HEATHER ADAMS: Heather Adams will make you known!

a lot at one time, keeps everything cold. And what was it you said about the top grew top lit didn't fall a screw top lit? Yes, it's so good. And we both live in Nashville. I didn't know you lived in Nashville. Yes, I'm here. I'm just outside in Nashville.

But yeah, so you're a baller. This is great, honestly, Like, I really love talking to people like you because you are the kind of woman behind the scenes, but you make the shit happen like you are that one that's like you have over You've launched over one hundred bestseller books. I mean that's a really big deal. Like I really want to know what it takes to launch a best seller because I'm not in a place to write a book right now, but I feel in the next ten years.

It's not there yet, you know. Like I'm pretty good at like feeling my career. Yeah, I'm not ready, not ready yet. It's all around me. I'm like interviewing authors all the time. Tons of my friends have become best selling authors. I am like running into geniuses like you, and I'm like, I'm just gathering information, you know, I just want to gather information. I just want to know, and I'm sure a lot of people are really curious

about what. Okay, So I'm to run through what you do, and then I really want to start off with, like, tell me about what it takes out a bestseller, because I am curious about that. I mean, it had a launch one just like quickly, just like I want to kind of stay sure, okay, But Heather, you are the CEO of Choice Media Communications, So that is like a branding You're like a branding expert launching. What is that exactly? What do you do over there? So? Choice is a

boutique communications agency. We serve people in the entertainment and lifestyle business, you know, industries. So it might be somebody in food, it might be somebody in finance, it might be somebody in health and wellness. But they have something distinctive about them that we think we can get above the noise. We dors book them on the Today Show, get them in the New York Times. We do social media and digital media management, and then we do a

ton of branding and strategy. So people come to us, you know, Caroline, for one of three reasons. They've got ten oars in the water. They don't know which or to paddle first. They have a podcast, they write books, they speak, they run a business, you know, they are running a family like they have all these things going on, and they don't know how to tell their story in a clear, concise and compelling way, and they need the roadmap and the plan for doing that. So that's one

that's me, Yeah, that's right. Pick me, pick me, help me, help me. The second reason they come to us is they're looking for exposure. They want to be on Good Morning America, they want to be in Time magazine, they want to be on Lewis House or your podcast. Right, And they don't have the relationships in order to leverage

and make that happen, they don't know the gatekeepers. And then the third reason they come as they're looking for an audience, they're known over here to these people, but gosh, if these people over here and who knew who they were, it would be a game changer for their business. And so those are the three reasons that people come to Choice. And I have an all female team. I'm really proud.

That's good. Yeah, I like that about that at some point, but I um, but yeah, they you know, we're looking for people that we know we can do good work for because they have something distinctive about them that the target audience is gonna latch onto. Okay, do you think you could work with me? Maybe? Can we talk about Oh my gosh, Yeah, I feel like you're speaking to me because I feel like I have really found my groove.

Like I think I still could be like narrowed and chipped away at, but like I've really found like my groove, and I this podcast has become great. But I'm like, Okay, what do we do. I've just like kind of walked blindly into this whole thing. Like Mike, I've had a million careers and anyone listening to my podcast for all

these years knows that. But like, start off in music, then kind of moved over into like posting and TV and songwriting, and then I worked with record worked at a record label actually like in the industry, part in publishing company, and then started my podcast because I just know so many amazing people and have access access to all these brilliant minds, and it's taken off and is incredible. I mean, it's such a privilege to be with your

listeners because your podcast is incredible, and so thank you. Yeah, women like you, Caroline are our ideal client because when we are the target consumer, when we're the person that you're trying to reach, we know what to do for you. And that's where we have the strongest partnerships are with

those kinds of clients that we serve. But you know, so many people fall accidentally into like this career and there's all this success and it's like, oh my gosh, wait if we put some intention and some strategy around that, yes, and what can happen? Because you've done this because of the magic that you possess and the gifting that you possessed already, and so what if we put, you know, some actual like strategy around it. How could we like

blow that up? You know? Okay, so can we just kind of like keep role playing just a little bit just to like let people know what actually happens with this, because I feel like I love to use myself as an example because I just love learning. But okay, so say we were going to like take my brand apart and we're like, Okay, you have this podcast you host, like it's it's really become a wonderful, beautiful, amazing outlet.

Like I am so blessed that I get to have this beautiful community that you've built too, And I like, I love that I get to talk to people like you, Like that is so heart fueling to me. And I feel like anyone who finds this podcast and like enjoys these kind of conversations is going to be so stoked too, because I just like getting to talk to brilliant minds like yourself and then like chip it all away and understand it and figure out how you can apply that

to your own life. It's just like it's just pearls of wisdom. So say, like people out there have a brand, like I have a brand, You've build something, but you really don't know what to do with it, Like where do you even start? What are the outlets to even think'st That's a great question. So the first thing we do is we start with a deep dive. We call it the Choice Collaborative, and it's like a strategic workshop that we do with you over the course of two days,

and we hear your founder story. We hear how did you go from growing up in Texas to where you are now in Nashville with this podcast and this family, and you know, all the things that you have going on in your life right and we hear all of

that right out of your mouth. We have dove deep into your brand long before you've stepped into that you know, collaborative with us, but hearing it out of your mouth and the language that you use and what you choose to tell us about and the touch points along that journey,

we hear that from you first. Then what we do is we walk through how people are finding you now, who are those people that are consuming your content right now and who are the people that you're missing out on that Oh my gosh, if they knew that get Real existed, or if they knew about Carolina hobby and her community, like how would it be a game changer for your business? And then we create what we call a content wheel, and so this is three to five

content pillars like imagine yourself at the center. Think of like an old school brainstorm like bubble that you would have done on the white boarding class, right, and you're doing all these thought bubbles off of you, but we're starting with you at this center, and we create three to five big content pillars that you were going to talk about all the time because it's what's true to Caroline. Right.

