L, O, G? Is it blog, Blog? What is that? And YouTube, like, forever ago. And so it's this cycle that we've seen. I've seen it over and over and over again. I've been answering the question of how do you stand out for more than 15 years. And so the best way that you can stand out is by making sure that people know that that online version of you and that offline version of you match. And whenever we get the question of, well, how can I be more authentic? Well, at its core, authentic is how connected are you to yourself? How connected are you to your mission? That's how authenticity comes out, is that you are not concerned about significance or about standing out because you know the value you bring. And you know that even if just one person watched that video or you mentioned, who are 10 people who you want to invest in? If you had 10 of the right people watch that video and reach out to you, for some of you, that could be transformative.

So I hope you're enjoying today's podcast. I want to quickly tell you about something that's really helping my audience. Once a week, I send out my Forward focus email. This is one tip that's going to help you move the needle in your business, your personal brand, your content strategy. And honestly, I have never received this much positive feedback from a single piece of marketing ever in my whole career. So I know this is really helping people. It takes you about 60 seconds to read and just gives you that clarity in a world of all this chaos and noise. So if you want to get access to this week's issue and get this every week from me, just check out the link, it's in the description below, and I'll shoot it over to you. And for now, let's get back to the episode that's, like, viral for me. I call it. So VFM would be like, okay, if you got a deal, a relationship from a piece of content. Like, one of our past workshop attendees, she got invited to be on the news from one of her pieces of content that's viral for me. I don't care how many views it got, right? Like, that's crazy. So you think about, okay, this is important. Like, okay, how do we not get lost in all the things? Well, what Giselle is telling us here is like, okay, the most valuable thing is to get more conversations. Social media is about having more conversations, whether that's through dms, video, all these things. So how do you practically do that? Well, think about this. Who are the people you'd like to connect more with? So let's just say I don't know Giselle. She doesn't know me, whatever. Maybe I post content. But she, I might, she might have seen it once or twice or not. So how would I get her to see my content? Well, I would go to your content and I would genuinely don't spam, genuinely engage with it. I would leave comments and maybe I would react to a story which you all know opens up an Instagram story. I mean, it opens up a DM thread with that person. So even just sending a simple reaction. But then now we have a DM thread open. And I have found that even when you don't follow somebody, if we have a conversation going in DMs, you are likely to see my next reel, or vice versa. So then if I'm posting consistently now she sees my next piece of content and maybe I can, you know, take a book a call or we can, we can take the conversation to the next level or we can collab and I can invite her to speak on something or, you know, do those things. So I just think of using social and this is the part that's kind of behind the curtain is like your best. My best, like ROI on social is not from direct to consumer leads and direct to consumer business. It all, it has made me a lot of money. That's great. But the biggest benefit has been creating relationships.

Huge.

Like using it to convert. If I want to connect with somebody, if they've seen my content, it is 10x easier to create that relationship with that person. If, if you, if you know my stuff and you know what I stand for, my values, like, it's so much more powerful, so much easier. And so I just think about like, how could you get more conversations? So instead of a goal. I love the fact you brought this up because it was just inspired me. Like, instead of a goal of how many posts, what if there's a goal of like how many conversations are we having in the DMs?

Yes, yes. And, and also seeing where you can have control over the outcome because in many ways we don't necessarily know exactly how many views something is going to get by any means. But what is the outcome for you? And sometimes that outcome is an actual metric, whether it is something on the platform or if it is something in your business. Sometimes it's something more meaningful where maybe it took you one take instead of 67. Maybe it was that you actually posted it instead of sticking it into the drafts. It's breaking some of those muscle patterns. And something that I thought of as you were saying, that is honestly the best way to stand out anytime is to do the things that most people are not willing to do. Just take a look around. So, yes, if everyone's making videos, make the videos and be the person who is having actual conversations inside of direct messages. That's the other piece to it too. Is that the most important metric on all of these platforms, Every single one of them? It's time. And that's something that you get an instant return on. Because let's think about this in two ways. Number one, Neil brought up having conversations in the DMs. So what's happening? If someone's opening up your DM, or if you're having a true, kind, genuine conversation, asking questions back and forth the old fashioned way, someone is spending time on your content because they're in your inbox. And the algorithm sees that as, oh, hey, Giselle and Neil are spending time with each other. And so, yes, we should suggest Giselle's content to Neil, we should suggest Neil's content to Gisele, who knows that they actually know each other. But if we're spending minutes upon minutes, and if that message exchange is keeping us on the platform, they want us to see, they want us to stay on the platform. But then there's the other piece too, which is really important, especially those of you who are newer or new ish is you might get discouraged of, oh, Giselle, I did. You know, it took me five hours to film this stupid video in my car. And. Well, hold on a second. Let's think about this for a moment. It. It maybe took you five hours. And by the way, sometimes I still have. Yeah, it is a really long time. Like, hopefully you weren't sitting in your car for that, that long. But even if it was five hours, if, if it was an hour or it took you a while to edit something because you've never done this before, mind you, for so many of you, you have not done this, or at least in this way before. Well, hold on. If you then upload that video, one of my favorite things is that now on every platform, it shows how many minutes or hours that content has been seen. And so let's think of it from this lens. If 10 people watch that video, that's 10 hands that you didn't have to shake. You know, if. If 10 people watch the first six seconds of that video, that's the equivalent of introducing yourself at a party. Or if they watch the whole thing, that might be an inside joke where you connect in line at the bathroom. Ladies, you know, it's. Or if they go to your profile and then they watch this video and this video and this video, and then they follow you, that. That is like hitting it off with somebody at a networking event or a conference or a party. And again, those are hands that you didn't have to physically shake in person. But hopefully you will. Hopefully you will, because we want to take our relationships offline. But what will then happen is maybe it did take you five hours to make that video. But let's think about those 10 handshakes would have otherwise maybe taken you 15 hours or 20 hours or five days or five outfits. Or when you do have that metric that says your video has been seen, you know, for 24 hours or for. In some cases, when you get to Neil's level or mine, it'll say it's been. It's been viewed for 50 days or five days.

