Today, host Lorie Jones sits down with Rosalyn Brown, the trailblazing program manager at Principal Financial Group and former president of the WIPN (WE Inspire. Promote. Network.) organization for women in financial services. Rosalyn opens up about her unconventional journey from a military family to a leadership role in finance, her love of continuous learning, and the importance of taking risks to grow both personally and professionally.
Tune in as Lorie and Rosalyn break down the myths and challenges women face in traditionally male-dominated industries, from finding your voice and advocating for your accomplishments to building the kind of network that lifts everyone up. Rosalyn shares practical advice on leveraging your unique strengths, investing in yourself, and being specific about what you want—whether you’re just starting out or looking to achieve your next big breakthrough.
If you’re ready to be inspired by real stories, actionable insights, and fearless guidance for building a fulfilling, resilient career, this episode is for you.
Show Highlights:
- Embracing opportunities for career pivots for fulfillment. [06:18]
- Can young professionals develop new specialties and build authority? [09:31]
- The underrated power of “nerdy creativity” in finance. [13:21]
- Tips and tricks to reframe credentials and borrow experience. [15:45]
- The value of adaptable, alternative continuous learning. [20:42]
- Assessing the cost of career risk vs. stability with openness. [25:01]
- How to self-advocate and build influence in teams and networks. [29:20]
- Strategies to start building wealth with real estate investing. [37:20]
- Gender bias in finance and support through groups like WIPN. [44:04]
- Life-changing lessons from a sister’s stroke at age 39½. [49:51.6]
- Be direct with a clear, deliberate “ask” when networking. [53:23]
If you enjoyed this episode, please go to Apple Podcasts and leave a review!
For more information about Lorie Jones, go to https://fearlessfinancialadvisors.com/fearless-females.
00:00.20
Rosalyn Brown
Mm-hmm.
00:01.99
Lorie Jones
Good morning, Fairless Females. So I’m so excited today. We’re here with Rosalyn Brown, and she is the Program Manager at Principal Financial, which sounds like a really big title, and I’m so excited to dig in and see what you do.
00:16.24
Lorie Jones
But I’ve been kind of stalking. I’ve a little bit been stalking you, Rosalyn, for a few years online through social media, just a little bit watching what you’re up to and what you’re doing. And I’m so excited to hear your story. Thank you for doing this for us.
00:29.90
Rosalyn Brown
Oh, thank you so much for having me, Lori. It’s a pleasure.
00:32.83
Lorie Jones
And it’s not stalking in a bad way, I promise. It’s the only good thing.
00:36.03
Rosalyn Brown
am a…
00:37.11
Lorie Jones
So the first thing is I’m a reader. I love reading. Tell me what your favorite book is.
00:42.64
Rosalyn Brown
i am a I’m vivacious reader as well. I love this question and it’s probably the hardest question um because I always say i read based on moods.
00:53.77
Rosalyn Brown
And so sometimes I read to escape. So I want to read everything from fantasy to love stories. um But I’m always in a mode of continuous improvement as well.
01:05.38
Rosalyn Brown
So I have like a whole self-help category. I love history. I love autobiographies and hearing other people’s story and so forth too. um And so when just kind of thinking about this question, if I think about it in the sense of like the finance world, um one that I really enjoyed is ah Quit Like a Millionaire.
01:25.83
Rosalyn Brown
And um it is it is more of a finance book for people of my generation. So this is not the old school kind of thought process. It really puts your values with your money making sure that you have financial freedom earlier.
01:44.09
Rosalyn Brown
and how you can actually start to spend your time. And so as we start to talk about the sacrifice of time versus money, and then when do you know that you have enough that you can live that life based on your own desires? And so I thought it was a very practical book, but it reflects the changes of how people view retirement today.
02:04.88
Lorie Jones
Oh, yeah, that’s so interesting because you do There are different changes in how you think of retirement. It used to be you like worked and worked and worked, you reached a certain age, and then you retired. And like there was no talk about what do you do after that. And there was no talk about retiring early. And there was no talk about the different freedom of choice or the different ways that retirement looks for for people nowadays. like you could You could have four or five different careers through you know through throughout your working life.
02:34.03
Rosalyn Brown
Exactly. And having the flexibility. So round one may be setting the foundation. And so if you set the foundation, you can take a risk and you you can do something that maybe doesn’t pay quite as much. I remember working with a client and he was an attorney that hated it, but he made very good money.
02:50.42
Rosalyn Brown
And so we worked to get him to a point where he could do a passion that made a lot less money, but gave him a lot more joy and excitement. And so sometimes if you can see it in that way, you can say, okay, this was not the career for me. These long hours have an end.
03:07.46
Rosalyn Brown
And then I can transition to the next. And then maybe you can transition to something totally different. um And I just love to see people’s careers that are just starkly different from where they started. I was talking to a CPA that I’ve worked with in the past and now she’s a baker.
03:23.33
Rosalyn Brown
And I’m like,
03:23.69
Lorie Jones
Oh, wow.
03:24.38
Rosalyn Brown
That wasn’t that wasn’t that wasn’t a clear connection from one to the other. But one gave her the foundation um from a financial standpoint that she could just be in the kitchen and just love what she’s doing and bake cookies and and provide joy in that way outside of you know the technical of numbers.
03:37.29
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
03:44.34
Lorie Jones
yeah I like that. i And I do enjoy listening to people’s journeys because I’m like, how did you get here from there? Right? Like what in the heck happened?
03:51.76
Rosalyn Brown
yeah that’
03:55.13
Lorie Jones
So Rosalind, tell me just a little bit about your journey. Tell me about how you got where you are today. Like, did you always know what you wanted to be? How did you get here? What do you do? Like, tell me a little bit about you.
04:07.35
Rosalyn Brown
Absolutely not. I had no idea. um Honestly, i come from a military family. And so when you come from a military family, my mom and dad both served in the army.
04:19.01
Rosalyn Brown
And when you were in the military, you kind of know what steps you’re going to take. They give you the direction step by step. And I knew that I didn’t want to go in the military and that was about it. And I was very good at a number of different topics and a number of different subjects.
04:33.89
Rosalyn Brown
And I remember a teacher of mine said, you should be a CPA. was like, OK, that easy enough. And um that was my plan going into college. I was an accounting major and I actually enjoyed accounting.
04:48.62
Lorie Jones
but That is rare.
04:48.74
Rosalyn Brown
afternoon which yeah seems really weird. And then um I got an internship. So I interned through an organization called Inroads and their goal is to place talented minority youth in corporate America.
05:00.85
Rosalyn Brown
And I worked at a bank. So I worked at a bank all four years. So that’s all four summers. I did such a great job. They let me come back during like holiday breaks and so forth. And one of the requirements in order for me to graduate from college was to do an internship in my field.
