Tiffany Ball: Authenticity Scales and how kindness becomes a business strategy

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Hi, I am Tiffany Ball, and I'm the founder of
Grow Networking.
And we are a platform forentrepreneurs to get together
and grow their business.
And we do that by in-personevents, for networking, where
it's really more forservice-oriented people.
So if you're looking to come andshove your card in somebody's
face, that's not the space to doit.

(00:21):
We are about learning how peopledo business versus what you do
for business.
And then we have an onlinemembership platform as well.

SPEAKER_01 (00:28):
That is amazing.
Okay, so bring me back.
Okay.
How did you get started in allof this?

SPEAKER_00 (00:34):
Oh, that's a long story.
I'm going to shorten it up foryou.
I have a 20-year background inhospitality.
So I manage Hilton and Marriotthotels across the United States.
And we uh when I was inAlbuquerque, New Mexico, I got
pregnant and I had my son, andwe moved to Colorado, and I
realized I cannot be ahospitality person running

(00:56):
hotels anymore if I wanted to bea good mom.
So we moved to Virginia and Istarted on my entrepreneurial
journey.
And if anybody's ever done that,you understand the ups and
downs.
I eventually had to go back andwork for someone again.
And in that process, I gotfired.
And I don't get fired.
That's not who I am as a person.
So it was devastating.

(01:17):
And I ended up having to kind ofreevaluate what I wanted to do
for the rest of my life.
And so I sold my home and 90% ofmy things and bought a 36-foot
travel trailer and moved intothat and was going to homeschool
my son and travel around thecountry because I just didn't
want to work for anybody everagain.

(01:39):
Never again.
And so that idea kind of got putto the side when I realized I
was running and I was, I wasn'tdoing what I was meant to do.
And I'm a believer in purpose.
So I decided to stay, stickaround.
And I told my son's father,because we work really well,

(01:59):
co-parenting, we're goodfriends, and he owns his own
business.
And so I said to him, I what doyou think about not moving
around?
And he was like, okay, what doyou want to do?
And I said, I don't know.
I want to be a public speaker,but I have no idea how I'm going
to get there.
No idea.
And he said, okay, well, you'regoing to have to make money.
So why don't you get your lifeinsurance license and you go and

(02:21):
sell for me?
And I was like, I don't likeselling.
I hate selling.
And he was like, just go tonetworking events and market us
around and make appointments.
I'll sell.
And I was like, cool, I can dothat.
And so I started networking.
And I was really good at itbecause I'm very good with
people.
I'm very good with making peoplefeel comfortable around me
fairly quickly.

(02:42):
But in the process, I recognizedthat there was a space that
needed to be filled.
And that was for people whonetworked the way that I did.
A lot of networking events arevery ick.
It's like the minute you go in,everything's transactional.
You don't feel good.
And therefore, people don't goback.
And if you're not out therenetworking, building your social

(03:02):
proof in person, then it takes alot longer to build your
business.
And so I felt a lot of businessowners were missing out on
opportunity because they didn'tlike the space and how it felt.
And so I decided to create grownetworking where we get rid of
the ick and bring businessowners together and
professionals together tonetwork in a way that feels a

(03:23):
lot more comfortable andnurturing, as woo-woo as that
sounds and um enjoyable.

SPEAKER_01 (03:31):
So you are speaking to the wrong person when it
comes to the I had an eventcalled My Growth Tribe
Networking for Introverts.
There you go.
Back in the day.
Essentially, because I believedin all of that stuff.
Woo-woo, the it needs to feelgood.
Yes.
Otherwise, it's kind of chore.

SPEAKER_00 (03:52):
Exactly.
And then you don't want to doit.
And if you're not doing all thethings to help your business
grow, you're probably not goingto be successful.
Because what I mean, the successrate in entrepreneurship is
fairly low.
People give up really quickly.
And so why not really put it?
And one of the reasons isbecause I met so many business
owners that I just wanted tohelp.