So if I use me in Choice as an example, communications is one of our content pillars, right, we're communications experts. I've been a publicist and a PR professional for almost thirty years twenty eight years, So that's a huge bucket and a reason that people come to Choice. Entrepreneurship is another. A lot of our clients, probably ninety nine percent of them are entrepreneurs, and so they that the content around

that pillar is really important to them. Another category for us is empowering women and leadership of our clients or female. I lead an all female team. I am very very passionate about equipping and empowering women specifically, and the vast majority of the people that are in our community are women who are trying to lead in some way. And then our last category is relationships. So this might be marriage or friendship or self care things like, but those

are things that our women care about. So those are four of our content pillars at Choice. Well, what we do with you is we create that content wheel and so there's the big content pillars and then there's those subcategories that come off of it. So off of communications, we might have book publishing, we might have podcasting, we might have social media. You know, just examples crisis communications, like things that come off of communications, and we build

that for the clients specifically. And everything that you create content wise, if it's for your social media, if it's a media interview you're doing, if you're writing a book, if you're doing a podcast, if you're speaking somewhere, if you're writing a blog post, if you're putting out a newsletter. Like, anywhere that you create content, it should go through this filter. It's kind of like a compass or your north star

in your business. Because what happens to people is they start going squirrel, squirrel, squirrel, and they start talking about things that are not true to their brand because they think they need to talk about them because other people are talking about them, or they think it's popular, it's trendy, or you know whatever. And then what happens is people

don't know what to come to you for. They don't know, like what is true to your brand because you're talking about eighty five different things and I can fall in that category sometimes just where you're like squirreling, yeah, and I'm so done. I'm so trying not to squirrel anymore, like I want. This is why this is totally like resonating with me what you're talking about, just like clearing it up, coming up with a strategy and a formula

and a plan exactly. And then we take that content wheel and we create for you a mission, core values, and a tagline for your business. Now, some people come to us and they're ten years into their business and they've got something established, and we evaluate it and finesse it and clean it up or updated or elevated in some way. Sometimes they come to us and it's right

on the money. But the vast majority of people that come to us have never thought about that, have never thought like, what is the reason I'm here, What is the what do I value? What do I believe? What am I delivering to my audience through my foundational elements? So I'll use you know Choice again as an example. So our mission is we see you, we understand you, we guide you, we make you known. So it's like four simple statements, but if you were to boil it down,

it would be see, understand, guide, make known. That's why we're here. See you really take the time to hear the story, know the story, like see the full story anitionally, partnering with those people we think we can get above the noise, not just anybody that comes to Choice right, then understand you. We know it's one thing to be excited about you. It's another thing to know what to do for you that is going to move the needle

in your business. Okay, so you have the steps like you guys have this vast rolodex in bandwidth of like you have a playbook. So like someone like me who doesn't know all the outlets or people to talk to, or where you should be spending your time or whatever, it's like you can immediately go like, like, what are the different exactly rightlets out there that you would plug people into and our you know, lane of expertises communications. We're not doing your taxes, you know, Um, we're not

changing the oil in your car. Like, this is what we're specifically gifted at and competent in and have you know, a track record of success with and so that's where we're guiding you. So the understanding part is like, there are so many people that come to us, Caroline that needs something and we're like, we can tell you this is what you need, but we're not good at that or we don't offer that service. But here are three people that you should go talk to, you know, right.

We want to make sure that the people that come to us that we say yes to are people that we know we can do really good work for. And so that's where the understand comes in. Then guide to use our friends here in Nashville story Brand Don Miller and his awesome team at story Brand. The customer or the client is the hero and we are the guide. So many people get that flipped in reverse and they make their self or their business the hero, and that's

not the case. We're the guide. We're the ones taking you by the hand down this specific lane of expertise. That we have and then that's where that roadmap and game plan comes in. And then ultimately, Caroline, if we're doing our job, we're making you known. And for some people that's their name in lights and the Hollywood sign and national attention, and for others it's like, Hey, I just want these people over here to know that I even exist. And so that's an example of a mission

that we walk through with you. These are these are I exist statements like you exist to do what? And then the core values are believe statements I believe and so these are foundational elements of the way that you are serving the people that you um, that you have, you know that come to your audience. So ours are five. We believe relationships matter. These are not just business transactions for us. We know we do our best work with people. We are in deep relationship with Jen Hatmaker has been

our client for eight years. Eight years. We are in deep relationship. She's coming on the best, the best she is, so she knows who she is. Did y'all help her get her all narrative? We've been working with her for

eight years. When when we met Jen and started working with her, she was very firmly planted in the Christian world, Right, she spoke to women in churches, and that's where she was known and um, and I was obsessed with her and her content because I was her target demo, right, I was the woman she was writing those books and

Instagram posts and all those things for it. And I was like, listen, there are women over here that have no idea, they've never heard of Jen Hatmaker, and they would love you, they would be obsessed with you if we can get you in front of them. And so it was really baby stepping her over to a new consumer that had no idea who she was. So like, when we started working with her, nobody at the Today

Show knew who she was. Nobody at the New York Times or you know some of these magazines like Southern Living or Real Simple or Red Book or you know whatever time and now you know, she's a regular contributor to a lot of those places because she has really amazing, compelling content and an awesome story. And we just needed to introduce her to a new audience and to those gatekeepers who didn't know her. You know, Oh my god. And now she's like doing her own cruise, Like we

have to think, oh, my gosh in November. Yes, you have to be a big deal to like pack of cruise. I mean that's her own cruise right feet. Yes, And like her whole life ended up blowing up with her husband and her whole world, and then she's writing about it and it's like new book, feed these people, and she's being honest about it on podcasts, and I'm sure she's completely pivoted from like the Christian churchgoing wife too.

