📍EEA: Empowering Growth with Sherri Leopold

Interview with Sherri Leopold

RJ Redden: Well hello everybody. I I wa I was expecting a video to show up. But it didn't. And you know what? Sometimes things happen but I must say this, please seatbelt yourselves in lock all the windows. Please shut the doors because you don't all, you don't want the amazingness that it is about to be created to seep out.

You're gonna want it all for yourself. Because today I have invited Sherry Leopold, Sherry. Welcome to the Epic Engagement Adventure.

Sherri Leopold: Oh, thank you so much. I am delighted to be here amongst the Superwoman.

RJ Redden: Fantastic. Extraordinary. So, you know, I mean, I know you, we met through LinkedIn. Mm-hmm. A process you and I just talked about offline.

But tell us, give us the introduction. What do you do? Why

Sherri Leopold: do you do it? So I help mostly women business entrepreneurs stand up and stand out as that unrepeatable miracle that they are. We were truly born with the ability to achieve anything we set our mind to. I think we just kind of get beat up along the way and.

Sort of settle for a lot less than what we're capable for of, and also for what we desire. And I think that's one of the things that help I developed the wow warrior platform, which is wow, is Woman of Worth. And. Warrior obviously, cuz you're always fighting for that worth, right? You know, you, and you're not only fighting it for yourself, but a lot of times women are fighting for that space in the business world.

And so I like to say that my platform helps you go farther faster. I wanna share your genius with the world. That's what I do.

RJ Redden: That's, that's so awesome. I mean, I just, I remember so much of, in corporate America you have to be more aggressive. You can't, you know, I mean like, please be someone you're completely not in order to get along in our world.

Thank you very much. And it was, it was a message that continued to Hmm. Make me hot around the collar until I got too hot and my head was gonna explode, so I left.

Sherri Leopold: And so what brought you, you for everyone else that now gets to enjoy your services? So there you go. All is meant to be. There

RJ Redden: you go.

Well, so what led you, what led you to this place? What, you know, what was it that made you the decision that, listen, we're turning around, we are gonna make this platform.

Sherri Leopold: Well, I'd have to go all the way back really to a, as a child, I grew up in a home with domestic violence. You know, my mother was, she's passed now, but she was the strongest woman I knew.

Like she was so creative, she could fix. Flipping anything. Like if it broke, she knew how to fix it. Like, oh, we can fix that with black shoe polish or a black marker, or we can fix this tear. I mean like she could fix anything and make it look right and like that was like a superpower of hers. Right? But she couldn't quite fix the situation she was in, being married to an alcoholic.

And I always am very clear when I say, you know, I love my stepdad. He was a great human being. He just had quite a monkey on his back. But I watched her go through the process of so many years and finally realizing that she deserved more. And when she said, I'm done with this, it stopped. She had to decide that she was worth more, and it wasn't because she didn't love him, cuz she did.

And to the day she died. I think she loved him. That was never the issue, but she decided that she deserved a better life, right, and that she was worth. More than what she was getting and she deserved more. And I think that's, that's sort of the, the background catalyst, if you will. But ultimately what started it, when I originally wrote the book, self bullying, what to Do in the Bully is you was, I realized through a friend of mine in an event that happened that.

Sh it was on the catalyst was Anthony Bourdain and Kate Spade committing suicide like three days apart. And I was like, holy crap. I thought. Oh my God. They had dream jobs, like they had more money they'd ever spend in their entire lifetime. They took themselves out, they had family, they had friends. And I was like looking at my poor friend who is going through a really tough time, and I was like, I.

I don't know how to save her. Like all I could think of was I, and I knew that it boiled down. I was like, what would be the common denominator between her who was working in a retail grocery store and didn't have all these things? Right? I didn't, I wanted to help her not be that statistic. Yeah. And I was like, I tried to figure out what was the common denominator.

Cause she wasn't like them, but they had so much and they still checked out. And I was I, I said, you know what? The common denominator is what you say to yourself. Hmm. Because the thing is, nobody hears what you say to yourself, rj. Like that's, you can degrade the crap outta yourself, and nobody ever hears it.

Mm-hmm. But the problem is it's insidious and it rolls off and it runs onto your network. The people you work with, you know, you've, you've worked with 'em, especially in corporate, you know, you're just like, oh God, here she comes. I, you know, like it's those people. But that's a process of what they're saying to themselves and.

You don't have to think about being hard on 'em cuz they're so hard on themselves. You could never match what they're doing to themselves. And that's actually been the catalyst and the underlying I guess if you will, catalyst for the Wild Warrior platform because it is about being a woman of worth knowing your worth, like in your core.

