In this episode of the #WisdomOfWomen Show, host Coco Sellman, a 5x founder and impact investor, interviews Jessica Milanes, Founder & CEO of Smart Podcast Solutions. Jessica shares her journey from finance to founding a full-service podcasting agency, helping women amplify their voices and establish influential personal brands. Jessica’s unique approach combines her project management expertise with a mission-driven focus Jessica Milanes has transformed her career in finance into a mission of empowerment through podcasting. As a former VP at Luther Burbank Savings, she drove impressive operational efficiencies, including reducing loan processing times by over 50% and boosting productivity by 200%. Now, through Smart Podcast Solutions, Jessica offers end-to-end podcast services for female founders, supporting them in building impactful brands and reaching a global audience. Her story is one of resilience, innovation, and passion for empowering women on storytelling.

WHAT YOU’LL GAIN BY LISTENTING IN:

Listeners will gain actionable strategies for leveraging podcasts as a tool for business growth, amplifying women's voices in leadership, and creating community-focused content.

GUEST SPOTLIGHT – JESSICA MILANES:

Jessica Milanes has transformed her career in finance into a mission of empowerment through podcasting. As a former VP at Luther Burbank Savings, she drove impressive operational efficiencies, including reducing loan processing times by over 50% and boosting productivity by 200%. Now, through Smart Podcast Solutions, Jessica offers end-to-end podcast services for female founders, supporting them in building impactful brands and reaching a global audience. Her story is one of resilience, innovation, and passion for empowering women.

Chapters

00:14 The Wisdom of Women in Business

06:18 Finding Joy in Grief

09:32 The Journey into Podcasting

16:43 Strategies for Effective Podcast Marketing

23:46 Empowering Women Through Podcasting

29:05 Launching a Podcast: Strategies for Success

36:36 Expanding the Audience: A Journey of Self-Discovery

42:50 Transitioning to New Beginnings

45:00 Transitioning to New Opportunities

Takeaways

• The Wisdom of Women Show emphasizes the importance of amplifying women's voices in business.
• Jessica Milanis transitioned from a VP role to founding a podcast agency for women.
• Effective podcasting requires understanding what value it brings to both hosts and listeners.
• Women in leadership roles contribute significantly to innovation and business success globally.
• Collaboration and community are essential for women entrepreneurs to elevate their presence.
• Podcast listeners are always seeking new content, making promotional swaps highly effective.

BURNING QUESTIONS ANSWERED:

1.How can your past experiences fuel your success in podcasting?

Discover how Jessica applied her project management skills to podcasting, creating a streamlined and impactful approach.

Learn why leveraging past achievements can build a powerful brand narrative that resonates with audiences.

2.What are the essential strategies for growing your podcast audience?

Explore Jessica’s “effort-based” and “organic” podcast marketing methods to attract and retain listeners.

Get tips on using keywords, show descriptions, and podcast ads to enhance discoverability.

3.How can you amplify women’s voices through podcasting?

Jessica explains the significance of women’s perspectives in leadership and how podcasts can become platforms for powerful narratives.

Coco and Jessica discuss the importance of community and collaboration in promoting female voices.

4.What are the best ways to promote your podcast for maximum reach?

Learn about cross-promotion strategies and why podcaster “ad swaps” can be a game-changer for audience growth.

Hear how pitching yourself as a podcast guest can expand your reach and build valuable networks.

5.Why is storytelling essential in building a high-impact business?

Jessica shares insights into crafting a podcast that reflects the human experience, making connections with listeners through authentic storytelling.

Understand the balance between sharing personal insights and amplifying guest voices to create a memorable show.

FAVORITE QUOTES:

“Podcasting can be a top-of-funnel strategy, but it needs to have heart and purpose. That’s what keeps people coming back.” — Jessica Milanes

“We, as women, bring wisdom and resilience that needs to be heard in every space. Our voices have the power to change the world.” — Coco Sellman

“If you’re stuck, your business is stuck. Growing a company means growing yourself first.” — Coco Sellman

“Our experiences—the good and the hard—fuel our purpose in business. It’s all part of the story we bring to the world.” — Jessica Milanes

CLOSING THOUGHTS:

This episode of #WisdomOfWomen with Jessica Milanes is a powerful reminder of the value of amplifying women’s voices through podcasting. Jessica’s journey from finance to podcasting entrepreneur illustrates the transformative impact of resilience, storytelling, and mission-driven work. Her strategies for podcast growth, personal branding, and community building are invaluable for any founder looking to make a meaningful impact. Don’t miss this episode—it’s a guide to empowering your voice, growing your brand, and connecting deeply with your audience.

