Re-Release 03: (Ep. 05) Your Differences Are Your Magic with Danielle Leslie

Before we dive in, I have an important announcement to make. It has been an amazing beautiful, hectic, whirlwind of a few months for me and my team at Hello Seven. We worked our asses of to release the book in May and thanks to you, all of my faithful readers, listeners, and friends in the Hello Seven universe we made it a bestseller and it’s having an impact on so many.

From the bottom of my heart thank you so much for all of your support.

But to be very honest with y’all mama is tired, okay? I need a break and I believe that rest is a revolutionary practice that all of us, and especially Black women need to reclaim. So I am going to be taking a break from the Hello Seven podcast for a little while. But don’t worry, in July we’ll be re-releasing some of our favorite OG very best episodes and I will be back with a vengeance in the fall.

Really think about, like you could create anything with your word. If I say I’m going to make a million by June, or a million by May and that was my motto, I have just put that into the universe, I have created that. And if I share that with people and then I create the plan, like it’s in action, it’s going to happen. And that’s what happened to me, right?

Welcome to the Hello Seven Podcast. I'm your host, Rachel Rodgers, wife, mother of four children, a lover of Beyoncé, coffee drinker, and afro-wearer, and I just happen to be the CEO of a seven-figure business. I am on a mission to help every woman I meet become a millionaire. If you want to make more money, you are in the right place. Let's get it going.

So I’m so excited to have you here, we’re already laughing so you know this episode is going to be good. So Danielle is the CEO and founder of Culture Ad Labs where she teaches entrepreneurs or aspiring entrepreneurs how to create courses, right?

Danielle: Yes, Absolutely.

Rachel: Awesome. Okay, so before we got this party started you were telling me a little bit about your holiday experience. So give me the 411, how was your Thanksgiving?

Danielle: Yeah, it was crazy, it was a very unusual Thanksgiving due to the fact that a lot has changed this year.

Rachel: Yeah.

Danielle: But yeah, it was our first time spending it in New York so we just moved to New York a few months ago, u know, moved into our dream high rise, like always wanted to have this. And so one of the things that I got to share with my family was the gift of bringing them out here.

So I got to fly my mom here, my sister, my cousin, my aunt, my nana. And where we usually spend Thanksgiving in California, that's where we're all from. You know, my mom is living in Spain and so it was a way to bring everyone together in one place. So it was super special. And we have an extra bedroom so my sister is here thing with us.

So it was amazing. It was just so nice to spend it in a new place but know that jeez, this business kind of enabled me to bring the family together in one place. So it's been great. Yeah, we were at brunch. You know, my mom, my sister yesterday for like four hours. Our server was giving us the side eye. But yeah, it's been really, really special.

Rachel: Yes, I love that. I've definitely gotten that New York brunch side eye when I'm like having too much good conversation. But I love it. And I love that we're having this conversation, like you're right in the middle of your glow up, you know? So I love this so much, that this is all a little bit new and fresh. That you've really grown your business so incredibly fast and become a millionaire really, really quickly. Which is amazing. Like, literally just three years ago, you were collecting a paycheck and working a nine to five, like a lot of us, right?

So I think that's amazing. And I've had that experience recently too. We just built our dream home this year. And so for the first time, we were able to have all of our family come down and stay under the same roof because we have enough bedrooms for everyone.

Danielle: That’s so good, so good.

Rachel: It was amazing.

Danielle: Yes.

Rachel: And, yeah, it can be really awesome. And I also think, for me at least, there are some challenges because it's new and I'm the little sister. And it's like, “How do you have so much money?” You know what I mean? This is not how we grew up, you know?

Danielle: Yes, absolutely.

Rachel: So it's definitely something new for my family and even friends to get used to. But I actually have found that everyone has been incredibly supportive. And also too, I've been able to support them with their dreams. I find that when you go after your dreams that you give the people around you permission to do the same.

Danielle: Yes. I mean, this is something we were talking about at breakfast yesterday. It's like because I've been able to create this it's like, yes, people will benefit from just seeing you and watching the glow up. You know, that's going to encourage them. But also like I have the space and the financial resources or access to the network or whatever to help my sister or my mom with whatever they want to do.

And I kind of shared with them that, yeah, I woke up the other morning, looked out and I was like, “Yo, this view, I'm so blessed.” But then it hit me and I was like, “But I've always been blessed.” That's what got me here. Because we're all blessed, I mean, we beat out how many of our – I don't know biology but, you know, how many sperm, egg whatever we beat out to get here. So we arrived blessed, but the distinction is some of us believe we're blessed and some of us don't. Some of us don't own that.

Rachel: Oh my God. Girl, u better preach it.

Danielle: But what I realized is I've always believed I was blessed, and therefore I acted as such. So I knew I'm supposed to be happy. I'm supposed to have incredible relationships. I'm supposed to be successful. And so every action I took from day one was, well, what does the successful Danielle do? Well, she does her homework. What does the happy Danielle do? Well, she wakes up and even though she's in a funky mood, she goes and gets into movement. Goes to the gym, talks to her boo, whatever.

So what I was sharing with my family, I'm like, “Yo, we are blessed. We got to believe we're blessed. And we need to act in accordance.” And when you believe it, you don't take the actions and you'll get the views. You’ll get the views.

Rachel: Yes. Oh my God, I love all of this so much because it's exactly how I live. And I know people hate when people say, “Oh, start with gratitude.” You're like, “Shut up.”

Danielle: Yes.

Rachel: I don’t want it to start with gratitude, I want to start with paying my rent, okay, I don’t want to start with gratitude. But it is so true. The cheesy stuff, it's cheesy and it spreads because it works. It really does. And when you can wake up and look at like, “Okay, maybe my business isn't making bank yet. Maybe I hate my boss. Maybe I don't like this job. But I'm aware of what's possible. But I'm alive at a time when the internet exists. I’m free, right? There is so much to be grateful for, so start with that. And really, that is going to be a place that encourages you and that motivates you to get things done. When you wake up and you're just like, “Oh, life is so hard and miserable.” Guess what? You ain't going to do nothing.

So, listen, take it from two million dollar bad asses. I love it, just dropping gems before we even get into this. It's so very true. And I just want to highlight too, so I'm a New Yorker and I now live in North Carolina. And I'm sitting in my big ass house in the country because that was my vision and that's what I was excited about. And I love that you're sitting in your high rise with epic views in New York, right?

So, everybody has their thing. Whatever it is that you want, you get to go after that. And that includes bringing your family together or running away from your family, if that's what you prefer. Whatever it is.

