Elevate Your Speaker Game: Revolutionize Your Style with Malissa Davis

Malissa Davis is a personal stylist and entrepreneur with over 10 years of experience in the fashion industry. Known for her ability to see the beauty in women and help them express their unique style, Malissa has built a successful business by offering personalized styling services. She believes in empowering her clients to be authentic and confident in their fashion choices, rather than following trends. Whether working with clients in person or virtually, Malissa's goal is to help them feel their best and show up powerfully in any setting. With a passion for creating red carpet experiences, she understands the importance of presentation, especially for professional speakers. Through her expertise and guidance, Malissa helps her clients enhance their personal style and make a lasting impression on stage.

Go to Show Notes here.

Here’s the transcript:

00:00:01
            

Welcome to another episode of Straight Talk about Sales, and I cannot tell you, I am super excited for today's guest, Malissa Davis. Hi, Malissa. Hey there. Hey there. So, full disclosure right off the bat, Malissa is not only a really good friend, but she is my personal stylist, so she helped keep me together when I'm out here doing what I do.        

00:00:28
            

So I thank you, Malissa, because that is such a weight off my mind. I don't have to think about that. Just focus on showing up and doing what you do, because Malissa is going to do what she do. You're welcome. Thank you.        

00:00:42
            

It's wonderful. So there's so many questions, but I want to start with, tell us about your journey. Like, what has that journey as a business owner been like, and what has it led to doing the work that you do today? Wow. Very good question.        

00:01:05
            

I think let me first and foremost say thank you for having me on. It's an honor and a privilege to just truly be here. And I know this is all just having a conversation, so there were no questions that were given firsthand. So now I have this moment where I'm like, wow, how would I describe this? I would describe this journey truly as a roller coaster.        

00:01:32
            

So, I mean, super exciting, scary, adrenaline rush. Like, all of these moments that you have as an entrepreneur, right. In the beginning, interestingly enough, it was a hobby. It was a hobby that I would do. So I would see women, and immediately, I think I'm really good at just and I don't want to brag, but I think I'm really toot my own horn, but I'm really good at just seeing the beauty in women.        

00:02:09
            

I'm really good at just being able to just look at them, regardless of what level they're in, what part of their life they're in, and just seeing the inward beauty, but also the outward beauty, just naturally. And I would just volunteer. So some women would say, I don't know, or they're frustrated about certain things, and I would just say, well, hey, let me help you. So I started to volunteer my services just as a friend or just as that girlfriend or just as that sister friend. Right.        

00:02:39
            

And I would just be at the mall with my girlfriends. We'd be hanging out. We'd be having a good time. And then people started. And what was interesting, people would come up to me when we were in the mall and say, well, wait a minute.        

00:02:49
            

Do you do this for a living, or is this something that you do? And then I just realized it still happens.        

00:02:57
            

I'm just the support. Right. Eventually. And I just looked to see I have been in business, so I've been doing it over ten years, but I've officially been in business for nine years. So good.        

00:03:12
            

So I decided to launch my business, and when I launched, it became very serious. So it became one of these moments like, I need structure, I need specifics. I need all the things that you need to start a business, right? And that, I think, I don't want to say was the downside. So you know how a roller coaster goes up and down?        

00:03:34
            

So this is me on going down. Like, okay, well, what does all of this mean? Once you get all your systems in place, of course you go back up, and you're on this again, on a high again, because you have so much structure, and you have an infrastructure available in there. So that was the beginning. Now fast forwarding.        

00:03:59
            

Of course, a business evolves. It does. Now we have virtual styling, and I work for a large retailer. So I think one of the coolest things is I've had an opportunity to see firsthand what it looks like to have virtual styling, how to create experiences, and that's what my service is geared more toward. Because, of course, I can help you with your clothing, and I can help you pull something together.        

