Last year, I found myself staring at my website feeling a low-grade frustration I couldn't quite name. My brand was pretty and polished in many ways. I was closing dream clients. Yet I no longer felt the full-body connection with it. It felt like an outdated version of me, rather than the fullest expression of me and my body of work.

Then Cristy Duce walked into my life.

And in this week's episode of Elevate Daily, I sit down with Cristy to pull back the curtain on all of it. People call her a brand oracle for a reason. She doesn't start with surface-level fixes, she goes straight to the root, the heartbeat, the essence, the energetic through-line of who you actually are and what your work truly is.

This conversation turned into an invitation to stop shaping yourself to be digestible and allowing your brand to be an expression of who you've truly become, and are becoming...unapologetically.

In this episode we explore:

• What it means to let your brand become a vehicle for your true expression instead of a persona designed to perform. Your brand is not just your website or aesthetic. It's the transmission of your work, the feeling people receive when they step into your world, and the clarity of what you stand for. Instead of turning this into a masterclass, I offered my own rebrand journey as a case study.

• Why clarity of essence makes platforms, visuals, and messaging secondary. So often we start with the surface, the colors, the website, the copy. But when you get to the heartbeat of what your work actually is and who you actually are, the decisions simplify.

• How AI doesn't replace authenticity, it amplifies incoherence. AI can create efficiency, but it cannot replace discernment, energetic coherence, and the specificity that makes your work feel alive, intimate, and unmistakably yours. If the root isn't clear, AI only makes the misalignment louder.

• The subtle ways we hide our strongest qualities because we think they won't be taken seriously. For me, the work was releasing the version of power I thought I needed to project and allowing softness, sensuality, and devotion to lead. For another of Cristy's clients, it was the opposite. She had built a soft aesthetic but was hiding her fire, directness, and edge. Different directions, the same invitation: stop shaping yourself to be digestible.

• Why simplicity and joy are often signs you're finally aligned. We unpack how old identities can linger in your visuals, copy, offers, and online presence, and how the tension often isn't that your work has changed, it's that your expression hasn't caught up. When alignment arrives, it tends to feel lighter than you expected.

• The difference between being visible and being expressed. The more honest, textured, and precise your expression becomes, the more your people can actually feel you. This conversation invites you to ask what is actually true for you, what feels enlivening, and to let your expression visually, verbally, and energetically match who you actually are and the body of work you truly carry.

Meet Cristy Duce

Cristy Duce is a brand strategist and creative director who helps multi-dimensional founders translate their body of work into cohesive visual brands, offers, and digital ecosystems. Through her Brand Oracle work, she bridges insight and implementation - in both done-with-you intensives for coaches, unconventional service providers, and founders, as well as done-for-you builds for speakers, authors, and large-scale content creators. Cristy lives and works near the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, Canada with way too many horses and cats.

Cristy's Gene Keys Illuminated In This Episode

1. Gene Key 12 - Vanity → Discrimination → Purity
2. Gene Key 40 - Exhaustion → Resolve → Divine will

Connect with Cristy

1. Explore Cristy’s work → cristyleeduce.com
2. Follow Cristy on Instagram → @cristyleeduce

Connect with Alexia

1. Visit Alexia’s website → alexiausgaard.com
2. Follow Alexia on Instagram → @Alexia_usgaard
3. Explore ILLUMINATE → 90-Minute Gene Keys Experience

Loved this episode?

Share it with someone who’s ready to choose alignment over trends and build a brand that actually feels like the truth of who they are.

I’d love to hear what landed most for you from this conversation. Send me a DM or tag me on Instagram with your biggest takeaway, the part of yourself you’re ready to reveal more fully, or the area of your brand that’s asking for a deeper level of truth.

Let’s elevate together, one intentional day at a time.

With love & devotion,

Alexia

Welcome to Elevate Daily, the podcast for those ready to elevate their life one intentional day at a time. I'm your host, Alexia Usgaard, here to give you a permission slip to unapologetically savor the beauty and richness of life.

Join me as we explore modern rituals, self-leadership, the Gene Keys, and the art of elevating your health, wealth, love, and leadership. It's time to elevate. Let's dive in.

Hello, hello, and welcome back to Elevate Daily. I'm Alexia Usgaard, and I'm enthused, as always, to have you here for this potent conversation with the wonderful Cristy Duce.

Cristy is a brand strategist and creative director who helps multidimensional founders translate their body of work into cohesive visual brands, offers, and digital ecosystems. From my experience, though, her work is even more intimate than that.

She helps you see yourself so clearly. She also has this way of taking the full truth of who you are, all your seemingly random parts, your hidden gifts, and the things that you think are just way too much, and she shows you how to make that visible, to really invite you to express the purest version of who you are.

What I love most about Cristy is her refusal to let you hide. She has this gentle and firm way of calling out the places where you're still performing, proving who you're supposed to be, and making people walk around the thing to get to the real you. Yet she does it in the most kind, clear way that I find their relief is just immediate.

Cristy lives and works near the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, Canada, with way too many horses and cats, as she'll say. And yes, we bonded over the fact that we've both fostered neonatal raccoons, which is possibly the most specific, delightful detail you need to know about her.

So in this conversation, we explore why branding actually matters in a world of AI and infinite content, how to rebrand without it becoming an overwhelming six-month project, and what it means to choose alignment over trends. I also share my journey of refining the latest expression of my brand and launching my new website. And of course, we dive into Cristy's Gene Keys. Her magnetism code is Gene Key 12, and her mission code is Gene Key 40.

This conversation is so rich. So without further ado, let's dive in.

And so it is, and here we are. Cristy, it is so beautiful to have you here on the podcast for this beautiful conversation.

Cristy:

It is such a gift and pleasure. There are a few people that I want to just spend endless hours on Zoom with, but you are one of them.

Alexia:

I love it so much. I feel like that's the ultimate testament, when you can lose track of time with someone, when you're just in such a vortex of connection that, I mean, isn't that the thing that we're all most desiring? Isn't that full presence? When time falls away, when we finally feel like we're out of the constraints of time, the pressure of time, and can just deeply receive the gift of another. So I love that, and I deeply cherish those times we have together. And I'm just so happy to have you in this space because, obviously, we'll talk a bit at some stage about the way I have personally witnessed your expertise, your gifts, and how it's actually had a huge ripple effect in my brand and my visual expression in the world.

But I wanted to start by naming the current landscape that we're walking in right now, where I would say a lot of my audience and clientele are those who have built bodies of work, likely have had brands, likely have built websites. And yet there are a lot of mixed messages and things coming out, especially with the world of AI and different dynamics about, are websites dead? Do we even need a brand? What is a brand? What's the value of a brand?

So I just want to first name, let's pull that conversation out first, which is: what do you say to people who might say branding is overrated or that websites don't matter anymore? What's your thought here?

Cristy:

Well, it totally is overrated, and it doesn't matter, and it does all at once. And I think another question in the current timescape is, what's the value of a human-touched brand when so much can be automated? I have people sending me things like, "There's this tool that can do my whole website from AI," and there's a beautiful, I mean beautiful and terribly complicated, democratization of some design and tools.