Danielle: Absolutely.

Rachel: So I love that. I love that so much. So tell us a little bit about what did baby Danielle want to do? What did you want to be when you grew up, when you were little?

Danielle: So according to my mom when I was like two years old, or three years old, we had a career book and I pointed to the obstetrician. And from that point forward until I was 17 years old I told everyone I wanted to be an obstetrician.

Rachel: That is very specific.

Danielle: Not OB, we're not going to abbreviate it. So I would say, “I want to be an obstetrician.” So I was like, “I want to deliver babies.” So yeah, I was committed to being a doctor. So everything I did was towards that.

So in high school we had a health careers Academy. So my mom made sure I went to that high school. And it wasn't private, it wasn't fancy, it was Palmdale, shout out to the 661. And yeah, it was the health careers academy. So yeah, I got to do rotations in the hospital, watch surgeries, over the doctor's shoulder, help with the patients and stuff at the age of 16.

And it was great because it was the best internship or fake internship one could ever have to discover that I actually don't want to be a doctor. Like I'm not actually cut out for this. I don't know why I've been saying it my whole life.

But yeah, that's what little Danielle wanted to do.

Rachel: Yeah. Oh, my God, I literally would have passed out, I am not one of those people.

Danielle: Oh, I could take it. Yeah, I love it. Another thing that was funny though, what little Daniel wanted to be, which I realized lately. And a big part of my identity for my entire life was that I'm nice. Like anytime you’d ask me, “How would you describe yourself?” I would say, “Oh, I'm nice.” And wholeheartedly I was like, “I’m nice.” And that's what I embodied.

And so even still it affects me with my business decisions to this day. I will make decisions from being nice sometimes I'm like, “What? Why did you do that?” So it's really interesting how, yeah, that was me all day. So now I'm taking a look at all that in a magnifying glass and figuring it out. But, yeah, that was a very interesting thing.

Rachel: Yeah, that is really interesting. And I love that because I think I definitely have that people pleaser tendency and I think a lot of women do. In some way or another it's almost like we are socialized to be nice. And I actually had, you know, I am not somebody who- I actually didn't really believe in astrology or any of that stuff up until a couple years ago.

And I went on a retreat and there was like a surprise astrologer to the stars. She's like this astrologer for celebrities that was there. And so she was like, “Oh, I'm just going to do a reading for everyone.” And I was like, “Okay, whatever.”

Danielle: Yeah, sure, why not?

Rachel: And then she busted my whole head open. I was like, “How do you know my life?”

Danielle: Yes, I’ve had that moment too. Same moment, I was like, “Okay, whatever.” I was like, “Oh, damn. How did you know though?”

Rachel: Exactly.

Danielle: Yes, absolutely.

Rachel: Exactly. So she told me, she was like, “Your role in life is to be rude so stop being nice.” She literally said that to me. She was like, “You're worrying a little bit too much about being liked, about being nice. And you need to stop doing that. That is not what you're here to do.” And it's so true.

And I mean, she basically gave me permission to be my full self. And I honestly, to be totally honest, I've never actually been all that nice.

Danielle: Yeah, and here's the thing, I think nice has a bad rap. Because there's a distinction with nice and you can still be honest. So the thing I've always been from day one, and I got this from my mom. I got the niceness and the compassion from my mom. She prays for us to have compassion every night before she goes to sleep. So that's where that came from.

But I've always also been honest. So it’s interesting, I'm not necessarily a people pleaser, or there maybe are times, but I'm definitely honest. So I will tell you stuff that I know you don't want to hear because you're going to be all right. And you're going to be much better than me lying to you.

So I think, as women we can find that balance of being in flow, and “nice” and also honest. You know, giving them the pain with the pleasure or the poison with the sugar, however you want to put it. But I think we naturally have that ability as well.

Rachel: Yes, I actually heard about a book recently written by a woman who's like an executive for a lot of large companies. She's bounced from a few companies, and she's very well known. And she's known for being really nice. Like she's a really nice woman. So she's like, “You don't actually have to be a bitch to be a powerful woman.” She wrote a whole book about, I'll link it in the show notes, I got to look it up.

Danielle: Awesome.

Rachel: But I totally agree with you. And I do think that honesty is nice. I think that is kind. And I'm the same way, I'm a truth teller. And I think that that is a great role to be in as a teacher, as a leader, as a coach, because people, you need to speak truth to people and let them know like, “Listen, you think you doing work but you ain't putting in no work.”

Danielle: And a lot of times when you’re able to be truthful to others, it's a sign that you're able to be truthful with yourself. If you look at a lot of people who are not able to be truthful to others, you wonder, “Well, what are they not being truthful to themselves about themselves?” You know? So yeah, it goes all the way around.

Rachel: That's right, exactly. And honesty is the key. So tell me, like I'm curious about what you do for personal development. Because I find that women who are going after big dreams and are very ambitious, we tend to work on ourselves, right? We tend to be people who are very focused on our growth.

And so I had Sylvie on the podcast recently, Sylvie McCracken, and she was talking about how she pays a very expensive therapist an enormous, ridiculous hourly rate. Because she's like, “I need to work on my stuff.” And I go to therapy as well and then also do some coaching. So I'm curious, what's your sort of secret sauce for working on your growth?

Danielle: Yes, I'm so glad you highlighted this. The farther I get along, the more I realize the self work is really what makes the business work, that’s it.

Rachel: Oh my God, yes. Say it again. Self work makes the business work, okay?

Danielle: Yeah, that’s where it’s at.

Rachel: Work on your mindset. Listen, if you're not working on what's going on in your head, nothing is going to work.

Danielle: You could have all the strategies, all the tactics, all the things in the world, but it comes down to the self work, especially when you reach a certain point. And that was a huge turning point for me, honestly.

So it was a little over a year ago when I hired- Well, I actually did a couple things. First, I went to Landmark. So if y'all haven’t done Landmark, do it.

Rachel: Tell us a little bit about what Landmark is.

Danielle: It's a weekend. So it's a Friday to Sunday, and you're there all day from like 9am to 11pm, something like that. So it's for three days straight. And you're in a room with about maybe, depending on what market you're in, maybe about 100 people. But yeah, you get coached.

So there's someone in the front of the room that kind of walks you through your BS. Walks you through what's been keeping you in your own way. How have you identified yourself from a child? Like where's the genesis of your identity and how is that showing up in your life as an adult? And what is that keeping you from?

So you just get all the BS out of the way that weekend of what's holding you back to clear out the space and give yourself a blank canvas to move forward. So they give you amazing tools to communicate, connect with yourself with others. It put me into action.

