Cathy Rong is Chief of Staff for the multi-hyphenate Questlove where she manages the artist’s day-to-day professional and personal life.
In this episode of The Leader Assistant Podcast, Cathy talks about building community, managing up, advocating for yourself, and the difference between an EA vs a Chief of Staff.
Be sure to check out my first conversation with Cathy in episode 117 of the podcast. In that episode, Cathy and I discussed implementing OKRs at your company, leading a team of assistants, onboarding team members, and more!
LEADERSHIP QUOTE
Leadership is an action, not a position!
CONNECT WITH CATHY
ABOUT CATHY
Cathy Rong is Chief of Staff for the multi-hyphenate Questlove where she manages the artist’s day-to-day professional and personal life. Previously, she managed the Office of the CEO at Complex Networks and has held various executive assistant positions within the advertising and creative industries.
Outside of her career, she is passionate about community building, which she does through her celebrity assistant group, Assistants Anonymous.
Cathy is a California-born creative who currently resides in New York City with her fiancé and sighthound pup.
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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
00:00:00.260 –> 00:00:02.120
CATHY: Hi, this is Cathy Rong from New York.
00:00:02.340 –> 00:00:11.100
CATHY: I am Questlove’s Chief of Staff, and the quote of today is, Leadership is an action, not a position.
00:00:11.120 –> 00:00:25.095
<v SPEAKER_2>Thank you The Leader Assistant Podcast exists to encourage and challenge assistants to become confident, game-changing leader assistants.
00:00:25.115 –> 00:00:35.392
JEREMY: Thank you Are you tasked with ordering food for your office?
00:00:36.192 –> 00:00:38.072
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00:00:38.772 –> 00:00:51.352
JEREMY: With over 100,000 restaurants to choose from nationwide and 24-7 customer support, Easy Cater helps assistants like you and me succeed at work and makes our lives easier.
00:00:51.932 –> 00:00:57.392
JEREMY: Visit easycater.com/leaderassistant to find out more.
00:00:58.452 –> 00:01:01.272
JEREMY: Hey friends, welcome to The Leader Assistant Podcast.
00:01:01.332 –> 00:01:04.692
JEREMY: I’m very excited to be speaking again with Cathy Rong.
00:01:04.752 –> 00:01:05.992
JEREMY: Cathy is in New York City.
00:01:06.012 –> 00:01:12.172
JEREMY: She’s Chief of Staff for Questlove, and we’ll hear a little bit more about that here in a minute.
00:01:12.172 –> 00:01:22.932
JEREMY: But you may recognize the name Cathy Rong, and that’s because I spoke with Cathy in episode 117.
00:01:23.812 –> 00:01:25.532
JEREMY: That was a little while ago.
00:01:26.552 –> 00:01:38.732
JEREMY: We are now on episode 248, but just so that you can get the background of Cathy and a little bit more of her history, we won’t get into as much today.
00:01:39.512 –> 00:01:49.192
JEREMY: You can check out the first conversation at leaderassistant.com/117, leaderassistant.com/117.
00:01:49.212 –> 00:01:55.372
JEREMY: Again, that is episode 117, and that was my first conversation with Cathy.
00:01:56.312 –> 00:01:59.032
JEREMY: Cathy, welcome back to the show.
00:02:00.472 –> 00:02:01.772
CATHY: Thanks for having me back, Jeremy.
00:02:02.812 –> 00:02:03.932
JEREMY: Super excited.
00:02:04.132 –> 00:02:17.392
JEREMY: Last time we spoke, your title was Lead Executive Assistant, and you worked at Complex Network, and now your title is different.
00:02:17.452 –> 00:02:20.912
JEREMY: It’s Chief of Staff and you work for Questlove.
00:02:22.212 –> 00:02:29.572
JEREMY: For those who don’t know, could you just give us a quick summary of who Questlove is?
00:02:31.072 –> 00:02:31.492
CATHY: Yes.
00:02:31.532 –> 00:02:32.112
CATHY: Oh my gosh.
00:02:32.132 –> 00:02:33.552
CATHY: I can be trained for this.