(04:13):
It was like, you are seemed likea good person.
What do you do?
And they would explain.
I'm like, okay, how can I knowanything about foot massages,
but let me figure out how I canhelp you?
And so it's creating a passionor diving into my passion for
helping others and being ofservice and growing a business
and never working for anybodyagain.

SPEAKER_01 (04:34):
Never traumatized.
Oh my God, never again.

SPEAKER_00 (04:37):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (04:38):
So you said that networking should feel authentic
and inclusive.
What does that look like inpractice at Grill?

SPEAKER_00 (04:44):
That's a really good question.
So in practice, it's a lot ofdesigning questions and taking
the thought process off of theirhands and out of their hands
when you come in.
So you know that the first partof it's free range.
So you can talk to whoever youwant to.
Um and the environment's verycomfortable.
You have me and people like mewho are around talking and, you

(05:07):
know, laughing and connectingpeople and making you feel
comfortable.
If you're that introvertstanding off in the corner,
right?
Looking at everybody.
Exactly, because there's alwaysfood, girl.
You got to have food.
We bring you in and talk to you.
And then the second part of itis intentional networking.
So I design games, I designicebreakers, and I am the one

(05:29):
that brings the questions andthe theme to the event.
And so each question is designedfor you to get vulnerable.
And not in the way we're nottalking about, you know, traumas
that happened to you when youwere a child, but we're talking
about maybe the struggles thatyou're going through as an
entrepreneur, maybe the thingsthat have helped you get through
those hard things, or maybe somequestions you might have about

(05:51):
marketing or whatever it may be,it is an opportunity for you not
just to say, oh, I'm this personand this is what I do for a
living.
It's an opportunity for you toconnect genuinely with somebody
because when you do that andyou're vulnerable, it's an
opportunity for people to likeyou, to become like likable.
And what happens when you'relikable is people remember you.

(06:12):
And when they remember you,you're out though out there in
those spaces where you're not.
And so they can talk about youbecause they want you to
succeed.
And that's the type ofnetworking that I want.
Not, oh, I have to, I got thisguy's business card.
I don't know, he might be good.
He's a plumber.
Here you go.

SPEAKER_01 (06:28):
Stanning into the CRM.
Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 (06:30):
And then now I have this list of plumbers versus,
hey, I really have this guynamed Jose who I really love.
He's a great person.
He's service-oriented, he'sgreat in his community, and he's
gonna pick up the phone when youcall him.
So that is the type ofnetworking that I'm trying to
nurture out there with Grow.

SPEAKER_01 (06:48):
That's beautiful.
And you talk about transactionalnetworking versus
relationship-driven networking.
You kind of just now touched onit.
Is there anything else you'dlike to add to that?

SPEAKER_00 (06:58):
I think I need for people to understand that there
is value in all different typesof networking.
Just because you want to betransactional doesn't mean
there's anything wrong with it.
But there are a lot of peoplethat don't like that.
There are people who do liketransactional networking, like
BIs and things like BI, 212s,things like those, those are

(07:21):
more like uh referral groups.
I don't look at that asnetworking in a way because
you're not growing anything.
You're just kind of stickingwith one person in each
industry.
But for me, you network the waythat makes you feel good.
So if you don't like to dovulnerability and, you know,
somebody giving you thequestions, you only want to talk
about your business, then growisn't for you.

(07:42):
But it's okay.
Like find what fits because theend goal is that you're out
there building a network ofpeople that will help you grow
your business.

SPEAKER_01 (07:49):
You just seem like somebody fun that I would want
to know.
Like I wish you was my wingperson.
You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 (07:55):
Like I am a really good wing person, but I'm also,
I think I learned it at a verynot a very early age.
I'm lying.
I learned when I was 33 yearsold that there is a power in
being honest about the mess andwho you are as a person.
And I got the opportunity totake a mask off, you know, after

(08:15):
30.
I that what I'm talking about isI'm sober.
So I got sober 10 years ago.
And in that process, I realizedhow inauthentic I was presenting
myself to the world.
And people find me very friendlyand comforting and connectable
because I'm just so honest aboutwho I am as a person.