OFFERS & CONTACT INFORMATION:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-milanes-4947b3186/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessmilanes/

Website: https://www.smartpodcastsolutions.com/

Follow the #WisdomOfWomen show for more inspiring stories and insights from trailblazing women founders, investors, and experts in growth and prosperity.

YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/yja3w7nh

Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/4tak8ajk

Amazon Prime: https://tinyurl.com/366syddj

Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/bdhananz

RSS Feed: https://feeds.captivate.fm/womengetfunded/

Coco Sellman, the host of #WisdomOfWomen, believes business is a force for good, especially with visionary women at the helm. With over 25 years of entrepreneurial experience, she has launched five companies and guided over 500 startups. As Founder & CEO of A Force for Good, Coco supports purpose-driven women founders in unlocking exponential growth and prosperity. Her recent venture, Allumé Home Care, reached eight-figure revenues and seven-figure profits in just four years before a successful exit in 2024. A venture investor and board director, Coco’s upcoming book, *A Force for Good*, reveals a roadmap for women to lead high-impact, high-growth companies.

Learn more about A Force for Good:

Website: https://aforceforgood.biz/

Are Your GROWING or PLATEAUING? https://aforceforgood.biz/quiz/

1-Day Growth Plan: https://aforceforgood.biz/free-plan/

FFG Tool of the Week: https://aforceforgood.biz/weekly-tool/

The Book: https://aforceforgood.biz/book/

Growth Accelerator: https://aforceforgood.biz/accelerator/

Welcome to the Wisdom of Women Show.

Business is the most powerful innovative force in the world.

And with visionary women leaders at the.

Helm, we can lead in both impact and profit.

Today's world needs the wisdom of women in business.

This is why we are here to help women grow.

Are you already a successful visionary woman founder leading a high, high impact company?

The Wisdom of Women show is designed just for you.

We are a community of women founders, investors and leaders who want to see you rise.

Join us as we unlock opportunities and prosperity for women led enterprises.

The future of business is women.

Are you ready?

Welcome to the Wisdom of Women Show.

We are dedicated to amplifying the voice of women in business.

A new model of leadership is emerging and we are here to amplify the voices of women leading the way.

I am your host, Coco Sellman, five time founder, impact investor and creator of the Force for Good system.

Thank you for joining us today as we illuminate the path to unlocking opportunities and prosperity for women led enterprises by amplifying the unique voice and wisdom of women.

So today we have a so useful for me personally guest and hopefully a really valuable, I know will be very valuable guest for all of our listeners for you and helping you build your amplify your voice and in your wisdom getting it out there.

We have Jessica Milanis, the founder and CEO of Smart Podcast Solutions.

So you can check that out.

Smart Podcast Solutions, a company dedicated to empowering female leaders to amplify their voices and build impactful personal brands through podcasting.

Very appropriate, right?

With over 15 years of experience, I love how this is all woven together in project management and business analysis.

Jessica has a proven track record of driving efficiency and innovation, including reducing loan processing times by over 50% and boosting productivity by 200%.

As a VP at Luther Burbank Savings, her expertise lies in streamlining operations and creating content strategies that position her clients as thought leaders.

As at Smart Podcast Solutions, Jessica offers end to end podcast services from launch to growth, enabling leaders like you and me to focus on our messages.

While she manages the details, her mission is to help clients grow through their digital footprints, secure global speaking opportunities and become industry authorities.

Welcome Jessica.

Well, thank you so much.

I made a little noise in the middle because I went oh my gosh that you guys.

You talked about my loan processing experience and it's so funny because that those days are so far behind me, but I, it's all part of where I, I came from so well, you know.

And it's, that's, that's so often how we find our way.

Right.

We have capture our previous experiences and blend them with our new.

And that's an integrated life, a beautiful life.

And, you know, I was intrigued by that data because so often as founders, we do things that are fun and interesting and follow our guts, especially, especially as women.

But we have to make sure that it actually, what we do is turning around, creating results.

Right.

It has to help the business grow, has to help impact in some way.

