In this episode, Tara welcomes video expert Tracy Phillips. She likes to help entrepreneurs find their video mojo in a fun and engaging way. Her approach to video is bite-sized, non-scary, non-threatening, and non-techie. Going from in-person meetings to zoom conferences, we’ve all been getting a little too comfy in our work-at-home clothes. Tracy shares why you should get camera-ready every day.

Listen as she shares the importance of embracing your “sucky period” and making the desire to reach your audience greater than your fear. Learn how to avoid the sea of sameness out there and some Super Secret tips to ROCKING your Intro!

Link to the book mentioned: Get Different by Mike Michalowicz

About the Guest:

Tracy was thrust into the role of a storyteller at a very young age when due to an unfortunate birth order mishap she found herself wedged between an academic sister and an adorable scamp of a brother. In order to stand out, she spent her childhood making up stories… about everything.

After a meandering path of unsatisfying careers, Tracy found an outlet for her creative skills in video production.

She has spent the past two decades behind the camera in various roles building a solid video background. She found her production happy place was taking scattered and stale ideas and turning them into engaging video scripts while putting her clients at ease on camera.

Four years ago she left the glamorous world of corporate production to help entrepreneurs captivate and connect with their online audience using video. Her clients include Bestselling Authors, CEOs, Key Opinion Leaders, Medical Professionals, Holistic Practitioners, and Visionaries.

She believes video is not a one-size-fits-all marketing solution. She likes to help entrepreneurs find their video mojo in a fun and engaging way. Her approach to video is bite-sized, non-scary, non-threatening, and non-techie.

Tracy is a terrible speller and thinks she’s hilarious.

She runs her current business www.videoscriptsuccess.com (in her piggy slippers) from her home in Michigan where she lives with her daughter, baby daddy, and her rescue dog (who she loves the most). She enjoys farmer’s markets, surfing, and saying “dude” a lot. Just kidding, she never says dude.

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Transcript
Tara Bryan:

Hey everybody, it's Tara, Bryan, and you are listening to the course building secrets podcast. Whether you're a coach or a CEO, the success of your team and clients is based on your ability to deliver a consistent experience and guide them on the fastest path to results. This podcast will give you practical real life tips that you can use today to build your online experiences that get results and create raving fans. Why? So you can monetize your expertise and serve more people without adding more time or team to your business? If you're looking to uncover your million dollar framework, package it and use it to scale you're in the right place. Let's dive in. Hey, everybody, welcome to the course building secrets podcast. I have Tracy Phillips here with me today and I am so excited for you all to meet her. She is amazing, and is a video queen and is going to tell us all things video today. So Tracy, welcome to the podcast. So happy to have you here. Give us a little bit of your background and and what makes you tick.

Tracy Phillips:

Well you know, I was born in 19 diggity to No, no, I've come from a pro video world. So I've been in the pro video world for 20 years. And I started in documentaries, I was actually nominated for an Emmy in documentary. And about seven years ago, I was introduced to the world of online marketing, I had no idea it even existed. Like it was honestly like those rays of sunshine, it was like Oh, because I realized I have a unique skill set to help people online with video. And so really my magic sauce is helping entrepreneurs take those scattered but brilliant ideas and turn them into videos that convert while getting them comfortable on camera, which is a big thing. And you and I were talking before the show about it doesn't matter how confident you are about what you're teaching or you can be speaking to a roomful of 1000s. But suddenly, it's the Cindy Brady syndrome where that light goes on and you're just like deer in headlights, I like to say dough in headlights. And so I really have found my niche online, just helping entrepreneurs to step into their own light and use video to grow their business.

