Lessons From a UCONN Boss w/ Amy Errett

00:00:03
Speaker 1: Hey, everyone, welcome back to another episode a thud Around and find out. I'm here with my girl as Shanty. Hey Shanty, Hey, how you doing girl? I'm great, so excited to be back on the pod. How are you doing?

00:00:17
Speaker 2: I'm cold?

00:00:18
Speaker 3: I'm cold because why would New York City have one of the biggest snow storms ever since forever?

00:00:27
Speaker 4: Why not did you go play in the snow? Play girl?

00:00:29
Speaker 3: I was hiding.

00:00:30
Speaker 4: Are you kiddy? You're so lam Let me say something? Uh uh listen.

00:00:36
Speaker 3: Even on my way here to record this, I got stuck in my uber. No, I'm yo, I kid you not. It was so bad that the people on the street came to help us get out of the snow. I was like, the community is surrounding me in ways that I didn't expect.

00:00:54
Speaker 4: It's actually really funny. It's insane. So, no, I didn't play in the snow this go around. Mm hmmm, he missed out.

00:01:04
Speaker 3: Listen, how was it for you? Cause I know, like your game changed.

00:01:08
Speaker 1: Yes, so we had our game move from Sunday to Saturday because they're like, oh, we might not able to get home. We don't be stuck in New Jersey and we would have been stuck. There's no way the way it was coming down yesterday, there's no way we would have been able to make it home. So that was it was a lot of fun to how like an actual we had an off day. We could enjoy the snow. I want to go shoot in the morning. And we came back and it was just so winter wonderland. And my Christmas tree is still up. So low Ki was giving Christmas five girl, not the Christmas tree.

00:01:38
Speaker 4: She was like, it feels like Christmas is coming.

00:01:42
Speaker 3: Well, you had an extra white Christmas again, because that snow was insane. Now, when I used to live closer, when I used to live in Manhattan, I used to go to Central Park and take like a little what do you call those things that you like go down the hill with what No, it's not a slip, but it's like it's like a big I guess it kind of is like a slub, but it's like a big piece of piece of plastic and you sit on it and you go down like the hill. But anyways, those days are over. Now I go down the hill and hurt something. Girl, be out of commission for life, so lame listen, I'll beat that. I'll be healthy and lame.

00:02:19
Speaker 4: Girl, you gonna be healthy and slid, you know, just be responsible. I wouldn't. I wouldn't know because I don't do that.

00:02:28
Speaker 1: Never.

00:02:29
Speaker 3: No, never, especially not during season.

00:02:32
Speaker 4: Absolutely not.

00:02:34
Speaker 2: No.

00:02:36
Speaker 3: So you're in conference, You're like, you know, deeper in conference play. Now, does it feel different than like preseason or not preseason, early season, non conference play.

00:02:46
Speaker 4: Oh yeah for sure.

00:02:49
Speaker 1: I just I feel like when you hit this point mid January, it's like when the grind starts to hit. It's like your in conference, it's almost. Our schedule is almost it's basically like off day either two practice or one practice game, off day, practice, travel game, off day game like it's it's so everything is back back to back, no rest, You're just on the grind. So I feel like this is the time where you start to get tired. It's easy to fall into that, like you're just like you're tired.

00:03:17
Speaker 4: Yeah. So I feel like that's been our goal.

00:03:19
Speaker 1: We've been really trying to make sure we're still having fun competing and getting better well as usual.

00:03:26
Speaker 3: Super fun to watch and I'm excited for you.

00:03:29
Speaker 4: Thank you.

00:03:29
Speaker 3: You guys are still undefeated. I know you're still taking it. One day at a time, or one game at a.

00:03:35
Speaker 4: Time, one practice at a time, it's same. How do you like?

00:03:41
Speaker 3: It can be a very long season, especially when it's like back to back to back. How do you rest or how do you take time to recover in between all this?

00:03:49
Speaker 4: Oh you don't. I don't play about my recovery period. I don't play about that.

00:03:53
Speaker 1: So honestly, the game change was really nice so that we could have this off day, But it was tough because we went from Georgetown. We stayed the night there and then we drove to New Jersey next morning, literally drove right to the gym, practice, went to the hotel, dinner, went to bed at an early wake up, no shoot around.

00:04:09
Speaker 4: Had the game.

00:04:10
Speaker 1: The lack of recovery we got definitely hit me. I'm old, my body's old.

00:04:14
Speaker 4: It hurts. And I didn't pa.

00:04:17
Speaker 1: I didn't thinking we were gonna not go home, so I would have brought more recovery stuff with me. But I think making sure that, especially at this time, recovery is such a priority. Like usually an off day it's like, Okay, well let me go get my own shots in, let me do my own workout. This time of season, it's like no that doesn't make any sense, Like I need to sauna, I need a massage, I need a cold tub, I need to roll out, I need to do my soft tissue, I need to get treat Like you just go down that list being actuld.

00:04:44
Speaker 4: Have you on the sauna? Oh I love a good sna session. Do you really? Yes?