So I thought that was very important part of you, the piece of you that is able to create something that actually produces new, transformative results.

Well, thank you.

Maybe I'll have to start including that more in other bios too.

I think it's impressive.

200% increase, right?

A 200% increase in productivity.

That's awesome.

Yeah.

Whoa.

Wow.

So you're, you're a quick learner.

I'm a very fast learner.

Yeah.

And you must know the things.

And of all the things, I'm always, one of the terms I use is highest and best use of all the actions you can take in a given day.

There's some things that produce a result and some things that don't.

Yes.

Right.

And, and you must have a very strong intrinsic wisdom around what creates a new result.

Yeah.

And I, I am such a fast action, action taker.

I, I, I'm not somebody that will sit and think about something.

I like to take fast action and then look back and say, oh, did that work?

Okay?

How can I iterate?

I'm always, always moving and it drives my husband bonkers.

Oh, I love it.

Fast movers.

I, we would do well, we would do well together, Jessica.

So, you know, my favorite question to ask at the beginning is in the service of making sure more women authors are heard about and known is what is a book written by a woman that has significantly, they influenced your life?

So this year was a very hard year for me personally.

I lost my favorite aunt slash soulmate, slash best friend suddenly in August to a stroke.

So for all of those women listening, make sure that you're getting your cholesterol and blood pressure checked regularly.

That's my plug right there.

And in the midst of the deep grief after immediately happened, I really wanted to connect with the whole human experience of finding the joy in the grief and the pain and the joy and the pain and the humor, just everything wrapped into one and I stumbled upon an author by the name of Nora McKearney.

She also goes by Nora Borealis, I believe, on social media.

And her book, Bad Vibes Only, was the warm hug that I needed a little backstory on her.

Her husband had glioblastoma and died within two months of her having their first child.

Oh, wow.

And just.

Yeah, yeah.

All this crap just really interwoven in her life, and she just has such a.

I like to say, sitting shoulder to shoulder moment with you when you're sitting in that stuff.

And that story or that book was a collection of short stories throughout her entire life that really described the whole human experience of joy, pain, anxiety, glee, despair.

And it was exactly what I needed.

Oh, that sounds like a wonderful book.

And I am so sorry to hear about your loss.

Your aunt and friend.

And my heart goes out to you, you know, and it's.

It is like you say, I find it interesting that you reached into your emotion.

Right.

And decided to not push it away, but to.

To go deeper into it.

And that's very wise.

Right.

That's a.

That's a.

That's a courageous, courageous thing to do.

And I can only imagine.

But my heart goes out to you and your family and your.

And your friend's family.

Thank you.

Thank you.

So I'd love to hear how you decided to get into podcasting and shifted from this kind of VP in intelligent business intelligence to something as creative and entrepreneurial as Smart Podcast Solutions.

Yeah.

So it's actually another story kind of filled with the whole human experience.

And at that same time, I was unhappy with my job.

I was just bored.

I wanted a different outlet, and so I was looking for different things to do.

And ultimately, I stumbled across podcasting, and I created a podcast called Real Talk, Women's Health and Fertility.

And the whole purpose of the podcast was to destigmatize women's health and remove this barrier of having these conversations out in the open.

Let's talk about what's our quote, unquote, private parts.

Because at the end of the day, this is what gives people life.

So, like, let's not shame it.

Let's call it what it is.

Yes.

So I started this podcast, had a fair amount of success, became recognized within the infertility community, and fell in love with podcasting because I love people.

I love stories, I love just getting into the weeds of things, and then six months into my Podcast, we went to the doctor and they told us that we would never get pregnant naturally.

Oh, gosh.

And so my heart broke.

And because my podcast was so intertwined with my own infertility journey, I went home and I put everything on pause.

And, yeah, still my first and only positive pregnancy test in over five years.

Wow.

I know, it's wild.

So I just had a lot going on, but in the back of my brain, as I was cooking this baby and doing this podcast was, oh, I can marry my project management experience and my podcasting experience and make this a really supportive service for podcasters.

I'm doing it.

So I opened up my doors, and we are a full service podcasting agency for female founders.

We do audio, video, podcasts, show notes, distribution, all the things that you could possibly want with your podcast.

That is so wonderful.

And how is your.

Your baby daughter?

Daughter?

She is great.