So I did the beginner Landmark weekend, which is called Landmark Forum. And then like three weeks later I did the advanced course, because I was not playing.

Rachel: Therapy on steroids.

Danielle: Right? That’s what it is. And the leader was a Larry, who's a black male. And I was like, “Yo, I’m feeling Larry.” And I knew if I did the advanced course I could study under Larry again. So I was like, “Give me Larry.”

So yeah, so that was the first huge shift. And shout out to Tara, who’s a really good friend of mine. She's the one who was like, “Girl, you need to do this.” So that's the benefit of surrounding yourself by other women, men, whoever, who are also on the glow up and will give you resources.

So I did Landmark, that was huge. And what it taught me was the power of my word. So the power of even creating, like when they say you're speaking things into existence, I didn't know what that meant. I was like, “Oh, that’s that foo foo stuff. What are you talking about?”

But really think about, like you could create anything with your word. If I say I’m going to make a million by June, or a million by May, that was my motto, I have just put that into the universe, I have created that. And if I share that with people and then I create the plan, like it’s in action, it’s going to happen. And that’s what happened to me, right?

So that's what I learned, the power of my word. And then the power of keeping your word to yourself. I had never had a great relationship with my own word. Yes, I've been successful, done the whole straight A thing, valedictorian, Prom Queen, all the things. But I still did not have that strong relationship with my work. So that's the big thing I took away from that.

So that was the first piece, the second piece was then the business help. So then I paid more money than I'd ever paid. So at that point, it was 10 grand. So I made an investment of 10 grand to work with these coaches. And these guys had grown their company to a million in revenue in six months.

So they took their new thing from zero to a million in six months. So what I learned is I need to study under people who are 10 steps ahead of me. Because I'm not on this earth to waste no kind of time. I have so much haste in my action, so much hastiness, I was outgrowing people who I hired. I was like, “Okay, I need to hire somebody who's 10 steps ahead of me.”

So I went to these guys, paid them 10 grand, even though I could barely afford it at the time. And this was only a little bit over a year ago. I was not making that much yet from my online courses or from my consulting. But guess? What I hustled and I sent an email to my list, I got the one on one call set up to pay for this.

So I made that investment and it was just a few months later when I realized the fruits of that. So they taught me different strategies, but more so it's crazy, because just the following year, so that was 2017. So you look at 2018, what did I do? I generated a million in revenue in six months in cash money.

Do you think it's a coincidence that the people I last studied under had generated a million in revenue in six months? I don't think so. Right? So the fact that I invested in people and put myself in circles of people who it was normal to make a mil in six months, guess what, it normalized it in my brain? And I was like, “Well, of course, I'm going to do that.”

Now, mind you. I didn't set that goal yet. Because in December I met up with my best friend and I was like, “Well, I think 2018 I'll do like half a million.” In my mind I was thinking actually a quarter million, but I'll just say half a million just to sound like I'm being ambitious. But I was thinking a quarter million. But no, it ended up accelerating and we got there a lot faster.

So yes, those were like the big ways I worked on myself. And as of today, you mentioned therapy, I've been wanting to do therapy for like a while now. So I'm finally going to get started in the next month or two. So at the top of next year, we will be getting the therapy train going and continue doing the self work.

And the last piece is I recently worked with a health and wellness coach. So that was huge for me because I'm just not a person who had a practice of working out. I wasn't like a true athlete; in high school I played some tennis but I wasn't like really doing that the work. So I needed help there.

So I got to health and wellness coach to help me with my morning ritual. So I didn't have any foundation, I was getting random sleep here and there, not eating properly, eating all kinds of bread, gluten, all kinds of stuff that had me low energy.

So what he did is help me refine my diet. So I'm no longer eating bread. I try to avoid bread, gluten, sugar. We cut out sugar and processed foods a long time ago, so we eat that very sparingly. Yeah, so it's mostly just like protein, so like chicken, I don't do red meat. Chicken, grains, but you know New York has a lot of options so we good there.

But yeah, so that's been huge for me. Refining the diet and then having that like morning ritual where I'm journaling, affirmations, setting the tone for the day, and then exercising. Doing HIIT workouts like three times a week.

Rachel: Yeah. Oh, you said so much good stuff right there. So I totally agree on the health and wellness journey. I think that is super important. And I love that it's a whole body commitment to your goals, right? What you're eating has to do with your goals, just like what you're consuming. What are you watching on TV, you know? Who are you hanging out with?

All of this is related to whether or not you're going to reach your goals. And what you're doing by taking those steps of hiring a health and wellness coach, hiring a business coach, going to Landmark, pursuing therapy, all of those things are like working together so that you can invest in you. You are what you need to bet on every day all day.

And I also read too recently that a lot of ambitious women tend to be very heady, right? We're all in our minds all the time, we're thinking about all the things that we're going to accomplish. And we're like, “Yes, let my brain work.” And what that does sometimes is take us out of our body. So then we have a hard time of focusing on getting good sleep, on seeing our trainers, or going to the gym, or whatever it is.

So getting back into your body, I think is a very key piece to this whole journey. And it's something that has always been a struggle for me too until I discovered Pilates, which that is my thing. So I have a Pilates instructor that I see three times a week and I love it. And I think I'm going to add a Peloton bike. So I'm excited about that because I want to just work and just be able to get some cardio done in the house. I think that'll be fun too.

But I love that and the other two things I really want to highlight is you talked about making haste. Which I just think like, yes people. I don't know what it is, it’s like, “Oh, I'll get around to that in the next three months or whatever.” And it's like, opportunities go away. Marketing strategies don't work forever, right? Technology changes. The world is moving. Why are you standing still?

Danielle: Right? The best gift you can give yourself is momentum.

Rachel: Yes.

Danielle: The gift of momentum, that is the key. That's the reason I got here so quickly, momentum. So when you are in motion, keep that train rolling. That's when you see the exponential growth.

Rachel: I agree. And that's why you never stop and you're always looking at like, “What's next? What's next? What's my next move? What's my next move? What do I need to work on next?” You know, always looking at that self growth like you talked about, super important.

And then I love that you also talked about how it starts with an investment. It's very rare that you are going to be somebody who's making big money, that you're not going to have to make a big investment that scares the shit out of you. I mean, it's just a requirement, you know?

Danielle: Yes, yes.

Rachel: At some point you're going to plunk down a bunch of cash, it's going to make you want to vomit, and that's where the action happens. I find that when people don't invest, they don't make no moves.