00:04:49
Speaker 3: What Listen next time I'm at Yukon, I'm coming for the sauna in the cottage. Okay, Okay, I'm locked dude, but yeah, I love a good sona. But look, good luck to you and the rest of your season. You keep staying locked in. I'm gonna be right there watching. I'm sad I couldn't pull up to Jersey, but you know, a storm and listen. And I was taking public transportation because can you imagine me stuck on there? Oh? Girl, would exactly. I would be like everybody praying. But anyways, we have an exciting guest coming on.

00:05:29
Speaker 4: We have a super exciting and social guest. Today. We have Amy Ritt, who is the let's.

00:05:35
Speaker 1: Go through her long list of accomplishments and boss ladness, the founder and CEO of Madison Reed. She's a partner at True Ventures, a board member of the Wild Salmon Center. She got her MBA from the Warden School and her biggest flags obviously not being a founder and CEO, but she's a Yukon alum who is inducted to the Yukon School of Business Hall of Fame.

00:05:56
Speaker 4: Do you want and only Amy Aritt?

00:06:07
Speaker 1: Today we have a super super special guys, the one and only Amy Eric.

00:06:13
Speaker 4: Yes, welcome Amy.

00:06:15
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me.

00:06:16
Speaker 1: I'm excited, thanks for joining us. Amy is a Yukon alum, which I think is so amazing. Run do you I didn't even know there was a Business school Hall of Fame.

00:06:28
Speaker 2: Yeah, you could be in it one day.

00:06:30
Speaker 1: Oh I could. I know that would be crazy to have my name next year. It's just you're gonna have a lot more boss lady. I got a long way to go before I'm I reached out.

00:06:40
Speaker 2: I think, yeah, I think the boss lady is in there. Definitely, let's see it. You're gonna help me bring her out, no, no question?

00:06:47
Speaker 3: Okay, So Amy, how did you and as meet?

00:06:50
Speaker 2: Well, first thing I want to say, I'm just really honored to be on the show. So thank you for having me. I met easy through uh the strategic partnership that we have with Yukon, which is we have our name of the company Madison Rate on the Court, the basketball Court of Yukon, both Court, Gamble and the Court and Hartford, and through that we started to explore nil deals as well. So we reached out to Asy's agent and then we just got to know her a little bit and of course fell in love with who she is and what she stands for and what an amazing basketball player she is. But first, what an amazing human she is.

00:07:38
Speaker 4: Oh my goodness, he's too sweet to me.

00:07:45
Speaker 3: Well, I wasn't going to ask what your first impression was, but I think you said quite a bit.

00:07:50
Speaker 2: I saw the of course, the accolades that she gets for her athleticism, which are amazing, and she's playing great this year, Happy, thank you. And I also saw a lot of other potential, her potential for wanting to be in business or potential for a She's just the kind person and so I gravitate towards people that like people.

00:08:15
Speaker 4: Well, said, Azy, what was your first impression.

00:08:18
Speaker 1: I remember meeting you that first shoot, and I think just your energy was really what struck me at first, because I wasn't sure, at least for me when I hear like CEO founder. I think like a little bougie, a little snobby, but like I don't know it strict, yeah, very strict. But you were so fun. You were just full of energy. You were joking, but you were so excited to be a part of it and so excited to be doing it. So it just made me more excited for that because it was like a longer shoot. Day didn't feel long, yeah, but it definitely was like hours long.

00:08:53
Speaker 4: So going into it was like.

00:08:54
Speaker 1: Oh, it's gonna be a long day. But then you came in, you brought the vibes. It was like, she's happy to be here. I'm happy to be here. So I feel like it.

00:09:01
Speaker 4: Just kicked us off to a great start.

00:09:03
Speaker 2: That's great, and we've been together. This is our second year, so yes it is. This is our second year. And then we'll follow it. We'll follow easy wherever she goes.

00:09:12
Speaker 4: Oh, I'm honored.

00:09:15
Speaker 2: How's that truck? Did you? Did you have to get that truck out of the snow this morning?

00:09:19
Speaker 1: No, I parked the truck in the garage last night because there was no chance. I don't own a shovel. I don't own like a little scraper thing for the car. There was no chance tell the people about the truck. What is the truck? I have the coolest car on campus, in the state of Connecticut and the country, probably the world.

00:09:36
Speaker 2: I think it's in the world universe domination.

00:09:39
Speaker 4: Seriously.

00:09:40
Speaker 1: I have a Madison Reed wrapped Rivian that I'm driving around and it honestly, I mean, it's pretty.

00:09:50
Speaker 4: It's a great car. We will have to add a picture of it.

00:09:53
Speaker 2: We're so honored to have easy drive it around. It's awesome. And I get reports from people I know in Connectic but on campus, I'll get like a text Asy just drove by. I'm like, cool, hopefully going to I mean, then I'll text her slow down. She's like, this is weird.

00:10:14
Speaker 4: How did you know?

00:10:15
Speaker 1: Okay, So I want to ask some questions about Madison Reid and kind of the start of that. What inspired you to revolutionize at home hair color.