00:02:33.592 –> 00:02:42.312
CATHY: Questlove is an Oscar Award-winning director last year of Summer of Soul.
00:02:42.712 –> 00:02:50.872
CATHY: He is also the frontman and creative musical director of The Roots on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
00:02:50.992 –> 00:03:00.452
CATHY: Aside from his daytime gig, he also tours with The Roots as well as DJ.
00:03:00.512 –> 00:03:01.992
CATHY: He is an author.
00:03:02.012 –> 00:03:09.252
CATHY: He is a philanthropist and has a podcast and also does food investments.
00:03:09.692 –> 00:03:14.292
CATHY: Really spans the different industries in terms of what he’s involved in.
00:03:15.572 –> 00:03:16.372
JEREMY: Nice, nice.
00:03:16.412 –> 00:03:21.092
JEREMY: And so tell us a little bit about how you ended up here.
00:03:21.432 –> 00:03:27.992
JEREMY: So, you know, like I said, in episode 117 we talked and you had a role, a lead executive assistant role.
00:03:29.072 –> 00:03:33.512
JEREMY: Tell us, catch us up on what’s happened over the last, I don’t know, what has it been a couple of years now?
00:03:34.952 –> 00:03:37.172
CATHY: Yeah, I think it’s been almost two years.
00:03:37.172 –> 00:03:47.952
CATHY: And when I spoke to you last, I think I was in the midst of working on improving kind of operational efficiency within the company.
00:03:48.352 –> 00:03:51.692
CATHY: And at that time we were kind of 300 employees.
00:03:52.332 –> 00:03:58.712
CATHY: And shortly thereafter, maybe, you know, three months or so we were acquired by BuzzFeed.
00:03:59.592 –> 00:04:03.832
CATHY: So a lot of the operations kind of changed the structure and whatnot.
00:04:04.452 –> 00:04:12.472
CATHY: But for a long time leading up to that acquisition, I had already been thinking about my next move and switching roles.
00:04:12.492 –> 00:04:22.652
CATHY: And I realized that, you know, having worked with brands my entire career so far, I would have really liked to work on the talent side.
00:04:23.132 –> 00:04:40.292
CATHY: And so I started considering entertainment a lot more seriously, and specifically a Chief of Staff role within entertainment, which was a very difficult notion because it wasn’t really a title that existed within entertainment.
00:04:40.372 –> 00:04:45.752
CATHY: Like Chief of Staff is more government or finance or pharma.
00:04:46.672 –> 00:04:55.732
CATHY: And so I was perfectly fine with the idea of having to start over again on the internship level because I didn’t know anyone in entertainment.
00:04:55.752 –> 00:04:59.952
CATHY: But I also really believe in the idea of manifesting.
00:04:59.972 –> 00:05:03.572
CATHY: So it took a couple months, but I think it did work out.
00:05:06.632 –> 00:05:13.532
CATHY: And for those months, I told everyone that I ran into, that I knew that I was looking for a Chief of Staff position within entertainment.
00:05:13.532 –> 00:05:19.312
CATHY: And I think someone just got sick of listening to me and sent my resume out.
00:05:20.072 –> 00:05:33.832
CATHY: And turns out that this actor’s old assistants started a recruiting agency specifically for Hollywood Entertainment and they had hunted me from Complex.
00:05:34.232 –> 00:05:59.832
CATHY: And also really speaks to the value of interviewing for the boss and not the job that I spoke to on the last episode because my boss at Complex was actually the one who calls and made the swaying factor of Questlove hiring me over the one other last candidate.
00:06:02.372 –> 00:06:02.772
CATHY: Yeah.
00:06:05.732 –> 00:06:12.692
CATHY: So a big shift in title, responsibility, environment, salary.
00:06:12.732 –> 00:06:15.712
CATHY: So basically starting over in a whole new industry.
00:06:17.932 –> 00:06:18.492
JEREMY: That’s great.
00:06:18.912 –> 00:06:22.252
JEREMY: So how long now has it been then since you’ve been in this role?