She is four and a half, and before she was even one year old, the pediatrician was like, oh, we're not counting her as a preemie anymore.

She's.

She's like, bypassing all of the milestones.

She's not having any issues.

So she is healthy, happy.

She's over 98 percentile on everything.

So you would never know.

Never know.

Unless.

Oh, I'm so happy.

I'm so happy to hear that.

That's wonderful.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And so you kind of birthed two babies the same time.

Right.

You had, you know, your little girl, and you also founded your company.

And so your background includes a lot.

I mentioned before these.

These specific achievements and productivity and efficiency.

How have these experiences shaped your approach to podcasting and brand building?

Yeah.

So I look at it as it's an up and to the right thing.

You might have some circles in that up into the right, but ultimately, you need to figure out what is going to get you from where you're at to the up and the right.

Yes.

What is going to be the fastest, best trajectory?

What is going to make the most impact with the least amount of time, money, energy that you can do.

Yes.

And, you know, as a podcast host, I'm sure you can understand this.

Podcasting can take a lot of time and energy, but it is your hero piece of Content and you can divide it up into email, blog posts, social posts, whatever you want.

And so I really look at, okay, what do you want to be known for?

How can we create content around that so that you are known for that?

And how can.

If you're using the podcast as a top of funnel marketing tool for your business, what sort of episodes can we do to attract your ideal buyer and bring them into that bottom of funnel?

And what do you see?

I'm jumping right into it.

What do you see works in doing that?

What are the ways that you see really effectively bring, if it is to bring into the top of funnel, what do you see really works?

Well, what do you see?

Podcasters not doing that they could to help with that process.

So there is really two different columns in which you can look at this.

There's the effort based marketing and there's the organic based marketing.

The organic based marketing is where you are going to lean into the keywords that your ideal listener or your ideal audience or your ideal client is searching for on podcasts apps or on Google.

Because again, it's not SEO in the traditional term, but there is some optimization in search words that you can do on podcast apps.

So what are your people looking for?

Make sure those keywords are in the name of your show.

Make sure that they're in the name of the episode.

Make sure that they're in the name of the show description or in the show description.

Lean into that first and foremost.

Then the second area is going to be your effort based marketing.

A couple of things off the top of my mind or off the top of my head that podcasters are not doing enough of and I wish that they would, is creating short podcast advertisements for their show and swapping with their friends and other podcasters.

Yes.

Oh, that's brilliant.

Because I'm not doing that.

I have little short podcast snips, but I don't swap them.

You need to build up your network with other podcasters and put an ad for your show on their show and be willing to do the equal energy exchange for that.

Because podcast listeners are always, always, always, always, always looking for more podcasts to listen to.

And it's actually really hard to find podcasts unless you are using the proper search terms or you are asking people that you know like and trust, hey, what, what are you listening to?

So why wouldn't you put your own advertisement on a podcast?

So you do you literally take little, like little clips and put them into your, you know, I.

Into your, into your stream so that it's like it shows up in your, you know, your podcast.

Is that how you do it or.

Or do you do it in other ways?

Yeah.

So what I would do is at the top of your show, like let's say I have a podcast.

Yes.

Podcast is going to be the ABC show.

Hey, this is Jess Milanis, host of the Pod ABC podcast where we talk about X, Y and Z.

And if you are a woman who wants to know more about X, Y and Z, go follow me on anywhere you follow podcasts or listen to podcasts, that's all you need to do.

Amazing.

Swap it with all your friends, all your podcaster friends.

I love that.

Okay, that's a big action.

So here's.

But.

But it's actually pretty easy, right?

If you're already going record it once.

You record it one time and then you reach out to your buddies and there's, you know, I have lots of buddies that have podcasts and so you just sort of start to do that.

I love that.

I love that.

I think my groups that I'm a part of like entrepreneesta.

I'm a group of parlay how women lead these luminary chief.

Like these are all groups where you probably have, you know, dozens or more of podcast people right in your.

In your realm.

Keep going, keep going.

That's like the first most easy, impactful.

Just record a short little advertisement and anytime you do a coffee chat with somebody and they're a podcaster to say, hey, would you be open to doing a commercial exchange?

The next thing that I feel like people are not podcasters are not doing enough of.

And again, this, this can be kind of hard is pitching themselves to be on other podcasts.

Yeah, yeah.