00:10:24
Speaker 2: I was very concerned about the ingredients, and I'm a mission based person, so I don't like to work on things that I don't really care about deeply. That's just who I am. And I started to research what was in traditional hair color, and I got really nervous because every friend of mine and my wife, who colors her hair for ten days, literally has the color her hair every ten days, was like, you know, she cares about what you put in your body, on your body, and so she started to get concerned. I started to get concerned. She was going to a sele line every ten days. You can imagine how expensive that is. And so then it just became like I was a VC at the time of Venture Capitalist, and I just started researching, like how hard would it be to make hair color and take the harsh chemicals out? And then it just turned into an obsession. And I bought sixty boxes at Walgreens one day coming home running errands from Whole Foods, and I stopped in Walgreens for something, picking up something else, and then I'm like standing at that, you know, dreaded aisle of really confusing looking hair color, and I just put sixty boxes in my cart, and when I went to check out, the woman was like, what is happening here? And I got them home, took them all apart, and I was like, oh my god, the experience was terrible. The components were terrible. You ever see those gloves, They're like massive, like you can't there's just bad. Everything about it was bad. It was demeaning, and I just thought, ohking somebody to have confidence, to be beautiful, but we're torturing her in the process. That made no sense, smelled terrible. So I just went to work. I didn't know that I was going to start the company. I thought maybe I would fund somebody else to run it, because I had been doing a bunch of that. But then once I saw the size of the prize and the potential, I was like, I'm in. So then I raised a bunch of money and fast forward, here we are.

00:12:29
Speaker 1: That's amazing. Wait is that how you came up with your guys slogan too? You just mentioned how like we want these people to be confident. Confident is the new beautiful, which I love that slogan. That yeah, because.

00:12:44
Speaker 2: You know, it's named after my daughter. Her first name's Madison, her middle name's Read. And sometimes I think that comes across as narcissistic, and that's not what it's meant to come across. What it's meant to mean is that I really want every every person to feel the way that a parent feels about their kid, which is that everything is possible for them. I want every human being to use our product to feel like I'm I'm a boss lady. I can go out and just you know, do anything today. And I like that fact that confidence is not just physical external beauty. It's how you feel about yourself and how you treat others and how you live in the world. So that's that was the reason. Plus I think she has a good name, so I was happy about that.

00:13:36
Speaker 1: I completely agree on all friends. And she has a great personality. And Madison read for everyone who doesn't know her, is an amazing person, just like her mom.

00:13:44
Speaker 2: So she loves as they Asy came over the summer, and they weren't interested in Athy's mom and Clara and I, which they shouldn't be. They were more interested in hanging out with you.

00:13:55
Speaker 4: Guys had your adult conversations and we.

00:13:59
Speaker 2: You had what made sense for how Acy you're twenty two.

00:14:03
Speaker 3: I'm twenty three now. I was twenty two when I was over the summer though.

00:14:07
Speaker 2: Yeah, okay, so Madison turns twenty three in two weeks, so you're saying.

00:14:11
Speaker 3: A reasonally Yeah yeah, okay, Piers, Okay, so you launched your own formula and twenty thirteen.

00:14:18
Speaker 2: Twenty thirteen, we started, but it took us a year to get the formulas right. So we really launched in the summer of fourteen.

00:14:26
Speaker 3: Okay, yeah, and how do you even develop a hair dye formula?

00:14:30
Speaker 2: We went to the European Union. We went to Italy because in the EU most personal care products are much healthier than in the US. They have stricter regulations about what can be in products and what has to be out of products, and so we knew we had a better chance. I talked to a lot of manufacturers in the US and they laughed, literally laughed at me. They're like, you can't take a monia, you can't take PPD out. It won't work. One guy told me women don't care. They just want to be you know, they just want their hair to look good. And I said, well I.

00:15:04
Speaker 4: Care, Oh my gosh, so yeah.

00:15:06
Speaker 2: You know, if I'm going to put our name on it, I care. So I went and I literally went to Italy. This is actually a funny story. Have you ever been to Italy at all? Like, I Land and there's this guy that picks us up and he's got this like van, and you know, in Europe people drive like three hundred miles an hour, and it was like sleeting and raining, and I kept thinking to myself, I got to pull this off because if I die in this van, it wouldn't have been worth it. I better find a way to make hair color. I swear to God, That's what was going through my mind. I'm like, I kept telling him to slow down. He didn't speak any English. He was really funny, actually, And so I talked to twelve manufacturers, and the first eleven literally laughed at me. They're like, Ah, you can't do that. You can't say sell hair color the internet. No one's good to buy it. And then lucky number twelve. It's still our partner today. And so we have a factory in Italy where we make the color and then it gets put on a boat and brought to the US, and then it's accumulated into different colors and different and and today we'll sell this year or last year, you know, wheel ship like four million bucks.

00:16:24
Speaker 4: That's crazy.

00:16:25
Speaker 2: So, and we sell in sixteen hundred wal Marts as well all Alta stores, Target and Amazon at our own site. So and then we have our own stores where we where we do your hair for you. Asy's been in a couple of them. There's close to one.

00:16:42
Speaker 5: Hundred now throughout the country and growing serious boss lady stuff. That's what I'm saying, Oh, my goodness, to start from just wanting to do something better for like your wife who has to go get hair hair dyed every ten days, to being in almost every major retail like, that's amazing.