Tara Bryan:

I love that. And it's so so needed. And we were talking a little bit before the podcast about just kind of a little bit of my experience with the video too. I've you know, I was telling Tracy like I'm super comfortable with super comfortable being on stage speaking to 1000s of people super comfortable with meetings and working with people. In my very first time we tried to do a professional video shoot for my agency, I hired a team video team to come in. And they literally laughed at me for four days because I would get on camera and I go whoo, whoo, that I like I could not like there was just like nothing. And and so it's it's so needed this like being able to figure out how to do this, and, and how to go through this process. So I'm excited to dive into that for all of you out there who are also maybe like me, where video is not necessarily your thing, or you have found every excuse in the book to not be on video. Tracy for years. My excuse was when my hair isn't done. Yep, that's it like that is

Tracy Phillips:

that is a lot of I work a lot with entrepreneurial women and I am not a girly girl. I will not spend more than five minutes getting camera ready. But I get camera ready every morning. Otherwise, I will not record any videos. And so you have to realize what camera ready is for you. And there's a lot and we should definitely dive into like perfectionist, Patti, there's a lot behind that. And that's a story. So you're using it as an excuse. And I like to say excuses are like belly buttons, everybody has them. And it's useless. Because they're like, you can keep making up excuses on why you shouldn't be on video. But the truth is, you need to be on video and so it doesn't help you or your business by coming up with this. I mean I've heard them all like I mean, it's like, I My hair isn't right. You know, I I have wrinkles. I'm overweight, I'm underweight I like you know, like I always say like I can't make you taller, I can't make you thinner. I can't make your boobs higher but I can help you show up on video because all of that doesn't matter also to your audience right at all right? They don't care the only person who cares is you and that's where perfection is Patty comes in because she sits on your shoulder and she just reminds you of all of the little things that are wrong with you and all the reasons you shouldn't be doing video. And again, they're all just excuses and I when I do webinars or master classes, I literally have rooms of hundreds of people were in the chat I have them say Sucat, Patti, because you have to just, you know, kick her off your shoulder and say like, I'm gonna do it anyway. I'm gonna take imperfect action.

Tara Bryan:

Yep, yep, totally. Yeah, I made myself get on camera. I think it was like a series of like, 15 days or something with my hair all up, like in a ponytail and like on the top of my head and whatever. And I'm like, it doesn't like it doesn't matter. Like, stop, stop, stop. So when I did that, I was like, nobody cares. Nobody said, Oh, my God, what is going on with your hair? Like nobody said that? Although when I do have a good hair day, I do hear. Oh, your hair looks great. Oh, okay. Thanks. Um, but yeah, so that's great. And it's funny that you mentioned perfectionist, Patti, because when I met you, for the very first time, one of the things I loved about you was the fact that you were very intentional about being clear about who your people were. And you gave them names like that, like this person, eat, no, like I attract the person who, you know, is perfectionist, Patti, and I can help her get better on video and blah, blah. And like that was so compelling. Because so often, I think that when you can name either your person or a behavior trait of your person, it makes it gives you so much more clarity on who you're helping and how you can help them even just giving somebody that visual of like, right like that, that in and of itself could be the thing that helps somebody get over that hurdle. And you've just given them that tool, that, that wording to be able to say that. So I love that. And I'm sure it's just the way that you think. But can you just give us a little bit of insight into your brain in terms of how that works, because I think there are a lot of people who don't, who don't think about their person as like a little character and Avatar.

Tracy Phillips:

Well, I think also I was that person. So again, being the professional behind the camera. And again, this is something we talked about ahead of time, but so so when you're really good at something, and then you're told to do something, you're not good at all those feelings of like, I'm not good enough. I don't want to be an amateur. I am smart, I am educated, I am the best at what I do. And now you're telling me to do this other thing. And here's the thing about video, that's super annoying, because, you know, I love to hire everything out. But like, you can't hire out your video, you can bring in a crew and help you with your video. But if you are the face of your brand, it's you who needs to show up and video used to be nice to have. And now it's a must have like, there's no more like you can't sit on that fence any longer. And so I think when it comes to really, I mean, it comes down to to really understanding your audience understanding that the women mostly who are attracted to me are 40 and above have had a successful offline business want to bring it online, want to share their gifts want to reach a community of people who they know that they can help. And this video thing is just driving them bananas. And so I also work, you know, introverts are, they are so good on camera, once they work with me, because the truth about video is it's not about you. It's about your audience and helping your audience. And so I like to say you have to simply make the desire to reach your audience greater than your fear. And you really kind of only have to do that once getting over that hump and pull out the band aid and then just keep making videos.