05:16.73
Rosalyn Brown
And I worked as an accountant and And I hated it.
05:22.46
Lorie Jones
Oh, that’s funny.
05:23.43
Rosalyn Brown
Oh, my goodness. And I remember we had a certain number of hours and i went to my manager at the time and I said, I’m almost at the end of my hours. And i was trying to practice all these ways to say, I don’t want to do this anymore. And I said, you know, I think this might be interfering with my studies. So I probably won’t be able to continue much longer. And she says, I understand. When would you like your last day to be? And I said, today.
05:45.32
Rosalyn Brown
but And that was the last time I ever did anything in accounting. i was so close to graduation that I didn’t change my major or anything, but I stayed in accounting um for my major.
05:58.04
Rosalyn Brown
And because I had so much time in banking, I had a job offer from that bank, but I also had a job offer from another bank. And I ended up taking the other bank’s offer because they had what they called a leadership development program.
06:13.62
Rosalyn Brown
And they took me through a program. I moved away to another state and it was in the wealth management track, which I thought was so funny because I’m 22 years old with no wealth.
06:25.87
Lorie Jones
yeah
06:27.39
Rosalyn Brown
Telling people that you have that.
06:27.54
Lorie Jones
And yeah you don’t know anyone that has any wealth either at that age, right?
06:31.71
Rosalyn Brown
lee And i am telling people that you must have X amount of assets in order to meet with me and speak with me and work with me. And it’s one of those things where you have to not doubt yourself.
06:44.13
Rosalyn Brown
um And I love when I’m talking to people and I’m like, you have to not allow them to hone in on your age and experience, because as long as you have a team and you have the determination to figure it out, you can do it.
06:56.15
Rosalyn Brown
And that’s exactly what I did. And I did a very good job of kind of building a market that I was tapped for an opportunity to build another division under our wealth umbrella.
07:07.98
Rosalyn Brown
And so I built two or three under um divisions under that umbrella, kind of consecutively, one after another after another. And then um i just kept moving. And so from a location perspective, you know that’s when you can pack up and move in a weekend, not now when you have you know years of jump.
07:25.29
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
07:26.05
Rosalyn Brown
and And so just being flexible um when there was an opportunity, even if I didn’t understand all the things about, you know, what am I supposed to be doing? What are the expectations?
07:37.53
Rosalyn Brown
If I could believe in myself enough to do the work, figure it out, use connections. And even though some of those connections were other 22 year olds and I’m like,
07:48.60
Rosalyn Brown
Have you heard of this? Do you know? Am I the only one? um But use all of those connections that you have. And it was some of those same 22 year old friends that were like, let me let you talk to my manager.
07:59.75
Lorie Jones
Oh, that’s great.
07:59.91
Rosalyn Brown
And now I’m talking to you know their manager, their mentor, whatever it may be. And it kept progressing me. And i always say I’m multi-passionate because I love to do this, this, and this. and um And sometimes it would be a point where it’s either curiosity guiding me or frustration.
08:17.25
Rosalyn Brown
So maybe I’m frustrated where I am. um i haven’t been able to kind of express what I want to do and how I want to grow and so forth. And each time there was another opportunity. And so it was, do you do you grab that opportunity or not?
08:27.30
Lorie Jones
and
08:30.54
Rosalyn Brown
And that’s really how I ended up at principal. There was an opportunity and my title was so vague. People were like, what the heck does that mean? And that’s exactly what it was. It was a role that didn’t exist for a department that didn’t exist.
08:43.33
Rosalyn Brown
And they had a vision and a goal, and it was my job to make it happen. um So I’m one year into creating an employee education program for our small business clients and creating that from scratch, really to find ways for us to provide more value to our business clients, but also making sure that more employees have access to financial advisors and financial education.
08:53.67
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
09:06.66
Rosalyn Brown
um So it, you know, just a generic title with a goal in mind and really just being able to run with it and use my own creativity, um but my passion for education as well to enable and inspire people to make the best decisions for their journey.
09:24.82
Lorie Jones
Oh, I like that. so So you didn’t go after the title, basically. They came to you and they’re like, okay, we’ve got this idea. Can you make this happen?
09:35.46
Rosalyn Brown
but
09:35.46
Lorie Jones
They probably gave you a book worth of stuff with very clear guidelines, right? None of that.
09:41.12
Rosalyn Brown
it it it And it was it was so exciting to me because I’ve done it a couple of times.
09:46.46
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Yeah.
09:46.69
Rosalyn Brown
um We created a Wealth Solutions Center and I always have to put a time to it because I was doing virtual financial planning about 15 years ago. So this is prior to Zoom.
09:58.05
Rosalyn Brown
This is when I would email you a PDF and say, please look at the chart on the top right-hand corner. And, um you know, please turn to the next page. And it was something that was unheard of.
10:08.81
Rosalyn Brown
But I figured that there would be a certain population that would be receptive to it. People who couldn’t get away from the office.
10:13.22
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
10:14.99
Rosalyn Brown
Maybe your spouse is somewhere else and you all want to dial in at the same time. um We actually started doing it for our wealthy employees who traditionally don’t want to do business with their colleagues.
10:26.36
Rosalyn Brown
So they would prefer a face that they don’t see face to face. um And so it’s just can you dream bigger than you know what it is today? And as long as you can think bigger than what it is today and just try and I just loved it. I was like, okay, like, give me very little guidance and I’ll run with it. And that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. It’s just kind of running for the last year. And we’ve had we’ve hit a number of milestones and really just happy to be able to, you know, you don’t think about people in this role, quote unquote, being creatives, but I like to think of myself as a bit of a, you know, nerdy creative, I guess.
11:05.08
Rosalyn Brown
and And this gives me the opportunity to do that.
11:07.92
Lorie Jones
Yeah, I like that. I do. I like that sense of creativity because you’re right. you Finance and accounting, you think of as you know, very regimented and very structured and stuff like that. But there’s such creativity in this, in this space where you can, you can think outside the box, because you need to reach those people that aren’t being reached, um that don’t have access to the way the traditional, you know, financial services works. And it sounds like that’s what you’re doing. But you said something that is killing me to not ask. So I’ve got to ask.
11:41.85
Lorie Jones
You were like 22 years old and you said you can’t, you were trying to tell people what to do with their life savings, right? So how did you, because I’ve mentored young young people in this field at 22 and I’m like, gosh, that that’s hard. Like how did you How did you present yourself so that you got those opportunities and so that you were able to establish those credentials and let
12:10.41
Rosalyn Brown
You know, it’s um that’s a really good question because I didn’t do well the first time because I thought people thought like I did. Like I I thought that I was very logical. Like if you throw me some charts and graphs, great. I’m going to pick that one.