00:17:01
Speaker 4: So congratulations on that success.

00:17:03
Speaker 5: Thank you.

00:17:03
Speaker 2: I appreciate it. We're starting to also go outside the US now, so we're only in.

00:17:09
Speaker 6: The US, so we have a little it's a national stuff. So come on, I know we're just getting started and you're going to teach a Z how to also be a bus lady. As you guys have an internship.

00:17:21
Speaker 2: Brewing we do ass getting credits towards her NBA. I actually think this might be your final credits, am I right about that?

00:17:29
Speaker 4: Easy?

00:17:30
Speaker 3: They are my last three credits. All right, we'll go out and start, my goodness.

00:17:34
Speaker 2: And so, yeah, as is doing an internship with us in our marketing group. We've put together like a really good set of projects, two big projects for her and they're real. They're not I can curse on this, right, It's okay, not bullshit. They're real projects that we needed somebody to work on and we thought she was uniquely positioned to work on them. So we're excited.

00:17:56
Speaker 1: I'm super excited. I think this is going to be really cool just to see. You know, I've been taking classes and everyone in my classes is already working, has been working for years and has experience, and I'm learning all these things, but I don't I have nothing to apply it to, nothing to compare it to. So I'm really excited to learn, especially from you guys, how things work and how to do things the right way.

00:18:17
Speaker 2: Yeah, we're honored, and you know, as'll be working obviously remotely, but you'll be on Zoom stuff too, and I don't know, you know, we'll see if we can figure out a way to get together as well. But we're totally excited. We're totally honored, and it's good because I think this is one big thing that I believe in. Well, first of all, there is a direct correlation with women in sports and business. So Billy J. King has the Women's Sports Foundation. It's a nonprofit. They do a study every year. Think last year close to ninety percent of the women in C suite positions were athletes, and I think there's a lot of the same characteristics that you have about commitment, dedication, teamwork, all those things. And so I'm really focused on helping women once they stop playing sports to have careers. And I think that's important.

00:19:14
Speaker 4: I agree, and I really appreciate all your efforts.

00:19:17
Speaker 3: So, Amy, there's a question that we were told that you ask every new hire.

00:19:22
Speaker 4: Can you tell us what that question is and why you ask that question?

00:19:25
Speaker 2: The question is can you tell me something that didn't go well in your life and how did you respond to that? And the reason that I asked the question is that, you know, Madison reads a good example. It's never been just the straight line going up right. It's there's been a lot of struggles, There's been a lot of you know, life is made up of not just the great moments, but I think we really show who we are in life when the not great moments happen, and how do you respond to that? And I think the single most important factor in life is resilience and your strength comes from that. So I'm just trying to vet for whether somebody, if you know, something doesn't work out at work, is going to just give up or whether they're they're made of what I think, really you know, resilient, persistent, committed people are made of, which is what do I learn from this? And how do I grow? How do I go the next level in my life? And you know, adversity makes us stronger, that's forr that's for sure. So that's why I ask it, and I get all sorts of answers. I get answers that are fluffy, and those aren't usually ones of people we hire. Lots of fluff out there. I don't have good work life balance, and I'm like, what, that's exactly they're putting it in. They're you know, talking to perplexity on their phone. Give me the answer to give the CEO. But I get answers that are just like people telling me, like my mom had cancer and I helped her through, you know, the dying process. I've been I've had depression and I had to think about like why was I going to reorient my life to be committed to something like really extraordinary answers that make us who we are?

00:21:20
Speaker 3: Right, that's beautiful And I like that because I got the top and no quid is now no.

00:21:27
Speaker 1: I like that question and I feel like the way someone responds because you can like take the easy way and have a light answer, or you can like actually think about it and and be vulnerable, right, and.

00:21:36
Speaker 2: You won't be you know, like I always talk about it, Madison Reed, I want people to bring their full selves to work. I can want to create a culture and an environment where you bring your full self to work, and that means some days you're you know, not everything's perfect. So it's good. It's it's it's worked out as a good question to ask people.

00:21:59
Speaker 4: I love it.

00:22:00
Speaker 3: Listen, if this podcasting stuff doesn't worry, you'll hire it.

00:22:04
Speaker 2: Absolutely, I'd hire you both in a millisecond.

00:22:10
Speaker 4: We appreciate that, and we got that on the record. Yeah right, let's go back.

00:22:13
Speaker 3: Let's go back.

00:22:14
Speaker 2: Remind me like like five years you'll play it back for me, like Amy.

00:22:22
Speaker 4: Oh my goodness. Okay, So I'm gonna pivot.

00:22:24
Speaker 3: You mentioned in the beginning or earlier in our conversation about Madison Rey the logo being on the course and you guys, you know, moving into nil deals, et cetera.

00:22:36
Speaker 4: So why did you decide to work with the Huskies.

