Meet Rose. She is the host and executive producer of a new podcast called "The Women," from iHeartRadio. Every week, Rose interviews a change-maker about her personal journey. Get ready to learn about her own journey.
WHAT'S YOUR JOB TITLE & HOW DID YOU GET WHERE YOU ARE TODAY?
I'm a podcast host and executive producer. I started out by showing up to a radio station in LA and saying, "I'm here for the internship." It didn't exist. But I learned how to cut tape the next day. I prepped interviews. And more than a decade later, I have produced podcasts for legacy brands like Coca-Cola, Ernst & Young and IBM. I've honed my skills at Ogilvy & Mather, Gimlet Media, and running my own company, Arc.
TELL US ABOUT A DAY AT WORK YOU'LL NEVER FORGET!
Last year, I was asked to host a series of interviews at the Nairobi Summit in Kenya. It was the 25th anniversary of the women's bill of rights ratified by over 170 countries (Cairo 1994). I had the chance to interview the Executive Director of UN Women, Phmuzile Mlambo-Ngucka.
She has been Executive Director of UN Women since 2013. Prior to being one of the highest-ranking women in the UN, she was deputy President of South Africa. One of the most touching moments she shared with me was when I asked her, "Phumzile, how did you became a minister in Nelson Mandela's cabinet?" She told me that he invited her to his office, and when she walked in, he said, "I want you to be a minister," and she immediately said, "Why me? There are so many qualified people, I'm not ready." And he told her, "I've been a prisoner most of my life; no one trained me to be the President. You learn on the job, and I believe in you."
She was only supposed to chat with me for half an hour, but we spent an hour talking about her activism ending apartheid, how she and her then-fiance, now husband, would communicate for years via letters while he was imprisoned. She spoke about how supporting women cuts across every major vertical that is pressing for the 21st century. She spoke from the heart, and full of humor, ending the interview by saying how important is to laugh at yourself, not take yourself so seriously. She was a-mazing.
WHAT'S YOUR ADVICE ABOUT GROWING A BRAND OR A PERSONAL BRAND?
What is your focus? Stay close to that dream, that goal, and let that guide how you spend or liberate, your time.
“I realize now how important it is to have clarity around the number, the commitment, and the details. ”
HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR NEGOTIATION CONVERSATIONS?
I have many steps! Market research. Ask a man. Get a figure that I can believe. Start a little higher. Walkthrough the steps and practice with multiple people. Then I get HYPED! And I speak in MY WAY. I like to chat. I like to be excited, I like to talk t through it. When I negotiate, I am still myself. I say the number. Then I STAY SILENT. I sit. I tell myself, "Can I have an uncomfortable conversation for 10K? Yes. Sit in it." And I make sure I can wear something I can sweat in. And those are my personal tricks.
DID YOU EVER AGREE TO SOMETHING IN A NEGOTIATION YOU NOW REGRET DOING?
YES. SO MANY TIMES. I realize now how important it is to have clarity around the number, the commitment, and the details. How many months? How many rounds of reviews? How many interviews? Who will pay for studios? Who will be in charge of other pieces of the project? What happens when the deadlines shift? I put in all these things in the contract now. That way, I don't always negotiate, I can say, "Let's look a the contract."
CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT A TIME YOU’VE EXPERIENCED IMPOSTER SYNDROME, OR NOT FEELING GOOD ENOUGH? HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THIS?
EVERY DAY. But then I know I'm working hard. And I get hyped by friends and colleagues. The trick is to chip away at it, and focus on the work. When I focus on the work, I feel good, I feel productive. The finished product is proof in itself.
WHAT’S ONE TIP WOULD YOU TELL YOUR YOUNGER SELF ABOUT NEGOTIATING?
Just ask. And ask in your own way, stay true to your own style. Put the number out there. And then, STAY SILENT. Don't be afraid to quit a job.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE QUOTE?
“If you have come here to help me you are wasting your time, but if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”