If you have an arborist business, of course, the AI gives you so much more access to getting out into the world. And for most of the people that you and I work with, that doesn't really work.

In terms of the question of whether it matters, I think we've all seen people who are just on social media or somewhere else, and there's so much magnetism and momentum that you're like, yes, that's what I want. I don't need to see anything. And there's also a maturity of business for the people that I'm usually working with, where they're trying to build out something that holds part of that energy.

So do I think it's necessary? Do I think it's necessary for your brand to be pretty? No. And there's an opportunity for it to hold your transmission, your energetic transmission, your body of work, so that it serves as this lobby to you in a really inviting way, where people can step in and feel you. And for people who are already holding so much energetically, being able to disperse some of that responsibility in a way that feels really congruent and cohesive to who you are can just feel really relaxing and make the whole enterprise, that's hard enough, just a little bit easier.

Alexia:

Yes. I think, to your point, it's such a nuanced conversation, right? It's the discernment we're all meeting, which is like any convenience-culture dynamic. We're living in the era, even in a totally different example, where you can order your groceries, for most people, depending on where you live and where you're living right this moment. There's more access than there really has been for most in terms of that as a possibility, to order your groceries or order toiletries or order something from Amazon to your house.

And there's a very big difference between doing that and walking to a local farmer's market, choosing the tomato, smelling the piece of fruit, meeting the local farmer. There's just a different experience.

And what I feel in you, when I think about my experience with you, is this question: what experiences matter to you? Because there's probably definitely some things where I'm like, we can automate that, because there is no part of that part of my business and my structure that I personally feel is part of my artistry or my craft. It just feels like that is the very mundane stuff that I am happy to get support on and create more efficiency around.

And then there are a lot of areas that cultivate our artistry, where the whole point is the experience of it. I think if we're not really mindful right now, we can lose the magic, we can lose the juice of what makes things delicious for us. You see that? It's such a fine line, because we're really having to watch the speed of what is happening. You have to make very specific choices on quantity versus quality. There are a lot of variables. Is that what you're noticing with your clients and the people you're working with?

Cristy:

Totally. I mean, I still get, and my inbox isn't totally curated on purpose, some real optimization gurus talking about how you shouldn't really have to touch your business. You can have AI agents do so much. And I'm like, what's the point? Most of the people I work with are trying to touch the world in some way. So where are those human touchpoints?

There's so much, and I don't say this very often because it's a little buzzwordy, but there is so much distortion in the field that when you can create something with its own gravitational pull, it's a real experience of coherence when you step in. Then even if people don't buy from you, you're still touching the world in a really service-oriented way. And also, it's making that bridge, that pathway, from the people you want to work with to you, easier.

It's not always necessary. I use myself as an example a lot in the sense that I think I've had probably two months of an applicable website in the last three years, and that's literally what I do with people. So there are ways around it. And also, in this era of maturing business, of wanting to spend more bandwidth in the world itself and working with clients, it's really about where you want to direct your energy. If you want to build something around you that has its own legs, in a sense, then yes, it matters.

Alexia:

I feel you. And I think a good question to clarify your perspective is, what is a brand? Because maybe someone might think a brand is just a website. A brand is just the visuals. How do you define what a brand is? Because I think that's where people first go, to the website, but we both know it plays out in so many ways.

Cristy:

Totally. And I think I have to preface my answer to this question with the fact that you asked me such a professional question, and in full confession, I mean, I am a professional, but my background is not as a designer. I am a copywriter and designer, but first and foremost, where I came from is that I would talk to people and have this gift of being able to see not just the visual expression, but the structure of their work, how it wants to live in the world.

Where is the center of the Venn diagram of you, your work, what it looks like, where all of this lives together? I don't really separate a lot of what I do because I'm like, it's all the same thing. How we structure your offers, what they're called, how you message around that, what it looks like, it's all the same thing.

So I'm never really coming to the conversation with, "It's that your logo has a great..." I don't care. And it all can play a part in this symphony, if you want it to.

Alexia:

Yeah. So what I feel in you, and tell me if this feels true, is that the way you experience brand, and I'm making sure I don't project my own experience of what I think a brand is onto you, is that it's the experience. Whatever your body of work is, whether you have a physical product, whether you have a physical space, whether you are an online service provider, whether you have an online course, it's asking: what is the experiential footprint that you want to create in the world? That's how I would see it.

So even if I never walked into a room, if someone saw a piece of content of mine, if they saw a picture, they saw a logo, there is some energetic intention in that, some experience that I'm intentionally wanting to cultivate.

The same way I think about brands that I'm so loyal to, it's because there's an experience. They value specific things that I am just like, ooh yes, this experience, I live for it. I love this experience. Is that how you would define it? Because when you say the offers and everything else, it's not just the logo or what someone thinks of it. It's a whole ecosystem in many ways. It's a whole experience.

Cristy:

Really, it's like, what's the transmission of the field? How are you extending your field a little bit further so that people can start to feel it even if they're not with you yet?

So for example, everything to do with Alexia's brand should be drenched in pleasure, in luxuriating in the simplicity of life. That there can be luxury that's expensive, and luxury that is a wildflower on the side of the road. There can be luxury in moving your body in freedom in your kitchen or in waves. That is who you are. That is how I have experienced you in so many hours on Zoom.

And so, for people who don't have that intimate experience, how can you make that invitation extend past your physical boundaries so they step in? Even the words that you chose to title and describe your experiences, like Illuminate, you can feel what that feels like in your body. Your concierge clients, like, there's a transmission there. And it's careful intention and attention to all of those elements so that people, even if they're not consciously being like, "Well, Illuminate, so fancy," are still having that experience in their body, receiving your energetic essence and transmission.

Alexia:

Yes. Yes. Even just there, this is the power. You just embodied the magic that I would love for anyone listening to feel. As you call yourself a brand oracle, right? And I want to give it a little more context. I want to give a little bit behind the scenes because I went through the process at the end of last year of launching a new website. It was something I had been struggling with for some time.

I am a person who values beauty. I notice visuals. It's something I notice about the brands I'm interested in. I notice artists in their vision and in their visuals. I am someone who does pay attention, because for me, beauty is an act of care.

If my husband and I are going to have a meal, and I light a candle and put it on our table for us to eat together, there's a different ambiance that's being created, right? And I feel like brands are the same. You can see when someone thought about that little detail. I like to notice it.

I remember when you and I were beautifully introduced and connected, and one day I was just looking at you and going, I'm so frustrated because I've got this website that just feels so outdated from who I am. And I know that those listening, there are a lot of people listening who are experiencing some version of this, whether it's your website, your visuals, your brand tone, your offer suite. There's usually some area where something feels like it needs refinement.

And I was going through this struggle because I was like, I don't necessarily want to go and do this whole intense thing like I've done in the past. But the truth of the matter is, and the only way I can describe this, is that if I feel like my insides are not being expressed fully and with integrity on the outside, it bugs me.

Even if I know that I can still close clients, even if I know it's not going to fully impact my business, it's still a thing for me as an artist and why I do what I do.

