Ep.84/ Anxiety, Entrepreneurship & Style Advice: Personal Stylist Jamie Lewis
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Personal stylist Jamie Lewis has been a personal stylist with 10 years of experience in luxury retail at Saks, Chloe, Jason Wu, and Valentino. She helps women own their voice through style.Today Jamie gets real about her struggles with anxiety and becoming a business owner and she shares how she's finding clients on TikTok. We also dive into how clarifying your messaging helps you directly bring in exactly the types of clients you want. And of course, I wouldn't end the episode without having her bring you solid fashion tips on what you should and shouldn't invest in right now!
Plus my podcast editor, Jillian Grover shares her favorite thing about editing podcasts.
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What are your clothes saying about you? Do you want to up your fashion style but are not sure where to begin?
Personal stylist Jamie Lewis is here. Jamie has been a personal stylist for 10 years with experience in luxury retail at Saks, Chloe, Jason Wu, and Valentino. She helps women own their voice through style.Today Jamie gets real about her struggles with anxiety and becoming a business owner and she shares how she's finding clients on TikTok. And of course, I wouldn't end the episode without having her bring you solid fashion tips on what you should and shouldn't invest in right now.
Plus my podcast editor, Jillian Grover shares her favorite thing about editing podcasts.
In this episode you will learn:
How what you wear can boost your confidence and start conversations
Dealing with imposter syndrome and negativity in business
What pieces of clothing you should have in your wardrobe when you are just getting started
Quotes from our guest:
“Showing up every day dressed in an outfit that I love and really honing in on what my style is and really empowering myself to dress that way, helped me as an entrepreneur.”
“I think when you have your own business, you're always going to have some sort of imposter syndrome that's still always going to linger.”
“You don't have to have this massive audience, you just have to know who you're talking to.”
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JAMIE’S LINKS:
Jamie Lewis - Stylist & Follow Jamie on Instagram
JILLIAN’S LINKS:
Kim (00:01):
Personal stylist, Jamie Lewis is here. She gets real about her struggles with anxiety and becoming a business owner, and she shares how she's finding clients on TikTok. And of course, I wouldn't end the episode without having her bring you solid fashion tips on what you should and shouldn't invest in right now.
(00:20):
Welcome to the Exit interview with Kim Rittberg. Do you work for yourself and want to supercharge your business while still having fun? Well, this is your go-to podcast part MBA Part Cheer Squad. Every week I'll be joined by top business owners who share the secrets to their success. After I found myself working during childbirth true story, I quit my executive media job to bet on myself fighting the fear and imposter syndrome to eventually earn six awards, an in-demand speaking career and features in Fast Company and Business Insider. Now I'm here to celebrate all you rock stars betting on yourself, and I want to help you win Tune in every Wednesday to hear from remarkable founders and don't miss our Solo Friday episodes, a treasure trove of video and podcasting mini masterclasses with me. Exit the Grind, enter success on your own terms. Don't forget to subscribe today and grab my free video tips at my website, kimrittberg.com.
(01:21):
I'm preparing to travel to Florida to speak at Pod Fest, which is a festival for podcasters. And I'm really excited. My topic is how to make listeners love you, your voice and your personality, and basically how to level up your messaging and your skills. By the way, I'm not implying every single one of you loves my personality, but I'm a huge believer in sharing your point of view through podcasts and through video. It is not an overstatement to say the podcast and social media has literally changed my life. I was a burnt out working mom, and while I loved my career, I definitely was fitting my life into my job and it became really hard and realizing that I was not in control and if I wanted to run my own business, I had to put myself out there. It wasn't an option. And started showing up on video consistently and launched this podcast, which I love and believe in so much.
(02:17):
It has literally changed my career. And what's fun for me is now getting to share that because it's not like, oh, someone sprinkled pixie dust and made this person successful and this person not successful. There are actual tangible skills like nothing about me change, I just started showing up more. And there are tangible skills for every single person that can help you bring your authentic self, your expertise, your personality, more out into the forefront so people can connect with you. You can reconnect with old contacts. I like to remind people of that reconnect with old contacts and bring in new people. So it's really exciting for me to speak at podcast and share what I've learned both from being a podcaster but also launching other podcasts. And on top of that, I'm also excited. I'm launching my next round of video bootcamp. It's a seven week coaching program that takes you from overwhelmed and frustrated by social media.
