Season 2: Episode 27 - The "Stillness" Confidence| CEO Chic

SPEAKER_01 0:06

Welcome to the Joy-Inspired Podcast. I'm Mickey Cruz, and I'm thrilled to explore with you what it means to walk in a faith-infused business. This is your space to find powerful tools and insights to build with resilience and to create impact through your unique purpose. Discovering a joy that only God can provide. Together, let's embrace a business journey anchored in faith and empowered by joy. Let's jump in. Well, hello, hello, hello, beautiful people. It's so good to be back with you this week. And I am super excited for another week of being your cheerleader and bringing you more joy so that you can have more joy and take it out into the world. Because right here on the Joy Inspired Podcast, we want you to step into having that joy so that you can impact yourself, your community, your families, those around you. And in case you're wondering, who is this crazy lady? My name is Nikki Cruz, commonly known as the Joy Junkie. And you will find I'm your greatest cheerleader. I'm also somebody who believes that joy is the most underutilized life and business strategy there is. God gave us so much joy. And contrary to popular belief, you do not lose your joy. It may be clouded over when things get tough, but it's a choice to stand in it. And today I have an amazing guest who's chosen to stand and go and joy. She shines, she brings so much to the table through her story, through her business, through everything. So get ready. Grab your drink. I got mine here, all ready to go. Grab your pen and paper, unless, of course, you're driving, in which case you can always come back. All the details will be in the show notes. But are you ready? Are you ready for this really moving transformational story that our guest has to share for us? So I am so excited, Cynthia, to have you here. Welcome to the Joy Inspired podcast.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

Thank you very much for having me. It's a pleasure.

SPEAKER_01 2:35

And you know, there's so much to Cynthia's story. And Cynthia Apaya is the founder of Beauty from Within Coaching and Consulting. And she's also the founder and creator of an incredible empowerment tech ecosystem. You know I love the word ecosystem because that means it's more than just one little spot over here. It's something that's grown bigger to leverage what we have, to leverage, and she blends innovation, systems, architecture, branding, leadership, and faith in such an incredibly unique way. And after hearing some of her story, I think many of you are gonna walk away realizing that what looks like setbacks may not actually be. They may be doors flinging open, and it all depends on your perspective. So before we get into all the amazing things you're building, tell us, Cynthia, who is Cynthia behind the business building?

