Unveiling Simplicity in Leadership with Marlissa Hudson

0:00Marlissa Hudson:If the climate headlines ever feel overwhelming, I want to share something different. It's called Planet Visionaries, hosted by Alex Honnell. You probably know him from Free Solo, where he climbed El Capitan without ropes. Now, he's focused on the biggest challenge of all, protecting the only planet we've got. What makes this show stand out is its perspective. It's not about fear, it's about solutions. Every episode is rooted in hope, progress, and real people doing meaningful work around the world. Alex talks with scientists, explorers, activists, and storytellers like Mark Ruffalo, wildlife photographer Bertie Gregory, and conservation leaders who prove optimism isn't naive, it's a strategy.

0:44Marlissa Hudson:Upcoming episodes span the globe from protecting our oceans to reimagining food systems and climate justice, all told through deeply human stories that inspire action. In partnership with the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, this is Planet Visionaries. Listen or watch on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you're listening to this podcast. So what happens when a UNC Tar Heel like myself meets up with one of the brightest minds who's ever come out of Duke University? Conflict, probably. friendship doubtful but an amazing conversation absolutely and friendship for sure you know i was just teasing on that piece but i'm sitting down and had one of the most amazing conversations i've ever had with marlissa hudson marlissa uh carnegie hall great one of the best singers you will ever have the honor of listening to, but also one of the brightest consulting minds and fundraisers in the business.

1:51Marlissa Hudson:In this conversation, we talk a little bit about her journey. We go deep into her because, and you're going to come away with action. If you are a leader and you're struggling with time management, priority management, and you wear the term busy as a badge of honor, we're going to break down what you really should be doing instead so that you're the most productive person that you can be. And at the end in our top five, we talk about why Marlissa should have gone to UNC versus going to Duke. Ladies and gentlemen, I present the wonderful, the amazing Marlissa Hudson. Marlissa, how are you doing today, dear?

2:27Nick, I'm better now. If you are willing to be hired as a hype man, sold. You're amazing. Thank you for that intro.

2:34Marlissa Hudson:It's the Carolina thing that we do, Marlissa. So let's just go right into that whole Carolina thing. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The greatest university on earth. We call it heaven where I'm from. How do you feel about that Marlissa? I mean, you know, I went to Duke. You went to where? Don't do that. Duke. The Duke University. Yes. We'll bleep that out. Don't worry. We'll bleep that out. I will allow the UNC thing only because my best friend at the time, her sister went there. So we had a bit of a cultural exchange happening. it's okay it's okay you really didn't want to go to duke i understand i understand i'll deal with you later off off the record but yes i can't say what i want to say because i don't think i'm personal in here so let it go for now no marlissa one all jokes aside huge fan of of who you are huge fan of what you represent um and and just the the person that you strive to be the mantle that you are and I know you're very humble but on behalf of a lot of people I just want to say thank you Marlissa for the conversations you have the rooms that you put into for the voiceless and faceless that can't get into certain rooms for the conversations that you bring forward I just want to say thank you I'm not even sure how to because I feel very much the same way about you Mick and I'll receive the thank you in this moment um but i have to tell you i never felt like it was a choice that i had to be here in this moment that i'm built for this i'm designed for this so i'm really grateful in a lot of ways to even be in this position well again all i can say is thank you because you are the shoulders for a lot of people to stand on right and i think we all get to a point, well, I shouldn't say we all, a lot of people get to a point where you've stood on shoulders and then you have to take a step back and then realize, wait a second, now I'm shoulders for people to follow and to come behind.

4:50Marlissa Hudson:And so again, just want to say thank you for that, which leads to the first question that I have for you, Marlissa. You know, I always ask my guests, what's your because? That thing that's deeper than your why that keeps you rooted into what you're doing and i've wanted to ask you this since your your your chapel hill days but but what is what is your because why do you do what you do why have you become that shoulder that others can stand on well i'll start i mean my why is because i can frankly because i'm in a unique position and you know i don't know who this should be attributed to they say if not you then who i know i was design for this um but the deeper because of it all i think um it's because people poured into me at so many points in my life when i had neither earned it nor deserved it and when i think of the sacrifices made i've looked i was going through my paperwork the other day and discovered my paternal grandmother had two master's degrees this woman was born in 1919 so if she was able to do those things right to support who would eventually become me who am i to not take that advantage and privilege and use it to exponentially grow what i see as an unjust world to become just wow wow yeah she was something else mommy alice was not a joke i'm telling you i'm telling you and i want to go a little bit deeper into the if not you then who because that's so powerful when did you know it was you did you have that moment was there a time when it was like all right it's me that's a really good question to be honest even when I was singing like fully in that world I knew that communication and using my privilege for change was going to be part of it something that I thought it was going to be through singing primarily in the beginning um i would say if there was a moment when i knew it was me it was probably three years into my solo consulting which i know we'll get into um and my mentor who became my colleague and friend and then business partner we were having a conversation about what could happen we mapped it out and it was like there's nothing we cannot accomplish together so that was really the moment that I knew it was me.