And I remember coming into contact with you and then you and I going through this process, which we can talk more about, but just being held by someone who could so deeply hold space and feel me express what felt outdated, what was happening. But you could also very quickly tune in, having been in my presence, and say, "Lex, I can see where you're holding on to old, outdated parts of yourself, probably things that you think you need to have there because you think you need it for credibility. You think it's how people will take you seriously."

And you're good at not being afraid to say the hard thing, because I love it. Maybe someone's going to say it's because I'm a Scorpio, but I'm like, tell me the truth. I want to see it, because I find it way more exhausting to live in the world of not knowing what the thing is. So when someone just says it, I'm like, okay. Even if it's crunchy for a hot second, I'd rather sit in the crunch of that, knowing I can walk through it, than in this never-ending day-to-day of, "I can't quite see which part is the part that's not feeling like me, but I don't know what to do."

And I just feel like it's so important to name because I think, often, we can feel like that part of ourselves that wants to be so in integrity with our expression can be minimized as not as important as all the other "important" business things to focus on. Totally.

For a lot of us, this part is actually what makes it all so delicious for us to enjoy the whole thing in the first place.

Would you say that?

Cristy:

Well, first of all, I just have to validate. You're like, I'm the person willing to say the real thing, because one time you said to me, "Hey, your guides want to know if this thing you're hyper-focusing on is going to ruin your life, so stop doing that." And I was like, fine. So just out of the blue, I'd like everyone to know.

And number two, yes, that's totally it. That's a perfect example of what I said at the beginning. It totally doesn't matter, and it totally does matter.

So many of the people that I work with are hyper-attuned to incongruency, to where they feel out of alignment with themselves. And you, obviously, for all the reasons you mentioned... I tried to tell you for a while when you were like, "This website..." and I was like, "It doesn't matter." And you were like, "I know, but it does." And I was like, okay, it does. Let's do something.

I think it's this beautiful expression of the desire for every piece to be in congruency. And the amount of relaxation... I mean, now I can work with more people, mostly through intensives, which helps me work with people in this way. Because it can happen really quickly that we can be in a Zoom room together, and those pieces of "I'm holding onto this," or "Actually, you're not leaning into this part enough," or "You're minimizing yourself here," just come forward.

Just having that reflected and verbalized back, and then having a visual expression of that that you can look at and feel into... the amount that I see people just relax, and then their whole business opens up. All of a sudden they're everywhere, talking, and sales are just coming in. And it's not because your website is prettier. It's because all of a sudden people are like, "Oh, I get me now."

Because even though you hear this example all the time, it's so hard to read the label from inside the jar. And we're all in this jar, this amber honey jar, trying to see who we are. And it's just that experience of being with someone who can say, "I can see you. You look like this. This is what's important to you. This is how the you that dances in the kitchen could look in colors and white space on a screen."

It seems really simple, but it's just that snapping into congruence that changes things for people who are hyper-attuned to where that hasn't clicked yet.

Alexia:

Yes, I feel you so deeply. It's the same way I know when I share Gene Keys with someone, and I look at their blueprint and reflect back specific language. We all want to be seen. And the thing is, we all have our blind spots, and we all have things that are hard. We've all been conditioned. We've all got our shadows and all our little cute things that we got told we needed to do, and all the things society has shaped us into believing about ourselves, that it's so hard, like you said, to see.

But this is why we need our advisors. We need to Invest in support.

And that's what happened when I had that space with you. I remember even that full truth I gave you that day, like you said, the truth bomb I dished out to you. Because I know your blueprint. I know your Gene Keys. I know the patterns you're going to play out. I'm like, girl, I love you enough to tell you about this one. You're too sneaky. You're going to create suffering and exhaustion wherever you can. This is the way you're doing it.

You know I'm not here for that. I'm here for you enjoying the pleasure and luxuriating. You're just making this so much less fun for yourself. So let's just name the thing.

And I think that was like what happened with you and my brand. Because I know sometimes it's nice for someone listening to almost feel it, like if we go under the hood and feel like, okay, so what exactly did Lex get called out on?

I remember very clearly some of the specific things you called out, because sometimes, like I said, it can be hard to first feel the thing or the old identity you've been attached to, because you don't realize how many protection mechanisms we have around our thought patterns of, "No, but I need that part because some coach five years ago told me I needed that to be successful," or "Some parent told me this is what it was about."

But it's also the greatest liberation when someone names it, because you're like, huh, but what if? What if I set myself free from that story?

And I feel like you really held me in that, where there was this moment of you being able to look at my visuals and go, "Lex, this visual here feels fully like you. Let's really tune into that. This one over here feels like obviously some old part of you, some important part of you that's still there. She's still integrated, but she doesn't need to be your front face anymore. You don't need to hide the other parts to make her the front face anymore. You might need to flip the script here."

And that's what you did.

So I don't know if you want to share anything specific. I'm giving myself as the case study, because I think for anyone listening, as you're tuning into this, it's a good question mark of, are there areas that, if you got honest with yourself, you would know need support? And if you're honestly like, I just know, but I can't figure out what it is, I highly recommend ensuring you have some level of support. It's really hard, I find, to figure it out by yourself.

Cristy:

Totally. I want to second that really strongly. The number of masterful business coaches that I work with, and almost every single one comes in saying, "I don't know why I can't do this for myself." And I'm like, spoiler alert, no one can. I can't do it for myself in the same way. I can't.

And I think there's some intentional web-weaving that we have to participate in, which is beautiful.

So, I just want to preface it by saying you've also seen me, and have become a voice that I deeply trust as I've narrowed who I listen to. I'm like, well, I listen to that one. She's got the beautiful parts and the calling-out parts.

And in your case, there was a moment too where I remember saying, "You can take that off. People aren't coming to you for that anyway. Just so you know, you think you need that, and you're making people kind of walk around that thing to get to the real you, which doesn't really look like that."

I'm speaking metaphorically, but also visually. Like, that isn't the expression they're looking for. They're looking for the Lex that is a powerful and brilliant woman and also, more often than not, caught in joy, pleasure, laughter, free movement. They're looking for both. And leading with that part is important, because you're looking for women who want to learn how to melt like that, to really absorb and receive everything that's already available to them.

And so sometimes it's even easier to bring it up to a strategic lens and say, that's not even smart. Let's get that out of there. You don't need it.

And that's some of why I think that relaxation happens, because it's so hard to function in our own field. You were so pivotal for this for me too. We have these little skills that we've honed and deepened into, and mostly I work with people who are practitioners on some level, or teachers, or whatever. And there's an element of it that feels like, I can just do this party trick. I don't even know how to talk about it.

I don't know how it feels for you, but sometimes I'm just like, I can just do this thing. So when you have said, "I don't know how to really say it out loud," I'm sorry for telling your secrets, but a lot of times I'm just channeling what's coming to me, right? And for someone else to just look at that and be like, "No, you do this, and it's special," like you have done that so much for me too.

You have that visionary gift, but you also have a gift of structure, of how that actually lands in the real world. And that has given me confidence outside of even this arena, into other businesses and endeavors. Like, I actually can do that.