SPEAKER_00 3:47

Hi, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you so much for having me on this platform. It was wonderful meeting you at the conference as well. Wonderful Cynthia, we are sisters in Christ. Yes. But hello everybody. My name is Cynthia Pierre. For those that don't know me, I go by the world's number one digital diva. Um, and my journey for starting my brand is really empowering to me, right? I started it because I'm a uh trained social worker. So I actually work in the medical setting for a long time. Um, and then I have my degree in political science um focused on healthcare. I also have my master's in social welfare focused on healthcare. The goal was to go to law school, but that never rendered, right? Um, so while I was in corporate America, I was social worker there. I actually lost 10 pounds as a social worker, yes, because it was a higher turnover floor. And prior to that, I was actually in the insurance patient access side. So I was verifying insurance way before I became like a popular that people want to be like in insurance, right? So when I switched, when I graduated and I uh there was a social work position that opened up at the hospital, my manager at the time put in the word for me and I ended up getting the role. Now, I love what I do because my goal is to help people, right? But when I help people, it was and I am an impact. So I want to do such an amazing job, and I feel bad when people go home and they still have social issues that I cannot help. Maybe I help them with their medical issues, but their social issues of like homelessness or uh finding a job, I just I felt as if I was not doing what I needed to do, and it was such a burnt-out field, and I always wanted to help people, so I had to leave that. I lost 10 pounds because of that because the doctors were coming to me for health care advice, in addition to like Cynthia, we need help with the discharge plans for this patient. Um, and I always loved helping people, but I wanted to help them creatively. Now, I called myself the original STEM OG, right? And I don't know if you got a chance to um pay attention to some of our panel discussion, but the reason why I called myself that is I'm originally from Ghana, West Africa. And when my family and I immigrated to the United States in the American school system, they had something called home economics that focused on the mathematical symmetry of aesthetics, and then they had technology classes, right? This is way before STEM. So this is why I call myself the original STEM OG, and I learned um how to build rockets, right? Robots, you know, building a bridge, learning about the infrastructure, right? The architect that I'm saying, the systems architect, um, learning about that way before it became popular. So me creating what I'm creating now is everything that I learned when I was a younger child. But at the time, I was not really focused on that aspect because as coming from an African household, you have to go to school and and you know, work in that like structured field, not a creative field, like a structured field. So that's why I was gonna go to law school. Um, and when things don't, and I applied to a lot of law schools in the schools that I originally wanted to go into, I did not get in, right? I was waitlisted, so that changed everything. And you see how God works. I was crying. I thought, oh my gosh, God, why did I get in? I was upset with God. I was like, what is going on? I got a good LCL sat score. Why was that not working? But the closed doors always lead you to your purpose. So I always tell people, trust the process. I know how hard it can be, right? I was going through my own issues currently now that I'm not gonna say, but I understand that you have to trust the process because God's um end goal is always better than yours. That's a guarantee. Even through the like you're going through the process and you're like, why is this not gonna happen? So mind you, I was a little child being trained for what I do now, creating the empowerment tech ecosystem, right? And at the time when I was going through school, people were thinking that I they were laughing at me because they're like, first of all, Cynthia, why are you taking pictures everywhere you go? Like, what's wrong with you, right? Or you have so many services. Um, why are you having so many services? But the whole goal, and people forget when you have a brand, it's not just a service, right? You are providing a service for everybody. And for me, yes, my vehicle is um and my vertical that we operate on is on the beauty side, right? But that does not mean I'm just gonna focus on the just the beauty aspect. My goal is to just like my social work um ideology that I learned as a social worker, in order for you to be great, and I learned this from there, in order for you to be great, you need to wear multiple hats to help the individual in front of you. And remember, as a social worker, I felt like that was where I was missing because I was not able to help the individual with their social issues, all the other stuff, in addition to their discharge. So now that I have a creative business, because I always wanted to help people creatively, I created the empowerment tech ecosystem, right? My brands are interconnected. So the main branch is Beauty from Within Coaching and Consulting. That is our training consulting agency, right? Right now, we partner with the government. Um, I won my first RFP in uh 2024. I wrote the RFP myself and I was like, oh my gosh, I'm a real one. I was so excited. But that allowed me to provide training and consulting, right, for the school children. But the school children also need to be confident in who they are. They need to know that your beauty is from within, right? They need to also know the innovation is where to go in life. So you see how my brand has connected with all those different aspects, right? So is that main branch, beauty from within? You do the assessment. I'm a social worker, so it's always all my clients they come to me for cadutry, marketing. This is what we're doing. They're like, Synthia, you are known for this. We will dance it out because I love music, right? And I will create an unmatched strategy plan for them, and they will have a music to promote with their brand, sonic branding, right? But you see how all of that is the holistic understanding of the individual. That is why my business is that beauty from within. Your beauty comes from within, right? And I had a um a lot of health issues. So even though I was doing great and people saw me as being successful, I lacked self-awareness, um, not self-awareness, but I last um lacked uh self low self-esteem in myself, right? And so um coming out of the hospital, I had a whole, like we can talk after this. I had a whole, like I had to learn how to walk, you know, I needed assistive technology to learn how to drive. My right side was paralyzed. So you might think like there hasn't been anything where I have a trait that helped me breathe because I couldn't breathe, my whole left jaw is removed.

SPEAKER_01 10:30

We're actually gonna touch on that in a moment because you said something amazing there. You said you might look at me now and think everything's just fine, and that's so often where we go. We go to that place where that person doesn't understand. You know what? It doesn't matter whether anybody else understands or not. What matters is that you realize that God gets it, exactly, and that God is there, and the other thing you said that is so powerful, all of those things God had equipped you with in the past. I say, what's in your hand? God place those things that you in your hand. And you you were wanting to do what culture told you was correct, what people expected of you. And so often there is so much pressure for that, and yet that stifles your passion, it stifles the purpose for which God created you.

SPEAKER_02 11:30

Amen.

SPEAKER_01 11:31

So for you, did you always know you were by you were built to build systems, that you had that in your mind, or did you feel all that information just stuck piling in your brain, kind of wondering what it was there for?