(08:36):
I'm awkward, I'm messy, I dropthe F bomb probably more often
than I should, but it's just whoI am.
And I genuinely just want to beof service to other people
because it makes me feel good.
It's a selfish reason.
It makes me feel good.

SPEAKER_01 (08:47):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (08:48):
But thank you for that.

unknown (08:49):
Welcome.

SPEAKER_01 (08:51):
Um, we're just speaking on authenticity.
It's funny.
It's leading me to my nextquestions here.
Why is it important to createthose spaces where entrepreneurs
can show up as their trueselves?

SPEAKER_00 (09:02):
I think for two reasons.
One, when we are able to be ourtrue selves, people connect with
us more.
Um, there's a story I like totell people about one of my
premier partners, his name isChuck Hall with Winston
Timineys.
And I just love him, but he isjust authentically who he is.
But he's a man's man, right?

(09:22):
He's not about gettingvulnerable.
And we were at a networkingevent, and one of the questions
was for him to talk aboutsomebody who is like a mentor to
him and he respects a lot andadmires in his field.
And as he was talking to thisabout this person, there was
just this moment where he was sohimself and so vulnerable and so

(09:43):
open that I had a visceralreaction where I connected with
him.
And because of that, in thatmoment, even though before I
wanted him to succeed, in thatmoment, I wanted him to succeed
even more.
So it was like doubled down onthis feeling of whatever I can
do to help you succeed.
So when you're able to beyourself, people can connect
with you more.

(10:04):
The other part of that, and theother part of the coin is when
you're able to be yourself, thenyou can do it longer and you can
you can focus on things thatmean more in your business and
you can enjoy it more.
The reason I wanted, I didn'tlike being in the structure of
working for somebody, you know,in hospitality, in any
management, I did management fora really long time.

(10:26):
You're playing a role.
You're being who somebody elseneeds you to be to fill that
space.
And it becomes very strenuousand it's a very, it's an energy
sucker.
But if you can go and be aroundpeople who are authentically
themselves and be yourself, youleave and you have more energy.
You leave and you love whatyou're doing.
And therefore, when things gethard, it's easier for you to get

(10:47):
through those, through thosespots and those spaces because
you can you can latch on to atleast I get to be myself.
I could be broke, but I could bemyself being broke.
You can go to bed and feel good.
Exactly.
Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 (10:59):
What lessons from your own career shape the way
that you approach buildingcommunity?

SPEAKER_00 (11:06):
Oh gosh, you're good with these questions.
I probably will say withhospitality, I spent 20 years
building a facade of who I wasand who I thought other people
needed me to be, whether it bedriving a BMW, having a bunch of
money, wearing the clothes, youknow, going out in the spaces,

(11:29):
telling you what I thought youwanted to hear.
And when I got sober, I realizedI had to start building a life
that I didn't want to run awayfrom.
And in building a life that Ididn't want to run away from, I
had to recognize and startlearning about who I was really.
And in breaking down my loves,my hates, my, you know, the

(11:53):
things I was insecure about andputting them out there, I
started to attract the rightpeople that were going to help
me get to where I needed to be.
And when it comes to networking,I recognized that this, these
things and these lessons that Ilearned about being myself and
showing up for myself, and thenit in turn helped me show up for
other people wasn't justsomething for my personal life.

(12:13):
It was something that you can doin business.
And I think that it gets reallytechnical.
You know, if I'm an insuranceperson, then I need to be really
good at selling insurance orknowing about insurance.
When at the end of the day, if Imeet you and you sell insurance
and you talk, start talkinginsurance to me, I don't want to
keep talking to you.

