Brianne Price on Being Confident in New Realms

Brianne · 0:00

Hi, I'm Brianne Price, and today's leadership quote comes from Dr. Seuss. Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not.

Speaker 3 · 0:16

The Leader Assistant Podcast exists to encourage and challenge assistants to become confident, game-changing leader assistants.

Jeremy · 0:33

Are you a strategic senior executive assistant thinking about what's next? Whether you're ready for a promotion or loving the job you're in, NOVA Chief of Staff's certification course may be just the resource you're hungry for. With over 400 students across 20 countries and rave reviews, students graduate from NOVA's hands-on, self-paced online course with the confidence, knowledge, and power to make the move to Chief of Staff for their executive. But don't take my word for it. Visit leaderassistant.com/nova to find countless testimonials, the course syllabus, and lots of free resources to support you in your career journey. Hey friends, welcome to The Leader Assistant Podcast. It's your host, Jeremy Burrows, and this is episode 290. Thanks for listening. You can check out the show notes for this episode at leaderassistant.com/290. leaderassistant.com/290. Get all the links and the transcript and all that fun stuff at leaderassistant.com/290. So today, I am excited to be speaking with Brianne Price. Brianne is owner of Mills and Mae Services. And Brianne, welcome to the show.

Brianne · 1:51

Hello. Thanks for having me. I'm so excited.

Jeremy · 1:54

Yeah, I'm excited to be speaking with you. What part of the world are you in?

Brianne · 1:58

I am in Denver, Colorado, but west, so close to the mountains.

Jeremy · 2:03

Love it. And are you from that area?

Brianne · 2:05

I am. Born and raised Colorado native. Yeah.

Jeremy · 2:09

Nice, nice. Yeah. And tell us a little bit about yourself personally. Do you have cats, dogs, kids, all of the above?

Brianne · 2:17

I do not have cats. I do have a dog and I have two kids, two years old and six years old. And then my husband is a paramedic lieutenant here in Denver. So that's me.

Jeremy · 2:34

Awesome. And what do you like to do when you're not working?

Brianne · 2:37

We love the mountains. We're 30 minutes from some really great hiking trails. And just anything outside enjoying the 360 days of sunshine. We have like five that don't count. Right. So yeah, we love that. Exploring new coffee shops is also my favorite. So, yeah.

Jeremy · 3:02

Cool, cool. And do you, when you do the mountains, do you, are you like the crazy, like, I'm going to hike for nine hours today, and I'm going to camp at the top and then hike back? Or are you like, I'm going to drive up to the trailhead and hike them up?

Brianne · 3:18

Yeah. Well, with kids, that has changed a lot. Yeah. I mean, I've done a 14-er before, but that was many, many years ago, pre-kids. Now it's like, if we can make it a mile, that's a success. So no, I'm a Colorado native, but not the crazy.

Jeremy · 3:37

Right, right.

Brianne · 3:39

No offense to any Colorado natives.

Jeremy · 3:41

Yeah. I mean, I remember when my kids were younger, my youngest son especially, I remember I had to carry him. We were hiking trails and I'm like, all right, this is getting old.

Brianne · 3:53

Yeah. I mean, we got the hiking backpacks. So where you stick your kid in it. So those help.

Jeremy · 4:00

So well, tell us about your career now. So you have an interesting story. You started off, I think, as a teacher and then eventually worked away into the assistant world. So tell us a little bit about that journey.

Brianne · 4:17

Yeah, totally. I honestly would never have expected that I would be sitting here today having a conversation about business or assisting. I went to school to be an elementary school teacher. I taught first grade and then second grade and then preschool, which in some ways I was telling you is not that much different than the business world, managing children. So, yeah, so I taught until I had my daughter, who is my second, and just couldn't manage being away from home and needed something a little bit more flexible. So I was crazy enough to I had heard about virtual assistant work. I didn't even know what that meant. And I put together a Facebook post, put it up, and I had eight job offers in 24 hours because the industry is massive, as we know. And I, yeah, I took two clients at the time, an executive coach, who's also an author, and a pelvic floor physical therapist. So very opposite worlds. I've since added a gym owner as well to my repertoire. And I love it. Yeah, it's been great. Kind of a different thing. I know you've mentioned it in your podcast, but being an assistant is something new every day. And especially having three different executives to work for has been awesome, challenging. But last year, I had a lot of friends that came to me, and they were like, you're a virtual assistant, but what in the world does that even mean? And how can I do that? And so I coached a bunch of my friends, basically. I was like, I don't know, this is what I do. And finally, this year, in February, I launched the second half of Mills and Mae Services, and I now help coach more so remote assistants, slash executive assistants. Virtual assistant has a harder name to it that I'm learning. And yeah, and then I help them connect with end clients or business owners. I deal more with a small to medium sized businesses. So yeah, it's wild ride, but I love it. And yeah, it's been really good.