Tara Bryan:

Well, and don't you think that that audience the offline to online, like they have not probably been the face of their brand or in the spotlight in the way that that video puts you in the spotlight because you're using video to become more visible and to increase your authority. So people are attracted to you correct. But when you're doing services, or you're working with clients one on one, you don't really have to appear that way. You don't have to be the the one who's owning the the almost wanting the authority and being in the spotlight. So even helping people get over that bridge of how do you put yourself in the spotlight put yourself out there? And we were talking about this too, is it sometimes you're working with corporate where you're almost told not to be in the spotlight? Right? Right? Don't shine, don't stand out. Don't you know, don't be the one who's you know, being vocal, more vocal than everyone else like fit in or whatever. And, and really teaching them how to get over that that hurdle is probably part of it too.

Tracy Phillips:

Big time and listen, and it's it's, it's a journey. I know. Everybody says that about like your online business is up but it really is. And so it is that first hurdle of saying like okay, I need video and I'm going to do it and just declare it I'm going to do it. And then there's the What I call this sucking period, because you're gonna, you're not going to be great at it right away. And, and I joke, but it's not really a joke is, you know, we're so used to being good at what we're what we do. And it drives us bananas that we're not good at video that I keep to asking people like, what are you waiting for, because you're not going to take a pill at night and wake up the next morning be like, I am awesome on camera, because it doesn't work out. I wish it did. I wish there were a little pill or an easy button, you could push right? But there isn't. And so you do have to kind of embrace the sock, realize that it's okay to take imperfect action. Because again, if you are whether you're from corporate or you're just a professional offline, you have a standard that you're used to performing at and video brings you way down the ladder. And so you just have to be like, Yep, I suck at this, and I'm gonna keep doing it. Right. So again, making that desire to reach an online audience greater than your fear of showing up and looking like an idiot. Now, here's the thing. Also, you're never going to look like an idiot only to you. Nobody else cares. So you're making it about you and your videos aren't about you. Your videos are about reaching an audience, helping them shine, helping them discover something they didn't know helping them make more money, whatever it is. And so honestly, I think that's one of the things when I work with my students and clients is when I say like, this has to not be about you like what can you share with your audience, and then all of a sudden, their audience starts showing up and asking questions, and there's this aha of like, oh, my gosh, I was totally thinking about this the wrong way. Because you think, you know, they see the gurus or they see the influencers showing up on video. And I have, I have video of people like Marie Forleo, from 10 years ago, and it is terrible. And she is thrown up against a radiator in a tiny New York poor apartment. The framing is terrible. It's like a crotch shot. It's like, it's bad. But guess what she kept showing up? She didn't start out with a crew of 10 in this beautiful loft space in New York. Nope. None of us do. Right? And why would you want to pay for that anyway, when you're not good at it?

Tara Bryan:

Right? Yes. 100%? Yeah, that's awesome. And I think that it is it's just like, your your need to serve. Yeah, needs to be greater than your need to show up as as being perfect. And being fabulous. And I think that, for me, one of the things was I was like, Well, I'm not gonna have anything to say, like, what am I going to say? Like, even with this podcast, when I first started, I was like, Well, what am I going to say? And everyone who knows me is like, you have never actually had a problem talking or expressing your opinion. But that was a real thing. And I was like, well, if I'm on camera, like what am I going to say? What's important enough for me to say, and I had to find my own voice with it. So it's like the video sucking, but also finding your own voice with it and then being comfortable with whatever that looks like.

Tracy Phillips:

And that takes and that takes time. Like so again, like when I we were talking about scared baby Tracy like my very early videos where I was quiet, and you know me. That's hilarious, right? I was quiet. I was reserved, I was professorial I thought I had to like teach in a certain way. So the content was good, but it got lost in this like really bad delivery of who I thought was supposed to show up. So there is that like, playing around period of like, who am I and I really love that you said like, you have opinions because that's the thing that's gonna set you apart on video, don't try and fit into everybody else's like, picture of what good video is. I am known for laughing at myself, like doing funny stick things like have a standing desk, and I will get on a soapbox and I will get really heated and I will like start to get fiery. And then I stepped down, you know, like comically off my soapbox. Right? And I like and it's really funny to people because they're like, oh my gosh, I just want to show up like you want to like you can't now you're not gonna be me. Like that is my unique sense of humor. But it's okay to have a sense of humor, it is really okay to have an opinion. Because if you don't, you're going to get lost in the sea of sameness. Right. And so, a lot of people Oh, no, I don't want to say that. Because I worked with someone very early on, who was amazing, but was so afraid to put her opinion out there that like, I mean, I don't even think she has an online business anymore, because she really got lost in the sea of of everybody else, because she just didn't stick out in any unique way. Yeah, yeah.

