November 5, 2025 • 49 mins
Entrepreneur Dee M. Robinson is a self-described "Troublemaker" for social change. A longtime bourbon enthusiast, she collaborated with an 8th-generation master distiller to create Good Trouble Kentucky Bourbon, a recipient of several spirit awards. Good Trouble Bourbon is behind many social impact initiatives including a limited edition bottling to support the Chicago Blues Legacy Fund and work with the Shine Your Light Foundation. Robinson is founder of Robinson Hill concessions management.
Fearless Fabulous You is broadcast live Wednesdays at 12 Noon ET on W4WN Radio - Women 4 Women Network (www.w4wn.com) part of Talk 4 Radio (www.talk4radio.com) on the Talk 4 Media Network (www.talk4media.com).
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Fearless Fabulous You is broadcast live Wednesdays at 12 Noon ET on W4WN Radio - Women 4 Women Network (www.w4wn.com) part of Talk 4 Radio (www.talk4radio.com) on the Talk 4 Media Network (www.talk4media.com).
Fearless Fabulous You Podcast is also available on Talk 4 Media (www.talk4media.com), Talk 4 Podcasting (www.talk4podcasting.com), iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Pandora, Spotify, Audible, and over 100 other podcast outlets.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
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(00:20):
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Speaker 2 (00:21):
Thank you for choosing W four WN Radio.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Hello, and welcome to Fearless Fabulous You. I am your host, Melania,
and it's great to see everyone. After a two week hiatus,
I'm back and I am so excited to share yet
another amazing, dynamic woman entrepreneur who is rewriting yet another
(01:02):
chapter her.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
Of her life.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Because I'm all about the fact that you can write
and rewrite the chapters of your life as often as
you want to follow your passion, and that's what we're
going to talk about today. We're also going to talk
about something I actually love, which is Kentucky bourbon. I
have an empty bottle. I didn't drink it all at once,
but I noticed when I got this bottle of Good
(01:24):
Trouble Kentucky Bourbon, it was full. And I have been
on the wagon because I had some recent surgery, so
I haven't been nipping it, but somebody's been sipping it,
and I think it was my husband David. He really
liked it. And we served ourselves in an old fashioned last
night to toast the last drop and it was just delicious.
And so we're going to talk to the founder of
(01:44):
Good Trouble Bourbon. But she's also a serial entrepreneur.
Speaker 4 (01:48):
Yes, this is the this is the look at the
look at the bottle. The bottle has.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
A woman on a ball on the label, which we're
going to talk about because this is the power of
women and getting into good trouble. And we're going to
talk about that and what it means to get in
good trouble and why people like you, my followers and
listeners can get into your own good trouble and do
something great in your community or for the good. And
(02:13):
we all want to do that more and better right now,
right right, So let me give you a little intro
on my guest. D M. Robinson is a self described
troublemaker for social change. She is an entrepreneur and the
with like lots of business background like she worked in
(02:36):
consumer product goods and advertising and food service, and she
runs Robinson Hill, which is a concessions management firm, which
if you go to the airport like Chicago air where
she lives, you'll see some of her businesses. She is
also a longtime bourbon enthusiast like me, and created Good
(02:56):
Trouble Bourbon with an eighth generation mastered Siller, so that's
kind of interesting. She is one of a few women
I know who have been successful in other areas of
business and then decided to dip their feet into distilling,
which we're going to talk about because that's a big jump,
a big late. Trust me, I know one of my
really good friends is doing it. So we're gonna hear
(03:18):
her story and hope, Billy, you'll get some inspiration from
the m Robinson Welcome to Fearless Fabulous You Hi.
Speaker 5 (03:26):
There, Melanie is a joy to be here, said thank you.
I'm loving all these stories, and I also thank David
as well, because I did see that empty bottle you
had are it really is good.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
I love bourbon, you know. But whenever David, my husband
gets get some of the products sent to me and
they has a woman on the front. He's like, oh,
not a woman product. And then I noticed it kept
getting the bottle kept getting less alcohol in it, and
I'm like, where's it going?
Speaker 5 (03:52):
The angels share David not to underestimate what we were.
They can do. Come on, He's like, in fact, that's
what he should run to if we sees that, because
you know, there's the care and the level that we're
going to put into things. So I'm glad that he
saw it. And then he sipped and continued to do so.
Speaker 4 (04:11):
Yeah, well we both enjoyed. We really both enjoyed it.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
And many of our really good friends, as I reference,
are in the spirit's business and also the wine business,
and they're women, so we embrace it.
Speaker 4 (04:22):
You were in Chicago, You grew up in Chicago, which
I love.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
Some of my favorite women, chefs and favorite people are
in Chicago. Tell me about your background, early interests, and
who Little D was.
Speaker 5 (04:35):
Well, Little D was first of all, I started was
born in Cleveland, Ohios. I can never I ignored that background.
But my formative years and in fact all of my
adult life was here in Chicago, and so I absolutely
call it home. I didn't go to high school in Cleveland,
so I sort of started there as a foundation. But
that's where I probably just learned how to be a creative.
(04:58):
You know, I played basketball. Well, I was the one
that had the lemonade stands. So I always say, those
early entrepreneurs are the ones in the making who put
those stands out. And and you know, I had a
job in retail, So I also sometimes think those early
starts sometimes influence our later ones. And so here I
am years later, never thinking about ever being in retail
(05:21):
and being an entrepreneur, and here I am. It's interesting.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
When I was a little girl, I ran around with
a fountain pen interviewing people and then taking notes.
Speaker 5 (05:30):
See and there, see here you are. But I wanted
tot story though about my mom because my mother plays
a huge role and biggest fan. And but you know,
back there from families, whether they're our mothers or fathers,
who were just trying to take care of them families,
and they had what some might call side hustles. So
(05:52):
even today people call them side hustles. Everyone shoul understand
that they are being entrepreneurs, they're not. And so she worked,
but at the same time she sold peanuts and balloons
and things like that at the stadiums, and we watched
that as I was growing up, so little v had
that is this beautiful model. But again she called it
taking care of her family to make sure insignit or
(06:14):
you know, she met you know, her financial needs. But
in the day, it was her watching her tenacity and
just her creativity, and even she supported me on the
you know, the journey, was always by my side. So
you know, for all those folks out there who had
parents helping and sort of working those extra jobs that
they were pouring love into us and so but also
(06:36):
it helped sprout where we are today.
Speaker 3 (06:38):
Absolutely, did you grow up in a big family or
a small family?
Speaker 5 (06:41):
No, well, I have a twin brother. And actually has
a great question because it has a lot to do
with the title of the brand. So I had an
older brother, older sister. So my sister Pearl was the
first born and if my mom said go right, she
went left. And she was a trouble maker. And then
ten years later, surprised she my mom realized she's having twins.
(07:04):
And what she used to say to us was that
the only kind of trouble we could get in was
good trouble because my sister got into all the rest.
And so that's actually how good Trouble really started to
really become part of my soul. But at the same
time as the late sixties and so she was also
teaching us how we had to show up in the world.
That people may not like you, you may not appreciate
(07:24):
what you do, but you have to go beet you.
And then of course there's John Lewis and who if
you're hopefully you're on. If they don't know who he is,
I should absolutely understand this amazing legend, this icon of
the civil rights movement. But he asked us all to
get into good trouble, necessary trouble, and I say stay
in trouble. So that's sort of where the name came from,
(07:46):
and that's by the family. But thanks to my sister
who was the troublemaker, it led to a life of maybe,
actually what I do today just sort of figure out
how to put good in the world.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
What's really at important? And yes, you know I went
to Selma when we were doing our long road trip,
when we walked the bridge and I thought about John Lewis,
and that is a wonderful Museum there. If everyone take
that Southern civil rights road trip, you will learn so
much about what people fought for, like John Lewis, and
it was just incredible. But you know, d a lot
(08:21):
of young ladies is back in the day, my day,
your day, where when we were young girls, we were
not encouraged to get into trouble. We were encouraged to
be good girls, follow the rules. Look the part don't
stand out. Fortunately, over the years that has shange. I
don't know what it's like now because I'm not in
(08:42):
the world of child rearing. Well okay, well tell me,
because what's going on out there? I mean, you know,
what are you teaching our girls?
Speaker 5 (08:50):
Well, you know what, I think what's the most important
about our girls is to teach them. I love fearless
and fabulous forever. I love that because we need to
teach them how to be fearless. And you know, when
I wrote my book Courage by Design, see, I understood
that fear. But we have to understand that fear holds
us back. And you know we've heard about imposter syndrome.
(09:12):
I mean, I've met some of the most amazing young
women mathematicians getting into Harvard studying sciences, and you know,
what you learn is that guys will say, oh, it's hard,
and they'll keep going. And then sometimes, unfortunately, women might say, oh,
I don't think I can and it gets hard, and
(09:33):
what they do is they drop out. And in fact,
what we need and to stay in and just say, yes,
it is hard. One of the best lessons really for
me growing up and allowed me to really take this
change and pivot was learning this and my mom said this.
Then no one ever said it would be easy. We
have to stop expecting it to be easy and then
(09:54):
we give up so early, particularly as entrepreneurs, you know,
you're got to have past. You got to have that gnasctity,
that determination that when you have an idea, believe in it.
But oftentimes you know, it's the voices in our head
to start telling us what we can't do. I oftentimes
say you have to be careful who you share your
dreams was too because other people will say why are
(10:18):
you In fact, that happened to me, Why should I
do this? Why are you leaving your corporate job you're comfortable. Well,
first of all, let me just say this, I thought
it was more risky for me to stay. I knew
there was something in my heart that I wanted to
do now.
Speaker 3 (10:30):
Which corporate job was. So just just a quick back.
You have a very strong business background. You have an
MBA from Northwestern call Arg School of Management at BA
in economics from UPenn. You did an executive education program
Dartmouth Dartmouth Tuch School of Business. I wish I had
done that. And now I'm going to just say.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
I grew up in the South. I was I was
encouraged us to.
Speaker 3 (10:53):
Go to a good liberal arts college and do something,
do it, and I did, But I never was encouraged
to go get a master's degree in business.
Speaker 4 (11:02):
And I wish if that didn't.
Speaker 3 (11:05):
What drove you to take that business path that I
think is important. I really think it's important. Because college
is expensive, you might as well go and invest in
an education that you can then take with you.
Speaker 4 (11:19):
For the long haul.