(03:09):
We've all been there to showing up with confidence and with a strategy. And if you're interested in that message me, the link is in the show notes. It's actually like a lot of the spots have been taken up from wait list. So if you are interested, make sure to message me. It's really fun and really supportive and you learn the skills, you get the accountability, and then we do the workshopping together so there's no hiding. Now back to this episode. Our next guest is Jamie Lewis. She's a personal stylist with 10 years of experience in luxury retail at Sachs, Chloe, Jason Wu and Valentino. And she helps women own their voice through style. I have loved getting to see Jamie's business close up. I helped her with her messaging and her video strategy. Not only is she very talented, she really understands her client's needs and she also shares today how her struggles with anxiety have impacted her path as a business owner and how she's gotten confident as a person and as an entrepreneur.
(03:58):
Plus she takes you inside how she's marketing her business, including how she's getting clients from TikTok. Alright, I'm going to start off by saying that as I was preparing to start the interview with Jamie, she told me I still had a tag on my shirt. So how fitting to start with an awesome stylist like Jamie? So Jamie Lewis is here. She's the founder of JBL Styles. She helps women own their voice through style, and she uses her 10 years in luxury retail at amazing places like Sacks, Chloe, Jason Wu and Valentino to teach you how to style. Jamie, thank you for joining us.
Jamie (04:31):
Thank you so much for having me.
Kim (04:33):
So I love your story. I just want to dive right in. Talk to me about how you became a personal stylist. What was your path to that?
Jamie (04:42):
Yeah, so it was a very windy path. I had worked in the retail fashion industry for over 10 years plus, and then prior to Covid, I was at Saks Fifth Avenue like everybody else, I was furloughed and I decided at that point that I had been styling everybody else within Sacks and I could now do it independently and create my own business that way.
Kim (05:06):
And I feel like we're all like, oh, we started our own business and now it's rainbows and unicorns. So talk to me about the struggles of going from having an employer, having that consistent paycheck to saying, I'm going to do it myself. How did you get there and what was the hardest part of that?
Jamie (05:22):
Yeah, so I was a high-end sales girl essentially. I had my client book and I styled my ladies, but I knew nothing about business at all whatsoever. I knew nothing about it. So I had to really, once I decided that, okay, this is the path I'm going to take, I had to lean into mentorship and find people that I could learn from. I took every single free masterclass that was available possible on the internet, and I really dove into how can I learn? I have no idea what I am doing right now. And that slowly became a way for me to build a business and figure it out day by day. It was very messy and, and now here we are, and it's been a few years later.
Kim (06:06):
Talk to me about at what point were you like, oh, okay, I actually know what I'm doing or I finally have this piece right or this piece. At what point did you feel like, okay, I'm running a business, this is happening, it's working. I'm getting positive signs from the market or the universe that this is working?
Jamie (06:22):
It took honestly a full year of trial and error and just showing up consistently on social and figuring out what hits what doesn't hit. It took tweaking of my packages, what's working, what's not working. And it took a full year for me of just a true trial and error research and get to a very solid landing place of we're getting smooth now, and there's still trial and error, right? It's never perfect, but now we're at a good place. Definitely.
Kim (06:48):
Right. Talk to me about, so Jamie and I have worked together, so I know more of her story, which by the way, I love because now I can bring it to the listeners. Talk to me a little bit about, I know you've struggled with anxiety and how did your work and your entrepreneurship journey, how did that impact how you were feeling and your struggles with anxiety?