Like, this is who I am, this is what I'm good at, this is what my talent is. I could wave a flag. I'm not bragging. This is true. And being able to articulate it. Like, if I can get someone to that space, I've hit a home run. Like I, not for me, but I win because they are going to be better in the world. That is my goal.

And that Wow also stands for war on Words Warrior. So it's wow warrior, but it means multiple things, right? Because there's always a war going on up here. One, we're fighting that often people can't see. Oh yeah. And so, you know, it's, you gotta be a warrior. You gotta be a warrior and you gotta constantly battle.

But I would take this moment right now to tell everybody watching that you're the boss applesauce. You decide what you think.

RJ Redden: You are the boss

Sherri Leopold: applesauce? Yes. I made my children say that on the way to middle school, all three of 'em, they were in three different schools and like I would say I'm the boss applesauce.

I would make them repeat it. Yeah. So that they would not be pushed around. They had to remind themselves that they were the boss of themselves. They could choose to follow or they could choose to say, no, I don't like that, or, no, I don't believe you. They were the boss of them and what they thought and how they felt,

RJ Redden: and that's an amazing thing.

I, I just watched this video yesterday. I don't know if you've seen this thing, but Kevin Smith and the name of the, the video is, trauma Is Trauma. And. Oh my gosh, it's like 35 minutes long. I was wrapped with fascination at this thing. But because he was talking about. How the brain, when you say something out loud, the brain processes it far better than it processes your thoughts because your thoughts come at you all the time.

Yeah, I mean it's, the speed of thought is a very fast speed. And, and you know, just having people say that out loud. You're the boss, apple sauce. I, I, I want that on a t-shirt immediately.

Sherri Leopold: I do have, I am an Unrepeatable Miracle on a t-shirt, but yes, I'm the boss, apple sauce. So you'll be happy to know that that was while I was teaching preschool.

I went for like eight, 12 years. I went to a conference self-development conference and somebody taught it and I was like, that stuck with me. That was the one thing I took away from it. I'm like, That is the most genius thing, and I always say children have it right When they say, you're not the boss of me, you're right, they're not.

I'm the boss of me. I'm the boss applesauce. So when I work with people, I literally say, remember who is the boss? You're the boss of your thoughts. You decide you wanna make a million dollars in. I'm the boss applesauce. I'm a mega million dollars like I am making a million dollars. Like just own it.

Already. Take it. I mean, like it's, it's done if you say it. And, and I'll speak to that about the brain. I'm also a Dr. Amon licensed brain trainer. So very much that's, that's in my my lane of, of love, shall we say. And you know what the thing is? Your brain processes everything you say. He has a phrase that he says, you know, be careful.

Your brain is always listening, and it's listening to that voice, that inner voice. I call her Ivy, which is also my granddaughter's name, but inner voice ivy. And you know what? It's feeding you at all times and it's sustaining you, and it's just like an IV you would put in your arm that gives you life giving or life-saving, you know, drugs, nutrients, fluids, whatever.

But if I put something in your IV that's deadly, it can kill you too. Yeah. So think about that. You choose, and I always say, all of us have this imaginary IV pole. It's right here, but doesn't go in here. It goes in here, and it goes in here. I'm fat or I'm stupid. You know, like you'll never amount to anything.

Somebody else saying it. You say it, you look at yourself and say it. Even if it's not out loud. It's like the iv. I always say, keep that IV pole here. You are born with it. It is clear as can be. Don't let anybody inject anything into it without your permission. Yeah. If it doesn't serve you and give you life, get away from my iv.

You're out.

RJ Redden: Yeah, what a practical vision.

Sherri Leopold: You know? Yeah. I'm a very visual learner, so when you talk to me, that's usually what you get is some sort of visual story, cuz that's what makes sense to me and that's what sticks with me. It just, and I think it's helpful to remember that, you know, don't let anybody contaminate your IV because your inner voice will pick it up.

And that self bullying starts when you repeat if somebody says something terrible to you. When you tell somebody else, it's now your fault. And that's another thing I talk about in the book. Listen, if somebody says, you're an idiot, and I go tell you, oh my gosh, rjn, you know what they said? Or teacher mom, but your aunt, your cousin, and your 10 best friends, you've told 12 people you've self bullied 12 times.

That person only said it once and walked away. Yes. You just beat yourself up 12 more times. With the same thing it that's layering in making it a fact, right? Instead of deflecting and saying, you know what, no thank you. I don't receive that. Yeah,

RJ Redden: well, So many people don't recognize we have a choice, right?