Yeah, it's cool. Like, even the videos that were just posted by this group and a couple of them, there were a couple several thousand, you know, and it's the time on brand. So this is called time on brand. If you have seven hours time on brand with people. We talked about this yesterday. Like, this is going to get you more conversions. It's just a bottom line because you're the person that now is. They've chosen. And so here's the thing I think that we can get into in terms of strategy. I think this will help the most people. If you're getting into content right now, what is. Do you have, like, a specific video that you would recommend everyone make? So you. You're coaching up someone, they're posting videos. Maybe they're looking a little bit like a variety show. Hey, I've got this video on this real estate tip. I've got this video on this personal tip. I've got a story here, and maybe I've shared some stuff and it just looks random. Yeah, okay. What would be your advice to that creator? What's the video that they cannot afford to miss? Like, they must make this piece of content.

So I personally love carousels on Instagram and being able to pin something at the top of your page where you can actually have a combination of photos and videos. And again, time spent on content, you can have up to 59 seconds per video in that carousel, you can have up to 20. I don't recommend doing that.

You'll probably have to delete it and go backwards. Real quick. Why would you want it pinned?

So I want you to be able to tell a story of something that means a lot to you, whether that is your business or it could be your journey or it could be something that you offer. So, for example, if you were to go to the top of my feed right now, for me, I'm a coach and a professional speaker. So my carousel, I have my 60 second teaser reel as the first video. And then you see pictures of me with people who have watched me or my clients. You have some of my little tidbits that I say from the stage. You have text messages and DMS of people saying, oh my gosh, I loved your talk and so much. And then below you have an explanation of what it is that I do and why I love it so much and why it means so much to me. It's something that's timeless. But I'm showing videos from the last four, maybe five years. I think they're, you know, for, for me. So how I, I began this portion of my journey, I started working in TV and also radio and advertising. You know, the thing that we used to watch before we started streaming everything. And so I had totally stepped off camera and worked at an advertising agency. And I one day just decided in the middle of the pandemic that I can't not potentially die if the world's going to end, that I can't not die knowing that I didn't pursue my dream. So I decided to launch my professional speaking career from my kitchen table when live events did not exist. And so in that carousel, you also see me at my kitchen table with like plastic bins stacked on top of each other and my little whiteboard and my sweatpants on and my webcam and whatever. Like everything that I was doing to jerry rig my first paid speaking gig, which was on a zoom call. And so what that allows for someone to do is rather than being limited by say the 60 seconds or the 90 seconds. I know reels are now like 20 minutes or whatever, but it gives them a chance to be able to flip through almost like fast forward, but fast forwarding to all the good parts or even the bad parts in some cases. I think I talk about failure too. That's a really big part of my, my mission. I had a, you know, I had an autoimmune condition where I put on about 60 pounds in, in 90 days and my whole body was covered in hives from head to toe. Also, when I decided, hey, I got nothing to lose. And. And why, for me, opportunities like this mean so much to me.

The.

The endurance to be able to last through these kind of days when I used to have days that I could only stand up for like 30 minutes at a time, if that. And so what it allows for you to do is you get to see different sides of you. And I think one of the biggest mistakes that we make is we only show the highlights, we only show the perfect, we only show the professional. And I do believe something that's going to start happening, especially in a world of AI, and you have all of these different avatar creations, whatever is. And I've run into this over the last few years too, is you have creators who they are awesome when they're filming their own content in their own homes and doing as many takes as it takes to do the job, but then to meet them in person and they can't even put a sentence together or they look completely different and you realize, like, oh, damn. Like, that was. I didn't realize that was all filter. Like, you could do that now with the filters. I had no idea. And I really want the person who I see online to match the person who I see offline. So I want to see casual you dressed up, you. You know, what, whatever you want people to know you for. And I believe that the thing that you should want people to know you for isn't just that perfect day or that perfect transaction, because especially there are a lot of you who are here. You work in the real estate space. It's been a little crazy over there. And so you would be doing yourself and your clients a disservice if all you did was showing the butterflies and shooting rainbows. Like, we need to see what are you like in times of pressure, in times of stress. And so for me, it was showing the transition. So think about, like, take a moment and think about this for you, because whether you pin it to the top or you just add it into the many prompts that I know that you're going to go home with with Neil, is what would you want some type of a storyline for that to look like? Is it showing people what day one looked like? And write that one down, That's a good prompt. What did day one look like for you versus what does it look like for you now?