SPEAKER_00 11:49

You know, I asked myself that same question. I I have ever since as a little child, I always said to myself, I was always born to create, right? And at the time I thought my vehicle for creating was dancing. But remember, I had I lost my balance. I couldn't be a great, so I couldn't be in LA. I actually moved to California because I was gonna be like the next big star in dancing, right? And so I went to LA and it was such a reality check, right? I went to LA and I was like, I was gonna be there for six months. I was like enjoying my life. I had jobs lined up, and then I went to an audition. They're like, you have a look for it, but you know, as to be a dancer, you have to pick up the moves immediately, like fast. They teach you two seconds, you gotta pick it up. Now, my brain is where I can ingest the information and I'll be able to learn the dance moves, but it because of what happened to me, I it takes me a longer time to learn it. But once I learn it, boom, I remember for a day, but they didn't have time to work for me like that. So that I I was I cried. And although they were like, Oh, you have to look for it, and yes, well, you know, they did not have the time to work for me. So then I started questioning myself, maybe I'm not meant to be a dancer, you know, maybe that's not the purpose that God had for me, you know. Um, but dancing is part of my ecosystem. Right, my pageant beauties, they come to me, we work on their dance routine, right? And all of my girls have placed top five or even have gotten the crown. Some of them have even started businesses. So I might not have been the traditional like LA dancer, but I am a dancer, right? That is what I'm known for, and I trained my pageant beauties to be great. So you see, everything that I'm doing now, I've been taught, and about the systems. I've always loved creating systems. You know, I was always a systems thinker. That is how I generate everything in life. In school, um, since the age of 13, these are the things that they always say about me. They're like, Cynthia is very analytical. Cynthia is always system focused, like hol, she's holistic, right? Uh she's a leader. All these things at the 13-year-old and up that I've been hearing. And then I kept on asking myself, why are they saying that I'm analytical? You know, this before I knew what that meant. So I was like, Why are they saying analytical? But it's not until like I joined up with uh Google Gemini, which is my favorite AI collaborator. And I'm explaining just like the question that you had, I'm talking to him. I'm like, is this normal for me to think like this? You know, and then I told him my whole health uh uh you know history of being creative and what I love to do, creating systems. He's like, No, Cynthia, you are a systems thinker. You actually started your digital path way before it became big in fifth grade. And I told him everything that I've done. I was like, wow, I really am. And that's why I'm like when I was back in corporate America and I was looking for jobs, it seemed like a lot of uh data analytical jobs would come to me, but I'm like, why are they coming to me? You know? So, long story short, I always had in me to build systems, and you know how um it's so funny. I write music too, but people that are like uh Mariah here, who I love, right? Uh, my favorite artist is Stone Boy or whatever. They write music based on like their uh what what's going on, right? They pick the the sound, the lyrics that they either like a destruction that happened in their lives, some inspiration. You know what I do? I create systems, right? And and so for example, I mean I write music too, but the most important thing will be systems. I'll give you an example. So you know how my brand, my whole interconnected um branch starts with beauty from within coaching and consultant. The beauty tech side, the beauty tech systems were not there yet. I was always doing everything that side did, it just didn't have a name yet. And so in 2023, I left my corporate America role, right? I was a federal contract for the CDC. And um I did not have Beauty Tech yet, where it focuses on video and kinetic videos and AI and augmented reality, but that's what I always did, right? Um and so I was like, God, we need like a creative side to my business. I left corporate America in six months' time. The name Beauty Tech came to me, Beauty from Within Technologies. I created my um a video of just how I create my videos, right? And I promoted it on the uh one of the social media platforms, and we won. Right? That was my first indication that I was like, wow, maybe I'm really good at this, right? I'm good at building all of this stuff. And then um an AI photography brand that came to me, and long story short, uh their invite to me was seven times on the seventh time I decided to take that opportunity, and I went viral on the platform, and that was like my second brand deal, right? From creating that beauty tech sign. So that has always had to come out. So that's why I always tell people you have to go the route that's left. Um, what's the word? Um, the the path that's less what's the less traveled.