Speaker 5 (11:21):
No, I actually agree with that. First of all, my
mom was great at understanding how important it was to
expose us to things. So we were the kids that
always were at camps and every weekend and we turn
around and then. But she also understood the importance of education.
And so you know the thing is that I'll tell
the audiences. And one of the things I had to
(11:42):
learn is that you have to say let them underestimate
you and do you you know. And so when you
know that you are properly educated or you know that
you have the skill, don't let other people, you know,
say that you don't. And so for me, it was
just understanding that education can open doors for you. And education,
by the way, comes in very different forms, So you
(12:05):
don't have to go to the pens of the world
and everything that I've done, but I had the great
fortune and blessing to do that. But I looked at
each of those opportunities. There's learning opportunities. But here's what
also I think people miss how many people go to
college and then they don't really know their classmates and
that they have extended those relationships because the world is
really about relationships, right, And so it was just understanding
(12:28):
how when you're in those environments, they're going to be
your future employer, they could be your future investor, they
could just be your partner. There's a lot that you
can do there. So there's this shrill ground there to
nurture and understand. And I so any place you go,
all I say is just go do your best and
then take the learnings away. But oftentimes the learnings are
in a classroom but also outside, so that's interesting.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
A lot of people might see I'm too busy running.
I'm too busy taking care of my family, taking you
the home, taking care of my.
Speaker 5 (12:59):
Business to go out.
Speaker 4 (13:01):
You know.
Speaker 3 (13:01):
Network. Some people hate the term network, but it's not
about networking. It's about nurturing. What are some examples of
how you've done it and how that those relationships have
helped propel you and them the other person as well.
Speaker 5 (13:16):
Well, I'm going to start with the fact is that
when I needed help. So oftentimes we'll say we don't
have education or the talent to do something, or the
money to do something, and I say that you may
not have it, but you have access to it. So
stop counting yourself out because you didn't have an education
that somebody else had or the resources they had. You
(13:39):
can access those things. And again, those are the relationships.
And it was interesting in one of my first ventures,
I was at an event, ran into a classmate of
mine from Penn and I was raising funds at the time,
and guess what, he ended up being an investor in
our brand. And so you know, it's just happened to
be happenstance and he believed in me. And then sometimes
(14:00):
they are depending on the jockey not the horse. And
so when you have somebody for me, when you invest
in me early, you're telling me you have faith in me.
But I also know that I have an obligation too
right to honor that that faith, and an obligation of
saying someone said, you know what I'm believe in, you
go do it. And there have been failures. Don't get
(14:20):
me wrong, this has not been this you know, linear
world to success, and it mostly looks like this. I
talk about the loss of money and all of that.
You know, and it happens. But then the thing is
what do you take away? And I always say, if
you're not failing often and you're not living because that
failure to where the real lessons come. And again back
(14:42):
to relationships, you're going to find that there's some that
shouldn't even be in your life. I say doing a
little laundry, because you really have to surround yourself with
people who encourage you, who stretch you, who inspire you.
And then if you have people in your life that
are naysayers, or questioning who you are. I say, limit
your time, but I call the courage circles. We have
(15:02):
to build this armor around us because there's so many
things that can sort of derail us and discourage us,
and we just don't have the time. You know, we
need to focus on the goal in front of us.
And so success is really a mind game and it's
also again about the people you surround yourself with. So Melanie,
I have to say this when I was looking forward
(15:23):
to this, I love the title, as I mentioned earlier,
Live Fearless, Fabulous You, because I also talk about being
the CEO of you and how we have to take
control and not look to other people who to live
our lives for us, make decisions for us. So you've
got to stop thinking other people are going to bail
us out and solve our problems for us. We're so
(15:46):
resourceful in that. And so as we think about relationships,
I guess say this. You know I used to make
a plan. It's like when I would go to some place,
this make sure you need at least three people, because
if you ever have been some place and you walk
into you didn't literally and the brand is about that.
In fact, I built this brand good trouble. It wasn't
It was about making great bourbon. But frankly I wanted
(16:08):
to use it as a tool. I wanted to be
a tool for connection and conversation and social change. And
I understood that in those moments, really I just wanted
to inspire people to be all that they can be,
inspire people to be the change that they want to
see in the world. And then, you know, when you
understand that, you can live life with passion and purpose,
(16:30):
and my purpose is, you know, to just inspire that
change and make a difference. And in any small way.
I think we have this mentality of all or nothing. Well,
I don't know what to do. I can't do anything.
Everything like that little drop of water, right and that
well everything it helps And right now, more than ever,
the world needs everyone to lean in to help us
(16:52):
make this world better. And again, just small little acts
of kindness, you know, moments when you use your voice.
In those moments, we recognize that there's opportunity.
Speaker 4 (17:05):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
You know. When I started Fearless, Fabulous You, it was
part of my second book, in my emotional recovery from
not just breast cancer, but a lot of major overhauls
in my life, in my business, and I had to really,
you know, there are times where you don't feel so
fabulous and you feel like throwing in the towel. And
I had gotten to that point and I kept saying,
(17:28):
you got to say fearless and fabulous.
Speaker 4 (17:30):
You have to.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
You've got a long feature head.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
I think everybody out there has to do that because
you will get kicked down the stairs. You may get
kicked up the stairs, but you may get kicked and
you've got to take those punches and get stronger for it,
right deep.
Speaker 5 (17:45):
And you face that, tell me about it time. Ah,
I know that. You know, I don't know if we
have enough time to talk about the time I've been
in that place. But you know, I love that you
mentioned that, because here's what happens. You can get kicked
and your spirit could be down and then but then
in those moments, you got to find what the joy is.
It's like why And you know I always say, you know,
(18:08):
bad things always last forever, that that's just not the
normal state. But you have to talk your way out
of things. Oftentimes you got to help yourself understand your
why why. You know, if you don't know your why
for doing things, then it might be harder to come
out of those things. And whether it's just simply to
live your best life, if it's just simply that you
(18:30):
might live it for somebody else, if that's what it takes.
But understanding your why, Why am I doing the great
things that do? Why don't you have a show you
know that you're helping people, Emma? And and the thing is,
there's the power of one. I had to learn this.
And then even when I wrote my book, and when
I was thinking about the Bourbon, you know, we think, oh,
(18:50):
I have to do something magnificent. I have to be
a unicorn right away. No, the thing is, if you
help one, I promise you that other person will help another.
And Chris Gardner, I know somebody might know from you know,
you know him, Chris, what is it? Will Smith played
(19:11):
him in Pursuit of Happiness And he told me about
this creature writing this sermon and it got to the audience.
And realized that when he got to the church there
was only one person in the room, and but he
had written it, and he said, I'm going to deliver it.
And then the person who came up to him after
I said you changed my life. It was Billy Graham,
and I'm like, he says, yes, I know it's true
(19:32):
because Billy Graham told him that story. Just think about
one person that you can help and get the noise
out of the way, and then the snowball effect will happen.
There's momentum in that. And even when you're trying to
write business, stop thinking how to keep going, just keep it.
But look, just do one thing at the time. It's
(19:53):
a building block. And then the more you encouraged and
the more you're going to say, oh, I can do this,
and you create this beautiful momentum of success around you.
And then when you do hit you know it's the roadblock.
That's what you'll know that you need to navigate around it.
Sometimes keep doing the same thing all over again, and
(20:13):
then you know, we know what they say was keep
doing the same thing you get the same result. Sometimes
the adjustments in changing your business can happen with one
minor move, just a small one, or one other person
you talk to, or maybe thinking about it in a
different way and also not being afraid to pivot. But see,
(20:34):
I started out with one business and this is another one.
I thought about hamp tonight. It was a luggage company.
Of course there are conglomerate but you know, we started small.
I started with Ben and Jerry's as my first franchise.
Speaker 1 (20:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:49):
I was curious about that because I actually know a
lot of people who are curious about getting into franchising.
Why did you decide to do that?
Speaker 4 (21:00):
Get by? I guess you invest?
Speaker 3 (21:02):
Or you buy a franchise is by invest.
Speaker 5 (21:04):
Yeah, it is both because because you're buying into it,
because you're basically licensing their name to use it, but
the business is yours and so wherever, so you are
only bit right. But you know what's interesting for me
in the early stage is when I decided that I
wanted to go out and be an entrepreneur, I knew
(21:25):
that franchising was a great opportunity for me to move
into a business. And so the secret is there is
been finding really great franchises and any of your audience
thinking about it. There's a really special list out there
in the world that the SBA lists, and it has
all the ones that have pre approvals. That means that
(21:45):
those are on that list have a higher success rate.
And I'm always caunctioning people about new ones not to
say that they shouldn't do it, that just want them
to do their homework. I will never ever keep anyone
from their dreams because I think we all deserve to
be where our dreams take us. But I want us
also to make sure we do the homework to ensure
(22:06):
that you minimize the risks in that. And I knew
that I wanted to build wealth. I want because wealth
whill allowed me to do the things that I want
to do by helping other people. And so I also
knew that one can be one and there's nothing wrong
with that. But to build wealth, I knew through franchise
and we needed to have multiples, and so I chose
(22:27):
a brand that was socially conscious, no surprise, one of
the things that I do. I love them as a brand.
I love the stands that they take. I think they
do and demonstrate social mission in a fabulous way. But
you know, it's just learning which ones. And also the
other important thing, just because someone else is doing it
doesn't mean you should. Because I try to do things
(22:48):
that I've done. I had an employee even talking about
a downfall, to try to take all of our resources
and go do what we did, which is awful, right,
But that's forgiveness. You move on. They did succeed. It
was short term, right, it was short lived, but that's
going to happen. We have to be aware that people
might come and do things undermine us, but we can't
hold on to that. That's then the universe takes care
(23:11):
of those kind of people. Anyway, I hope I answered
the question that you had about you.
Speaker 4 (23:17):
Did you know it's interesting.
Speaker 3 (23:18):
I get approached all the time, but you know, I
know people do and learn a lot of It's interesting.
A lot of people in the sports industry do it
because you know, for people who are in sports, they
get paid a lot of money, but they have a
very short career, and a lot of them invest in
franchises because they can have more longevity. So it's an
interesting and another conversation. But I was fascinated by that
(23:41):
in your many business endeavors, so in all the things
you could do, because you have experience enfranchising, banking, financing,
the concessions management business, which is a whole other, very
interesting business.
