Pivot With Purpose Season 5 Episode 16 Cris Gordan Full Transcript

Meghan Houle (00:00.677) Gordon, welcome to the pivot with purpose podcast. How are you? My beautiful friend. What is going on? Yeah. Cris Gordon (00:06.222) I'm good. Oh my gosh, I'm good. I'm so, so happy and excited to be here and I can't wait to chat with you. Thank you so much for having me. I am honored. Meghan Houle (00:15.877) Oh my gosh. It's my pleasure. And I know we have been just coming off some time together. I feel so honored to be spending so much time with you these days. And God bless the Blueprint for bringing us together. And from a Boston girl to a New York girl, we're not that far away distance -wise. But it's been so great getting to know you over these past few months. And I can't believe we're almost six months into all that we've been doing with the Mastermind. Cris Gordon (00:29.76) I know. Cris Gordon (00:44.91) I know it's kind of crazy how fast it went, but I feel the same way. I think your energy is really contagious. So it's nice to have that type of energy in your circle. And so I feel excited that I've just gotten to get like, get to know Megan inside and out the last couple of months and see everything you have going on because you're like a powerhouse and it's very motivating. Meghan Houle (00:45.765) Right? No. Oh! Meghan Houle (01:04.677) Well, you too right back at you and I love for fitness. So thanks for keeping me in check, you know, while you're traveling. I feel like you always have to keep up a routine in some way. Like I'm definitely very much like that. But all right, so diving into pivot with purpose, the heart and soul of this podcast is all about the twists and turns in life careers otherwise. And I know, gosh, you're doing some really incredible things. But I always love to start with Cris Gordon (01:11.278) Thanks. Meghan Houle (01:33.253) Tell us where are we catching you Chris? Like what's going on in your world today? I know you're talking about prepping for some big events coming this week. Like what is going on in Chris's world as we speak? Cris Gordon (01:44.654) Yes. So I mean, it is. It's Fashion Week. So that is like our prime time. It's so funny because I'm like, this is like our Super Bowl. And ironically, it runs on the Super Bowl. But it is. It really is like us beauty gals. I've been in beauty, lifestyle, wellness, PR for my entire career. And it is our show time. So we have a lot of client events this week. We actually have an event every single day throughout the weekend into next week. And we're just kind of hustling, moving and grooving. And On top of that, we're always preparing for what's next. So, you know, we have what's in front of us and then we have what's next. And we're just kind of always on that track. And that's the busy world of PR and events, but it's so fun. It's like where we thrive. And to me, that's just my entire personality is like events and going and seeing people and welcoming our guests and having the guest experience be amazing from start to finish. So I just feel like it's nice to finally get to the point where the event is happening. Meghan Houle (02:24.965) Yeah. No, I love it. Yeah. Cris Gordon (02:41.27) while it's anxiety inducing a little bit because you're like, I want to make sure everything goes off without a hitch. And it never does. It never does. There's always something that you have to anticipate. It's nice to see the fruits of your labor come to life. So I'm excited. Meghan Houle (02:52.357) Yeah. How far out do you usually have to start planning? Is this like months or years in advance? Especially for something big like fashion week, what's your prep? Cris Gordon (03:04.75) So it's so funny, I think in an ideal world, we would have at least four months to plan an event. That would be our ideal world. But the reality of the situation in PR is that we usually have a couple of weeks, if that. And so the turnaround time ends up being rather tight because every single step is so contingent on another step that is out of our control. So our brands typically loop us in when some of those conversations are starting, but we're not able to execute or even begin the conception. Meghan Houle (03:05.837) Routine, yeah. Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (03:32.824) without understanding how those pieces are gonna fall into place because of how much they affect one another. So we just kind of hit the ground running as soon as we are able to. And in the best case scenario, I think the longest we had to plan an event was like six months. And that was amazing. That was like, and it was a huge, huge million dollar event. Like it was big, it was offsite. It was, you know, we had to take guests on a long travel day and it was a five day event offsite. So. And so six months is a good amount of time, but most of the time, again, we have like, I'm like, we have five days, but it's really. Meghan Houle (04:02.405) Wow. Yeah. Meghan Houle (04:09.153) You're like, we got this. Yeah. Well, I feel like you and I are cut from a similar cloth of we kind of thrive in these like chaotic, like feet to the flame moments where you do it. It's like do or die time. You just kind of get it done. So yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (04:25.646) Yes, it's so true. And I think every, you know, in our, especially in that's entrepreneur mindset too, but that's kind of a mindset I adapted from early on in my career because it's in my industry, I started out in PR, you are only as good as how quickly you can execute something and how successfully you can execute it. And so you're always kind of on your toes and ready to pivot at any moment for something that might. go wrong or you have to anticipate. So you live your life a little on the edge and kind of on this, you know, on your tippy toes, making sure that you are prepared for every single scenario. I think as a publicist, you're always kind of preparing for all of these different scenarios that you could either prep your client. You can make sure that the event has a plan A through, you know, A through X, Y, Z. And that's helped me a lot, I think in my personal life too. But it also can hurt you a little bit because you're always kind of waiting for the other shoe to drop and instead of just enjoying it. So it's about striking a balance and kind of figuring out where to live between that line. Meghan Houle (05:24.069) Yeah, like, right. Meghan Houle (05:32.997) Yeah. So is what you're doing today early on, cause I know you've had a very amazing tenure career in PR, but did you start out thinking that this was like your world? Like what brought you into the world of PR? Yeah. Cris Gordon (05:48.974) So I had an internship in LA when I was in college and I was an entertainment reporter for that internship. And I wrote for like the Kardashians blog and all of that. I went to all these events and every time I would get online at the event to be checked in as press, I was like, I want to be throwing the event. Like, I don't want to be waiting to see if I'm on the list. I want to be the one making the list. And I had no idea what. that meant because I didn't even understand really what PR was. It wasn't something I went to school for. I went to school for English literature. I wrote a ton. And so I kind of started asking around, like, what is that job? What is that person doing at check -in? And they were like, oh, that's the PR team of X, Y, and Z brand or X, Y, and Z event. And I was like, that is so cool. I want to be a publicist. And so I started to look into internships after that. I feel like internships are so important. It is what I owe so much of my career to is really getting in the room with the right people, the right companies to take that step. And so that's kind of how I started. That internship in LA where I was writing for celebrity news and then pivoting to, okay, now I understand what I wanna do. I wanna be in PR. And so I started from there. I got an internship at a few agencies and I landed at one of the big agencies in New York after I graduated. Meghan Houle (07:01.253) Mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (07:06.629) Yeah. And then I see too, there was a pivot where you went to the brand side for Sicily in beauty, right? So coming from one agency girl to another, but on the recruitment side, but also working under big LVMH brand houses, that's a pivot in itself, right? Because like under an umbrella, there's very different execution and expectations. So