Now I am in the world. It's a mess, and let me be beautiful with you, Like maybe a beautiful mess with you. That's exactly right. And she says, now her insides and outside's match right, like she I love that Gin all the way through. Fee. No, she's not putting on a show for anybody anymore. She is just being truly, wholly, authentically Gin and standing at her own integrity.

And she has been through a lot. You know, her career was devastated when she came out affirming gay marriage, and she was devastated in her marriage, you know a couple of years ago when it imploded like overnight. And we've walked through all of that with her. But what is standing now is this incredibly powerful, strong, equipped woman who is passing the baton backward and saying, learn from

all that I have gone through. You know, Um, I want to cry, but you know, don't let a crisis happen before you've got your shit together, essentially, And she's amazing. And that that cookbook that you have Feed these People, which came out, you know, the end of last year, was really therapeutic for her and healing for her when she was, you know, at the bottom of the ocean, you know, in major trauma and suffering a lot of loss in her personal life. And so it's a beautiful,

you know, example of hope on the other side. And I just love her so much because she's so real about it and now she's so happy. She's in a now great relationship she actually found like true love and girl. I introduced her to him. I did Tyler. Tyler was my client and Jen is my friend and client, and I was we were Jen and I were in New York for media meetings and interviews and whatnot, and she

was staying an extra night. I was getting ready to fly back home to Nashville, and she was staying an extra night to go to a Broadway show and I was like, well, what are you going to see? And she's like, I don't know. I haven't decided yet. And I was like, all right, listen, I have kind of a wacky, crazy idea. But one of my new clients is in town and he's going to a show tonight. Why don't y'all go together? Like you need to know

each other. He's amazing, y'all will love each other. And so they went and saw a waitress and with Jennifer was the was the lead, and they went and met and they're together now. And I'm like, Okay, my work here's done for Rather, you're more than just like helping with the career. You're like the whole more about your life. I don't just care about whatever you're launching. And also you do Noel jet right with jets at Homes. I just interviewed Amazing. You loved your episode with her. It

was so good. Oh, I gotta listened to the two of y'all forever because it was just like, first of all, y'all cried like forty five times, which I had, like all these tender moments listening to the two of you.

It was so precious. But she's amazing too, amazing, Like, Okay, So here's what I'm getting a theme with you, is you really lock in with like really amazing powerhouse women who have like gone through some shit and figured out how to get on the other side of it and then tell the story and help people women rising like women who are rising like You's like the feis right. Yeah, it is such a privilege to be a megaphone for women like that, because don't women like me and you

need those messages? Yes? Yes, And so to play even the smallest role, this teeny tiny role to help like catapult them so that you know, more women are hearing these messages. Is It's not lost on me that that is you know what I get to do every day. Man. And just speaking of these two women in particular, gen hat Maker and Noel Jet, like, if anyone doesn't know them, it y'all should follow them. Noel's already been on the podcast,

Jin's coming on the podcast. But what I love about them and just makes me love you so much that this is how you operate in the women that you're drawn to, is I love that these women have not had an easy road. They're honest about it, and they have done the hard work. They are smart, they have kept going, They've persevered, They felt all the feelings, and yet they have continued to march forward and listen to

their heart and find what is guiding them. And now they have literally risen from so many moments as it really hard, painful moments, but they have gotten so real and honest and truthful with themselves. And now they are at this next level where both of them are content and happy and like thriving. But it was not like, oh,

they just have an easy life. It's like, no, they fought for this, and now they're sharing how they got there and they're sharing their tips and they're actually are truly happy, not just like faking it and sagement, you know. And Jen and I talked about that when she was at the bottom of the ocean and in major trauma

and grief. I said, I know you can't see it now, but women are going to be like you are going to help so many women on the other side of this because they're either have gone through or are going through what you're going going through right now, and they need that encouragement that there is hope on the other side, you know, and living truth of that. But we need someone to show us and we need to actually see it play out. You know. I feel like that's how

human beings are. Not everyone knows is has the courage or even the idea or the has the understanding of what to do, but we need someone to guide us, like you're guiding with the behind the scenes getting these voices, Hurd. It's like, we need someone's story that we can latch onto so we can have hope because we're also true Caroline,

It's so true. And you know, I'm sure General talked to you about this when you have her on the show, but you know, she created these me courses out of that very thing so that women can learn from the exact people that she's learning from and who have helped her.

And she's like, I'm not an expert in finances, but here's who I, you know, linked arms with and who helped me when I didn't know how much money I made in a year and I didn't know how many you know, checking accounts we had, and you know, like things like that. She I don't want to steal her thunder. I want her to be able to share all that.

But she just helped to understand that we play in all of that is getting those people really clear on their messaging, so what we were talking about before and why they're here and who they're serving, and then who they're not serving but need to be in front of, and then how to get them in front of those people.

So we know that if Jen is on your podcast, the women listening to your podcasts are women who either know her and love her and want to hear more from her or don't and should right it will be so excited to find out about her exactly. And so it's really customizing that messaging to the right audience and getting them the access that they need to get in front of those people. So yeah, that's a very long way of telling you more about what choice. Do I

love it though? And do y'all do like brand deals y'all partner people with particular brands or is it more just like big things like book deals and like show engagements and things, so we don't like, we don't represent them like a literary agent would and go to a publishing house and shop the book around. It's our job to birth the baby, right, it's our job to promote it. So once the book has been written, and we don't

just work on books. We work on a lot of brands, but for an author, as an example, when that book is getting ready to release six months before it comes out is when we get involved and we start really determining, Okay, what is the story that needs to be told? Who are the people to go to. So we're booking media so that when that book is out, you're hearing them on podcast, you're seeing them on TV, you're reading reading

about them in magazines or online. We're coordinating partnerships with influencers like you, so they might have Instagram lives with people or you know whatnot and so, but it's it starts with that collaborative branding exercise to get really clear. There's so much clarity that comes out of that. And then when we know what the end goal is, you know, we want to be a New York Times bestseller, we want to sell thousands of books. I want to be on the Today Show, you know, whatever that end goal is.