12:28.32
Rosalyn Brown
But even I am more emotional than logical because that’s how people are when it comes to money. And I remember trying to memorize everything, you know all the limits, 401k limit and IRA limit and you know what age can you take our early distribution and retirement, all these things.
12:45.72
Rosalyn Brown
And um I remember i had an amazing manager and he said, You need to treat this as if you were a physician. You do not walk into your doctor’s office and he looks at you and says, yes, it’s the flu.
12:59.41
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
12:59.61
Rosalyn Brown
He’s collecting data. and that physician is not only collecting data, but they are running tests and they are going to give you a diagnosis later.
13:11.72
Rosalyn Brown
And so if you walk in knowing that you don’t have to know all the answers, it is your job. You know, if we think about some of these like best doctor shows, they’re asking like the most craziest questions. They’re like, is your thumb numb?
13:25.48
Lorie Jones
yeah
13:25.59
Rosalyn Brown
And you have a rash on your ankle. And you’re like, how do these two things go together? But those are the best. Like all of a sudden it’s some disease that, you know, only three people in a and the world have and now they can cure it.
13:39.26
Rosalyn Brown
And that helped me know that one, I should ask better questions.
13:43.70
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
13:44.48
Rosalyn Brown
um and not feel like I needed to know all the answers and be okay with saying things like, I want to do some more research. I want to look into this more. Having better responses for questions like, how old are you?
14:00.73
Rosalyn Brown
And I would say, you never asked a lady her age. And I would just say, let’s just say I’m a few months past 21 and not quite ready for social security, which was very true because I was a few months…
14:11.25
Lorie Jones
Hmm.
14:12.27
Rosalyn Brown
and twenty one um and And so you you do things when people talk about, well, you know how long have you been doing this? And you say things like, I work with a team and my team collectively has X number of years.
14:25.51
Rosalyn Brown
You just borrow their experience. um And so you had to have some of those canned answers that would get people past that point. I understood the value of financial planning.
14:37.62
Rosalyn Brown
and understood the value of understanding people’s goals and ambitions. um He really instilled of having a specialty. So when I see advisors who say I work with everyone, I’m like, o okay.
14:49.84
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
14:50.78
Rosalyn Brown
and yeah you want If you’re a business owner, you want advisor who works with business owners. If you’re a real estate investor, you want advisor that works for real estate investors. And um I was actually having some time with the CFP board and I said, we should really have more CFPs that aren’t CFPs that do this.
15:06.80
Rosalyn Brown
They are I am an engineer that does financial planning. i am i am actually in this industry, so embedded in the industry that I understand, because even if your specialty is going to be working with professional women or working with women who are going through a divorce, or I don’t care if it’s you know a car dealership or whatever that is, you need to understand the intricacies of it.
15:29.30
Rosalyn Brown
I mean,
15:29.70
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
15:30.18
Rosalyn Brown
I come from a military family and there are things that are very specific about military life and military benefits that it is very obvious when when I’m talking to people and they say something and I’m like,
15:42.34
Rosalyn Brown
that doesn’t really apply. That’s different on our side.
15:44.29
Lorie Jones
yeah
15:46.98
Rosalyn Brown
um And so you want to understand your community and dive deeper there. um Become really, very well versed there in things that are important, benefits, opportunities.
15:59.86
Rosalyn Brown
um And he just did a really good job of instilling that into me. And it changed everything in terms of how I saw myself coming to a meeting.
16:10.32
Rosalyn Brown
So opposed to coming you know with brochures and I’m ready to present, it was the blank paper and asking more questions and going in a little bit deeper.
16:15.31
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
16:19.20
Rosalyn Brown
um And sometimes I would ask a question and we go through a whole meeting and then I sit back and think about it and I may call them back and say, you know, I was thinking about that question. Can you expound on that a little bit more? You know, you talked about doing this.
16:35.15
Rosalyn Brown
Do you plan to do that for the next five years, 10 years? And people were like, you were still thinking about me. And I’m like, yeah, I was still thinking about what you said to put together the best option for you.
16:43.76
Lorie Jones
yeah
16:47.99
Lorie Jones
Yeah. And that’s, and that comes through to people too, that sort of genuine like curiosity. Like i am, I am genuinely interested in how, what you want and what you’re thinking about.
17:00.47
Lorie Jones
And, and I’ll think about that all day and part of tomorrow too, just to get, just to get down deep and understand if you are.
17:05.24
Rosalyn Brown
but Yes.
17:08.07
Lorie Jones
That’s cool. What, what’s the best investment you made in yourself, Rosalyn, as you’ve gone through your journey, is there something that you’re like, oh my gosh, I’m so glad I did that.
17:17.83
Rosalyn Brown
You know, it’s so I’ll say this very broadly. um It is continuous education.
17:24.39
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
17:26.30
Rosalyn Brown
And not necessarily in terms of like degrees and going back to school. um I love a webinar. you know Thank goodness for the environment that we’re in that you can sit at home and learn.
17:37.78
Rosalyn Brown
um But I also love to go to good conferences. And if they speak to me and where i want to go, not necessarily you know getting some CE credit or those kind of things, but I’ve gone to tons of conferences that just give you a little bit more.
17:54.42
Rosalyn Brown
things that are outside of the box. um i i love travel and I learn a lot from the experience of travel and cultures. Um, I have spent a lot of time doing, you know, everything from certifications like CFP, CRPS, all those kinds of things.
18:10.58
Rosalyn Brown
And every single time I get a little something extra from it.
18:14.96
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
18:15.37
Rosalyn Brown
and sometimes I’m learning things that people are like, well, why did you do that? I did, um, I did a, um, financial certification as well. So, um,
18:26.71
Rosalyn Brown
It was in tech. So it was a FinTech type certification. I did it during COVID, took night classes. Oh my goodness, people who do that, I just have so much appreciation for you because it was killing me.
18:39.33
Lorie Jones
yeah
18:39.50
Rosalyn Brown
um But just continuing to find ways to add and strengthen whatever it is that you’re doing. There’s so many changes, one in our industry, how you do things,
18:52.47
Rosalyn Brown
um everything from the tax code to how other people are doing it and learning from unconventional ways. So there’s people who never did our anything in our industry, but they found a way um to reach financial freedom. And I love hearing their stories and learning as well.
19:10.79
Lorie Jones
Yeah, I think that’s, I think it’s interesting that you mentioned like thinking outside the box, there are so many different ways to learn nowadays and so many different, um like,
19:22.81
Lorie Jones
delving into someone who is passionate about what they do. I have a brother who is very passionate about engineering. He’s an architectural engineer and he loves it at a tent. And one time he spent probably an hour and a half explaining water flow through the toilet system in a building. Like I could care less about it.