Speaker 5 (23:59):
To be at.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
Why did you decide to go into distilling, which is
a big investment, and why bourbon because you know and
I know that the beverage alcohol industry has its challenges,
more so wined than spirits. But I do know a
number of spirits companies because that's my background, have had
(24:25):
to close or disintegrate or file.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
You actually have gone into it.
Speaker 3 (24:31):
I mean, it's not new. I just want to say,
we're going to get into that. But what was your
path to get into it? And what was your why
to get into it?
Speaker 5 (24:38):
So the path was one, I like, you love bourbon
and whiskeys and all of that, and so I was
drinking it. And then also we all know that a
lot of women weren't drinking it, but surprisingly so they are.
So that's just a hood out there that women don't
drink bourbon. That's far from new case.
Speaker 4 (24:58):
In fact, what I love bourbon.
Speaker 5 (24:59):
Yeah, you know what I say, though, I said, you
remember grandmother would be sitting around and the little teacups,
and you think that was tea. It was not tea.
Everyone that brown self weigh a little nip or something.
But then I'm a curious short and I started drinking.
And then I went to a tasting and I loved
the different varieties and I love the complexities of the flavors,
(25:23):
and so it really started with me just being curious
about how they make it, and so I started studying
craft is stealing. And then once I did that and
I'm like, whoa, this is interesting, I said, well, why
not consider making it? But then if I said, then though,
if I was going to do it again back to
the Y, and I just thought that the bourbon I
(25:45):
knew what I wanted toilet. I knew that I wanted
to make it call it good trouble, and I knew
I want to make it really great, because you can't
be good trouble and not be good. But also the
other part of that was earlier about teaming up with
an eighth generation and master distiller Jacopole, was that here
(26:07):
is this woman who's not you know, they're not many
of us in the space, and again people want to
underestimate you, and so our job is always doing the
best that we can. Right, so there was a way
to manage any concerned about well this is liquid good
or not. But the path was simply starting with him.
I interviewed a lot of people. Jacob understood my passion
(26:30):
and need to make the users as really as a tool.
He understood my one and desire to play for social justice.
You talk about the lady on the bottle that's inspired
by the Statue of Liberty, which liberty for all, but
we don't have that, and so because I knew that
(26:50):
we could use that as a symbol of hope. But
it was just mentally being able to understand how the
and then thinking about the business model. So I spent
early year just any times getting it tested. We knew
we had made great liquid, but the market needed to
validate the liquid, and so we did that and I
was proud that, you know, the one coveted one the
Go that San Francisco World Spirit competition was a boy
(27:14):
and then this year Forbes called us one of the
best burbons under fifty and then we just got another
double go. But if nothing else, I knew that we
made a really really great spirit. And that's really the joy,
and that's how it all sort of started, is just
understanding how do I use something? And I think, with
any business, why, back to what I said earlier, why
(27:36):
am I doing this? I'm not just trying to put
a product on the shelf and say hope someone buys it.
You talked about where the industry is right now, So
first of all. I understood very very early on that
this kind of growth rate was not sustainable because it
was just everyone was throwing bad product, any and everything
out there because the industry was headed this way and
you know, everything levels off at some point, and I
(27:59):
just understood that you had a great story, our purpose,
we had great liquid. And so when you hear these
stories about where the industry is, and you're right, there's
been closures and all, but let's get behind why they closed, right.
We don't know if their cost structure was too high,
that they didn't have the strong customer base, where they
too dependent on one customer, and that you know, there's
(28:22):
all these things behind the story. But actually where we
sit in the super premium category, there's growth there. And
so I don't want everyone to see where an industry
is going to say, but then also ask yourself this,
what can you do differently? And so we studied right
now some of the biggest brands out there at either
(28:43):
Unicorn or Sold and understand what led to their success.
But then also what market conditions did not exist at
the time that I can leverage now to build a
successful brand. So you just look at where the opportunities
are and that's where we are in terms of building trouble.
Speaker 3 (29:01):
It's really important, as they say in marketing, to have
that unique selling proposition just to quickly for viewers and listeners.
This is a Kentucky bourbon. So bourbon whiskey and whiskey
bourbon whisky can be made anywhere the United States, but
Kentucky bourbon must follow.
Speaker 4 (29:19):
I've written about this so many times.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Federal requirements, which are this is why it's special in
premium fifty one percent corn is still to know more
than one hundred and sixty proof in new sharred white
oak American barrels. That's right, must be made in Kentucky
to the guidelines and regulations of the State of Kentucky
(29:42):
and h for at least one year, so that mash
bill is fifty one percent corn, whereas rye whiskey and
others can be other kinds of grains.
Speaker 5 (29:51):
That is, that's exactly right. I love that you've done
your homework.
Speaker 3 (29:58):
And I've written about this a lot because and I
always love it. Yeah, well, I love it too, And
so here's for the audience. You know, they could impress
their friends. Whiskey is in bourbon, right, Bourbon is whiskey
fifty one percent corn is that distinguishing factor. And uh,
(30:19):
and then of course you have the mash bills, you know,
the grains and everything. And to your point about Kentucky,
it is very high standards.
Speaker 5 (30:27):
I'm in Ohio and uh, you know, Bucky go go
buck guy here. But also that Ohio River. You I
always talk about when we make wines out of friends,
you know, in different regions and they're different soils, it's
the same thing. And so that was another one. I
knew that I wanted to make a Kentucky bourbon. There
(30:48):
was no exception. I wasn't going to make it.
Speaker 3 (30:50):
Kentucky bourbon has a tarawah you mentioned. Yeah, the Ohio
River is very important. The soil, the corn corn because
you know, for types of airline corn, that is what distinguishes.
And I I just want to say, I know you
spent time in Tachya. I have there's a great Kentucky
bourbontrail dot com website to learn more because it's also
(31:11):
a great place to visit.
Speaker 5 (31:13):
It really is, and you learned so much. But you know,
you think about bourbon is Americans whiskey. They own that
that's what is ours. And that was the other part
that made it so intriguing to me to do. But
this is an American spirit and something that we can
all be proud of. And so that's why I hope
that you know, those out there continue to support the industry.
(31:36):
And I think that there's growth opportunities ahead and so
I think you just have to pursue it in a
smart way, methodical way, but not allow it and to
see that's where fear comes in. Oh my gosh, I'm
not going to do it because they said this, Well,
you have to have your own sort of formula for
success and if you gain back to usp unique selling proposition,
(31:59):
a great story that people can connect to, and I
want people to connect to this brand and ways they
never have when you look at all the bottles on
the shelf, and I do it all the time when
i'm out, I'm like, you know what, I'm so proud
of what we've done here because I know that it
was every bottle. You know, they invest in our foundation,
we take those funds. We're doing all these wonderful things
(32:20):
in communities. The fact that we know that we need
to inspire people that get in good trouble and be
a part of this world, the change that we want
to see. So that's what's so joyful about doing this.
You know, it's again the liquor was great, and we
can have some fun doing and getting in good trouble,
but also that we can pourward purpose. This is a
purpose driven brand, and again I talked about Ben and
(32:43):
Jerry's if you think about brands that are just standing
for something, we want to stand for something. We want
to inspire others.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
Absolutely, so you're doing some really interesting things. You just
reference the Shawn your Light Foundation. Explain what the purpose?
It is a nonprofit. What are some of its initiatives.
Speaker 5 (33:00):
Well, I'll tell you the one that's close to my heart.
Are you a golfer? By chance? Molly? I didn't think
I could see that in your background.
Speaker 4 (33:06):
No, I look just like both my parents.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
They're sadly both to face, but they both inspired me
to be fearless and fabulous.
Speaker 5 (33:13):
Well, you know, there are several things, but mainly there
are two things. When you think about how we preserve legacies,
how do we inspire people to go out there and
do the things they want to do. I happen to
be a trustee for the PGA Foundation, but I see kids,
and I know that from my own background. You know,
(33:35):
I wish for things they wish. You hope that you
can do. So, first of all, I never want money
to be a reason why people don't do anything. I
don't want people who have dreams like being an entrepreneurship
to think money is that it's not, you know. And
so how do we pose a gap? How do we
also bring these great opportunities. Back to what I said earlier,
my mom taught me important to being exposed everything. And
(33:59):
the greater the greater your world becomes, the greater your
choices are in, the greater the possibilities. And so one
thing is I leaned into golf from being a pghrustee
first team with my fellows being able to make sure,
for instance, a Class A team who's never been fitted
for golf clubs, can you believe in a D one
(34:19):
school making sure that they could actually be fitted and
get clubs, Or because they're in Chicago and they can't
play and only certain courses to get them as simulator
so they would have play year round and help them
with their game, or for instance, and what I love
about what I do for the first team, the fellow
that I bring is that the young men and women
(34:41):
are young kids of color, but everyone at the top
didn't look like any of them. So now I'm bringing
people in and we teach golf and stem over the
summer months young kids, and just think about what that does.
It's not only you're learning, you're learning the game, you're
learning things about math and science, but you also were
seeing for someone that looks like you. And that's critical,
(35:03):
just like my role in this industry right now, even
the things you do and they see us en row
someone out this and see themselves and then they can
be inspired. And so being able to do that, I
just joined the board of Future Founders. These are just
the most diverse group and entrepreneurs, and I say one
of my purposes is to shorten the runway to success
(35:24):
for others. I don't want people to take as long
as I had to get here. Now we do need
to fail. We got to do things that they're important
and navigate. But there's certain things that we can help
people do to get there a little faster, and so
anything that we do and then for instance, right now
I am trying to help Frankly reclaim the blues for
(35:47):
Chicago and the world.
Speaker 3 (35:50):
Let's talk about that because I'm a huge Buddy Guyance.
Speaker 5 (35:54):
I live in New Orleans. So one of my highlights,
the way I had to keep it in that's signed
by and BDDY.
Speaker 3 (36:00):
So Buddy Guy performed at the jazz Fest of the
Blues tent, my favorite tent, and he came. I was
like this close to him because he gets he gets
down off the stage and he's going down the hall
and he's like, right there, I have I still have
the video and he's thinking he's eighty five and eighty nine. Now,
well just say he was eighty five or three five,
And I posted I'm like, this is eighty five because
(36:22):
my mother was like lying in bed, she just tookees
to get up. I'm like, hey, mom, you're eighty five.
Speaker 4 (36:27):
He's eighty five. What's the problem.
Speaker 3 (36:28):
So you created a limited edition, very lovely limited edition
to Chicago on the Chicago Blues is at the Foundation.
