Latest / SkyTalkDoc / E267 Kick Start Your Growth
Transcript
- SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Dominic, I am so excited to have you on the Sky Talk Doc podcast. Totally selfishly because I am going to geek out on all the things that you're doing to help people really advance their life, level up and elevate what they're doing. And I need that. I'm in a place right now where I'm feeling very stagnant on all these missions that I've started really looking for, you know, how I can kind of level up. And so you do this for a living. And I would just love for you to share with the listeners a little bit about who you are and how you're changing lives and what you're working on. Dominic Forth: Yeah, it's so great to be here. And I've loved following your journey as well and just everything that you're doing for your audience and just the greater community as well. And started inside the media. So I've been in media over 20 years now. And you can probably tell, you know, from the UK originally, trained the BBC, but I moved to America early on in my career because I really fought for media. Like America was sort of the epicenter. And so it's been an amazing journey. I've worked with TV stations. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Mmm. Dominic Forth: all across the country from Kansas City to Tampa Bay, San Francisco, Oklahoma, Colorado. And then I started consulting for over 40 TV stations really high class research. So everything from the quality of the newscast to like the tie that the host was like in Oklahoma, is it better if they wear a red or blue tie? You can probably guess which color they prefer there with the Sooners and... ⁓ SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: feel nervous. Am I okay? Am I working here? Dominic Forth: Yeah, it is amazing. mean, the research is really what a lot of TV stations invest heavily in because it drives viewership and you'd be amazed the things that turn people off. I mean, the smallest details sometimes. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Well, and it's such a subconscious process, right? Like I'm always telling people, we are scanning our environment in ways you will never cognitively know. ⁓ can be such a subconscious thing to pick up on a little, you know, a color of a tie that doesn't align with your political beliefs or something like that. And then it gives a narrative or a warning sign off in your subconscious so that you're tuning out or you're rejecting the message. So ⁓ I totally get what you're saying from a neuroscience perspective. Dominic Forth: Yeah, yeah. And one of my favorites is at the courthouse. You know, it's like midnight and the reporter's still there at the courthouse and the viewers are like, why are they still there? It finished at 5 p.m. You know, so you really have to give a reason why you are on the scene. And do a good job actually on, ⁓ car accidents. ⁓ you may see this where they're on the side of the road and they'll start on the side of the road and then they start to walk with the camera person. And then you have the reveal where they show the accident and then they go to the guest and then they start talking to the guests. So there's an incredible amount of storytelling that happens in newscasts. And often overlooked because, it's free over the air. It gets taken for granted, but there's so much data science that goes into it. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: I would have never thought of the psychology of an on site or remote broadcast. I would have never thought of that. But of course, there's probably an entire industry of people that are assessing attention and whether people are focused and whether they're changing the channel or whatever. I share a bachelor's in broadcast communications. ⁓ this is kind of something we can geek out on together. But we had the Nielsen ratings back then. I don't even know if they still apply, but that's what we had back then. Dominic Forth: Yeah, it's, it's fascinating. I mean, you'd look at a whole, you millions of dollars being spent on advertising and in some markets, it would go down to a Nielsen diary where someone had literally just, just to get the money to fill in, out. They'd just put the same station every day, every day. ⁓ and that's where recall comes into it where, especially on the radio, I mean, some of the most effective radio stations, they hammer 90.9, the bridge. You're listening to 90.9, the bridge. It's 90.9. I'm in the shower. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. Yes. Dominic Forth: rage like. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Right? Well, you know, it's funny is when I, when my son was young, I taught him my phone number by using a jingle. So I sang a song because I can still remember the Jenny Craig ad because it was a song, you know, it's amazing how much those jingles and things also really apply into it or the power that comes in from, you know, 105.1 KNCI, you know, like you said, and hearing it over and over and over again, that brand awareness. Dominic Forth: Yep. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Something I've been shocked about is I pivoted my social media to these ridiculous. It's funny, I used to post them in my stories and it's like a selfie video in my car that cuts off half my head. ⁓ it was really a comfortable position for me. So I was very natural when I did it. There was nothing forced about it. ⁓ had worked with a marketing company that had me sitting in a certain way and recording these reels and it just did not land. Like it came across so staged, so fake, so forced. So I started posting these, what I had been posting in my story to my reels, which is chopping my head off in my car, selfie videos, and they blow up. They blow up. now people, I have people message me are like, literally, how are you pulling this off? goes against everything that should be happening. So I feel like social media has really changed ⁓ people want to see something like they would see if they were next to you. Dominic Forth: Yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: in the car or in the living room or whatever. It's shifting. Dominic Forth: Yeah, yeah. The three things I'm so glad you touched on that. So authenticity is what you've touched on there. And it is so valuable. And those stream of consciousness videos where, you know, you get in the car, like maybe there's no makeup on and it's hot outside and stuff like that, but it's so authentic. And that's why they perform so well. And then if you can take it to the next level and, and this is where a lot of very well credentialed experts, medical, aviation, professional services. This is where they really struggle because they might be authentic, but you have to be emotionally engaging. And especially for doctors where they'll be on TV, they are so used to delivering news deadpan because they have to, it's medical. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: It reminds me of that guy, The Lotto is up to $5 million, just straight, and terminology, very surgical in their language and delivery, not very expressive. ⁓ But the other piece is, for me, I think I've figured out that emotional play. But where I'm struggling right now is I've kind of turned to these really humorous, kind of cheeky reels that are funny. ⁓ Dominic Forth: Yeah SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: which is great for my personality because I love to share this more goofy side of me. But the authority is not necessarily translating, right? Because I'm taking a humorous approach, it's like, this woman actually has a doctorate. That part isn't translating. But I think I am doing is 80,000 people heard the word seven primal wounds. Hey, there we go. I'm trying to get out that Dominic Forth: Yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: 105.1 KNCI 105.1 KNCI. Sinking it in wherever I can. Yeah. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. mean, repetition is your best friend and you know, you bring up a great point because I feel like people really look for three things I've noticed on social. So the first one is who you are. And I see a lot of people don't reveal that part of themselves. They don't know. One of the posts I got actually, not to go on a tangent, but I coached soccer for the first time this year. I played all my life, but I've never actually coached. And I coached my daughter who's eight. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. Dominic Forth: And it was the most rewarding thing I've ever gone through. You know, I used to coach corporates and you know, when you go into corporate coaching, half the people like this guy's going to be gone next week while the next coaching, the arms folded. 25 might be into it, but then there's 25 are actually into it. And you're like, Oh, these are the people who are the, the A-star sort of people, but the kids were, they were all into it. couldn't believe it. And so I posted about it and it's been one of my best performing posts. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah, yep, yep. Yep. Yep. Yes, it's because you shared a little insight to your life and another side of the dynamic that people maybe didn't know about you. And who doesn't love sports and kids, soccer and all that, right? Like that's huge, especially, yeah, especially when you're highlighting this part of like, I'm also a dad. I'm not just these things you see, I have this other human side to me as well. Dominic Forth: Yeah Yeah. And so I feel like that's the first pillar. If you show who you are and so many people miss this, cause people connect with people. And then the next piece of credibility is what you do. So that might be where you're on stage or you're doing a workshop or you're at a book signing event or on TV talking about the book. That pillar, that's where you build the credibility and trust. And that's why news is so powerful because you get that third party authority and you know, third party endorsement really. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yep. Dominic Forth: And then the last one, I think, which is so important is showing that you understand what the other people are going through. Like what's their pain? What's their problem they're trying to solve? Yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Pain point. Yes. Yes. I feel like I'm not doing very well right now ⁓ translating that message. I've been really, I've been ⁓ trying. I actually started doing some sketch reels because it kind of removes me from it, but it is. ⁓ It's to say to take the, this is why you will benefit from this. This ⁓ is thing I hear and this is how it solves that. ⁓ I'm doing very good at that right now. Dominic Forth: Yeah. But you, think what I love about your content is, ⁓ psychology is the root solution to almost everything. yeah, no, really is. mean, I was chatting with them and organization having a sales problem and they're just talking product all the time. They're not going into what is the person on the other end of the screen? What is their goal? And if you figure out what the goal is, what is the problem that they're to have to overcome to achieve that goal? SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: There's that. Dominic Forth: And behind that problem is actually pain because they're not accomplishing in solving that problem. And so behind that pain, needs to be action taken. And so once we have this conversation actually unlocked, like, ⁓ my goodness, like I need to just approach this a whole different way. And it's all rooted in, you know, psychology. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Well, it's funny because I've been going through some court stuff and I was talking to an attorney the other day and I was like, I'm going to break this down for you. I'm like, this attorney is Homer Simpson and the judge is, you know what I mean? And I start and he's like, like it was that visualization of like, is this is the psychology of what we're playing with, right? And so for me, I can't turn it off. mean, literally, I'm sitting in the back of a courtroom and I'm watching. all of the characters in this story play out, right? And I'm watching how they're engaging and how they're responding and how they're reacting. And I can't turn off the psychology lens. Like I can literally see when a judge gets activated by something that someone said and know what her primal wound is based upon that. You know what I mean? It's really fascinating stuff when you drill down. And I do think that most industries are at the bottom psychology. When I was in marketing, It was psychology. How do you speak to what people desire? Right. That's psychology. But, know, so it's really fascinating. Dominic Forth: Yeah, well, and same with, with media as well. You know, we have so many clients that come to us that all want different solutions and it can be overwhelming because there are so many ways that you can market something or talk about a product. And once you peel it back and say, well, what is this person's ultimate goal? Sometimes it's just ego, honestly, they don't care how many people even watching, they just want to be, or reading, they want to be in Forbes. That's all they want to do is just an article in Forbes. it. And you're like, but I could get you so much more reach and so much more of a concentrated focused audience on this other channel. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. Well, you know, it's interesting. I had a conversation with someone just literally a couple of days ago who's an important mover and shaker. And he said, so ⁓ what is your desire? What's your goal? And I said, and he goes, do you want this? Do you want that? All these things. said, look, I've been in the USA today. I've all these accolades. What I want to do is I want to sit down with Joe Rogan. and have a one-to-one conversation about this. I want to sit down with Mel Robbins and have a one-to-one conversation about this. I want to talk with Dr. Caroline Leaf about this. know, like I want to be having conversation with people. At this point, I'm not looking to hustle books, right? I'm looking to have authentic conversations with people who have right message that matches my message that can be the ripple in the pond that goes out and gets this to the right person who needs it. And there's no number attached to that, right? Like achieved the ⁓ that make you look like you got there, ⁓ Like at this point, I want to be having the real conversations. ⁓ so that's why I did the book tour. I wanted to fly across the country and have one-to-one conversations with everyone and no one about the book was about. You know, that was my mission. And so if I have to look at an elevated mission, It's talking to the right people who can spread the message, you know? Dominic Forth: Oh, totally. the number one request we get with, um, people who've never been on TV before. They're like, I want to be on good morning America. And it's like, Oh, that's great. Have you been on TV before? No. Okay. Well, crawl, walk, crawl. But I'd love to hear that story. Um, just how that came to be. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: I mean, I've been on a lot of big stages, but I happen to have a fantastic PR team. I have a great PR team ⁓ who has built a lot of trust in organizations. And so ⁓ But I'll say that's number one and number two, timing. Like all the real major things I've been on, there's been an aviation incident and here I am, an aviator and available to talk about these things, you know? So really been a combination having the aviation and the psychology side of things coming together at a time when there was a national crisis where they needed that. So it's combination of a good PR team that has the right contacts and this kind of niche ability to talk about things that were needed right then and being very fast with the speed to market. Dominic Forth: Yeah, you've brought up, nailed it spot on because it's so many people try and lead with credentials and like, but I'm a professor of this and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. ⁓ And, you news producers, mean, sometimes they get 300 emails in a day and they don't have time and they see, I have a great guest for you, like delete, delete. But if you lead with the story and the narrative and then, ⁓ by the way, and I'm the perfect person to comment on this and... SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah. Uh-huh. Yes. Dominic Forth: 80 to 85 % of the work's done for the reporter. They've just got to, you know, have the conversation. That's how you get the home runs. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah. That's how all my big ones have been landed, was via timing. And there was already trust built with PR team and the news agency. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah. And that's where a lot of people struggle, you know, a lot of CEOs, because the media, they move on if you're not there and ready at the right time. yeah, and a lot of CEOs struggle because their whole organizations, if they ask something, it gets done on their time and their schedule. And suddenly now this journalist is going to like dictate the terms to them. And so, yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: They gotta go, yeah. And we're living. Not gonna happen, yeah. Dominic Forth: So we have to coach a lot of CEOs and say, no, no, no. If you get the call, you drop everything because it may not come back a second time if you turn it down. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: And we're living in this 15 minute world where the news is active for about an hour. And then we're onto the next thing. If it's really big, we might have two days. That's it. I've had a lot of 3 AM because they're over in the UK or whatever, ⁓ I've got to be up and camera ready. And there's been some interesting time zone snafus that I've had happen. And my computer's ringing and I'm not realizing that it's the media and I'm not ready for the media. So it's been really funny. And I think the human side of it is important too, because whatever happened in 2020 really changed the landscape of what people expect to see now. It used to be, at least prior to 2020 for me, if I was going to be on a major stage like KTLA in ⁓ Angeles or ⁓ of them, doesn't matter, pick the city. I had to fly to that city and sit at the anchor desk, you know, and now it's not like that at all. Now they, a matter of fact, they don't want you in their anchor room at all, you know. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah. It's opened up so many opportunities, being able to, to record on zoom. And, do, it's funny. find sometimes being on sec really speakers can struggle sometimes. ⁓ yeah. Yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Wow. It's especially like the news desk situation. I mean, you know that ⁓ anchors are sitting there, they're ready with their teleprompter, they're going to fire that question off and you literally have to deliver in that second before they cut to commercial break, you know? Dominic Forth: Yeah. And sound bites are key sound. That's one of the biggest things that we coach on is how do you take, you know, very complex, especially like medical aviation, very complex topics boom, deliver that sound bite. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: You in two seconds. hesitate. Don't and, and, or, because just lost credibility to your point earlier, you might as well be wearing the wrong color tie. It's really the filler words and all the stuff that plays into that. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yep. So we've, we've created a micro app called sound by studio. haven't launched it publicly yet, but it takes really complex themes and it just lands these zingers that just sound great on air. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: ⁓ my God, I gotta do this because I need to level up. is the other part I was gonna talk to you about, because I feel that creator fatigue is a real thing. And I'm experiencing this right now. Like I'm tired. ⁓ been doing the work that people are just now seeing for four years. You know what I mean? Like you're just now seeing this book, but I've been head over heels in this. ⁓ you know, pond of muck for all these years and I'm tired. I'm like, I need it to be quick. I need it to be easy. I need it to translate. And I still have to have it come off as authentic and not forced and exhausted, which I am. there's that, you know. Dominic Forth: Yeah, yeah. And bring up a good point as well, because if you're fatigued, I mean, there's so much, ⁓ I want say noise, but there's just so much content being flooding, you know, people's, you know, news feeds now or social media feeds that it it's hard to stand out. And that's why and I might be biased with this, but I've seen the results, but that's why being interviewed on ⁓ a major TV set Even if it's via zoom on a major show, it just elevates you above everybody else. And we do this a lot with e-commerce brands. So e-commerce brands where the cost for acquisitions going up, ⁓ changed the algorithm again or Instagram, you know, and like, how do we stand out? And so we'll book them on TV, have two really credible hosts talking about their product. And now they have something that differentiates themselves. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. ⁓ wow. That's the thing. And so you're kind of speaking to what I was talking about earlier, which is I think credibility can come in a handful of different ways. one of them is if someone else has already built credibility with their audience. And that's what I mean talking about if I can sit down with Mel Robbins for 15 minutes and talk about this, she's already built the credibility with her audience, right? So. They're going to be paying attention. They're going to listen. They're going to say, ⁓ if she says it, then maybe it's right for me. Dominic Forth: Yeah, absolutely. And podcasting is a great way to do that as well, just to meet people and yeah, just always borrowing someone else's audience, know? SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Right. I feel like there was a period of time where my friend was telling me, you've got to do podcasting. started this podcast eight years ago. There was a period of time where I feel like there was actually a lull in podcasting. ⁓ what I have found and what I believe is happening from a ⁓ global standpoint is people are now working from home offices. They are expected to be working they can be listening to a podcast while they're working or they can be listening to a podcast while they're driving. And if they know that it's real human conversation behind it, because now we're seeing what I'm seeing is this transition where people are very skeptical. They are asking, is what I'm watching even real? so, you know, I feel like people are kind of swinging back into this podcast land where it's like, You know, this particular podcaster that I listen to, I know it's a real human. I've been along with them for quite a few years now and I don't need to watch them. I can listen and get the gist or I can even read the transcript, right? So I feel like we're going to start to see more human to human conversational engagement go up compared with the lull that we might have seen when video platforms kind of popped off a little bit more. Dominic Forth: Yeah, yeah. A great way to track influence and what's working effectively is the election cycle. And we saw it the last election, one candidate bet big on podcasts, the other didn't. And we saw which one won. And so, ⁓ yeah, yeah, Trump went all in on podcasts. He was on Joe Rogan and Kamala Harris just wasn't as engaged. And so people felt like they were literally sitting in on two hour conversations and, yeah. ⁓ SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Wow, I didn't know that. I did not know that. Wow! had no idea! Dominic Forth: Yeah. And it's always interesting. And this year is going to be very interesting because, know, coming from a broadcast TV background, like TV was a dominant, like ad spend from political parties. ⁓ but now it's so hard to get, especially younger voters as well. podcasts fill that void. And so this, this year, just watch where the money goes, because that's where the money goes. That's what influence flows. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Uh-huh, uh-huh. Wow. And to your point, like the 15 second zinger video clips is all people, they want to be there and just zip, zip, zip, zip through their phone on all those. And so, and I've seen and I've talked about it with my podcast guests. This podcast used to be an hour long. And I'm like, hey, we've got 20, 25 minutes to have a great powerful conversation. And that's what keeps my viewers coming back or my listeners coming back, you know, is ⁓ it a power punch. Now, some of these conversations just naturally launch into longer dialogues, and that's okay too. But usually what'll happen is I'll keep the first one to 20, 25 minutes and it's like, okay, let's tease them. What are we gonna talk about when you come back for another 20, 25 minutes? And I'm finding that that's working so much better. And that's such a shift from what it used to be. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah. It's interesting. You know, we should map out the average commute time in America and see, how it aligns to podcast lens because I have a shorter commute now and you're right. The shorter burst of podcast is great. Yeah. ⁓ SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah, that's a good one. Yeah. People don't want to lose their train of thought. can handle that. If they set it down, the chances are going to come back and pick it up unless it's really engaging are not very good because there's going to be something else that's going to lower their attention and be more exciting in that moment or more applicable in that moment, even if it's 24 hours later. Dominic Forth: Yeah. And we do a lot of proprietary research on like purchasing decisions and you the purchase path that consumers go through and podcasts are so powerful. I've got an education client where he has an app that helps kids improve mathematics scores. he's on a podcast, just lowers his, it lowers the ⁓ of somebody opting into his newsletter to actually becoming a client or a subscriber because it's eight to 10 hours we're seeing that consumers are spending. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Wow. Dominic Forth: researching a product or service before they make that decision. And so having podcasts readily available, it just, it's that one-on-one connection, like in the car or cooking dinner or even at the gym. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah. And like I said, even people at work that can listen while they're multitasking on their spreadsheet or whatever, you'll find this interesting. So when I was first reaching out to the publishing houses, and I've had a couple of books published traditionally, ⁓ I was first reaching out to the publishing houses, they're like, your is aviation. This is a self-help book. You didn't grow your self-help audience over these years that you've been publishing self-help books, so we're not going to work with you. Forbes was willing to work with me. It's kind of a fun and interesting story there, but I fundamentally knew that I was going to struggle with an aviation audience and not putting out an aviation book. You know what I mean? If I was putting out this aviation book, it would have been a bestseller overnight, but I wasn't. I was putting out a self-help book. I've kind of found this shtick, but then lately with the creator fatigue, I'm like, it's not even translating to sales anyway. What am I doing? Why am I wasting my time here? I don't have sophisticated research ⁓ my back end. only working with what Forbes team is, you know, the authority company is giving me. ⁓ then what starts happening is my phone starts ringing, my DMs are blowing up, it's major airlines, it's all of these various different companies. that are saying we wanted you to talk about aviation and mental health. And I'm like, finally. I thought it was never going to translate. It was never going to convert. Quit wasting your time. And then suddenly it's like, ⁓ wow, they're putting it together and it's happening. But it was treacherous navigating different niches like this and trying to put them together. Dominic Forth: Yes. So how many hours of content? Cause that'll be fascinating to see like the threshold of like, cause it may be eight to 10 for some products, but maybe to do that shift from aviation to mental health. Just curious, like approximately. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: You know, it's funny because I would love to geek out on like, I feel like my case is a very interesting case study in the marketing world. You know what I mean? I think that what up happening was when I started sharing these funny reels that really spoke to pilots, I was basically roasting pilots, you know, just totally making fun of them. But then at the very end, I was saying, if you're like this, you might need a copy of my book, you know. I was just peeling it in. just teased enough that I think people would be like, well, let me go look and see what this is about. it was one of those things where it's like you said, how long does somebody have to see or hear something to to the exact moment when they decide I actually do need this thing? It would have been a lot shorter if I was selling an aviation flight, know, headsets for aviation or something. It would have been a lot shorter. So I think that my, number is probably, it's not very much. One to two reels a week over a period of about three that I was really focused. ⁓ so I don't think it was much, but I think the issue is, again, if it had been an aviation product, it would have translated and converted much quicker. But people put it in the back of their mind or they set it in their Amazon cart or they just noted it and then they have a fight with their wife. they're like, remember that girl was talking about that. Let me go look at that again. And I think that's how it's kind of coming about for me. Dominic Forth: Yeah, it's so funny. That's exactly what will happen with the education client I was mentioning where, you know, they'd be on this newsletter, do a couple of podcasts and then suddenly little Timmy gets a bad test score and the parents panic and guess who's top of mind? We need to get the app. Let's subscribe for the tutoring and everything else. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Uh-huh. That's right. Who's top of mind in that moment. And that's exactly, it kind of comes all together what we've been talking about all throughout, right? Like how do you stay in that sphere of credibility and at the top of the list when they decide that it's the right time for them? Dominic Forth: Yep. And like, I know this person because I've seen behind the scenes. know what they do. And I know they also understand me and my pain points. And now Timmy's struggling at school. Where's that email? I'm going to sign up today. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Well, and that's the thing with the niche market. So I think what ended up happening is aviators are like, I might end up buying her book because she gets me and I'm different. I don't have the same access to mental health as everybody else because I'll get grounded and I won't be able to fly, but she gets me because she flies and she does this. And I think that's the credibility piece that's finally starting to translate. Dominic Forth: Yeah, and mental health is such a tough topic as well, because there is some sense of denial, you know, or even self-realization around it. You know, almost taboo in some cases for people to purchase a book on it because they're worried, you know. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Uh-huh. Uh-huh. But it's funny because if there were any way on the planet that I could have my clients do testimonials for my book, they would be like, I've been working with her for three years. This has changed my life, but I can't because they're off limits because of confidentiality. So it's like, it's this weird thing where I've been taking clients through the Primal Wounds and through the reset program and all these different things for years, but I can't use experience or testimony. because it's a violation of what my therapy side of things says. So it's like, ugh, you know, if I could have had them come on and be like, hey, our marriage was in the toilet six months ago, and now we're deeply together and engaged than we've ever been, that would be instant credibility, but I can't use it. Dominic Forth: Yeah, it's so funny. We have a similar challenge in a slightly different way because we'll do all this great work to put people on TV, but they don't want anyone to know that someone helps them. They want to take all the credit and we're fine with that. We've had some clients like, do not show anybody my clips. We never worked together. Like we're fine as long as you're happy. That's the main thing. But yeah, so we have a same challenge with testimonials where, you many are forthcoming, but there's a few that just like, I want, know. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Uh-huh. Wow. That's really interesting. They're like, I don't want to believe I was ever at the bottom rung of this ladder and that I didn't need someone helping my content and my visibility in such a way that I would actually translate to my audience because that makes me look like I'm not as credible or something. That's interesting. Dominic Forth: Yeah, it's sort of that switch where, because the challenge booking media as well is TV stations book for free themselves. They go out, you know, obviously they're finding people every day. so there's some people that say, ⁓ I would never pay for a coach or for a booking service because they'll come find me when, when I'm ready sort of thing. ⁓ So, you know, there's that's yeah, sort of to be chosen versus to. ⁓ SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Wow, that's interesting. Dominic Forth: Like, you'd almost like, you don't want to ask to be invited to a party. You want to be invited to the party almost. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: That's so ridiculous because in my mind, it's like if you want to be the best at your game, you go hire a great physical trainer and a great sports coach. You don't be like, ⁓ they'll come find me when I'm great. ⁓ like completely backwards. You know what I mean? Like you're like, I want that guy to teach me how to bat as best as I can possibly bat. Dominic Forth: ⁓ Yep. There's a great story I tell about the invisible tax of silence is what I call it. And it's about two blacksmiths there's ⁓ that has his door open. And anytime someone stops by, shows them what he's making. It's not perfect, but he tells them the story of how he's doing it, how he's getting it ready. And then the other one who has his door closed and the second one, he says, you know, I'm going to wait till it's ready. When it's ready, I'll show everybody. Everyone will be amazed. But the challenge is as time goes by, everybody becomes connected to the first blacksmith and they see what he's building. And so the second blacksmith just over time erodes away just time and time goes by. even when he's ready to show it, it's too late because everyone's so enamored with the first blacksmith that there's no competition. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Wow, I feel like this is kind of what I've been going through in that I've been the blacksmith with the door open kind of showing everybody like I don't have this figured out and you're along for the journey and you're going to watch me slip up and you're going to watch me excel in some areas, but this is not an overnight process. And so here we go, you know. Dominic Forth: Yeah. And then, you know, 10 years could go by in some cases, like there's literally executives who are out there, who have really powerful stories inside them, could literally transform lives if they told them, but they're on the edge of the room. They're waiting for that invitation to speak. And the sad part is the invitation may never come. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: So as you say that, I know exactly what the primal wound is and why they're staying small and in the back of the room. And it's like, ⁓ man, and those are the people that I want to have on this podcast, right? Like I said earlier, I don't even need to be the one on the Mel Robbins and the Joe Rogan's of the world. I'm okay being the portal for other people to tell their story. Like you come on my podcast and share and we might reach three people, but. Those three people are the ripple in the pond that go out and tell other people. And then suddenly your message is getting exactly where it needs to go. I think that's really powerful. There's a lot of power in that. Dominic Forth: Yeah, and it's funny because there's people who have YouTube videos with less than a hundred views who are killing it right now because those 85 viewers are their ideal client profile. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. Yes. I know what you mean. actually, because I started to kind of focus on some YouTube stuff recently and I did a honed it into the self-help stuff and didn't go aviation. And leads that are coming in from YouTube are huge. So it's like, okay, that's translating, you know, quickly. Dominic Forth: Yeah. And you know what's funny? Like, um, you know, the people who are sometimes at the back of the room who have good ideas, although they'll say their idea to somebody else who then speaks up for them. When they finally do speak and step forward, the room doesn't push back. The room actually leans in and welcomes them in. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. It's like, ⁓ this person is something to say and I want to hear what it is. Right. And then they're surprised and then that will, yeah. And what's interesting is the kind of person that when people start to lean in, then I panic. ⁓ that's the other part of, like, I do this weird thing where I want to get out there. I want the message to get out. And then the minute the room turns to look at me, Dominic Forth: Yeah, yeah ⁓ yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: I panic and my son used to do this. This is why soccer was not the sport for him. He wanted to get the ball so bad and he would run and he would go and he'd get the ball and then everybody would swarm him and he'd just walk away. mind, I don't want it anymore. And have that same kind of like approach to things. I'm like, uh-oh, oops, I turned the audience on me and I don't what to do now. ⁓ Dominic Forth: ⁓ it's so funny. I was interviewed at the New York stock exchange back in January. And, ⁓ my goodness, I completely over-prepared. I was looking at all these like leadership books. I was looking at like all these, all these, honestly, I was really proud of all the prep work I did. But the first question comes up and the host, all she wanted to talk about was, me, my background. And, and I wasn't prepared. I just like started talking about my mom, my dad, my brother. And then I was like, I'm so sorry. Can we just stop the interview and start again? SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: you No! Dominic Forth: And she's like, no, no, we can't stop. We're recording live to tape. So they had to keep, oh my God. So, so there's a little edit spot in the interview and I'm like, you know, normal color to start with. And then the second half I'm like bright red for the second half of it. It's because it was one of those moments where I just, I really got caught up in like the significance of being in that environment at the New York Stock Exchange. And I just naturally went back to like how proud, because my mother and brother have passed now. My dad's quite not the best condition. So. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: no! Dominic Forth: I just naturally imagined like how much they would enjoy seeing me there. And so I just started talking about them, even though it had nothing really to do with the interview. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: I love that you did that and I feel like you should share this story on your socials. Have you? ⁓ you've got to. You've got to put out a reel. You've got to share that story because I think so many people can relate to that. Dominic Forth: No, not yet. Well, and you know what else happened? So, ⁓ I was staying at the double tree, which is about seven minute walk from the stock exchange. So had it all planned out. the morning of the interview, I get in and I'm on the top floor and then I get the next floor. Two people come in with giant suitcases, next floor, more people come with giant suitcases. Next I'm like, there's no space and yet everybody crams in. And then the next floor we go to get to the floor and it shunts down because of the weight. I get stuck in the elevator. And so I'm, yes, I'm panicking. I'm like, ⁓ my God, I'm gonna miss the interview. I'm gonna miss the interview. Like, I can't believe this. How has this happened? And then eventually they got someone in there to like, it's like, know, the heaven's gates open, you know, the doors open, there's light. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: You're kidding me. ⁓ my gosh, that's a literal worst nightmare. You've got like the most important interview of your life and you're stuck in an elevator crammed in the back corner. I mean, stuck in an elevator is probably on my top 10 list of like never want to experience. Like every time I've ever had anything even close to that, it's like that. Dominic Forth: Yeah Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. ⁓ You SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: you know, and then combine it with and missing one of the most important interviews of your life. And it's like, wow, like, can we just create anxiety level 11 out of 10 right now? There we go. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah. And the whole flight home was excruciating because I was like, Oh my God, how did I screw that interview up so bad? Like I did all this preparation. Um, but I ended up writing actually this, um, just a little story called the chaos reset kit, because I thought, how can I help other people get through what I went through where, um, you know, everything goes wrong basically before the interview. How do you resent yourself? How do you sort of get control of your physiological system and that? SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: And well, and all of the shame that comes up afterwards with why did I say that the vulnerability guilt and all those different things that come up when you're like, I can't believe I said that. Why did I say that much? Or why did I share that on national television or what? Yeah, I get it. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah. And the worst part was when I watched it back, it was completely fine. If I just kept going, the interview was actually developing really nicely into what the host had. She's the professional. She knows what she's doing. Just follow her lead. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: So, you you're touching to an important point, which is intuition and how much we, you know, try to silence it because of the that comes up in the prefrontal cortex, you know, the ⁓ rational, logical, we're not allowed to do this or that. And when we can kind of live in that intuitive space, it can be a really beautiful place. Dominic Forth: Yeah. And it's like, if you go to someone's house they ask you a question, you wouldn't just go off to the races talking about something else. Like you'd answer the question. And so I was like, why was I fighting? ⁓ in her point, I went and answered a bit too deeply, but you know, it's a conversation between two old friends. That's, that's what I coach people on is just, ⁓ like going to someone's house, be very respectful. If they ask you a question, yes, you might want to talk about a few other things. And yes, there are techniques you can use where you can say, well, Let's zoom out for a second. The bigger picture is boom, and sort of pivot. But ultimately, it's like an old friend just to answer the question, have the conversation and it would have been fine. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: What you're saying is so important because same thing with this podcast. I have all the bookers that reach out and they say, okay, well, are the questions that you're going to ask? I'm like, tell me what they do. Tell me who they are. importantly, tell me what they want to share with the world. We're to have a conversation around that and it's going to flow naturally. ⁓ I'm big on that. I think one of the reasons this podcast has done so well is because I leave it open to be like, I want to get to know you. I do this for a living. I know that I can ask questions that are going to inspire dialogue and curiosity. That's more important than all the rest because your message is going to come through if I leave it open-ended for you to come through. Dominic Forth: Yeah. Yeah. Well, it's the connection, isn't it? It's the human connection. Yeah. And if it's too scripted, then you lose that. Like you say, it's the wrong part of the brain really. So, again, this goes back to aviation professionals and medical professionals when they go on TV, they work very logically. ⁓ And so they're providing great information, but for a really good TV appearance, you really want to move to that next level where it becomes emotionally engaging. Yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah. Checklist. Yes, yes. Dominic Forth: We used to have the ideal TV watcher who would be a guy called Joe Sixpack. That's who like when we're writing copy for news and stuff where, you know, it's a guy called Joe, he sat there with a six pack of beer. the way to make, the way to measure a successful TV segment when he gets so excited that he calls his wife, Martha Sixpack from the kitchen and says, Hey, Martha, you got to come and see this. Yeah. ⁓ SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Okay. ⁓ that's great. That's great. Yeah. Invites invites her in. I love that. Dominic Forth: Yeah. And so how do you deliver the, and nowadays it's like pressing share, know, retweeting and stuff like that is the equivalent. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: But you just touched on something so important because everybody has a television in their hand now. we can be independently engaged ⁓ that without anybody in our actual real world around us involved. ⁓ it does take it to another level when you say, I'm going to save this YouTube video because I want to watch it with so-and-so and process what they're saying. This is a very interesting thought that I have not had until this very moment, which is, You need to create content that people want to actually have real life conversations about with someone else. I think that, I think this is such an important point. I really hadn't thought about it that way. Sure, we want, we want people to share it, but what does share it really mean? It's not just hitting the forward button. It's saying either, I'm thinking of you, or I want to dialogue with you about this because it's important to me. And that's really powerful. I think you just brought up a really good point. Dominic Forth: Yeah, there's the power to connect people. It's funny because short form video, especially as almost separated people were, you know, I have a five year old and eight year old. So I spend a lot of time at the playground and it breaks my heart sometimes where the parents, they're just staring at the screens and the missing, you know, the missing, the, the magic of being a child as the kids are falling off the monkey bars and everything else. Uh, but that's a great point where. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. ⁓ huh. Yes. Yep. Dominic Forth: If you can create content so people are sharing it and then having conversations about it, then it goes full circle and brings people back together. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah, I think that's really what it's all about. think that's, and I think that's the direction we're going to see people moving is more real life connection and the content being adjunct to that or dialogue starters. I really think that's where it's going to go. Dominic Forth: Yeah, there's, there's a big trend. I've been to quite a few conferences this year and I noticed that there's, almost two parallel tracks and this is across everything with aesthetics and you know, there's some people who are just overloaded. You know, they just, there's too much stimulation coming everywhere. They want, they want less and less. Yeah. But then at like the international builders show, then you've got. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yep, simplify. Dominic Forth: everything like the big textures are coming back, you know, like the leather chairs, the bricks and, and that connection and just how can we use technology to become more connected and integrated together as well. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: I think so. And I think that's what we're going to see. I really do. I think we're going to settle into a space where we swung the pendulum to the other side and that pendulum is going to swing back find its center, which is maybe a blend of the high tech and the one-on-one somewhere in the middle. Dominic Forth: Yeah. And it comes down to the content. You know, how we were talking about, it's like, how, how do you engage with people emotionally by asking the right questions and understanding their pain? And then, ⁓ and I'm, I'm terrible at this, but then taking the time to respond and reply and nurture and create that sense of belonging and sense of community with, people who are engaging. But, but yeah. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah, it's interesting because YouTube is a platform where you don't really have to do that. And I found some freedom with that. then the best leads, if you want to call them, have come from those engaged relationships via Instagram and things like that. So that's another good point. really is. are reciprocal. ⁓ Dominic Forth: Yeah. brands, like major global brands, like they had the premier league fan fest in Tampa recently with NBC. And it's like, how could something that is so passionate that thing, your soccer in like Manchester and London, how is that still replicated in ⁓ somewhere Tampa Bay? And it's because these brands create a sense of community and a sense of belonging and a sense of ritual as well. You know, people, they choke for the games, they have their routines down and... SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Dominic Forth: And that's what great content does as well. When people look forward to it, to that next podcast and whether they're going to the gym to listen or in the car. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Yeah. Yes. Well, Dominic, this has been fantastic. How can people get in touch with you? What's the best way for them to find out about your products and services and what you guys are doing over there? Dominic Forth: Yeah. So LinkedIn's a great point. If you've got a quick question or ever reach out, I'm super approachable. So Dominic fourth on LinkedIn, Dominic fourth. And then we also have a new newsletter coming out called the authority brief. And we tackle many of the topics that we've talked about today about creating sense of community, uh, how you can have authority on TV or podcast or social media. And so the best place to subscribe for that is authority brief.com. That's authority brief.com. SkyTalkDoc- Dr. Michaela: Awesome, and as always listeners, we put it in the show notes. You know where to find him, Dominic Forth, and he is very approachable. So get in contact with him if you are looking to take your brand or your message to the next level.