7:20Yeah. I love it. I love it. So let's go into Carnegie Hall

7:27Marlissa Hudson:and you owning stages for two decades, right? Like, let's go into Marlissa, the soprano, the standard. Like, again, I will give Duke some credit, right? Like, you did some great things there. well thank you it's over that's all the credit that was it i'll take you know i'll take my little yeah yeah we're done with the duke praise now it's the marlissa praise right so so talk about those moments of your voice and just commanding stages and when you knew that that your voice pun intended was making a difference and could get you places that that maybe you wouldn't have got before gosh sure you know what you should run a podcast you ask some really deep thoughtful questions sir um so when i went to duke it wasn't even for music i wanted to be an economics major uh realized for the first time i think it was my sophomore year that i was kind of sad which as you get to know me is not really a thing you would attribute to me well it was duke i get it i would have been sad too you're gonna get me in so much trouble um i realized that there was something more and that music was that thing um and through my voice i thought i could heal i still think i can heal right um and classical music wasn't even my original goal but i just had a voice that lent itself to it and it gave me both a tenacity because i mean you understand in that world you hear no every five minutes and mick it's not just about your voice don't think they're just criticizing you as a singer they will talk about how you look to your face yeah they will break down like your way of practicing your way of performing and it i mean i was a sensitive child it broke me down to the studs do you hear me but the strength that came from it let me know that that was part and parcel of whatever else it was i needed to do definitely for that question absolutely okay great absolutely absolutely and and so for those that don't know for those that are watching or those that are listening just how hard is it to get into Carnegie Hall uh okay so hard let's start there I mean and there's several ways to do it now and depending on who you ask um the prestige depends on that level you can go as a kid if like your children's choir is invited but y 'all are paying right real um and then at the top level it's when you're invited so I had the beautiful fortune of being invited by a composer who was doing a premiere at Carnegie Hall and so for me it was like again I think if I had to say a theme of my life it's like how did I get here and that was one of those how did I get here moments I mean he found out about me through a mutual friend who I went to high school with Nick who was a conductor and she happened to be friends with him and he was doing this thing and they were looking for a soprano and it happened to be me um so that's so bottom line is if you are invited to Carnegie Hall my friend it is difficult yeah and that's been the case for me each time I've come yeah yeah and and you went from Carnegie Hall like I said in the the beginning to boardrooms and and now again becoming that voice for the voiceless that face for the faceless as a consultant and you know at some point I want to retire the word consulting but until we find out what's that new word or new phrase or term for it because it's more than just advice it's more than therapy like there are a lot of times that you know we have to open doors we have to create tables when tables and rooms don't exist, right?

11:33Why did you and when did you say,

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12:54for me the biggest piece of that so i knew i was always an entrepreneur let's start there even as a singer i was an entrepreneur but the reason i chose consulting is i wanted to have maximal impact and i felt like in order to do that i needed to be in a lot of different places at a lot of different levels um and fundraising little secret the science of it is not that hard don't let them fool you okay because of privilege and a whole lot of gatekeeping it's obfuscated and made difficult for people to access so i know i wanted to get in there and that's the second reason i wanted to be a consultant because i wanted to disrupt the current systems for fundraisers and bring folks who normally wouldn't do this work into it you can make great money mid-level six figures as a fundraiser either as a consultant or in-house at an organization.

13:47I'm like, I can do this because frankly, from my singing, one, I had no ego left. So there's nothing you can say to me that's going to deter me. Plus, frankly, I have a mental toughness that was hard thought, probably through a little bit of trauma, but either way, it's hard to dissuade me. And once I saw the matrix and that I saw, okay, wait a minute, the science of fundraising isn't the hard part. And I already had the art friend. So let me get in here and see what change I can create.

14:18Marlissa Hudson:And change you do. And change you do. Thank you. Marlissa, again, I'm a huge fan. And one of the reasons why is we have a very similar philosophy. And I'm going to let you break this down. But you often talk about, I'm going to say it my way, keeping the simple things simple, right? Like don't overcomplicate something or some things that can be simple tasks or simple decisions. Let's talk to the viewers and listeners about the importance. Again, my words, but I'm going to let you say it your way of keeping the simple things simple. I mean, part of that, frankly, is understanding what's most important.