Tara Bryan:

Yeah, it's definitely it's definitely a thing. I think for me, and I want to get into your journey and how you've built your business and what that all looks like. But I love talking about this because I think it's so fascinating because it's something that everybody struggles with, like it's, it's just like the thing for me, I think my biggest thing was, like, stopping trying to read a script. Yeah, like I was like, it's all gonna be scripted, and I have to have all the things and then I would have the teleprompter and I would have all the things and I was like, then that's when you become I think the same you become that like robot, and you're reading, and you're reading and then and then if you don't like, it's the same thing when I first started doing public speaking, I would like, you know, have my note cards, and then I would miss a spot. And I'd be like crap, I don't even know what I'm talking about. Because all I'm doing is like trying to memorize all my note cards. In fact, I always tease my mom, my mom owns a foundation. So she gets up and speaks to 1000s of people. And when she first started speaking, on her note card said, Hi, my name is Oh, yeah. And she's reading like, She's literally reading from her note. And I said, Ma, do you not know your name?

Tracy Phillips:

Well, I appreciate that. To look at it,

Tara Bryan:

right? And I'm like, No, you don't.

Tracy Phillips:

But part of that is nerves, right. And so there is when you talk about process or journey, you know, when I first started doing live video, and something I do want your audience to know is like, if you're not doing videos, the easiest and best way to get good at video is actually live video. And it sounds like the hardest and scariest way. But you don't have to script in but when I started my live videos, I would script it word for word, and it would take you know long. And to the point now where when I go live, I'm not getting my alarm goes off and like, go live in a couple minutes. I know what I'm going to talk about. I mean, I've thought through the content, but it's bullet points. And even with my scripted videos like a landing page, or a homepage or a sales page, I record it in chunks, and just edit the chunks together because your delivery is going to be so much better when you are engaging. And teleprompter is really, really hard to do well by yourself. So like we as a crew, you know, I come from a professional background, where the teleprompter is in the camera, but even still the CEOs, the doctors, the key opinion leaders that I've worked with. You're either good at teleprompter or you're not. I'm great at teaching teleprompter. I am not great at teleprompter. No matter how good I get my pre recorded videos are never as good as my lives. And here's an interesting little like factoid is your audience prefers live video?

Tara Bryan:

Yeah. Yeah. And because what you said before you can inject your personality, you can do different things. Or you can like say your opinion or you can, you know, do a little action. If you're on the teleprompter like oh, crap, oh, crap, I gotta talk as fast as the teleprompter is going. And if I miss it, then I'm like, Oh, I'll

Tracy Phillips:

do it again. You have to do it again. And you have to end the teleprompter trick to is, you know, coming from the pro video world is what people do wrong, as it's called tracking where they're actually reading you should never be reading because because the top line should always come to your eyeline. And so you should never see more than like three or four words at a time. And so that's when people jump ahead. It's just the wrong speed. But it's a lot to think about it is a lot like it's a lot like and again, coming from the pro world. I had teams of people. So when people ask me like very specific lighting questions like I can help with a basic like I can help you make your background, and your lighting and all of those things that are amazing. I do something called the home studio makeover, which I love. It's like 20 minutes, we meet on Zoom and you like take them around your house or your office and we find the best lighting the best sound and and make suggestions based on your space. But in the pro video world, when someone gets like super granular with a lighting question, I'm like, I don't know, I paid a guy like $1,200 a day to do that professionally like so I call him like, Hey, Nick, like, what's the answer to this? Right? Because I have a neck. Right? Like, again, when you think about all the things you have to do. Simple keeping it simple and having clarity. I love that when you talk about what do I talk about? It's not like what's in your head, you do have a ton everybody. So what what you're actually saying is I don't know how to focus what I'm talking about. So that it matters to my audience. And that is a simple process of just taking all of those ideas. We have a love of stickies, you and I and so like but and I do something called the magical content wheel, which helps you get all of that out of your head, but in a way so that it makes sense for your videos. Because it has to make sense. You have to be kind. You want your videos to be rather short. Unless it's unless it's a webinar. And so when we talk about. So when I do a webinar or a masterclass and I am using slides I write and this is so funny. My VA is like, I'm sorry, do you write your jokes out? And I'm like I haven't written out yet. But if you were to watch my webinar, you would think that I was just kind of like doing it off the cuff. And that's the difference is like there's a lot of practice that goes behind making it sound natural and off the cuff. And so you know that it's like permission to permission to learn something that you're you're not an expert at like you're not, you know, like we don't expect you to show up in this perfectly quaffed perfectly produced perfectly perfect world.