Danielle: Right. And I’ll say I do understand there is a time when you have more time versus more money, and you need to weigh that. And so yeah, there was a time when the investments I made were time investments. Because I had gone on this whole journey, had to move back in with my mom with my tail between my legs, had $0 to my name, had to start over.

And so at that point, you know what I did? I created virtual mentors for myself. So I would stalk these people on their blog. As I told you, I learned about you back in 2012. So I would just look, “What are other people doing?” And I would read their info statements, I would go on their webinars, I would learn their ways.

Even now I have workout buddies, right? If you need to get your workout, you don't need to hire an expensive trainer, get workout buddies. Whatever you need to design your life for you to be successful using whatever you can.

But yeah, I will say that book moola investment, that makes a huge difference. And one thing I've learned is you've got to be paying attention to who you're investing with as your coach. I've definitely made some investments in people who were probably not best for where I was.

So yes, I've learned one thing to look at are people like you. People who are going to be on this show. People who are already like 10 steps ahead and have this proven track record. And are good educators and have a good heart. Like you can tell they're good people. But yeah, that's something I've learned is a great place to put your money.

Rachel: For sure. And I've definitely lit 10K on fire more than once over these years. And early on it would make me like literally want to cry. And I mean, I just did it last year with something I invested in that I was like, “Okay, well, that didn't pan out.” And I got zero from it other than learning don't make that investment again.

And you get better at it, you get better at making these decisions. But you can't be afraid to get in the game. Like at some point, you just got to make a move yourself.

So you talked a little bit about having that time in your life when you weren't in a position to make investments and you had to go back to your mom's house. So tell us about that. I really want to hear about a rock bottom moment that you've had.

And I'll give you an example. So the story that I always share is when I couldn't cash a check at a bank, and the bank manager is deciding whether to release my check or not. Which is going to determine whether my daughter can go to daycare, which is going to determine whether I can work on my business.

And I was like, this will never ever happen again. Like, nope. And that year, like I 5x’d my income and that was all she wrote. It was just money train all day since then, you know?

So a lot of times it's that there's like that defining moment or something that happens that gives you that drive that you're like, “Oh, hell no.” So what was that for you? Did you have a moment like that?

Danielle: Absolutely. A lot of mini moments I'm sure, but yeah a huge one was that time. It was in 2011 and I had just finished- It’s when I had like an all-time high in my life. So I had just quit this amazing full time job. I was like 22 out of college getting paid 78 grand for my first job, traveling, they were sending me all over the world.

And I quit that job to co-found this startup with two other women of color. So Ari and Virgillia. And Ari was the original founder. And she's like, “We’re going to do a national tour.” She's like, “If musicians can go on tour, we can go on tour.”

So we planned this whole national tour. We went to 13 cities, and I was in charge of the money. So I was in charge of getting us sponsorship. So we did like crowdfunding, we did a Twitter social media campaign. This was in the early days, you know, 2010. Before all this stuff was cool. And so we did all of that, did our national tour.

Rachel: Wait, what were you going on tour teaching? What were you going to do on tour?

Danielle: So we had been doing these meetups at a Berkeley cafe on how to build your personal brand online. And so we put that on tour. So we held meetups in 3 cities for Gen Y millennial folks who wanted to learn how do I build my brand online, or people who had already done it. And we would bring speakers in and have them speak.

Yeah, so that's all it was. And we did a partnership with Justin TV. So we broadcast it to like tens of thousand people online. So it was huge. So we rode this whole thing and then we ended up attracting almost 100k in seed funding. Then we got into a tech accelerator program.

So all the things, we got into press, TechCrunch, Forbes. So all these things happened.

Rachel: So this was rocking and rolling for you?

Danielle: It was like all the right things. I was like, “We winning out here.” But after working on it during the accelerator program, and it was like a year and a half into this venture, we didn’t have nothing. Like we had no revenue, no money, no customers, and well, no hope at that point for me.

And it was because we got away from our roots. There's a difference between solving a problem and building a solution. So we started out by solving a problem. The way you know is you ask yourself, “How can I solve this problem with no tech?” So we solved the problem by organizing this tour. And we did these little meetups, and it was effective.

Then we had a little blog and we had like 65 content contributors, articles, and stuff. We were doing the right thing. But then we brought investors into the mix and all these mentors who wanted us to be tech and software and all this crazy stuff. And then we started building a solution. And when we did that, we had no customers because we weren't solving a problem anymore. We were just making a fancy thing.

So yeah, so that's the whole ride I went on. And then I said, “Listen, I got to go back to zero, because this is not going anywhere.” So that's when I moved back in with my mom in 2011. And she was living in an apartment in Redondo Beach, but let me move in with her. And I had no car, living in LA, and I was just on my computer.

And the rock on a moment came a year into that. So I was hopeful, as usual, even though I had nothing. I was like, “We're going to make this work.” And so that's when I learned about Pam Slim. And I took her course called Power Teaching, and it was like $67. So I put money together for that. And I was like, “I'm going to create an online course because I want to teach people how I quit my job and created a passion project.” We did that national tour and raised money. I wanted people to know they can do it too.

So that's when I went on this journey of learning about online courses. And I launched my first one in 2012. And I thought I was doing- I watched the webinars, I built an email list, I did webinars, I had affiliates. And I got one sale. One sale after like all the things. And so when that happened, so that was the beginning of the bottom.

And then the next point of the bottom was when I had the second guy in a row who I had dated say, “This isn't going to work because you're not going anywhere. You're bringing me down, girl.” And I was like, “Haven’t you seen my report card? Don't you know I'm a straight A student? Like, hello?”

So it was so bizarre for me because in my mind my identity was nice, successful, amazing relationship. I was like, “Wait.” But it was a great slap in the face and a wakeup call, because guess what? I wasn't showing up in that way anymore.

And it wasn't the fact that I only got one sale. That is not why I was failing. It was because my health was not good. I was not getting sleep; I was not eating properly. I was not exercising. So I was lethargic, I was terrible. In a terrible mood, I was depressed. That's what my rock bottom was.

So when I got that it was a clear sign like, “You need to get the F out of here. You need to join a team.” So that's when I started looking for a full time role. I was like, “I need to get back in an office environment, back with a team, back on board.”

But I did it the right way, I did it my way, I created my own role. So I made my wish list of three companies. And they were all in the online learning space, because I knew my journey. I was like I want to be a brand. I want to build courses. I want to educate people. I just need more tools to do it.

So I made a list of three companies and Udemy was at the top of that list. And I ended up going and joining the team at Udemy just a short time later and having the most amazing role where I was able to work with experts, help them launch their courses. Which, obviously, is what I'm still doing today.