19:42.74
Lorie Jones
But I love that he loved it. And I think that that’s what you’re talking about is like kind of getting into like, what are other ways to learn? um If I’m in the space of like women entrepreneurs, like how can I learn things around these different subjects that I’m kind of, that I’m talking with all day and how do I get deeper in that?
20:03.52
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
20:03.87
Rosalyn Brown
Oh, yeah. I mean, it’s so many ways. And, you know, in this like conference industry, there’s a conference for everything. And, you know, you can go to a conference for women in engineering.
20:17.35
Rosalyn Brown
and They are not going to talk about anything financial, but but that is going to be the best way for you to connect and understand what’s on their mind.
20:23.78
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Ow.
20:23.99
Rosalyn Brown
You what are things that are going on in the industry that are rolling around in their mind where they’re making financial decisions? OK, that makes you a better advisor to understand that part of the industry as well.
20:32.47
Lorie Jones
el
20:35.50
Lorie Jones
Well, and I think too, like as I’ve as i’ve had conversations with with women, they’ll ask me questions like, I’m like, oh, I know the answer to that. Like I can help with that. Like I know exactly what you’re talking about.
20:48.14
Lorie Jones
And I get so excited and and yougen you wouldn’t ever think that that would be a question that they would have because you know, you like know it backwards and forwards. So, but they don’t, you know.
21:00.61
Rosalyn Brown
Exactly. i mean, it everybody, whatever your specialty is, sometimes we people feel like they should know everything for our industry. And I’m like, yeah, but when I call the electrician to come to my house, I hope they are not expecting me to know all the ins and outs.
21:18.21
Rosalyn Brown
Like i flipped the breaker and I am over. Like that, my expertise is done.
21:21.35
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
21:23.71
Rosalyn Brown
um And so and they should lean in where they are. And you need to have enough relationships that you can find someone to solve all those other things as well.
21:37.14
Lorie Jones
What is the worst advice that someone gave you? Rosalyn, have you ever had any really bad advice and did you take it? I’m always so curious as to whether you took it or not.
21:46.50
Rosalyn Brown
You know. um It’s definitely a number of things that probably i could put in the bad advice category.
21:57.69
Rosalyn Brown
um i will say because both of my parents are military and they came from that military life. um My dad medically retired from the military, so he would have done his entire 20 years had he not had his life.
22:13.41
Rosalyn Brown
impairment. But, um, I remember when I was ready to leave that first bank, they were like, why would you leave that good job? And, um,
22:25.56
Rosalyn Brown
And being in Washington, D.C., where I sit today, people think about you know being in this one place. But that is not what is most valuable today. Because do you get the number of opportunities that you may want by staying in the same place?
22:44.32
Rosalyn Brown
Or do you keep yourself open to opportunities? Do you keep yourself open to what could be next? um And so I think that’s probably one of those things when it’s like, should you should you take that risk? Should you just stay where you are, you know, do your 20, 30 years and, you know, retire happily with your goal watch.
23:03.42
Rosalyn Brown
And that’s just simply not um that’s not logical for where we are today. And nothing wrong with those who do. But I would never want to convince someone to stay where they are without a continuous challenge.
23:19.58
Lorie Jones
yeah
23:19.83
Rosalyn Brown
um You want to continuously be challenged, be moved, be motivated and find ways in order to do that. And that could be where you are at the same company, but it could definitely be somewhere else as well.
23:32.19
Lorie Jones
Yeah, I like that. The idea of um what if, you know, what if there’s a different opportunity? It feels like that you should almost have a risk assessment for your life, right?
23:44.48
Lorie Jones
Like how much, like I’m always asking clients, how much risk do you want to take here? And, you know, what are you comfortable with financially speaking? But it feels like you almost need a risk assessment for your life. Like where, where is that growth factor where you just take a little bit more risk?
24:01.34
Rosalyn Brown
But I think that’s a good point. But I think we often do that. And on the risk side, we think everything that could go wrong.
24:09.41
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
24:10.21
Rosalyn Brown
But just like we tell clients, there’s an opportunity cost for not doing. And so, yes, there’s a risk that you go to another company and, you know, two months later, the whole thing closes down. Yes, that is a risk.
24:22.60
Rosalyn Brown
There is also a risk that you sit in that same seat and they still decide to close the doors. There is a risk that you are in a position that you never get to show your gift.
24:33.80
Rosalyn Brown
um And so, you know, I think oftentimes we’re concerned about the risk of kind of, you know the market going down, but we don’t think about that risk in our life of the opportunity cost of not investing in that next two.
24:50.69
Rosalyn Brown
um I think definitely as women, because we are very concerned and, you know, as investors, traditionally very conservative. So I always have to one, i had to remind myself, you know, sometimes you have to talk that energy into yourself.
25:04.50
Rosalyn Brown
um But remind my circle as well is dream bigger, like challenge yourself more.
25:08.66
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
25:10.70
Rosalyn Brown
And sometimes it’s harder to remind yourself to do that or to force yourself to do that.
25:15.34
Lorie Jones
Yeah. And, and reminding yourself also remind those around you as well, because there are women that maybe just need a little bit of encouragement there. It’s big. It’s scary. I find that in finance that they come to me and they’re like, but what if the market goes down? And I’m like, but what if it doesn’t?
25:31.42
Rosalyn Brown
in
25:31.48
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
25:34.52
Lorie Jones
You know, so so there is certainty and, you know, there’s ups and downs and stuff like that. but But helping others to to maybe take a few chances and be a little bit braver, little bit more fearless than we thought we were, right?
25:47.52
Rosalyn Brown
ah Exactly. And, you know, the the we just have to be cognizant that there is risk of doing nothing. I’m just sitting in place.
25:54.97
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
25:55.96
Rosalyn Brown
There there is w risk there as well.
25:57.69
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. What about do-over? Is there a situation that you would go back and you’re like, oh my goodness, knowing what I know now, i totally would do that differently. And it’s not maybe that you regret it, but that you would definitely take a do-over.
26:13.63
Rosalyn Brown
You know, so there is the saying, you know, I’m going to let my work speak for itself. That is horrible. Work doesn’t speak. And i have always been a very hard worker.
26:28.62
Rosalyn Brown
um Unfortunately, like I said, I come from a military family. So, you know, we are prompt and all these things. And um and i have always been reliable. I will do it.
26:40.07
Rosalyn Brown
I am the kind of person that if you said, Rosalyn, we need this done by next Monday, honey, go ahead and check it off because it is going to be done by next Monday.