We work backwards from that in developing the strategy, you know, to go after it. I just I can't believe I just like met you, like you just felt like No, I can't believe we live in the same town and haven't and have all these mutual friends and haven't been together yet. But you're like the fairy godmother of all these like vagabond entrepreneurs who like have all this stuff but don't know what they're doing but need help and guidance.

And I don't know what vagabond actually means. That might not be the right word, but like, you know, like all these people out there who just like there's such a world to create now, but it's like you start creating and just not knowing what to do with it, you know, And like the wizard behind the curtain, right, that's where roll is is. We are behind the scenes,

pulling all the levers and making things happen. And really it's such a privilege to be able to help these women have their dreams realized, you know, because of the work that we do. And like I said, we are one small cog in the wheel, but even in the role that we play, we feel like, gosh, it's so fun to be able to help people live out the dreams that they have for themselves. How did you get into this, How did you get passionate about this? Well,

you know, I studied journalism in college. I went to the university of Georgia and study journalism in college. But I'll tell you where it all started for me was when I was a junior in college, I did a summer internship at the Secretary of States Press office in the State of Georgia. So I was going to the Capitol building every single day and I was going to the press office. I had no idea what a press

secretary did, but I knew. I was fascinated. And what I've realized, and this was long before Olivia Pope and scandal was exactly Oh I love that. Oh my gosh. But red wine and the popcorn every night so good. Yes, the tall cratern barrel wineglasses. Please. So I was in college in the nineties, so this is long before Olivia Pope, but I was obsessed with becoming her. That's what I wanted to do with my career. And what I learned from that press secretary is she was the buffer between

the client. Her client was the Secretary of State and the media, and it was all about relationships and about the semantics of what you said and how you said it and all of that. And so serving is that buffer, which is what a publicist does. You know, I serve as the buffer between Jen Hatmaker and the Today's Show. I serve as a buffer between you know, Noel Jet and your podcast, right and so's it's that is what

I was obsessed with. I loved being that person in between connecting the two and again goes all the way back to relationship. I mean, that's the reason I have a career is because of relationships. Okay, so this is like what you're made to do because you have the personality for it. Because this is where it's like a fine art. This is like, this is like and I've been around long enough to know, this is like this is where your secret sauce of who you actually are

comes into play. Because not everyone can finesse a relationship. Not everybody can. Like a million people can say they have your job, But can everyone actually have a good relationship with all these outlets? Can everyone actually get these relationships? Can everyone actually like maintain them and keep them fun and keep them alive and keep them, you know, thriving. It's a personality thing. If you don't have the right personality, sometimes it might be a total not it could be

a clash. And I feel like you just from this one interaction, we're having. I'm like, you are made to dance with people, like communicate with them, like you're just like you love it. I can tell you love it, Yeah, I do. I really feel like this is God's gifting form, you know, and call for my life is that, you know,

I am meant to serve people in this way. And you know, it's not lost on me that all those years ago when elementary school, when my report card came back and said, you know how, there's a great student and she's really smart and gifted, but she sure does talk a lot in class. You know, like all of those things are pointing to the career and the life that I have now, right, and the leadership that I had when I was you know, labeled bossy as a young girl. You know, all those things were eating me

to this place that I am now. And and my goal is to change that narrative for the women who are coming behind me so that their path and their course is easier and wider than mine was. You know. So, what do you like about connecting with people? Like what do you like because to me, it kind of feels like I love connecting with people too, But like when I'm connecting for work with people, I get a little

more stressed out. Like I like connecting, like just like getting to have this conversation and like diving into your story and like you know, sinking my teeth into your soul. But like when it comes to like having to like go gather all these different outlets and like I mean chan these relationships and find these people and like get this rolodex of just like connections that can feel a little daunting. Like that makes me feel a little bit stressed out, Like how do you navigate that? Why do

you like that? Like what do you like about all of that interaction? Like what is what is it that like lights you up? Well, here's here's how I like to think about it. It's like you know that saying about how the closest five people that you're friends with or shape who you are. It's the same in this In business, I don't have thousands and thousands of superficial relationships.

I have handfuls of really deep and meaningful ones. So for example, when I first got into a book publishing and I was the head of publicity at a book publishing house, one of the big publishing houses in the country, There's this woman who was the head of all book production at NBC. Her name's Jackie Levine. She was in

that position for almost thirty years. I knew that my authors needed to be on NBC, whether it was for the Today's Show or Dateline, or the NBC Nightly News or Hoda's podcast or whatever it was, right it was on NBC. Jackie was responsible if it was connected to books in any way, shape or form. So I knew Jackie was a gatekeeper that I needed to have a good relationship with. So I first reached out to her, made a case for having a meeting. I went to New York and sat down in her office, and I

started getting to know her personally. She had pictures on her wall that her children had drawn, and one said Greta and one said THEO. And so I asked her about Greta and THEO. And I every single time after that when I would talk to her, I would ask her about Greta and THEO. Right, and I reached out to her to compliment her on a segment when I

didn't need anything from her. Right, I was forming and relating to Jackie on a personal human level, and not just when I had an agenda and needed my author on her show. It was important to you to develop a real relationship with her, a real relationship that was authentic. And so fast forward years later, you know, and a lot of people that Jackie has booked for me. This is why she, you know, opens my emails or returns