Jamie (07:05):
Yeah, no, I'm not shy that I struggle with anxiety. I also have very intense A DHD. So I had to figure out, like I said, with mentorship, I had to have somebody hold me accountable every single step of the way. And sure, I have a husband that could help, but I needed somebody in my corner saying, did you do X, Y, and Z? And let's hold you accountable for it. And that has been extremely, extremely pivotal for me to just stay organized, step outside my anxiety and realize that I can do this. And then also because I'm in styling, showing up every day dressed in an outfit that I love and really honing in on what my style is and really empowering myself to dress that way, helped me as an entrepreneur also because still work from home when I first started also. So I had to push myself to show up every single day in a certain way. And I'm telling you, that was a game changer for me. It made me feel more as a CEO when at times I wasn't sure if I was the CEO because my anxiety was telling me, imposter syndrome, you're not there yet, dah, dah, dah. So it was twofold having somebody in my corner and showing up every single day as the CEO in my outfits.
Kim (08:13):
It's interesting. So from my background in terms of fashion, and I used to have a jewelry business that I sold at Bloomingdale's and Henry Bendell, and in addition to that, my work in media fashion was a big part of it. So I would help select, not select the clothing, but I would help make sure our correspondence had clothing and it's always been a part of it. My coverage also, I've covered style and beauty for us weekly and Pop Sugar and tv, US Inside edition. But now that I work for myself, and I always saw the value of fashion as a thing, not I really did see the value of it, but I think even more as I've been running my own business, when I go to networking events, for example this fall, and I've been texting Jamie, I would be like, Jamie, what do you think about this?
(08:53):
So I went to speak at Fast Company Innovation Festival, and what I wore on stage was a brightly colored, solid, very flattering dress. But what I wore the day before was a hot pink full body jumpsuit that was very, very bold and probably slightly outside my comfort zone a few years ago. And now it's just my company's going well and I've always been confident, but I just don't care. I'm like, okay, whatever. My lower stomach's not so flattering here, but who cares? It was a game changer to wear something that made me stand out, look cool, I looked cool. And I'm also creative, so I come from the creative background. So for me to wear hot pink, it fits me better as a human than to wear an all black outfit. And so I believe so much in fashion and the power of fashion because I went out there, I'll tell you, so many people approached me, they wanted to talk to me.
(09:42):
And so when you're going to a networking event or you're trying to be at a conference and you're trying to strike up conversations with people wearing something where you feel awesome, even something that's just slightly nicer and maybe someone's going to give you a compliment on it, I just think it does so much for your own mentality, but also it's a conversation starter. So that was just an aside to say I'm a huge believer in the power of clothing. And for you, I know you've had sort of a path of your own, even though you're a professional stylist, your own style journey. Tell me a little bit about that.
Jamie (10:12):
Yeah, like I said, I have suffered from anxiety, so I didn't really understand my true personal style until I had my second child. And that's when, I don't know, something clicked in my head and some sort of entrepreneurship voodoo stuff happened and I honed in on what it was, and I always knew how to dress women. I've been in this industry for over a decade, but there was something that happened when my second son was born that I understood I needed to show up differently in my own personal style and I needed to elevate for myself that's going to be the confidence booster that I needed. And it is a dopamine hit. It's a confidence booster. It's like you said, I go to many networking events and I am a through and through introvert in public, and it has been an icebreaker for me. I've met new clients, I've met new friends by just having a simple compliment on a blouse kind of thing. It's been a game changer. So once I understood I need to hone in on my personal style, update my personal style and show up a certain way, things started to seriously happen for me in the way that it was meant to happen. And it's not all fairytale and butterflies, but it was a game changer for me.
Kim (11:20):
What were the not butterflies where were the times when you're sort of in your house, you're like, oh my God, this is
Jamie (11:25):
Totally, I mean, I think when you have your own business, you're always going to have some sort of imposter syndrome that's still always going to linger, especially if you have suffered with anxiety, it doesn't ever just go away. So of course that still looms in the background sometimes, but through time and through all sorts of different work, you know how to fling it away and move on with your day. So that will always loom. But now I have tools in place to say goodbye.