Legacy talked to me about it and connects with Buddy Guy.
Speaker 5 (36:44):
Yeah. See there's a story and everything, and I got
the no Buddy Guy and Buddy said he was feeling
some kind of way about the blues in Chicago because
he could go to all these other cities when they
go to Nashville, Memphis, New Orleans. We just did something
with Preservation Hall as well, and now cool. Yeah, and
so he said, look, but if you come here, you
(37:06):
don't really see it. But this is something else. Again,
we own it. Blues originated here. There would be no
rock and roll and other donors without the Blues. And
so it's one hundred years and so this bourbon is
one hundred proof. It was a way to really honor
the Blues and Londons like him, and so we launched
(37:26):
something called the Blues Legacy Legacy Project, and that's how
do we reclaim the Blues for Chicago and the world.
And so I'm leading an initiative with an amazing committee
to build a statue here and it's going to be
at secrets out maybe Perer you guys heard it first.
It's supposed to be a secret. But now that your
audience knows. But we're excited to be able to start
(37:48):
thinking about how do we bring this music back. It's
part of our own culture and legacy here in Chicago.
And I understand what that blues means, resilience and hope.
And that was the other reason blues is Good Trouble,
and so this honor to bring in a new edition
four hundred and forty five bottles called Trouble and Blues.
(38:09):
It's just exciting to just to get people and to
bring the music back. And it says, you know, we
say good Trouble lives on, the Blues lives on. And
Buddy Guy was asked by Muddy Water. She said, look,
I want you to keep the blues alive, and so
I love that we can work with him in some
ways to help him do just that. So if anyone's interested,
(38:34):
they can go to Good Troublebourbon dot com and Good
Trouble Bourbon and also visit Buddy at Legends here in Chicago.
So it looks like Melody is having a little Internet challenge,
and I wish there was a way for me to
chat with everyone out there. But I do know that
I'm excited about all the things that we could do.
(38:55):
There you are, Melody, Hi, there you go.
Speaker 3 (38:57):
I don't know whether it's me or Florida, because our
engineer in Florida, New Orleans.
Speaker 5 (39:01):
I was talking to your audience as you were coming
back in.
Speaker 4 (39:07):
I heard you.
Speaker 3 (39:07):
So what I was gonna say the Blues Trail. If
for those of you who love to travel, I've driven
the I've driven the Blues Trail from Mississippi to New Orleans.
What's interesting is these are guys the blues history. These
are guys that often are truck drivers, school teachers.
Speaker 4 (39:24):
They do a lot of auto parts.
Speaker 3 (39:25):
They usually have these basic jobs just to fund their passion,
which is performing. So the more you can do for
this and these amazingly talented people, because often they're just
playing for tips, right, And it's a heritage that I
think is quintessentially America and music, don't you.
Speaker 5 (39:47):
I absolutely agree. And you know, if you think about this,
when we break bread, when we drink, and when we're
enjoying music, and those moments are more like and we're different,
So there's joy in those moments. You know, think about
how you feel when you're listening to really good music
and news is just that I love when I go
to Buddies Club Legends and to see the room of
(40:09):
the verse is so diverse, and somethings like why can't
we just carry that outside of the room into the world,
right and so and so to keep inspiring hope in
that way, Melanie is a huge opportunity and I love
for all of us to sort of think about those
moments when we are more like than we're different and
(40:29):
just talk, you know, and find ways to connect. And
I truly believe that this world will be better because
of it.
Speaker 3 (40:36):
Yeah, I mean, good trouble is about lifting people up.
Speaker 4 (40:39):
I love it. I love the term good trouble.
Speaker 3 (40:42):
I think it's important because too many people give up
and the opposite that is saying no, let's get into
some good trouble and do something. And you gotta for
everyone watching and listen. We all have times when we're
not feeling fairly fabulous, but you gotta lift yourself up,
even if it's.
Speaker 4 (41:00):
Calling somebody, which is this is how I do.
Speaker 3 (41:03):
I'm to ask you, Like, when I'm not feeling my
most fabulous, I call someone who I know will listen,
because some people don't and who will say, oh, no, you're.
Speaker 4 (41:12):
Awesome, keep going. How do you do it? Because you
can't always be up?
Speaker 3 (41:17):
How do you deal with the days when you're not fabulous?
Speaker 5 (41:20):
So, first of all, one of the things I learned
and frankly allowed me to do some of the things
and the ideas that I've had to actually come because
I meditated. I learned that I needed to find and
be still and know that I am God. But in
those moments of quiet, and I love taking people on
the journey because when you think about there's all the
(41:41):
noise out there, there's just no way to hear. And
when they say to you that you have everything that
you need right down, then so many people will find
that so hard to believe. But guess what if they
find a moment to be quiet and just listen, the
answers are there and then now need.
Speaker 4 (41:57):
You to act.
Speaker 5 (41:58):
You know, first to listen than to act, But you
first have to be still. And so in the stillness
is that go ahead?
Speaker 3 (42:06):
I think you're right, But I go on long walks. Sure, whatever,
I just get out. But the key is embrace stillness,
even if you're moving. Just don't be distracted. Just you're
right still for bed and still in your head, your body,
just away from everything.
Speaker 5 (42:24):
Time, just got to remove, just get out of it.
And you said it, that's I also walk when you
you know, when there's a moment when you're stuck because
you're not thinking anything, you just have to change the scenery.
And most times go outside. Yeah, and then just literally
watch what happens is really transformative. And they are small
(42:44):
things and that's what I want for the audience to understand.
These are small little things that we can do, whether
it's the believing, the thing of maybe just taking a change,
taking a moment to be quiet. And for anyone out there,
because I know someone in your audience it says, oh,
I don't know how to meditate. That is just not true,
because you are going to mine's going to wonder. It's
that's just part of the process. But being able to
(43:06):
be still. And then I said ten minutes. I try
to do twenty minutes in the morning and in the evening,
but minimum ten minutes. But in those moments you will
find so many things and you're like, oh, solutions of problems.
If you ever have a problems, be still and those
moments when you are feeling that way, that's sexual where
(43:28):
I think the magic happens is if you can just
look at that and see that that's the way the
universe is trying to tell you that you need to
change or do something different instead of going down the
rabbit hole. It's a way to say hey, I see you,
I need you to shift for a moment, and you
have to find your own way in your own mechanisms
and so but everyone should have a way to understand
how to get themselves out.
Speaker 3 (43:49):
I think your key is to find your own mechanism
in your own way. And it may not be sitting
and meditating. It could be I swim a lot, so
I do a lot of just the movement through the water.
See you.
Speaker 5 (44:00):
But this it's a movement though it's actually finding the movement.
But I'd say, people are you know, reduced to the screen time.
And there's the other thing we got to thought letting
I call it this is an addiction to fear, an
addiction to the phones. Tell me about it. So people
say they don't have come to their dreams, but yes
you do, yeah, because all that time you spend just
(44:23):
mindlessly going through for I have to do it in
the morning. Now I've learned that when I get out,
how many of us I loved I could raise hands,
they will literally reach for the phone. And how much
time at that moment, right, So eve an exercise you
can write. You know, there's all the things that you
say you wanted to do in your life. It just
takes a little extra discipline. But I will tell you
if you switch the amount of time that you're spending
(44:45):
on that little device and just shift it to reading
ten pages a day, right, it's just these that's the thing.
That's just their miner shift. So I just learned to
sort of look at the minor shifts that I need
to be to get me to where I need to be.
Speaker 4 (45:02):
I think that's a really great point.
Speaker 3 (45:03):
It's a great point to end on too, that you
just can create minor shifts to steady the boat and
steady your path. And of course you don't have to
get into big trouble. Well, you just have to get
into good trouble. So that means small steps can make
big accomplishments. And of course when you enjoy good triple
and joint in good trouble and joint and small SIPs.
Because I do embrace and encourage sipping and moderation.
Speaker 5 (45:28):
And sipping responsibly, right, we want everyone snipping responsibly.
Speaker 3 (45:33):
I'm a big believer in being a responsible slipper. Always
to go for the best you can afford, go for
the better product, and drink in moderation.
Speaker 4 (45:43):
I rather have.
Speaker 5 (45:45):
And a little of it versus a lot of that
I'm also because that's actually about our spirit. And I'm
so happy you said that. This is a great way
I want people to big. I want you. In fact,
someone told me as early on my journey as I
had this one idea back to French. Oh I think
I'll get one. It's like, no, I want you to
think five times larger. You can do that. But also,
(46:06):
you know what, love on yourself, give yourself, treat yourself
and just get the best of something. And so I
much rather have you know, one beautiful silk, beautiful blouse
or something that I love all the time versus a
little bit or even bourbon. I mean, I'm always going
to drink some of the best and you're not always
going to be there for that. But if you get it,
you know, savor it. But I want people to take
(46:28):
care of their own spirits by just treating yourself and
walk as something. But listen, this has been for a
long long time, and I'll get a chance to chat again.
I appreciate you for all the great things that you're
doing for your audiences, and thank you for allowing me
to share my story with them. I know already that
(46:49):
you are living fearlessly and fabulously and all the things
that you trying. But the thing is, I'm going to
say one thing about that you're not trying, you're doing.
We have to say, yeah, I'm being appreciate and you
are doing it, and your audience isn't doing it too,
And they got to understand that they have opportunities to
realize the dream and just not thinking about so many things.
(47:11):
Just choose a few things.
Speaker 3 (47:14):
Yeah, to choose, do lesson, do it, do it with
the most passion possible and correct and you em raised
passion and purpose. Well, so thank you for that a wrap,
Thank you, so thank you, Dean Robinson. So if you
want to learn more about Good Trouble All Bourbon, it's
Good Trouble Bourbon dot com. And you have a website
as well, right, what is it?
Speaker 5 (47:34):
Yes, well, most of everything goes to the Good Trouble
Bourbon dot com. Thencouraged by deesign dot com if anyone's
interested in the book, or they can get that on Amazon.
Speaker 3 (47:43):
But courage by design.
Speaker 5 (47:45):
Yes, But listen, the most important thing is that I
want everyone to do. We were built to slay dragons,
remember that, and you just go do you go do
fabulous the world is just waiting for you.
Speaker 3 (48:00):
Absolutely again, great show, great conversation despite some ins.
Speaker 4 (48:05):
And outs, but that's life.