SPEAKER_01 16:45

The road less traveled, absolutely the road less traveled. Well, folks, I'm sure by now you can absolutely tell why I adore Cynthia. And we recently met at a conference, and we just met in passing, and then at the airport we reconnected. I think God was saying to us, I intended for you to connect, you didn't make it happen at the conference, so now I'm throwing you right next to each other at the airport, and what a pleasure because she's full of energy. You know what she has? That I don't have this incredible creative tech side. I'm still growing in the tech area, but strategy is something God gives all of us, and you never have to sit back and think, I couldn't do that. They do it, I am less than, because God made us all to work together, and we get to leverage what we've got in our area. But she is elegant, she's brilliant, and you know, she's one of those women who make you realize that business isn't just about selling things, it's about building those systems, creating the impact, and that's what Cynthia's all about. She has the beauty side too. But before we run out of time, you've heard us talk about something else and allude to something else, and this is that life hasn't always been working out perfectly for Cynthia. You see, she had a very hectic, challenging moment. And you know, this is where we get to realize that there are so many things happening in people's lives that we get to stand in gratitude for where we are at. And you shared something incredibly powerful about facing a brain tumor while you were building your career and your business. Tell us about that. What was that season really like emotionally and spiritually? Because you were partnering with God already at that time, weren't you?

SPEAKER_00 19:04

Yes. Um you know, this happened. Imagine your family coming from a foreign land, and you think you're gonna have a great life in another land that you hear so much positive things about, and you get to that land, you're learning the language, right? Um, you're assimilated to the culture, and then your oldest daughter ends up with a uh diagnosis of a brain tumor, a rare form of brain tumor. In addition to that, hydrocyphilis border on the brain, in addition to that. And you learn that she has a very limited chance of surviving because the brain tumor has she was born with it, basically. And if you weren't able to take her to the hospital, she would have died. So that was my life. Um, I once they removed the brain tumor, my right side was paralyzed. So I missed school for two years. I was in a wheelchair, I couldn't walk. And the time that I got to like driving age, I couldn't drive until I was 20 years old because I needed assistant technology to help me drive. Uh Son of You, shout out to you, Son of You, is connected to the Rehab Center. They worked with me. The doctors were scared for me to drive because you know my balance was so bad. Um, and I used to cry. And I was like, God, why did this happen to me? But it was a purpose for somebody else, right? It had to happen to me so I could build beauty from within, share my story to impact other people. And that's why that happened to me, right? And so your point that you said before about how God gives everybody a purpose, and I wanted to say this um one thing, I do believe that God gives everybody a purpose, whether you want to believe in God or not, you everybody in this world has a purpose. And the tip that I would give, if you don't believe that, and um everybody else also has a talent, a talent that you're really good at, right? Some people have one talent, two talent, and me, I'm a multidimensional person, so I have multiple talents, right? But it is all part of my human design. So if you read the chap Matthew's chapter 25, verse 14 through 30, it talks, is the parable of talents. One person has one talent. The goal of whatever how many talents you have is to help other people, to go out there and use your talents to bring joy to that individual and then to empower them. So that's the whole goal. So I always tell people if you're stressed and down and out, what does God say about you? What is your talent? What do you think that you're so good at, right? That you can do in your sleep. For me, it was creating videos. I was always a very creative person. I didn't win a lot of stuff, but every time I won something, it was something on the creative side. My managers, I had I I had 15 jobs since the age of 13, and I quit all 15. Right? And I was the highest producer, but I would quit every single job. So um I talked to uh um my AI collaborator, Gemini, and I was like, Gemini, you know, I quit every every job I had, I Quit and I was like, he was like, because you are a serial, you are a true entrepreneur. That is why that happened. You were not content in any of those roles until you had your own business, and it's true, right? So because my goal was to be a free spirit, but create what I wanted to create to impact other people. And I knew that that's my skill set. So when people say, you know, like they come, like people compare yourselves, like, oh, I want to. No, I'm good at creating videos. That is my gift. You, I would never say that I'm good at creating uh doing hair. I'm not good at that. That is not my skill set. If I did my if I had a daughter and I did her hair, people would laugh at her. That's how bad I am. And I will go to a hairstylist. I would never compare myself to a hairstylist that is great. That is not my gift. So you have to know what you're good at and be able to steward that to help other people and build something impactful and be able to leave a legacy. For me, it's so important. I don't have kids yet. And hopefully, one day God blesses me with my kingdom spouse, right? And then I'm able to have a child or maybe two children. And I want them to say, My mama did that. My mom created that empowerment tech ecosystem here in Dallas headquarters, right? And now we can go there, we can go chill out, we can go to the dance studio, you know. Um, they're gonna give us an assessment to create our business, like I the global identity. I want all of that to be there when I'm long gone, right? I want them to see that wow, we have an empowerment tech ecosystem here in Dallas, Texas. I can't believe this, right? So, yes, my journey was very tough. Um, but it was tough because God was teaching me to be better and maybe to be more self-aware so I can help other people and inspire them. That's why my business, um, the mantra that we operate on is to inspire, design, and empower you to greatness, right? Inspire you, waking up what you what your gifts are, design you, design, match, and be who you are and empower you, provide you with the tools to empower yourself to greatness.