26:48.56
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
26:48.86
Rosalyn Brown
and um And so unfortunately, i sat in this space thinking that people would see and acknowledge my hard work. And I was thinking that other people would speak on my behalf about my hard work and all these things and all these talents that I have.
27:06.37
Rosalyn Brown
And I didn’t spend enough time speaking on my own behalf, advocating for what I wanted next. And i think that is a mistake that oftentimes we may make early in our career.
27:17.54
Rosalyn Brown
We’re working the hardest. We’re finished first. We’re taking on extra assignments. And you know you’re getting the pat on the back, but you’re not actually being seen globally like you need to be. And I think that is something that I definitely tell young women, especially because oftentimes you’ll have people that are taking credit for your work and your efforts.
27:39.59
Rosalyn Brown
And we’re speaking in terms of we instead of I. I did that. I completed that. I made sure that happened. And we’re speaking in terms of we and somebody else on the we team and saying, but I made sure it actually happened.
27:54.69
Lorie Jones
yeah
27:55.26
Rosalyn Brown
And so um that’s one of the biggest regrets is just really trusting that people would see that my head was down and I was working really hard, opposed to making sure that I am keeping the list of my accomplishments of those benchmarks that I’m not only meeting, but beating and exceeding.
28:13.74
Rosalyn Brown
um those outside efforts that you’re doing outside of just, you know, your nine to five is this additional events. If it’s networking, if you’ve created something, partnered with somebody, really making sure that verbalizing and making sure that the right people see it.
28:28.24
Rosalyn Brown
Okay.
28:29.51
Lorie Jones
So how do you do that? I’m in a i’m going to take this a step deeper. And like, like because i i was in that space too, where I’m like, well, certainly if you work hard, people will notice.
28:33.77
Rosalyn Brown
but
28:39.97
Lorie Jones
And I was giving the we, the team, the the credit. and um But it’s hard for me to like come up with a, like I kept the list of things that I did, but how do you like, how do you say that, hey, and without sounding like you’re bragging about yourself,
28:57.73
Lorie Jones
You should be bragging about yourself. Tell me.
29:00.87
Rosalyn Brown
it’s It’s so many. So you have to think about the population. If it’s your direct manager, I will come up with a list and I will say, you know, it’s time for us to check in These are the things that I’ve accomplished this quarter.
29:12.96
Rosalyn Brown
These are the things that I think I can go to next. Where do you see a gap? Yeah. Are there additional things that I could be doing? And so you’ve already said, you know, I was number one. I did this. I created ah all those things. But you list them out, not as I’m bragging.
29:27.87
Rosalyn Brown
I am happy to report that this is what I’ve created and this is where I plan to go. Is there something? Because maybe you’re doing X and they’re thinking you should be doing Y. um You know, thank goodness for things like a LinkedIn. So you can highlight, you can highlight awards, you can highlight speaking engagements, you can highlight volunteer work, you can highlight that you coordinated the, you know, holiday party, whatever it is, you can highlight those things.
29:53.76
Rosalyn Brown
But then also looking around. And so don’t just necessarily look further up. So your manager, their manager, and so forth, look further around at ways that you can partner.
30:04.75
Rosalyn Brown
And so when I was within the bank, I would look at you know any and everybody that I could partner with And so I was partnering with our commercial team. I was partnering with our merchant services. So they’re out selling merchant machines.
30:18.00
Rosalyn Brown
And I’m like, but clearly those are the business owners. Those are the.
30:21.49
Lorie Jones
Oh.
30:21.53
Rosalyn Brown
And so as you’re having those conversations, you can talk through what you’re doing on your side and then they will speak on your behalf as well.
30:27.09
Lorie Jones
oh
30:29.56
Rosalyn Brown
It would be the most, you know, you think about this person and that person. And I’m like, I think we should partner. I think we should do more business together. I think we can. We can really expand. um We moved over to what we consider institutional.
30:43.14
Rosalyn Brown
And it meant that I was mostly working on 401k plans. So I was working with plan sponsors and I decided to double back to my wealth people.
30:46.34
Lorie Jones
you
30:51.47
Rosalyn Brown
And we started doing events for their people, whether it be people who sat on boards. And we talked a little bit about risk and understanding and value and fundraising, things that had nothing to do with their retirement plan. And then I could sneak a little retirement plan information in there too.
31:08.46
Rosalyn Brown
But it was a great opportunity for me to highlight how I can help them in their business too.
31:13.50
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
31:13.56
Rosalyn Brown
And so just find ways opposed to just kind of straight looking up and look further out and make those connections and say, I’ve done this, this, and this.
31:23.92
Rosalyn Brown
I would like to do something similar with you. And so then you’re highlighting what you can and what you have done, or you can say what they do. So you can say, i see you do this.
31:35.85
Rosalyn Brown
I would love to partner because I’ve done something similar or I have similar client base. And you start to expand your center of influence so that more and more people can actually see what you’re doing and spread the word, hopefully.
31:50.15
Lorie Jones
Yeah, I love that. And I love the idea, too, of those and those networking opportunities, places that you don’t normally see them. um Like, it it’s the idea of giving, you know, like, like expanding out because, because like I said, when I talked to some of the other women who work in nonprofits or something like that, they’re like, Oh, I have a question.
32:11.85
Lorie Jones
And I’m like, Oh, I get so excited. Oh, I know the answer to this one. Yeah.
32:16.60
Rosalyn Brown
I can help. Exactly. you just always want to be um the person. it i I made this comparison and always lean here. And I said, you know, I want to be your rich auntie.
32:29.79
Rosalyn Brown
And if your aunt was Oprah Winfrey, I don’t care if I was trying to find someone to put up wallpaper. or someone to do my yard work, if I didn’t know who else to call, I would call my rich auntie and say, do you know someone?
32:45.80
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
32:46.14
Rosalyn Brown
And no, your rich auntie probably does not do their own yard work, but they know somebody.
32:50.92
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
32:51.52
Rosalyn Brown
they They know somebody who can help you if you needed a specialist for an eye exam, if you needed this or that, they know someone. And so I want it to be so connected that every now and then I’ll have a friend that calls and I’m like,
33:07.89
Lorie Jones
Huh.
33:08.35
Rosalyn Brown
Let me think about that for a second.
33:10.31
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
33:11.01
Rosalyn Brown
Let me think about it. Let me put the word out for that one. And still, I’m usually able to find someone just because making the circle more broad.
33:21.97
Rosalyn Brown
And so I may have to call somebody and ask them, do you know somebody? But typically, I am able to find somebody that does whatever obscure thing that they’re looking for in the moment.
33:34.19
Lorie Jones
Yeah, yeah. And I love being friends with that network too. like that, you know, as you gather people and in stories and things that they do, like as you gather them around yourself, it just, it helps to lift all the boats.