Speaker 3 (48:07):
Thank you for joining me, for all of you out there,
thank you for continuing to join me. This is twelve
years I've been doing this for and it's all purpose
and passion. So as I always like to end my show,
as I always like to end my show, it was
my second chapter. You have the choice in life to
do a lot of things. Always choose to live life
(48:29):
on your terms and not by the terms that other
people try to set for you, because you don't want
to be put in anybody's corner. You want to be free,
to be fearless and fabulous always and always choose fearless.
Speaker 5 (48:42):
In fact, well well said, thank you for that gift, Melanie,
so my pleasure to.
Speaker 3 (48:49):
Be thank you, all right.
Speaker 5 (49:09):
H
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We make no recommendations or endorsements for radio show programs, services,
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(00:20):
be directed to those show hosts.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Thank you for choosing W four WN Radio.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Hello, and welcome to Fearless Fabulous You. I am your host, Melania,
and it's great to see everyone. After a two week hiatus,
I'm back and I am so excited to share yet
another amazing, dynamic woman entrepreneur who is rewriting yet another
(01:02):
chapter her.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
Of her life.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Because I'm all about the fact that you can write
and rewrite the chapters of your life as often as
you want to follow your passion, and that's what we're
going to talk about today. We're also going to talk
about something I actually love, which is Kentucky bourbon. I
have an empty bottle. I didn't drink it all at once,
but I noticed when I got this bottle of Good
(01:24):
Trouble Kentucky Bourbon, it was full. And I have been
on the wagon because I had some recent surgery, so
I haven't been nipping it, but somebody's been sipping it,
and I think it was my husband David. He really
liked it. And we served ourselves in an old fashioned last
night to toast the last drop and it was just delicious.
And so we're going to talk to the founder of
(01:44):
Good Trouble Bourbon. But she's also a serial entrepreneur.
Speaker 4 (01:48):
Yes, this is the this is the look at the
look at the bottle. The bottle has.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
A woman on a ball on the label, which we're
going to talk about because this is the power of
women and getting into good trouble. And we're going to
talk about that and what it means to get in
good trouble and why people like you, my followers and
listeners can get into your own good trouble and do
something great in your community or for the good. And
(02:13):
we all want to do that more and better right now,
right right, So let me give you a little intro
on my guest. D M. Robinson is a self described
troublemaker for social change. She is an entrepreneur and the
with like lots of business background like she worked in
(02:36):
consumer product goods and advertising and food service, and she
runs Robinson Hill, which is a concessions management firm, which
if you go to the airport like Chicago air where
she lives, you'll see some of her businesses. She is
also a longtime bourbon enthusiast like me, and created Good
(02:56):
Trouble Bourbon with an eighth generation mastered Siller, so that's
kind of interesting. She is one of a few women
I know who have been successful in other areas of
business and then decided to dip their feet into distilling,
which we're going to talk about because that's a big jump,
a big late. Trust me, I know one of my
really good friends is doing it. So we're gonna hear
(03:18):
her story and hope, Billy, you'll get some inspiration from
the m Robinson Welcome to Fearless Fabulous You Hi.
Speaker 5 (03:26):
There, Melanie is a joy to be here, said thank you.
I'm loving all these stories, and I also thank David
as well, because I did see that empty bottle you
had are it really is good.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
I love bourbon, you know. But whenever David, my husband
gets get some of the products sent to me and
they has a woman on the front. He's like, oh,
not a woman product. And then I noticed it kept
getting the bottle kept getting less alcohol in it, and
I'm like, where's it going?
Speaker 5 (03:52):
The angels share David not to underestimate what we were.
They can do. Come on, He's like, in fact, that's
what he should run to if we sees that, because
you know, there's the care and the level that we're
going to put into things. So I'm glad that he
saw it. And then he sipped and continued to do so.
Speaker 4 (04:11):
Yeah, well we both enjoyed. We really both enjoyed it.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
And many of our really good friends, as I reference,
are in the spirit's business and also the wine business,
and they're women, so we embrace it.
Speaker 4 (04:22):
You were in Chicago, You grew up in Chicago, which
I love.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
Some of my favorite women, chefs and favorite people are
in Chicago. Tell me about your background, early interests, and
who Little D was.
Speaker 5 (04:35):
Well, Little D was first of all, I started was
born in Cleveland, Ohios. I can never I ignored that background.
But my formative years and in fact all of my
adult life was here in Chicago, and so I absolutely
call it home. I didn't go to high school in Cleveland,
so I sort of started there as a foundation. But
that's where I probably just learned how to be a creative.
(04:58):
You know, I played basketball. Well, I was the one
that had the lemonade stands. So I always say, those
early entrepreneurs are the ones in the making who put
those stands out. And and you know, I had a
job in retail, So I also sometimes think those early
starts sometimes influence our later ones. And so here I
am years later, never thinking about ever being in retail
(05:21):
and being an entrepreneur, and here I am. It's interesting.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
When I was a little girl, I ran around with
a fountain pen interviewing people and then taking notes.
Speaker 5 (05:30):
See and there, see here you are. But I wanted
tot story though about my mom because my mother plays
a huge role and biggest fan. And but you know,
back there from families, whether they're our mothers or fathers,
who were just trying to take care of them families,
and they had what some might call side hustles. So
(05:52):
even today people call them side hustles. Everyone shoul understand
that they are being entrepreneurs, they're not. And so she worked,
but at the same time she sold peanuts and balloons
and things like that at the stadiums, and we watched
that as I was growing up, so little v had
that is this beautiful model. But again she called it
taking care of her family to make sure insignit or
(06:14):
you know, she met you know, her financial needs. But
in the day, it was her watching her tenacity and
just her creativity, and even she supported me on the
you know, the journey, was always by my side. So
you know, for all those folks out there who had
parents helping and sort of working those extra jobs that
they were pouring love into us and so but also
(06:36):
it helped sprout where we are today.
Speaker 3 (06:38):
Absolutely, did you grow up in a big family or
a small family?
Speaker 5 (06:41):
No, well, I have a twin brother. And actually has
a great question because it has a lot to do
with the title of the brand. So I had an
older brother, older sister. So my sister Pearl was the
first born and if my mom said go right, she
went left. And she was a trouble maker. And then
ten years later, surprised she my mom realized she's having twins.
(07:04):
And what she used to say to us was that
the only kind of trouble we could get in was
good trouble because my sister got into all the rest.
And so that's actually how good Trouble really started to
really become part of my soul. But at the same
time as the late sixties and so she was also
teaching us how we had to show up in the world.
That people may not like you, you may not appreciate
(07:24):
what you do, but you have to go beet you.
And then of course there's John Lewis and who if
you're hopefully you're on. If they don't know who he is,
I should absolutely understand this amazing legend, this icon of
the civil rights movement. But he asked us all to
get into good trouble, necessary trouble, and I say stay
in trouble. So that's sort of where the name came from,
(07:46):
and that's by the family. But thanks to my sister
who was the troublemaker, it led to a life of maybe,
actually what I do today just sort of figure out
how to put good in the world.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
What's really at important? And yes, you know I went
to Selma when we were doing our long road trip,
when we walked the bridge and I thought about John Lewis,
and that is a wonderful Museum there. If everyone take
that Southern civil rights road trip, you will learn so
much about what people fought for, like John Lewis, and
it was just incredible. But you know, d a lot
(08:21):
of young ladies is back in the day, my day,
your day, where when we were young girls, we were
not encouraged to get into trouble. We were encouraged to
be good girls, follow the rules. Look the part don't
stand out. Fortunately, over the years that has shange. I
don't know what it's like now because I'm not in
(08:42):
the world of child rearing. Well okay, well tell me,
because what's going on out there? I mean, you know,
what are you teaching our girls?
Speaker 5 (08:50):
Well, you know what, I think what's the most important
about our girls is to teach them. I love fearless
and fabulous forever. I love that because we need to
teach them how to be fearless. And you know, when
I wrote my book Courage by Design, see, I understood
that fear. But we have to understand that fear holds
us back. And you know we've heard about imposter syndrome.
(09:12):
I mean, I've met some of the most amazing young
women mathematicians getting into Harvard studying sciences, and you know,
what you learn is that guys will say, oh, it's hard,
and they'll keep going. And then sometimes, unfortunately, women might say, oh,
I don't think I can and it gets hard, and
(09:33):
what they do is they drop out. And in fact,
what we need and to stay in and just say, yes,
it is hard. One of the best lessons really for
me growing up and allowed me to really take this
change and pivot was learning this and my mom said this.
Then no one ever said it would be easy. We
have to stop expecting it to be easy and then
(09:54):
we give up so early, particularly as entrepreneurs, you know,
you're got to have past. You got to have that gnasctity,
that determination that when you have an idea, believe in it.
But oftentimes you know, it's the voices in our head
to start telling us what we can't do. I oftentimes
say you have to be careful who you share your
dreams was too because other people will say why are
(10:18):
you In fact, that happened to me, Why should I
do this? Why are you leaving your corporate job you're comfortable. Well,
first of all, let me just say this, I thought
it was more risky for me to stay. I knew
there was something in my heart that I wanted to
do now.
Speaker 3 (10:30):
Which corporate job was. So just just a quick back.
You have a very strong business background. You have an
MBA from Northwestern call Arg School of Management at BA
in economics from UPenn. You did an executive education program
Dartmouth Dartmouth Tuch School of Business. I wish I had
done that. And now I'm going to just say.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
I grew up in the South. I was I was
encouraged us to.
Speaker 3 (10:53):
Go to a good liberal arts college and do something,
do it, and I did, But I never was encouraged
to go get a master's degree in business.
Speaker 4 (11:02):
And I wish if that didn't.
Speaker 3 (11:05):
What drove you to take that business path that I
think is important. I really think it's important. Because college
is expensive, you might as well go and invest in
an education that you can then take with you.
Speaker 4 (11:19):
For the long haul.
Speaker 5 (11:21):
No, I actually agree with that. First of all, my
mom was great at understanding how important it was to
expose us to things. So we were the kids that
always were at camps and every weekend and we turn
around and then. But she also understood the importance of education.