What do you do when you run into folks who don't even know that you have a choice whether to accept that

Sherri Leopold: comment or not? Well, and I sort of teach it as the process of like, so as we're on the computer right now, you know, if I sit down in front of the computer, I'll ask them, does it do anything?

They're like, well, no. I'm like, well, what, what do you have to do? Well, you gotta type something. Okay, so you're, you're typing, you're, you're giving it a command. Right. And you have to think about like, when you're self bullying and you're saying these detrimental things about yourself, or you're allowing someone in your circle to continue to drip that in your iv, like, It's like you're typing it on the computer cuz it's circulating in the motherboard and it's running and running and running and your, your brain is going execute, execute.

Cuz it's the computer, just it's trying to execute the program of your stupid or your fat will go eat then. You should eat everything because you're already fat. Like, do you see what I'm saying? It's like your, your subconscious is like trying to execute the program that you've been running up there.

That's why it's so important to go, I'm the boss applesauce. No, I do not say that to myself. I will not say that to myself. I am better than that and I deserve better than that. So I'm gonna give myself better than that cuz I can. Yeah.

RJ Redden: Okay. I could talk to you all day about this. I could, because the, you know, so many times in my life I have not thought, I mean, you know, when you're a kid and folks say things to you, you know, I've always been, I've always been that kid.

You are sensitive, you think too much. You know, and as well meeting as those people. Often were trying to guide me along a track of care. You know, maybe you should care a little less what people think about you. Well, you are too sensitive. I mean, according to what you just said, just rolls around in there and I become, you know, much more sensitive.

Sherri Leopold: Well, yes, you become very reactive instead of taking a pause and thinking, am I. Am I too sensitive to be me? See, that's the question. It's not like, am I too sensitive? You think I'm too sensitive for you? I am perfectly 100% okay for me. Yeah, I think you can go jump off. Wherever you want to or get out of my breathing space because I'm going to show up exactly as I am and the way that I was meant to be and the way I choose to be.

Cuz it comes back to that choice. If I choose to be sensitive, that's that's my choice. If that is hard for you, go look in the mirror and ask why it's hard for you to be around sensitive people because you probably have issues yourself. That's the real answer.

RJ Redden: There. There really is. Yeah. I mean, so many times in my life I've been called to dim my light so other people can be

Sherri Leopold: comfortable.

A hundred percent, and that is probably one of the first things I think I said to you when we met. Was I asked about the goggles. This is why I made part of why I made the appointment and the Cape. I wanted to know the story behind it because I absolutely love it, because what it tells me is you show up absolutely uniquely you wherever you go, unapologetically you, and that's your by design.

That's your choice, right? And I, I am famous for a, a phrase that I will share, rj, that is it's choices create change. When you change your choices, your choices will change. Say it again For the people in the back. You change your choices and your choices change. So if I choose to think, you know what, I'm okay if I'm sensitive.

It's okay if I cry at every movie. I often cry if you are crying and I'm talking to you. But guess what? That's me. I'm not gonna change that about me. I'm not embarrassed. That's who I am. Yeah, and you know what it means is I'm very empathetic and I can actually feel your pain. And if that's a problem for you, I'm sorry for that.

You don't understand me. But actually this scenario here is not that I have to change myself so that you're more comfortable with me. Yeah. That that's just not gonna happen. I'm choosing to be who I am and love who I am, and you get to be exactly who you are and I'll have no expectations that you should have to change for me either.

Yeah. Yeah.

RJ Redden: A looks this. Yeah. Bre is everyone. Yeah, I'm, well, I am super enthused and well, I'm gonna, I'm gonna throw your. You are free gift in the chat right now. Awesome. Will you tell folks about wellness for winners?

Sherri Leopold: Yes. It actually has a very interesting backstory. So I had decided that I wanted to write a book that was really about.

People that really were champions really with what they did. Right now I, in my network marketing, I'm in a health and wellness space, so, and I have been in that space for almost 10 years, so I. I want, you know, although I, I didn't write about the, my business, I actually wrote about personal health, and I'm a firm believer in drinking water and being hydrated because it's really pertinent for your brain.

There's a lot of things I could have written about, but here's the thing. I am winning in the space that I'm in because I'm showing up authentically as me, right as Sherry Leopold and every person in the book shared. It's a collaborative book. So each person shared their own unique story, like one person's was growing up in a home that was very strict.

Religious home and her actually really becoming more of a spiritual person and having it cause issues in the family and how they knitted that relationship back together. And, and actually she is Muslim, so she was. Well, there's a whole big story to it, but like she talked about that journey through that and how she had to act a certain way so she wouldn't be, have people prejudiced against her.