Jeremy · 7:09

Awesome. So what has been the maybe biggest difference? And then I'll ask about the biggest similarity. You know what I mean? What's been the biggest difference between being a teacher, preschool, first grade, second grade, and now assisting business? And then what's been the most similar?

Brianne · 7:35

Yeah.

Jeremy · 7:36

How do you say that?

Brianne · 7:37

Yeah. No, I love it. Yeah, that's a great question. The first answer that comes to mind is the wardrobe. I actually have to wear business clothes now. I used to wear clothes that you could get paint on. So, that's different. Right. I'm learning how to dress myself. But I think the biggest difference has been a mindset shift in identity. I was so rooted in being a teacher that when I was like, I actually don't think that's where I want to be right now. It was hard to walk away and to have that imposter syndrome of like, okay, well now I'm in the business world, but who am I and what do I like? I don't belong here. My, the author that I work for, launched her fourth book in March of 23. And I had just come on in September of 22. So, I came in hot and was sitting in these like massive PR and marketing meetings with these high level executives of the book publishing companies. And I was like, I don't belong here. Like, I don't know what I'm talking about. I was Googling, like, what does this mean? Like, what are they talking about? And it was still successful, like we made it. But that was the biggest thing was just owning that, yes, I am a business owner now. And also, like, I am like a good executive assistant and I can own that. And I do belong in the business world. So that's been the biggest difference, for sure. Yeah. Yeah. And then the similarities, I kind of mentioned it earlier, but I love people and people don't change a whole lot. There are a lot of things that are innately in people, whether you're an executive of a Fortune 500 company or you're a preschooler. And so I think that there's just a lot of, like, learning that comes with being with people in the messiness of people. And then also, like, also, that was my executive, sorry.

Jeremy · 10:12

Oh, there you go. See, I love it. I love it. You know, we, assistants listening are, like, trying to listen to this episode and their executives pinging them, and then now your executive is pinging you, so it's totally real.

Brianne · 10:22

Yeah, totally real. Yeah, I actually, I put it on Do Not Deserve, but it came through. That's life, right?

Jeremy · 10:30

Right.

Brianne · 10:31

But yeah, I would just say the similarities are, people are people and you got to love them through it. Then also, being a preschool teacher, I had to wear a lot of different hats, and I had to manage a lot of things at the same time, which is exactly what you do as an executive assistant. You wear a lot of hats and you manage a lot of things at the same time.

Jeremy · 10:52

Yeah.

Brianne · 10:53

So, yeah.

Jeremy · 10:55

Totally, yeah, that makes sense.

Brianne · 10:57

Yeah.

Jeremy · 10:57

So, what, you know, being a preschool teacher, first grade, second grade teacher, you got to have passion, you have to have, you have to care about the kids. How much of that has transferred over into your business with Mills and Mae Services and connecting companies with the assistance and supporting executives? Like, is there that, you know, what is that innate, you know, is it is it helping people, caring about people? What gets you excited about the world that you're in now?

Brianne · 11:38

That is a great question. And yes, all the things. So one of the really cool things, I guess there's several facets to what you just asked, but one of the really cool things that I get to do in Mills and Mae Services, which with coaching and connecting, is asking remote assistants, whether they've been in the game for a while or they're brand new, and saying like, what are you passionate about? Because I think we lose that as assistants. We're like, me? Are you talking about me? And then, yeah, just getting to ask them like, what are you passionate about? And then, so I create like a profile on those remote assistants. And then what I get to do is ask business owners, what are you passionate about? And also, what do you hate doing? What is bogging you down to be the most effective? And so my passion is asking other people, like, what are you passionate about? And then I get to connect those two people that have strengths in different areas in a way that, like, they're actually going to be the most effective for their company. So I get super excited about that. And yeah, I'm sure, like, a ton of it is helping people. As a teacher, you kind of get to do the, like, behind-the-scenes molding of a person in a way. And that's what you get to do as an assistant, too. Like, assisting and helping, but, like, molding as we go to grow the company. So, yeah, that's what gets me super excited. I actually, just the other day, I work with a lot of remote assistants that are, like, college age or, like, stay-at-home moms is definitely a niche for me because that's what I am. But actually, I've been working with a lot of people that are, like, on their way, the retirement bubble, where they are, like, good on retirement, benefit-wise, but just kind of want that travel money and also, like, still use their brain for things. And I asked a woman a couple of weeks ago, I said, what are you passionate about? And she looked at me and was like, nobody's ever asked me that question. And I was like, well, let's tap into that because we need to know. So yeah, that's what gets me excited. And I could go on. But that's what I love.