It kind of goes along with the same thinking of podcast listeners are always looking for more podcasts to listen to.

So how do you get in front of more podcast listeners?

That's one way.

And that is a free way to do it.

But it does take time.

You have to develop your pitch.

You have to develop your pitch deck.

And it can be hard.

It can be an uphill grind trying to figure out what shows you need to be on.

There are some specific podcast public, public, publicist, excuse me, agencies that specialize in this publicity by Christina is one that actually guarantees that you will be on 24 shows within your contract.

That's pretty cool.

But for somebody who's got a book coming out or something like that, it could be.

Or a launch of some kind that you want to focus and get it done.

They are specific to podcasts only.

They don't pitch to media, they don't pitch to news, they pitch to podcasts only.

So they have a wide and deep range of podcasts that they have developed relationships with.

So if you're looking to outsource some of that work, go talk to them.

And they guarantee 24 shows.

24 shows.

Oh, damn.

Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.

Yeah.

So that is the second tier of my effort based marketing.

And then the third tier, which develops some time and money is there is actually a way to advertise your show either on meta or Overcast.

FM has a, a media buying platform on their podcast app.

And if you are on Apple, you are on Overcast.

Oh, okay.

And so you can buy ad placements in the categories that you want.

So like if you are a family show, you can buy ad placements and kids and family.

If you're a business show, you can buy at placements in business.

So that would be my third one that is more expensive than the average thing, but I know a lot of people have seen tremendous success with that.

Well, that's awesome.

Very cool.

And do you ever, when you're working with your clients, you obviously help with them make these decisions and kind of look at choices.

Yes, yes.

Strategies.

Yeah.

And I think what's interesting too is even though podcasts have been around for quite a while, there is still, it's still the wild west in terms of understanding the statistics and the data behind podcasting.

Yeah.

But I can tell you this, that if you get 150 downloads in one episode within 30 days here in the top 50% of podcasts.

Wow.

Wow.

Well, that, at being a podcaster, I know that's a very high hurdle.

It is, it is.

It's a real hurdle.

Yeah.

And that's why you need to use some of the organic and then that effort base to really work on that engine.

Right.

And then once you get that momentum, it's easier to keep the momentum going.

But it is a little bit of a curve to get that.

Get out there.

Yes.

Get things going.

I love that.

And I know if you do a, if you have a YouTube aspect to it, I know you can also do paid ads through YouTube, which is different but similar.

Yeah.

So let's see.

So what motivated just for you to focus specifically on helping women build their brands through podcasting?

So for those who are tuning into this, let me give you a little context into when we are recording this.

It is the week of the election and in the United States And I believe that women deserve to have their voices amplified.

I think we have wisdom.

I think we have unique points of view.

I think we are collaborative.

I think we are going to change the world and we need to elbow our way into the space in place.

And so that is why I champion women in my brand, and that is why I really want to support women in getting their voice, mission heard out there.

Wonderful.

I share your sentiments precisely.

I do think that the world needs more wisdom of women.

And in places of impact and power, it is particularly necessary and impactful.

You know, but it's everywhere, too.

It's in, it's in, it's in all the little corners of our.

Of society and life.

Yeah.

It's.

It's government, it's businesses, it's within your community.

I mean.

Yes.

It's on your school boards.

Yeah.

Right.

Just.

Just as much as, you know, our biological bodies give us life, we give life to the world.

We are the unpaid labor of the world.

Yes.

People need to hear about the dark places and spaces that we have been so that we can illuminate the world and make it a better place.

Amen.

That is, I.

I honestly believe that that's a big source of our power.

And why now?

Where is the, the wisdom of women in business or society?

Government, politics is, is ever more needed because, you know, we can't deny that we live in a patriarchy.

Right.

It's.

It's been a patriarchy for such a thousands of years.

And we've always had, as women and other underrepresented people, tons of responsibility, but without the named authority or power.

And when you have to get things done, when you don't have the power or authority, you have to put food on the table, or you have to make sure everybody gets along, or you have whatever responsibilities that you have and you, you have to do it, you know, sitting in a boardroom and not being able to say exactly what you want to say.

You have to say something that someone else will agree with so that you can be heard and that, you know, like all these weird things we've had to learn to do.

But it's, it's now, it's now so valuable in this time when, you know, we, we're just not.

Can't just say to your employees, for example, do what I tell you to do when they do it.