Rachel: Yeah, oh my god. First of all, that was so good. Like, I love the story. Honestly, guys, like if you're in the middle of your rock bottom right now, please just know that your brand is going to be built on that story.

Danielle: Right? That story is yo money, like that story is currency.

Rachel: Listen, yes.

Danielle: So live it, make it worse, like get it real rock bottom. Yeah, but for real, that's where the magic rises from.

Rachel: Yes, it’s so true. I can't even imagine like having a guy say to me like, “Oh, you ain't going nowhere.” I'd be like, “Who the hell you think you’re talking to?”

Danielle: Do you know who I am? Danielle Leslie, have you heard of me? Okay. But then I was like, “You know what though? He right. He right. So I’ll just prove him wrong.”

Rachel: Yeah, exactly. Yeah, and you know that that's not aligned with who you are. And you know you're not going to stay in this place right now. But what he's showing you is that you were putting that out. Like your energy was off. And so it's like, “Well, thanks, boo. Also won't be calling you. You missed that train.”

But, yeah, that is a super powerful story, and it's so true. And I love how you even talked about there can even be levels to going rock bottom. Like, this ain’t working for me right now, oh, and now it's slightly worse. And that's what happens when you're mega stressed out and you've got nothing but cortisol firing off in your brain all the time, it's very hard to make good decisions. And it's very hard to make good moves.

So, I agree with you. And I love that you said, “Okay, I need a plan of attack.” And you also knew what you needed. Like, “I need to get back on a team, I need to get back to who I am. And then I'll be ready to make another move. But let me make this move right now.” So I love that. And also being intentional about what you wanted like, “All right, I'm going to go back and get a role and I'm going to find something that works for me. I'm going to create something that works for me.” And that's so entrepreneurial.

So I love that too. And also too that tells me that you were willing to play the long game, right? I think you probably knew at that time you're here to do big things. You already knew that, you probably knew that when you were five.

I see it in my daughter. My daughter Riley is seven years old, this little girl, first of all every teacher is madly in love with her because she's like reading two grade levels above. And I was like, “I have no explanation for this because I did not do it.”

Danielle: You did though, you did. Even if you don't know it, you did it. You
did it.

Rachel: Yeah, she’s about that life. Anything that she does, she's going to do it to the highest level. And she will be number one.

Danielle: That sounds familiar. Her mom, hello? That definitely came from somewhere, sounds familiar to me. I love it.

Rachel: Yeah, so I know that you knew that about yourself. But you were willing to play the long game and say like, “Okay, so this entrepreneurial thing, maybe that's not where I need to be right now. Let me see what's a role I can take that can put me on the path that I need to be on?” So I love that you did that.

So tell us a little bit about what working for Udemy was like. What was that experience like?

Danielle: Yeah, it was amazing. It was the best team I've ever been on. I had the best manager, the best support I've ever had at a company. It will always be like my favorite full time role.

And those who are unfamiliar with Udemy, just in case, it's a huge marketplace of online courses. So it's just a place for all of you to take your expertise, turn it into an online course, upload it to their platform, and make money from it.

Rachel: Yeah, my husband learned how to code on Udemy.

Danielle: Yes! That was a top selling course when I was there.

Rachel: Yeah, that was like way back in like 2010, 2011.

Danielle: So good, so good. Yeah. And so I think the key there is that I did go there with the intention and I did help craft that role. And it was funny, from the first conversation we had to me getting on the team, the role morphed to fit my strengths. Because I made it known what I was really good at. And that's when I think I learned at that point to get really clear on what I call, you know, your culture add, your cultural advantage.

We talk a lot in corporate when you're hiring, you know, is this person a culture fit? Do they fit in? Do they fit in with our values? But what that really means is, do they listen to the same music? Do they look like us? Did they go to an Ivy League school? And it ends up discriminating against certain people?

Rachel: Yeah, and then it ends up boring as hell, frankly.

Danielle: Yes, right. And guess what? It's not a good business decision.

Rachel: It’s not.

Danielle: Because it doesn't reflect the population of your consumer base, or where it's heading. So in that point I realized my whole life I've owned myself as a culture add. And whatever I had, I owned it. Whether it made me look like a dork, or different, or whatever, I owned it.

And so in that role, I said, “Well, hey guys, here's what I've created in the past. Here's what I'm passionate about. Here's what I think I could do.” And that way the role reflected my culture add. And when I was there, I was I think the only person in the company who had been a part of hundreds of email lists, and been on hundreds of webinars, and was entrenched in internet marketing.

And that's the unique intellectual property I brought to that place. Because everyone else maybe came from a different background. So what I would say for you listening, definitely own your culture add. And whatever role you need to create, whether it's in your business, in the market, in the company, do that around your strengths.

And so, yeah, my role was partly online marketing. So I was technically a marketing manager. So I got to learn from Archie Abrams, who's like, amazing, and he's one of the great like, growth marketers in Silicon Valley.

So I learned how to manage a funnel. How do you do an onboarding email sequence? That's going to go out to tens of thousands of people and get them to take an action? And then how do you educate tens of thousands of people at large, on how to get their first online course sale when they have no idea what a funnel is, or no idea how to get their target market? And they have no audience, they don't know what Instagram is, how do you do that.

So I got to learn all of those things and implement them. And then I would get on the phone and I was essentially a coach. So I would get on the phone with several experts, every week, from all different backgrounds. Yoga, designer, amateur photographer, doesn't matter. And I would coach them through how to launch their course. So how to get in touch with their culture adds.

So what is your unique message and positioning in the market? What makes you stand out, and then out of find their MVP, their most valuable payer, that person who's going to pay you time, money, and attention? So I walk them through that, and then show them how to do it like with very little tech? That's my thing. I'm like, how can we draw a straight line from you to the cache to start to secure the bag. I come from a tech background. We don't need all of that. Okay? We don't need all that.

Rachel: No, you don't you don't need all the tech, we don't need all the investors, we don't need all the advisors. Because even like what you were talking about with your earlier startup, right? As soon as you get away from focusing on your ideal client and the revenue, it's like, those are the two most important things. Who are we selling to? Who are we here to serve? And where's that money coming from? Nothing else matters, right? Or everything has to support those two goals.

Danielle: Yes. And it could be picking up the phone and talking to somebody and boom, you have a sale. It doesn't have to be a fancy $5,000 website and all of that.