Yeah, that's really cool. If you think about this being a pinned post and it's like, you know, think about one of the vibe of this can be like, why I do what I do. And maybe there are Pictures of you 10 years ago, you know, in the business or awards you got along the way. And even like, hey, you know, I think about Journey, like, hey, maybe you had a downsizing period or maybe you had to. It's 2018 and I had to start all over or whatever. You could put those pictures in, but it would be real.

Yes.

And so, you know, we're talking about standing out well, honesty, authenticity. And this is the number one thing people will tell me is like, hey, dude, you're just like the person. You're just like yourself. You're real. I feel like I could connect with you. And so these are the people that you actually would want to show up for and connect with and refer. And there's this thing, I did a podcast with Grant Cardone and I, you know, this, you know, there's always lines that stick with you. And he's like, neil, when people know you, they will flow you. And so if they know you, you'll get more referrals. Like, they just know, you know, like, you'll get more opportunities. So, like, you know our friend Rory Vaden? Yeah, so Rory Vaden, he was, you know, he's like, we become friends and he spoke at our event and he's. We. I've helped him and stuff. And anytime he's got clients that he represents because he helps people build personal brand, if they're in Vegas, we'll do content together. And he's always, you know, trying to reach out. And I didn't think anything of it, you know, I just, we've just been friends, you know, and if he needs my help, I'm down to help. And there's no score keeping. And then, so, yes, I just shared this with the group yesterday. I got a text from him in the morning. It says, good morning, Neil. I just wanted to let you know that, like, I had a conversation with Gary Keller and the team there and they're putting together their next event. And I threw your name in because I wanted to highly recommend you. And this has been one of my best clients for the years. You know, I'm like, wow, this could be like a potential business change, life changing opportunity from just what we just talked about, which was content. That led to conversation and then creating the relationship, you know, from there. So this stuff does work and it works on a small level and it works on a big level. And people will connect you with really cool things. But. But they got to know you, they Got. They have to know the real you. So more than just the tips, but just the tips and the information, I feel like it's just gonna get lost in the sauce if you're just saying everything that everybody else is saying. It's just noise and something.

You just reminded me of something else, too, which is write this word down. Connectors. Are you making it easy for people to connect with you and know you? And what I mean by that is whether you're posting a reel or maybe it's a carousel, or it's just how you are in public, or are you finding reasons for people to want to connect with you? What do I mean by that? My boyfriend and I were walking over here, and I noticed a guy walking about 10ft in front of us had a USC backpack on. And anybody who is from Southern California, anyone else, it won't really matter. But anybody else who's from Southern California knows that the USC family is strong. I don't care where I am. If I'm in the middle of the street, if I'm in an airplane, if we are 20ft away from each other and I see somebody who has Trojan, USC something, I will go up to that person. I will tap on their backpack. Or this. In this case, tap on their backpack. This guy didn't even speak English. I was like, fight on, man. And him is when they're like, oh, yeah, fight on, you know, And. But. But again, are you. Are you sharing things that people would want to connect with you, or they. They can connect with you on some deeper level beyond just what it is that you do. That is one of the biggest mistakes that creators make is you think, niche down, niche down, niche down, niche down. There are definitely riches in the niches, but it's also the fastest way to burn out. And you want to have a focus or an umbrella at the same time. One of the best ways to stand out is, okay, but, like, what are you about? Are you a parent? Are you a widow? Are you a cancer survivor? Is there a team that you're obsessed with or a hobby? You might have heard when we were doing the. What's that thing called?

The cheer.

Cheer.

The cheer.

Together, there were three of us girls who put our hands in, and we had red nails. And, like, there's just something about when red nails are your whole personality. Am I right? Like, you. There's just something that you just. You get it or I don't get it, but. Yeah, exactly.

I'm sorry.

Thank God, you know, but thank goodness that it's something that, that you want to be okay with not everybody liking you. And it's not to say that anyone's going to dislike you as a result, but how are you going to find some of those smaller groups of people where it's a lot easier for people to make conversation with you? And a joke that I made is last year, I know for a fact that I had six super high level, high ticket clients who, whether it was why they reached out to me or why they chose me, or why in a big variety of speakers or coaches they chose me, it was because of some type of a Taylor Swift connection. So in one case it was that I was running on a peloton treadmill and I didn't realize that the incline was going up, but I was singing Taylor Swift stupidly at the top of my lungs along with the instructor. And I had one client who's like, you know, I was between a few different coaches, but when I was thinking about who I'd want to talk to at 5am on a day where like everything's a mess, you just seem like the energy that, that I wanted in, in that particular. What I'm looking for. I had another one who even it was a dad. And he was like, I realized that I need that girl energy in my life. He's a girl dad. He has four girls and he was Travis Kelce for Halloween. And he was like, you know, I saw that you flew across the country with your friend to go to two ERAS tours. Like, I love that type of loyalty. We had the best experience. That's. That's the kind of energy that I want. And was that the only reason? No. But let's think about what those connectors can associate for you. Some of you are thinking about it. It might be the fact that I'm drinking Diet Coke. It might be that Neil lives in Las Vegas or that so and so is from Texas. If you have some type of a tie to that, you have a meaning that you attach to that and write that word down. Meaning. Is there a way that people are bringing meaning to you or how you put yourself out there? Because that meaning can create credibility. And sometimes the only meaning that we attach is, well, I have to be number one or I've been doing this for 20 years. Yeah, that, that totally. That adds it. But everybody's been doing it for a long time. Everybody. Yeah. Or the joke that I make is like, really? You think every time I drive by a house I'm going to think of you? Like, really? It needs to be more than Just that. So don't be afraid to share some of those personal pieces. And that's something that I. When you have that carousel, or even if you're just making a video in your car, some people might recognize your car. The interior. I have that car. Or I have. Or they might see the car.