my calls. But THEO is coming to Nashville to go to Vanderbilt for college, and Jackie calls me up and she's like, I need to know all the things. Where do we stay, where does he live, where do we eat, what do we do? Because we had a relationship well

beyond just me booking authors on NBC programming. Right, that's what you're saying, like, if you're going you value your job so much, you love this connection, but you're going to connect, and you're going to connect hard, and it's going to be real and it's not going to be totally spread out. You're not gonna, like, you know, just

dump yourself all over everybody. You're very pick not I don't know if you're picky, but you're picking these people that really matter to you and you're going to pour into That's right. And I say that with our clients that we serve, you know, when they come and they want um, you know, media campaigns, and they want us

to deliver media. I'm like, let's find the right twenty places that will be a game changer for you if they happen, and let's go intentionally and strategically after those, rather than throwing everything up against the wall and seeing what sticks to two hundred and fifty places and sending them all the same pitch. Right. So it's that same way in my personal life, Like I have a handful of really close, intimate, deep and meaningful friendships as opposed

to you know, hundreds of really superficial ones. And so that's just my approach, and that to me, works really well from a relational standpoint, and it's you know, gone over into my work life and it's it's what really helps us be successful for our clients. I like you.

I like your personality. I can already tell like you are someone who just like you are just quick and you're on it and you have a big bandwidth, and like you are engaged and you're alert, and I just like you're awesome, Heather, like you, I'm really really so kind, Carolyte. Well I'm addressed. Thank you so much. And you know one thing that I've been told my entire life is that I'm super direct and assertive, and you know a lot of times that's gotten me labeled as not very

kind things. Right, But I also feel like, to use Brene Brown's term, clear is kind and unclear is unkind. And so you can be direct and you can be scrappy, and you can be driven and ambitious and still be a kind human being, you know. And that's where I try to live in that is in that place. Oh I love that so much. Okay, So how do you launch a best selling book? You've launched all these books,

like I said, I want, Yeah, what's the secret? Because it's like to have a hundred best selling book launches. That's a big deal. Like what is this? Like the strategy a little bit that you use? Well, it all goes back to what we've just been talking about, which our relationships. You know. I teach We have a course called Booked by Choice, which is really the only thing

of its kind. It's essentially book publicity one oh one, and it's eighteen videos and all kinds of assets where I teach you, step by step by step exactly what to do. And that course the foundation of all of that is what we call the relational roadmap, and there are three specific stops that you take on that map, and we teach you, like the exact process that we use.

It choice to have launched more than you know, one hundred New York Times bestsellers, and I know that everybody feels like that's the end goal is to have this New York Times bestselling status. It's really really hard to make. And there's this you know, magic formula that very very few people, only employees of the New York Time Times

that work on that list. No you know what the algorithm is to make the list, but but there there is a formula that we use that takes you step by step down that process and you know, it all goes back to the relationships and how to leverage them, who to access, what to say to them, when to say it's all of that and so that teaches you kind of the timeline. That's not even anything you and I were planning to talk about, but it's just something that we have as a resource for people and there's

really nothing out there like it. We're really proud of that. Um So, anyone interested in writing a book one day or launching a book, Like, that's a good thing to try when you're on a book tour because I have become a stop on a lot of people's books tour. So I love like, I feel like I'm a venue now, Like I've been in music for so long and my husband's and you go to like venues and you play them and I that speaks volumes about your podcast too,

thank you? Well, I feel so I feel so excited about it, and like I finally I started realizing, I'm like, man, I'm actually like a stop on people's book tours now, and this is like so cool. So what goes on on a book tour or what goes on I say, someone like a gin hat maker or a Noel Jet. There's so much more than a book. But like books are the common thread that keeps running through their career, they also do a lot of like social media and

youtubing and I mean, you know online things. So what what is the what do you do with someone like that? Like do you focus on a book or you just constantly like coming up with the next thing? What if they don't have something on the horizon or is it just always moving? Yeah, well there are plenty of our clients who have never written a book, don't have any intention of writing a book, and they have a really compelling message or they have a service that they offer.

So it's not just people who do books that we work with. But but going back to your original question of a tour, you know, post pandemic tours look a lot different. During the pandemic, everything went virtual, even media interviews. You know, we weren't flying to LA in New York to do media. We were doing it all like we are right now on Zoom and Skype, you know, and they were being interviewed by the host, you know, virtually.

But post pandemic, you know, events are returning, and so tours and the magic of them are coming back because there's nothing like in person, you know, connection with people, as you well know. And so what traditionally happens at a book launch, it's much like when an album releases, right, It's like you want as much concentrated as close to

that launch date as possible. Books always release on a Tuesday, and so on that Tuesday, you want the biggest things to happen, and for those first two to four weeks, you want as much happening as possible. So whether that traveling to different markets across the country. You're going to

Atlanta and Nashville and Dallas and Minneapolis and Philadelphia. You know, you're going to different markets and you're engaging with um, you know, consumers in that market specifically maybe you're having a live event or maybe you're having a book signing in that market, but you're also doing media in that market, and you're meeting with people like when people come to Nashville, you know, they're going to Parnassis and doing a signing and they're meeting with you and Caitlin and Mallory and