Kim (11:57):
I love your candor because I think one of the things I work a lot with my clients on is we all can have that moment where you'll be getting all this positive feedback, whether it's comments on social media or compliments from clients or survey responses, but then there's one comment or two comments that isn't as positive and that's what you'll hold onto. And it's really unhealthy, but also very common. And I have been working with my clients to cut through that, but I have the same thing too. I swear every quarter I'll be like, I'm never going to get another client again, or is this really going to work for another year? And it's like, that makes no sense. If I look at the past four years of running my business, it has been consistently growing. Of course, every year you're looking at it and saying, what can I tweak?
(12:41):
But one negative thing, I'll be like, oh yeah, no, this isn't working. And I'm like, Kim, take a beat. Look at your holistic self-employment journey. Is it going well? Yes. Is it this moment on this day that got you down? Yes, but also regroup and step back and kind of take the larger view. But I see this for myself, I see this for my clients, and it is important to have that moment and be like, okay, I feel this way. I'm accepting this way. I'm accepting this feeling today, but also off to the side. You go get it out of my head and move forward. So I think it's really important because I think it's important for business people, but also obviously a lot of my clients, I encourage 'em to show up on camera and be confident and message. You have to believe in what you're doing so much because it's busy out there, it's noisy out there. And so if you're going out there and you're messaging and you don't say it with a hundred percent confidence and a hundred percent clarity, who's going to believe you? No one.
Jamie (13:37):
100%. And listen, I built my business off social media. I am a huge, we have to be on social media specifically for me, TikTok has been my driver, and those people are unhinged on TikTok with the comments. It is a wild, wild west with what people will say in the comments, and sometimes it will bring you down because it is unhinged, but it's so important to show up consistently and just keep doing it. And just those people have their own issues that they are dealing with. And sometimes it will leave a little sting, but that's their issue. But you have to show up. I mean, social media is the game changer now.
Kim (14:13):
I love that point of it is on them. People will be like, oh, how do you handle negativity? I'm like, well, I don't know. You just have to say this person has something going on in their life that they're getting on social media and writing a mean comment. So it's more thinking about where is their head at? I don't know where their head is at, but it's not in a good place and actually has nothing to do with me. It has something to do with something else. And I happen to be the target of whatever. I mean, I don't get to be honest, I don't get a lot of hate, but when negativity has happened, I'm like, you know what? It's fine. I'm going to envision you as a sad person in their basement, unhappy and whatever. And talk to me about, I love how you were talking before about mentorship. So Jamie and I have worked together. I'd love to hear, so when you came to work with me on messaging and branding and video work, what was the biggest challenge for you then?
Jamie (14:58):
So like I said, I had been showing up on social consistently, but there wasn't a true messaging behind it. I wasn't sure what my messaging was. I knew what I believed in. I knew what my struggles and my desires were and all of that, but I wasn't putting one together. It wasn't making sense. It was just me consistently showing up without a real game plan behind it, which is better than not showing up at all, right? But it was time to elevate and tweak it and make sure that what I was saying made all of the sense in the world to people listening
Kim (15:31):
What have been some of the biggest game changers from our work together.
Jamie (15:35):
So now I know honestly how to pitch myself in a way that makes sense and isn't me just stuttering, I know how to say what my mission is and confidently say that more importantly because it's my core values as my business. So that alone has been worth so much for me professionally and personally to understand that I help women own their voice through style. That is what I do. That is my business. And I believe in that through and through. And that is just life-changing really, when you can think about it just to know what you do and how powerful.
Kim (16:11):
Yeah, and I love that. I love that we came up with the own your voice through style. I do think it's really important and valuable, and owning has that connotation of financial owning is something you own. It has value and it has worth, and that is what you do. It's not just like I help you pick X. That's not what you do.
Jamie (16:28):
No, I mean, like I've said before, you could go to Bloomingdale's and get yourself a few blouses and call it a day, but what I do in personal styling is very different. We have to look at your wardrobe at a holistic approach and see everything that you have and how it is either holding you back or invigorating you to go forward. Everything should have a purpose. Obviously we have our leggings and our T-shirts for whatever around the apartment, but everything that you wear should have a true purpose behind it and is very different from just doing a one and done shopping day. We want you to have a wardrobe that you feel just revamped and you feel confident in, you're ready to tackle things. You're just ready for whatever is thrown at you.