Jeremy · 14:23

Love it. Let's talk about confidence for a minute. So what have you learned about confidence? And you mentioned in your notes when we scheduled the interview, joining a big PR marketing meeting in the first few months as an EA and having no idea what was going on. So how have you learned to be confident and exude confidence, even when you are kind of in a realm that you're not used to?

Speaker 3 · 15:05

Have you heard? The NOVA Chief of Staff Certification Course Price is going up in January of 2025. Enroll now and with lifetime access, start whenever you please. Here at NOVA, it's our mission to provide the very best student experience possible. Our course is chocked full of features and resources designed just for you. Dozens of templates, self-paced online learning, hands-on practice, multiple instructor touchpoints, peer engagement opportunities, guest authored assignments, the list goes on. With 500 students across 22 countries, NOVA is the premier destination for Chief of Staff Learning and Development. Enroll today and join us.

Brianne · 15:48

Yeah, totally. I'm a fairly naturally bubbly person, and so I definitely have leaned on that. Not necessarily to mask my lack of confidence in some areas, but I just am easy to laugh and go with the flow, so that's always been super helpful. But I also think that I just owned it, almost like naively owned it. I'm like, okay, I'm here, let's do it. And that's where I was taking notes and googling things, and I was like, I'm going to figure this out. There's no other option. And even with the Mills and Mae Services side of things, I just launched it. I barely told anybody I was doing it. I didn't even tell my executive. And she's been amazingly supportive of it, and has given me great tips and help and all those things. But I just did it. And then I was like, oh, I may have wanted to think through a few things first. But I did it, and here we are, and it's been great. So some of it's definitely just naively jumping to things and figuring it out as I go.

Jeremy · 17:14

Yeah, how did you like is, you know, you said you're naturally a bubbly person. So that's part of your personality.

Brianne · 17:23

Yeah.

Jeremy · 17:24

But how did you and how have you pushed through that? Maybe it's whether it's imposter syndrome or just convincing yourself or, you know, I like to turn naive because you're just like, well, I'm just I'm just going to I'm here and I'm just going to do it. And, you know, yeah, honestly, I don't know any better. I'm just going to give it a shot.

Brianne · 17:47

Totally. Yeah.

Jeremy · 17:48

Like what's the what's the drive behind that?

Brianne · 17:52

Yeah. I think well, I guess it kind of started from the beginning because when I quit teaching, I thought I had a job with a different virtual assistant company. And I was like, it's a sure. And like, I totally got this. And I went into my director's office to quit the preschool position. And she got a parent phone call halfway through and had to pause our conversation. So I went on the hallway and just like everyone does naturally just pulled up my email and I did not get the job. And so I was like, well, I'm at a crossroad. Do I go back in and beg for my job back? Or do I take the leap of faith and just do it? And that's when I posted to Facebook a preschool headshot of myself. So we're all high quality and said, who needs actually I said, who needs a virtual assistant or a personal assistant? Two very different things. I had no idea what I was doing.

Jeremy · 18:58

Right, right.

Brianne · 18:59

And I had eight job offers in 24 hours. And so it was like, I think that totally helped my confidence of just like, Totally.

Jeremy · 19:07

Yeah.

Brianne · 19:08

Okay. Here we go. I mean, I was not about to back down.

Jeremy · 19:12

So is that, do you think, because a lot of people be like, all right, well, you're just, this is like a one in a million use case where, you know, if I post on, if I post something like that, I'm not going to get a job offer. What was like, are you really good at networking? Have you always grown a community and a network? And that's why this kind of naturally happened. Tell us a little bit about that.

Brianne · 19:39

Yeah. Yes. Connecting has always been just something that comes really naturally. Like you come up to me and say, hey, my doorknob is falling off of my house. Can you help me? And I'm like, I can't. But Joe down the street can let me go get you his number. So I've always been that way. But I think, yeah. So I think just like networking connections. And that's again why I started Mills and Mae Services, because I saw the need for connection and networking and for business owners to really trust. I mean, we know this as assistants. They need to trust you. This is their baby. And if they don't trust you, it's not going to be a good situation. So rather than having these business owners going to Indeed or like kind of the other places, I'm there to have a personal connection with them and then be like, hey, actually, this assistant that I'm coaching or helping right now would be an amazing fit for that. And then doing almost like heavy lifting of networking for other people as well. So, yeah, it's not typical. I definitely go into any conversation and say like, yeah, I got a job offers in 24 hours and say, that's not normal. So, I mean, you could try it.