SPEAKER_01 24:01

Yeah, and I love the way that you actually say that you know, it's not a system failure, but it's a hardware update when God puts these things in, and that's what you said about this, and you know, folks, if you're out there just thinking, I feel like my life's been interrupted, and I feel like my purpose has been interrupted by my life being interrupted. What would you say to that person to encourage them to stand in their resilience in their entrepreneurial journey?

SPEAKER_00 24:41

I would say, know yourself really well, be passionate. Well, know yourself really well, be passionate, uh passionate about what you do and have unshakable clarity. And the reason why I say that is because when I first started out my business, like I like you said, I was going to everybody because I was trying to figure out what was the best, and nobody really, I saw nobody else creating an empowerment tech ecosystem. So I'm thinking, and people kept on saying I was crazy because I had all these services, and they're like, Why you need to be focused on one thing? That's what they kept on saying to me. Focus on one thing. And I was like, I can't just focus on one thing. That is not the gift that God gave me. So on the outside, you might think I'm crazy, but at the end of the day, look at what I'm creating, that's so impactful now, right? So um know yourself. Because if you don't know yourself, you're gonna go to like somebody else and they're gonna try to limit you. And that's what happened to me. I went to a business coach, she tried to say, just focus on one thing. At the time, it was my dancing. She said, just focus on your dancing. But then what she did not know that she did for me was she had me take the brand archetype test. Yeah, and the brand archetype test had me a hundred on all five areas that I do now. And she said, Cynthia, when usually when that happens, that means you got to pick one of the five that you scored all high in. And and I knew it myself. I went with my intuition. Well, I believe your intuition is how God speaks to you. And God was saying that Amma is my Ghanaian name. You can do multiple things. So had I, if I just listened to her, I wouldn't have helped my pageant beauties, right? I wouldn't have helped these brands that I helped with my videos and sonic branding. So you have to know yourself. That's the number one thing. And you feel as if, you know, I think one of the gifts that you have as a parent, I'm not a parent yet, is that your child comes to this earth with what their gifts are. It is you as a parent to really help them bring out what that gift is. And usually when parents miss that, the kids will grow up and not work in their field, and then they feel like, oh my gosh, my life is like, I don't like my life, I don't like my job, and all that stuff because they don't know what their gifts are. So if you can start earlier, try to identify what you're good at, right? Me, fifth grade, remember, creating videos all the time, being creative, that's who I am.

SPEAKER_01 26:57

So and I think you I think you can hear that Cynthia has this vibe, the energy and the passion and the gifts to carry out all these different things at once. That is what God called her to. Now I find I do the same, but with one or two things. But I don't want messages from all of you saying, but my coach said pick one, and I'm picking them all now because of what Cynthia said. Because this is about know yourself, know your calling, sit with God, let the Holy Spirit guide you. She's not saying everybody go out and do everything. Oh, yeah, no. You don't all have the capacity to do that, and you are no less than someone who does. If you start trying to do that, and it's not in alignment with what God has for you, that's the key. You're gonna lose your joy.

SPEAKER_00 27:53

You have to be in alignment with God's will, period.

SPEAKER_01 27:57

Absolutely, and you know, we all want things, but do we stop to ask God what does He want for us? Because often those wants are put into us because we want human recognition and not godly recognition. And yeah, human recognition is nice, but it creates striving, it creates misalignment, and that's where your joy becomes clouded and the exhaustion sets in. And I can tell you right now that Cynthia is somebody who believes so strongly in faith, stillness, and strategy. That's what's made this possible for her. But I immediately can tell you all that she doesn't think small degenerators, and she thinks in ecosystems. But tell us about your beauty from within and what you are truly building there.