what was that pivot like for you and going in house and now you're running your own thing, which we'll get to, but what, Yeah, what was that like and what was your experience there? Yeah. Cris Gordon (07:39.756) You know, it's so interesting and I get the question so much because I talk to so many young women who are trying to understand their careers in PR and marketing and communications. Going from agency to in -house for me was a very, very pivotal moment in my entire, not just in the moment in time, but also kind of in what laid my future to start my company because... There was always something that felt like it was missing at this agency lifestyle. I felt disconnected from the brand side. I felt like I was only always one step removed. And so going in -house, it changed significantly. You're in it. You're kind of, you know, every single thing, you know, why everything is delayed. You start to understand how the wheels turn of these brands. And from the agency side, you never really see very clearly into what it really takes to run that brand. So you're just kind of like the annoying publicist that's like, We need to know when this is launching and we need, but there's so many other things happening. So I finally got to see that when I went to Sicily and started the PR department there, it was fantastic. I love, love, love the brand. It was so nice to take my skills that I had been learning and kind of fostering and nurturing in the years at the agency and then kind of really let that flourish in -house, create some really special programs that they still have today and just understand what it's like. from the inside and how all of the pieces play a part together because PR can't be done in a silo. You really have to be servicing all the other parts of the brand. You have to understand what they're doing from a marketing perspective, from a sales perspective. You have to understand the executives really well. In order to understand how they're gonna show up for the brand and on behalf of the brand, like ambassadors, you have to see what their day -to -day is really like and what buyers are they putting out. So it just opened my eyes to how... different and how much more successful a PR program can be if you get to see those things behind the curtain. Meghan Houle (09:35.237) Absolutely. No, I agree. And I always say for anybody kind of sourcing out jobs or pivots, like, try different things. I am so grateful for my time working in luxury fashion and luxury retail, because I feel like now on the agency side, it gives me a different perspective, just like you got, you know, so I agree, even though going in house, sometimes there are bits and pieces of control, potentially you lose, but then you get to you get to see behind the scenes in a different way. And I'm sure Cris Gordon (10:00.046) Yes. Meghan Houle (10:05.143) beyond events? Like you said, it's crisis management. You know, what are some of those like levels and layers of PR that maybe people don't know about? Because I think a lot of your PR again, like PR girls, cute outfits, standing in the lines, letting people in, but there's so much around communication, crisis management, now with social media. And I'm sure that's changed a lot for you kind of growing up, especially with like Instagram and everything now being so digital. But what are those levels of PR that you know, are so important? Yeah. Cris Gordon (10:29.44) Yeah. Oh my gosh, I mean, I laugh thinking about the beginning of my career and how different it is. And all the editors that I kind of came up into my career and they came up into their career together, it has changed significantly. But the root of what it is has always remained the same, right? PR is how your brand or yourself as a person, your own personal brand shows up in the world. Where is it showing up? How is it showing up? What's the voice? What's the mission? Meghan Houle (10:38.149) Yeah. Cris Gordon (10:58.606) What is that kind of elevator pitch that you're giving people on the fly? That all is a representation and a reflection of your brand. So at the core and at the heart of it, that's remained the same, but we have a lot of different ways that that kind of message is being shared nowadays. So people don't understand or see, and I laugh because my mom is one of those people that every time she used to read a magazine and it would be like one of the brands I represented, she would say, but I don't see your name. Why don't I see your name under the article? And I'm like, because I'm the publicist, I'm not the editor. And so I think there is this kind of, I think we need to demystify the PR industry a little bit. And I always say PR needs a little PR, right? Everyone's like, PR, it's so, you can't track the ROI. And I'm like, but you know what? That's kind of the beauty of it, right? Is that the seeds you plant now are going to flourish into flowers and you don't really know exactly when that's going to happen. But if you have a good PR team, they're gonna be planting those seeds. Meghan Houle (11:29.701) Yeah. Meghan Houle (11:53.605) Hmm. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (11:56.566) constantly so that you can have the most beautiful fields of flowers when the time comes and be able to turn on kind of all of those levers at the important time. So everything from internal comms, the way you communicate with your team, anything that's going on with your brand or the business in general, especially important for startups or brands that are owned by a larger conglomerate, how you communicate with the employees internally when a piece of news comes out or is about to come out is super, super important. Then of course you have crisis comms. If anything ever goes wrong, you have to be prepared for what you're going to say to the media, to your internal teams, to any stakeholders, maybe it's investors aboard. And so being on and having preparedness for that is really important because it can make or break your brand. And then of course, there's launches, there's the fun stuff, there's the events, there's bringing a launch to life that hopefully you can plan a little bit more in advance than three weeks. But... Meghan Houle (12:26.501) Yeah. Cris Gordon (12:52.302) Typically, you look at kind of the calendar and you say, this is what we have coming up. How are we going to amplify this? And then we actually started a digital marketing agency side and division because a lot of our PR clients also wanted to amplify their voice through social media partnerships. And that is a level of PR. And the way that we do it is really through that the core of it being PR. It's all relationship based. It's really about finding the right people to tell the story. And so not only are we analyzing metrics of those influencers for those campaigns, Meghan Houle (13:14.021) Right. Cris Gordon (13:21.87) but we're also finding the right people that are really gonna share that message to their audience and their audience is gonna be receptive to it because you're really like landing in the right demographic. And so PR can be so many things. I think we have to PR ourselves every single day. It's how you show up. I mean, like the media training program, we have a very intensive media training program and outside of just media, it can prepare you for investor meetings. Meghan Houle (13:32.453) Yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (13:48.894) retailer pitches, right? If you want to get your product into some of these retailers, how are you showing up? How is the brand showing up? And the process of being confident on camera or off camera in an interview where you're one -on -one or a podcast. So it's important to, from a PR perspective, understand that every single thing that you do and every single time that you show up somewhere, if you are either a founder, an executive or inside of that company, you are a reflection of that brand. And so I think that so many people Meghan Houle (13:55.141) Yeah. Yeah. Meghan Houle (14:02.693) Yeah. Meghan Houle (14:16.037) Yeah. Cris Gordon (14:18.862) don't really understand exactly what PR is. And to that I would say PR is the way that you show up. Meghan Houle (14:26.789) Yeah, I mean, I think it's becoming more prevalent just over the past couple of years of the fact that we are our own also mini brands, right, within ourselves. And especially from a career professional point of view, and I know we know a lot of people that do the personal branding side of it, it's like being your