And so you know the thing is that I'll tell
the audiences. And one of the things I had to
(11:42):
learn is that you have to say let them underestimate
you and do you you know. And so when you
know that you are properly educated or you know that
you have the skill, don't let other people, you know,
say that you don't. And so for me, it was
just understanding that education can open doors for you. And education,
by the way, comes in very different forms, So you
(12:05):
don't have to go to the pens of the world
and everything that I've done, but I had the great
fortune and blessing to do that. But I looked at
each of those opportunities. There's learning opportunities. But here's what
also I think people miss how many people go to
college and then they don't really know their classmates and
that they have extended those relationships because the world is
really about relationships, right, And so it was just understanding
(12:28):
how when you're in those environments, they're going to be
your future employer, they could be your future investor, they
could just be your partner. There's a lot that you
can do there. So there's this shrill ground there to
nurture and understand. And I so any place you go,
all I say is just go do your best and
then take the learnings away. But oftentimes the learnings are
in a classroom but also outside, so that's interesting.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
A lot of people might see I'm too busy running.
I'm too busy taking care of my family, taking you
the home, taking care of my.
Speaker 5 (12:59):
Business to go out.
Speaker 4 (13:01):
You know.
Speaker 3 (13:01):
Network. Some people hate the term network, but it's not
about networking. It's about nurturing. What are some examples of
how you've done it and how that those relationships have
helped propel you and them the other person as well.
Speaker 5 (13:16):
Well, I'm going to start with the fact is that
when I needed help. So oftentimes we'll say we don't
have education or the talent to do something, or the
money to do something, and I say that you may
not have it, but you have access to it. So
stop counting yourself out because you didn't have an education
that somebody else had or the resources they had. You
(13:39):
can access those things. And again, those are the relationships.
And it was interesting in one of my first ventures,
I was at an event, ran into a classmate of
mine from Penn and I was raising funds at the time,
and guess what, he ended up being an investor in
our brand. And so you know, it's just happened to
be happenstance and he believed in me. And then sometimes
(14:00):
they are depending on the jockey not the horse. And
so when you have somebody for me, when you invest
in me early, you're telling me you have faith in me.
But I also know that I have an obligation too
right to honor that that faith, and an obligation of
saying someone said, you know what I'm believe in, you
go do it. And there have been failures. Don't get
(14:20):
me wrong, this has not been this you know, linear
world to success, and it mostly looks like this. I
talk about the loss of money and all of that.
You know, and it happens. But then the thing is
what do you take away? And I always say, if
you're not failing often and you're not living because that
failure to where the real lessons come. And again back
(14:42):
to relationships, you're going to find that there's some that
shouldn't even be in your life. I say doing a
little laundry, because you really have to surround yourself with
people who encourage you, who stretch you, who inspire you.
And then if you have people in your life that
are naysayers, or questioning who you are. I say, limit
your time, but I call the courage circles. We have
(15:02):
to build this armor around us because there's so many
things that can sort of derail us and discourage us,
and we just don't have the time. You know, we
need to focus on the goal in front of us.
And so success is really a mind game and it's
also again about the people you surround yourself with. So Melanie,
I have to say this when I was looking forward
(15:23):
to this, I love the title, as I mentioned earlier,
Live Fearless, Fabulous You, because I also talk about being
the CEO of you and how we have to take
control and not look to other people who to live
our lives for us, make decisions for us. So you've
got to stop thinking other people are going to bail
us out and solve our problems for us. We're so
(15:46):
resourceful in that. And so as we think about relationships,
I guess say this. You know I used to make
a plan. It's like when I would go to some place,
this make sure you need at least three people, because
if you ever have been some place and you walk
into you didn't literally and the brand is about that.
In fact, I built this brand good trouble. It wasn't
It was about making great bourbon. But frankly I wanted
(16:08):
to use it as a tool. I wanted to be
a tool for connection and conversation and social change. And
I understood that in those moments, really I just wanted
to inspire people to be all that they can be,
inspire people to be the change that they want to
see in the world. And then, you know, when you
understand that, you can live life with passion and purpose,
(16:30):
and my purpose is, you know, to just inspire that
change and make a difference. And in any small way.
I think we have this mentality of all or nothing. Well,
I don't know what to do. I can't do anything.
Everything like that little drop of water, right and that
well everything it helps And right now, more than ever,
the world needs everyone to lean in to help us
(16:52):
make this world better. And again, just small little acts
of kindness, you know, moments when you use your voice.
In those moments, we recognize that there's opportunity.
Speaker 4 (17:05):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
You know. When I started Fearless, Fabulous You, it was
part of my second book, in my emotional recovery from
not just breast cancer, but a lot of major overhauls
in my life, in my business, and I had to really,
you know, there are times where you don't feel so
fabulous and you feel like throwing in the towel. And
I had gotten to that point and I kept saying,
(17:28):
you got to say fearless and fabulous.
Speaker 4 (17:30):
You have to.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
You've got a long feature head.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
I think everybody out there has to do that because
you will get kicked down the stairs. You may get
kicked up the stairs, but you may get kicked and
you've got to take those punches and get stronger for it,
right deep.
Speaker 5 (17:45):
And you face that, tell me about it time. Ah,
I know that. You know, I don't know if we
have enough time to talk about the time I've been
in that place. But you know, I love that you
mentioned that, because here's what happens. You can get kicked
and your spirit could be down and then but then
in those moments, you got to find what the joy is.
It's like why And you know I always say, you know,
(18:08):
bad things always last forever, that that's just not the
normal state. But you have to talk your way out
of things. Oftentimes you got to help yourself understand your
why why. You know, if you don't know your why
for doing things, then it might be harder to come
out of those things. And whether it's just simply to
live your best life, if it's just simply that you
(18:30):
might live it for somebody else, if that's what it takes.
But understanding your why, Why am I doing the great
things that do? Why don't you have a show you
know that you're helping people, Emma? And and the thing is,
there's the power of one. I had to learn this.
And then even when I wrote my book, and when
I was thinking about the Bourbon, you know, we think, oh,
(18:50):
I have to do something magnificent. I have to be
a unicorn right away. No, the thing is, if you
help one, I promise you that other person will help another.
And Chris Gardner, I know somebody might know from you know,
you know him, Chris, what is it? Will Smith played
(19:11):
him in Pursuit of Happiness And he told me about
this creature writing this sermon and it got to the audience.
And realized that when he got to the church there
was only one person in the room, and but he
had written it, and he said, I'm going to deliver it.
And then the person who came up to him after
I said you changed my life. It was Billy Graham,
and I'm like, he says, yes, I know it's true
(19:32):
because Billy Graham told him that story. Just think about
one person that you can help and get the noise
out of the way, and then the snowball effect will happen.
There's momentum in that. And even when you're trying to
write business, stop thinking how to keep going, just keep it.
But look, just do one thing at the time. It's
(19:53):
a building block. And then the more you encouraged and
the more you're going to say, oh, I can do this,
and you create this beautiful momentum of success around you.
And then when you do hit you know it's the roadblock.
That's what you'll know that you need to navigate around it.
Sometimes keep doing the same thing all over again, and
(20:13):
then you know, we know what they say was keep
doing the same thing you get the same result. Sometimes
the adjustments in changing your business can happen with one
minor move, just a small one, or one other person
you talk to, or maybe thinking about it in a
different way and also not being afraid to pivot. But see,
(20:34):
I started out with one business and this is another one.
I thought about hamp tonight. It was a luggage company.
Of course there are conglomerate but you know, we started small.
I started with Ben and Jerry's as my first franchise.
Speaker 1 (20:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:49):
I was curious about that because I actually know a
lot of people who are curious about getting into franchising.
Why did you decide to do that?
Speaker 4 (21:00):
Get by? I guess you invest?
Speaker 3 (21:02):
Or you buy a franchise is by invest.
Speaker 5 (21:04):
Yeah, it is both because because you're buying into it,
because you're basically licensing their name to use it, but
the business is yours and so wherever, so you are
only bit right. But you know what's interesting for me
in the early stage is when I decided that I
wanted to go out and be an entrepreneur, I knew
(21:25):
that franchising was a great opportunity for me to move
into a business. And so the secret is there is
been finding really great franchises and any of your audience
thinking about it. There's a really special list out there
in the world that the SBA lists, and it has
all the ones that have pre approvals. That means that
(21:45):
those are on that list have a higher success rate.
And I'm always caunctioning people about new ones not to
say that they shouldn't do it, that just want them
to do their homework. I will never ever keep anyone
from their dreams because I think we all deserve to
be where our dreams take us. But I want us
also to make sure we do the homework to ensure
(22:06):
that you minimize the risks in that. And I knew
that I wanted to build wealth. I want because wealth
whill allowed me to do the things that I want
to do by helping other people. And so I also
knew that one can be one and there's nothing wrong
with that. But to build wealth, I knew through franchise
and we needed to have multiples, and so I chose
(22:27):
a brand that was socially conscious, no surprise, one of
the things that I do. I love them as a brand.
I love the stands that they take. I think they
do and demonstrate social mission in a fabulous way. But
you know, it's just learning which ones. And also the
other important thing, just because someone else is doing it
doesn't mean you should. Because I try to do things
(22:48):
that I've done. I had an employee even talking about
a downfall, to try to take all of our resources
and go do what we did, which is awful, right,
But that's forgiveness. You move on. They did succeed. It
was short term, right, it was short lived, but that's
going to happen. We have to be aware that people
might come and do things undermine us, but we can't
hold on to that. That's then the universe takes care
(23:11):
of those kind of people. Anyway, I hope I answered
the question that you had about you.
Speaker 4 (23:17):
Did you know it's interesting.
Speaker 3 (23:18):
I get approached all the time, but you know, I
know people do and learn a lot of It's interesting.
A lot of people in the sports industry do it
because you know, for people who are in sports, they
get paid a lot of money, but they have a
very short career, and a lot of them invest in
franchises because they can have more longevity. So it's an
interesting and another conversation. But I was fascinated by that
(23:41):
in your many business endeavors, so in all the things
you could do, because you have experience enfranchising, banking, financing,
the concessions management business, which is a whole other, very
interesting business.
Speaker 5 (23:59):
To be at.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
Why did you decide to go into distilling, which is
a big investment, and why bourbon because you know and
I know that the beverage alcohol industry has its challenges,
more so wined than spirits. But I do know a
number of spirits companies because that's my background, have had
(24:25):
to close or disintegrate or file.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
You actually have gone into it.
Speaker 3 (24:31):
I mean, it's not new. I just want to say,
we're going to get into that. But what was your
path to get into it? And what was your why
to get into it?
Speaker 5 (24:38):
So the path was one, I like, you love bourbon
and whiskeys and all of that, and so I was
drinking it. And then also we all know that a
lot of women weren't drinking it, but surprisingly so they are.