00:04:31
            

But I also feel like a lot of times women truly need to know they need to have that red carpet rolled out for them, right? So women are always rolling out this red carpet for others. And it's an opportunity for me to roll the red carpet out for other women, but also to show them what it looks like to be the best that they can offer from there. So that's kind of what it's evolved to, and it's really growing. So, of course, I do it virtually.        

00:05:06
            

I do it in person. I think I just posted flying all over the United States. It's pretty cool. Yes. Sometimes I wake up like, where am I?        

00:05:17
            

Not sure. But yes, as you know you know, we don't talk about it, too. I'll be coming that way soon. So it's one of those moments where the best word to describe it is just truly a roller coaster, but one of the best decisions that I've ever made to be able to walk this path. So it's really cool.        

00:05:43
            

I love it. One of the things that I so you talk about the red carpet experience, and I get to have that experience often. I love it and completely spoiled. But one of the things that I would say, and one of the reasons why I feel like you are such an important and integral part of my team is because when Malissa has had her hands in doing her part, you really do step out and you feel so different, right? You feel so confident no matter what's going on.        

00:06:24
            

And you mentioned the different seasons of life and things that are maybe going on, whether it's life or business or all of the above. And I know a lot of times it can be easy to get in your head about a lot of different things. And so, for example, being a speaker, right? Being a speaker, being a trainer, facilitator, being on stages in front of being in the public eye. And I've had this conversation with other colleagues.        

00:06:50
            

You are invited to do a speaking engagement or a paid keynote. You're all excited, right? So naturally you're just excited. Let's sign the agreement, the checks in the mail, whatever. And then one of the immediate things beyond like, okay, what am I going to talk about if that hasn't already been agreed on is, what the heck am I going to wear?        

00:07:11
            

And then you get in your head because you're like, I'm about to be on stage, I'm about to be in front of all these people. There's going to be cameras and social media and all of these things, and I don't have control over that. Like, there are people in the audience, they're going to have their phones out doing whatever it is that they do. And so we can all agree that having a Malissa, because what I would immediately do is text her, be like, girl, this is what I have going on. We need to talk.        

00:07:42
            

Right. You know, and I give you all the parameters. It's this event, whatever, but for me, personally, it takes that load off once it's in Malissa's court. I'm not scrolling on nobody website looking for nothing. Right?        

00:07:59
            

Malissa has it. We'll talk and then let me get back to my job, which is making sure I show up and give a bomb presentation or a bomb keynote. And so that is one of the things that I really love about the work that you do and then being able to have those red carpet experiences. They're just like the cherry on top. Oh, wonderful.        

00:08:19
            

Well, I appreciate it. You said it beautifully. I mean, I don't know if I could say it any better than what you said. One thing that I would just add that I feel like people should really, truly know is if you have someone that's in your life that's gifted to do a specific thing and that particular person can be added to your team or that particular person can come alongside and support you. It's a blessing in itself to be able to identify who those people are in your life, but allow them to flow in the gift that God has given them.        

00:08:54
            

Like, do that thing and just allow them to do it. And everybody surely wins. You win because obviously you look amazing. You didn't have to worry about it, but now you can focus on what specific thing that you were paid to do. Right?        

00:09:09
            

Yes. And then I in turn and I'm using my gift, I'm using my talent and my ability, and then my business is growing from that aspect as well, too, just simply because I have the freedom to be able to just create is what I like to say. Like create. Right. So it's just really good.        

00:09:31
            

I love it. So one of the reasons why I invited you to be on the podcast is because ever since the cooties, a lot of things have shifted, right? There's this virtual format, a lot of things are online. And I feel like in some ways, it's a blessing and a curse. And when it comes to sales, I know that the more confident you feel as that salesperson, the better and more powerfully and more effectively you show up in your work.        

00:10:01
            

What are some of the tips and strategies that you provide for your clients, whether they're showing up in a virtual environment or in person to make sure that they're showing up powerfully and confidently? One thing, when I meet with clients, one of the first things that I tell them, I try to let them know first and foremost, I am not trying to get them to participate in a trend. I am not trying to get them to dress like the latest person, right? And I'm not trying to get them to dress like me because a lot of times people will date me before they commit. So they'll go peek on my social media, they'll go kind of look around and they'll see.        

