SPECIAL GUEST!! 🔥 The 30-Second Habit That Got Avni Barman a $40K Raise | Ep. 554

0:01Welcome to Do This, Not That, the podcast for marketers. We share quick tips, things you can do right now, and then we add a little bit of chaos at the end of every episode. We also keep it short, like this intro. Let's check it out. We are back for Do This, Not That podcast, and we have like a really awesome, big, important human being guest here today. So who's here? Avni Barman is incredible. You probably follow her on some social media platform because she has hundreds of thousands of followers all over the place. She talks about career. She talks about breaking norms. She does all this stuff.

0:38And what does she actually do for a living? She's the founder and CEO of something called GenShe, which is this new age media company and community brand and investing platform, all this stuff. She has over 600 ,000 people involved in this community. Who the hell is it? That's like a small country. Okay. And she pivoted. She did everything you ever say you want to do in your career. She bailed on corporate jobs at big companies like Adalassian and LinkedIn and all these places. And she said, nope, screw having a real salary. I'm going to do it on my own. And she did it. And she's the best networker I ever met.

1:08She's incredible. We're going to break into all things. Avni, welcome to the show. Thank you so much for having me. That really hyped me up. I'm like bummed now. I'm pumped. I'm pumped you're here. So real, okay. In, in a rapid fire, give me how I screwed that up. What the hell do you actually do from it? That is a great question. I get it literally every three seconds. But yeah, I run Gen Chi and it's exactly what you said. We're a media company and a fund. So we've built this like epic, incredible community of hundreds of thousands of women all over the world who are looking to like level up in their careers and really like charge towards their dream lives and what does that look like for like honestly gen z women is like very different it's a very new conversation these women are like rising in the workforce like you said they're breaking norms they're pursuing entrepreneurship one in two of them are pursuing entrepreneurship they have high purchasing power so it's really an audience that like it's rising in influence it's writing it it's rising in importance and so we decided to actually raise a fund last year and we said, hey, we have this really unique asset.

2:16We have the attention of this very valuable audience who is going to be the purchasers of next generation tech. How do we invest in these next big tech companies and then use this audience that we have to actually amplify these founders and amplify the products they're building back into that audience? Because they really look to Gen XI for information on what productivity software should they use to be more organized at work, right? What tools should they use to build their businesses? How should they go in and invest their money? And how do they actually grow their wealth and grow their empires and really build towards this dream life?

2:52So how do I be healthier in my day to day? How do I actually like make family decisions around this really around this career that I'm pursuing, right? So all of those conversations we we tackle through the media, and through the community that we've built. So we have podcast, newsletter, obviously all social media. We have a job board as well. And then like the companies that are actually building for this audience and companies that we believe in are going to like amplify and accelerate this community. We will invest in them and then we will amplify them back into the community. Yeah. Well, okay.

3:30So I love all that. And the way that I really found you, okay, was you're out there doing all sorts of stuff, but you did an incredible job of amplifying an event that I went to. And then I got to the event and then I just saw you networking. You like lit it on fire. Okay. And a lot of people don't get to go to events. They can't do all the networking that you do there, but you actually kind of look at networking differently. You, you do things every single day that I don't think enough people do. And they think it's hard to meet all these important people, all these important things. So give everybody the Omni secret to success that you're doing every day when you wake up to interact and connect with like big important people.

4:13Yeah. I mean, literally I have like 50 ,000 free resources of like networking guys and conference Bibles that I've built. That's really broken down all these things that I definitely recommend anyone to check out. It's obviously it's fully free. Anyone grab it. I would say like a few of like the bigger things that I think have really led to career altering moments. I think one is just like cold messaging as a practice. So I literally wake up every single day in the morning, like before I've even brushed my teeth, I've sent like a few messages and it's really unserious. It is not like, I don't have like a specific thing I want out of this person.