Tara Bryan:

Well, and in fact, I think that people are more attracted to people when they're not like that. Right? Like, yeah, I mean, I want to work with people who aren't super polished and look like they've got everything I had percent figure it out, because then I'm like, Oh, well, they you know, they're not a hot mess at all so well, and you're

Tracy Phillips:

not relatable like you're part of so here's, here's the thing too, when we're talking about like selling courses, people are buying you, they're not buying your course your membership. They're not buying your coaching or your widget or your product, they are buying you, which is why it's so important that you show up on camera. But they're not buying a perfect version of you. They just want to trust you, they want to trust that you can bring them from A to B, not a to z not like Right, like it's just one little step something they don't know, can this person get me there. And in my world, like with my classes, I mean, we talked about like Ascension ladders and things like that people come into my world, then they'll take like live video Launchpad. Then they'll take six, six, then they'll hire me once they're successful for the test a magical relegates, they stay in my world, because and this is what I hear all the time. I just trust you. I know that you'll get me where I need to go. And that is what you want to build with an online audience. Is this trust that you can help them?

Tara Bryan:

Yeah. And that's when you show up authentically. That's when that right that can happen. Yeah, awesome. Okay, so very cool. So we could talk about that all day, all day. I, you keep my for my people, like you can tell, like Tracy knows what she's talking about. And she's got the passion behind it. So you, you hear that authenticity, in what she's saying. So alright, so I want to transition Tracy to you building your online business, because, you know, working, you know, in professional videography, and doing that kind of work is different than your own entrepreneurial journey. So tell us a little bit about, like the transition between like, oh, I have an expertise that people may want, and actually turning that into a business.

Tracy Phillips:

Yeah. And it's been a seven year journey, because I didn't know anything about online. And I was in a world where I was invited to, you know, one of the bigger marketing events, I had no idea who this guy was, it was just a friend of mine happened to be speaking on stage, I had no idea he even like, was speaking on stage. It was one of these weird things where you walk in a room and I'm like, is this some weird kind of like, MLM, like, whatever, like, this is out of the office, right? Like, this is not me. But then I realized, oh, all these people are trying to put themselves online, and they need video help. And so I will, I always say to my students, and my clients who come to me when they're newer in the journey, thank God, because now you don't have to go through the the rabbit holes that I did, because I really bought into that, like, you can take your expertise, put it online, and you're gonna be a millionaire, you're gonna make money in your sleep, you're gonna do this, it's gonna be two commas. And, you know, and I fell for it hook line, and sinker. I'm like, sometimes I do make like, $27 from an SLO in my sleep. And I do celebrate that. But it has been a long time in the making, like getting to that like waking up in the morning to stripe funds. And so I really, like just had to learn the online world like everybody else I had to learn Yes, I had a skill. Yes, I knew video. But a I wasn't great on video yet. So I had to learn how to do that. And I had to learn a lot about my audience. And so I mean, at one point, I hired a VA, and she was like, oh, what landing page builder Do you have? And she named three? And I said, Yes. And she's like, which one? I was like, No, I have all of them. I didn't know. Like, you know, you hear this influencer. So you needed this. So I was like, buying stuff. And I was, you know, I was doing Facebook ads. And I had no idea what I was doing. Turning cash into ash is what like, my current Facebook person calls that and so I made all the mistakes, I did all the things. And then I realized, focus on who you're helping focus on what you know, you don't have to do or know all the things, right, just be really good at helping people be comfortable on camera and reach their audience. And that's it. And so that's why, you know, I don't do a lot of the lighting tutorials. And a lot of those things I teach a little bit. But that's not that's just like an entry into my world. And so, yeah, the journey has been a long and I will say, like a roller coaster, because again, I do what I call and launching now, because I followed all the people and did all the things and it felt so wrong and not genuine. And I just one day was like, I'm just gonna do this my way and reach out to my list. And I'm like, I don't have a sales page. But I'm gonna do this thing called video lab and video lab is like years old, but it was such a funny thing. Because people are like, okay. Oh, I don't need the fancy like I don't need and so I really try and teach people like you want to validate your idea. Right? Just get some people in a group or get on a coaching call with someone and do your thing. And then figure out what the process of that was, and then put that out to the rest of the world like so it does not need to be. What I see too many people doing in the course creation world is like, they spend so much time creating their course before validating it and they spend far too much time firehose. Seeing everything into that course. And you know, like we were talking about one of my YouTube videos is like, how long should your course video be? And the answer is short. It's short, because it's kind to your audience, and you just want to get them like to the next place. And so, yeah, it has been it has been a journey. It's an exciting one. But I also, you know, I like to joke around that I am the internet mullet because I have been rocking like business on top and nap on the bottom for seven years now. And I, I can't go back into corporate, right. Like, I'm like, oh, no, no one can take this away from me, right? Yeah,