00:22:40
Speaker 2: Well, first, I'm a Husky, and you know, there's something about when you bleed blue, you bleed blue for life and so that's no, I mean, I think there's And then the next thing I'd say is I wanted to it just so happened that I was partnering with the Goal Standard, right, like Geno CD Chris Dally. There's a system and they pick certain women who have certain characteristics with them to play in that system. And I think the system is a very effective way to build camaraderie and a sense of you know, sisterhood and so you know, and the track record was pretty good, so I had a pretty good read. And so let's talk about it from a marketing standpoint. So one standpoint is a great team to partner with. Second standpoint was you have to evaluate whether the money you're spending to put the logo on those courts is going to get TV time right, and is going to get eyeballs and going to get recognition and going to get people in the stand saying what's that Madison Reid thing? And then you know, there's a big, you know, led sign that goes on all the time talking about, you know, buy the hair color writer. That is hair color. And I love the fact that so many women come to the games. So we had a really good chance that from a business perspective, it was going to pay off, which by the way, it has paid off in multiples, and I can kind of quote some things that have happened because of that. And I wanted to I wanted to support Geno and CD and the system and the school that mattered to me. So it just worked for those things. But what I also learned to Chante and Asy was, and this is just advice or anybody out there who has a business thinking about this, you can't just do nil deals without supporting the school because then you have misaligned goals. And our goals are aligned now right. The school wants Madison Read to win and ANIL players are benefiting from it. So like everybody's winning from the strategic partnerships. Right, there's no conflict at all. And I got to understand how important that is, Like get the girls for a photoshoot? Is time time when you're playing basketball is you don't have a lot of it, And so we needed to We needed to fit into that system and hopefully we've been able to do that.

00:25:13
Speaker 1: You have and I feel like you guys also go that extra mile where you care about the deal the school, do you care most importantly about us as people.

00:25:22
Speaker 4: Yes, and yeah, I don't know.

00:25:25
Speaker 1: I just I feel like that you guys really do take care of us and go that extra mile to make sure that we're taken care of, we're happy, and you try to support us in any way you can, and we feel that.

00:25:33
Speaker 2: Thank you. It really makes me feel good to hear that, because I've learned a lot in the last two years. Like I knew nothing coming into this, and what I've learned is when you're the brand, the sponsor, you have to treat people well, and you have to be reasonable about your asks and you have to think about their well being because if you don't, then you're just wasting your money. I mean, that's just honest and that I think these are human rules relationships. They have to matter more than just the compensation both ways.

00:26:04
Speaker 4: That's really well said.

00:26:05
Speaker 2: And I see some brands not doing that, and that bums me out. It really bums me out because it puts the athletes in a very tough position and I don't think that's I think it's a partnership, and it just bums me out because first of all, the athletes deserve to get paid one come on, one hundred percent. I mean I'm really I'm very upset about what's happening in the WNBA right now, right like this is you know this, like what are we talking about here? There's no difference in gender. This is just sports. This is people playing what they love and they deserve to be compensated. And I mean, I know this is maybe unpopular because probably we won't get her, but you know, I'm a Valkyrie season ticket holder. It is help that purple. I mean, they did need.

00:26:55
Speaker 3: Right, and.

00:26:58
Speaker 2: You know it's sold out for and I have Warrior season tickets, so I go to both. There's no less people watching the Valkyries than there are the Warriors. Trust me, it is sold out every night. It is crazy in that Chase Center, the support. So what is it that makes it different about those women playing than the men. It doesn't. So I just think that's one thing. And I think as at college athletes, if brands don't get that, they have to get that. And so it's not about paying people that they what they deserve. It's about also how you treat them right, how you understand their lives, their time, commitments, what's important to them, you know, in our case, and I'm happy to disclose this. You know we are Our deals have been fifty percent compensation and cash and fifty percent in equity in the company. So as is of Madison, r let me asy is going to be my boss one day. How's that? Because what I want is when this company gets to be worth a ton of money, that's amazing. I want these athletes to have something that they were part of that they can build wealth.

00:28:11
Speaker 4: That is amazing. Yeah, I got a creator's program.

00:28:14
Speaker 3: Let's talk, no, And honestly, you guys are pioneering something and I love how invested you are in like specifically women's sports, because as you said, it's the product has been there. The games are just as full as the mail games. So I just I love it.

00:28:33
Speaker 2: Yeah, and who you see in the stands, it's awesome, right, It's just not like women. It's you know, dads and their daughters, and you know, it's just so wonderful. It's the way the world should be, right And yet, you know, anyway, we'll get we'll get through this. We'll we'll get to the other side and we'll come on. We'll understand that this creates great leaders, and we need great leaders in the world.

00:28:58
Speaker 4: We sure do.

00:28:59
Speaker 1: I hope everyone is listen, taking notes from everything you're saying right now.

00:29:02
Speaker 4: For a fact or follow suit.

00:29:04
Speaker 3: Yeah.

00:29:05
Speaker 2: I mean again when people ask me, I mean, you know, I hope this is okay to say for you, Like the first year that we did this deal with you as hadn't played the year before, right, I think that's true, and so does I saw and I knew she was going to come back with fire lit right like she's playing like it's you know, it's it's crazy how well you're playing and you deserve it.

00:29:32
Speaker 4: Don't get me started.