(12:34):
I don't have any connection withthat.
It's for you to know aboutinsurance.
I'm glad you know about it.
But do you have a dog?
You a dog or a cat person?
Like, where'd you go onvacation?
Who are you as a person?
And so when people understandthat it's okay to be themselves,
it's okay to not talk businessand it'll get you more business

(12:54):
if you stop talking so muchabout business.
I think that the world would bea better place if people veered
more into that direction.
I don't know if I just rambledor not.

SPEAKER_01 (13:05):
No, it was a beautiful ramble because it
definitely touches on the factthat people need to fall in love
with you as a human first.

SPEAKER_00 (13:12):
100%.

SPEAKER_01 (13:12):
And then it doesn't matter what you sell, they want
to support you.

SPEAKER_00 (13:15):
Exactly.
I could be selling shoes or Icould be selling Diet Coke.
It doesn't matter.
They're like, Tiffany, we'regonna sell those shoes and the
Diet Coke at the same timebecause I love you and I want
you to succeed.
Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 (13:28):
Um, okay, so what values do you prioritize when
building your team and yourpartnerships?

SPEAKER_00 (13:34):
That is a really good question.
Uh, the first thing that poppedinto my head is humility.
I have learned in the shortperiod of time that I've been
focused on this networkingbusiness, um, but also in the
long 10 years that I've beensober, humility is something
people don't practice enough.
And by that I mean being able toown your stuff without blaming,

(13:57):
pointing fingers, because we'reall human.
It's something I'm teaching myson.
It's a huge thing I'm takingteaching my son, is how to just
be okay with getting thingswrong.
Admit that you're wrong, andthen let's move on.
Let's talk about it and let'smove on.
And I find that uh there's ahuge value in finding

(14:18):
individuals who are okay withbeing wrong and who can admit
when they're wrong in a humbleway, who can apologize, who can
own their side of the street.
And I think that goes hand inhand with another characteristic
is kindness.
Like the kindness is so lackingin the world.
Not nice.
I don't like nice.
I'm not nice.
I'm very kind because beinghonest with people is kind,

(14:40):
being humble is kind, beinggenerous is kind.
Kindness is kind of the root ofjust the beauty that is being a
human being.
And I think that when you findthese individuals and these
nuggets, and these are thepeople that I'm trying to
attract, because it's it'scharacteristics and it doesn't
matter where you came from, itdoesn't matter your background,
it doesn't matter what you'vedone for a living, it doesn't

(15:01):
matter what you do for a living,your color, your race, your sex,
your nothing.
Kindness and thesecharacteristics are the
foundation of the people who Iwant to be around and people who
I want to support.
So that I'm always looking forcharacteristics versus, you
know, what you do or what you'vedone for a living.

SPEAKER_01 (15:20):
Now you said you're kind, but not nice.

SPEAKER_00 (15:23):
Correct.

SPEAKER_01 (15:24):
I think I know where you're going with that, but can
you just clarify?

SPEAKER_00 (15:26):
Absolutely.
Uh nice I find to be ummanipulative.
I'm gonna be nice becausethere's something I either want
from you or something I don'twant to do, whether it be say no
to you, whether it be set aboundary.
Nice is a people-pleasing trait.
Kindness is not, kindness isjust an act and it's a
characteristic of how you wantto show up for other people in

(15:49):
the world.
I was nice for a very long time.

SPEAKER_01 (15:52):
I'm not nice anymore.
Yeah, I'm kind when I'm not.

SPEAKER_00 (15:55):
Yeah, exactly.
It's a I'm I'm a recoveringpeople pleaser girl.

SPEAKER_01 (15:59):
You offer business spotlights and premiere partner
opportunities.
How do these features helpmembers grow their brand in a
meaningful way?
And I know we haven't touched onthe membership platform.
I'm gonna ask you about thathere in a second.
But can you tell me a little bitabout the spotlights and the
premiere?

SPEAKER_00 (16:12):
Absolutely.
So one of the things that Ithink is the is very valuable
when it comes toentrepreneurship or
professionals who are trying tohave a reach is exposure.
And a lot of people don't knowhow to get exposure, whether it
be being in a networking eventand there be 30 people, how do
you talk to all those 30 peoplein that time?