And the things that come maybe not totally naturally, but a little more naturally, we think, I don't know, does this matter? Is that important? And for someone to sit on the other side and really reflect that back... and what makes really brilliant practitioners, and I'm talking about you, so great, is that they can move their own stuff out of the way and just be this clean, clear, polished mirror.

Yeah. The more we find people like that, the better. It's too hard to do it for ourselves. I don't think we can. So we just find the others.

Alexia:

And it's so much more fun that way, speaking of pleasure. It's exhausting trying to figure it out.

And I think when I tune into so much of what you're calling out, and what I felt in my own experience, a lot of what I thought I had been shown about branding subconsciously was that your brand and your website had to prove something. That it was this core space of credibility, right? So you need to make sure it is set up in a certain way, that it proves something, whatever our thing is, whether it's about media or visibility or this or that, versus just asking: what if your brand and your website are just such a true expression of who you are?

And I know that was your big invitation to me. Could I fully honor that my expression could be the thing I honor?

And this wasn't about saying goodbye to another part. So I'll give a tangible example of one of the parts I had to lovingly honor. Y'all, I worked in Silicon Valley. People know this about my story. I had a story a bit like, right, to be taken seriously there was an aspect of, I need to over-highlight that I can also put the suit on or put the big-girl pants on and in some way be a bit of the "Boss Babe".

Which is hilarious, because I think you would just look at me one time and be like, you're not a Boss Babe.

And it was funny because that gave me a moment to get really nuanced. Like, what does that mean to me? And I was like, right. I can still know that I am extremely gritty. I'm not afraid to roll up my sleeves. I know how to work. I know how to show up in rooms.

You helped me see that I could honor all of my background, all of my experience, and actually not hide it. There were also funny ways where, with the visuals, I was almost hiding more of my story, which is also the really hilarious paradox of this whole thing. You think you're revealing all your credibility, and then funny enough, I was actually hiding more of my actual, legitimate story behind the visuals in a certain weird way.

And when you said that to me, I was like, my gosh, wait. Can I hold, can I honor, can I value that I know that part of myself and people feel that in me? That I am this person who can show up. I can honor my intellect. I can honor my brilliance in these specific ways. And can I also trust that she doesn't have to be in the driver's seat of my visual aesthetic? Can I bring out the ultimate secret, which is yes, that part of me is there, but that part is like the backbone.

Really, it's my deep devotion. It's my commitment to energetic integrity. It's my complete fixation on holding my standards and values. It's these things that are softer and harder to necessarily articulate, but are actually my edge.

And you invited me into not saying goodbye to a part of me, but more like, can I integrate her? Can I actually let the real Lex, the truest expression of me now, finally be the main character that I let others see in me?

And I just feel like this is so important to name because I think this is the way forward, especially at this time. And I know I'm not alone. I'm watching it in so many others. And I know, in your work, you are seeing it over and over again.

So does that feel true? That what you witnessed in me was kind of that? There was probably a different way you saw it, but that was my experience. I'm curious what your experience was in holding space for me, but also what you're seeing with others.

Cristy:

Well, I'm kind of philosophizing while listening to your story, because this is what we do. And you're absolutely right. You've got all these pantsuit pictures, but in your copy, you're like, this isn't really me. If I'm telling my side of the screen story of what I do, which everybody has, like this is what I'm actually doing while we're, air quotes, "building your brand," it's running every visual, every offer, every piece of copy through my body and asking, is this true for this person?

And what I think you brought up that's really important, and connected to what we were talking about before, is that most of the people I work with are porous, devotional, attuned, service-oriented. So when I'm running everything through my body, asking, is that true, there is usually much more of a sense of underselling themselves.

That's usually where you're not telling the truth. It's not that you're over-projecting, like "this is the kind of badass that I am." It's more that you're shrinking away from telling the truth or owning your actual expertise. By far and away, those are the people I work with more often.

So even when we're talking about sales, people often come in saying, "I don't want to be slimy." And I'm like, well, that's great news, because you never will be. The truth that you won't say is, "I can absolutely help you with that. I have helped five people before with that exact thing. This is why it costs this much to work with me. This is 25 years of expertise I'm bringing in." That's the truth you're going to shy away from more than saying some weird, inflated numbers.

And so when we're going through your experience, that's what I'm using my somatic tuning fork for. Are these images true? Partially, but we're not getting the whole picture here.

When we're running the copy through, is this true? My people are never intentionally out of integrity. You're never going to say inflated numbers. That's just not what happens. So where is the place where you're not fully stepping into it, whether that's what you want, who you want to work with, or the level of power and integrity and transmission that you can bring when you work with people?

And often, and I didn't fully do this for you because we were kind of doing an exchange-y thing, but often I sort of insist on making some of the language for people. There's a copy framework that I usually come back with, because I'm like, you're not going to tell the truth quite enough because it's scary. So I at least want you to read this version of, this is how I see you. This is what I know you are capable of. This is what you are actually bringing to the table.

And it feels less scary when it's confirmed by someone else. And often there is that real experience of, oh my goodness, this was true, I was just afraid to say it.

Because of course we are. Especially women. Of course it feels tricky to claim who you actually are and what you can do, and that your life kind of is as great as it looks on Instagram, and that you make money that supports a beautiful life, and that you have a beautiful marriage. And yes, there are hard things in there too that nobody else sees, of course.

And it's still not totally popular to put it all out there in a website or a social media post or whatever it is and invite the world to see it and say, yeah, this is who I think I am. Everybody knows that feeling of kind of wanting to throw up.

And we have seen a world where people who hold that power and integrity have not been in positions of power or leadership, have not come to the forefront and said, we should actually be in charge. Of course there's all this systemic stuff around why that's terrifying and why it feels threatening to come out there. And it's also a time for that, to cut through the noise in business and in the world and say, this is who I am. This is how I can change things. This is how I can help.

Alexia:

Letting that land for a moment. It's just so real, that feeling. Because what I feel you naming is that our gifts, the things that we do so naturally, who we are, are the most beautiful gifts we can give to our brand. But it's also oftentimes the part we most overlook or hide a little because we think it's too much.

I think what you just named is such a key piece. A lot of the time we hold back because we think, whatever our story is, it's going to be too much. Who do we think we are? Especially because you and I obviously know the experience of those who identify as women. There's the dynamic of being a competent woman. I can count on a lot of fingers how many times I've triggered people with that one.

And to your point, naming pleasure when a lot of people are going through so many different dynamics... so much bonding happens through struggle. And it's never to diminish the power of vulnerability. You and I both are people who honor deep inner work in our spaces. But a big part of a brand, I feel, is asking: can you let people actually see your light? Where are you actually holding it back?

And people hold back in so many ways. It might be a powerhouse, fiery person who actually communicates in a way that's succinct and direct and has no fluff, but that's their magic. For me, of course, it was a lot of my softness. A lot of my power exists in a very soft, pleasure-oriented way of being, the savorer in me.

In a world so fixed on time scarcity, to be a person who eats slowly is a very big trigger for many people, right? And I know with you, one of your Gene Keys that I wasn't even going to bring up in this conversation is your gift for naturalness, for beingness. Someone walking through the world truly treasuring what it means to be and just follow their natural flow, and not just be taken off course by anyone else's agenda, is a very rebellious way to exist.