00:29:33
Speaker 2: Yeah, exactly, Like it's just the girl's playing out of her mind. She's a beast, and you know, and I knew it, and everybody people said to me, not in a bad way, Well she didn't play last year. I'm like, I don't care. She's coming back that she's got the resilience that I'm talking about. She's got the resilience. That's that's what the world's looking for. As somebody who says this sucks, this is horrible, I'm either going to give up or we're going to come back stronger. And life people that win come back stronger every time because they realize that it's just a lesson whatever you believe in spiritually, you know, whatever that is, it's just what the universe puts in front of you for a reason. And then you rebuild and you rebuild, rebuild. So I knew that. I had no doubt about that. And then you know, we go on and win the National Championship, right, and now we're is it twenty and oh or nineteen and no, I can't keep up.

00:30:33
Speaker 4: I think we had twenty twenty one.

00:30:35
Speaker 2: You see that. Yeah, I just watched you guys. You know, I live in California, So Claire and I are like obsessed. You know, we get our glass of wine and we play, you know, and Claire will be like, look it easy, like look at it. You know, every time you hit a three point track. Asy knows Claire Claire knows nothing about sports, which is hilarious, but she's like, boom, she says, boom every time you get to a boom. I'm like, and you know, like we just got it right. But at the end of the day, the truth of it is that I want A Z's life to be amazing in the WNB and then whatever is that is beyond I mean, look at her, I mean, she could be a model, she can be an act, she can do anything she wants, and that's what we need in the world. More role models for kids.

00:31:25
Speaker 1: Well, you're a great role model for me, so I know, well, feelings, mutual, motivational speaker.

00:31:33
Speaker 3: I mean, what can't you do, miss Amy?

00:31:36
Speaker 4: It's nothing she can't do.

00:31:37
Speaker 2: Well, I'm sure it doesn't appear that way while I'm sitting here, but you know, I wish I had about you know, if I had six more inches, it would make my dreams control.

00:31:48
Speaker 3: So I have a question, Amy, outside of a Z do you have an all time favorite Yukon player.

00:31:54
Speaker 2: Well, there's so many that I think are iconic. But I'm going to go back back into the DT. I think DT set a standard Diana Tarassi for those that are listening that don't know that, just this there was a standard and excellence, toughness, resilience, swag. There's nothing she couldn't do, and she was focused on that. But there's like, you know, let's go you know, like Maya More, I mean, Rebecca Lobo, if you really want to go back, you know to Dog's. You know, it just goes on and on the list is insane, and you know, Page obviously, but now we're going to add Asy to that list. And you know, you've got to think about Sarah Strong. I mean, this is like it's just it's it's it looks completely effortless. It's kind of like this is an unfair advantage, you know. And the combo of the two of them is crazy. It's the two best players in basketball together on the same court, playing off each other. Right. So you know, you just go down the list of the iconic women that have come through that program and you know, it's extraordinary, and you know, Geno and CD and all the tea the staff should feel very proud of all everything they've built around the brand. It's a system. What I hope at Madison Reid is to emulate a system that people that come to work here have life changing experiences that are good in the world, and they're better people for it. If you can have that impact in people's lives, then your life mattered, and lives need to matter, right, you know, you have to have an impact every day or why do it? And so you know, if what we do is give a little bit, you know, if we sprinkle a little pebble into a pond and there's a ripple fact of goodness, and then people spread goodness, and then people that spread goodness. That's how the world changes. And we need it, man, we need it for sure.

00:33:57
Speaker 4: We do. It's Claire still there. I just saw her walk by.

00:34:00
Speaker 2: She's taking London out. So should I tell the Claire Asy story? Can I tell that?

00:34:08
Speaker 4: Please? I wasn't sure. Can we hype Claria for a second?

00:34:12
Speaker 2: Hype Clara Claire? Claire needs the hype. Claire's really the brains behind the whole operation, trust me. So when Easy was here, Claire as a as an artist, she's a painter, and uh, she sells her paintings, and you know, she's starting to she has no confidence in it, which like if Azy and I were, it's like it's like nuts, right. And so Madison and Asy are in the house because we have this little outdoor space and they had been outside and they came in the house and Acy's looking around at all these paintings and so they have a communization all of them. And so Asy's looking at this one that's pink and you know, yeah, and looking at this one and looking at this one, and Madison comes out and whispers to Claire, there's one painting that Asy really likes. She likes that pink one, and Claire says great. And then we come back in the house when they were leaving and hugging a kiss and says, you really like that painting? Oh yeah, I like it. So she left and she looked at me. She said, let's wrap it up and send it to her. I'm on the podcast, Claire, I'm telling them all about your painting. Claire. Hello, Claire saying, hey Claire, it's her other host who's adorable and wearing purple. She's so good, so good wearing purple. I mean, you had me at your jacket man. And so so we go to Katie and say, what's an address that we can send Asy the painting? And Katie says, are you sure? And we're like yeah. So we sent it to her Irish papa.

00:35:38
Speaker 3: Uh oh my goodness, and.

00:35:41
Speaker 2: Katie took a video of her unwrapping it. Asy had no idea. She's like, why are.

00:35:45
Speaker 4: You show me?

00:35:48
Speaker 2: You know, you know, our daughters blow you know what to their moms. You know, that's just normal, Like what's going on here? Then she opened it.