SPEAKER_00 28:54

Yeah, so Beauty from Within was the uh the name that God gave me, right? It came to me like 3 a.m. in the morning, and I was like, okay, beauty from within. I had that like you know, Oprah says the aha moment. My business was actually created in DC, right? It was called Azonto Style Dance Health, Wellness, and Consulting. But Beauty from Within was doing business as Beauty from Within. And when I moved to Dallas, Texas, it was gonna cost me a lot more to actually bring the whole business here. So I had to close that business down, and then the the DBA name became the primary name, Beauty from Within Coaching and Consulting, right? Um and it was just dance focus. When I was in DC, I did I taught a lot of dancing. That was actually my first start because I never thought that I would be great in business. Um, and so I taught one dance class and a thousand people showed up. And when a thousand people showed up, because they knew my background, they were asking me things about training, marketing. How did I start my business? I said, hmm, I didn't know I was good at all of this stuff. And then it it just it just counterpulted into other things. That's when I got actually got my first grant in DC, right? Teaching dance. And I was like, wow, God, I went to LA and I failed. And look at that, I still got a grant to teach dancing, right? So I'm not that bad, right? Um, and so um it was a long process, but beauty from within was created because of me. I didn't think my beauty was from within, I didn't think that I was great enough. Um, I like I said, I had low self-esteem, right? Um, because of my background. And, you know, as I'm I'm I'm vocal now, but I was a very shy person, very kept to myself, right? And I think the position that I had, I was the subject matter expert, and I had to speak on, like, you know, they called me the Medicaid lady, the Medicare lady, right? So I had to speak about my the subjects, the products, the services, and I had to be great at my job. And that was one thing that I said to myself, I might not have stayed in the positions long, but I wanted to be great. And in order for me to be great, I had to push myself over my boundaries, my comfortable of being quiet, just so that people could say, wow, she knew a lot about her product, she knew a lot about the subject matter, and that's what I wanted people to take away, right? You know how Michael Jackson always says, study the great so that you can become greater, and that's what it is. So even though I was shy, I never wanted anybody to say that I was bad at what I did. So I had to force myself to be great. And so, Beauty from Within, I I um when I was younger too, when I was out of the hospital, before I went back into the hospital, I did compete in pageantry, right? Because I believe pageantry, although on the outside it has the glamour, it also teaches you life skills. It taught me my confidence, right? It taught me my public speaking. That's why I have a program called Get the Crown Power, you know, deliver your message with power, right? For all my pageant beauties. It taught me all of that stuff. So when I was younger and I saw that, and when I went, I was, I think I was like 16, I went to a room, uh, the assembly in New York, and I spoke about children's rights. Well, that was my platform. And I and everybody in there, there was like more than 200 people um started clapping for me after my speech, and I was like, you know, and that was from my pageant coach. She taught me that. She was like, Cynthia, you know, you have everything in you to be great. So I've always wanted to be that for that person, right? But add the glamour, because you know, uh the glamour and beauty side. So yeah, yeah. So that is why my vehicle is pageantry and the beauty industry, because I believe that your beauty, people are visual creatures, right? You might people might say, Oh, yeah, it's all about that. No, but what's gonna draw you to the person is how they look first, right? And your confidence. So I always say confidence comes from how you look too, right? You don't have to be like the most gorgeous person, like Naomi Campbell or something like that, right? Or Tyra Banks or a Beyoncé, however, but you still want to present yourself well, right? You want to be able to speak well, you want to be eloquent, and so that is why I'm in that beauty industry. Not that your beauty has to, you gotta be all beautiful, but the fact that you have to have beauty from within, right? And then the outside, you have to have like the beauty in the brains, right? Because that sells products, right? So you have to look good on the outside, and that builds your confidence as well. So it's like the trifecta, right? And then being beautiful on the inside, being having beauty on the outside that's going to uh build your confidence. I'll give an example. I went to give a conference, uh, uh, uh a speaking engagement. Um, and when I went and somebody complimented me on my outfit, that gave me confidence. I was like, oh wow, thank you.

SPEAKER_01 33:32

You know, so and you know, when we have that confidence, it's not arrogance, but when we stand in that confidence, it reflects God well, it reflects our faith well. But so many people wonder, how do you stand with that confidence? And where did you get yours? Now you told us some of where you got it from, and it's from mentors, folks. It's from who you surround yourself with, but you also use another term, which I'd love you to tell us about, and it's CEO chic. What does that mean to you beyond just appearance?