Because.

Because they're going to choose whether you're a kind and just person and whether they're going to work for you or not.

Exactly.

Exactly.

It's.

I just feel like it's a missed opportunity for the world to not have more women in positions of power.

It's such a missed opportunity.

And you see the places that do have women in higher positions of power, they are thriving.

Yeah, yes, yes.

So, and to piggyback on that, I saw something, a statistic this week that said that it's not one woman in a place that can make a difference, it's now actually three.

Yeah, it's three.

When there's two, it's still uncomfortable.

But when there's three, suddenly everything, the game changes.

And the same is also true for when there's other voices, other.

Other cultures, other people of color or.

Right, yeah.

Black, Latino, Asian, whatever it may be, a Native American.

It's all.

Yes, yeah.

People coming from different experiences.

And that's what, that's how you mitigate risk.

It's how you think creatively and innovatively.

It's how you avoid groupthink.

It's, you know, missing the whole point because there's nobody in the room that gets, you know, oh, airline seats.

Really uncomfortable for someone who's a woman.

Right.

Or pregnant or something.

Right, yes, yes.

So tell us now.

I've just, you know, I'm.

This is my third season, so this is my third episode of the third season.

And, you know, launching a podcast can seem daunting.

And what advice would you give to a founder who's just starting and wanting to make impact and, you know, get going?

So the thing that I always tell my clients or anybody who is looking to start a podcast is you have to be able to answer these two questions succinctly.

What is my podcast going to do for me and what is it going to do for my listeners?

Why are people actually going to listen to it?

And through those two things, you can kind of create a mission statement of your podcast that becomes a North Star.

And it's okay.

If your podcast is to make you money by bringing people in, that's fine.

But then you also have to answer, why the heck should people listen to me?

Yes, yes, exactly.

And so it's looking at that duality to really understand and have a holistic podcast perspective that keeps you not just start like showing up in the first couple of episodes, but continuing to show up and having your audience continue to show up because it is a grind.

It's a grind.

It takes six months to a year to really establish a fine tuned podcast well.

And I find, you know, like, I try to get better every time I do it and I'm constantly like reviewing what happens and how I can be better and how should we change this or that and the way we distribute it or what's in the show notes or, you know, like, there's a constant set of experiments.

Right.

And at the same time, you sort of have to not worry about any of it and just do it.

Like, you were talking about being action oriented earlier.

Yes.

Right.

You just have to.

You have to just do it.

I think of it as I'm always in the.

I imagine with whatever's going on with meeting or wherever there's.

There are balls, tennis balls being tossed towards me.

I'm either gonna hit it back and make sure it's hit back in a way that somebody else can hit it back to me, or I'm just going to lose the game.

Yeah, right.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Because it.

As much as we are sitting here in front of a microphone and we're having a conversation, your listeners really need to be brought in on that conversation.

So, you know, having those clear calls to action or giving them those little golden nuggets of, oh, come find me here, because I'm doing this thing, or give them a reason to engage and, like, really create that deep, established, parasocial relationship with you where they listen to you and they go, oh, my God, I know Coco.

Like, I don't know Coco, but I know Coco.

Right?

And I need to, like, go have a drink with her.

I was just listening to a podcast that one of my clients is doing.

I was actually editing it, and I kept texting my client.

I was like, I need to have drinks with your guests.

Like, that's all I want to do.

I just want to hang out with her because she seems like a fun human being, and that's the type of person that you need to be on a podcast.

You need to bring that.

I love that.

You know, I.

I don't know if you know Pallavi Pandey.

Do you know?

Yes, yes, I do know Pallave.

She brings it like, she brings it like, she's an excellent example of that.

So anyone listening, go back and listen to the episode with Pallavi.

She is hilarious.

And I have had champagne with her and had, you know, drinks with her many.

And she is a blast.

Just like you're saying.

Just like you're saying.

I love that.

So all of our listeners who have podcasts, like, how, like.

And it takes some bravery to, like, put yourself out there.

I know one of the things that I struggle with is I really want to focus my guests.

So I'm always, like, trying to like unweave how much of me needs to be in it versus the guest.

Right.

And what I love about your services is then you can be that outside objective and also educated listener who can give feedback.

And to your point, I just had a client who launched with me last month and she said you were my thought partner in all this.