4:49It's just like anyone whose career I admire, anyone who like is doing anything relevant or interesting adjacent to my field. It could literally just be a girl who's pursuing a similar path as me and I might want to be friends with them because you don't really know what opportunities can come out of it. And most of the time, the connection up front doesn't lead to anything. But then six months, six years later, it'll just completely be the most relevant thing in that moment and actually open the door that I've been trying to walk through at that point in my career. So having that be a practice is something that's really important because it's really the law of large numbers that kicks in here.

5:29It's the consistency and like the massive amount that you put out in the world that really ends up actually mattering because most people don't respond to cold messages. You could literally be Oprah, like she will still not get 100 % response rate no matter who you are. So when you play into the law of large numbers, you play into the statistics and probability of like you getting more responses and then like greater outcomes out of it. So if you like call message once a year, like that's, that's like basically round to zero call message. Like one day, one Saturday you wake up, you send 30, doesn't matter.

6:01You need to have like really it be a practice. I think that's one. I think the second is like, I'm kind of obsessed with conferences. I think something about like that IRL connection can just never be like truly replaced on the internet. And I think what people do is like, they'll go to the conference and they'll attend things and maybe talk to people like around them or adjacent to them. Maybe they're sitting next to them or maybe they've come with their company and they're kind of tag teaming their employees. I try to look at it networking as a different like perspective because everyone's doing that.

6:35You're not going to get that much out of it. So I actually go straight to the speakers and I kind of do the thing that I did on you, which is like I use my platform to really amplify them and get their attention. And I don't think that you actually need to have like a massive audience to do this. Every speaker wishes they had a video about them speaking. I don't even think they care that much that you are promoting it to platform. They just love like you've taken that video of them and take that video, send it to them. Even if you don't want to tag them, they'll be so grateful. It's an immediate way to like be at the top of their DMs and like, and I never haven't asked for these speakers, but it's just getting their attention.

7:16And if something organic natural happens out of it, literally like this podcast that's happening right now, then great. Like that's like one more thing that I've added into like my resume portfolio, whatever that I'm living towards. I think that's a second one that I think is like foolproof. And I think the third one that I've done that I think has been like really high leverage for me is I don't do this as much anymore, but I did this so regularly early in my career was I would like just book a res on a Friday or a Thursday. Honestly, Thursday is actually better because it's like close to the weekend, but you're not fully in like weekend zone, like non-work mode.

7:53I'd get a res at like a wine bar or like something super casual for like Thursday, like 7 p.m. I would invite literally the two people in the industry that I would know. And like I was early in my career, like I literally didn't know anyone. And I would ask them to have a ask like invite a plus one and then I would have them ask their plus one to invite a plus one now we have like a group of like six to ten people in the industry and I can leave with like ten new connections and so can everyone else so they show up and like you're creating value for them all you did was spend ten minutes in book a res and you're allowed to split the bill at the end of the day like no one is mad about paying for their wine that one glass of wine they just needed someone to organize it.

8:35So, so much of my initial network was built of like hosting these tiny little happy hours, tiny little get togethers, completely informal. People would come up to me and they'd be like, why are you hosting this? I'm like, I don't know, like just for vibes. Like, don't worry about it. Just like have fun, make a new connection. And like, that's it. I have no ask after this. And just people really loved that. Now, obviously like I'm at a point where it's a little bit different, but early in my career, that was like just so high value for me. And so what I like about what you're talking about is anybody can do this and people that are listening or watching, they're like, oh, I can't do that.

9:10That's out of my comfort zone or whatever. But the reality of it is, if you want your career to not just be another career, to be generic, you have to step out of your comfort zone a little bit and get and just be OK with being nervous. I mean, you're nervous, too. Right. I mean, I know you've done it a million times, but it's not like you walk around and be like, oh yeah, this is the most comfortable thing I've ever done. 100 % of the rooms I walk into that are new, I feel this like pain of anxiety. Doesn't matter like how much experience I have. It is 100 % of the time I'm like, oh fuck, I don't know anyone.