Kim (17:08):
I love that. And what have been some of the results you've seen from our work together? I remember you were getting these really qualified leads, which I think is like, I'm like, oh, that's the greatest thing ever. Tell me a little bit about the results from our work together.
Jamie (17:20):
Yeah, no, because now my messaging is so in line with who I want to work with, who my ideal client is that the ideal clients, now I have them, right? And I will continue to have them. I know how to talk to 'em, and I know what their pain points are. I know what their day-to-day is. I know that so well inside and out that they are listening to what I'm saying. And they're like, oh yeah, that means to me that makes sense because I know. So my clientele now is exactly, and I had amazing clients prior, but as a whole, my clientele now is exactly who I want to work with. I am so in line with these women. They are perfection, and I'm excited for more of them to come out of the woodworks. Their life is better now when they have the clothing that matches who they really are.
Kim (18:02):
I love that. That makes me so happy. I feel like it's, I've had the same thing this past year. I'm like, I love my clients. This is so fun. And so when you get to have that clarity of messaging and clarity of content that's using that message, because what I love is you've always been really consistent creative on social. You already were doing so much great stuff, but I do think saying, here's who I am, here's who I help. And then putting that through video is so powerful. And to your point, you were getting qualified leads. And I think a lot of people come and say, is TikTok for me is Instagram for me? It's like all of these places can be right for you, but it's basically like you're getting a water hose. It's like a fire hose of water, and it's up to you to make sure the right drips of water are coming into your bucket.
(18:48):
Otherwise you're like, you're talking to too many people, it's not the right client, it's not the right demographic or financial associate account, whatever, but it's not the right client for you, then that's not really going to be helpful. So it's like for most people, I'm like, you don't want a hundred thousand or 50,000 Brazilian beauty influencers. If you're a tax accountant in New York City, you don't want that. So it's not about the numbers, but it's about getting the right people. And so I love that messaging focus always had such a great, you've already had such a great social, and I think it's about refining and tweaking, refining and tweaking, which is by the way, onwards for life. I worked in media for 15 years. I'm like, you're always refining and tweaking. You're always refining and tweaking. You're never done with your marketing, but I'm so happy and I'm so proud of you and it's very exciting for me.
Jamie (19:31):
Yeah, no, I mean, like you said, you're always refining and tweaking. I have learned what platform that is my favorite platform, and it's not everybody's favorite. TikTok for me is home. I love TikTok. That's where I find my people and that's where I'm growing. But for somebody else, it could be LinkedIn, the next person, it could be Facebook. Find the platform that works for you. And you don't have to have this massive audience, you just have to know who you're talking to and they're there on that platform.
Kim (19:54):
And I would love to know for you, for TikTok, I do think there is this, I don't want to say stereotype, but people will say tiktoks younger and your audience is more millennial moms or moms?
Jamie (20:05):
Moms, yeah, older millennials, that's of which I am.
Kim (20:09):
I'm an
Jamie (20:10):
Millennial. Where else? The millennial girlies. Yes, that's the majority. And also though, a lot of my clients are even older than that and they find me on TikTok.
Kim (20:20):
But to your point is, and I like for people to be listening to say this, you can be on a platform that even though overwhelmingly is maybe younger, if you have a platform with hundreds and hundreds of millions of people and you are looking to narrow that down into the niche that you want, if they're there, be there. So I think that that's a good point. And with refining your messaging, then you found you can get your clients on TikTok, even if, right? So, okay, so there's 800 million people you're not talking to, but that's for every business,
Jamie (20:50):
100%. And like I said, you have to find the platform that also you enjoy making the content for. So if you don't enjoy it, then don't be on that platform, but you need to show up somewhere. So figure out which one is going to at least you're going to enjoy somewhat.