00:35:56
Speaker 1: And it's my first real piece of art in my room. I was like, it's too nice to be. I feel like it's too nice for a college apartment.

00:36:03
Speaker 2: You know, no way, it's adult and look what are you doing this year? It's giving you confidence and love, it's giving you, it's emanating those vibes like, get you what it is.

00:36:14
Speaker 4: It's the first thing I see when I wake up. My wa'st so heavy.

00:36:26
Speaker 6: You know.

00:36:27
Speaker 2: I'm just I'm learning.

00:36:28
Speaker 4: I'm learning from it and staying on top of that lingo I am.

00:36:30
Speaker 2: I'm trying. I have a lot of you know, I got a lot of twenty somethings that worked for me. They got to relate to me. They're like, hey, you're a dinosaur, and I'm like, I talk to you l that's right, You're gonna come with me. You're gonna I got so bad that's crazy. Oh my goodness.

00:36:48
Speaker 3: Okay, back to the basketball and business of things. Do you see a similarity between basketball and business?

00:36:56
Speaker 2: Absolutely? I think that basketball is you know, it's team and and it's learning the strengths of your teammates and then you know you're not going to throw the ball to the right if that's not good for them to get the ball on the right right, So it's that having empathy. It's building a team, it's building camaraderie, and it's doing it together. And I think when you run a business, like the most important thing is to build the team around you. And like, I know the things now that I really suck at, and I suck at a lot of things, and so I don't and so you build This is this is the Actually if I was given anyone advice listening about a business. The problem with most businesses is a CEO or a founder doesn't recognize where they're not strong, so that it's it's what I call the ego gap. You try to convince yourself you're graded everything, so then you don't put enough great people around you. And if you don't put great people around you, you can't scale a business. A lot of people don't know this, but I'm happy to talk about it. I have a coach. I have an executive coach that I meet with once a week and I talk about problems and concerns I have and places that I need to develop in my own consciousness, raising and where I make mistakes and trying to understand them and build more resilience. And so I think it's very much like that, right, because a lot of athletes have not just strengths coaches or coaches to get them in physical strength, but you should have mental coaches who are helping you think through those challenges.

00:38:39
Speaker 4: And my second thib.

00:38:41
Speaker 2: Yeah, so I think it's like anything else once you embrace your human All of us are human. We have a genius inside of us, and we have places that we're not as strong at. And life is, if I'm going to give you advice, life as all about one thing. Find that genius and don't do anything else. And because it's all about your happiness. And once you find that inside of you, that ignition point, then don't don't try to be something you're not. Just be you. You is great. You is perfect the way it is so you.

00:39:23
Speaker 4: It's all you got.

00:39:24
Speaker 2: You got it, you know, don't try to be what's that saying? Don't try to be anybody else they're already taken.

00:39:29
Speaker 3: Yeah.

00:39:30
Speaker 2: So, like when you find you and you just are, don't blame yourself and love yourself and you're happy with yourself and accept yourself. Life is all about finding that. If you can find that, that's what I want for my kid, That's what I want for Madison. I want her to find to herself whatever that thing is and then just do it and be a happy, productive person in the world. So that's why I think business and playing sports, playing playing basketball are very very similar.

00:40:02
Speaker 4: I love that so much. I'm taking notes.

00:40:06
Speaker 2: See what I see in Asy that's happening is she's finding her. She's finding her, and that's why she's I mean, she's so talented. But also I can see you blossoming right like you're You're finding you, not what your parents want, not what your friends want, not what your agent wants, not what Amy wants you, what do you want? And then stand in that space, Asy and eat.

00:40:38
Speaker 1: That is exactly my goal right now, find myself and eat. You couldn't have said it better, actually, cottage cheese, because we have.

00:40:48
Speaker 4: We talk about.

00:40:50
Speaker 2: We talked about it's the perfect food.

00:40:53
Speaker 5: It is.

00:40:54
Speaker 2: Thank you, it's the perfect food. It's there's no it's like not even question. You can't even question my right, It's like the perfect food. You can eat it by itself, you can add things to it. It's got great protein, it's low in calories, like it's it's just magnificent. That's all.

00:41:10
Speaker 3: It is.

00:41:11
Speaker 2: Easy, I mean we were made for each other. I know. She told me she's like, I love cot She was, Oh, I know what. You were going back and making some cookies with Cak after our photo shoot. Oh, I go, what are you going to make cookies of? Because Claire is also a chef. I'm super lucky and.

00:41:29
Speaker 4: Claire is a great chef, a phenomenal chef.

00:41:33
Speaker 2: Okay, sorry, And you won Claire's heart, not just at the painting, but you ate every piece of the food. That was all a trick. It was a track crazy. It was like whoa good wow, where's that going? Man? And so you told me that you were going home to make cookies with Cak, And I go, what kind of cookies? You go? I don't know, something with cottage cheese. And I thought, oh my god, I go cot I love cottage cheese. And then we were off. We were off were you don't like it? Ashante? I think?

00:42:04
Speaker 4: I think I haven't tried I haven't tried it. Yes, I have never tried cottage.