Just chances to get lucky, essentially.

Yes.

So it's like, hey, you must have the foundation, which is, you're competent. You're good at what you do. You show proof that you're good at what you do do. So that part is boxes checked. But then the conversation starter was Taylor Swift, right? Conversation starter was the peloton, the workout. And somebody might be like, hey, Giselle's too extra for me.

Right.

But then, thank God, because for these people, that's the exact thing that connected you.

Exactly.

So I just think of, like, showing the real you. And I wrote this down because this came up in a previous conversation as I was just making a piece of content about this. I literally was just talking about this with somebody. I said, hey, people. I wrote down in my notes that people really refer you when you're known, like, you can solve. It's known that you could solve their problems and that you exceed expectations. So you're showing the proof. And that was the important part of. It's not showing off. It's evidence of success. I think about it as proof of concept. Hey, I'm helping these people. These people showed up. This is what they're getting. And you're making your clients look good. But one of the things I wrote down was like, you're easy to describe. And it's hard to describe someone who is just. It's just that you don't know anything. So I would be like, oh, Giselle, that's the extra girl who, like, does all the dancing. And. And she was a cheerleader. And she's like, okay, cool. There's connection. So there's multiple things to remember. And I just think, like, if you have not put those out there, you're missing out on all those connections. And once you do, you'll find that the conversation starter will be there now, you know, because of all these things. So I think. Think each time you do one, it's like, that's much more of a net that you have to catch more business.

It's also, who in here has kids, by the way? Who in here has been a kid at one point in your life? It's also Playground 101. Let's think about how we used to make friends. Oh, my Gosh I like your pink shoes. Oh, you like the color blue. I like the color blue too. It is the same. It's. It's exactly the same. And I like what you said about that too, because we can take so personally when, for example, someone who we know sends a referral to somebody else who isn't us. But it's also going well even when I am sending out referrals. You know, I have clients from all over the country and I will have a real estate agent who says, well, if you ever, if you ever know of someone who needs a home in Southern California, call me. And I'm like, I won't. I won't call you. I don't know who you are. You have not given me anything to attach you to me versus let's think about how I'm actually sending referrals. I might think to myself, oh, well, you know what? She just got divorced. And I know that she deals with a lot of people who go through divorces or she herself has had to refill, rebuild from being divorced. I feel like they're going to have a lot in common. Or, oh, you know what? Like, she loves Jesus. She loves. She. Okay, let's bring them together. Or hey, you know what? She has. She's a. She's a girl dad. Or he's a girl dad and he's a girl dad. How can I. I know that you're going to have things in common because I know that there's going to be a lot of in between time, whether you're going to a lot of showings together or just simply the fact that you're going to get really vulnerable in the transaction. It might be someone's biggest investment they've ever made in their lives. And so how do I know that there's going to be something that you have in common besides just that transaction so that you can actually build a relationship and build a friendship.

Yeah, Jesse's in the group here. She was just talking about. She's a trauma counselor as well as in the mortgage business. And she's like, I want to make sure I put that in my brand. Because think about like other people who really resonate with that or have been through things and they would just be like, oh, that's the type of person I want to work with. So I just think of every personal brand is going to be your name and blank. What are those blanks? And I do this, and I'm into this, and I'm into this. And the more of those ants and you can think of yourself as like a list on a sheet of paper and blank. And blank. Some people have no blank. It's just you. The real that you. Whatever you do. And so if you start by just starting with one or two, it'll just increase. So now let's like. So this is the thing. We can have a whole separate conversation about content strategy, which we can do on a future episode. So that's awesome. But the most important thing that I hope everyone gets from this is make sure that people can get to know you. I think the biggest opportunity in 2026 is not to be, you know, well known. It's to be known. Well. Think about how people know you. They'll flow you and how could we just be known more and you know, like, in terms of what are those things going to be? What are the conversation starters going to be? So now that we're doing that, you think I think and I know if you're doing this correctly, you'll have more conversations started in the DMs, in the comments. People see you like, hey, I love this. When you posted this today, somebody's like, hey, you know what? This one thought you shared really connected me. I'm in this room because of one thing you said. Cool, that's going to happen more often if you do it. Now that we're doing this, it Giselle, like where if you were to advise. Cause I know you help your clients with this and by the way, the people you work with. And the reason why I wanted to have you on this conversation today is these are people who make not, you know, make a lot of impact, but they also make a lot of money, you know. And so like, I don't want to get it twisted of like, hey, we're just trying to be on, you know, all the in the clouds here, like in the tactical, regular business world. How do we translate this into the. The next deal? So what are the opportunities for conversion? What are you coaching your clients on who are like, hey, I've got more views now, I'm getting on more stages. How do I get more clients or more business?