00:10:46
            

And it's not that I don't believe that I dress, I'm sure I dress well. But sometimes people can look at the bright, bold colors or look at certain things that I wear and decide, like, well, no, this is not necessarily what I want. I'm more of a classic person. I prefer darker colors, et cetera, et cetera. Whatever they decide, the reason I bring those things up is because I want to disarm that particular person.        

00:11:10
            

And I want them to not be afraid to be able to try something new, but also understand that I'm not here necessarily trying to put someone in a box of a trend or put someone in a box of this is what everybody is wearing. Let me put you in that particular thing too. What I'm trying to do is really to get them to be authentic. I'm trying to get them to know that they have a style, they have a unique way of showing up in the world. So let's find what that looks like.        

00:11:48
            

So that's one of the first things that I do, and I do that in person and virtually as well, too. So we start with let's have this conversation. Let me tell you what I'm not trying to do now. Let's move forward so that we can see what this looks like for them in the virtual world. It's really important to know that people are only going to see you truly from the waist up, right?        

00:12:13
            

Let's be honest now, I can remember when 2020 happened. I did a video and was like, Guys, wear pants. Put pants on, please. Just put some pants on, right? So we've had that conversation already, so.        

00:12:25
            

Hopefully everybody's doing it. I won't judge you if you're not. But now people just realize that your background needs to be interesting, or if you want to do a virtual background, that's totally fine, but just make sure that whatever your background is, whatever you're doing is not clashing with you as you show up. Make sure that the seat is correct. Make sure that that camera is hitting you at the right place just to make sure that it's not making you look wider or it's not making you look distorted.        

00:12:57
            

And then we start focusing on color. We start thinking, we start having conversations about makeup. We start like your glasses. Like, your glasses are the thing. Right.        

00:13:07
            

Like haircut. Right. So we just start having conversations about what does that look like. And again, I could go on and on, but that's just showing up on video. That's just like a quick little tip, a pro tip.        

00:13:19
            

Just make sure that the camera is hitting at the correct spot, and you have on a color that's not going to clash with your background. I love it. I could go on and on. Oh, my gosh. I know, because we've had these conversations back and forth, and I remember so we've been working together now for ten years.        

00:13:39
            

It's been ten years, yes. And I remember some of those early conversations, so I was definitely like, are we not doing that? More classic? It would be pops of color. I feel know you can definitely in my brand, see the evolution, but it was definitely we're not doing all know Malissa's, right?        

00:14:03
            

She's telling the truth. She was like, okay, Nadia, we'll do this. And then now I'm like, okay, just trust the process. So now she's free to do whatever. But in the beginning, it was, girl, we're not doing that.        

00:14:14
            

It was no, but you know what's interesting? The exact same way that you have to find a doctor and you have to trust that doctor, and you talk to the doctor, and the doctor is that bedside manner. I have to have that bedside manner to be able to say, okay, I want you to trust me, but I don't want to put you in shock. I don't want to put you in a coma. Right.        

00:14:39
            

What do I do in order to. Get you to trust me? So I just take my time. Yeah. So it's been ten years in the making.        

00:14:48
            

See the evolution of Nadia. We should put together a video montage. Evolution. But I'm sure I have so many images of you, I probably could. You probably could.        

00:14:59
            

It's been a lot. So yeah. We went from very structured suits to now we have pictures with feathers and all kinds of stuff, so yeah. It's been so wonderful, the journey. Yes.        

00:15:13
            

One of the things, as I'm thinking about, let's talk about travel, because the world's opened back up. A lot of people are out in these streets. They outside, we outside. Right. But travel can be stressful.        