Jeremy · 21:03

Well, I mean, yeah, you know, there's that phrase. It's kind of cheesy and cliche and whatever. But it's true, in my opinion, it's your your network is your net worth.

Brianne · 21:15

Yes.

Jeremy · 21:16

And so I think that you did that hard work of just over the years, connecting with people and building that. And I get that a lot with assistance. Well, I don't have a LinkedIn and I haven't. Yeah, I don't I don't have I've barely logged into LinkedIn. And why should I do that? And whatever? And well, you know what? You you don't have to. But there's been so many assistants in the world who have benefited from being connected with other assistance in the world. LinkedIn or Facebook or whatever it is. So why not? It's kind of my thing. It's like totally the opportunities that are out there are endless. If you just put yourself out there and grow that network. So yeah.

Brianne · 21:58

And also, like one thing that I did as well, I mean, the drop offers definitely came fast. But even with it, with the few minutes before I pushed send, I also did go through my friend list and was like, OK, well, who owns a business? And like, who am I going to be kind of looking out for, for viewing my post or reaching out to them? Because either they need help or they know someone that needs help. Because in the business world, it's all about who you know. And that's how I started it as well. I took a look at who do I know, who might reach out. And then there were others that I was like, whoa, not expecting that.

Jeremy · 22:42

Yeah, like, well, you kind of cold your network and we're a little bit more direct and specific on, hey, these are the types of people in my network that might be a good fit.

Brianne · 22:55

So that's awesome. Yeah, totally.

Jeremy · 22:58

Awesome. Well, what's maybe your number one tip? All your clients are remote, right?

Brianne · 23:05

Yeah. Yeah.

Jeremy · 23:06

So what's your number one tip for working from home?

Brianne · 23:09

It's a great question. And I struggle with this question. I've listened to or I was just listening to Lisa Sprinkles podcast. And I realized that like we do, we all need routine, get dressed in the morning, take a shower, that kind of stuff. But what I think I realized, at least being a mom and being a virtual or a remote assistant, is just being okay to be in different seasons. Some seasons I work super late at night while the kids are in bed. Some seasons I get extra babysitting and child care, and I do work during the day and I time block. And then some seasons are a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and each week looks a little different. Like I mentioned, my husband's a paramedic, so our schedule is never the same. And so I really do just, I think that's the thing I've learned is, in a remote assistant role, things are going to ebb and flow. And if you're like, I have a system, and like great if that works for you, but being okay to ebb and flow and be flexible with it as well, is not a bad thing. Yeah.

Jeremy · 24:33

Yeah. Awesome. Well, Brianne, thank you so much for being on the show. I've asked this to several of my recent guests on the interview or on the podcast. And I'm just curious, I'll put you on the spot a little bit.

Brianne · 24:49

I love it.

Jeremy · 24:50

What if you could put a billboard, put something on a billboard that all assistants would see on their way to work, or maybe a Facebook ad that all remote assistants would see. What would you say to the assistants of the world on that billboard?

Brianne · 25:09

Oh, I like that. I mean, the creative side of me is like, okay, but what graphic am I going to put with it too? Right, right. So that's where I want to start, but I don't have that. I would say work out of your passions. Even though you're, I mean, not even though you're an assistant, you are an assistant, you have passions and work out of them. That's when you're going to do the most effective work, the most efficient work, the most work that's going to grow your executive as well. So working out of your passions, I think would be my big tagline.

Jeremy · 25:52

Yeah, billboards, nice.

Brianne · 25:54

Something colorful too, because, you know, that's how I roll.

Jeremy · 25:57

Yeah, you can just, you got to pick the, you got to pick what's good, what it's going to say, and then you can have fun designing it. That's totally fine.

Brianne · 26:04

Oh yeah, absolutely.

Jeremy · 26:06

Awesome. Well, Brianne, where's the best place for people to reach out if they want to learn more about Mills and Mae and you and connect and say hi?

Brianne · 26:15

Yeah. Well, I mean, you mentioned it. LinkedIn is definitely an easy place to connect. I'm on Instagram and Facebook as well. But I feel like LinkedIn is easy. So yeah, head on over there. If you don't have a profile, go ahead.

Jeremy · 26:33

Yeah. Create a profile and connect with me and Brianne and you'll be on your way. So I'll put that link in your Instagram and the show notes at leaderassistant.com/290. And yeah, thanks again for being on the show. Best of luck to you and happy mountain trekking, even if it's not intense mountain trekking.

Brianne · 26:57

Yeah. Hey, I'm going to take those miles at a time. It's going to be okay. Awesome. Thank you. This is awesome. Yeah.

Jeremy · 27:06

Yeah. Thanks for being on the show.

Speaker 3 · 27:27

goburrows.com.