So, yeah, so that was my role. And that's how I got some really early wins. You know, I had already gone through the experience of launching my course, and getting that first sale. And I learned the importance of like, basically like, what I call an MVC, or minimum viable course, right? It is the ugly, rough draft version of whatever you're doing with no tech.

And so when I got that for sale, I did over the phone, it was $1,000 sale, and I did it over the phone, so I actually didn't need the webinar, the email list, the affiliates. That sale didn't come from there, she found me on my Facebook page, a little personal profile, she messaged me without the phone and she bought.

So working at Udemy I realized, “Okay, I see all these people getting in their own way, spending hours and hours creating these video courses.” Because that's a requirement when you're on a platform. If you're on a platform like Udemy, Skillshare, if you're on a marketplace, like you have to create the course first, you can't presell necessarily.

And so what I learned is man like this is getting in all their way. But I did the best to coach them through it. But now luckily, in Course From Scratch, my own program, I can tell people that story and say, “Hey, there's one way to do it. But here's another way.” Like you can actually get butts in seats in the next seven days.

It’s the five C's, what's your culture add? So what's your unique experience? And then who's the customer that you can help with your culture add, with your unique experience? And then what's your core offer that you're going to create to solve their problem? And then what's a piece of content you can create to attract them? Whether it's an Instagram post, a tasty post And then how are you going to convert them? So how are you going to have the sales conversation? Get them on the phone or DM them, email them, whatever. So it's really those five C's, and it doesn't have to be complicated.

Rachel: Yes, I 100% agree with everything that you were saying. I'm all about that pre-launch life. I literally have Small Business Bodyguard, which is a digital product that I created several years ago is the only thing that I've ever launched that I built it all first and then sold it. And luckily, it was an $80,000 launch otherwise I would have been screwed.

Danielle: Nice.

Rachel: But since then, and even before then, I literally have never created or did anything. Services, products, whatever it is I sell first, create later. Always. Always, okay?

Danielle: and it’s funny because I don't think I did that intentionally, I just think that's how I'm wired. I'm just like, “We going to leap before we’re ready. Let's just go.” Because otherwise I'm a perfectionist, and I will lock myself in the cave and I will make this thing super perfect.

So yeah, I think it was like, “Okay, that's my personality.” And I'm like, “Yo, this is actually smart for business too, let’s keep it going.”

Rachel: Exactly, just validate the idea and actually make sure that people even want it before we spend a whole bunch of money building the thing out and a whole bunch of time.

Danielle: Oh my gosh, yes. I've talked to people who have invested 150 grand in building their course and their course hosting platform, because of course it’s got to be custom. And I'm like, “Okay, that's cool. So how much have you made from your course?” “Oh, none yet. I'm not selling it yet, I'm still working on the program.” I was like, “Didn't you get into this to help people? The only thing you're helping is the platform right now. We need to help people first. What's the shortest distance to you helping people?” So yeah, it pains me.

Rachel: Yes, me too. And I feel like people, you know, really need to let go of that, like, “Oh, it's got to be perfect.” Or “Oh, I have to have all the time in the world.” And I'm like, “Listen, you can be making money today, or you can wait six months or two years and maybe you'll make money then or maybe not.” If you work on something for two years, the world is changing, it may no longer be relevant.

And I have also had a client who spent a whole bunch of money, and time, and energy building a course and sold very few. And then she spent a whole bunch of money and time building it out further, adding things to it that she thought people wanted, and then again didn't sell it. And then I mean, literally, she spent three or four years of her life trying to sell this course that nobody was interested in. And as soon as she let it go and started doing consulting instead, she made bank.

Danielle: Yeah, that's it.

Rachel: So sometimes the offer just isn't there. But what better way to test it than to ask people for money? Listen, people will tell you all day like, “Oh, that sounds wonderful. I love it. Yes, do that.” But then when you say, “Hey, can you give me money for it?” They'll be like, “No.” And they got all of the excuses in the world.

Danielle: Yes, and the thing people miss is the skill set that will take you through the three R's. It’s recession proof, retirement proof, robber proof. If somebody robbed your bank account tomorrow- One time my fiancé asked me, he’s like, “What if somebody like breaks into your-” He's a Capricorn, he's a little risk averse. So he's like, “What if someone breaks into your bank, and all the money disappears?” And I'm like, “I'll just make more money.” I was like, “I have a skill set that is transferable across years, across a recession, across a robber, across retirement.”

So what people miss is that as soon as you know how to ask for money and get the money, you good, boo, you good. You could take that anywhere in any field, so don't spend your time creating perfect products, because that's not what's going to get you paid. That's not what's going to get the bills paid and get the food on the table. Master the marketing and sales, master that.

Rachel: Yes, I agree. That is true financial security. Because you may think that the job that you have is going to be here forever. And you've got a story, I know, that's related to that, too, right? Of, you know, you've got a job and you think, “Okay, I got financial security.”

No, you don't. Not unless you're in control. Because my friends and I talk about this all the time, like this whole business could implode today, and tomorrow I'll be building something new. And by Saturday I'll be making money from it, I'll tell you that right now. Because I have a skill set that cannot leave me, no one can take it from me.

And that is true financial security. And I feel like that is true freedom. And that is the best thing as Black women, as women of color, that we can do for ourselves to empower ourselves, is learn those skills that allow us to make money and that allow us to sell our stuff. We don't need nobody else. We don't need their platform, we don't need their list, we don't need their corporate job to make it happen.

Danielle: Yeah, exactly. Another thing we have is ourselves. So the fact that we have unique lived experiences. Okay, so I don't care what your background is, you grew up in single mom home, adopted, upper middle class neighborhood, I don't care. All of that makes you a culture add, that makes you different. And those are experiences that you can translate into something that's a teachable framework that someone will pay you for.

You have had triumphs in your life that someone wants to pay you to learn from. So yeah, diversity is currency today. So we need to see that diversity and translate it into dollars, because that means we're helping people. And helping people from our community.

I think the last time I surveyed my members, like 75% were Black women. It makes me feel so good to know. We don't have a lot of us who look like this, who look like us, who are doing certain things, teaching certain skills. And I'm like, “Wow, there's like this army now of women of color who are going out there. And they're reaching and teaching people and communities that nobody else can reach. Or that only they can teach.”

Rachel: That's right. Oh my god, I love it so much. I got goosebumps. I'm hyped. That's why this podcast exists, to like showcase. Because for some women they may not see us. And so I'm like, “Great.” Because I still see podcasts today where I'm like, “Why is everybody white on this podcast?”