00:06:23.912 –> 00:06:27.192
CATHY: It’s been, I think it’ll be two years and a month.
00:06:27.612 –> 00:06:30.592
JEREMY: So, okay, awesome.
00:06:30.852 –> 00:06:36.892
JEREMY: What’s been the craziest thing that’s happened during the two years so far?
00:06:38.772 –> 00:06:55.292
CATHY: Well, I started, I think, last January and immediately it was like all hands on deck into award season and I think two months or so after I started, like he won an Oscar, which I did not think I’d be at the Oscars.
00:06:55.312 –> 00:07:00.152
CATHY: I did not think that I would be supporting someone who was at that level so soon.
00:07:00.172 –> 00:07:14.772
CATHY: I think I went maybe like zero to 150, like super fast and I was telling my friend the other day, I think the first four months into the job, I think I blacked out.
00:07:14.792 –> 00:07:16.872
CATHY: I don’t really remember anything.
00:07:17.872 –> 00:07:23.112
CATHY: So much going on, but being at the Oscars was pretty cool.
00:07:23.132 –> 00:07:28.152
CATHY: Definitely a flashbulb memory for me.
00:07:29.552 –> 00:07:30.132
JEREMY: That’s funny.
00:07:30.152 –> 00:07:31.732
JEREMY: It’s like you say you blacked out.
00:07:31.752 –> 00:07:38.612
JEREMY: It’s like when people ask me, what were the first few months of your son being born?
00:07:38.632 –> 00:07:40.112
JEREMY: I’m like, I don’t know.
00:07:40.252 –> 00:07:40.892
JEREMY: I don’t remember.
00:07:40.912 –> 00:07:42.752
JEREMY: I don’t remember what it was like.
00:07:43.132 –> 00:07:44.492
JEREMY: My wife and I were zombies.
00:07:44.512 –> 00:07:48.552
JEREMY: We were just trying to survive, so that’s what I thought of when you said.
00:07:49.952 –> 00:07:50.672
JEREMY: There we are.
00:07:51.192 –> 00:07:51.632
JEREMY: Yeah.
00:07:52.612 –> 00:07:54.632
JEREMY: Well, that’s awesome.
00:07:57.352 –> 00:08:02.252
JEREMY: So you shared a few topics that you’d like to chat about today, which is awesome.
00:08:02.272 –> 00:08:10.852
JEREMY: I know last time we talked about OKRs and you had implemented OKRs at your company and leading a team of assistants.
00:08:11.612 –> 00:08:13.952
JEREMY: So it’s obviously a different environment.
00:08:13.972 –> 00:08:18.532
JEREMY: So tell us a little bit about the shifts.
00:08:18.852 –> 00:08:29.192
JEREMY: So for example, how many employees were your last organization versus now and what was it like leaving the corporate environment?
00:08:29.212 –> 00:08:31.772
JEREMY: What’s been maybe the biggest changes?
00:08:33.472 –> 00:08:33.832
CATHY: Yeah.
00:08:33.852 –> 00:08:41.672
CATHY: I mean, it was just a completely different environment that I was coming into that I had no previous experience in.
00:08:41.672 –> 00:08:49.192
CATHY: And so the corporate world, although it was on the smaller side with 300 employees, it was still very corporate.
00:08:50.552 –> 00:09:05.412
CATHY: And now I not only day-to-day manage Questlove himself, but I also manage his professional and personal staff of 20, as well as some of his business partnerships and things like that.
00:09:07.332 –> 00:09:27.532
CATHY: So in that sense, like this role is very solitary in that you’re the only, I’m the only one who is doing the same job function and also like managing others and managing up as well.
00:09:28.012 –> 00:09:32.432
CATHY: There’s not too much of like a traditional HR structure.
00:09:33.352 –> 00:09:50.512
CATHY: So a lot of the things, it’s like I’ve had to make operations, processes, and kind of implement them, which already is really hard coming into a new environment and being like, okay, we’re going to change everything that we’re doing and the way that it’s done.