(16:33):
Or it be social media.
Girl, everybody in thisalgorithm and Instagram,
Facebook, LinkedIn, what shouldI get?
It's confusing.
And so what we do with platformsandor premier partners and
spotlights is we platformbusiness owners in front of an
audience.
And it's an active audience.
It's a business business ownersand people who are looking

(16:55):
either to be a client or lookingto be to show and connect you
and know how to do thenetworking thing, which is
connection.
Um, and so what we do is offerit's not just about exposure,
it's about connecting, it'sabout giving you warm connects
with people and teaching you.
I also do a little bit ofcoaching.
I don't tell a lot of peoplethis, but I just did.

(17:18):
I did, and I'm about to tell.
And the only reason is because Idon't like the word coach.
I'm just I have my PTSD withdoing that in the past.
But I I like to tell people howto become friendly and to
attract people in the two tothree minutes that they get in
front of an audience or whenthey're doing things on social
media, how to attract the peoplethat they want by being a good

(17:40):
person, not by marketingstrategic things.
Because God, I don't knowanything about that.
So yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (17:46):
Like how to warmly connect with exactly.
I can do that all day.
How do you measure success forgrow?
Not just in numbers, but like animpact in your community.

SPEAKER_00 (17:57):
It's a oh it's a it's interesting because for me,
it's how it feels.
And again, it's the woo-woothing, but it's the passion for
me.
It has to feel good.
And it I'm a little slower inprobably the growth that I can
see with what I'm doing becauseI feel like if I go too fast,

(18:20):
it's not gonna feel right.
And the reason I started grow inthe first place is because these
other places weren't feelinggood.
They didn't feel good when Ileft or when I entered, and it
was clicky.
And I my the way that I measureit is we just had um an event
last week at in Manassas at theR Factory.
It's one of the places, venuesthat we have, and I love the

(18:40):
space.
And it was just like the perfectevent.
And afterwards, so many of youare like, You're on to something
here, Tiffany.
You have traction.
I love this.
This feels good.
I'll be back.
When's your next one?
It's just on the word of mouthand what people are doing.
And it's slower, right?
Because it's organic, but I needit to feel good because as soon
as I lose that, I lose thereason I started it.

SPEAKER_01 (19:01):
Yeah, I love that.
What advice would you give toentrepreneurs who feel hesitant
or uncomfortable aboutnetworking?

SPEAKER_00 (19:09):
Do it anyway.
Because any when it comes toowning a business, when it comes
to growing a business orstarting your entrepreneurial
journey, whether it be sidehustle or whatever, you are
entering in a space where youdon't know what you're doing.
None of us know what we'redoing.
And if you let fear stop youbecause you're gonna feel

(19:29):
stupid, you're gonna feel likeyou don't know what you're
doing, you're gonna feel likeyou're gonna mess up a lot.
You're gonna get into certainspaces and be like, oh, I need a
backpedal, need to do this.
You're there's going to be a lotof fear.
And it's the same withnetworking.
Am I gonna meet the rightpeople?
I didn't get as many cards as Iwanted, or I didn't sell
anything in this.

(19:50):
Whatever it is, whatever you'refeeling that's keeping you from
doing it, do it anyway.
Because that's how you exercisethe muscle and you get
comfortable being uncomfortable.
And that's how people, peoplewho can continue and get through
those things, those are thepeople those are the people who
succeed, and those are thepeople who win.
It's people who can say, okay,I'm scared and I'm afraid, and I

(20:13):
don't know what I'm doing, and Idon't know what's on the other
side, but I'm gonna do itanyway.

SPEAKER_01 (20:18):
That's beautiful.
And speaking of stepping andexpanding and growing, can you
tell me a bit a little, tell mea little bit more about the
membership platform?