own PR agent and yourself of how are you showing up at work? How are you showing up? on socials, like how are you showing up for your team? Are you comfortable talking about yourself, which most people are not. I know every time and you are just one of the most amazing PR people that I know. But you know, every time you say elevator pitch, like I'm constantly Chris, like and that's why I love you so much. It's like, I'm challenging myself to show up and be more concise and specific. So people understand who you are, what you do. Cris Gordon (15:02.254) Thanks. Meghan Houle (15:21.925) so they can say your name in a room of opportunity, just like I'm sure all the brand partnerships you get for your clients and so on and so forth, but it's gotta make sense, right? Because I think sometimes in the world of PR, we sell these people or opportunities and you just wanna say yes to everything, but you're like, does that really make sense for my brand, for the voice, for the partnerships? And I'm sure you see a lot and you probably have to be like, no, that's not going to work. Right. How do you interject, you know, with some of your clients and tell us too about the pivot to CB. I know I'm asking you like five questions, but, um, from Sicily, like you went and built your own company, right. And almost what eight years in the making now. So what was that pivot like? And like, yeah, how are you managing your clients these days? Yes. Cris Gordon (15:45.868) and Cris Gordon (15:56.078) Yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (16:01.486) So, you know, it's so funny because I think about pivot and pivot with purpose, right? It's everything that we do, I always say, like, you have to live in your purpose. And there was this, like, aching part of me that throughout my entire career, even before I really got started, I was always like, I'm meant for something more and I don't know what it is yet. And this was when I was like, Meghan Houle (16:06.565) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (16:24.174) younger and trying to figure out and navigate my way through college. And I thought I wanted to be in a lawyer. And I had so many different kind of career trajectories and paths that I was navigating and trying to figure out. But when I was at Sisley, that's when all of the dots kind of finally connected. I had this agency experience at a few different agencies that were wonderful, really well known in the industry. But I always felt like there was something missing. And then I had this in -house experience that was fantastic, but really little to no help on the PR side because you're kind of a one man team until you are building that team and you don't have all the resources at your fingertips like an agency does. So I'm like, there's something needs to live in the middle. Like there needs to be an agency that feels like an in -house team but has the resources of an agency. And I was like, that's what I'm gonna do. And I was like, I'm gonna make that. And so I... Meghan Houle (17:11.429) Awesome, yeah. Cris Gordon (17:15.79) funny enough, the impetus of that was that my husband and I had gotten married and we found a house out on Long Island. The office was in Westchester. So it was about three hours in traffic to drive one way and back. So I was commuting like six hours a day just to get to Westchester. And yeah, it was crazy. And I was like, I love my job. So I was like, I love Sicily so much. I didn't want to leave. It was hard, but I was like, you know what? This is the push I needed. And I went to the president and I said, Meghan Houle (17:25.421) oof Meghan Houle (17:29.027) Oh my gosh, no. Cris Gordon (17:43.63) I'm starting my own agency and I want Sisley to come with me. And he was like, yeah, okay. And so he gave me three months to build like my agency and everything while I was still in -house. And I was still fully devoted, of course, to Sisley. And he always said, a good manager lets their star employee shine. And that's the advice that I've been keeping with me in my own management style since that moment because that... Meghan Houle (17:48.997) Hmm. Okay. Meghan Houle (17:59.813) Thanks. Meghan Houle (18:06.773) oooo Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (18:13.294) meant so much to me and it really gave me the confidence I needed to start CB, but also to make sure that everything I was offering was really what brands needed, right? So we kind of workshopped it a little bit. I understood what the brand needed so much because I was already on the inside, but also now I had to put on a different hat and think what's a service that I can give. So I then officially in January, 2017. kicked off and actually started CB and went and we kind of transitioned my role completely. I hired my position in house and from there worked with Sisley for years and I'm still very close with Sisley and the team there. And it just kind of like kicked off from there, but it was a lot because I had just bought a house and I was like, I'm so scared. I'm gonna be broke and I'm gonna live on the street, you know? But also it was kind of like motivating, cause now you have to hustle. Meghan Houle (18:52.611) That's amazing. Yeah. I know. Yeah. Meghan Houle (19:03.621) Yes. Cris Gordon (19:06.222) And you have to believe so much in what you have to offer so that you don't fail. Like failure wasn't an option. Or if I was gonna fail, I was gonna fail forward. I was gonna figure out what was next. And so you just kind of like switch, like a switch goes off and you dive in. And for me, I just ran and I haven't stopped running since. And it's so it's funny because like we talk about pivots, like my business has pivoted 7 million times, right? Every... Meghan Houle (19:24.269) Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Yeah. Meghan Houle (19:34.499) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (19:35.47) Every single moment, there's a different pivot and there's a change. I mean, we started off as CBPR and we rebranded two years ago to CB Communications because we had all these other kind of divisions and offerings. So you're constantly pivoting as an entrepreneur and you're constantly growing. I think as an agency, one of our core pillars and values is growth, continued growth and education for our clients, continue to advance our services. We have to be five steps ahead or else I don't accept anything less. Like we have to be as an agency. Meghan Houle (20:03.853) Yeah. Cris Gordon (20:05.774) five steps ahead of the curb so that we can offer our clients the best level of service, really, really hands on, right? We're the sweet spot between agency and in -house. We live right here in the middle and you have a very, very dedicated hands -on team. And something that I believe in with CBA in general is, and the reason why I really wanted to start it was because agency life is not fun, right? It's, you're really like, You're overworked. You have 20 million clients. You're juggling a lot. You are working 17 hours a day. We're in a creative space and in a creative field that you can't show up creatively because you're so exhausted. And I was like, I'm not going to put my employees in that situation ever. I don't want to, I'm not interested in it. And also I want them to be feeling their best and feeling so excited about the job that they're doing that they show up to work. Meghan Houle (20:36.567) Uh huh. Meghan Houle (20:43.109) Yeah. Meghan Houle (20:47.525) Yeah. Meghan Houle (20:52.611) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (21:03.598) happy. And that I lead with employees first, because I feel like the happiest employees give your clients the best experience. And so that is just the core of who we are. Meghan Houle (21:14.341) Wow. And how amazing. And I didn't even know that story. Like I said, in the mastermind, you know, we're all business and we talk and we know each other on certain depth levels, but like true pivots of like, Hey, how did you start this business? Like how amazing that you went to your president and said, Hey, I'm looking and I got a man for more. And that they allowed this beautiful transition. to happen to really set you up for success. And I know how passionate you are. And I know what a rockstar team that you have led by you because, you know, there's definitely firms that I know that out there that come to my podcast and pitch me. And, you know, unfortunately, you hear some really bad things like from the agency world of just people, like you said, being overworked and exhausted and high turnover. And it just... Cris Gordon (21:35.5) Yeah. Meghan Houle (21:58.053) it's a lot as you know, to bring on a new employee and bring them in and then people for not to last long. So it seems like you have just a really beautiful model because of who you are and the standards and the values that you hold true. So that's amazing. So tell us a little bit more about CB communication. Like how many team members do you have? Like what are all those tiers? Cause I know you've been adding some new things in, like you said, media trading, which like we all need. I feel you're going to get a thousand clients from this podcast. So sorry, not sorry. We'll have to do a special intake form because we all need it. Like I'm ready to sign up with you. Like sign, help Megan Hool. Like please. But yeah, tell us about your team and who you work with and like what you guys are just loving building now for some of those other spokes in your wheel, so to speak. Yes. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (22:32.878) You Cris Gordon (22:47.406) So we have 16 members and they're kind of spread across the three divisions. We have our PR division, which is under that division is really the retainer clients that are always on. We do all of their launches. So we are kind of consistently with them for any of their press. And then we also have our events. So we do very curated, almost boutique style customized events. I would call them very bespoke and we can do them at any scale. I mean, you're talking like $5 ,000 to $5 million. And so we do full event production. And then we have under that division, the media and messaging training and kind of executive presence. And then we have the digital marketing division. And under that division, we do everything from influencer campaigns, social media management, anything that lives in that space, whitelisting, boosting, people want to have different ads run. Meghan Houle (23:18.179) Mmm. Okay. Cris Gordon (23:43.854) that lives in the digital marketing. We also have a content studio that we just launched, which I'm so excited. And so I was in construction and it's finally done now. We're just outfitting it. We're outfitting it a little bit more, but we don't want to outfit it too much because obviously we want it to be kind of a blank slate so that our clients not only have the option to get that service, they can add on any reels, photos, video. Meghan Houle (23:48.259) Yeah, and we isn't done yet or I know you were like in construction almost right? Meghan Houle (24:02.053) Right. Cris Gordon (24:09.806) content that they need, but also we're going to open it up probably to some days where local photographers can come in and use the space for their clients. Executives can get headshots. We're going to conduct a lot of the media trainings here because the media training, we actually do phase four in person for like four to six hours and you're on camera. And so we analyze everything from your body language to the messaging that you're speaking and how you're saying it. And we do everything on camera. So we'll use that studio for that. Meghan Houle (24:17.285) Awesome. Meghan Houle (24:27.823) Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (24:38.798) And then we have our talent agency. And so we have about five talent clients. We started small and plan to kind of continue to build that in a small, but very intentional way so that we can service our clients, our talent clients who are influencers and KOLs to the same level that we service all of our other clients. So that is the biggest thing when opening all of these divisions that was important to me is we are never going to falter from the level of service that we provide. Meghan Houle (24:44.389) Cool. Cris Gordon (25:06.254) So we'll grow certain things slow and steady. We'll make sure that the level of service is perfect and that we're able to give every single thing that our clients truly need that make us stand out from other agencies. And it's worked. So we're just kind of going with that at that speed and adjusting and pivoting and adding onto service as needed. So we go to a ton of conferences all the time to continue to add to those different capabilities and just continue to learn. I mean, the future of... Meghan Houle (25:08.451) Mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (25:20.387) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (25:35.438) AI and what that means for PR and journalism. And there's just so many things, Megan. It's like we have to be out and about all the time. Meghan Houle (25:37.701) It's crazy, right? Yeah. Yeah. A step ahead. No, 100 % for for all of us in so many ways. What have you what have you learned the most from you know, day one to almost like eight years in about yourself just being a business owner? Has there is there anything that's really like surprised you or that you're just really proud of? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (26:03.246) I mean, that's such a great question. I think that the answer is complicated because you learn so much and there's also a lot of kind of sadness in some of what you learn, right? So you can be so proud of yourself and you can also be kind of like sad for a life that you left behind that was maybe more consistent. You know, so at some times there's been moments where you're like, am I cut out for this? But then you have this breakthrough and you learn that actually you can do it. You can live in your purpose. You can take the leap. And so it's just, I think the last, I mean, I also became a mother in that time. So for me, it was kind of pivoting from this agency, which was my baby. And I always say it's my first baby. So I treated like one, like it is like everything to me. Meghan Houle (26:55.013) Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (26:57.71) I never took a maternity leave. I just, I didn't have the opportunity to, I had a lot of help, which was wonderful. And I also am just crazy. And I really felt like I was most myself when I was working, even after I had my babies. But so all the moms out there take a maternity leave. It's very important. But I think that I learned so much as a person, because in the time that I started my business, I mean, chemically, I've changed, of course, because I had three children in that time, but also, Meghan Houle (27:12.069) Yeah. Cris Gordon (27:27.918) like emotionally I've changed, right? Because in the beginning of my business, I was like, head down, do whatever it takes, like, you know, kind of blinders on, which is important, right? But then I had my kids and it kind of started to like sweep in this whole perspective of the fact that why am I doing what I'm doing, right? Of course it's for my employees who are like my family. Meghan Houle (27:51.525) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (27:52.622) And it connected the dots for me that family is a really, it's a huge core value for me. It always has been. And it took me actually like having my own children to figure that out, that that was why it was so important to treat my employees right. And so when I think of all the things that I've learned, I think learning my core values of my, I have my three, they're family, wholeheartedness and success. Meghan Houle (28:14.733) Mm -hmm. Mm. Oh, beautiful. Cris Gordon (28:17.582) And what those mean to me and what they mean to my agency are everything, right? It's who I am. It's what I live and breathe. It's what CB stands for. And so I just think that I had this perspective in the beginning where no one can know what you're going through and you just have to do it and you have to... And then all of a sudden I softened a little bit in that it's okay to be vulnerable. It's okay to share that you have challenges. It's okay to be a little sad sometimes that maybe something you did didn't work out. And it's okay to be open about that because I went from literally not telling any clients that I was even pregnant and they would be like, what? The next day I'd be like on the phone after I gave birth and they'd be like, hey, I was like, I'm so sorry I was out yesterday. You know, like really, because I didn't want them to think I wasn't dedicated to them, right? And I think that was like, it was like this, this, and I think as women, we have this way of, Meghan Houle (29:00.933) You're like, bye, Dad. Meghan Houle (29:07.141) Right? Ugh. Yes. Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (29:14.862) feeling like if anything happens in our personal life that someone is going to say that we aren't as dedicated and we're up against men in this world, right? So I think we're always just trying to get ahead and kind of break through that glass ceiling. And then honestly, one day I was like, that's bullshit. Like I am fantastic at my job because I'm a mom and because I'm compassionate and because I'm a woman. And so... Meghan Houle (29:22.757) Right. Meghan Houle (29:33.445) Yeah. Meghan Houle (29:38.021) Right. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (29:42.382) If the people in my life and my clients that step into this world don't like that about me, then there's the fucking door. You know? Exactly. Exactly. Meghan Houle (29:49.573) You're not the right client 100 % Yeah. And what I love about you too is like you have such a energy but like also this like cool calm collective where I love following you on Instra I love seeing all your kiddos from from your house flooding to God knows what goes on on the daily, but you you manage through it and it's in this mindset of like it doesn't have to be perfect. Life's not perfect. Cris Gordon (30:07.342) I'm going to go to bed. Meghan Houle (30:14.853) And I don't have kids, but I very much appreciate kind of setting boundaries in your life in so many ways where maybe the kids don't have perfect lunches, not perfect aesthetics, the house isn't perfectly clean, you're wearing Christmas pajamas, it's June, who cares? But I feel like there's also this pressure for a perfection, right? Which I know has come from the aesthetics of social media and other moms showing up and like. They're like glam squad every day. You're like, God bless. You know, here's my house with like toys and God knows what else but yeah, where do you feel like you do find the balance and the boundaries and I also know like just sharing your like real life of like progress over perfection. Like this is life and we're balancing a lot but you know, I do feel like you you do create that good harmony because as we know, and our good friend Ali Webb like balances BS but it's about harmonizing all that you're doing. Right? Yeah. Cris Gordon (31:10.094) Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I think, you know, I have always been the most honest person ever. Like, you will not find someone more transparent than me. And everyone always makes jokes that publicists have to be like liars and like mischievous and kind of like behind the scenes trying to figure out how to spin the message. But for me, I lead with honesty and transparency. And I do that with my clients. I do that with my family. I do that on Instagram. I'm like, Meghan Houle (31:20.333) Mm -hmm. I love it. Cris Gordon (31:39.374) I am not the Instagram mom. And everyone's like, wow, Chris, you have a business, you have your kids. And I'm like, but look, it's a total shit show. I'm trying my best. But at the end of the day, like, I'm not showing up like perfectly. I'm running, running to my daughter's school to drop her off. Like, and listen, it's like, that's the reality. Like, I'm not making a Valentine's Day basket for my kids. I don't have the time. And also, even if I did, like, that is just not me. And I shout out to all the moms who it is, that's totally fine and live in your purpose and be the person who you're meant to be. But don't do it because of pressure. Don't do it because you think that's what it has to be, right? Do it because you love it and because it's who you are. And so I think we live in a society where we're trying to be other people because of what we see. And I just think, I mean, I'm a certified lactation counselor and I got certified because after I became a mom, there was all these pictures of these women like, Meghan Houle (32:04.997) Yeah. Yes. Meghan Houle (32:13.637) Right. Yeah. Ugh, yes. Meghan Houle (32:24.805) Mmm. Meghan Houle (32:28.675) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (32:34.154) breastfeeding and it's like, like this beautiful and I was like crying, hysterical, feeding my baby. And I'm like, this is not what it was supposed to be like. And actually, but that is what it's like sometimes, especially as you're learning, you have no idea. So I was like, no, I'm going to go out and I'm going to help women navigate the reality of motherhood and the reality of what we go through as women in general, maternal health and navigating that entire world and women in business. And so, It's just a really big passion of mine to break through that mold of everything has to be so perfectly curated and beautiful to this is the reality of what it's really like. And if you are thinking of starting a business, this is what it's like. Or if you're thinking of starting a family, this is what it's like. And it's not to say that it's always like that. I do also have some really beautiful moments. It's not always chaos. But for me, like, Most of the beauty is in the chaos with my life, with my family and in work. And so I think it's just about striking that kind of sweet spot of where are you okay accepting that you don't have to be like everybody that's out there showing almost like a fake part of their life, right? And so I've just made a, I'm very dedicated to that. Meghan Houle (33:34.757) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Meghan Houle (33:42.277) Yeah. Cris Gordon (34:00.782) in general, I'm like, I'm not gonna go out and be that person. And if people wanna know how I do it, I will tell them honestly by the skin of my freaking teeth, you know? Like. Meghan Houle (34:08.261) Right? Right? You're like, every day is just like, whoop, throw it up in the air. What's happening? Well, every single mom listening, go to the show notes. Everyone needs to follow Chris, like you're everything that you post, everything you talk about is so real and honest. And I so appreciate that. I mean, coming from a world to of luxury and fashion, where there's not a ton of transparency, and also to your kind of just sometimes like thrown out there and told to be a certain way. wear your hair a certain way, you know, like there was many years where I was kind of living like a little robot of like, sure, just tell me who I am, you know, and I've taken four years to find the strength in this voice girl. And we still got a lot more to say. But there's a power in just owning who you are and being authentic, you know, and that's probably what you do in working with your, your brands and your people in terms of your own clients, right? So who Cris Gordon (34:56.664) Absolutely. Absolutely. Cris Gordon (35:01.646) It is. It is. Meghan Houle (35:04.517) How can people work with you? Like at what levels? Like private clients, businesses, big brands, small brands, like who's that ideal client for you in all that you service at all levels? Yeah, yeah. Cris Gordon (35:16.75) Yeah, so it is honestly because of the divisions, we're really able to service any client in any category. From the PR side, we really kind of stay within the beauty, lifestyle, and wellness in terms of a retainer, kind of always on client who needs that consistent press and events. But from a media and messaging training standpoint, we work with founders, executives, ambassadors of brands, people who are looking to fundraise. There's so many things that you can do just by nailing your message, right? So we work with you to identify your message. It's a really intensive process, but it's fantastic. And we make it fun. I think that's something that is so important in the process. So many people dread getting on camera or they clam up or they're nervous or they're like, I don't wanna go through all this. It has to be fun. Meghan Houle (35:47.811) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (36:05.038) and you have to find the love in it. And that is something that we really pride ourselves on. And you kind of, we work together and we just, we make it an experience and then you feel really fueled by that experience and then you're ready to take on the day. So we, you know, we work on your messaging and so anybody at any stage can come to us and ultimately get trained to feel more confident on camera, off camera. to their employees, maybe they have a team that they manage, maybe you're in a large corporation and you're really looking to step up in that corporation and kind of command another level of respect. And you need to be coached essentially on how to do that. And some body language techniques and some transitional phrases that you can use in a situation