00:15:25
            

I know for me, I'm the last minute packer and again, it almost goes back to preparing for a big stage is packing and being prepared. So I feel like when it comes to professional speakers, you tend to have what I would classify two types. Basically, when it comes to style, you have your uniform speakers, so they basically have their uniform, if you will, and then you have your speakers like, girl, we need a fresh look every time I step on stage. And so what are some strategies for either one or pros and cons and how you would advise speakers or trainers to be like, hey, here are some tips on how to best prepare for either style or preference. Right?        

00:16:12
            

So let me start off with the one who's the uniform, the one who's the uniformed person. That particular person is probably someone truly who gets kind of frustrated with clothing and doesn't want to think about it and doesn't want to. It's a non factor for that person, truly. Right. So they've decided, this is what I'm going to do, and this is what I'm going to do every time.        

00:16:37
            

The dilemma behind that is every time they go on stage, they look the same. So when we post these pictures on social media, let's say that they decided that they were going to do a black suit with a white blouse. When you post these pictures on social media, a lot of times people may think that you're just posting the same thing over and over again, not realizing that you're traveling all over the world and you're speaking at all of these different places and you have this huge platform. But because you look the same all the time, it can be challenging. Now let me say I understand.        

00:17:12
            

Steve Jobs did it. I get it. But a lot of people are not Steve Jobs. He had his uniform of all black, right? And that's what he did.        

00:17:20
            

But nine times out of ten, you're not Apple.        

00:17:27
            

You said not yet. I said just saying. Just saying. Sure. And not yet.        

00:17:34
            

Yes. Speak it. Speak it. Receive it.        

00:17:39
            

It's the issue of being frustrated with clothing. And if someone decided that they were going to hire a stylist and say, okay, these are the classic things that I like, let's mix it up within this parameter, I think that they would be a lot happier. Instead of just sticking with the uniform, I really would recommend just branch off just a little bit because we're in a day and an age where the uniform is not. I'm not saying it's not welcomed, but it's not necessarily necessary because we have so many different options now. You can still take that uniform and make something interesting or something different out of it for my person who wants to truly wear something, and then every time they hit that stage, they have to wear something else, which is truly like a celebrity stylist, right? So once you've worn that thing, that thing has been on Instagram, it's been on Facebook, it's been multiple different places.        

00:18:43
            

And now we need to figure out what do we do with this, because we can't do it again. And you know how I am if. You allow me to share with the audience how you share with the people. Listen.        

00:19:02
            

One of the things even addressing Dr. Nadia, she travels often, and she speaks on platforms often, and she's seen often. So a lot of times we'll have these images where we put these really cool looks together. They're very unique.        

00:19:20
            

Some can be loud, some can be muted, but they're very different, right? They're such cool pieces. And I have to just be mindful that, okay, these are really cool pieces. This 1 may not be able to see the day of light for another six months, maybe nine months. And then when we bring it back out, we have to bring it back out with if you wore it with pants, now we have to think about putting it with a skirt, or we may have to think about layering it.        

00:19:46
            

So we have to get really creative on how we pull these pieces out. Just simply because we live in a day and age where things get rotated really quickly, people get bored with the same thing. And if you have somebody like Dr. Nadia, who's super, super creative just in her style, and just even when she know, you just don't want to do a disservice to her brand. And that's what we need to be mindful of.        

00:20:12
            

What is your brand saying about you? What do you want the people to know? And then we just have to be really strategic. The last thing I'll say, too, is it's like a puzzle piece. So we're putting pieces together to be able to create your brand, but we're also being really true to who you are because you might not want the feathers, right?        

00:20:36
            

But if you don't want the feathers, that's okay. We have something for you as well, too. So those are kind of some of my pro tips. I love it. Again, I could talk about.        

00:20:49
            

Think. So I did do a keynote earlier this year, and you were right there. But one of the things that we did with that was also was shoes, right? I want people to understand when it comes to really feeling confident, there's so many aspects, right? The hair has to be right.        