So that's just a hood out there that women don't
drink bourbon. That's far from new case.
Speaker 4 (24:58):
In fact, what I love bourbon.
Speaker 5 (24:59):
Yeah, you know what I say, though, I said, you
remember grandmother would be sitting around and the little teacups,
and you think that was tea. It was not tea.
Everyone that brown self weigh a little nip or something.
But then I'm a curious short and I started drinking.
And then I went to a tasting and I loved
the different varieties and I love the complexities of the flavors,
(25:23):
and so it really started with me just being curious
about how they make it, and so I started studying
craft is stealing. And then once I did that and
I'm like, whoa, this is interesting, I said, well, why
not consider making it? But then if I said, then though,
if I was going to do it again back to
the Y, and I just thought that the bourbon I
(25:45):
knew what I wanted toilet. I knew that I wanted
to make it call it good trouble, and I knew
I want to make it really great, because you can't
be good trouble and not be good. But also the
other part of that was earlier about teaming up with
an eighth generation and master distiller Jacopole, was that here
(26:07):
is this woman who's not you know, they're not many
of us in the space, and again people want to
underestimate you, and so our job is always doing the
best that we can. Right, so there was a way
to manage any concerned about well this is liquid good
or not. But the path was simply starting with him.
I interviewed a lot of people. Jacob understood my passion
(26:30):
and need to make the users as really as a tool.
He understood my one and desire to play for social justice.
You talk about the lady on the bottle that's inspired
by the Statue of Liberty, which liberty for all, but
we don't have that, and so because I knew that
(26:50):
we could use that as a symbol of hope. But
it was just mentally being able to understand how the
and then thinking about the business model. So I spent
early year just any times getting it tested. We knew
we had made great liquid, but the market needed to
validate the liquid, and so we did that and I
was proud that, you know, the one coveted one the
Go that San Francisco World Spirit competition was a boy
(27:14):
and then this year Forbes called us one of the
best burbons under fifty and then we just got another
double go. But if nothing else, I knew that we
made a really really great spirit. And that's really the joy,
and that's how it all sort of started, is just
understanding how do I use something? And I think, with
any business, why, back to what I said earlier, why
(27:36):
am I doing this? I'm not just trying to put
a product on the shelf and say hope someone buys it.
You talked about where the industry is right now, So
first of all. I understood very very early on that
this kind of growth rate was not sustainable because it
was just everyone was throwing bad product, any and everything
out there because the industry was headed this way and
you know, everything levels off at some point, and I
(27:59):
just understood that you had a great story, our purpose,
we had great liquid. And so when you hear these
stories about where the industry is, and you're right, there's
been closures and all, but let's get behind why they closed, right.
We don't know if their cost structure was too high,
that they didn't have the strong customer base, where they
too dependent on one customer, and that you know, there's
(28:22):
all these things behind the story. But actually where we
sit in the super premium category, there's growth there. And
so I don't want everyone to see where an industry
is going to say, but then also ask yourself this,
what can you do differently? And so we studied right
now some of the biggest brands out there at either
(28:43):
Unicorn or Sold and understand what led to their success.
But then also what market conditions did not exist at
the time that I can leverage now to build a
successful brand. So you just look at where the opportunities
are and that's where we are in terms of building trouble.
Speaker 3 (29:01):
It's really important, as they say in marketing, to have
that unique selling proposition just to quickly for viewers and listeners.
This is a Kentucky bourbon. So bourbon whiskey and whiskey
bourbon whisky can be made anywhere the United States, but
Kentucky bourbon must follow.
Speaker 4 (29:19):
I've written about this so many times.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Federal requirements, which are this is why it's special in
premium fifty one percent corn is still to know more
than one hundred and sixty proof in new sharred white
oak American barrels. That's right, must be made in Kentucky
to the guidelines and regulations of the State of Kentucky
(29:42):
and h for at least one year, so that mash
bill is fifty one percent corn, whereas rye whiskey and
others can be other kinds of grains.
Speaker 5 (29:51):
That is, that's exactly right. I love that you've done
your homework.
Speaker 3 (29:58):
And I've written about this a lot because and I
always love it. Yeah, well, I love it too, And
so here's for the audience. You know, they could impress
their friends. Whiskey is in bourbon, right, Bourbon is whiskey
fifty one percent corn is that distinguishing factor. And uh,
(30:19):
and then of course you have the mash bills, you know,
the grains and everything. And to your point about Kentucky,
it is very high standards.
Speaker 5 (30:27):
I'm in Ohio and uh, you know, Bucky go go
buck guy here. But also that Ohio River. You I
always talk about when we make wines out of friends,
you know, in different regions and they're different soils, it's
the same thing. And so that was another one. I
knew that I wanted to make a Kentucky bourbon. There
(30:48):
was no exception. I wasn't going to make it.
Speaker 3 (30:50):
Kentucky bourbon has a tarawah you mentioned. Yeah, the Ohio
River is very important. The soil, the corn corn because
you know, for types of airline corn, that is what distinguishes.
And I I just want to say, I know you
spent time in Tachya. I have there's a great Kentucky
bourbontrail dot com website to learn more because it's also
(31:11):
a great place to visit.
Speaker 5 (31:13):
It really is, and you learned so much. But you know,
you think about bourbon is Americans whiskey. They own that
that's what is ours. And that was the other part
that made it so intriguing to me to do. But
this is an American spirit and something that we can
all be proud of. And so that's why I hope
that you know, those out there continue to support the industry.
(31:36):
And I think that there's growth opportunities ahead and so
I think you just have to pursue it in a
smart way, methodical way, but not allow it and to
see that's where fear comes in. Oh my gosh, I'm
not going to do it because they said this, Well,
you have to have your own sort of formula for
success and if you gain back to usp unique selling proposition,
(31:59):
a great story that people can connect to, and I
want people to connect to this brand and ways they
never have when you look at all the bottles on
the shelf, and I do it all the time when
i'm out, I'm like, you know what, I'm so proud
of what we've done here because I know that it
was every bottle. You know, they invest in our foundation,
we take those funds. We're doing all these wonderful things
(32:20):
in communities. The fact that we know that we need
to inspire people that get in good trouble and be
a part of this world, the change that we want
to see. So that's what's so joyful about doing this.
You know, it's again the liquor was great, and we
can have some fun doing and getting in good trouble,
but also that we can pourward purpose. This is a
purpose driven brand, and again I talked about Ben and
(32:43):
Jerry's if you think about brands that are just standing
for something, we want to stand for something. We want
to inspire others.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
Absolutely, so you're doing some really interesting things. You just
reference the Shawn your Light Foundation. Explain what the purpose?
It is a nonprofit. What are some of its initiatives.
Speaker 5 (33:00):
Well, I'll tell you the one that's close to my heart.
Are you a golfer? By chance? Molly? I didn't think
I could see that in your background.
Speaker 4 (33:06):
No, I look just like both my parents.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
They're sadly both to face, but they both inspired me
to be fearless and fabulous.
Speaker 5 (33:13):
Well, you know, there are several things, but mainly there
are two things. When you think about how we preserve legacies,
how do we inspire people to go out there and
do the things they want to do. I happen to
be a trustee for the PGA Foundation, but I see kids,
and I know that from my own background. You know,
(33:35):
I wish for things they wish. You hope that you
can do. So, first of all, I never want money
to be a reason why people don't do anything. I
don't want people who have dreams like being an entrepreneurship
to think money is that it's not, you know. And
so how do we pose a gap? How do we
also bring these great opportunities. Back to what I said earlier,
my mom taught me important to being exposed everything. And
(33:59):
the greater the greater your world becomes, the greater your
choices are in, the greater the possibilities. And so one
thing is I leaned into golf from being a pghrustee
first team with my fellows being able to make sure,
for instance, a Class A team who's never been fitted
for golf clubs, can you believe in a D one
(34:19):
school making sure that they could actually be fitted and
get clubs, Or because they're in Chicago and they can't
play and only certain courses to get them as simulator
so they would have play year round and help them
with their game, or for instance, and what I love
about what I do for the first team, the fellow
that I bring is that the young men and women
(34:41):
are young kids of color, but everyone at the top
didn't look like any of them. So now I'm bringing
people in and we teach golf and stem over the
summer months young kids, and just think about what that does.
It's not only you're learning, you're learning the game, you're
learning things about math and science, but you also were
seeing for someone that looks like you. And that's critical,
(35:03):
just like my role in this industry right now, even
the things you do and they see us en row
someone out this and see themselves and then they can
be inspired. And so being able to do that, I
just joined the board of Future Founders. These are just
the most diverse group and entrepreneurs, and I say one
of my purposes is to shorten the runway to success
(35:24):
for others. I don't want people to take as long
as I had to get here. Now we do need
to fail. We got to do things that they're important
and navigate. But there's certain things that we can help
people do to get there a little faster, and so
anything that we do and then for instance, right now
I am trying to help Frankly reclaim the blues for
(35:47):
Chicago and the world.
Speaker 3 (35:50):
Let's talk about that because I'm a huge Buddy Guyance.
Speaker 5 (35:54):
I live in New Orleans. So one of my highlights,
the way I had to keep it in that's signed
by and BDDY.
Speaker 3 (36:00):
So Buddy Guy performed at the jazz Fest of the
Blues tent, my favorite tent, and he came. I was
like this close to him because he gets he gets
down off the stage and he's going down the hall
and he's like, right there, I have I still have
the video and he's thinking he's eighty five and eighty nine. Now,
well just say he was eighty five or three five,
And I posted I'm like, this is eighty five because
(36:22):
my mother was like lying in bed, she just tookees
to get up. I'm like, hey, mom, you're eighty five.
Speaker 4 (36:27):
He's eighty five. What's the problem.
Speaker 3 (36:28):
So you created a limited edition, very lovely limited edition
to Chicago on the Chicago Blues is at the Foundation.
Legacy talked to me about it and connects with Buddy Guy.
Speaker 5 (36:44):
Yeah. See there's a story and everything, and I got
the no Buddy Guy and Buddy said he was feeling
some kind of way about the blues in Chicago because
he could go to all these other cities when they
go to Nashville, Memphis, New Orleans. We just did something
with Preservation Hall as well, and now cool. Yeah, and
so he said, look, but if you come here, you
(37:06):
don't really see it. But this is something else. Again,
we own it. Blues originated here. There would be no
rock and roll and other donors without the Blues. And
so it's one hundred years and so this bourbon is
one hundred proof. It was a way to really honor
the Blues and Londons like him, and so we launched
(37:26):
something called the Blues Legacy Legacy Project, and that's how
do we reclaim the Blues for Chicago and the world.