Absolutely. Well, so one thing that I want to share with everyone to provide some comfort is that I've worked with people at all different stages of content creation and also career. So it could be someone who they've just graduated from high school. It could be, you know, in tonight's case, Grammy Award winning recording artist, super bowl champion real estate agent, you know, CEO, cmo, a lot of different people. And the thing that all of us have in common is self doubt. We all have self doubt. Or you're lying. Because if, if, if you don't have self doubt, then that means that you are either complacent, comfortable, you're only doing what you believe you're in control of rather than growing. Because it could be that you have self doubt about your career, it could be that you have self doubt about parenting. It could be you have self doubt about the next decade that you're gonna hit on your birthday milestone. And so understanding that if at any point in time you hesitate, you get scared, you have fear, you wonder, does anybody actually care about what I have to say? That's a green flag. Lean into that. Lean into that more than anything and how we can convert it into clients. So I say that a personal brand is who you are stepping into, who you want to be. And let's think about that. Who you are stepping into, who you want to be. It's not just a definitive thing, it's not just a reputation. It is an evolving, an evolving being which is you. It's going to change. There are things that might feel authentic for you today that are not going to feel authentic for you tomorrow or six months from now, or a year from now. Thank goodness if you're not at least a little bit embarrassed of who you used to be. Again, you're not growing. But influence. It's not about how many people know you. It's about how many of the right people believe that you know them. And this is where many people get tripped up is it becomes all about you, you, you, you, you. What do I look like? How much money am I making? Rather than. Hold on, do the people who I'm talking to, do they really truly believe that I understand their situation? And that's also. I love how you mentioned that Jesse is, Did you say trauma therapist?

Counselor.

Okay, but this is, this is really powerful and really beautiful because we think that people are only making decisions based upon the market or how much money they have or what season it is. And there's some data to back that up. But in actuality, if you are a service based professional, chances are you're helping someone when they're in transition, you're helping someone when they have a problem. You need to be a solution to their problem. Are you showing proof of concept that you can actually solve a problem or that you've been through that problem? Can they. And write this word down or write this phrase down. Can they see themselves in you? Can they see someone who they love in you? Can they see possibility in you. Because one of the biggest frustrations that Neil and I even go through as coaches is, well, but you guys have been doing this for so long. Or, but Neil, you have 200,000 followers. Or, but Neil, you have a team. You have a hold on. How do we make sure that we let you know, hey, I know. I know what's happening up here. I know how to do something with $0. I know how to start from zero. I've been there. And in fact, I'm helping people go there and all of the time. And so whether you are just starting out, what's the energy that you're bringing, and that's ultimately what it is about is that right now we're in this world where you have so many people who are scrolling to numb or scrolling because there are numb. They are numb. What's the energy that you're bringing to the table? And write that question down. Like, really think about it. What kind of energy are you bringing? Because a lot of people who I'm working with, the energy that you're bringing is defeat before we've even met.

Yeah, I can tell they're not into it.

I can tell that you don't like to make the video. I can, I can tell that a lot of people have probably said no to you in the last year and therefore you're coming to the table, even the physical one, already thinking, I'm going to pick somebody else versus the person who maybe they've had the worst year ever. But they know that you would be so lucky to talk to them or that they're going to be different or because they haven't had business in a while or because they're brand new to the industry. They're going to bring fresh eyes, they're going to bring fresh perspective. They have been grinding and learning and educating and so recognizing the energy that you bring and the transformation that you need to make. And can you actually make that possible for someone who may not look anything like you?

Well, Misty in the room is in the back. She's like, hey, she told me. I was like, what's your, you know, what's your story? She's telling me about the whole story. She goes, nobody will outwork me because she has like a whole story about why she got into the business and her son and all these things. And I'm like, that's super powerful. So, Misty, did you make that video in the car? She did. Awesome. So she actually made a video about her why and why she got into this and her. The Takeaway was like, nobody will outwork me. Her purpose, you know, is bigger than the work and all those things. And so anyway, I think people will, will get behind that because it's actually something that nobody else is saying. So. Okay, cool. So you're doing this and then as far as conversion goes, like I talk a lot about conversion events. You know, you've come to some of our events and I, I think getting people in person is great. Or getting them on zoom. I know you do a lot of web stuff. Do you believe that? Like going, obviously it's awesome when somebody reaches out and says, hey, I've got a referral for you. I know you, you're great. I refer you, but I think in order and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. I think in 2026. You just said all these people are doom scrolling. They're just kind of apathetic, they're just kind of numb. How do we get them from numb to taking action? And some of them are like a few months away, a few questions away from working with us, but they're just kind of meh. You say somebody, it's kind of weird. You'll be like, hey, how's it going? And they just go, I'm like, what is that even an answer, bro? Like, they're just dead. Like, I don't know what it is, but you got to get them to do things. So obviously enthusiasm showing up, being excited about the work, that's going to get people to really pay attention to you. But now what's the next step? So we just had a conversation with one of the gals here and this is kind of like, kind of closed the circle on this whole process of like, okay, we're making better content, we're doing the things, we're getting more referrals. But now how do we get these people off the fence? So what would be your strategy for getting some of these people who are just, just in the shadows? Because these are the people who don't like your. They don't even hit the heart button. They don't leave a comment, but they're watching. I know this with for a fact because they'll tell me. They'll be like, hey dude, I've been watching your stuff. I'm like, well, could you hit the button or drop a comment once in a while? Like you don't say anything. Yeah, these are the silent watchers. But I have found it's gold. Those are the people where they're like, there's a. This is the Biggest group on social media. So how do we get those people to do business with us?