SPEAKER_00 (20:27):
Yes.
And this is if we're talkingabout fear, I am so afraid
because it's something new.
We wanted to expand, not just inperson, because there's only so
many people you can reach inperson, and there's only so much
time that you can allot in aperiod.
And I am one person, so I can'tbe in 50 million places.

(20:48):
And so what we the idea that wehave is to create an online
community of people who have apaid, it's a paid membership,
monthly membership at a lowentry because people who pay,
pay attention.
And these are for entrepreneursor business owners or
professionals who are looking toexpand on how to get to the next
level of their business, notjust with networking, but with

(21:11):
sales, with marketing, and withany type of thing that's going
to grow your business.
And so we're creating acommunity online and we are
doing a soft launch, which isgoing to be in October.
Fingers, October 20th is oursoft launch, and we're looking
for entrepreneurs who arelooking to be in our founder
circle.
And so if anybody's interestedin that, of course, connect with

(21:33):
me.
But the reason we're doing thisis because it is an opportunity
for everyone to participate andto participate on their own
time.
Because maybe you're theentrepreneur that you're not
free during the day.
And so you can't make anetworking event, or you have
kids, or you have two jobs, orwhatever it is.
It's a way for you to show up inthe time.
If you've got an hour at threeo'clock in the morning, then

(21:55):
that's when you're there workingon your business and learning
from people and connecting withthe people who are in the
community.
So it's just another level, thenext level of connection that
we're offering at GrowNetworking.
I love that.
Thank you.
That's exciting.
Very.
I'm when I say I'm afraid, I'mafraid every day when I wake up.
But I my superpower is gettingthrough it.

(22:16):
I promise.

SPEAKER_01 (22:17):
Looking ahead, what's your vision for Grow?
And where do you see thecommunity expanding in the next
five years?

SPEAKER_00 (22:25):
I don't know if I'm blushing.
I am not little, right?
And we're not talking aboutweight.
I'm not little.
I am very big.
Anytime I do anything, my dreamand my idea for it is big.
So grow is gonna be nationwide.
And at the end of the day, I'mhoping worldwide.

(22:47):
You think B and I, that's as bigas I want to be.
I want to be everywhere.
And it's not because I wantmillions.
I do, I do want to make a lot ofmoney, but it's mostly because I
want to help people.
The economy and society isshifting, right?
Especially here in the UnitedStates.
We're shifting.

(23:08):
And people are not as secure intheir nine to fives anymore and
what that means for theirfamily, what that means for just
their livelihood and theirhappiness.
And so people are shifting intoentrepreneurship.
And if I can be a stepping stonefor those people to make it the
transition easier, morecomfortable, and more joyful and
more connected and fulfilled,then that's what I want to do.

(23:31):
And it's a big dream, girl.
In five years, it's a big dream.
I'm hoping.
We're not gonna hope.
We are just gonna do.
In the next five years, we'regonna be nationwide and we're
gonna be in cities that want tobring us there with events as
well as the online playerplatform.
But that is the uh that's theplan.

SPEAKER_01 (23:50):
I love that.

SPEAKER_00 (23:50):
Cross your fingers.

SPEAKER_01 (23:53):
I love that.
I love that.
Is there anything else that youwould like to share before we
wrap things up that I haven'tasked you about?
One more thing, I think.

SPEAKER_00 (24:05):
It it does not take anything, much of anything.
It doesn't take any money to bekind and be of service and to do
for other people first.
And the reason I started thiswhole idea was because I am of
the belief that the more thatyou do for others and the more
you show up for others, the morethe universe, God, whatever you

(24:29):
want to call it, shows up foryou.
And so if I leave today withanything, if with giving any
type of advice, it is don'tforget that the more that you
give, the more you you receivein return.
That's all that I have left.

SPEAKER_01 (24:43):
Thank you so much for being on this podcast.
I cannot wait to see where Grogoes.
It's my pleasure.
That's so exciting.
Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 (24:51):
Thank you for having me, legitimately.
I really enjoyed it.