Like anytime I see a photo from somebody's event, or program, or a lineup of speakers and everybody's white I'm like, “Goodbye. I have zero time for you, you will get none of my money.” And I'm so serious about that. I don't care how awesome you are. You might be the most amazing person ever. But like you ain't get my money, I'm just done. I’m just done.

Danielle: Yeah, I'm really learning representation is so important. And by the way, this is coming from someone who literally identified myself as nice, meaning my whole life, not until college, I don't even know I was Black. Because we didn't talk about race in our household. You know, my mom is Panamanian, my dad is Jamaican. I grew up with my mom and my stepdad who's American. And we just didn't talk about race like that.

So I identified as nice and successful. And then when I got to college, I realized, “Oh snap, I'm Black.” And then when I got to my mid-20s, I realized, “Oh snap, I'm a woman.” And then there became power in that, because I was like, “Well, I've been successful my whole life, not despite these things, but because of these things.”

The reason I grew this business so quickly, is not despite the fact that I'm a Black woman, it was because I'm a Black woman. And because I owned that and because I owned the fact that I can reach a community no one else can.

So, simple example, if you're sitting here listening to this and you're like, “Well, how does this translate?” Another example, one of my head coaches, she's amazing and she also was one of my course from scratch members. So she identifies as Black Muslim woman, lost I think about 30 pounds. And is a Master of Nutrition, health, and wellness.

And so guess what? She was able to create a program that was priced at $700 and work with other Black Muslim women who want to lose 30 pounds, or around 30 pounds. But she did that, that was her lived experience.

Rachel: I love it. I love how specific she is about that ideal client.

Danielle: Right, that's how you need to do it. Like that shouldn't be the exception, that is the rule. You need to be that specific. And notice how it's tied to her identity. So you got to figure out your culture add and then create that very unique customer that mirrors that.

Rachel: Yes, yes. Did you hear that story about Supa Cent who just sold her -?

Danielle: Yes, a million dollars in 90 minutes. I was like, “Woo!”

Rachel: I had a Taraji Henson moment where I'm standing up like, “Yes girl, yes!”

Danielle: Oh my gosh, yes.

Rachel: I love it so much. And I don't even know her very well, but I was like, “I'm your biggest fan now. Listen, I'm here to cheer you on.” And I just loved, I watched an Instagram Live that she did recently and she is so herself it is not even funny.

Danielle: Really? I need to check her out.

Rachel: She's from Louisiana and she got that southern Louisiana accent. And she's funny and she just has a very unique personality. And I love that she is so unapologetic, and just puts herself fully out there. And that's why she's got the audience that she has, making the money that she does.

So don't be afraid. I've had people, actually Black women say to me, “Well, white people won't buy from me.” And I'm like, “So, who else will?”

Danielle: Right. So, a couple things.

Rachel: I know, there’s so much to unpack about that.

Danielle: So I love how you highlighted how she, Supa Cent, is herself. And again, I want to say that should not be the exception, that should be the rule. The people, they who are wholeheartedly, unapologetically themselves are winning. They are winning because they inspire others to be unapologetic and to show up as themselves and be like, “Oh, I want that, I want that joy she has. I want that unapologeticness she has. I want that boldness.” So that should be the rule y’all, not the exception. That's the first thing.

And then the second thing is I was working with someone and he shared that one of his clients, we were going to run Facebook ads, and he's like, “I'm surprised that you target Black women.” And I was like, “You know I'm a Black woman, right?” And he was like, “Well, no, I mean, it makes sense.” But he's like, “Well, I've had other Black clients, who said, I don't want to target Black people, I want to target white men because they're the ones who can afford this.” And I was like, “They missing out. They missing out right now.”

Rachel: You stay over there and focus on white men, and I'll be over here focused on my fellow sisters.

Danielle: But you know, at the same time I'm not mad at it. Because that's what we were born into. That's the culture we were born into, that's a social conditioning. So I'm not mad at it. Like we are humans, we're animals and it's all about inputs and outputs. So our inputs determine our outputs.

So it just so happened that that gentleman, the inputs that he got in his life, told him that that was the truth and that was the reality. And luckily, I just had a different set of inputs. And I recognize my privilege, I had the privilege of growing up in California. Growing up in a household with two parents, being able to have a mom who exposed me to as much as she could. So I recognize my privilege and because of those inputs, my outputs do look like they are

Rachel: Yes, I love it. And that is so 100% true. And I agree. I mean, some people just because you can see the matrix don't mean that you're not in it. So we really do have to evaluate that and really, this is what therapy is for and personal development work, is to get yourself out of this sunken place. Okay.

Danielle: Right, I haven’t heard that reference in a long time, that's good bring it back.

Rachel: Seriously, who you are is an asset. And if you are a diverse person, and it could be any form of diversity. Listen, now is your time so get focused and get out here and show us what you got. Because now it is the- it is the time of the Black woman, it is the time of women of color. If you're differently abled, if you are gay, or lesbian, or transgender, like it really does not matter. Your differences are your magic, seriously, and that's where your money is going to come from. 100% you are not going to make money faking it, okay? Please don’t.

Danielle: Absolutely, yes.

Rachel: Okay, so, I'm going to let you go soon because we just have to cut this off. But I could talk to you all day.

Danielle: I know, I’m like, “Can we make this a three hour interview?”

Rachel: I know, we got so much more to say. But tell me, okay, so I always talk about this concept of being new money. Which is definitely my experience where I'm the first person in my family who's making this kind of money. And so I'm like that's why you need wealthy friends to be like, “Oh, you need to go work with this coach.” Or “Oh, you need to go get a therapist or go do Pilates.” It was one of my rich friends that was like, “Pilates is what you need.” Even my investing strategy, we're in a Facebook group together and we talk about investing, like, “Okay, so we got all this money, what do we do with it?”

So I'm curious for you, what is one of the things that you have loved the most, what's your favorite luxury, and you can define that any way that you want, since having this glow up and getting to a place where you know, you were making around 100,000 in your last job, and now you're making multi millions?

Danielle: Yes. Oh my gosh. So it's really strange because I'm not one for things, I’m very simple. And so yes, I would say let me see, most recent lecturing was definitely where we live. So I mean, the fact like- And it's funny because I've been working more just because I love the workspace. It's just so inspiring, I can see the Statue of Liberty from my place. And the planes are like, on our level. I would say that's probably the biggest luxury.

And then just decorating it so that we have like the most comfortable couch on the planet. We’ve got a rug on the wall, which I showed you. Which is kind of ridiculous, but it's awesome.

So yeah, so it's really I think my surroundings. And I learned the importance of designing my surroundings because it's motivating. Like I wake up and I'm like I want to go to the gym. I know that, that mentality built this. And that mentality is going to sustain this and continue to grow it.