It's going to sound really silly, but honestly, I feel like the basics is what sets us apart and you especially, which is asking for what you want. You can say, hey, I know that there are some of you who you have been silent for a really long time and that's where you have whatever your call to action is. So something that I always say before I have any of my events is, listen, if you have always wanted to work with me or you've thought about working with me, come to this event. You have absolutely nothing to lose. Hit their pain points. Hit, you know, hit. Hit what they want, hit what they desire. And especially take a look at time. You know, what, what are you waiting for? What, what are you. Are you waiting for? What do you want? But I believe that whether it is the, the silent ones or the active ones, that in both scenarios, a lot of the reason why you're not converting is because you're not actually asking for what it is that you want.

And I think being specific, being very, very. This is awesome. So this is the. Like when I got my coach, he's like, neil, how many times did you ask for business? And I was like, well, you know, and I came. He's like, that's pathetic. Yeah, Honestly.

Yeah.

Like, if you want more business, ask more people.

Yeah.

And I was like, he's like, I'm gonna hang up the phone now. And I'm like, wait, I paid you a lot, bro. I paid you way too much money for just that. But you know what I mean? But it was that simple. Like, make. So here's the tweak. Make a specific ask. So I'll give you guys an example. Like, obviously you could apply this to any industry, but like, I'll show you how we've been doing it on the mortgage side and even in. In forward in our marketing consulting business is like, okay, hey, if you are someone who feels like this, so insert. Fill the. Fill in the blank. Like, hey, if you're someone who feels like the market passed you by. If you're someone who feels like homes are too expensive. If you're someone who feels like. So it's called a dog whistle. Call out the person that you're actually wanting to help and be specific. Like, I remember seeing this in the fitness space. Hey, if you're a postpartum mom who wants to get your pre pregnancy weight back, bro, that's me. Like, you know, it could be you, right? And like, wow, how that grows your business rather than, I sell fitness plans. Well, so does everybody else, you know, so be specific with who you want to serve. And I think people are scared to reduce the audience, but if you don't like, you speak to no one. And my. I always tell the story about how Shivani, my sister says female power or girls power. All this futures, female events, all these events about women. She. She's like a feminist. Well, why is her pipeline have more men in it than women? Because she stands for something. And so you get more than just the niche. So when you niche down, you get more than just the niche. That's the point. But I would make a specific ask. Like if I'm going to ask for a referral, I will say, hey, you know, one thing we've been really crushing it with is helping people who have a home to sell, but they want to buy a new one. Do you know anybody that's in there? We have something that's just dominating with that. Okay, now I'm thinking of someone specific rather than just like, hey, could you have a client for me? It sounds like begging, you know, so I would be specific with the ask. And honestly, what's helped me too is letting people know who are the people that I can really help right now? This is the type of client I've been getting the best results with right now. Share that. Honestly, who isn't a good fit for working with you? I know this sounds weird, like you would never want to exclude people from working with you, but I found you get more people when you say who you're not for.

Well, and there's a couple pieces to this. So I honestly, I don't necessarily want or need or would I recommend that you focus on the silent ones or the lurkers? They'll come when they want to. I think one of the biggest mistakes that we make is we focus on the ones who maybe you have a chip on your shoulder. You want to prove someone wrong or it's your competition. Like, you're focusing on people who respectfully would never do business with you. Or perhaps you're even thinking of your friends and family, who to this day my mom will text me and go, are you sure you wanted to post that? Or my brothers who. That. That. That caption is way too long. I'm sorry, sir, do you post?

There was a gal here who said she got all positive feedback from the post we made together yesterday, except her dad called to tell her what's wrong with it.