00:21:12
            

The makeup is right. The clothes have to be right. But also, there's also that conversation that you and I have around, like, Malissa, I'm going to be on my feet, right? I'm going to be up and mixing and mingling. We're selling books, and I have to did I'll let you tell them what we did with that particular look?        

00:21:33
            

But I was like, Girl, I don't see me doing a three inch or five inch stiletto this go round. Which. Was the blue jumpsuit.        

00:21:44
            

That was nice with the blue jumpsuit. Long story short, with the blue jumpsuit, what we decided to do was we got you a shoe, didn't we? Didn't we get you a tall shoe? So we got a tall shoe. Did we get a tall shoe?        

00:22:03
            

And then we went with a lower shoe. I know, we did get sneaker. We did the red sneakers. Thank you. So I work with you often.        

00:22:12
            

I work with you.        

00:22:16
            

I'm like, which one was it? So I can remember this. So one of the cool things now, this is a trend. This was a trend that was we're still kind of a trend going now. So a lot of times what women will do is they'll wear sneakers with their suits.        

00:22:29
            

They'll wear sneakers. And when I say sneakers, I am not talking about the ones you hop on the treadmill with. People just don't do that to me. But we're talking about sneakers that are comfort sneakers, but ones that are just very attractive. So she was going to be on her feet for a really long time.        

00:22:45
            

So what we decided to do was to do a sneaker, but we did the blue jumpsuit. But her sneakers were this really super cool red, and then they had neon that was at the bottom. Is that the one we did or no, it was like a neon blue. It's a lighter blue. I believe it was the blue.        

00:23:03
            

And then did it go into the neon? Right? Like if you were to kick your foot up if you kick your foot up, it was a different color. So her foot was comfortable, but her shoe was so cool. And then we threw on a beautiful neck piece with it.        

00:23:18
            

And then truly, it created a vibe. It created something very intentional, but it was very well put together. And then also, of course, it stuck with the trend. Now, one thing I always tell people, too, so sometimes people will say, well, this event is casual. This event is a casual event, possibly.        

00:23:38
            

But if you're stepping on stage, you need to be elevated no matter what. And you and I, we work together 100 times over to be able to create that look. But I think that's something that people need to know as well. To another pro tip, that's something that people need to know. Even though it's a casual event, you still have to be elevated because you demand respect, because you're going to be the one that's going to be teaching and facilitating.        

00:24:02
            

Absolutely. I loved it. I loved it. So one of the things that I also love is just how. So let's talk about what you do inside a closet.        

00:24:13
            

Because I know we've talked a lot about pulling together looks, and it can feel very disjointed, but that's not at all how you work. And again, because life moves fast. So we don't always have months and months and years and years of notice that something is coming right. And so one of the things well, I'll let you explain what it is that you do. Walk us through a little bit.        

00:24:36
            

When you're starting to work with a client and you go inside their closet, what are some of the things that you're doing in that closet and why? Okay, so this can get very intense. So I have to say that first and foremost, this is not for the fainted heart. Okay? So.        

00:24:59
            

Starting off, the first thing I do is, of course, I have a consultation and I ask what the expectation is, because it's really important for me to be able to understand what the client wants and also meet that expectation. So I have to know what that expectation is. So after having that consultation and after talking with the person, I send them pre work. So it's pre work that's done before I even get there. So it's one of those moments where I want them to go into the closet, and I want them to be able to assess what they currently have.        

00:25:32
            

And when I say assess what you currently have, I am talking about all of those drawers that you never go into. I'm talking about the ones where you just shove the T shirts and shove the workout clothes in that container that you have, where the clothes may fit. They may not fit. Right. So we're doing some pre-work before I even get there, after the pre-work.        

00:25:56
            

And once I show up, also what I do is I go back through everything that you've already gone through, and then we start to have conversations about those things we start to really talk about. So why did you keep this particular item? So I see it's over here in the corner, but it doesn't look like anything else in your closet. Tell me about this piece. Right, so it's really me getting to know people and getting to know their closet, getting to know their style, getting to know the way that they think, like their thought process.        