SPEAKER_00 34:16

Yes, CEO chic. You gotta be CEO chic wherever you go, right? And I'll give an example. I went to a tech um business conference prior before the one that we met, right? And um, and the there are two guys on there that I was dressed professionally, you know. I have my nice blazer, you know, my hair done, that CEO chic, you know, have the confidence. Like I am good. I I have a song called CEO of Everything, and the beauty from Within Chant that will be um on Spotify is I'm good, I'm fabulous, I can do anything that's in my mind too, right? And it's just like the hotbeat and everything like that. But that's the CEO chic is the persona that you want to uh present and bring that confidence. So I was speaking about like systems, and the two guys there, they took their glasses off to look at me like, is she really, is she really speaking about stuff like that? Because they could not believe that somebody that looked like me, right? I've gotten like the fact that I'm just a cheerleader, or like because I'm I look young, people are like, oh, she doesn't know that much about what she's doing and stuff like that. I've gotten that so many times in my life, right? Even now. And I'm like, do you guys know how old I am? Like, you know what I mean? Um, and so and I and I tell people I have 21 years in leadership experience, right? I've been working since I was 13 years old, building on my knowledge, 15 years in reimbursement, right? So now I have to like lead with my experience because people sometimes disrespect me or sometimes underestimate me because of like how I look or like my CEO chic, I'm always bubbly and happy, right? And so even though they don't know like all my life stories, so they think as if when they meet me, like, oh, she's never been through anything in her life, she doesn't know anything, like you know that's where I can so relate.

SPEAKER_01 35:58

And I I recently had someone say to me, Oh, but you have to be authentic, you have to be real, you can't just be happy all the time. Well, folks, I am the joy junkie. Do I have hard days? Absolutely, but I also choose to step into joy, and that doesn't mean always being bubbly and all the rest, it means knowing that God's got your back, yeah. It means having that confidence in your God that holds you in joy, but you choose how you respond to situations, yes, and people then go, but you're not authentic. I mean, three of my best friends, two of my top clients are people who the first time, first couple of times they saw me, but they went, Oh no, that can't be real, she's just too much. Well, I'm not too much, I'm just me. I've been given an extra dose of joy, which I love to share, but it is a choice, it is a choice, and don't feel that people are gonna judge you as being inauthentic by following where the spirit's leading and what the spirit is growing in you, exactly, and that is being authentic.

SPEAKER_00 37:10

Yes, you are authentically you, you have chosen to live that life. Do you know how hard it is to walk around being just angry at everybody? That's a lot, that takes a lot of brain cells, you know. You know what I mean? Yeah, your cortisol levels are high, you're stressed out.

SPEAKER_01 37:27

Why would And there's no energy to carry you through with it?

SPEAKER_02 37:32

Exactly, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 37:34

You know, there is so much. I mean, I think you folks can see Cynthia and I, you're gonna see a lot more of us because we just go together like bread and butter, or like Jesus and Joy Jam. Yes! So Cynthia, this has been so amazing talking to you, feeling your energy, and you have a gift for our audience. So, for those of you who have got your pen and paper and who've caught some of these nuggets, here's another one to catch. But please, it's it going to be in the notes, so don't have a car accident. But just listen. Listen to this amazing gift that Cynthia is sharing with you.

SPEAKER_00 38:16

Yes, for all those that are interested in learning about building your confidence, um, maybe uh visual design, you can definitely sign up on um my newsletter, subscribe to beautyfromwithin.flowdesk. Uh, I'm sure the link, the actual link will be in the uh the guide afterwards. But yes, the newsletters where you'll get motivational messages from me is usually I like to split it up. Mondays will be all motivation, and Fridays will be the tech focused side, right? And it's gonna it's gonna help you like be able to mirror the say um mirror your your empowerment side and your tech side, and also sometimes I send out like um tools that can help you, AI tools that can help you with your business, right? I'm really big on that. CRM is so important. Remember, I I love systems. So one of the systems that I think any business owner, no matter what type of business you run, you need to be able to automate your CRM. And so as a Monday.com partner, I share tidbits about why CRM is important, how to automate your business when you're not there. Like I went to Prague on a business trip and my business was still operating, right? I was still sending out newsletter. How is that? Because I have my effective automations already set up. And so if you join my newsletter, you'll learn a little about that. You can also join my private Facebook group, which I'll share as well. But that group is only specific to business owners that are interested in adding the innovation to their business and growing it.