And I remember when we first connected on that, and I looked at you and I was like, girl, you have some solid codes on that. And you were like, really? Me and my nature walks? Something about Cristy is that she has all these animals and lives on land. I remember you saying, "I just love to go and daydream on my land for hours," and I was like, that is your gift of beingness. That is your frequency.

And I remember that was even a revelation for you.

So I say that because for anyone listening, it's that moment where you tune into what part of you comes out when you're just given spacious time, when no one's watching, when no one's looking. Who are you in those moments? And is there a part of that that is meant to be more seen?

Some of it is just for us to luxuriate in ourselves. But there are often parts that we just overlook.

And I would imagine for you that's probably a lot of the threads you're having to pull out in people, these seemingly small quirks of theirs that they wouldn't even think to include. Because I know you also work with people who have very prominent brands, who have a lot of pressure around being so public. How do you navigate that? What do you notice? What are you usually pulling out that makes the difference for them?

Cristy:

Well, I think it's kind of all tied together. My experience of myself, and also of you, is that I have Gene Key 1, which is this explosive creation. And so it always felt like such a battle of, I don't know, I could do nothing for days. Ask me what happened, and I don't know. I can just be, like nobody's business.

And of course that's not totally popular when you also feel ambitious and you want to do things in life and you live in Western society. And then when the other part of me kicks in, I can make massive things happen really rapidly.

So for someone to say something like, that's good, that's okay, that's just you... there are so many tension points that make up a human. And often we go through our lives trying to choose or reconcile or fix something. So for someone who can see from a different perspective and with that really clear mirror to say, no, that's just you and that's good, I think that's one of the most beautiful gifts we can give another person.

I was thinking of another client while you were talking who's totally the opposite of you. She was trying to build this really soft brand, and I was like, girl, why? That's not you. And she said, "I don't know. I just feel like people think I'm too masculine and scary."

And I was like, tell me about the people you work with. And after some questioning and some just running things through my body, I was like, no. People are coming to you for your fire, that you move and do things. I told her the story about how it's the female jaguars that teach the cubs to hunt. Like, no, that doesn't mean you're masculine. This is the strand of feminine strength that you bring to people.

And to just watch how she relaxed... she is such a badass business coach. When we stop spending energy trying to fix the thing that we think has to be fixed before we can move forward, and instead understand how to integrate it and move it forward, it changes so much.

And often, to your question about people with large platforms, something I've learned is just the volume of projections and feedback that they are dealing with. It really cured me of wanting fame. If you had asked me five years ago, I would have said, I totally want to be famous. And now I'm kind of like, I'd like to disappear into the woods. That's fine.

It doesn't matter how many people know about you or have opinions about your work or even send you adulation. It's really about that relaxation, that deep devotional exhale of, that's it. I can just do that. I can just be who I am and do what I want to do. And there's someone here who can help me shape that into an offer or a way to make money or whatever it is. But it starts at the core first.

Alexia:

I feel, like you said, how beautiful it is to honor the uniqueness of all of us. And how you then naming how this other woman and I were doing opposite things is so relatable. We all have personas. The thing is, we have to hold ourselves with so much grace because likely we got these different facets because it's what we thought, based on some probable past experience, kept us safe, or kept us taken seriously, or whatever the story is.

But what I feel in you is this invitation. So an invitation I have for those listening is this: can you feel into what is something you were likely told was too much, whether it was growing up or in a different chapter of your life?

What's the part of you that has felt like it is too much? I would imagine for this other woman, it was her fiery side. She'd probably been told by so many people, wow, you're so direct.

Can you really be so spiritual if you're twerking so often? Like that was literally something. Isn't that interesting? And that all says more about the person giving the projection than it says about the person displaying the experience.

And for me, of course, mine was softness. I'd heard things like, you're just so sensitive, or you just see right through things, or you're so intuitive. And for some people in my life, it was intense for them to be with someone who could really see. And so it was this complete reckoning of, can you honor that part of yourself?

Or our little adorable quirks that are actually the greatest parts of ourselves. Like I am the person who will dance anywhere, at any time, and that is just who I am. Yet there have been funny moments with people in my life who were like, I can't believe you can just do that, or just move your body and feel free to do that. And I'm like, it's my truth.

The same way I look at so many other incredible creatives and artists and engineers and people who have whole worlds of passion, like historians in my life who go deep into ancient texts, there are all these different worlds we're living in.

But the world never really gets to feel you if you don't let the world feel you.

Right? That's the feeling underneath it all. And I feel like you give us that invitation to bring it back out, which also makes everything way better. It wasn't just that I went through my brand and this alignment process. It was also that it relieved me and shed me of so many aspects that I was still being asked and lovingly called to reconfigure.

Cristy:

Yeah. A question I find myself asking a lot during sessions is, do you want to do that? We can get so stuck in all these prescriptions of, "I have to," and "this is how you do it." But there can be really simple redirections that say, but do you want to?

And I think too, personally, my sneaky Trojan horse mission in all this is that even over the last three or four years, there have been examples in the media of women being different, embodying something different than I ever saw growing up.

I had this experience reading Elizabeth Gilbert's City of Girls, where it wasn't a love story about a woman and a man. It was about her and her friends and maturity. And I remember weeping at the end and feeling like, if I would have had this story, it would have changed my life.

There have been other movies too, like The Woman King with Viola Davis, where I had that same experience of weeping and thinking, if fourteen- or fifteen-year-old me could have seen this. Because it felt so wrong growing up. Like, I didn't know exactly how a girl or woman was supposed to be, but it wasn't this. You're not supposed to be this bossy. That wasn't super popular with my male teachers, one of whom named me "Miss I Know a Better Way," but asked me if I was right in all those instances. I was.

So my sneaky Trojan horse mission in this is, who else gets to show a different expression of leadership, not just of being a woman, but of being powerful, resourced, willing to step out and say, this is my actual life, can I help you? All of those things make massive ripples through the world.

It could be a book, it could be a movie, it could be your website. But your expression telling the truth of who you actually are, which is far more powerful and multidimensional and layered and skillful than you generally let on, makes a really big difference.

Alexia:

I just feel like the invitation you're giving all of us is, even if nobody saw what you created, could the process of creating it be enough for you?

Cristy:

And not from a place of disconnection. Do you want to? Do you want to have a Google Doc? I ran my business on a Google Doc for at least one year. If I had a referral, and they asked, "Do you have a website?" I'd say, no, but here's my Google Doc. That's what I wanted to do.

It doesn't matter and it does matter, because where is your reclamation of sovereignty and your actual expression? How do you want to put that out?

And if it's beautiful, and you want part of that to hold you and your work in the world, then it's terribly important. Because everything that we do totally is and totally isn't. What else are we going to do here?

Alexia:

I love this because I feel like this is also a perfect way to highlight one of your Gene Keys that I wanted to bring forward, because I feel like what you just said embodies so much of the siddhi frequency of it.