where maybe you're put on the spot. And so we coach on all of that. And like I said, we record it so you could see it back. You get a fully produced video afterwards with the feedback too. And you always have that in your back pocket to prepare when you're about to, you know, go on stage for a big keynote or, you know, go on a panel. So we work with people in a lot of different capacities to find their voice, to amplify their voice and to amplify their brand. Meghan Houle (36:56.741) Yeah. Meghan Houle (37:08.101) Mm. Yeah. Yeah. Well, and for media, which I feel like is a whole, are you creating a course or digital? Are you expanding that? Because I know you do it in -house right now, but people from all over. Like, how could somebody like me in Boston, would we have to come to you? Or like, what's next for that side? Because I feel like there's so much there to build on. And it's so needed, Chris. Oh my god. It's so needed. Yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (37:23.758) Yes. Cris Gordon (37:30.382) Yeah. Cris Gordon (37:34.488) I know it's crazy and I've gotten such a high demand for it. And I think maybe because we do make it fun and I'm like, let's go, like let's show up and let's be your best self and let's nail this interview or let's nail this pitch. But there we're having, essentially we're in the process of building out different tiers. There will be an online version. Meghan Houle (37:45.573) Yeah. Cris Gordon (37:53.646) which will be kind of like more of an entry level tier. It won't be customized to your specific business, but it will be tailor made to the experience of speaking either on a panel podcast, keynote, interview. It will go through the different types of media types and then some basics around what to wear, how to use your body language and positioning to command authority. But our current kind of highest tier is we'll come to you anywhere in the country. Meghan Houle (37:53.829) So. Meghan Houle (38:21.029) Oh, wow. Cool. Cris Gordon (38:21.07) And so we come to you, you can come to us and of course, we welcome you here in New York to come into our content studio and do this in person with us here. But we also travel and for franchisees, we'll go to the different franchise owners all over the country and we'll make sure that they also have the message clear. Because you think about social media now, social media is like a little mini reporter. everything you do can be just blasted out on social. So if you're a franchise owner and you have a really important message to share, you want to make sure that your franchisees and the partners across the country are also sharing that message and everything they do because it only takes one influencer somewhere in like Ohio to bring you down. And then that becomes a national media, right? So you really want to make sure that everybody that's representing your brand understands how to speak to it. And so we even come in and train teams that are answering the phone. Meghan Houle (39:00.013) Mmm. Mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (39:07.757) Yeah. Cris Gordon (39:11.566) and are the first point of contact when you come into a boutique or a salon or a dermatologist office. And so we will work with you in any capacity or large corporate groups that want to do like mock days. We'll do a whole workshop day with you and your team to ensure that they are prepared to represent your brand in the best way. So there's just so many different layers and we customize everything, but we are in the process of building out so that there is more of an entry level that you can just take on. Meghan Houle (39:35.717) Yeah. Meghan Houle (39:40.101) Oh, 100 % I feel like we we need to like bring you to Boston and do like in person day with Chris and so many I feel like we'll sell that out in four seconds. Because again, it's so so needed. And even in the world where I come from with interviewing, or pitching yourself for a new project, a new job, the the science and the beauty behind like nailing that and also feeling super confident is is priceless girl. You can't even put a tag on that when you like really embrace that confidence and know like exactly how you're going to show up, what to say, the way that you want to say it. I love it. Yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (40:13.344) It's so important. I mean, it's everything, right? I mean, you have to know your message first very clearly. You need to have that in the back of your head so that you always have something to lean on in a moment where you get asked a question. But it's like 90 % how you say it, right? It's 90 % how you show up, what you're wearing. And so to me, it's like, let's train everybody on the message so that it is so clear that they can recite it in their sleep. Meghan Houle (40:28.613) A hundred, yeah. Cris Gordon (40:40.622) And so that we always speak in kind of these sound bites that get people excited, right? And then when we get to the fourth phase of this in -person, it's like, well, now we got to turn it on. Like now it's time, it's prime time. The lights are on, lights, camera, action. How are you showing up? And so that's the fun part. And that's always everyone's like, the part they're most scared of. I'm like, no, no, no, come here. Meghan Houle (40:58.181) And yes. nervous is like turn on the nervous is like facing the mirror and be like, I look crazy or like what's coming out of my mouth? Well, maybe to like tap into your wisdom for a few tiers. So first and foremost, like someone who's potentially starting their own personal brand, like, when do you know it's time to like need PR? Like, what do you just like fight the blood? You're like, I can't, first of all, we know we can't do everything ourselves. But like, what, like, what is some advice to someone kind of starting up new and whether they're Cris Gordon (41:20.206) is. Meghan Houle (41:31.045) pitching their own company, or they know it's like finally time to like bring somebody onto the team? What What do you feel like that point is or how we do it? Yeah. Cris Gordon (41:38.328) Yeah. So I think that PR, listen, PR is an investment and for PR to really work consistently and for you to get featured in press on a rolling basis, it needs to be consistent. So I always say, number one, you have to be financially ready for that commitment or else you're going to be waiting for results with bated breath that take a little bit of time in order to get. So that's one. Number two, you have to make sure that your message is clear. Meghan Houle (41:49.293) Mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (41:56.677) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cris Gordon (42:04.206) because you don't want to go out into the world and start to pitch or have a team that's pitching you when your message isn't super clear and you're just not nailing it. I know a few brands and actually a lot of my clients that have come into the media training program, they did a bout of PR and the PR wasn't as successful. And I knew right away why they, they worked with an agency that didn't really walk them through it because as we know, the agency model is a little bit broken sometimes and the agency didn't really walk them through the fact that. Meghan Houle (42:28.739) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (42:31.886) they needed to get a little bit more clear on their message and their key differentiators in the space, right? Because we're in a lot of spaces are saturated now. I mean, beauty especially. So my suggestion would be to number one, connect with editors on LinkedIn, right? Really understand what they're writing about. Start to keep a pulse on what the media is saying and do a little audit of the media in your space first. See if there's a white space that you really feel like your voice can fill. Meghan Houle (42:40.037) Yeah. Cris Gordon (42:58.318) Number two, start to have preliminary conversations with some agencies or consultants to see what's right for you. Having somebody in your corner to represent your brand is invaluable. Having that person that's really just a an extension of you, that's out and about in the right scene, sharing your brand and you as a founder is just you, you can't, to me, that's worth a million dollars, right? Because you have somebody who is a seasoned vet sharing and your name in a room. Meghan Houle (43:08.077) Mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (43:13.829) Yeah. Yeah. Meghan Houle (43:19.589) huge yeah