00:26:26
            

So it's almost real talk. It's like therapy. Like, I'm getting to know you. I'm getting to understand why you choose the things that you choose. And then from there, we move on to another phase and another phase.        

00:26:39
            

And the first thing is it's the closet clean out. So we're going to take things out of that closet, and we're going to remove it so that we can see truly what we're working with. And then once we see what we're working with, I continue. I love it. The rest of it, they have to come to me.        

00:26:59
            

You got to come and have a conversation. So I'm going to hold back. I'm teasing the people. Well, there's one piece I want us to talk about. I'm going to try not to give all the goodies away, but one thing that you also do is you then really have an understanding and annoying of what's in that closet.        

00:27:19
            

Oh, for sure. And there are two instances I wanted to talk about, because they just in our work together. It just continues to blow my mind after all these years, you would think that I would not be surprised at what Malissa can pull out. And no, yet I'm still surprised sometimes. So there was one photo shoot.        

00:27:38
            

I think you're going to remember the one I'm talking about. And we had already put together a ton of pre looks before you got here for the shoot, because we no longer live in the same state anymore. And you came over the night before, and you went inside my closet, and you came out with like, let's put these two things together, things that were already in the closet, but I never. Would have put are you talking about that scarf blouse? Is that the striped pants?        

00:28:07
            

Yes. And I was like, wait, what? I was like, that wasn't on our lookbook thing. Like, what? And you like, just trust me.        

00:28:15
            

Just go with it. Just go with it. And it ended up being one of my favorite looks. It would be glorious, because you know the closet and you know the vision, and so, again, I bought them without her help. Like, she didn't do that for me, but I never would have put those two things together, and definitely for a shoot, like, wait, what?        

00:28:38
            

We're going to take this and this. Beautiful. It was beautiful. Another instance was and I don't know if you remember this, because again, I call you often. I call it a lot.        

00:28:51
            

I'm a high maintenance client. I love it. I love it. The magazine, remember, I was like, I need a feature in a magazine, and I need to look, and we don't have time to go shopping. And you were like, okay, go in the closet, right?        

00:29:05
            

And so we were able to do that virtually. You pulled together an entire look, complete with shoes, jewelry, everything, virtually. But again, it was like you were like, okay, go in your closet and grab this. And then, okay, send me a picture. All right, now go grab this.        

00:29:24
            

It wasn't me standing there. You were like, you go grab this, this, and this. Send me a picture. Try it on. No, I don't like that.        

00:29:33
            

Okay, work with this. Take this. And I just wanted to point that out that, again, it's more than just shopping, right? Or just the clean out. Like, that's part of it, and it's a big part of it, but when you have somebody that sometimes knows your closet better than you know it, it helps for those last because literally, I was like, I got a magazine shoot, like, tomorrow.        

00:29:54
            

Okay, maybe not tomorrow, but it was pretty tight today. We don't have time for all that. We'll have time to be shipping stuff. We don't have time for that. And you're like, okay, no worries.        

00:30:04
            

Come in the closet. Grab this, grab. This. Do this. Take this.        

00:30:08
            

No, I don't like that necklace. Try this necklace. And you knew the full inventory so you could tell me what to pick. And so I think that that's important, because, again, I can feel confident in saying yes to certain things, because I know that even if we don't have time to do a lot of stuff, you know my closet better than I do. And you're like, Nadia, just go grab that.        

00:30:28
            

Put it on. Now, what you're talking about is when I go shopping, one of the things that I do is when I'm going shopping, whether it be with you or I'm sending you things or I'm adding to refresh your closet or to add missing pieces to your closet. One thing that's super important to remember is the pieces that we choose. They go with everything. So we don't buy outfits.        