Tara Bryan:

yeah, you're unemployable.

Tracy Phillips:

Yeah I really am. I really am.

Tara Bryan:

All right, we all at this point. Awesome. So that's, that's amazing. And I love that journey. And it's a similar journey to a lot of people who kind of just like, sort of stumbled into this world. They're like, well, I, you know, I have an expertise. I'm good at this thing. I guess I'll start selling it. And so I love I love how you're saying we teach the same thing where you know, you launch your beta first before you go and build your course. Because the last thing that you want to do is build something and then hear crickets because it's really fun to build something. But it's not really fun to build something and then nobody buys it.

Tracy Phillips:

No, a lot of people hide behind the building. Yep. And they don't put it out there into the world. Right? I'm gonna do this. It's kind of like that. I won't go on camera until it's like, oh, but this isn't built. Oh, this isn't ready. And this isn't. And it's like, oh, no, that's more excuses.

Tara Bryan:

Yep. Yep. For sure. Yeah. Because, you know, ultimately, at the end of the day, not only do you need to test your audience, but you need to make sure you can get them results. And if you can't get them results, it doesn't. It doesn't really matter how cute or wonderful or no.

Tracy Phillips:

produced or like the editing and fancy and like, Yeah, nobody wants that.

Tara Bryan:

Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So awesome. Okay, cool. So if you had to give my audience like one cool, like, awesome technique that they can use to further their, their goals, what would that be?

Tracy Phillips:

I honestly think it would be to just get out there and imperfect action to be okay, with not being awesome on video, like to just do it anyway. And, um, you know, it's not a Nike commercial, but at the same time, it's a skill that you can learn, and you can get really good at it. And it's probably not as hard as you're making it out to be in your head. But like, I can never give people feedback, a less they actually make videos, right. And so, so I think the biggest piece of advice is like, despite your fear, despite feeling, you know, inadequate, do it anyway. Because it is, is a skill, and it is a tool in your toolbox of marketing that is never going to fail you and you're going to need it for years down the road down the line.

Tara Bryan:

And, and the thing is, is that, like, Done is better than perfect. But if you don't take action, you're, you don't have any way to get started. And yeah, one of the things that we talk a lot about is like your first iteration is not your last, like you can record a video today. And then you can get on and record another video tomorrow. Because you want you know, you don't need to but you could it's not like once you create it, it's like on a you know, on a tablet, like a rock, and you can't ever change it. So knocking in like, knock it off, right? Like don't affect

Tracy Phillips:

action, take imperfect action. And Mark Cuban says, and I'm like Queen of mutilating quote. So I'm gonna be like this one, but he always says, perfectionism is the killer of profitability. And it is so true because your visibility equals your currency. So how much you show up or don't affects your bank account? Right? And so don't let your perfectionism stop you from being a success. Yeah, yeah.