Kim (21:04):
A hundred percent. It's that funny, I actually was talking to a client who, she's an educational consultant. She was like, I can't find the time to do video. And then we got to it. I'm like, it's not that you can't find the time. Video is not your love language, and that's okay. Let's figure out what is it. And for her it was writing. I'm like, all right, let's start with the newsletter. Let's turn the newsletter into other things. And so to your point, you making the videos for TikTok and secondarily Instagram, great, go with it. Okay, Jamie, I need to give my listeners some of your fashion knowledge. Alright, so number one, my first question would be what are the most common issues women come to you with?
Jamie (21:36):
Most common is they feel outdated. They just don't know what to buy or how to style. Like I said, elder millennials, they don't know our skinny jeans in or out. What are we doing? Are we doing a front tuck or not? They just don't want to feel outdated and there's too much information out there. So that's the most common struggle, just what do I do? I want to feel modern, but I don't want to feel trendy.
Kim (21:56):
And actually, so that's perfect segue into that. What do you advise people? We're all living on social media, we are inundated with trending advice and what's in what's out. How do you recommend your clients sort through that as they're following?
Jamie (22:07):
Yeah, I mean, I don't say get off social media, that's silly. But I do say if you are going to listen to somebody, what are their credentials? There's nothing wrong with being an influencer, but are they just an influencer and their only shopping for their body and their lifestyle, not your lifestyle? So who are they and what are their real credentials? And then take their advice with a grain of salt. So keep the scroll, keep going, but take it all with a huge grain of salt.
Kim (22:32):
I love that. Sometimes I see someone's feed and I'm like, and one of the exercises I do with my clients, with my students at video bootcamp is, whose feeds do you like and be specific. What do you like about them? Then sometimes you'll see someone's like, I like this feed. I'm like, this feed is all whites and neutrals and beige and you live your life in color. It's fine to say this is something I like, but then what you're going to do for fashion or for video is going to look totally different. So I love your point of like, don't use this person with a different body type, with a different life, with a different style than you. Even if you admire it, it's not a good reference point.
Jamie (23:06):
100%. I mean, I personally will tell my clients, let's say she's 45, why are you taking all of your style and advice from this 20-year-old who doesn't have kids who still probably lives at home, who they are not the same? Right.
Kim (23:21):
I love that. And talk to me about, okay, so we just talked about trends. Talk to me about jeans. What is a good cut of jeans you recommend for people?
Jamie (23:28):
Yeah, so listen, I'm not against skinnies, but if you are starting your denim wardrobe from scratch, the three pairs of jeans that you should, I would recommend purchasing is a slim straight, A wide and some sort of flare. If you have those three, you're good to go with your denim wardrobe, you have it all covered. So that's what all my clients typically will receive.
Kim (23:47):
Amazing. Then I have to say, because I do a lot of marketing and I help people show up on camera, what do you recommend if someone's going to start filming themselves, showing up on camera more? What are some good advice for what they can wear?
Jamie (23:58):
Yeah, I mean if you're showing up as an entrepreneur, also think about your brand messaging and make sure it is in line. But if you're showing up on camera also you want to make sure that it's not too busy near your face. So when you're wearing something a little bit lower, that is perfect. Solid colors that compliment the background. Perfect. You want to just think about the environment as a whole? So if you are showing up to let's say a set, what does that set look like? You really want to make sure you're not clashing the wrong way and make sure that it's just not too busy. I want to focus on what you are saying versus just staring at a busy print.
Kim (24:30):
And I love the idea of seeing where you're going to be in context. So if you're going to a shoot where it's your special day shoot, bring it second top just in case. What if you're wearing red and the background's red? You don't want to end up like that.
Jamie (24:42):
And most times you can look ahead and you can plan it out accordingly. So there are no question marks at all.
Kim (24:49):
And if I'm starting from scratch, so let's say you have a client starting totally from scratch, what are the top three things they should buy
Jamie (24:56):
If they're starting from scratch and let's say they are working and they are showing up, so they're not only working from home, they need to either buy a great blazer or a cardigan type of blazer to have in the rotation, they need to have a killer pair of jeans. So I would probably recommend a wide leg. You can also dress 'em up or down, and I would also recommend something with texture. So I would recommend, maybe it's a leather skirt, something like that, or leather pants, suede pants, something that's going to bring in a lot of texture to your outfit though, for sure. And also a blouse. So four things. They need to have a shirt to put with everything. So some sort blouse,
Kim (25:31):
A good versatile blouse.