33:49.08
Lorie Jones
And so like having that great network of women or people, you know, depending on, you know, what space you work in is just, it, it just, it helps you be better at what you’re doing as well as them be better at what they’re doing. I love that.
34:03.38
Lorie Jones
Thank you. That’s a great suggestion. I love that Rosalind.
34:06.97
Rosalyn Brown
we We learn. we We learn and get better, hopefully. you
34:10.96
Lorie Jones
So I’m so interested in the answer to this as a as a financial person and a person who’s worked in accounting and finance. But if you could go back and high five yourself for one really great financial decision, what would it be?
34:26.64
Rosalyn Brown
ah You know, um so back when I was 22 doing these financial plans for folks, I would write their notes in the middle of the page. But in the margins, I would write down things that they were doing.
34:40.53
Rosalyn Brown
So if it was something that a client were doing that were making them successful, I’m like, I got to emulate that. um And so I spent a lot of time going through folks who were doing it well, because, of course, when you’re delivering a financial plan, it’s either really good news or really bad news.
34:55.92
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Yeah.
34:56.26
Rosalyn Brown
And um and so i would look through and just trying to figure out how could I make that happen? And I remember having a client. This is actually when I was doing financial planning for our banker. So these are folks who work within in the bank and they could self-select if they qualify for wealth management.
35:16.82
Rosalyn Brown
And so there are certain people that you wouldn’t assume. um So I had people that were tellers and they qualified for wealth management. But I remember it was a branch manager and she was telling me about her real estate holdings.
35:32.11
Rosalyn Brown
And one of her first pieces of real estate, she had a four unit building and she purchased that, lived in one apartment and rented the others. And I’m like, that is really interesting. And she did it a few more times, but that was kind of how she started. And I already had a house. I was moving around for work and I’m like, you know, this is makes sense.
35:51.55
Rosalyn Brown
And I finally bought a four unit building. And I didn’t lift in one of those and run it out the other three. And it gave me a financial stability that allowed me to take more risks later on.
36:02.90
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
36:03.44
Rosalyn Brown
And so it was one of those things that I never thought about before. um In terms of that being an avenue towards one financial freedom, but expanding kind of a real estate portfolio overall.
36:18.49
Rosalyn Brown
um But I remember i was doing this virtually doing her virtual planning from Charlotte, and she lived in DC. And I remember coming up one week and I said, I think we should do lunch.
36:30.31
Rosalyn Brown
And i was like, I want to pick your brain.
36:32.22
Lorie Jones
yeah
36:32.46
Rosalyn Brown
I’m realtor. I met her um her real estate broker. i’ve met the whole team. And I will say successful people typically are very happy to connect with other successful people. We still stay in contact today.
36:47.82
Rosalyn Brown
She adopted a dog from the place that I foster with, all of these things.
36:50.76
Lorie Jones
Thank you.
36:52.60
Rosalyn Brown
But it was just one of those things that I never thought of in terms of a path to wealth. Because if you don’t have significant wealth, It’s hard if you don’t have a parent that you can borrow 20 or 30, $40,000 to get into ah house, especially in Washington, D.C.
37:07.91
Rosalyn Brown
um You know, these things become very difficult. And um it was a it was a great avenue because once you have a certain sense of financial footing, you can take more risk than you probably were able to take before.
37:22.16
Lorie Jones
and Yeah, that’s really interesting. And I have heard of people like starting in and they rent out like a couple of bedrooms in their house or something like that so that they can afford a house.
37:30.76
Rosalyn Brown
Yeah.
37:32.71
Lorie Jones
It’s kind of along those same lines. But but yeah, it’s interesting that that that was so pivotal in, especially since we’re financial advisors and our role is always, you know, invest to the market, put money in the market.
37:42.80
Rosalyn Brown
and
37:47.11
Lorie Jones
But that real estate kind of showed you that there good are good ways to build wealth.
37:53.64
Rosalyn Brown
Oh, yeah. And just looking outside of the block box as well, um because i I typically approach things differently than some other advisors because there is not one single path.
38:06.81
Rosalyn Brown
And we can’t push people down the single road either. And it’s important to have an open mind, one of things that you could personally do, but also things that your clients can do.
38:19.61
Rosalyn Brown
It can’t just be, you know, put everything into a 401k plan, know, save all this money, that kind of thing.
38:23.59
Lorie Jones
yeah
38:25.71
Rosalyn Brown
It’s really looking at strategies to figure out what strategies can that person implore to get to the goal that they’re working towards.
38:36.19
Lorie Jones
um What scared you the most when you started out on your journey and did anything? And does it still scare you today or did you figure it out?
38:44.01
Rosalyn Brown
ah um yeah I had just a fear of not knowing. um I like to be prepared. I like to you know study, have all the information.
38:57.15
Rosalyn Brown
it Because I actually like the accounting in a very collegiate type format, yeah you get the numbers, you do all the graphs, you do the charts, you have your financial statements, you can answer questions. I can give you all the ratios, all of those kind of things.
39:15.44
Rosalyn Brown
And I was just so concerned about someone asking me a question in the meeting. that I didn’t know the answer to.
39:22.15
Lorie Jones
yeah
39:22.87
Rosalyn Brown
um And I think um I have gotten more okay with, I don’t know, but let me think about it. right
39:29.49
Lorie Jones
you
39:30.67
Rosalyn Brown
That’s good, that’s a good one. you know Let me do some research. And sometimes I’ll even say, you know this is gonna be a challenge that helps me learn something new too.
39:40.32
Lorie Jones
yeah
39:40.75
Rosalyn Brown
And that’s always a great one where I’m like, you know what? I don’t have all the answers, but I do know a lot of people. And this is going to be a great way for both of us to learn and see. Or um sometimes I’ll say, you know, I don’t think we can, but there’s always exceptions. Let’s let’s dig into it a little bit more.
39:57.74
Rosalyn Brown
And so I don’t have that same fear. that someone’s going to look at me different because I don’t have the immediate answer. Because I’ve been in rooms where people answer the immediate question and I’m like, that’s not right.
40:11.48
Rosalyn Brown
e
40:11.47
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Oops.
40:13.65
Rosalyn Brown
There is an exception that they didn’t mention. And so um i’m I’m just less fearful of all the things that I don’t know because I am more energized by all the things that I don’t know and how much more that I can learn.
40:28.79
Lorie Jones
Yeah. and And with this world, in finance and financial services, it’s so big. Like you just, you can’t know everything. You have to always have that attitude of constant learning because you just can’t.
40:40.66
Rosalyn Brown
Yeah, and and it’s okay. It’s 100% okay.