So yes, that's been a thing. And then the second thing would just be family, like being able to give. So being able to bring my family out here, funds, different things. Yeah, that's been my little splurges as well.

Rachel: Yes. I love that. And I'm very similar in that way that like, I do like nice purses and a pretty shoe.

Danielle: I'll get there. I think I'll get there. I'm just now starting to learn to like shopping. I wasn't a shopper before, but I went a couple days ago and I was like, “Okay, I can get into this.”

Rachel: Yes, it is so funny because I remember there was a James Corden video, you know how he does those videos where he's in the car and doing like, what is it carpool karaoke?

Danielle: Oh, yes.

Rachel: And he did one with, what's the 24k Magic Dude?

Danielle: Bruno Mars, girl, yes.

Rachel: Yes, and he was saying like tell me about your clothing that you have on. Because he had this beautiful like silk, beautiful pattern, it was probably Versace or something. He was like, “You know, you got to put nice things on your body so you feel good.” He was like, “Look at this silk, this feels good.” I was like, “Yes, I love it.”

Danielle: So true, yeah. You know what I’m getting into is like workout where. Like Lulu Lemon Leggings. I have like five pairs, I went and just got like three pairs at once because I was like, “I love the way I feel in these.” And I know that's not quite luxury. We’re working our way up.

Rachel: Those leggings are $110 apiece.

Danielle: Okay.

Rachel: Seriously, and I remember a time where I used to shop at The Gap and only the sale rack, and clearance only. And I would go into a store like Lulu Lemon, or something comparable at that time and, and that's not doable for me. And now every time I go clothing shopping I'm always reminded of where I came from, you know what I mean? Because my bill used to be like $70 and I'd be sweating like, “Oh man, how you going to pay? How you going to eat this week because you just spent $70 on clothes?”

And now it's like I don't worry about it. I think the freedom from worry is huge. Your environment, like you say, it really is so inspiring. It really changes things. I lived in a tiny house before with all these kids and I was like, “I do not feel like a bad ass in this little house. I need a new house. This house is too small.” And family, being able to connect with family for sure.

So tell me, one other quick question I have for you, which is tell us what projects you're working on right now.

Danielle: Yeah. So at the moment, I am updating Course From Scratch. So just working on the 2.0 version. What I've learned is like, hey, when you have a program, like that's it. That's the product, so you got to make that mess good.

So, yeah, so about once a year, sometimes twice a year, in this case it's twice a year, I'll just take the input from students, feedback from students. I’ll look at their results, look at where they're getting stuck, look at the data. And so we're spending this month, December, it's a great month of creation for me, renewal. So spending this month to just like update the program and make sure that we're helping our members get the best results possible.

Rachel: So I just want to add one thing right there. I love that you made it to, you know, multi millions with one offer. And I really want to point that out, because I always tell people, “You need a million dollar offer and that's it.” Because now you can really take that feedback and continue to iterate and make it better and better, right? If you had 17 offers, you wouldn't have time for that, you know?

Danielle: Yes, so, so good.

Rachel: So keep it simple, people.

Danielle: I’m so glad you highlighted that. That is key, that's the only reason I'm here is because it was one offer and one bundle. I have one webinar that I have been running. The same webinar. I recently added something to it, but the same webinar for the last year that has generated about 2.5 million from nothing. One webinar,

Rachel: Yes, work hard once people.

Danielle: Exactly. And I think people, you got to walk before you run. With all these success stories, they think, “Oh, the first time I launch, I need to do a six figure launch. Oh, the first time I try this thing I need to make 10k out the gate.” Uh-huh boo, last January, like January 2017 I made $2,000, I did another MVC to test out Course From Scratch content. I made $2,000 and I was like, “Okay, this is the starting point, like to figure out how to refine it.”

And fast forward to today, that laid out the foundation to get to the over 2 million in that short period of time. So walk before you run. Know that you don’t have to do this thing over and over and over to refine it.

Rachel: Yes, and stay in the game, man. You just don't quit. You know what I mean? It ain't going to be perfect the first time and you got to be resilient. And you know what? We have an edge there as Black women because we have to be resilient to live in America, you know?

Danielle: Absolutely.

Rachel: It is what it is, so use that resiliency to get you through this journey for sure.

Danielle: Yes. So yeah, that's the first thing we're working on in December. The second is we are preparing to open the doors to Course Alchemy.

So my graduates from Course From Scratch have been asking for the next thing. They're like, “Okay, we did our minimum viable course. We got our first launches out of the way. How do we scale to six figure launch? To a million in revenue? To consistent six figure months like you have?” And so that's what Course Alchemy is going to do. So I'm preparing that stuff to open the doors in January, February, coming up in the new year, as well. So yeah, those are the big projects right now.

Rachel: Awesome. I love it. And I love that you're not doing 1000 things. You've got an offer that's rocking and rolling, and you're adding one more that continues to serve your people, which is awesome. And I also love that you are a partner in serving Black women and women of color and just helping them make bank because that's what I'm on a mission to do. And, you know, obviously, I can only serve so many and same for you, right?

So we're out there serving this mission and helping them. And this is going to create generational change. It's magic. That's what gets me hyped and gets me out of bed in the morning. The money is amazing but after a certain while you're comfortable, it's like what else do I need? But what keeps me going is I just want to reach more and more women and serve more and more women and see more and more women of color making millions. That's what it's all about.

Okay, so tell us, Danielle, where folks can find you if they want to connect.

Danielle: Sure. So my website is danielleleslie.com. And yeah, definitely, if you want to get on my masterclass, just sign up through there. And then Instagram is where I'm most active on social media. But yeah, just Danielle Leslie on Instagram, find me there. I'll be doing stories and stuff sometimes.

Rachel: I love it. And then you can see this epic view that she has in her high rise in New York.

Thank you so much for being on the show. And just being so inspiring and sharing so generously of your journey. I know that it will inspire so many women to go out there and create their culture add, recognize what that is and go out there and make some money.

Danielle: Yeah, thank you so much. Thank you for having me on. Like really, really appreciate it and love what you're doing. Like this is amazing, changing so many lives.

Rachel: Thank you.

Thanks for listening. Now, before you go, it's an incredibly exciting time here at Hello Seven. That's because my new book, We Should All Be Millionaires: A Woman's Guide to Earning More Building Wealth and Gaining Economic Power is on bookshelves now. You can pick it up from Amazon, Target, Barnes and Noble, or your favorite Black-owned independent bookstore.

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