SPEAKER_01 39:45

So and it may not be you yet, but at some point your business gets to grow. God wants us to live in abundance, He wants our businesses to grow, and it cannot grow if you do not put systems in place, if you do not leverage partnerships. So Cynthia, thank you so much. And if you people want to connect with you, what is the best way and place for them to connect with you?

SPEAKER_00 40:15

I will say I'm on all social media platforms except for X, right? But uh, I'm on LinkedIn, I'm on Facebook, I'm on Instagram, but I will give my Instagram out because on my Instagram, there's my AI chatbot, Sage Beauty. She, and if I'm not there to answer any of your questions, if you can't send out any emails, you can definitely reach out to her. She's gonna help you identify your purpose and your passion and give you some strategy tips on how to be successful. So um it's Ama, my guardian name, A M M A underscore G-Y-N M-E-A Ama underscore Janmia. And if you go on there, you'll see Sage Beauty. She's on the top uh right, and you can just click on her and you can ask her any questions and stuff like that about it. If um she's not able to answer any questions, and I know she will, you can definitely reach out to me in the inbox and then um I'll have my VA um answer those inboxes as well.

SPEAKER_01 41:12

Absolutely amazing. Thank you so much. And folks, if you enjoyed this message, if you were going, wow, see, we don't have to be thinking we're too much, or thinking I'm not there yet. Yes, or anything else, and you know somebody else who you think could benefit from this conversation, who could see how God can use anything and anyone, no matter what they think about themselves, and elevate them to the place he's got waiting for them. Please share this with them. Don't forget to like and subscribe, and in fact, share it with five other people. You can share it with more. As Barry says, Barry Shaw, the ambassador of Joyce, says, share it with at least five people. You can share it with a hundred, but share it with at least five. So go ahead and share. There are people who get to hear from Cynthia, and if you know one of them, be sure to get them this episode.

SPEAKER_00 42:16

Oh, and also for your followers, if you have anyone that wants to be able to maximize their marketing. Um, also, my business has partnered up with TikTok for business, and they're giving away um ad um credits, which is so important. If you run ads, effective ads, you can get high-ticket clients that way as well, you know. Um, so um, I'll send that to you too, and you can send that. That's a great that's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 42:42

That is awesome.

SPEAKER_00 42:44

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 42:44

So we will keep you posted on all those things, and you can hear that Cynthia and I are aligned because our jump program, Joyfully Unleashing a More Powerful Purpose, gets to help you unleash your purpose. Then you get to work on higher levels to elevate that purpose, to have it have more impact. Yes, and I hope this episode reminded each one of you that challenges do not disqualify your calling. Sometimes what feels like interruption can actually be preparation. Do I sometimes go ahead?

SPEAKER_00 43:24

Oh, um, that quote that you just said, add that as a quote for your uh one of your it'll be nice.

SPEAKER_01 43:31

Yeah, and sometimes you know, the pressure is actually producing what does she do a lot of structure. The pressure makes you look in a different direction to find solutions and patterns, and that's often where structure starts. And sometimes God just uses everything that tried to stop you, to strengthen you, so that you can lead, so that you can find the strength of your joy because joy isn't weak. Cynthia, any last words for our listeners today?

SPEAKER_00 44:12

Um, I want them to just know that they are good just the way they are. You know, in the world of chasing algorithms, the most important code is authenticity. Know yourself, have unshakable clarity, and go and inspire the world. And shine bright online like a digital diamond.

SPEAKER_01 44:30

Oh, yes, I love that digital diamond. You've got me with that one. Thank you so much for being here with us. And for all of you listening, thank you. I hope this put a smile on your face. I hope it's given you a nugget to take into the week to lighten up your joy that you might have thought was hiding. And remember, joy is that infrastructure that is going to help you keep moving forward. So we'll see you all next week on another episode of the Joy Inspired Podcast. Blessings all.

SPEAKER_00 45:04

Thank you so much. Bye.

SPEAKER_01 45:08

Thank you so much for joining me on the Joy Inspired Podcast at www.joyinspiredpodcast.com. Make sure you hit that subscribe button so that you can get this and every other episode that comes out. We have lots of great stuff coming, and you don't want to miss it. So make sure to hit that subscribe. I am so grateful for all the reviews and comments, and I look forward to serving you in next week's episode.