40:42.55
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
40:43.79
Rosalyn Brown
And just approaching it as if you are diagnosing them and yeah i am that physician and I am going in and figuring out all the things that it could possibly be, all the routes that we can take to get to this goal.
40:58.22
Rosalyn Brown
And then we strategize collectively with that client to get them there, a way different approach than the old school, you need to put more money in this account. You gotta to pay down this one thing.
41:10.22
Rosalyn Brown
And we give options and that way to get there.
41:16.00
Lorie Jones
What about um unique challenges along your path because you were a woman? Did you run into anything like that, Rosalyn?
41:24.04
Rosalyn Brown
I would say it’s hard to say absolutely not, um because there’s always little things. Some of them are unconscious bias.
41:34.46
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
41:34.70
Rosalyn Brown
Some of them are blatant discrimination, even just simple things in terms of being a woman that doesn’t have children.
41:46.51
Rosalyn Brown
So I have purposely never wanted children.
41:46.51
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
41:48.63
Rosalyn Brown
i have three dogs, but I’ve never wanted to be a mother. And so there is an assumption there. And so where you are supposed to pick up the slack, even in terms of things that may be more maternal.
42:03.02
Rosalyn Brown
So all of a sudden you’re supposed to plan all the parties. You’re supposed to plan the get togethers. You’re supposed to, you know, order all the client gifts, those kinds of things. um People who make an assumption of what you do and don’t know.
42:15.95
Rosalyn Brown
um It’s funny. I’ve had people make assumptions even in terms of life experiences. And I’ve always thought those things were funny. um Some people make it ah assumptions just based on what you may have even been exposed to um i I’ve actually had a client who refused to work with me because I was a woman.
42:40.36
Rosalyn Brown
um And so, i mean, and he blatantly said that. And so I’ve had some of those experiences. I think it’s always important for us to, one, talk about them.
42:51.81
Rosalyn Brown
Share those experiences. Share how we work through them. Because there’s no way for us to combat an issue if we sweep it under the rug.
42:59.01
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
43:00.29
Rosalyn Brown
And there are young girls coming behind us when we think about this industry specifically. And I i actually was on a webinar earlier today. um And i appreciated the guy who said people want to work with people that they can relate to that look like them.
43:16.30
Rosalyn Brown
And it makes a lot of sense because if we look at stat statistics, if there’s a husband and a wife, about 80 to 90% of the time, if that husband passes, that wife is going to leave that financial advisor.
43:30.81
Rosalyn Brown
And that number is just about the same when it comes to children and their parents’ financial advisor, which simply means there is a disconnect on our side in terms of the connection either with the woman when there’s a husband and a wife,
43:46.70
Rosalyn Brown
the children when there are assets being passed. And so as an industry, we have to take it head on because there are some blatant, obvious issues. And the management of wealth is going in another direction.
44:00.75
Rosalyn Brown
And there’s a lot of headwinds in terms of people who raise their hand and they want to work with an advisor.
44:00.75
Lorie Jones
Mm-hmm.
44:06.68
Rosalyn Brown
But I am a firm believer that we have to Approach it head on. um i have been a member of Whippin for a number of years.
44:17.15
Rosalyn Brown
I have sat on the board for a number of years. I was president just last year and working for women in the retirement industry, but also outside in terms of some of the other things that I do.
44:29.91
Rosalyn Brown
where it’s working with women to make them feel good about asking a question, about challenging a statement.
44:35.30
Lorie Jones
uh
44:37.33
Rosalyn Brown
I mean, I’ve had people say, well, maybe you should plan about what if you do have kids? And I was like, when did you tell a guy?
44:44.26
Lorie Jones
huh
44:46.07
Rosalyn Brown
that he should plan for having kids despite him saying that he didn’t. And so it’s very important for us to to name it, identify it and then strategize ways that another generation of women, one, don’t leave this industry because we’re facing another exodus of women in the workforce.
45:06.36
Rosalyn Brown
And that clearly means there are foundational elements that that are not making one this industry, but corporate America as a whole, welcoming, inviting, and a place that they can sustain and grow.
45:18.20
Lorie Jones
Yeah, 100%. ah yeah ah hundred percent I agree with that. We need to we need to welcome them in and help them better. stay in because because we’ve had you know eighteen percent twenty percent women in this industry for five years it’s not getting any better
45:36.98
Rosalyn Brown
Exactly.
45:36.96
Lorie Jones
and
45:37.94
Rosalyn Brown
yes
45:39.14
Lorie Jones
We’re obviously not doing it. And and it does tend to, like, I want to work with people that look like me, act like me, sound like me, that can relate to where I’m at and what I’m going through.
45:50.05
Lorie Jones
And there are industries. um I think auto mechanics is one of them. they just They just ticked off my 18, 19-year-old daughter to no end because they started calling her father about her car that she took in. So they’re just, we have to be better about it.
46:08.43
Rosalyn Brown
And it’s those kind of things that call it out and be very deliberate and very specific and um be able to walk away. There are some places that do very well.
46:20.83
Rosalyn Brown
um There are some places that have identified and understand. And then there are some places that unfortunately… They may never. um And, you know, i always say there is no business that is exempt from losing market share.
46:34.70
Rosalyn Brown
At one time, you know, Blockbuster was the number one place that you go get a movie or Kodak was, you know, everybody had a Kodak camera and things can change.
46:40.10
Lorie Jones
yeah.
46:44.87
Rosalyn Brown
um And, know, If you are not receptive and nimble to changes, then you can fall by the wayside too.
46:53.51
Lorie Jones
Yeah,
46:53.58
Rosalyn Brown
And there is competition coming up every single day. And I love it. And so either you embrace it and understand it or you’ll be, you know, one of the fatalities of the industry.
47:07.80
Lorie Jones
yeah yeah, you’ll be the Kodak or the Blockbuster. Exactly. Rosalyn, what is the thing you are most proud of?
47:17.83
Rosalyn Brown
You know, I will say one thing that life taught me and it really made me focus on relationships even more so than ever is 2020. Most people remember 2020 based on COVID-19.
47:35.93
Rosalyn Brown
But before the world shut down, i was traveling probably four or five days out of a week. And so I would come home on a Friday. i would you know be absolutely exhausted and get back out there and do it again. and then unfortunately, I was actually heading home on a layover. And my mom called me to tell me that my sister had a stroke.
47:56.54
Lorie Jones
Oh,
47:57.18
Rosalyn Brown
She’s 39 years old. um And so… I had no idea how bad it was. My family lives in Georgia. So I got on the flight, headed back to DC so I could then get on and um another flight to get to Georgia.
48:11.09
Rosalyn Brown
And my sister had multiple brain surgeries. She spent about three months in ICU. She spent about six months in a rehab facility. And it is now 2025. And my sister has never walked.