00:09:51.572 –> 00:09:54.332
CATHY: So that took a couple of months to get rolling.
00:09:54.792 –> 00:09:55.132
JEREMY: Yeah.
00:09:56.492 –> 00:10:05.472
JEREMY: So what’s the hardest thing about being in a smaller team and navigating your new role?
00:10:07.352 –> 00:10:11.672
CATHY: I think it’s kind of the lack of support and community.
00:10:11.692 –> 00:10:30.692
CATHY: I mean, the team itself, obviously there is community and support, but I think to you as an individual and for your particular job function, I found that it was really hard to make connections in this particular role.
00:10:30.712 –> 00:10:37.012
CATHY: Like when I was in corporate, there was the other assistants you could ask, like, hey, how does this expense work?
00:10:37.412 –> 00:10:39.212
CATHY: Or if you were in an employee resource.
00:10:49.232 –> 00:10:57.112
CATHY: Group, you could talk about maybe the recent world events, but in this role, one, there’s not too many boundaries between work and life.
00:10:57.132 –> 00:10:59.992
CATHY: I don’t have a Slack, it’s all text message.
00:11:00.012 –> 00:11:02.692
CATHY: So that one is kind of blurry.
00:11:02.712 –> 00:11:07.632
CATHY: But two, if you’re feeling you need support, community, it’s up to you to build that yourself.
00:11:08.572 –> 00:11:17.652
CATHY: So one of the ways that I have tried tackling that initially was to network with other celebrity assistants.
00:11:17.672 –> 00:11:31.192
CATHY: So being at The Tonight Show with Questlove, a lot of the guests that come in, they’ll bring their manager or their assistant, and I’m able to make connections that way.
00:11:32.892 –> 00:11:35.592
CATHY: And that was the first year.
00:11:35.612 –> 00:11:45.772
CATHY: And now I’ve started a celebrity assistant group called Assistance Anonymous just to kind of address this community and support issue.
00:11:45.792 –> 00:12:04.012
CATHY: So it’s a place that we can ask for advice like, hey, I need like a male makeup artist, or even like tips on how to negotiate your salary, because there’s not really any salary transparency in this particular industry.
00:12:04.392 –> 00:12:04.732
JEREMY: Yeah.
00:12:05.712 –> 00:12:07.432
JEREMY: So you said Assistance Anonymous.
00:12:07.452 –> 00:12:17.192
JEREMY: So is it like an anonymous group that can share without like they’re literally anonymous in the group or does that make sense?
00:12:18.132 –> 00:12:21.212
CATHY: I think more so anonymous.
00:12:21.232 –> 00:12:23.032
CATHY: Well, my fiance came up with the title.
00:12:23.112 –> 00:12:27.672
CATHY: So it’s kind of like we have monthly dinners and get together.
00:12:27.812 –> 00:12:29.132
CATHY: So it’s like, oh, we’re going to AA.
00:12:30.412 –> 00:12:30.872
JEREMY: I see.
00:12:30.872 –> 00:12:31.392
JEREMY: I get you.
00:12:32.152 –> 00:12:44.792
CATHY: But also anonymous in the way that like, not a lot of people notice us and a lot of decisions that we may kind of like, not like around the world, but like we’re anonymous.
00:12:44.792 –> 00:12:55.512
CATHY: You don’t really know that decisions and what we’re doing or like, hey, you hear about this great party in the news where all these celebrities are at.
00:12:55.532 –> 00:13:00.092
CATHY: It’s like, hey, I planned that, but no one knows, because I’m anonymous.
00:13:01.812 –> 00:13:02.512
JEREMY: Okay, cool.
00:13:02.572 –> 00:13:05.412
JEREMY: Love it.
00:13:05.652 –> 00:13:25.852
JEREMY: Are you literally at the Tonight Show or with Questlove all the time, or do you kind of schedule different meetups and stuff around those shows, or kind of give us a little bit of the day-to-day on what all are you trying to manage?
00:13:28.072 –> 00:13:40.152
CATHY: I think every role is different, but for me, I’ve kind of been able to carve out my responsibilities coming in because I am the first Chief of Staff on this particular team.