Tara Bryan:

100%. And the other thing is, is that, like, it's okay, if it's not perfect, but if you need it to be perfect for you, then do the work. Yeah, like, do the plan, figure it out, go get your hair done at the while bar, or the dry bar or whatever you have to do, and then show up right, like, do what you need to do to make yourself proud of what you're doing. But know that it's not going to be perfect, and it's probably going to suck, your goal is to make it suck less.

Tracy Phillips:

So every time you show up, whether it's live or pre recorded, or you know interview or anything like that, every time you do that, every time you show up, it is going to suck less and less and less than something I didn't talk about that I often talked about is my expectation gap. And I do this my hands and I know it's a podcast so they can see but I'm holding my hands apart. And in one hand, my right hand is where you want to be. It's all the influencers and the people that you see who looks super comfy on camera, right? And in my left hand is where you actually are on the other shoulder. Now the gap is not as big as you think it is in your head, but you're never going to get to my right hands until you start making videos and so you have to start making videos in order To get better videos, there's no there's no other way to do it. Right. So again, I'm just doing it.

Tara Bryan:

And I think the other thing that we haven't talked about yet is like the power is in the editing. The power isn't actually like in the video itself, like you could edit it, you could add B roll, you could add all sorts of things to make it make it so much better. So if there's, yeah, like one scene where you're picking your nose or something, and you don't like it, just throw some B roll on top of it. And it's, it's something that that is effective. So there's all sorts of ways to get around. Yeah, I don't get around.

Tracy Phillips:

I have a pre recorded trick I'm going to share just with your community, I don't share this with anybody, usually, unless they're my scripting class. But when you're doing a pre recorded video, and you have like, you know, very clear, like intro, what you're teaching and an outro, CTA after your CTA, after you've gotten all the parts, go back and do the intro one more time, because you're warm. And now your intro is going to rock. And the most important thing you say is the first thing you say. And so that's, that's a little trick that we use in pro production is you know, we'll have the doctors run through it. And then we'll have them go back and do the first couple sentences again, so that they're coming in with a warm energy. Right. Right.

Tara Bryan:

But at the deer in the headlights. Headlights, so yeah, yeah. Awesome. Super cool. Oh, that's a great tip. Okay, so um, my next question is a little bit of a different topic, but you have children, right? I do. Okay, so one question I love to ask is, as a busy mom, entrepreneur, business owner, rocking the world, like, I'm always curious as to habits and routines that you have that help you kind of maximize your energy in all the different things that you do as a cause I'm a busy mom of three and yeah, have my business. And so for my listeners who are kind of in this place of trying to do it all, what do you got?

Tracy Phillips:

Well, first, that the that there is such thing as a work life balance, I think it's BS, I call it a ballet. Right? So when I'm in launch, when I'm doing something, when I'm actively working on a project, I'm not as available as I am out of launch. And so my family knows this, my husband, well, like, he's, I also have like a super husband who, like, does all the things. And so I don't, I don't feel like oh, gosh, this is gonna get forgotten, or Oh, the beds won't get made or whatever, you know, whatever. I first of all, I would never worry about the non made beds, but but it is like that's part of our relationship. So that's very helpful. The other is, I'm a morning person. So knowing your routines and stuff, and my, my daughter is definitely not, which I love. So even on school days, I let her sleep in as late as humanly possible. Because I get hours of work done before she's even awake, then I check in with her. So couple things I do is I do not schedule calls before 10am. My time. There is so so I work. I check in with her, get her off to school, work a little more. And then I start my calls. I stopped my calls at 4pm She blissfully takes the bus now. She didn't always and so like she doesn't get home to 417. So I work my schedule around her schedule, always no, sometimes I have to take a call. The other thing is just really being mindful of when I am present with her and present with her or my husband or like and that is something I've had to work at put away the phone check in my husband will say to me like he's like check in. And that means like, put down your phone, like stop checking. And so it's a ballet of just learning like, and that's not right for everybody. Right? Like it could be totally different for another family. But it totally works for us. And I don't work on Fridays. I don't work on Fridays. And that started with her schedule, because she was she went to a kindergarten that was only half day and she would get off at noon. And we would do we would do adventure Fridays, which sometimes meant going to the library or food dropping or whatever it was. But I kept adventure Fridays for myself, because part of being an online business owner is knowing that burnout is real. You know, like when people laughing like, Oh, you're so lucky you get to work at home. We even had friends who had an infant when we lived in another state. And they they were like asked us to watch their infant because we didn't work and we're like, what the wants, like, I can't watch your kid. Like I'm like, it was such a funny thing to me that they thought like working from home meant I wasn't working. And so I feel like and you know, as an entrepreneur and all of your audience knows like you work extra hard. You are like sometimes your days are way, way, way, way longer than they would if you were like going into a nine to six or something. But again, that balance of just not working on Fridays is has been I think what keeps me saying Yep, yeah,