Real quick, for anyone who's new to hearing about the Gene Keys, they give you a blueprint to understand who you are on a soul level. We all have specific codes, specific placements, and for every Gene Key there's a shadow, what we're here to navigate as our sneaky saboteurs and obstacles. Then there's our gift frequency, which is what we're here to open into, the truth of who we are in our light. And then the siddhi, spelled S-I-D-D-H-I, is your superpower, your mastery, who you're here to be beyond anything else.

And I wanted to bring forward your magnetism code, which is one of my four Ms that I love to focus on. Because when we think about visibility, magnetism plays out in all areas. It can be the truest frequency you're meant to emit as a brand, but also opportunities, relationships, all of it.

For you, you have Gene Key 12 in this placement, which is the Gene Key that goes from the shadow of vanity to discrimination to the siddhi of purity.

It's so interesting because the shadow of vanity is just an egoic dynamic. It's where we feel like we have to prove. It's the should. It's who we think we're supposed to be to signal that we're worthy, that we're enough, that we're some version of a persona.

And when I think about it, especially with your work, you are someone who is going to know and be able to see so clearly when someone is operating from that frequency, also because you've navigated it so deeply within yourself.

Then your gift of discrimination is that gift of deep discernment, knowing what's true and what's not. The ability to see clearly, to recognize what's yours and what's not yours, to recognize what is performance and what is someone's truest soul essence.

Then your siddhi of purity is when your expression is just a direct expression of your essence. It's everything and nothing all at the same time. You're just operating with nothing to prove. You're just a walking expression of truth and love.

So does this resonate with you? Because again, if I put it into the magnetism-code context, you would know that when you are in your gift of discrimination and your siddhi of purity, anyone you work with, any opportunity you're in, is truly going to feel aligned and in flow. And anytime that egoic dynamic is playing out, you will have experienced that even if it seems shiny, even if it seems great, even the clients or any of it, it never really feels great. You're likely going to find yourself in some dynamic.

So yeah, have you ever felt this before?

Cristy:

Never felt this. No, never. You know this one. I know this one. I know this one.

And I think a thread that would be largely applicable there is that vanity now often takes shape in, if I do this thing, it will get me to this thing, instead of from a pure desire of, this is what I want to do.

I can fall into that trap really easily. I'm like, ooh, I'll take this project that I totally don't want to do because it will get me there, or it will get me this visibility. And there is generally just no life or enthusiasm in the thing itself.

Whereas my most magnetic self is when I am in enthusiasm, when I'm just pumped about the stuff that I'm making and doing. And that can really run the gamut from horse supplements to some home-improvement thing, to making a brand, to writing. When there is a purity of desire, like, do I want to do the thing? That's when the best things happen, and the most people who appear to contribute are drawn into that orbit.

Alexia:

I love it because I can feel it. I think you named something so important, which is the, "Well, if I just do this, then it will get me here." The same way in all aspects of our brand, right? We can think, if I just put this on my brand, then I'll be taken seriously, instead of asking, can you be your greatest advocate? Can you really honor just how valuable what you bring forward is?

And that's been one of your biggest transmissions in this conversation. Whatever you create, whatever your expression of brand is, if you stop fixating on all the rules or the stories of what you are supposed to do, and you just get honest about what is going to be the best way to express who you truly are, what it is you care about, why in the world you're even doing the business or creation you're doing in the first place, and you double down on enjoying the process of revealing who you are, the rest of it is actually quite easeful. Go figure.

Cristy:

Yes. And I think, kind of woven into vanity is really just an obsession to some degree with how we are seen. So whether that's, people will think this makes me look so good, or people will think this is too much and that I'm bragging, all of those metrics start to fall away.

And purity, to me, really comes back to that essence of telling the truth. So even the testimonials you're using are not, "This will make me look so good." Or, "This is just too much and people are going to think this is bragging." Those questions fall away and it becomes, if I say this, is it true? Yeah.

Back down there in the shadow, it sounds braggy or whatever. But up in purity, it's just, is that true? That person described this experience of working with me in a way that almost sounds too good to be true. But if it's actually true, then it's going to give people a really good idea of what it feels like to be in that experience.

To me, it's this clarifying filter. As we move up from there, decision-making itself starts to fall away, and we're just running everything through this tuning fork of truth itself. And what ends up happening is that you get this expression that lands in purity, in magnetism, more than trying to control how people are seeing or experiencing you.

Alexia:

Yes. And I get curious because I'm wondering if a huge part of what you're really nailing for people is specificity. Like, really getting specific about who they are and stopping the fluff.

I think there are all these little ways we put filters over things. If I just look at today's world, or at AI-generated content as an example, my observation is that a lot of it is very general. A lot of it doesn't have the depth, the texture, the human sensory feeling that our humanness knows.

If I go see a sunset, I'm not just looking at a sunset. I'm like, the waves were crashing, and it was the specific smell of seaweed that reminded me of when I was eight years old on a beach with my grandfather, and then I noticed a shell, and then my dog ran and picked up the shell. It's these very specific details that make our brands stand out.

And I also feel like people are hiding by keeping things a little general, whereas what you're bringing out in the coherence is, can you really get specific about who you are, what you really want to stand for, and finally let go of any little filters you think people need to know or that have to be there to keep you successful?

Would you say that's true? To really own the refinement of your mastery is bold. But I would say that's what I really witnessed in our journey, that I refined and got rid of a lot of generalities, fluff, and little things I was unconsciously putting on there.

Cristy:

I love that, because it's tied to our conversation in the beginning about the question of a human-made brand and messaging. If you have a septic-pump company, then make your brand with AI and move on with your life. Go live in the real world. Who cares?

Not that we don't care about septic trucks. They're very essential.

But now I have so many people, depending on where they're at in their business, coming to me with things like, "I told everything to ChatGPT and it gave me this business model that will totally work."

But if we're running things through the filter of that specific siddhi and your preference and who you actually are, it often takes a human to say, yeah, you're saying that, but do you want to do that? Do you want to scale and put all your energy into scaling a platform that will make a $47 membership work and put off a real meaningful energetic or financial return for two years while you're doing that? Do you want to?

I use AI in my work all the time, very much in a phrase-by-phrase, excruciating manner, don't worry. But there's something empty when it doesn't have that intuition, that tuning fork for truth, across from you, someone who can look at your micro-expressions and be like, you're saying that, but do you actually want that offer? Do you want to work that way?

When I think of a brand, it's even things like what degree of intimacy with clients do you want? How many? What is enlivening for you? Is it all asynchronous, or do you love live calls? There are all these questions where we might layer "brand" on as an umbrella term, but really what we're asking is, who are you? When you put aside how you're supposed to do it and what it's supposed to look like, what is the transmission, the medicine, that you already bring into the world, and where do you truly want to go next?

It's so powerful to be held in that process of getting specific. And it's not always easy immediately. Sometimes it takes a few layers to get there.

Alexia:

Really. I remember I wrote my whole first set of copy for my now website. And to be fair, I was really proud of myself because I wrote it in my first trimester of pregnancy, and it was a whole experience in itself to channel that copy in that season.

And then what was funny was that was just the first layer of the onion. This is also part of the creative process. Sometimes you need the layers to get there.