00:13:41.252 –> 00:13:49.972
CATHY: The first six months, I tried to show up and be with Questlove for basically every engagement that he had.
00:13:50.192 –> 00:14:01.012
CATHY: That was like being at the show five days a week, Monday through Friday, and traveling with him, and all the different areas of his commitments.
00:14:02.412 –> 00:14:13.812
CATHY: Now, I am able to pick and choose when I go into the Tonight Show because he has a very robust support system there, and I have assistance at NBC that I can lean on.
00:14:14.312 –> 00:14:21.452
CATHY: Also, he’s been doing it for 10 plus years before I even came in the picture, so he’s a little autonomous when it comes to over there.
00:14:22.852 –> 00:14:29.732
CATHY: It’s more so seeing where I’m needed, because I also don’t really like to micromanage.
00:14:31.212 –> 00:14:55.432
CATHY: Then in all the other areas, I do travel with him as his day-to-day as needed, and that’s the majority of his trips that aren’t as an active touring musician or DJ, so a lot of his book or speaking or public appearances, for example.
00:14:58.192 –> 00:15:07.292
JEREMY: Then talk a little bit about, if you wouldn’t mind, the difference between an EA and the Chief of Staff.
00:15:07.312 –> 00:15:19.272
JEREMY: I know there’s a lot of talk about being a Chief of Staff and a lot of talk in an EA space about, hey, if you want to level up, Chief of Staff is a natural progression in your career.
00:15:19.752 –> 00:15:27.432
JEREMY: What would you say are the biggest one or two differences between your prior EA role and your current Chief of Staff role?
00:15:28.712 –> 00:15:32.512
CATHY: I think it’s hard to say outright because it is two different industries.
00:15:32.532 –> 00:15:58.472
CATHY: But in corporate, when I was advocating for myself to transition from an EA to Chief of Staff and kind of landed in the middle with like a lead executive assistant position, the main responsibilities that I felt made the biggest difference was leaning more in the realm of operations.
00:15:58.512 –> 00:16:03.212
CATHY: So it’s beyond expenses, it’s beyond calendaring.
00:16:03.372 –> 00:16:16.912
CATHY: It’s like, hey, I noticed this team is not using its time very well or communicating very well with this other department, and here’s what I can do to help alleviate that.
00:16:18.352 –> 00:17:10.872
CATHY: And I think specific to the entertainment industry, when you’re supporting talent or a principal entrepreneur, for example, it’s the difference between running errands and looking after the house and family stuff to like, hey, I’m going to try and negotiate this business deal for you, or I am having oversight into photo approvals of him that outlets are going to use and taking the lead on the different moving parts of like, I can recognize, hey, this is when I need to loop in his publicist or like, the appropriate point of contact for the different things that he’s doing.
00:17:10.892 –> 00:17:13.692
JEREMY: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
00:17:15.952 –> 00:17:24.292
JEREMY: Well, let’s talk a little bit about the advocating for yourself in the smaller team.
00:17:24.312 –> 00:17:30.592
JEREMY: You know, we had talked about that last time when it came to, you know, the more like you said, the more corporate environment.
00:17:32.332 –> 00:17:38.892
JEREMY: But what would you say would be a good tip for those listening who are trying to advocate for themselves?
00:17:44.963 –> 00:17:47.563
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CATHY: I feel like people often undervalue how important it is to talk to your peers or reach out to other people, even, and ask for advice or ask for their own experiences.
00:18:38.042 –> 00:18:49.942
CATHY: When I was negotiating my salary, for example, I wasn’t sure of the range and what was appropriate, and also what more I could ask for.
00:18:50.302 –> 00:18:52.862
CATHY: So, like, we’re out the gate starting a new job.
00:18:52.882 –> 00:19:01.562
CATHY: The most important thing you can do before even starting the job is advocating for yourself in terms of the salary, in terms of signing a document even.