9:44Like, who should I talk to? Like, is it awkward to stay in the corner? And so one trick that I've done that's helped me is I will like lock eyes with another 20 something girl in the room. and I'll just like, I'm like, it's my one act of bravery, bravery. And it's like a still a little less intimidating. Cause I'm like, we're two like lost girlies in this room. And then I'll go up to them and be like, hi, like whatever, introduce myself. I don't know anyone. Do you know anyone? And then most, almost hundreds of times they're like, dude, same, like I'm lost. And I'm like, let's tag team this event together.

10:13And we just hype each other up and we do things together. It's like the rest of the time is super high value because I'm just no longer battling that inner fear and that's pretty much how i tackle like all networking at this point i'm gonna go and find like some other random 49 year old uh random dude be like hey let's tag team they're gonna call the police like thank god you came up to me like i was freaking the out in this quarter i don't know let me try it out all right i don't want to run out of time here and i got to ask you one of the things that i've read a million times that you've said and that you've done and i need to know the secret sauce here is that you have a 30 second strategy that got you a$40 ,000 raise.

10:57Now, what the hell is going on here? What does this mean? How did you do it? Everybody wants that. Oh my God. This is actually, I accidentally discovered this because I was like one of the worst employees of all time. I just wanted, I like genuinely wanted to get fired and get severance because I was like in my entrepreneurial era and I was kind of like mentally checked out corporate is candidly the truth so i was like what is the least amount i can do and i think a common thing that managers will tell their employees or just generally good work advice is like document the projects you've worked on document the work you've done because at the end of the year you need to package that information and show it to um the leadership team so they can get you that promo and usually traditionally how it works is like you kind of have to create that yourself because no one is actually like following your day-to-day work kind of only you are and you kind of have to like advocate and pitch for yourself.

11:47I was like, I don't want to do that. That sounds so boring. That sounds like homework. It feels like I'm back in school. What's the laziest thing I could do? And I was like, I'm just going to screenshot something I did. And then at the end of the year, I'll just like, I'll, I'll like, I'll deal with it later. And that ended up being so, so valuable because it was just like a few second thing I did, but I ended up uncovering so much of our work that I had done. Like at the end of the year, then basically at the end of the year, going back I'm thinking, I wonder what I did. Let me like think and reflect.

12:15Like you're going to miss 90 % of things. And 90 % in corporate are like these tiny micro things that might amount to a lot, but then like at the end of the year might feel like you've done nothing or like, what did I do all year? Because it was actually like a thousand micro things. So quantifying that and summing that all up is actually what shows, hey, there's this huge improvement I had all year. I had this massive value to the company. Actually$40 ,000 pay bump is incredibly micro compared to the like$10 million benefits. that i gave the company and you can use these screenshots to very easily justify this case through quantifiable metrics which is what the company needs to see right if you're going to ask for a 40 000 pay bump you need to show them like at least 10x of like impact on the company right and like literally dollars you made that company because we're like you need to show where they're going to give you this pay bump from like everyone out here is like fighting the same demon which is like, okay, like, did you actually add value?

13:11Like, then we will then give you back value. Like everything is transactional in the corporate world. So like you have to play the game. You can't rely on trust. So, okay. I should screen. I have nothing to screenshot because I don't do anything, but everybody else probably does. And that's amazing. So the last thing that I want to touch on is a lot of people out there, I know my family, whatever, it's like, you're in this career. Sometimes you're in the marketing career or starting a business or whatever. And they're like, why are you doing that? You didn't go to school for that. Or this is pointless what you're doing.

13:40You're not on a good path. Why didn't you go to this graduate school or that graduate school? And you're first generation American, right? And I'm sure that your family is like, no, no, no, this weird path that you're on, you're on a corporate job, stay there, this, that, whatever. And you're doing this really unique path. How do you deal with like dealing with people around you that are trying to say you're not doing what you should be doing? And what do you say to that? And How do you stay strong? Yeah, I actually have a bad answer for this. But it's like when you hit literal rock bottom, like friends and families telling you shouldn't do this or this is bad.