Landon and like all the girls in town who have great podcasts, and they're doing you know, local or regional

media that are based here. So in Nashville, for example, we have great you know, local affiliates, but we also have Parade magazine is based in Nashville, you know, and so there are opportunities like that, And so you're just trying to put the trifecta together, which is, you know, some kind of in person engagement with your FAI and base, some kind of media component, and some kind of influencer interactions so that the people that you want to know

that your book is out in the world and available to them and is something that they're going to want to purchase that you're getting in front of them through those means, right. Love that. Yeah, do you have to have a lot of energy? I do, and I get a lot of rest because of it, you know, like I drink a ton of water and go to sleep really early because I also am raising two teenage boys with my husband, and so there's a lot happening at

the Adam's households. You've been doing all this while having kids, raising kids at home? I mean, what is going on in your brain? Do you just wake up ready to go? Are you one of those people that you're bannedwidth is huge? Well, I definitely operate at a high capacity and pace, but I, like anybody else, you know, there's a breaking point, right and self care is so important and critical to me. I have what I call my five non negotiables, which

are five things that you're so good at structuring. You've probably structured your own life too, having Okay, my calendar is blocked out, the way that my home is organized the way but it's not going to talk about all that because that's huge, Like having your life in order, and that's one of the things you talked about, how to build an authentic life. But like having your home life in order, having your schedule in order, having your

like like your closets and your stuff organized, it's huge. Okay, So yeah, what are your five non negotiables? Well, so I would encourage you to consider them based on this season of life that you're in. So I am a CEO of a company, I'm raising two teenage boys, I'm trying to stay married to an incredible husband. I also want to care for myself well. And so that's the season I'm in. Somebody who is single is going to

be in a difference season of life. For somebody who's got little bitty babies and they're in the weeds, you know, with their children, are a different season. But my five are. Number One, I get at least eight hours of rest every single night, Like rest is like critical for me. Number Two is I drink a ton of water. I try to drink half of my body weight in ounces of water. So like if you weigh a hundred pounds, which I do not, I weigh a lot more than that.

But if you weigh one hundred pounds, you would want to drink at least fifty ounces of water every day, so I try to drink half of my body weight and ounces every single day of water. The third one is I have a weekly date night with my husband. That is like non negotiable. We put this on our calendar. This is our fifth year of doing it, so we have not always done it. We've been married for twenty years this year, so for the first fifteen it was just fly by the seat of your pants. But five

years ago we were like, something is off. We're not like, you know, on the same page, like what's going on? Like this feels weird, this feels icky like, and so we committed to a weekly date night. We do it on Thursday night. It's on our calendar. It's like fiercely protected. Every now and then we will have something come up and we may have to alter the night of the week.

So for example, if our boys have, you know, a baseball game, and it's a dead smack in the middle of our date night, we might have it on Wednesday night instead of Thursday night. But we still get it in there. Is we still get it in there every single week. So that's what has that done? What has that done? For your marriage, because but I'm sure he's busy.

You're busy, and like, if you don't have order and a scheduled thing, it's going to get overlooked in the marriage can easily you know, fall fall just to the back of the list. So what has it done? What did it change? We moved from being like roommates who talked about logistics all the time, like who's picking up who from school, who's dropping off, who's handling practice, who's ordering the groceries. You know, it was always logistic conversations,

and we happen to live in the same house. It moved from that back to intimacy, and you know, we try really hard, though it's very difficult to not talk about the boys on our date nights and to not talk about logistics. Like we try to talk about more bigger picture, meaningful things, you know, as opposed to well, how was your day? Oh? Mine was good? It's busy at work, you know, like, well what are we doing this weekend? You know, like we try to move away

from those things. That's not to say that those things don't come up, of course they do. But I will say this my marriage now, and we'll celebrate twenty years married. This year is so much ripper, richer, deeper, more meaningful than it was years ago. And it's I attribute so much of that to, you know, it being intentional with my husband about my marriage and like protecting it. Awesome intimacy too, you know, like physically touching each other on a date night and being near each other and it

just being the two of you. And it's also modeling for these boys that we're raising, like what it's like to prioritize your spouse over your children, and what it's like to make sure that they you know, they are seeing how Matt treats me as his wife and how I treat him as my husband, and they're learning that that's you know, what it should look like when they're in a marriage at some point with a partner. So I just interviewed this amazing woman named Molly Fletcher. She

was like the Jerry Maguire of sports agents. She like she's done tons of them, but she is, like you, she's a whole person managing this whole person, like evaluating, and she was talking about her schedule and like the first thing she does with clients is she gets the non negotiables for the family and for the personal love on there first, Like you got to start with you first,

and I love that. That's what you're saying. It's like, you really can't have a thriving, successful, incredible career if your home life is in the garbage shambles. That's right, you're gonna wreck you and you're not gonna be able to enjoy it, and you're gonna have so many pools and tugs and guilt and it's just highs and lows that aren't matching. It's not in synbiosis. So true. And you know, for me, I don't want to be militant

about it, right. I'm not being inflexible like you know about things, but I just know what works for our family and what works for me personally. If it's on my calendar, it's happening. And so putting things on the calendar that are not just meetings that I have or you know, work related items, but putting a date night on my calendar, putting exercise on my calendar. That's one of my five non negotiables is to move my body

two to three times a week. And years ago, Caroline, when I started this, I was that person that was like where in the heck am I going to put this on my calendar. I don't have any bandwidth to go and exercise. When do I have time to do this? And so I started with one hour once a week good, and I would job, if that's all I can do, at least i'm doing that, that's better than not doing anything at all. And I started with one hour once a week at a place here called Garage, Bar and Bike.