00:19:01.962 –> 00:19:23.482
CATHY: So when I spoke to my peers in the industry, one of the best advice I got was if they’re not able to match your base salary, you can ask for a guaranteed minimum bonus, ask for a wellness stipend to have your gym or therapy or anything like that paid.
00:19:24.382 –> 00:19:34.502
CATHY: That was super helpful because from corporate, I would never be able to get my company to pay for my gym, but it was a completely different realm.
00:19:34.522 –> 00:19:35.622
CATHY: So that was super helpful.
00:19:39.542 –> 00:19:46.022
JEREMY: So specifically on that front then, salary and compensation and all the different levers that you can pull.
00:19:48.222 –> 00:19:59.862
JEREMY: What are some tips for those that are currently negotiating or have an offer or looking for another role and they’re trying to figure out how much they should ask for?
00:20:02.742 –> 00:20:13.662
CATHY: Well, again, I think that you definitely should talk to your peers and not be afraid to ask because like, you know, what’s the harm in asking?
00:20:13.682 –> 00:20:16.802
CATHY: You just find out that your friends are girls, girls, and they’ll let you know.
00:20:16.822 –> 00:20:21.822
CATHY: Otherwise, just find out they’re not and you’re just going to have to deal with that.
00:20:22.422 –> 00:20:33.462
CATHY: But definitely ask and also like definitely counter even like you never want to get a offer and just accept it immediately.
00:20:33.522 –> 00:20:44.422
CATHY: Even if it’s the number that you ask for, you should always ask for more because it’s harder to get your base salary raised during review.
00:20:44.442 –> 00:20:48.102
CATHY: It’s easier just to go and hire and be happy with that for two years at least.
00:20:48.682 –> 00:20:49.042
JEREMY: Right.
00:20:49.922 –> 00:20:50.682
JEREMY: That’s good advice.
00:20:52.302 –> 00:20:52.702
JEREMY: Cool.
00:20:52.722 –> 00:20:57.162
JEREMY: Well, you know, I actually just had the opportunity to take my family to New York City.
00:20:57.182 –> 00:21:02.762
JEREMY: And so I wanted to ask kind of a separate, maybe more personal tip question.
00:21:02.862 –> 00:21:06.882
JEREMY: If someone’s visiting New York City, what are the what’s the top two things they need to do?
00:21:12.242 –> 00:21:13.082
CATHY: Top two things.
00:21:13.182 –> 00:21:13.522
CATHY: I will.
00:21:13.622 –> 00:21:16.482
CATHY: I definitely think Broadway, if you can fit it in.
00:21:17.062 –> 00:21:22.642
CATHY: I think like the quality of the shows out here is just amazing.
00:21:22.662 –> 00:21:24.682
CATHY: And there’s great programming going on this season.
00:21:24.702 –> 00:21:26.142
CATHY: And it’s very New York.
00:21:27.142 –> 00:21:34.762
CATHY: If it’s winter, I think you really can’t miss all the little winter markets and like the ice skating and Central Park.
00:21:36.442 –> 00:21:37.502
CATHY: The art museums.
00:21:38.642 –> 00:21:46.722
CATHY: But I definitely do think it’s a great experience, for example, to go see The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon or any of the show tapings.
00:21:49.082 –> 00:21:54.362
CATHY: And those are my top level recommendations.
00:21:56.982 –> 00:21:58.162
JEREMY: Yeah, that’s awesome.
00:21:58.582 –> 00:22:04.302
JEREMY: I actually, you know, I have a funny quick side story about A Tonight Show.
00:22:04.322 –> 00:22:09.142
JEREMY: I was actually in LA long, long time ago.
00:22:09.162 –> 00:22:18.162
JEREMY: And we were like, oh, let’s try to let’s try to get on one of the let’s get in line for one of the, you know, the show tapings.
00:22:18.242 –> 00:22:23.022
JEREMY: And it was, let’s see, Jay Leno, I think, at the time.
00:22:24.382 –> 00:22:28.042
JEREMY: And we get we get in line and there’s this really long line.
00:22:28.062 –> 00:22:33.582
JEREMY: And I guess they were just giving them out to first come, first serve.