Jamie (25:33):
Yeah, sorry.
Kim (25:34):
And just blouse. Does blouse always mean with buttons or it can be like a silk top, like a silky type of top.
Jamie (25:40):
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just an elevated silk top. It does not have to have buttons or anything like that. Yeah,
Kim (25:45):
I'm like, yeah, mama's body doesn't like buttons. I know you talk a lot. One of the things I love that you've posted on social is you advise people what to invest in. So talk to me about what's a good investment piece for your wardrobe.
Jamie (25:58):
So like I said, a blazer would be a very strong investment. I, for instance, love the Veronica Beard ones. I think you'll have it forever. Leather is also a great investment, so a good leather jacket or leather pants, you'll also have forever black cardigan must have a good cashmere cardigan like that you'll wear forever. So things that you can wear season after season aren't trendy whatsoever. Spend the money on you will not regret it at all.
Kim (26:21):
It's funny, I was just, as you were saying the word cardigan, I feel like cardigans are the thing that it's tricky. How do you recommend getting that right cardigan that feels modern, that still lasts through the years?
Jamie (26:31):
Yeah, so I wouldn't recommend one that's too fitted. So sure, I love the J crew ones, but that's not what I would do. I would do one that's in the middle of fitted and a little bit chunkier. So for instance, Vince makes really great options where it's not slouchy, but it's just not so librarian buttoned up. So you want to find that happy medium.
Kim (26:51):
Yeah, I love that. It's funny. I feel like this is actually, I don't know, I probably shouldn't share this, but it's embarrassing. But anyway, we moved, my husband and I were moving from a rental to another rental anyway, I had too much clothing. My friends came over and they were like, why do you have 18 blazers? And I was like, and I did not have an answer. And basically it was called the Blazer Venture of 2010. Yeah, I think it was 2010 anyway, or 2014, sorry. I had literally 18 blazers. I had cotton blazers from h and m, I had a feather blazer that I brought from Brazil. Why? I don't know. Anyway, I think blazers and cardigans are so valuable and important, but it's really helpful to have a professional advise you on what's the right type. I had been basically accumulating all the wrong types. So Blazer Venture 20 15, 20 14, blazer venture went well. I now only have five good blazers.
Jamie (27:44):
That's funny. And you don't even need five, have one or two and you're fine.
Kim (27:49):
Alright, great. I'm going to throw out the rests. And Jamie, talk to me about, I know about owning your voice through style. What has that meant for some of your clients? Like you showed up and you did a closet refresh, you did a shop day. Talk to me about what that was like for a client.
Jamie (28:04):
A lot of my clients have gone through body changes. So finally having the wardrobe that speaks to where their bodies are now has been life-changing. A lot of my clients have not been able to go to a store and just pick something out. So being able to show up somewhere and it's just done for them afterwards has been, they're able to show up at work differently. I've had clients get promotions, I've had clients that they work with, I don't even say this like this, they work with a lot of Bross so they can just show up and own their style in a sea of men, and that's worth a lot for these women and makes them speak a little bit louder when they're in that room. So it's been amazing to see their confidence evolve and they come back the next season and we review their outfits that they've worn. We tell stories about it, and it's just been so amazing to see these stories kind of come to life and the transformation that they've been able to have with it. They have not had a good relationship with clothing in the past.
Kim (28:57):
And I love what you were saying about once you have kids, your body changes. I mean, your body changes always, but once you have kids, your body changes. And I think it is so important to just sort of accept this is the new me of this new era until the next body change and say, this is what I look like now and how do I own this? How do I embrace it and how do I dress for who I am right now? And I think I hate when I'll see somebody, a friend or my mom or whatever, anybody will be like, look in an old photo and it's like, oh, I look so good. Then it's like, you know what, we look good now. And how do you just embrace that better with help from someone like you to be like, this is who I am and this not, I'm going to show up with confidence and with power and authenticity. And so I just think it's so awesome.