Tara Bryan:

I agree. 100% Yeah, Fridays are my day. Like yeah, sometimes I'm working but it's on my stuff, right? Like the stuff that I want to be working on or catch up or whatever. But yeah, no client call I was but yeah, so that's, that's so funny. So for me, the biggest thing is, is that I get up super early. And I take a period of that time. That's just like my time. Right? So it's, you know, some I'm not necessarily working on client stuff, but I'm, but it's my time. And so, so funny even the other day like my husband got up super early in

Tracy Phillips:

the morning like so I get I get a little pissed. I'm like, What are you doing? How do you sleep? And I'm like, Wait, you can't come talk to me. Like this is I can't wait. I love that you had that reaction? Yeah, that's totally me. And I didn't mention like so I actually the first half hour of my day. I read fiction, not no business but so I get a cup of coffee. I have a chair back there. That's my I get a cup of coffee and I read fiction for a half an hour no matter what. challenge a lot of what is going on. I read for half an hour for myself every single day.

Tara Bryan:

Brain Candy, I love it. That's what I call fix that. Alright, so speaking of reading, so what's one book resource or tool or whatever that you recommend to our people? That has changed the game for you in this whole?

Tracy Phillips:

hard thing? Depends. There's so many okay, my most recent is Mike McCalla wits, who is he's known most for Profit First, but I don't actually think that's his best but get different. Because I've

Tara Bryan:

heard of that one. Most of his books do just come out.

Tracy Phillips:

Yes. And it's mind blowing. And as far as when we're talking about visibility, and getting lost in the sea of sameness. I just a I love his tone. He's from New Jersey. I'm from New Jersey, there's that definitely East Coast tone in there. But it is an easy read as far as like readability. But it will get your brain thinking in a way that's like, oh, I don't have to do what everybody else is doing. And so get different buy my mike Michael Wood says that has been my like, book of 2022. Everybody in my community knows like, that is what and I've read it. And I'm rereading it. And every time I have an offer, I reread it again. Because how you show up for that offer. Like you got to do it differently.

Tara Bryan:

Yeah, awesome. Okay, cool. I love that I have not, I totally missed that book of his. Awesome. So thank you very much. Okay. All right. So last question. This is the hardest one of the day. No, I'm, I'm being sarcastic? Where can our listeners find you? How can we learn more about what you do and get involved in your world?

Tracy Phillips:

Well, currently, you can go to my website, which is . But I would say if you want to feel for me and my videos as as terrenos, I would go to Video Script success on YouTube, because that will also bring you to all the resource things. But if you go to Video Script success on YouTube, I have a bunch of videos, you'll get a very good feel for how I show up on video how I and again, these are pre recorded videos, but from there, then you can come into my world because I also have a live show that I do every every Thursday. And so I am really, really community forward into like, what do you want me to talk about because I can talk about anything right? And so I really do listen to my community. And when they want me to talk about something we

Tara Bryan:

do. Awesome, and you're definitely gonna want to go check out those videos. I love watching Tracy's videos because she's like, adds in some surprises that are surprisingly easy to add. But so often we don't think about it because we're just too worried about how we show up or what we're seeing or whatever. So go check out those videos for sure. Tracy, it was a pleasure having you today on the podcast. Thank you so much for imparting all of your knowledge with my listeners today. And and again, everyone have a great day and look forward to to talking again.