00:30:57
            

Outfits are not what we do. We buy strategic pieces that can go with multiple things in your closet, and we can mix and match and then even how you said the keyword of an inventory, that's what this is. This is a running inventory of what you currently have and how do we create and it's really, truly creating all the time, different strategic things to be able to be really good in your closet. But that's what you pay me for. I am here so that you don't have to worry about the things that's in your closet, because I already know, and I know oh, you wore that three months ago.        

00:31:32
            

We can't do that again. Oh, this particular piece right here, we may need to resell it, or we may need to donate it or whatever else, because it's had its season. This one has been seen too many times.        

00:31:50
            

Yeah, we're going to put this on ebay and go somewhere else, which we're not using ebay, but you know how that yes. Yes. I love it. So I know someone may be like, okay, Dr. Nadia really style stylist sales.        

00:32:04
            

And again, I bring this up because especially a lot of the clients that I get to support or even in my own business, how I feel in my clothes, whether they fit, whether I'm tucking and pulling and adjusting constantly, all impact my ability to show up powerfully and confidently. And a lot of times, for the events that we support, these are enrollment events. And so these clients are having an event where they're inviting people to step into working with them beyond that particular event. And again, there are things that your look says about you, and people make judgments about you, whether we like it or not, whether it's there or not. And so it really is a big piece of the sales conversation.        

00:32:58
            

Absolutely. For sure. So one thing that you did not mention when you talked about your journey to where you are today is that Malissa is not only just a stylist, Malissa has also been on sales teams has led sales teams. Like, she has that experience. So you know firsthand what it is like when you don't feel right in your like, what are some of the things or tips that you would even share with your own team around how they look in terms of being able to project that confidence even if they're not feeling it yet to their audience?        

00:33:36
            

I think this is going to sound so funny when I say it, but I'm just going to say it. So sometimes I would tell my team members and I get a portion of this from another company, we won't give them free advertisement right now, but one of the things that I've learned is there's a time for you to be on and then there's a time for you not to be on. So when you're not on and you're not filling it and you're not feeling like selling or you're not feeling like coming to work or whatever the case is, that's fair. When you're not on and customers are not looking at you and you don't have to be on this stage or this platform, that's fine. But the minute it's time for you to turn it on, now we have to look at, okay, who is our audience, who's watching us, and we have to also remember that that client does not necessarily care whether or not you're having a bad day or not, right?        

00:34:34
            

That client wants you to give good customer service. That client wants you to be able to inform them about the product that you're selling and they want you to be excellent. So I tell my teams, a lot of times you fake it until you make it. Of course, when you say fake, they're like, oh, I don't want to be fake. And it's like, listen, and I tell them, do you know how many times I wanted to come in here and say, I don't want to do this today, but our customers deserve better.        

00:35:03
            

And if I could just say this so can I tell this story? Yes. This is a story I had an opportunity some years back to speak at a it was a women's shelter, and I'm not going to necessarily say the name, but it was this place where these women had had the worst hardship that you could possibly think of. I'll just leave it at that. So it was a very difficult place to walk into and bring this huge ray of sunshine.        

00:35:34
            

But they deserve that, right? They deserve to know how cool they are. So I had an opportunity to do this clothing drive and then I just had so many people just bring so many clothes to my home to the point where they filled my little car up with all of these. I was concerned that I was going to need a truck. It was so many things that I was able to bring to this particular facility and what I did is I set up a boutique for them.        

00:36:00
            

So I had these clothes set up. I had shoes, and I set it up really beautiful. And the goal was they had an opportunity to be able to pick five different things from each different piles and get five outfits all the way to the hand, the accessories and everything. It was amazing. But before I got there, I got a flat tire.        

00:36:19
            

So I load this is my little Honda up. And when I loaded the car up and I'm thinking, I think my tires were like, I don't know what's going on. We can't do this. I mean, trust me when I tell you it was a driving hazard, because I don't even think I could see out of my windows. But at that moment, I had a decision to make.        