48:22.55
Rosalyn Brown
She was 39 and a half.
48:22.57
Lorie Jones
wow. oh wow
48:24.41
Rosalyn Brown
um and i And actually, she had her stroke in the bathroom of her job. And so that always resonated with me for a number of reasons. One, she was 39 and a half. And I’ll say why that half meant a lot to me, because we kept talking about what she was going to do when she turned 40.
48:43.54
Lorie Jones
ah yeah.
48:44.30
Rosalyn Brown
And so it was like, you know, at 40, we’re going to do this for you. And she had never really traveled before. i had always been the traveler. And so it’s like one, a reflection of how much we put off waiting for this like major milestone, um but also how much you invest in work.
49:00.69
Rosalyn Brown
Because those co-workers, they brought food to the house probably for a month or two. And we don’t see them or hear from them anymore.
49:07.89
Lorie Jones
no
49:08.36
Rosalyn Brown
And it is all family. And so that is one where we should be investing our time. But two, um waiting for certain milestones. And so I’m a big traveler. ah I spent but time doing all 50 states. so I’ve done all 50 states. And then I wanted to get to all seventy or seven continents.
49:25.62
Rosalyn Brown
And I actually was on Antarctica on my 39th and a half birthday um because it was just important not to wait.
49:30.38
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
49:35.26
Rosalyn Brown
And so sometimes we’re waiting for this magical moment where um we could just really be in the moment. And so i think the most proud thing is to not wait and really enjoy, love, appreciate my family, my circle, um those people that I absolutely love and so into those relationships, even more so than I would do my nine to five work.
50:03.06
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Yeah. I, I really get that. Like you just, you never know when something I’ve, I’ve had clients who have saved and saved and saved and saved for retirement and they retired and you know, their wife died and they weren’t able to take those trips or they had a heart attack and they weren’t able to like, you, you just never know what the future is going to bring.
50:26.48
Lorie Jones
You really need to embrace what you embrace the time that you’re in and, and,
50:30.23
Rosalyn Brown
ah Yeah. Celebrate in the moment.
50:32.65
Lorie Jones
And don’t, yeah, don’t keep waiting.
50:33.69
Rosalyn Brown
yeah You got to have some celebrations along the way.
50:36.63
Lorie Jones
Yeah, yeah, exactly. So perfect. I love that. um Any advice for a young lady who’s kind of just starting down this path that you’re successful at that would help her to be successful like you?
50:50.72
Rosalyn Brown
So this is a good question because I actually just gave this advice very recently. I had a young lady reach out to me on LinkedIn. She wanted to do like a virtual coffee.
51:01.17
Rosalyn Brown
So we do this virtual coffee and we’re on the line. We’re chatting. She’s asking questions. And we get to kind of the end of our chat. And she says, well, you know, is there anything I should know, anything that um is important?
51:15.81
Rosalyn Brown
And I said, you just spent an hour with me and I really don’t know what you want. Because she spent time asking me about my career. Yeah, that’s nice.
51:26.77
Rosalyn Brown
But you reached out to me because there was something that you, is it you want me to introduce you to someone else? Is it that you want me to introduce you to someone who does this? Is it that you want me to look at your resume and give you feedback?
51:39.96
Lorie Jones
Thank you.
51:42.52
Rosalyn Brown
People want to help, but you must be very specific because when I get off the phone, am I going to remember this person? Or if you had said I’m trying to work for a hedge fund, do you know anybody? And I may say, I know this person, this person, and I can make that one connection. You gave me the one thing that I need to do, but it was so conversational about, you know, how do you juggle family life and all these things, but what do you want?
52:10.29
Lorie Jones
Yeah.
52:10.84
Rosalyn Brown
and And I said, I don’t want to be brash when I say it. But if you’re talking to people who are busy and they have a busy life, if you plant the seed about the one thing that you want,
52:21.79
Rosalyn Brown
In the next couple of weeks, I’ll probably run into somebody and I’ll say, what was the name of that girl that I just talked to that was looking for somebody who does X?
52:30.05
Lorie Jones
ah huh
52:30.33
Rosalyn Brown
But I left that conversation more of a chat opposed to being on a mission.
52:35.20
Lorie Jones
yeah
52:35.49
Rosalyn Brown
And so I don’t care what it is. If you’re that woman that just started the bakery and you’re saying, I want somebody who is looking for someone to make a wedding cake, say that. And in the next few weeks, I’m to see somebody and I’m like, I know so-and-so, she makes wedding cakes.
52:49.41
Lorie Jones
Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah.
52:52.77
Rosalyn Brown
So know and be very deliberate. If you say, i want I’m trying to get five more women who own businesses to do financial plans with me. Plant that seed because all of a sudden I’m going to be somewhere and I’m going to say, I don’t know if you, you know, you asked this one great question. You should probably be working with an advisor who specializes in working with women.
53:14.66
Rosalyn Brown
I know this person. Let me make that introduction. And so never miss an opportunity. I don’t care if it’s in an elevator. If you are in the line at the grocery store, if you know exactly what you’re going after and what you want, always be able to leave someone with information.
53:31.43
Rosalyn Brown
If you know somebody who, if you can make an introduction, be straight to the point about what you’re looking for and never waste an opportunity just chatting.
53:35.08
Lorie Jones
oh
53:40.47
Rosalyn Brown
I understand I love to just chat too, but never miss an opportunity where someone leaves that interaction, not knowing how they can help you because people want to help.
53:50.17
Lorie Jones
Oh, yeah. I love that. I’m just going to leave that there because that is so true. It is. So, well, thank you. Thank you so much roblan for your time and and, the great advice that you’ve given and like all the, the journey in your story. I’ve, I’ve just really enjoyed listening to it. And I took away a couple of things from it, which I think is successful interview. When I go away from something and I’m like, Ooh, I’m going to try that. That is, that means that I’ve learned something. So thank you so much.
54:21.51
Lorie Jones
If I have a young lady who wants to get in touch with you and ask a question or or something, pick your brain a little bit, how does she do that?
54:21.65
Rosalyn Brown
Thank you.
54:30.60
Rosalyn Brown
She can always email me at info at RosalynBrown.com. So pretty simple. It is Rosalyn, R-O-S-A-L-Y-N, Brown.com. And I’m always happy to talk about your career path, where you’re going.
54:44.63
Rosalyn Brown
Just let me know what you exactly want. We can help you.
54:48.07
Lorie Jones
yeah Yeah, don’t don’t make you guess. i know. And i will I will second that. I think Rosalind is great at kind of delving down into what what how she can help and what you what you need.
54:58.84
Lorie Jones
So thank you so much for taking that time with us today.
55:01.39
Rosalyn Brown
Thank you. it was an absolute pleasure.