Like I was able to provide her real time feedback in, hey, this, this is what works.

This isn't what works.

Why are you thinking of doing it this way versus and, and there's something to be said for that because otherwise you're just shooting blanks in the dark.

You don't know.

You don't know.

Longer.

It's going to take longer, right?

It absolutely is.

And you know, you said something.

I normally have a pen and paper, but I've just been a little jumbled this week.

You said something about, oh, highlighting your guests versus highlighting you.

I would love dig into that for a little bit for me.

Well, say more, say more.

Okay, so, so I have been really focused on bringing out the wisdom of women, right.

And like making sure that the voice of whoever it is is on the call, feels like the call is for them and for help, you know, and, and for the listener.

I'm always trying to help extract what that specific wisdom is that this brilliant woman has so that she can go, the listener can go and grow her business, right?

Go and build an impactful, high growth business.

And so I try very hard.

Like I just, just this week started adding into my podcast.

I am your host, Coco Sellman.

How is it that I didn't do that before?

And you'll hear at the end today, I'm going to do a little thing that's a call to action and I've never done that.

Like why, you know, it's.

And here I am, I don't know.

This is 24 like almost 30 episodes in.

And it's finally dawning on me that it wouldn't be that selfish for me to do that.

Right.

So, you know, anyway, I curious.

I just got a whole lot.

Well, and here's the other thing too, Coco, is you got to where you are at because you are wise and you have wisdom.

That is true.

And yes, you can absolutely platform and champion other women.

We thank you for it.

And I'm sure you have nuggets too.

Oh, I do, I do.

And show for that, right?

Oh, okay.

So you have, you are busy.

I'm a busy lady.

Two shows.

Bang girl.

Okay, so good.

You're, you're sharing your wisdom on Another show.

This is just to highlight the guest.

Okay, fabulous.

Because I wanted you to have space where you could show up and share your wisdom, because that is part of that funnel to bring them into your world to do whatever you want.

Well, and to just be completely transparent.

This is about expanding my audience.

Yeah.

Learning.

I mean, it's, it's, it's, it's a.

It's genuinely about hearing other people's voices, but it's also.

Now I'm in touch with you and your audience.

Yes, actually.

And so.

And then, and then my other is really about the Force for Good toolkit.

It's the force for good business show.

And it's.

And it is the method for, you know, growing a high impact, high growth company.

And so that is like really more.

Here's what I have that I'm doing.

And then this is about the wisdom of women.

And with that, what does the wisdom of women sound like?

Sounds like, you know, Jessica and her experience, both in the past and today in building a business that brings women into podcasting.

Yeah, yeah.

And you know, as you, as you were talking about the women or wisdom of women and extracting that out of your guests, you know, thing that comes out to me, especially in these past few months, is interweaving the full human experience with your business.

Yeah, yeah.

Our businesses, even though they aren't living, breathing things, they are a part of us.

They are.

And we need to treat ourselves as if we would treat our business.

You know, there are, there are times when we need to sit and rest.

There are times when we cry.

There are times when we need to run as fast as we can and it's all good and it's all okay.

But like, I think the full human experience is what really just hits home with me so much right now.

Yeah, no, it's true.

And you know, I believe that, you know, this isn't true in all cases, but wholeheartedly women and wholehearted men who start businesses are on a journey that is a trend transcendent journey.

Right.

And our experiences of growing companies and facing our fears and doing things we haven't done before and facing fear of not being enough, fear of rejection, fear of doing it wrong, you know, all the things.

Fear of the unknown and doing hard things anyway is to me, and I talk about this in my book, the Force for good is it's about that journey that really it's, it's.

There is no more all in other than maybe a marriage or parenthood.

There's no other heart, like whole journey that challenges us more.

Right.

In terms of self development.

It is a path for self development and self growth.

Yes, absolutely.

And if you're stuck.

If you're stuck, your business is stuck.

Yes.

Right.

Yes.

Yes.

Oh, damn.

You just spoke some words into me.

All right.

I have some things that I need to do after this.

Okay, so tell.

So.

So let's tell us how, Jessica, what is the best way for our listeners to learn from you, to connect with you, get in touch with you?

I know you offer all kinds of services.

How can they engage?

So the best way is to Visit our website, www.smartpodcastsolutions.com, that gives you all the details on how to work with us and an option to book a call if you would like to just see it's a fit or whatever.