00:22:33.602 –> 00:22:38.922
JEREMY: And we’re in line and it gets to the point where we’re like, yeah, there’s no way we’re going to make it in.
00:22:38.942 –> 00:22:42.242
JEREMY: There’s there’s a lot of people in front and whatever.
00:22:42.302 –> 00:22:46.222
JEREMY: And somebody that works for the show is walking around.
00:22:46.242 –> 00:22:53.342
JEREMY: They’re they’re walking down and they kind of it looked like they were about to shut us down and say, yeah, sorry, we don’t have any more tickets.
00:22:54.282 –> 00:22:56.302
JEREMY: And they look at me and I’m decked out.
00:22:56.322 –> 00:22:59.242
JEREMY: Of course, I’m, you know, a huge Kansas City sports fan.
00:22:59.262 –> 00:23:04.642
JEREMY: So I’ve got my Kansas City Royals hat on and my Kansas City Royals shirt on.
00:23:05.462 –> 00:23:13.862
JEREMY: And the guy looks at me and, you know, he’s got his little pass, you know, VIP pass or whatever.
00:23:13.882 –> 00:23:16.322
JEREMY: And he’s like, hey, you guys Royals fans?
00:23:16.322 –> 00:23:19.562
JEREMY: And like, yeah, he’s like, oh, I’m from Kansas City.
00:23:19.582 –> 00:23:20.702
JEREMY: You know, again, we’re in LA.
00:23:20.722 –> 00:23:22.562
JEREMY: We’re waiting for the Jay Leno show or whatever.
00:23:22.582 –> 00:23:24.082
JEREMY: Because I’m from Kansas City.
00:23:24.202 –> 00:23:27.622
JEREMY: He’s like, how many of our how many are you are with your group?
00:23:27.642 –> 00:23:29.102
JEREMY: And I was like, oh, there’s four of us, you know.
00:23:29.122 –> 00:23:31.542
JEREMY: He’s like, well, come with me.
00:23:32.002 –> 00:23:38.662
JEREMY: He literally brings us into the show, gives us the last four seats at the very top back row.
00:23:38.682 –> 00:23:40.202
CATHY: Yeah.
00:23:40.342 –> 00:23:42.782
JEREMY: And he’s like, oh, you know, I just I’m a Royals fan.
00:23:42.802 –> 00:23:45.742
JEREMY: And I thought, you know, I got to give it to a fellow Royals fan.
00:23:45.762 –> 00:23:52.722
JEREMY: So anyway, I got into the Jay Leno show because because I was decked out of my Kansas City Royals baseball gear.
00:23:52.742 –> 00:23:54.762
JEREMY: So anyway, that was fun, though.
00:23:55.102 –> 00:23:55.722
JEREMY: Yeah.
00:23:55.842 –> 00:23:57.682
JEREMY: It was like it was it was a cool experience.
00:23:57.702 –> 00:24:02.442
JEREMY: I mean, it was like, oh, these I think Cheech and Chong or one of them were on the show.
00:24:02.442 –> 00:24:05.102
JEREMY: And then they had like a live band afterwards.
00:24:06.742 –> 00:24:10.602
JEREMY: So anyway, it was a fun time.
00:24:10.842 –> 00:24:17.722
JEREMY: I’m sure you’ve had to have people ask like, oh, you know, can you get me a ticket to come to see the taping and stuff like that?
00:24:17.822 –> 00:24:23.322
JEREMY: Do you have to deal with a lot of that with working for some someone like this that’s that’s well known celebrity?
00:24:23.342 –> 00:24:32.782
JEREMY: Have you have you had to guard your your social connections a little bit?
00:24:34.322 –> 00:24:36.582
CATHY: Yeah, definitely.
00:24:36.582 –> 00:24:43.702
CATHY: And, you know, not just limited to the show, also like concerts and just general access, really.
00:24:43.822 –> 00:24:49.702
CATHY: I think people see things and, you know, their interest is peaked.
00:24:49.722 –> 00:24:58.302
CATHY: And so that I think also speaks to a lot of people coming out of COVID and just kind of reassessing their friend circles.