00:36:38
            

I had a decision to say, okay, going to cancel on these women who truly deserve to be blessed, right? Or will I make this work? So I went and got some fix a flat.        

00:36:52
            

How do I know about Fix A Flat? I'm not even sure. It comes through in clutch, man. Listen, I put this fix a flat in the car. Now I am on the side of the road with my I have on a skirt.        

00:37:07
            

I have on a dress. My behind is tooted over. I'm trying to not flash the people. Put the fix a flat in the car. I got it operating and got to the location within a matter of maybe ten minutes before I had to go on to be able to give this presentation, because I was doing a presentation about style and fit and the proper way to wear your clothes.        

00:37:32
            

And just all of this this organization is huge. So after I did all of these things, so before I was able to go on, they met me at the door. They're rushing me into the space that I'm supposed to be in. I said, Is there any way that I can just go to the restroom for just a moment? I went to the restroom.        

00:37:53
            

I put my slipped on my because I didn't have on high heels at the time. So I slipped on my high heels, and my hands were filled with oil and just dirt from me dealing with my tire, right? So I washed my hands, cleaned myself up pretty well. And I mean, within a matter of, like, we're talking four minutes, if that. So pulled it together, took a deep breath, and then went into this room and gave these women the talk of their life.        

00:38:25
            

It's the energy that you bring into a room, but it's one of these moments where I had to fake it until I started to fill it is really what it is. Fake it until you start to fill this good customer service. Fake it until you start to really, truly believe in the product that you're selling. Like, you have to be able to have something inwardly to be able to bring it out to the people. So that's one of my most favorite stories.        

00:38:52
            

But it also connects with the way that I look on the outside and what I was able to bring from within. I love that. Oh, my gosh. I think that's a great way to end our episode on such a high because I know you and I, we could be here all day. Oh, my goodness, we have to.        

00:39:15
            

So, Malissa, please share with our audience how they can connect with you. And I do believe you have a gift, so also share about that. Okay, so a couple of different ways you can connect with me. I am on Instagram and I am also on Facebook. My Instagram.        

00:39:30
            

And then I think you'll have these in the show notes as well, too. So my Instagram is going to be Malissa underscore bye. And bye is not me saying bye to you. Bye stands for best you ever. Yes.        

00:39:46
            

And that's what I'm doing. We're creating the best you ever. So that's one of the main ways that you can connect with me, but also my website, which is going to be bestyouever style, not it's going to be bestyouever style. So that's another place where you can connect with me and then you can just reach me there. One other thing is the gift that I want to give is because, again, a lot of times people don't know where to start in their closet.        

00:40:14
            

So what I have, what I've created is a five video program. This program is just self paced, so you don't have to worry about rushing through the process. Now, I would prefer you to do this within five weeks, yes. Each week there in the video. But if you need it a little bit longer, time, life happens, that's totally fine.        

00:40:38
            

But what it's going to do is it's going to get you started. It is a jump start to get you started to be able to create a closet that you are going to love. And I do mean love. So a lot of times people think, okay, I shouldn't love everything in my closet. Yes, you should.        

00:40:54
            

I should be able to go in your closet and you can say, oh, yes, this piece right here, and have some type of sentimental value to it, right. Or to have some type of emotion to it. So I have that program available for your guests, and I just say, go over and connect with me on the website. It'll be there. It'll be a registration there for you to be able to connect and get it.        

00:41:19
            

Let's get started. Get it. Yes. We'll also include that link as well in the show notes. So just head over to the episode.        

00:41:27
            

Just click on everything Malissa has to offer. Click it all.        

00:41:35
            

It was a pleasure. Thank you for having me. Oh, my goodness. You are such a cool human. Thank you.        

00:41:43
            

I can go on about you, but I appreciate you. And thank you so much for saying yes and joining us and sharing so freely of your expertise. Yes, I have a lot of energy. It's all good. And thank you all for tuning in to another episode of Straight Talk about Sales.        

00:42:02
            

We'll see you soon. Bye.