I had an email list, but it just was not.

It wasn't you.

It wasn't me.

It wasn't me.

So LinkedIn, Instagram, website, and just follow me.

I want to hear your story.

I want to know who you are.

Come say hi and tell me what your favorite podcast is that you listen to recently.

Yeah, I would love.

Yes, I listen to how women lead or how women inspire.

Do you listen to that?

No, I need to.

Yes.

Yes.

How do you.

Julie Castro Abrams is a dear.

Has become a dear friend of mine because.

Because I love her podcast.

And as a result, now I'm on her board.

Like, all these things have happened.

Like, these are the transformative things that happen through podcasts.

Yes.

Right.

Yes.

And.

But you have to listen.

She's.

You love her.

She's all.

How women inspire.

How women inspire.

Yes.

I'm adding it right now to my queue because, like we mentioned earlier, this brain is a sieve.

Yes, I know.

I know, right?

I.

I hold the things that are very deep in there.

Here we go.

Found her.

Love it.

All right, following.

Wonderful.

Well, we've had just such a.

I've had so much fun connecting with you.

I hope you.

I'm in New York.

If you're ever in New York, come visit me.

I will.

What part of New York are you in?

Are you in the city?

I am.

I am.

Okay.

I just recently moved here, like, in the last three weeks after.

Yeah, I lived here for 15 years, and we moved out, and now we're back, and it's, like, super fun.

The City's back.

So where did you live?

In between Connecticut and Florida.

Oh, okay.

Yes.

You bebopped around.

We beboped.

We've been a bebop in and primarily Connecticut, but also Florida, and it's been a blast.

But now we're here.

I have an older daughter and who has pretty profound special needs and medically fragile, and her services are infinitely better here.

And so we made the big choice in March that we would move back from Connecticut and Florida primarily to here.

And it's already.

We've been here for three weeks and her life is so much better.

She has so much more to do and places to go.

She's doing art, yoga.

She's in a wheelchair.

She's nonverbal.

She needs around the clock nursing care.

She's what inspired my previous company, Illume, and which I've exited.

And so it's, it's, it's, it's great being here, but I'd love it if you come to visit me.

Where are you?

I'm in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Oh, wonderful.

Yes.

My cl.

So one of my clients that I was talking about earlier is Jack White.

Do you know Jack?

You mean like the perf.

Like the.

Not performer.

Not performer, no.

She's in.

She's an entrepreneur as well.

Oh, no, I don't.

He owns Honeybees group.

I'll connect YouTube via email.

But she, she's in Manhattan.

Right.

And she is a fractional sales person, basically.

I don't know.

So I'll connect the two of you.

And, and I was, I, I need to get back to New York.

I went in January and I'm like, I need to go back.

I need to feel the energy.

I'll hold.

I'll.

I have a.

I have a nice space for entertaining.

So we'll have a little entrepreneur.

Oh, that would be fun.

Yeah, it'll be fun.

I love it.

Awesome.

Well, Coco, it was so delightful meeting you.

Likewise.

We definitely will need to meet in person and let's keep in touch.

Yeah.

You'll have to let me know when you launch your podcast and then I will.

We can do the switcheroo.

Yes.

We can do the swaps.

Yes.

And you better do the swap with Julie.

I.

Yes, I will do the swap with Julie.

That's like on my list.

Slickity split.

Good.

So thank you so much for being here with us today and thank you for joining us.

Thank you for illuminating the path, Jessica, to unlocking opportunities for growth and prosperity for women led enterprises.

We value your experience and your wisdom.

If you as a listener enjoyed our time together, please be sure to follow, like or share the wisdom of women.

Show on whatever your favorite listening reviewing platform is and to infuse more wisdom into your business.

Take the Growth Readiness Quiz at A Forcefor Good Biz Quiz and uncover where your insight is needed most.

The world is made better by women led business.

Let's go make the world a better place.

Cheers.

Is your business ready to accelerate?

Take the Business Acceleration Readiness Assessment today and find out now at www.aforceforgood.biz quiz.

Take the five minute assessment and you will receive an instant response on the four essential areas of alignment need for business growth.

You will also receive four free tools specific to your situation to help you and your team accelerate success right away.

Go to www.aforceforgood.biz quiz and find out what you can do to accelerate, accelerate, impact, scale and profit today.