Jamie (29:42):
Thank you. Clothing has a way of transforming your body also, it's not about looking skinny or I don't even like the word flattering. That has a connotation that you have to be skinny. But once you find the right pieces, you realize, oh, this can actually do something. Once you find the right bra, it's like, oh, I just got a boob lift. There's things that we can do that make you feel just better. Once you find the right cut of denim. You just have to find the right pieces and then you're good and you realize, okay, this body serves me well.
Kim (30:13):
I like what you were saying about the word flattering. I actually hate it. Also, I think it's a word that our parents generation used a lot, and my mom will still use just because it's a part of her vocabulary, but I'm like, I don't like the idea of flattering. I have a daughter and it's like I don't want her thinking about something is flattering for me. Something's not flattering. It's like, does that look cool? Do you like it? Is it fun? It's good for you. So anyway, how can people connect with you? How can they follow you? How can they work with you?
Jamie (30:38):
Yeah, no, absolutely. Follow me on Instagram, it's jbl.styles, and please just always shoot me a DM. I'm happy to chat with anybody or head to my website, jblstyles.com and we can connect there. But please, like I said, just shoot me a DM and let's have a conversation.
Kim (30:53):
And what's your free download? I know people, if they connect with you, they can get a free download with style tips, right?
Jamie (30:58):
Yes. So I have an outdated to updated little freebie up in my bio and at my website, so definitely download that.
Kim (31:05):
Awesome. Jamie, thank you so much. This was such a great chat.
Jamie (31:08):
Thank you. It was so nice chatting with you
Kim (31:11):
Every once in a while. I love sharing listener feedback when I get it. It really means so much to me. And this one is from Misty Leon, and it came in on LinkedIn on my 2024 post about Happy New Year, and she wrote, I've been listening to your podcast and really enjoy it. Thank you for the work you are doing to help inspire others. Misty, thank you. Because making a podcast is a lot of work. I do it because I love it and we can all say like, oh, we don't do it for the feedback, but when you get positive feedback, it's a signal that you're doing the right thing, that you're helping people, that you're supporting other people. And so thank you. I really, really appreciate it. And podcasting is different from other parts of social media where you can see comments and likes podcasting.
(31:51):
You could see how many people are listening, but you don't really see that much detail about who's listening and if they're liking it. So Misty, thank you so much. And for listeners out there, if you want to share a story or a bit of feedback, I love shining the light on other entrepreneurs and other working parents and other people in general who are doing their own thing. Drop me a line at kimrittberg.com/podcast or you can message me on Instagram or LinkedIn. I love shining light on other people running their own businesses. This one is from Jillian, who is a very special person because she edits the podcast. This is something from Jillian Grover and you can learn more about her at jilliangrover.com.
Jillian (32:27):
Hi, my name is Jillian Grover and I'm the CEO of Jillian Grover Podcast Solutions. My favorite thing about being a podcast editor is I feel like editing audio is kind of like a puzzle, especially when your client makes a mistake and has to stop and maybe restart again. You have to clip out that mistake, but then you have to make the two in pieces fit together seamlessly so that nobody ever knows that there was a mistake made. So I love trying to fit those pieces together and make them sound effortless. Nobody would know. So that's one of my favorite things about being a podcast editor is making my clients sound amazing so nobody ever realizes that they made a mistake.
Kim (33:09):
Thank you for joining us. Don't forget to exit the grind and enter success on your own terms. This is the exit interview with Kim Rittberg. Don't forget to grab my free download, how to Grow Your Business with Amazing video ar kimrittberg.com and linked out in the show notes. I love to hear your feedback. Make sure to submit to me what you learned from the show and how you are crushing it on your own terms. Connect with me on Instagram or LinkedIn at Kim Rittberg, R-I-T-T-B-E-R-G. And this show is edited by Jillian Grover and produced by Henry Street Media. I'm your host and executive producer Kim Berg.