It's a bar bike studio. And I went one time a week and then I was like, Oh, I really like how I feel. I really like these women. Oh I like this community. Oh I'll find another hour. And I worked my way up to where I was going more consistently and regularly. It's all about what you prioritize and protect on your calendar. You know, prioritize and protect. I think the protection is the problem, I think for so many of us, because what happens is we put

it on our calendar. Like let's say spending time with your girlfriends. It's really important to you, and so you want to prioritize it in your life, and so you put a girl's night on there. Well, let's say your child gets sick or let's say something comes up at work and you've got to travel out of town. We're not protecting the girl's night, right, We're sacrificing everything else. And so what's happening is we're putting it on there because it's important to us, and we think, Okay, i'll

prioritize it, I'll place it on my calendar. But we're not protecting it. And that's where we lose out is because if we're not protected to protecting it, we're sacrificing it, and therefore it's really not going to be prioritized. Oh I love that. Man. I used to be a yes person, like everything was a yes. Like I was always a yes, yes, yes,

I want to do everything. I didn't have kids. Michael and I are both in the music industry, entertainment industry, available to go out all the time, wanting to meet people, wanting to be in the scene, wanting to just know and feel be an in it. And it was fun, fun, fun.

Michael's touring with like huge people like Kid Rock, Darius ruckerd Jason Aldeen, just gone all the time doing and being in it and it was great and just taking an in, you know, just honestly, it was just like for me, I'm looking back on the first part of my life, just like gathering inventory, just like kind of understand getting data, like understanding like what is all this? Like I've been drawn through this big life, but what

is it? What actually is the keys to happiness? Like who you know, here are these people who have these big careers and some of them are really happy, some of them aren't. Like what actually like you're talking about person whole and happy, because having a great, big, successful career can be wonderful if your insides are good. But like if you know, if you're worked out on the inside, but if you're not in balance on the inside, you're even if you're career is huge, you're gonna be totally

out of balance with it. And so it's like there's so much into what makes someone happy. And my husband Michael was actually telling me today who was listening to Tony Robin Robbins, and it's the same thing. It's like, the real key you want to do is get your

inner workings great. That's the winning when you are and you're talking about this and I feel like now like I know this so true to be true, But like when I was younger, and I feel like a lot of people who don't know the inner workings of this entertainment industry can think still owe success money same fortune can make you happy, and it really won't, but it can be wonderful and used wonderfully if you are in line internally, And yeah, if you're caring for yourself, well, first, yes,

you're going to be good in those other areas of life. But if you are at the bottom of your own to do this over and over and over again, you're not going to be any good to anybody else. And that's like what you're saying and what Molly just said, But y'all are saying it in a way of actually like structuring it on your calendar, blocking it out, And it's like non negotiables, husband, non negotiable. Need to keep that marriage tight and right, you know, And I want

to keep that good. I don't want to get not that divorce is not the option for some people, but I don't want to divorce my husband. So what do I need to do to maintain that? Okay, prioritize it, protect it? Okay, Fitness, I feel the same way I used to just like abuse my body and do all sorts of like diet pills and eating disorders and whatever to try to get to look away. No, not anymore. Now. It is like working out is for my mental health.

It is for ye strong. I don't care if I have a little extra love in the middle me sure, it'd be great to lose it or have. I don't care about a perfect body. I don't want the reason, you know either. I was telling somebody last week, like there's something about sweating when I'm in a class, and like all the toxins just coming out every single time on the candle ride when they turn out all the lights as I'm like getting releasing, it's just so releasing.

You're right, and mental health component cannot be. I cry in hot yoga all the time getting that out. And it's not like I'm sad and depressed, but like you got to be least this stored energy. Oh good for you. You got to move your body. Sweat coming out is just so good. Oh I love that. Okay, So we have husband, we have fitness, we have sleep, we have water rest, water rest, and then the last one is paying attention to what goes in my mouth. So I am a better Heather when I am caring for my

body well, and that is not about deprivation. That is just like you know, for example, my birthday was last weekend and I had um some friends over for dinner. We had a small, like intimate dinner party and i' old Matt. I am making Julia Child's beef burgan yawn like I want it. It sounds so good. And my mom made her homemade poundcake cake for dessert, and that's

what we had. I do not eat like that all the time, but I wanted that for my birthday and that's what I had, and it brought me so much joy. But it's like paying attention and like noticing how my body feels based on what I'm putting in my mouth, and that's you know, going back to whole healthy, you know, eating. But it's also not about depriving myself in any way. It's just about being intentional. Yeah, I love what you said.

Intentional and then prioritizing and protecting and then following your schedule that you make and not to be said not to be militant or whatever, but you don't be so militant that you can't be spontaneous ever, you know. But you're doing the work in your home life, in your personal life, and your work life, in your environment. You're doing the work to assess and even when you take on clients like you're deep diving. What matters to you? What are your priorities? What do you need to do

to be your best? What do you need to do to fuel like you have so many big plates in the air. If you don't prioritize yourself and your home life and your family, like, you're not going to be the best CEO that you can be. So you have to prioritize, right. And you know, a win for you looks different than a win for me, looks different than a win for gin Hatmaker, right, And so you have to think about what a win for you personally looks like and then you back into it, just like with work.

You know, if I know what you're a win looks like for Caroline Hobby at the end of the day, then I know how to build a strategy to help you get there. Well, if you think about that and apply that to your life, Like, what does a win

in life look like? Well, a win in life for me does not look like me only working and having this great career it also looks like a really rich and beautiful family life and you know, great relationships with my children and my husband and you know things like that, And so you have to think about what a win for you personally looks like and build it in that way. Uh. I'm so in love with you, Heather. This is I

don't care a lot. We have to get together. I need to get I mean, like I'm already in my mind like talking to you after this and like setting us up a meeting, like I have to talk to like, this is amazing. You are so awesome, Okay, I just like, I'm so happy to know you. You're doing something that soulful, great work, and you're really helping women get their stories out there in such a powerful way. And these women that like you are working with are so awesome. Like

it's just so cool. I love that you our girl power. But it's not like we hey boys, it's like no women right, they got it all we are. It's time for the women to band together. And that's another thing that you talk about too, is being allies. Like women, we've been pitted against each other for so long, and I feel like that is just shattering left and right. Like we are realizing, like that is not the way