I remember you held me so beautifully, and then I brought that copy forward. I remember I gave it a little breathing space, because I think that's also part of it. I need a little space away from it. And then we came back together to look at the copy, and I was like, this isn't it. I'm still holding back. I'm still holding back.

And honestly, the last thing I wanted to do at that point, I remember even saying to you, was, Cristy, I just want an easy button so badly on this. I don't want to have to go back and do this again.

Because I will say, I'm not someone who personally loves writing copy. I love writing. I love speaking in certain ways. But writing copy is a very specific craft that I honor. I knew I needed to do it. I knew in this particular season of my life, it was for me. It was for me to see myself and own my value.

And then I remember I went back, and I had to sit and really let you hold such a beautiful process of getting me to open up and see some of the threads and some of the pieces I wanted to talk about. And you were like, just go and write your story, the full thing.

And I remember at the time, I wrote the full thing and I thought I was going to give it to you and you were going to cut it in half, because I had been told that your story is supposed to be a certain level of succinct, because that's what people want on websites.

And I remember I shared it with you, and you were like, "Lex, I love the whole story. The whole story needs to be on your website." And I was like, what? It was just that moment.

But I think you could feel that I had really given. And that's the layers. It's the textures. It's the breaking free of the stories we have. For me, it was like, oh, I have to turn this detailed thing into one small paragraph. And I feel like you gave that permission slip to really break the rules, the rules you don't even realize you've opted into.

Cristy:

I work with brilliant, intuitive weirdos for the most part, and so we have all these rules, like write for a grade-nine level, or it should be succinct, or nobody reads websites anymore.

A few years ago, I noticed how many English majors I worked with, and I was like, that's absolutely not true. I work with readers. I write how I want to write, and I'm the person who likes it. I'm going to read your whole About page if I care. If it's boring, no, I'm gone. But with yours, I was checking through my body and asking, am I still here? Do I want to know the end of this?

So we can't just make these blanket statements about how you're supposed to do it, because most of our people are not really that normal. Sorry, not sorry.

Alexia:

Yes, and because I want to ground this in something practical, I feel like for anyone listening who's going, okay, I'm now at a stage where I know I want to update aspects of my brand... I actually even had someone in the community, before this interview, say specifically, "I've had a website for like the last ten years. I haven't updated it. I really want to. There's a whole new body of work I'm sharing. It feels like a massive undertaking to do it."

So how can I do this in a way that doesn't require some huge budget, doesn't feel like it's going to take a really long time, but keeps it simple and fun? I felt in her that she wanted to keep it simple and fun and enjoy the process.

What would you recommend? Where would someone start with that?

Cristy:

So, and Lex was instrumental in this piece, because I was doing full builds, and I still do some, where essentially the process is that we meet on Zoom and someone asks, okay, what do I have to do now? And I'm like, I don't know, just leave me alone. And they'll send me their Pinterest boards, and I'm like, I already saw that ten minutes into our interview. That's usually how the process goes that I like.

I take a bunch of their writing and make the whole thing in their voice, structuring the user experience of the site and the visuals and everything. As you can imagine, I can't do that many times. And it's gotten to a place where it can also be pretty prohibitively expensive for a lot of the people I love working with.

Which I'd say, for the most part, is right in this sweet spot where people have kind of completed the DIY experimentation phase of their business. They're like, okay, now I'm ready. I don't quite know how to structure the thing, how to make it happen, where to go next, how to talk about it, what it should look like, but I know what I do.

So in working in these intensive models, I get to take the best part of what I do and do it more often with people. You can find better designers than me, and maybe even better copywriters to a degree. You can find people to integrate your tech systems and whatever.

But what I can do really specially is what we've talked about in this conversation: take all of the elements of your business, of you, of your body of work, of your mission, and bring them down to earth into something where you can see what the visuals look like, where you can look at the blueprint and have the whole thing architected. Sometimes people then do it themselves, sometimes they have a team member plug everything into a website. But that middle process, that architecting together, that reflection, that getting it down into this blueprint that can then be moved forward, is also the fastest and most economical way you can make really big strides, I think.

Because you can hire a regular designer and go through all these refinements, or work on your messaging and take another course. But why don't we do it all completely custom to you, totally specific, like you were saying, to you? We dive deep into your story so I can feel who you are, and then we run everything through that meter of truth itself.

And I don't just want you to leave with the blueprints you need to move everything forward. I also want you to leave having had this experience of being in this alchemical cauldron and walking away with clarity and confidence, like, I know who I am. I know why people come here. I know what I do that's important and different. I know how people experience me and what exactly is magical about that.

So that's my invitation. That's how I most like to help.

Alexia:

Because I would say what I feel in you is that the number-one place to start is to get really clear on the actual heartbeat of the whole thing. That's the part that's often missing. The logo, the website, the copy, they're all byproducts.

The only reason I was able to then go figure out what my visual brand was, go figure out what my copy was, go figure out all those pieces, was because I had that heartbeat. I knew my essence. I was clear on the elements I really wanted to evoke.

I knew that bringing out that I'm a very sensual person, and that I could actually bring that part out, was a huge invitation in the process. I remember we talked about how you even picked up on the fact that there is this analog part of me.

You were like, "Lex, there's this analog part of you that is really important to name." And I was like, that's so true. I'm the person who, in daily life, loves writing cards and collecting cards and loves handwriting. It's kind of old school that way. And that got to come into the brand.

Once you get to that heartbeat piece of who you are, what you truly stand for, why what you're doing matters, what you actually want to be doing, what's true, that's pretty much the main juice. And once you do all of that, then you quickly realize what's important to do on the brand side and also what's not important.

Because it's not just important what you say yes to, as we know with your magnetism code. Your gift of discrimination is being so discerning that there are a lot of no's too. Because that's the purity of really owning who you are. That's what I feel in what you share and in your invitation.

Cristy:

Thank you. I mean, I do have a technical process, but that's like how the sausage gets made, who cares? My process with people is often that they find me through full builds I've done, or through some other weird people in entertainment and personal development who have all these seemingly disparate parts of themselves. People find that work and come to me saying, "It was just so cohesive. It felt like her, and everything made sense together."

And that's actually the last layer of what we do. What we start with is, what's congruent? What's true? What's in integrity? What's actually at the core of everything? And then what is coherent to your desires and your preferences? We move one layer out from that, and that cohesiveness is almost a natural byproduct of starting at the core first.

That's exactly what you said about the heartbeat, the congruence of the whole thing.

Alexia:

I love that you named that, because that does feel like something I can identify with, and I think anyone tuning in can identify with it too. Can we love up all of our seemingly random parts? That's usually the struggle, and that's why we struggle with specific siddhis, because we're like, but then people need to know the fullness of who I am. And we can struggle to feel like all of those parts get to coexist.

I think you hold such a great space for the allowance of all of that, and for keeping it simple.

This feels like a beautiful way to bring in one more of your Gene Keys. It's always so fun with people's blueprints because you see these specific threads that belong to the soul curriculum we're navigating, and then you see specific themes.

Your mission code feels very aligned with your magnetism code in a specific way. The mission code gives us a lot of indication of what we're here to be known for doing. This is how we lead. This is how we contribute.