totally yes Cris Gordon (43:28.366) Um, and then I would say, honestly, it's why we built the media training program. I got a lot of brands coming to me. They're like, I want to be on your roster. And I, and I'm, I'm picky because I feel like I have to be number one to protect my employees. Number two, to make sure that I'm protecting the brand. If you're not ready, I'm going to tell you the truth. I'm never going to just take your money. Um, and I want them to succeed. If they succeed, we succeed. We all are happy. And so we created this program also because I felt like there was a piece missing before the PR starts. Meghan Houle (43:29.155) Mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (43:39.341) Yes. Meghan Houle (43:45.571) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (43:57.486) Right? And so you can do this media training at many stages. A lot of our brands are seasoned and they have an executive come in and we do media training for them or an ambassador come in. But also a lot of founders are starting a brand or maybe they started it. They have their website is launched. The product is actually physically available, but they're like, what now? Now it's time to media train because you have all of your messaging. We actually create it. We take everything from your website, your deck. Meghan Houle (44:16.357) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (44:25.102) We pull it together, we do a very intensive kind of like onboarding interview with you. And then we create these buckets of FAQs, of media topics, of where your voice fits in. We do a full audit of the landscape. We do a SWOT analysis for your business. And then we train you on those media points and those messaging points. and then we prepare you to turn it on. And so then you can go out into the world if you don't have the money to do an always on yet, you can go out into the world and connect on LinkedIn and go on social media and voice your opinion in a way that's really clear that you feel confident about because now you're doing a little of your own PR until you're ready to invest in a consistent PR. So I find that that's kind of the sweet spot, but just. Meghan Houle (44:54.981) Yeah. Meghan Houle (45:03.589) Mm -hmm. Yeah. Love it. Cris Gordon (45:09.334) Remember that you're a reflection of your brand everywhere you go. And if I had to give one of the biggest tips, it would be when you introduce yourself, don't forget to say your full name and the name of your business. Because so many times people just get up and they ask a question to a panelist or they get up and they're like, say half their name and they don't even talk about the name of their business. They maybe talk about their business, but not the name. It's like, say the name out loud. every chance that you get because if I learned anything about media, it's that they take little sound bites and the more you can say your brand name, then it'll get in there, right? If broadcast is clipping something up and editing something, you want to make sure that the name of your brand is actually caught in that. So make sure that you are just PRing yourself always. Meghan Houle (45:34.499) Mm. Mm -hmm. Yeah. Meghan Houle (45:44.069) Right. Meghan Houle (45:50.149) So good. always so many good nuggets. And how about somebody maybe preparing for a job interview, right? And I know you've interviewed individuals, but also have interviewed for jobs. What do you think some of the messaging and the keys to success is kind of flipping that from like a personal brand side that you would give someone? Yeah. Cris Gordon (46:10.926) Yeah. I mean, when you show up for an interview, you really are ultimately PRing yourself, right? Because you're really pushing why you are the right candidate for the brand. So I always say that you have to be really strong in what you're asking for. And so you want to lead with a question, right? So you want to say, you know, my name's Christine. I'm so excited to be here. I... Meghan Houle (46:17.283) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (46:36.526) I can't believe that I'm interviewing for XYZ position. I have so much to tell you about all of my experience. I know that I'm right for the job. Can I tell you why I am? Right? So kind of like asking that question back to get them to stop and engage. And also it's about body language, whether we're on zoom and the camera has to be higher up. And so you want to make sure that you're in the right light. You want to make sure that you're using your hands appropriately. You want to make sure that like the space between your. Meghan Houle (46:44.567) Ooh, ooh, okay. Mm -hmm. Yeah. Yes. Meghan Houle (47:00.805) Yeah. Cris Gordon (47:03.63) ear and your shoulder is good distance or else you're kind of looking like this. I mean, automatically if I look like this. And I'm like, hi, Megan. Meghan Houle (47:07.653) but you're not like this. Yeah. We're shrugging for those who can't see us. But you know, when you kind of had the high shoulders, kind of like, we know, we love Pilates, it's like, get your shoulders down, shoulders back, right? It's a posture piece, yeah. Cris Gordon (47:19.182) Yes. Yes. Well, we, what did on my Peloton, one of the coaches said, your shoulders aren't earrings, right? Like make sure that they're not up to your ears. And that's because body language is really important. So if you're going into an interview, research the company because like anything, it's kind of like media. I always say, who is the editor or the interviewer that you are going to be with? They need to be researched. You need to know a lot about them because it's just as important how prepared you are to know them as they are knowing you. Meghan Houle (47:25.957) Right, you can't live without it. Meghan Houle (47:34.617) Yeah. Cris Gordon (47:48.974) And so research the company you're going into, work with someone like you, Megan, to really navigate that space, and then have the confidence to nail the interview by knowing who you are, the message that you want to share. Everybody needs an elevator pitch, everybody. It doesn't matter if you're going and working at a corporation or you're a founder or you're an executive or you're an ambassador, you need an elevator pitch, right? An elevator pitch is simply a... 30 second, tell me about yourself or 30 second, tell me about your company. But you need to make sure that it's strong because that is what people are left remembering. And they're left remembering you, the way you show up and how you commanded the room. So there's also so many colors you can wear to an interview. Meghan Houle (48:27.941) Oh, yeah, I mean, that's a whole nother podcast, you know, maybe maybe for for another day bringing you back in. But in terms of training, I love that you kind of flip the question, even right away on the interviewer, because I think a lot of times we get nervous going in there of like, Okay, we got to talk. just talk about ourselves and like listen to what they're asking. But it's an interview is a two way street at times when you're interviewing a job you're interviewing them just like they're interviewing you. So don't be afraid to ask questions. But I think you're right, like starting it off and I say this all the time, you have to like, just right out of the gate, that a game that confidence, ready to share. And maybe in a little download or something, I would love to like, hear your thoughts on what needs to be in like a good elevator pitch. Yeah, like what are those two lines? What should they look like? Your name, I'm so and so, or what's your elevator pitch? Give us yours! Do it, yes! Do it. Cris Gordon (49:15.566) Oh yeah. Cris Gordon (49:24.782) Yeah. Well, it's so funny because I have a different elevator pitch depending on the room that I'm in. And so I think that that's an important point to make. So if you're going into an interview and you're telling about yourself, what I would do and what I would suggest is that you pull out maybe your three most important connections to that specific job. So if you're interviewing for a job with a PR agency, but let's pretend that you're pivoting and you have never done PR before. Meghan Houle (49:30.053) Okay, okay. Mmm, mm -hmm, mm -hmm. Meghan Houle (49:45.349) Okay, yeah. Meghan Houle (49:53.997) Hmm. Cris Gordon (49:54.51) Think about the three characteristics that are most important to mention that align with somebody who does the job of PR. So perhaps that is, you know, hard working. outgoing and super solution