to do it. We don't need to do that. There's enough room for all of us when we actually come together and use all of our skills and talents, Like, oh my gosh, the impact we can make. And when women are using their voices and reaching people, it's love and nurturing and healing and help that is getting put out there like that is exactly right. Are helping not only women heal and rise and realize that they have a purpose to but it's men are realizing that that's

the better way to do it too, exactly well. And you know, I was conditioned to believe as a young girl, going back to what we were talking about at the very beginning of the conversation about you know, oh I was too bossy, or oh I talk too much, or you know, as opposed to somebody celebrating my leadership potential

or giftings that I had. Right, And you know, as I went into my professional career early as a young professional, it was there was one seat for a female at the table, and I was vying for that seat, right, And so you were taking everybody down on your way to that one seat for a woman, and I made a lot of mistakes. I was taking women out right

and left to advance my own career. And I look back now and I'm like, oh, girl, if you only knew, if you'd a linked arms with those other girls and other women, y'all could have all had the seats at the table rather than culture for the one spot. Right. But at the time, the culture, it's hard to break the culture. It's right. That's how I was taught, and that's you know, what I was conditioned to believe was right.

And so when when I launched Choice, you know, and was creating a work environment for women by women, it was like, Okay, what do I want to be different? What's the work culture, what's the environment, what's the narrative I want these women to have that is a different experience than what you know, I grew up doing. And so, you know, the women in the community that we have now, it's we are very much allies, not competitors, even women

in the same industry as me. I have so many girlfriends that are also publicists and own pr agencies just like I do. Their success does not diminish my opportunity, right, and we can celebrate and champion each other, and we get a lot further when we do that together to your point, you know, and it feels so much better and it's all exciting because now you're not alone. You're not alone. You have all these amazing women friends who

are impacting the world. You can come up with create an ideas to do together, and create an amazing events and opportunities and maybe even businesses together. It's just like it's so much more fun. But you have to be honest and transparent, and that is something that I am really learning. I've been kind of like floaty for a long time because I didn't know what I want. But now that I'm really like zeroing in on myself as like you have, and like you said, you're direct. You

have to be direct. You can't say yes to everything. You've got to think it out. You've got to have a strategy. You have to be intentional, and you have to really like organize what matters and then be clear with what you don't have room for on your plate

and not maybe a big personal, dramatic thing. You don't want to get to the end of life and be like life just happened to me, right, You want to take your own life by the reins and and you know, not just oh well, this happened, and this happened, and this happened. You want to create this life for yourself. And I think there's a lot of people that look back and regret that they just let life happen to them as opposed to them taking hold and charge and

agency over their own life. Hey, Heather, you're awesome. Okay. I always wrap up with one question, which is leave your light, and it's just open ended. What do you want people to know? Oh God, that's such a great question, Caroline. I would say that you have it in you right now, Like you don't have to go and take a class or change yourself in any way. Like you have everything capability wise within you already to go and live this life that you've dreamed for yourself. You just need to

have the agency to advocate for yourself, you know. And so I would say, there are so many times when I have second guests my own capabilities and not listened to my own gut or downplayed my own talents or giftings, you know, and to be smaller in the room because I was such a big personality or whatever. And you

don't have to do that. You can be authentically you and offer the giftings and the talents that you have, and the world will be so much richer because of it, you know, Yes, surrounding yourself with people who know their own giftings and their own talents, so it's not threatening that you have your own giftings and your own talents. And instead, when everyone is embracing the gifts and the talents that is God given, that is our superpower. And it's not to be using or to be better than anyone.

But if we all tap in to what we divinely were given and what we are divinely called to, then we're all going to advance this world forward in such a better way instead of like hiding and feeling like you're robbing the world of that. Yes, you're holding it in and not sharing it. You are robbing the world of that. Yeah, And that's why we love people who go all in with their gifts. We put them on

a pedestal and they get to a spotlight. Because we're also drawn to people who actually go for their gift and like use it correctly and like give it back out there, you know, because it's what we were made to do We all were made to do it well. And I know your theme kind of this year for the podcast is around the cards that people are dealt. Yes, your stack and dack is full right, and you have the opportunity to really be a gift to others if you won't if you will share that and not Yes,

put it all in right. Yes, have that capability within you. Don't think you have to change yourself in order to be able to live out the dream that you have for your life. Heather, you are amazing. Okay, where could everyone find you if they just need more view in their life, or if they think actually they want to try to work with you, or you know whatever, how do the people get in touch with you? Well? So,

our website is Choice Media Communications dot com. We are that on all the handles and my personal Instagram TikTok all the things is Heather Dixon d XO n Adams Heather Dixon Adams And can I mention one thing that we have coming up that I would love your people

to know about. So on April the thirteenth, here in Nashville, just outside in Franklin, Tennessee, we are hosting our fourth annual Choice Summit, which is a women's leadership conference, and our girl, Jen hat Maker is one of our speakers. Jen hat Maker, Paula Feris, JJ Peterson from Story Brand, to Ery Butler, who was Congressman John Lewis's longest serving

staff member. And each session we have incredible sessions for the day, but it's they're dedicated to women just like us, who are, you know, at that place in their career where they want to move to the next level and they need the roadmap to do that. And it's not just enough to go to a conference and be motivated. We are equipped you to go and take the next

steps when you get home. And so if you're interested in that, I'd love for you to go to Choice Summit dot com because it's this beautiful community of busy working women just like all of us, who just want to you know, advance in their life in some capacity. Amazing, Heather, you are amazing. I have loved this conversation, and yes we talked a little bit after before you go, because I did think you're the virse. Oh my gosh. Of course, it's such a privilege to be with you two. Caroline,

thank you so much. Back at you Okay, Heather Adams, you're the best Fife