Yours is Gene Key 40, which I know we've talked about before. It moves from the shadow of exhaustion to the gift of resolve to the siddhi of divine will.

It feels like such a powerful completion to this conversation because the shadow of exhaustion is just the doing, the effort. It's that constant way in which we follow the should. It's the, when I do this, then I will finally get there. It's all the ways we overwork, force, hustle, white-knuckle our way through things.

This is something Cristy knows very intimately on her journey, and likely something you've watched in a lot of your clients. I imagine a lot of people are coming your way in this energy where they feel exhausted because they are trying to prove so many things. They've got offer suites and different aspects of their brand that aren't fully coherent.

Then in your gift frequency, your gift is resolve. Again, it's that energy of just knowing what matters most. Knowing what matters most and taking action, but doing it from a very aligned, true way of being. It's the trust.

I just think about so much of our conversations as this invitation to fully trust the magic of who you are as the entire center of the medicine.

And then your siddhi of divine will is this realization that we're actually moved by something bigger than ourselves. There's that part of ourselves that feels like we have to prove and protect and show all these things. But when we come back into that deeper level of our soul, there's so much less to control and so much more to simply allow to move through us. There's such an invincibility that comes from knowing that in our truth, we are guided intuitively where we're meant to go next.

And when I feel into this as your mission code, it feels like the essence and the core of your brand. This is what anyone who has the gift of working with you or experiencing you is invited into. They can tap into the resolve of fully owning the truth of who they are and allowing the true movement that wants to pulse through them to become the expression they share.

Cristy:

Yeah. I mean, just the fact that I love resolve and divine will because they are not necessarily absent of friction, of doing. And there's the way we can exhaust ourselves. Even when you talked about how, wow, my website, something is off here, that in itself is exhausting.

Yeah, that resonates.

The ways we think we should be doing everything... part of what we can do under the umbrella of brand and strategy is also ask, what don't you do? What can just fall away?

And once we can let some of those endless trying spells drop off, we have so much energy that can return to us through resolve, through divine will, through the expression of making change that is never without friction. But can we do it in a way that isn't so personally exhausting because we've come into alignment, partnership, and co-creation with something bigger than us, and with who we actually are and what we're actually here to do?

Alexia:

Yeah. Yeah. And it all feels so aligned with one of your core messages, which is to choose alignment over trends.

Cristy:

Yeah. Who cares?

Alexia:

But the power of alignment being what I do in a world where it's really easy to get caught in every trend spiral that exists, and think that's what you've got to do next. And it can show up in a hundred million different ways.

Thank you for being that embodiment for all of us tuning in. It's like, do you really want to exhaust yourself?

Cristy:

We're all looking for trustworthy leadership and people that can be a grounding wire in this whole world, this social, internet, everything network that doesn't have many grounds. It feels so crazy and frenetic.

And I just really love helping people find that grounding wire of, I'm still in this system. I still have the resolve and the divine will to do, to find people, to work with people. I'm not exiting the whole thing. But I can be here in my alignment and congruence and ground just a little bit more of this whole system.

Alexia:

I could talk to you for so much longer. We do. And as we begin to close, I love to ask: what is one ritual that you love, that you'd recommend to someone who's desiring to connect with that soul essence of their expression, of their brand?

Cristy:

I'll have to do two, sorry.

One is creating ritual space, a place where you can really drop some of that mental, strategic bandwidth that we carry all the time. When I meet people at points of re-imagination in their work, in a sacred pivot, it's often asking the question, okay, if you could do anything, how would you do it? What is yours to do? What is this body of work? What are these principles you could work from if you could pick anything?

And then taking that one step further to ask, if you could do it however you want, whatever would give the best results for people and would bring you so much joy, what would that be? We have these blueprints, these codes, that we often ignore because there's a way we're supposed to do it.

So what happens if you really give yourself ceremonial space to return to those questions of where the soft animal of your body is drawn? Where do you really want to go? What would bring delight? If you stop trying, then what would you do?

And the second thing, I can't say enough, is to find people who can and will reflect you back to yourself. Like I have said, I do this all the time. To tell the truth, I'm pretty great at it. And for myself, it's tricky.

So people like you, Lex, Eliza, there have been several people even in the last year of my life who have reflected things back to me, like this rainbow, multidimensional creator self, and helped me start to see my own transmission in the world differently.

It's the most beautiful gift you can offer and also ask for. The people who really can help cease the berating of self, the "why can't I do this, why can't I figure this out," and let you rest into the network and web of gifts we can offer each other.

Alexia:

I love both of those invitations.

Cristy, where can people best connect with you? If they're interested in your Brand Oracle Intensive or in Instagram, where do they connect?

Cristy:

My website, that's almost kind of finished for the first time I mentioned, is cristyduce.com. Cristy, C-R-I-S-T-Y. I'm sure it'll be in the show notes.

And often where we get started is if you fill out a form on my website, then I'm like, do you want to hop on Zoom? Do you want to DM on Instagram? It's pretty casual introductions. I just want to know where you're at and what you're looking for, and then we'll chat.

I love to help as many people as I can. And if it's not the right fit, I will still help you find what you need. So pop in, send me a voice memo. And anyone who's here on this podcast, I want our networks to be connected.

Alexia:

Thank you so much, Cristy. This is a treat, as always, to connect with you, to enjoy this conversation, and to really explore the different layers.

I got to use my experience as such an example of your magic, what I've personally experienced and what it's also cultivated and created for me in so many ways. I know all the other incredible leaders that you support, guide, and have activated.

For anyone listening, if you feel the call to share a takeaway from this episode, something that's really stuck with you, something that has become an invitation or a permission slip, something you really resonate with, or a hilarious little quirk of yours that you're like, I think I'm finally going to reveal this part of myself too, I know Cristy and I both love to connect.

We'd love to hear from you if you feel called to DM either of us on Instagram. Both of us, we're so here for it. And just, yeah, thank you, thank you, Cristy. It's an absolute gift to walk this journey with you.

Cristy:

Thank you so much for having me, Lex. I know you are deeply devoted to alignment, and so I consider this invitation such an honor and gift. And as always, I love being in any and all, even virtual, spaces with you. You're such a gift.

Alexia:

Thank you, thank you. What a pleasure it has been. And as always, until next time, I hope you continue to elevate your life one intentional day at a time. Thank you for being you, and thank you for being here with Cristy and me. It's such a treasure to both of us.

If this podcast has added something meaningful to your day, it would mean the world to me if you could take 30 seconds to do these three things.

First, please follow or subscribe to Elevate Daily on your favorite podcast platform. When you do, you'll never miss an episode, and it helps us keep bringing you the intentional inspiration you love. Just tap the plus sign or click follow on the show page wherever you listen.

Second, if you're feeling generous, leave a quick five-star rating and review. Your words mean so much and help others discover this space where we elevate our lives together.

And finally, share this episode with someone who could use a little elevation today.

And most importantly, thank you so much for being you. Thank you for being here. We're really on this journey together.

Until next time, I hope you elevate your life one intentional day at a time.