Yeah, right. And so one thing that I say often that I want you to add into your brain muscle memory is, respectfully, you're not my audience. And maybe you say it out loud or perhaps you know better that it would actually cause more of a rift and you don't need to waste your energy there and you're just saying it in your head and just, okay, dad, and you smile and you keep doing whatever it is that you need to do. So don't focus on the ones who are all the way out here. Focus on the ones who are at 49% and you just gotta flip them to 51. You just gotta flip them onto, well, maybe, you know, or the ones who are obsessed with you, who could potentially be referral partners for you or send people your way. And one of the things that I say is the best strategy you can use is to care. Consistency, authority, relatability, emotion, consistent doesn't have to be every single day or multiple times a day. And I believe that one of the reasons why we get really down on ourselves when it comes to content is that we don't actually define what consistency even means. Because let's just say you're one of those people who, you're the type to post once, or maybe it's three times in a week and then you don't post again for six months, but then you post like once or three times in a week and then you post again six months later. That's you're consistent. You're consistently being inconsistent, you're consistently posting every six months. So you need to decide what consistency actually means. But also you need to believe that you have authority, even if all you are is an educational resource and not necessarily the number one or the most experienced. You have to show that you can relate to my problems. But again, most importantly is the emotion and the energy. I hired you because what you do is boring to me, okay? If I thought it was fun, I would be doing what you're doing. So I want to hire someone who they nerd out about it, they geek out about it. You're obsessed with it. You think it's fun because I don't think it's fun. If I see that you think it's fun, then that's the energy that I want to bring. You're going to bring to the table something that I don't understand or that I get really overwhelmed with a capital H by and you're making it easy to understand. That's what I want. But also the asking fit is that, like, let's be really honest with yourself. Have you actually asked for what it is that you want? And do the people around you actually know what it is that you do or what type of business they should send to you? Because most often the people who are closest to me send me the worst referrals, the worst ones, because they don't actually get it. My boyfriend doesn't even understand what it is that I do for a living. It's part of why I brought him here today. My mom, no idea. Like I want to pull out the camera for when my mom answers that question because she probably couldn't really define it and thank God for that because they are real friends of mine. We don't really talk about work very much. But if your own friends and family couldn't really define what it is that you do, how do you expect the thousands or hundreds or however many people around you to actually understand? Real estate agent let's think about that for a second. I have a client who, she's the type who. The thing that she actually says is give me the keys and get the fuck out. That's. That is her mantra. Like for real. That's her, that's her mantra because she's the type of person who she wants you to have full trust in her if you want to move across the country, if you want to just check in from time to time. She is a fixer and a flipper. She just wants you to trust her with your investment. And she's not a people person. She's not going to hold your hand like just give me the key, please get the out and let me just handle everything. And she will. Versus I have some clients who they love to work with the first time home buyer, they love to be the mom, they love to just tell you every single little thing. They'll take you to like 25 houses. It makes them so happy. But again, you need to figure out for you like what, what do you want to serve? Who do you want?

Who do you want to serve? Who do you want to serve? And then like talk about it and be have it. Even in the Instagram bio I help these people get this result, you know. And you know like and then honestly there's a post everyone can make, you know, like I just really simply like hey, I'm looking to help this many people and it could be five people who want to get this result in the next 30 days. You know, it's like how many people want this result in the next few number of days? Anytime we do this at the mass group of people there's people in the audience, even in your Instagram stories, which are just a fraction of your followers, who will reach, who'll be like, yeah, I'd like that. You know, I'd like a conversation. So you'd be shocked how many people are already in the circles and we're just not even asking or we're asking in the wrong way. You're just assuming so. I never want to assume. People know what I do all the time. I want to keep reminding them. Remember this, people need to be reminded more than they need to be taught. So sometimes it's not about coming up with the next crazy viral idea. It's about just reminding them of the core things that we can, how we can help them and keep doing it.

If you're still afraid or even if you're not. A great way to bring yourself top of mind for someone. I mean we're at the end of the year so reach out to people in your orbit, reach out to your loan officer partners, your real estate agent partners, whatever or previous clients. Hey, we're reaching the end of the year. I know you are a, a huge go getter. Is there anything that I can support you on or is there anyone who I can connect you to? And they might say yes, they might say no, they might give you something and then say what can I support you on? On who can I connect you to? And then you can tell them and let's even think about something. Write down right now, what is something that you could be supported on? Because yes, there are going to be seasons where it's like hey, no, I'm, I'm genuinely good. But if you're not good and you're saying I'm good, then that's a self fulfilling prophecy right there. So think about right three things. What are three things that you could potentially use help with or three people who you could get connected with. Do you need a coach? Do you need a therapist? Do you need.

I need CPA actually yeah.

Do you need a new cpa? Do you need those one potential referral partners? Are you growing your team? Do you need what. What is something that you need and have that top of mind so that you can start allowing for that to.

This is great. Yeah.

This is like reality.

I said I just had this. This is perfect timing. Cause I just said this story yesterday. Have I need someone who helped me with this? In our business it was like a systems funnels, backend stuff automations. I've been doing it myself for all these zero oh gosh. Like on Top of my day job and top of my other job. And so this is like a third job for me. But I can do it quickly and I can do it the best and I know it works. And so when I set up a webinar, I know old automations, I've tested them and. And I'm like scared to give it away because I don't want it to break for some if somebody else. But I have to, otherwise I'll always be stuck. It's time. Yeah. So I said I posted about this and there was somebody in the audience who'd already been following my stuff. Their husband was in the business and the wife, wife and they, the wife's into this and they're like, dude, we live in Vegas. We would love. And we actually love what you're building, Neil. Right.

Even better.