And so I'm leading an initiative with an amazing committee
to build a statue here and it's going to be
at secrets out maybe Perer you guys heard it first.
It's supposed to be a secret. But now that your
audience knows. But we're excited to be able to start
(37:48):
thinking about how do we bring this music back. It's
part of our own culture and legacy here in Chicago.
And I understand what that blues means, resilience and hope.
And that was the other reason blues is Good Trouble,
and so this honor to bring in a new edition
four hundred and forty five bottles called Trouble and Blues.
(38:09):
It's just exciting to just to get people and to
bring the music back. And it says, you know, we
say good Trouble lives on, the Blues lives on. And
Buddy Guy was asked by Muddy Water. She said, look,
I want you to keep the blues alive, and so
I love that we can work with him in some
ways to help him do just that. So if anyone's interested,
(38:34):
they can go to Good Troublebourbon dot com and Good
Trouble Bourbon and also visit Buddy at Legends here in Chicago.
So it looks like Melody is having a little Internet challenge,
and I wish there was a way for me to
chat with everyone out there. But I do know that
I'm excited about all the things that we could do.
(38:55):
There you are, Melody, Hi, there you go.
Speaker 3 (38:57):
I don't know whether it's me or Florida, because our
engineer in Florida, New Orleans.
Speaker 5 (39:01):
I was talking to your audience as you were coming
back in.
Speaker 4 (39:07):
I heard you.
Speaker 3 (39:07):
So what I was gonna say the Blues Trail. If
for those of you who love to travel, I've driven
the I've driven the Blues Trail from Mississippi to New Orleans.
What's interesting is these are guys the blues history. These
are guys that often are truck drivers, school teachers.
Speaker 4 (39:24):
They do a lot of auto parts.
Speaker 3 (39:25):
They usually have these basic jobs just to fund their passion,
which is performing. So the more you can do for
this and these amazingly talented people, because often they're just
playing for tips, right, And it's a heritage that I
think is quintessentially America and music, don't you.
Speaker 5 (39:47):
I absolutely agree. And you know, if you think about this,
when we break bread, when we drink, and when we're
enjoying music, and those moments are more like and we're different,
So there's joy in those moments. You know, think about
how you feel when you're listening to really good music
and news is just that I love when I go
to Buddies Club Legends and to see the room of
(40:09):
the verse is so diverse, and somethings like why can't
we just carry that outside of the room into the world,
right and so and so to keep inspiring hope in
that way, Melanie is a huge opportunity and I love
for all of us to sort of think about those
moments when we are more like than we're different and
(40:29):
just talk, you know, and find ways to connect. And
I truly believe that this world will be better because
of it.
Speaker 3 (40:36):
Yeah, I mean, good trouble is about lifting people up.
Speaker 4 (40:39):
I love it. I love the term good trouble.
Speaker 3 (40:42):
I think it's important because too many people give up
and the opposite that is saying no, let's get into
some good trouble and do something. And you gotta for
everyone watching and listen. We all have times when we're
not feeling fairly fabulous, but you gotta lift yourself up,
even if it's.
Speaker 4 (41:00):
Calling somebody, which is this is how I do.
Speaker 3 (41:03):
I'm to ask you, Like, when I'm not feeling my
most fabulous, I call someone who I know will listen,
because some people don't and who will say, oh, no, you're.
Speaker 4 (41:12):
Awesome, keep going. How do you do it? Because you
can't always be up?
Speaker 3 (41:17):
How do you deal with the days when you're not fabulous?
Speaker 5 (41:20):
So, first of all, one of the things I learned
and frankly allowed me to do some of the things
and the ideas that I've had to actually come because
I meditated. I learned that I needed to find and
be still and know that I am God. But in
those moments of quiet, and I love taking people on
the journey because when you think about there's all the
(41:41):
noise out there, there's just no way to hear. And
when they say to you that you have everything that
you need right down, then so many people will find
that so hard to believe. But guess what if they
find a moment to be quiet and just listen, the
answers are there and then now need.
Speaker 4 (41:57):
You to act.
Speaker 5 (41:58):
You know, first to listen than to act, But you
first have to be still. And so in the stillness
is that go ahead?
Speaker 3 (42:06):
I think you're right, But I go on long walks. Sure, whatever,
I just get out. But the key is embrace stillness,
even if you're moving. Just don't be distracted. Just you're
right still for bed and still in your head, your body,
just away from everything.
Speaker 5 (42:24):
Time, just got to remove, just get out of it.
And you said it, that's I also walk when you
you know, when there's a moment when you're stuck because
you're not thinking anything, you just have to change the scenery.
And most times go outside. Yeah, and then just literally
watch what happens is really transformative. And they are small
(42:44):
things and that's what I want for the audience to understand.
These are small little things that we can do, whether
it's the believing, the thing of maybe just taking a change,
taking a moment to be quiet. And for anyone out there,
because I know someone in your audience it says, oh,
I don't know how to meditate. That is just not true,
because you are going to mine's going to wonder. It's
that's just part of the process. But being able to
(43:06):
be still. And then I said ten minutes. I try
to do twenty minutes in the morning and in the evening,
but minimum ten minutes. But in those moments you will
find so many things and you're like, oh, solutions of problems.
If you ever have a problems, be still and those
moments when you are feeling that way, that's sexual where
(43:28):
I think the magic happens is if you can just
look at that and see that that's the way the
universe is trying to tell you that you need to
change or do something different instead of going down the
rabbit hole. It's a way to say hey, I see you,
I need you to shift for a moment, and you
have to find your own way in your own mechanisms
and so but everyone should have a way to understand
how to get themselves out.
Speaker 3 (43:49):
I think your key is to find your own mechanism
in your own way. And it may not be sitting
and meditating. It could be I swim a lot, so
I do a lot of just the movement through the water.
See you.
Speaker 5 (44:00):
But this it's a movement though it's actually finding the movement.
But I'd say, people are you know, reduced to the screen time.
And there's the other thing we got to thought letting
I call it this is an addiction to fear, an
addiction to the phones. Tell me about it. So people
say they don't have come to their dreams, but yes
you do, yeah, because all that time you spend just
(44:23):
mindlessly going through for I have to do it in
the morning. Now I've learned that when I get out,
how many of us I loved I could raise hands,
they will literally reach for the phone. And how much
time at that moment, right, So eve an exercise you
can write. You know, there's all the things that you
say you wanted to do in your life. It just
takes a little extra discipline. But I will tell you
if you switch the amount of time that you're spending
(44:45):
on that little device and just shift it to reading
ten pages a day, right, it's just these that's the thing.
That's just their miner shift. So I just learned to
sort of look at the minor shifts that I need
to be to get me to where I need to be.
Speaker 4 (45:02):
I think that's a really great point.
Speaker 3 (45:03):
It's a great point to end on too, that you
just can create minor shifts to steady the boat and
steady your path. And of course you don't have to
get into big trouble. Well, you just have to get
into good trouble. So that means small steps can make
big accomplishments. And of course when you enjoy good triple
and joint in good trouble and joint and small SIPs.
Because I do embrace and encourage sipping and moderation.
Speaker 5 (45:28):
And sipping responsibly, right, we want everyone snipping responsibly.
Speaker 3 (45:33):
I'm a big believer in being a responsible slipper. Always
to go for the best you can afford, go for
the better product, and drink in moderation.
Speaker 4 (45:43):
I rather have.
Speaker 5 (45:45):
And a little of it versus a lot of that
I'm also because that's actually about our spirit. And I'm
so happy you said that. This is a great way
I want people to big. I want you. In fact,
someone told me as early on my journey as I
had this one idea back to French. Oh I think
I'll get one. It's like, no, I want you to
think five times larger. You can do that. But also,
(46:06):
you know what, love on yourself, give yourself, treat yourself
and just get the best of something. And so I
much rather have you know, one beautiful silk, beautiful blouse
or something that I love all the time versus a
little bit or even bourbon. I mean, I'm always going
to drink some of the best and you're not always
going to be there for that. But if you get it,
you know, savor it. But I want people to take
(46:28):
care of their own spirits by just treating yourself and
walk as something. But listen, this has been for a
long long time, and I'll get a chance to chat again.
I appreciate you for all the great things that you're
doing for your audiences, and thank you for allowing me
to share my story with them. I know already that
(46:49):
you are living fearlessly and fabulously and all the things
that you trying. But the thing is, I'm going to
say one thing about that you're not trying, you're doing.
We have to say, yeah, I'm being appreciate and you
are doing it, and your audience isn't doing it too,
And they got to understand that they have opportunities to
realize the dream and just not thinking about so many things.
(47:11):
Just choose a few things.
Speaker 3 (47:14):
Yeah, to choose, do lesson, do it, do it with
the most passion possible and correct and you em raised
passion and purpose. Well, so thank you for that a wrap,
Thank you, so thank you, Dean Robinson. So if you
want to learn more about Good Trouble All Bourbon, it's
Good Trouble Bourbon dot com. And you have a website
as well, right, what is it?
Speaker 5 (47:34):
Yes, well, most of everything goes to the Good Trouble
Bourbon dot com. Thencouraged by deesign dot com if anyone's
interested in the book, or they can get that on Amazon.
Speaker 3 (47:43):
But courage by design.
Speaker 5 (47:45):
Yes, But listen, the most important thing is that I
want everyone to do. We were built to slay dragons,
remember that, and you just go do you go do
fabulous the world is just waiting for you.
Speaker 3 (48:00):
Absolutely again, great show, great conversation despite some ins.
Speaker 4 (48:05):
And outs, but that's life.
Speaker 3 (48:07):
Thank you for joining me, for all of you out there,
thank you for continuing to join me. This is twelve
years I've been doing this for and it's all purpose
and passion. So as I always like to end my show,
as I always like to end my show, it was
my second chapter. You have the choice in life to
do a lot of things. Always choose to live life
(48:29):
on your terms and not by the terms that other
people try to set for you, because you don't want
to be put in anybody's corner. You want to be free,
to be fearless and fabulous always and always choose fearless.
Speaker 5 (48:42):
In fact, well well said, thank you for that gift, Melanie,
so my pleasure to.
Speaker 3 (48:49):
Be thank you, all right.
Speaker 5 (49:09):
H
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