14:18It's so minuscule compared to like the alternate feeling that you're feeling of like true lack of purpose and lack of identity and lack of passion for what you're doing. That actually those voices don't become as noisy. They almost like quiet down. so this is not at all advice but I think I had just genuinely reached like such a breaking point in my life where I was so mentally drained by the job that I had and I was lacking so much purpose and fulfillment in my day-to-day that like I was willing to do and try anything to not stop feeling this way and in in a weird way like that all of a sudden what other people thought of me and like other people's advice for me felt smaller in comparison to that pain that I was feeling.

15:01And at the end of the day, all the advice that they'd given me, like I'd followed it, like to the T, like I went to that good school and then I got that good job. And like the, I did all the cookie cutter things only to realize that it gave me nothing I actually wanted. So you kind of like lose credibility and trust in what everyone else is saying. And you're like, wait, like maybe no one knows what they're talking about because I did everything, what they're saying. And like, it didn't give me anything I wanted in life, like truly and deeply. And I'm experiencing the direct consequences of that.

15:30No one else is experiencing those consequences, like only me. And so it's like, not really like good advice, but it's more like, at the end of the day, like you really need stake in the game to really like do the hard thing of ignoring the voices and following your intuition. And so find that stake, right? Which is like, imagine your life in 10 years, like if you continue on this path, what does that look like? Are you willing to like take that cost? If not, that's your stake. Your stake is if I don't do this thing, if I don't ignore the voices and I don't trust myself right now, the stake is like my life in 10 years is like the worst reality of where I end up and like remind yourself of that every day.

16:10Okay, so this is exactly what you're gonna get if you connect and you follow Avni on all the different socials. It's inspiring, it's motivational, it's awesome, it's entertaining. So Avni, how does everybody get involved with your world? Where should they follow you? We'll put it in the show notes. What do they got to do? Yeah. So Avni Barman are my personal socials. You can find that Avni Barman underscore on TikTok, Instagram. There's LinkedIn. You can follow me. I make a lot of content there. I also have a podcast. It's called the Gen Chi podcast. You can find that on Spotify or YouTube. And if you want to get involved in our community, we have over 100 chapters around the world.

16:45You can start a Gen Chi community wherever you're located and like literally build whatever you want to build to rally the community around you towards this mission of empowering other women around you. And if you have a company and you want to pitch to me, I'm all ears. You can send me an email. You can head to the website. There's also a formal pitch application process as well. The website is generationcheat.com. I love it. I love all of it. We're going to put on the show notes. You are awesome. You are a force. I appreciate you being here. Thanks for doing it. Thank you for having me. It was an honor.

17:16Wait, don't go anywhere. There's two really important things I want to tell you. First off, my book is out. Stupider people have done it. And I don't know how, but this book has made it to the USA Today bestseller list, one of the top books in the entire country. Now, all net author proceeds are going to the V Foundation for Cancer Research. And between this book and things that we're doing, we've now donated$130 ,000 in the fight against cancer. If you buy this book, if you buy the Kindle, the audio on Amazon, on Barnes and Noble, anywhere, money is going to fight cancer. We need your help. Please grab a copy of Stupider People Have Done It.

17:55The second thing is I want to work with you. I want to amplify your brand. I want my agency to help you get more customers, more subscribers, more whatever. I want to partner with you in so many different ways. All you got to do is go to jschwedelson.com, jschwedelson.com. And then there's a button in the upper right-hand corner that says partner. fill out that form let's work together let's do stuff and if this wasn't the worst podcast you've ever heard it would be amazing if you follow the show if you leave a comment if you tell your friends about it i appreciate you and go out there and crush it