And it was a very interesting story. It was very cathartic for her to share it. And it was also a challenge, like a lot of the stories in there are about people who have persevered through really difficult times to really come out the other side. Feeling like a winner, like they won because they got to be who they are.

And that's really what the, what the stories, really all of 'em detail is people's journeys to being a winner. Right. And it, some of 'em are, are financial. Some of 'em, it's health thing. Some of 'em, I mean, they're just all different. But it's, it's a beautiful compilation and very inspirational. So I hope people enjoy it.

RJ Redden: I know I'm gonna enjoy it. Absolutely. For sure. And you know, for me, yeah, gosh, sometimes winning is a choice and sometimes it's a choice built on. No evidence at all. I've decided I'm a winner today. Deal. Hundred percent. Love ya. Yeah.

Sherri Leopold: And and you know what, here's the thing. I'll even take it a step further because when I say you're an unrepeatable miracle, people always think immediately that I'm talking about a religious miracle.

It's actually not really the phrase, I mean, It means something to me. But that's not actually how I'm using that, what I'm using, that I'm actually using it almost like in the scientific framework because your d n A is not repeated anywhere on this planet, never anywhere, and almost 8 billion people. You are a one of a kind that makes you ultimately a winner by taking a breath.

Because you're literally the only person like you, and you will not ever live long enough to see your D N A repeated because it'd have to be like 40 billion or something. Before it would be repeated. I always say, you're a snowflake. You can look under a microscope and a blizzard and there won't be one snowflake that looks alike cuz it's the same.

They're all completely unique and different. Or something different about every single one. Each one of us has those unique gifts, just like in marketing and just like however you build a business, you can have 10 coaches. They might all coach on mindset. Not one of those coaches is gonna coach the same way because they each have their own individual style.

Style. Even if, and I'll use John Maxwell's training for an example. You could go take a hundred of those certified coaches. They have the coaching plan. Go listen to the same set of coaching and you're not gonna hear it the same way. Why? Because they're not the same people. They haven't had the same experiences.

They aren't the same people. They're giving the information from the frame of reference of them right, of their Unrepeatable miracle self. It is going to be unique to them. It will sound somewhat similar, but it will not be the same because they've had different experiences. Yeah. So you're a scientific miracle if you just want to say that you're a winner because you made it.

You made it to a multi-sale being, right. You made it out to the other side. Let's just say that. Yes. Woo. So yes. Should celebrate yourself just based on that fact.

RJ Redden: Yeah. Well, so speaking of unique experiences and journeys, how do you engage your audience, Sherry?

Sherri Leopold: You know, I, I like to and, and we talked a little bit about this and this is how we met.

I really like to just have a conversation with somebody. I wanna understand what it is they're trying to do in their business. I want to understand how they're doing their business. And then I, I really want to understand if I, with what I do with my TV show or my. Magazine or my awards program, I wanna see if I have something that can serve their purpose and their needs to help their business go farther faster.

And, and that's what I'm there to do. I'm there to serve, but I have to first know, are we, are we good collaborators? You know, can we. SWAP podcast. Can we do something like that? That makes sense, right? That it's, that it works, you know, for both of us. Whatever it is. My, my goal is truly, I would say at the end of the day, if I have helped you succeed, that is my legacy.

I have done what I was put here for.

RJ Redden: Exactly. Exactly. It's about, Helping other people succeed. It's about the impact. We were speaking earlier of the ripple effect as well. Yep. You know, and, and I, I experienced this you know, earlier in, in life I think I was told, you know, you have an effect on so many people you don't even realize.

You don't, you're not seeing it happen. You don't, you're not present. But but it's, it's also you know, that adds to the bottom line.

Sherri Leopold: It really does. And it's interesting, you know, I don't know that any of us fully realize the ripple effect we have. So I was, Talking to somebody yesterday and was, we were talking about a story that I had read about, well, that was a long story, but about how a woman made a roast and her daughter made it the same way, and so she did the same thing and her daughter asked her, why are you doing that?

She was trying to teach her, and she said, I don't know. That's the way grandma does it. She said, well, ask grandma. So they called her and she said, grandma what? Or Mom, why do you make the roast this way? That's how I do it too. And she said, oh, well, when we first, you know, got married, I only had one pan and it didn't fit.

So I had to cut it to fit. Had never had anything to do with how you made. The roast. So that had gone like it was going into the third generation with like the most ridiculous story attached to it. But that's example of the ripple. Like she had no idea that that was rolling on and being taught like Right.

This is why the words that run through your head RJ are so important They. Go off you like an aroma. It's very true. In business, if you're afraid somebody won't buy your $10,000 coaching program, they will smell that like a skunk. That's my, that's my story about that is like you're driving down the road and you think, oh my gosh, what is that smell?