00:24:58.322 –> 00:25:01.962
CATHY: And also with, you know, recent events is just reassessing everything, really.
00:25:01.982 –> 00:25:03.942
CATHY: And that’s one of the areas.
00:25:04.002 –> 00:25:07.302
CATHY: But, you know, I feel like I can read people pretty well.
00:25:08.402 –> 00:25:08.762
JEREMY: Yeah.
00:25:09.802 –> 00:25:17.202
JEREMY: Yeah, it’s definitely a skill that us EAs and, you know, Chiefs of Staff have to really…
00:25:18.282 –> 00:25:19.622
JEREMY: Well, we figured out pretty quickly.
00:25:19.702 –> 00:25:20.802
JEREMY: We figured out pretty quickly.
00:25:20.802 –> 00:25:22.382
JEREMY: No, for sure.
00:25:24.062 –> 00:25:24.722
JEREMY: Awesome, Cathy.
00:25:24.742 –> 00:25:27.522
JEREMY: Well, thanks again for being on the show for the second time.
00:25:28.962 –> 00:25:42.002
JEREMY: What’s kind of maybe your parting words that you’d like to share with assistants all over the world, listening, maybe some words of wisdom, maybe a productivity tip, whatever you want.
00:25:42.382 –> 00:25:45.682
JEREMY: What would you like to say to everyone as we wrap up?
00:25:48.342 –> 00:25:58.862
CATHY: I would just say, like, don’t sleep on the power of manifesting, and you got to believe in yourself first if you want anyone else to believe in you.
00:25:58.882 –> 00:26:01.902
CATHY: And also, lay out your gym outfit the night before.
00:26:07.082 –> 00:26:08.262
JEREMY: That’s deep right there.
00:26:08.282 –> 00:26:08.902
JEREMY: That’s deep.
00:26:08.922 –> 00:26:09.982
JEREMY: That’s a good tip.
00:26:10.642 –> 00:26:11.022
JEREMY: Awesome.
00:26:11.222 –> 00:26:15.002
JEREMY: Well, where is the best place for people to reach out to you if they want to say hi?
00:26:17.722 –> 00:26:18.402
CATHY: LinkedIn.
00:26:18.422 –> 00:26:19.382
CATHY: You can find me on LinkedIn.
00:26:19.602 –> 00:26:26.762
CATHY: And also, you can hit my Instagram DMs, but we will see about that.
00:26:29.202 –> 00:26:32.802
JEREMY: You’re like, you can appropriately hit my Instagram DMs.
00:26:33.202 –> 00:26:34.402
CATHY: Like professionally.
00:26:34.442 –> 00:26:35.382
JEREMY: Professionally.
00:26:36.002 –> 00:26:36.622
JEREMY: Exactly.
00:26:36.802 –> 00:26:37.382
JEREMY: Exactly.
00:26:38.402 –> 00:26:39.042
JEREMY: Cool, Cathy.
00:26:39.062 –> 00:26:46.802
JEREMY: Well, I’ll put those links in the show notes at leaderassistant.com/248, leaderassistant.com/248.
00:26:47.722 –> 00:26:49.402
JEREMY: And thanks again for being on the show.
00:26:49.422 –> 00:26:50.322
JEREMY: Best of luck to you.
00:26:50.342 –> 00:26:53.262
JEREMY: I love to follow.
00:26:53.822 –> 00:26:59.522
JEREMY: I’ve done this is episode 248, so I’ve done a lot of interviews, a lot of conversations over the last few years.
00:26:59.922 –> 00:27:06.602
JEREMY: And it’s fun to see the progression of people that I’ve interviewed like you a couple of years ago, where you’ve come in your career.
00:27:07.242 –> 00:27:10.702
JEREMY: And I’m looking forward to maybe doing another round in a couple of years.
00:27:12.402 –> 00:27:13.202
CATHY: I’ll see you then.
00:27:13.222 –> 00:27:13.942
CATHY: Thank you, Jeremy.
00:27:24.582 –> 00:27:27.102
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