But I just never asked. So all you do is ask and the universe will come help you. And so I would encourage you, like me just saying cpa. Somebody's probably going to connect me with the best CPA and whatever. If you need help with something, put it out there and people can in your network can help you. And it's not selfish, by the way, because, you know, know, I'm sure you're the type of person who would help other people too. So this is all awesome. And honestly, Jill, thank you so much for doing this. This is great.

Thank you for having me.

Yeah, it's been great. And then how, like, how can people connect with you? What are you doing in 2026?

2026 is going to be a really exciting for a year for me on, on a personal level, which is, you know, I'm getting settled in Texas. I love it. I have my honey in the corner and we're talking about our future, which is really exciting. And, and, and it is really.

He didn't know that you were going to. To talk about your future till now? Well, yeah, we might bring you in the conversation, bro. No pressure.

Yeah. We just went to Date with Destiny for six days.

Oh, okay.

Okay. But, but no, right now I'm at a place where my, the most important thing that I'm prioritizing in 2026 is my relationships. That was something that, that I spent a week with Tony Robbins and was really looking at my life and my goals for the next 20 years and, and where you can have your buckets of working on yourself and working on your work and working on your relationships. It's definitely been a lot of self and a lot of work, and for me, it really is about, about those relationships and nurturing those friendships. And, and that is, is, you know, I know that other things will happen as a result in my work, but continuing to, to be in person with as many people as possible. We want to start doing events as, as you have and growing our team. But, but one thing that I really admire about so many of the clients that I work with is I managed to attract a lot of people who have really big family value values. And one of the things that I really admire, and I believe that about my friendships as well, is is the ability to succeed in what you want to do professionally and also still be really, really happy at home. And they go hand in hand. And so continuing to set boundaries for myself to make sure that I'm taking vacation, even though I think it's funny that, you know, this is supposed to kind of be a vacation and yet somehow I've worked yesterday and today, but it's a testament to, this is what I love to do. You know, where so much of the world can say you work too much. Listen, if you're working a job that you don't like, then that's a problem. But if you're stepping into your calling every single day, I believe that it's one of the most beautiful things that you can do and bring your family into. And so my goal for 2026 is to bring more people along with me, whether that is my, you know, my parents who aren't getting any younger or starting my own family or, you know, continuing to just serve as much as I possibly can, which is awesome.

And then people can connect with you.

On IG, Instagram, LinkedIn and 2026 is the year of YouTube to, to go back after a 10 year hiatus.

There you go. And I will tell you that this YouTube long form thing is like, it's been a such a blessing of just people connecting with you for longer conversations, really getting to know you because you can only do so much in 30, 40 second videos. And so I believe Justin who was here earlier, he was like, hey, I, I'm getting better at these short videos, but I want people to go watch a long video. And so, so he's going to make a 20 minute video or a 15 minute video about a certain topic. And I would just think about what are the things that you could talk about at a bar with your friend with no script and no GPT that you could just talk on for an hour. Those are going to be your best YouTube videos.

Totally.

And I did this by accident. We can kind of Wrap with this is just for. And this will help you too. Giselle is like, I talked to this guy, Evan Carmichael, who is helping some of the biggest thought leaders build YouTube. YouTube and all the guys who want to go to YouTube. He's the man who helps them do it. And he was like. I said, evan, like, what's your advice? I'm thinking about getting into YouTube. This was years ago. He's like, hey, Neil, what could you make an hour long video on? And I was like, well, at the time, I was like, well, I'm using Instagram to do this. I can make an hour long video on that. He's like, I'm like, okay, well what about. What should I title? What should I thumbnail. What should I do all these things. He's like, just don't worry about any of that. Just go make an hour video on that. That. So I swear I left and I went and made one hour video. It's terrible. It's not that good. It has. It's on the. My YouTube channel right now and it has hundreds of thousands of views.

I'm sure. I believe it. What did you talk about?

I just talked about a framework that I'm using to have success on Instagram. And this was like four or five years ago. But what I found is Everybody's making a 10, 15 minute video on YouTube. And you'll notice people tag me on YouTube. They have the TV, the YouTube TV on at home, YouTube on TV. So this conversation, you probably. This can be so meta. Like somebody's listening or watching this right now on YouTube. And I'm telling you, it's on your TV, in your house as you're doing something else, as you're watching. You might even be cooking dinner tonight. You might be doing some other shit, multitasking. And so there's something how I watch.

All my podcasts too. I don't listen to podcasts. I watch them.

Yeah. So this is a big trend. I would tell you, like, get with a business partner, bring your top business partners on, bring other industry friends on.

On.

Talk about the market, talk about what are solutions. Just have a conversation. Obviously you get better at the process and then you can bring people in, but it takes the pressure off. Like, how am I gonna script this long video? I just talk for the whole time. And so that I had success with that. Then I stopped doing it. Cause I got so busy with everything else and I fell off. But I got back into it a year ago and my best videos are close to 45 minutes to an hour long, and there's not that many people making those videos on those topics.

Yeah.

So I would do that. That. Anybody watching, Listening? Yeah. Start with 10, 15 minutes if you want, but get a conversation going. And it's so easy. Like, we just did an hour video, and we didn't even blink. So that's the advice. And then I'll put Giselle's information in the chat. If you want to connect with her on ig, send her a DM and we will see you guys on the next episode. Thank you.