And you roll your windows down and let the airy take that out. Do you ever see this skunk? No. You don't want the skunk, you let the skunk out. That's what fear is for a business owner who is trying to do business but is scared, they're not good enough, their program's not good enough, they're charging too much.

Whatever crap they're telling themselves, that's fear. Yeah, and that is a skunk. Here's my advice for all the listeners. Don't be a skunk. Skunk says, don't be skunky. Now you know what she's talking about.

RJ Redden: I'm, I'm loving that too. Today

Sherri Leopold: in the,

RJ Redden: in the community. I posted question and the question was, I was considering a couple of different ha hashtags.

One sales breath kills and the other one's sales breath sucks. And to this point they like sales breath sucks more. But but it is, it's the skunk in the car. You, and there's no way, you know, there's no way you can act yourself out of that. You know, if

Sherri Leopold: you are, no. And actually people are repelled by it or by you, and they actually can't use words to tell you why they don't know why they will start fumbling and making excuses because they don't even understand themselves what they're trying to get away from.

And it's, you know, that fear. Is what it is. They're, they feel the vibrational energy of the smell. Yeah. You know, they like want to get away from it as quickly as possible. I see it all the time in network marketing and I'm just like, Ugh. Yuck. Stop. I mean, like, stop. You know, divorce yourself from the outcome.

Like, you know, if you ask a hundred, if you have a $10,000 coaching program and you ask, you know, a hundred people, and every one of 'em says no. Do you think your program's bad or do you think maybe the way you're handling the conversation's bad, you already worked on the program? Like, right. I mean like, let's be real.

It's got to be something in the conversation, right? Like there has to, you got, you're gonna have to tighten that up or. Change that up and do something different in that. Cuz you're not actually getting data on whether the program's any good if you can't get 'em in, that's not the case. Nobody wants my program.

Well you don't know if they want it cause they aren't in it. Yeah. Right.

RJ Redden: Oh, so many lessons we're taking today. The fear is the skunk smell in the car. Yep. De skunk. I'm the boss applesauce.

Sherri Leopold: And I'll tell you, the skunk smell dissipates and goes away. The more you stay in that. I'm the boss applesauce lane when I'm the boss of me that smell.

Absolutely is just not allowed in your space. Oh my God. Because you know who you are. You know your strengths and you know what you're good at, and you can just do it without anyone else's validation. Yeah. Oh my

RJ Redden: gosh. All right, we're gonna this is what we'll have to do with this episode. We're gonna have to transcribe it, and then we're gonna need to print it out in maybe some golden lettering and hand it all, hang it on the wall behind me.

I wanna thank you for coming by. Thank you. I wanna thank you for, you know, helping us with that link. I'm, I'm sure is I'm sure gonna read it. I mean, it sounds fascinating and. I just, the world would not be the same. Sherry Leopold, if you were not in it.

Sherri Leopold: Aw, thank you. And you know what? I received that and I, I, I'm gonna affirm that because I was put here just like you were for a reason, for impact.

And that is my purpose is to serve others in whatever capacity that is, to have those ripple of blessings. And if you know any of the people listening feel better and make a different choice, and it improves their life. And even a tiny little bit, there's that ripple. I don't even need to know about it.

I'm just already gonna know it's a thing. And that makes me feel good just doing that. So I would say my, my work is done here. Mm-hmm. My work is done here. No, no. Now it's, now it's everybody else's turn to, to go. And you know what? Be better because you can Yeah. Make the choice. Choose to be awesome. Live awesome.

Believe you're awesome. Because you are, you're a unrepeatable miracle exactly as you are. No qualifiers. Not when you get the job, not when you find the right partner, not when you make this much money. Nope. Exactly as you are at this moment. Yep.

RJ Redden: That's beautiful. Well, I am gonna we're gonna close up shop here.

The bot cave is closing its doors here. And just for, you know, just for the day, we're gonna go get some, we're gonna play some games tonight with some friends and, and do all of that. And hey, if you, if you have a hankering to join a bunch of people who. Want to, you know, hang out and talk about these things come to we kick bot.com.

That's where the community is. Would love to see you there. And you know, just since some like-minded people, it's not on any social platform. Because I don't like rules. I boiled a cake once. Sherry. Anyway you know, a bunch of people who don't like to follow the rules, but do wanna change their marketing up a little bit.

You get to do you honey. Yeah. Yes. Yes. Holy moly. So so that's it. Stay tuned for next week. Same bot time, same bot channel. I'll have another amazing guest, but you know, I mean, I don't know how we can possibly top this one. And that's all for today, folks. Thank you. Thank you. Bye.