00:42:09
Speaker 2: I'm gonnat like I get I'm getting your text number and I'm just gonna start. You know, did you try it?

00:42:16
Speaker 4: Recommendations?

00:42:17
Speaker 2: Ezy? Do you have her address? We got to send her some kindage.

00:42:21
Speaker 3: I'm gonna do it actually right now, and I'm gon FaceTime you to try it. I said I would, so I got you. So what's your go to cottage?

00:42:29
Speaker 4: She's meal?

00:42:30
Speaker 2: Oh, I have so many of them, it's crazy. Uh, for lunch a lot. I have that. If you haven't bought good, that's the best kind. That's called good. And I have that with poached eggs.

00:42:43
Speaker 3: You get you eggs. Okay, azy, I would ask this question, but I feel like it's all of it.

00:42:52
Speaker 4: But go ahead. What's your go to cottage? Cheese?

00:42:55
Speaker 1: Anything? Everything? I feel like you have been making a lot of bulls recently. Like put it in the bottom of the bowl. That's the bottom.

00:43:02
Speaker 4: I'll mix it.

00:43:03
Speaker 1: Yeah, some quene waw, some spinach or mixed greens, and then whatever, chicken, salmon, some other veggies and catta sheets.

00:43:12
Speaker 4: Mix it up and it's perfect.

00:43:14
Speaker 2: Okay. Put Claire puts tomato, sauce and meatballs on it.

00:43:20
Speaker 4: Yump.

00:43:20
Speaker 1: Yeah's insane good. It sounds like a perfect dinner, right help. Okay, So now it's time for what's the fud of the week. What's the fud of the week. It's something that just made you go, what the fud? It can be good, bad, crazy, silly, whatever you want, as long as it made you go, what the fudd?

00:43:44
Speaker 4: I want? Yeah, wants to start, and you're gonna start.

00:43:46
Speaker 2: Start. So I was in a restaurant the other day having dinner with a bunch of friends and the server was like from a different planet, and basically there were five of us, and so we were six of us, six of us. So we were trying to put a chair at the end of the table and this guy was not having it, and we know the manager of the restaurant who came over and was trying to tell the server that it was perfectly fine, and the servers like, this is my station and they just have like a huge thing and like we're all like the patrons like looking at it. And so she won it let us put the chair there. And then he was not in a good mood. He was like given throwing us attitude shade the whole time, the whole time. So it was it was kind of crazy, and I was like, the big bubble, What the fud, That's what I thought?

00:44:40
Speaker 4: That is over that that's crazy that it got so worked up over there.

00:44:44
Speaker 2: He was hus carving his space, man his space in the room. I know, just wasn't a good look.

00:44:51
Speaker 4: What the fud?

00:44:52
Speaker 2: What the fud is?

00:44:54
Speaker 4: He e a what the fud? For us?

00:44:55
Speaker 1: My with the fud is the snowstorm that we just had facts that was it was crazy. I love the snow though, so it was beautiful and we went outside we had to play in it, which was such just like a what's the word I'm looking for? It was like a whole some moment being out there with your teammates, just clearly playing the snow, wrestling the snow, throwing snowballs at each other.

00:45:15
Speaker 4: It was a lot of fun.

00:45:16
Speaker 3: I think that's pretty good. I think, my what the Fun's sad? Though, And I don't want to to end on no, go ahead.

00:45:21
Speaker 2: Tell us life's made of all sorts of things.

00:45:24
Speaker 4: My what the fud is?

00:45:26
Speaker 3: Kobe passed six years ago today, but it will be this week by the time this drops, so it's the Kobe anniversary.

00:45:34
Speaker 4: That's my what the fud?

00:45:35
Speaker 2: Not good?

00:45:36
Speaker 4: I cannot believe it's been six years.

00:45:38
Speaker 3: It's like you blink and it's been six years, like time's moving super fast, and I just remember exactly where I was and what I was doing during that time. And uh, I don't know the spirit of Kobe came over the Lakers because they definitely won the championship that year too, so they sure did. That's my what the fud of the week maybe thank you so much.

00:46:00
Speaker 2: You are welcome so much. I loved it.

00:46:03
Speaker 1: Yes, Amy, thank you so much for joining us today. This was amazing to get to talk to you, to have you on the pod.

00:46:08
Speaker 4: It's such an.

00:46:09
Speaker 1: Honor and being someone that I look up to and aspire to be just half the person you are means a lot that you're here.

00:46:16
Speaker 2: Love you, Azy and a shot say I didn't know you well, but I love you now too.

00:46:20
Speaker 1: And listeners, thank you guys so much for tuning in this week. Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe to Butt Around and find Out wherever you get your podcasts, and we'll see you guys next week. Futter Around and find Out is a production of iHeart Women's Sports and Unanimous Media. Executive producers are Jesse Katz, Eric Payton, Charltte, Sumter Brugin, and Stephan Curry. Co executive producer is Kelenor Maria Cutney. Producers are Mike Costcarelli, Grace Fuz and Mackenzie Fitzpatcher, and co producers are Kurt Redman, Maya Howard, and jack Lyn Schanninger. This podcast is edited by Mike Costcarelli and hosted by me