oriented. Right? So let's pretend that that's what you have as your attributes and that's what you also feel can really be valuable. In your elevator pitch, you want to make sure that you are not going down this whole path of this one time I did this, they're going to probably maybe like ask you a question about this. Yeah, exactly. It's really more about saying, Meghan Houle (50:25.541) Right, you're like, we're asleep by that point, right? Like it can't be forever. Yeah. Cris Gordon (50:34.562) You know, hi, I'm Christina Gordon. I'm so excited to be here. I really can't wait. The position, I have to tell you, it's perfect for me. And I'm going to tell you why. I am such a hardworking person, but not only that, I'm super solution oriented. And I know a job like this needs someone who could think on the fly and come up with solutions fast. Take the initiative to get the job done. So I really, really am excited to dive into why I'm the perfect candidate for this position. Can I do that today? I'm happy to be here. Meghan Houle (51:00.271) You're hired. You're hired. Oh my gosh. Okay, everyone, go get a piece of paper. Rewind this. No gosh, so many good nuggets. Woo. You're just a wealth of information. We could be here for like two hours. But I know we got to let go. But no, this is such an amazing insight into not only your world, but like how to work with you when you have to you know, when it could be time, but just in general, like all of us kind of walking around. Cris Gordon (51:11.118) Yeah. Yeah. Meghan Houle (51:28.709) as our own little personal brands and how we're showing up for whatever your career goals are, whether you're looking to pivot and building your own companies, which I know we've been in a lot of spaces for women that have been doing that through Blueprint, which has been so amazing. And I'm just so grateful for all of our connections and the beautiful Blueprint businesses that are just thriving and bringing women together. And now we're all supporting each other and in new networks and spaces. Expanding is so important. So. Cris Gordon (51:53.71) the best. Meghan Houle (51:56.265) You know, like what would you say is like one little nugget for somebody sitting that could be really looking to pivot or make a meaningful change? Like what advice would you give somebody today in terms of their career or life to just go out and do it in terms of an inspiration? Yeah. Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (52:13.558) Don't let fear be the reason you didn't achieve your wildest dreams because you'll never forgive yourself. And so if there's something, if there's a little fire in you and you don't know where that's coming from, explore it. And if you're scared, that's a good thing, right? Fear is a good thing. And we need to kind of chase that in order to number one, prove to ourselves that we can do it because that's super, super powerful. And number two, proof to the world that we have something more to offer that's been inside of us the whole time. So I would say if there's something inside you that's telling you, do not let fear be the reason that you don't go for it. And I understand there's so many circumstances and we have to consider kind of who you are and what position you're in in life. And there's maybe seasons for it, but take some step because sometimes the first step just opens up doors that you would never even think. And you're thinking, oh, you know, down the line, but this, but this, but this. Well, if you take the first step, you might find that all these other little doors open that actually help you along that path and journey. Meghan Houle (53:19.269) Yeah, just do it. Like me, which will still keep it top secret, but like pitching this new business last week and my mouth getting so dry. I was like, oh my God, but just do it. Just say it out loud and start and push through the fear because the comfort never. Cris Gordon (53:29.066) I it. Meghan Houle (53:36.473) never comes you just get more comfortable like standing in that voice of like this is what I'm doing and I'm so excited and we're making it happen and I'm surrounded by the right people that can get me there in all levels and all circles and it's so magical when you do have the right people in your corner and it's finding those people too I feel like that's really important so What are you most excited about before I let you go for the future? Like I know we're just diving right into 2024, but anything you're really, really looking forward to, you know, just in general, life work, all the things, yeah. Cris Gordon (54:11.362) Yeah, I mean, I mean so much. It's such an exciting year of meeting so many entrepreneurs through Blueprint and through all of these little like networking opportunities that I'm just jumping into like feet first. I think it fills my soul to be with people who are like you, Megan. Like we get each other, even though we're not doing exactly the same thing. We understand the hustle, we understand the grind, we understand the ups, the downs, and we're here for each other throughout it. That is something that I just want this year to be. Meghan Houle (54:23.685) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Meghan Houle (54:30.307) Mm -hmm. Cris Gordon (54:40.59) dedicated to right fueling my own compassion and fueling my own kind of like heart center with people that understand Exactly what you know where we go through as entrepreneurs and then also of course my my kids they Every single day I look forward to something new with them I mean they're crazy and I also like I'm gonna rip my freaking hair out But they are just the joys in my life my daughter's turning five next month and you know It's like they grow up so fast and so I feel like every day is something new with them. And so I Meghan Houle (54:59.109) Aww, that's so cute. Meghan Houle (55:10.021) Yeah. Cris Gordon (55:10.35) It's just this balance in life of getting to achieve all these amazing things at work and then getting to know, go home and kind of take a moment to decompress and be able to see the little creatures that I've created at home. So it's just, I'm excited for all the things. Meghan Houle (55:23.717) Oh, that are so cute. Yes, no, so much to look forward to. And in terms of individuals working with you, and we'll link it all, are you taking new clients at all levels? And where's the best place for people to engage with you? Like, what's your favorite platform? How can we find you and work with you? Mm -hmm. Yeah. Cris Gordon (55:42.766) Yeah, of course. I am. We're taking new clients. We're going to start to have a wait list soon. But if you get in quick, we will make it happen. And you can go to our website, cbecommunications .com, or you can go to our Instagram, cbeecoms. And of course, you can connect with me on C -R -I -S -B -I -S -1 -2. That's my IG handle. So just reach out. And like I said, don't be scared if there's... Meghan Houle (56:09.541) So fun. Cris Gordon (56:11.854) If there's something telling you that you're ready to kind of jump into a PR or you're just curious to learn, I mean, you just book time with me right on the website. So you'll be able to book time and we'll get on a little chat and talk through what you're looking for. Meghan Houle (56:23.781) Yeah, and Chris is a freaking powerhouse. So anyone out there, please take this like generous offering before she I mean, you truly are booked and busy, but actually like waitlisted. So please reach out connect, follow Chris, I cannot wait to continue to see all that is to come for you work with you myself, please, you know, for all that I'm looking to do and putting myself more on stages and being front facing as a founder as a business owner. I will tell you again, Cris Gordon (56:33.23) No. Meghan Houle (56:53.735) It's priceless when you truly have such a rock solid foundation of being able to show up and talk about yourself in a meaningful way and just feeling super confident about it with the right partnerships. So you're doing such incredible work. So thank you so much for your time today. During what I know it's been a busy couple of weeks. So wishing you all the success, my friend. And I can't wait to see you again soon. Cris Gordon (57:07.566) Thank you. Thank you. Cris Gordon (57:16.654) I know, I can't wait. Megan, I just love you and adore you and I appreciate your time and you inviting me on. It means so much to me. Meghan Houle (57:23.685) Oh, it's my pleasure, girl. Let's get it. Yes. Cris Gordon (57:26.126) Yeah.