14:57And sometimes people can, sometimes people confuse urgency with importance. So I start there. What is that one thing today that will drive impact? Like if I do nothing else between now and the end of the day, what is that one thing that will guarantee me to be one step ahead tomorrow. And I know, you know, 1 % better is out of favor. I think that's a little weird anyway. I listened to a few of your podcasts on the subject, but what you can do is set yourself up for success. The other piece of that is focus. You know, your inbox is flooded. How do you know which one of the things is most important?

15:34And that's by understanding your true north. Mick, I used to call myself the chief parkour officer. i you know i will not let anything i will go around through jump go underneath to get us there but the bottom line is i have to know where i'm going in order to be successful when i reach it and i i think people over complicate a lot out of fear which i hope we get to talk about yeah it's like if i'm busy if i'm doing things like nobody will notice or people will leave me alone I am disinterested in being one of those people who says, oh, I've got, you know, 18 meetings today. I have no. No, that's not a flex.

16:15Marlissa Hudson:Correct. My flex is when I'm able to spend two hours in deep thought about how to drive the next piece of change. And that, frankly, beyond the fact that my brain is the way it is, is why I simplify. I want to do what's most important and the thing that's going to help my community live a better life. I totally agree. Marlissa, this is why we vibe so well, because I'm a huge proponent of using the Eisenhower matrix, right? So I start my day literally with everything of what's urgent and important, what's important but not urgent. Come on now. Right? And I try to put everything in my life that's important but not urgent.

16:59Right?

17:00Marlissa Hudson:And one of the rules that I have, and this is for every entrepreneur, for every leader out there, Melissa and I are going to break this down. Just because it's important and urgent for someone else doesn't mean it has to be my priority. And in my companies, we have rules of negotiation. And if you want me to take something off of your plate that is urgent and important for you, then you've got to negotiate something off of my plate. or it wasn't meant for me to be working on this with you. Like we have ground rules and barriers because I think that's where many leaders and entrepreneurs go wrong.

17:38Marlissa Hudson:Even from a customer service standpoint, right? It is not Marlissa's fault that Mick called her company at 4.55 PM and needs something in five minutes before the doors close or the lights turn off. But for whatever reason, a lot of companies take that and now you put your employees under stress for no reason. So we have rules of engagement. We have service level agreements with our clients that, hey, just because you called or emailed or sent something in doesn't mean that we stop everything that we do for you. It's not bad customer service, but we set the rules of engagement. So we know if you call in or request a certain thing, the turnaround time for this might be 48 hours.

18:22Marlissa Hudson:The turnaround time for this might be seven business days. It could be 30 business days, whatever it is, because we never set the expectation that just because you called means that you get a response instantly. Oh my gosh. This is a very long conversation that we don't have time for, but English Hudson has very distinct rules of engagement as well. One of the biggest ones, we use a book called Radical Candor for communication. Okay. Love it. Another one is courage, which is probably the hardest of all of it. Like I have to be able, and this is just my own personal hypothesis. I think if one of the top three issues with how we all do business and how this current world works is a lack of courage.

19:04Notice I didn't say, you know, fear. You can be afraid friend, but I sit in meetings all day where people don't say the thing because they're afraid of how they'll be perceived. And if they do say it, they hit you with the, Oh, I'm, I'm just giving blunt honesty, which is very much disguised as meanness, right?

19:22Marlissa Hudson:Right. So for us, yes, we are highly responsive. Yes, I will give you the best serve excellence is one of our core values. So that has to happen, but it can't come at the cost of the health and wellness of our people. Yes. So we formulate everything. We put all the stop gaps in place, Mick, so that that 455 call rarely comes frankly but when it does i expect to get pinged i don't want any of my consultants to feel like they're having to take that on alone and that's one of the other biggest pieces we are a team yeah so as one of us goes the other goes if one of us is suffering that means the rest of us are suffering and we know we are not an er despite what people feel like nobody is going to live or die based on this moment.

20:07But yeah, we do create change, but we do it not at the cost, hopefully, of our people. Yes. Yes.

20:14Marlissa Hudson:And I want to go deeper into something that you talked about with the I'm busy, but it's really fear in disguise or it's a badge of honor because I, again, we could talk all day because we're in so much alignment with our philosophy. I'd love for you to break that down because I know that there is someone listening or watching right now that for years has used the label busy as a badge of honor when at the end of the day they probably are one of the least productive people at said organization yeah hello and i can speak to this because at some point i'm sure i was this person right calendar lit up from stem to stern and proud of it i think that's the difference so just to pull back you know my firm does fundraising and you know with money comes fear i mean raise your hand if you've never had any trauma around finances when we say this in the room everybody's just and when there's trauma that means there's shame so you'll do a lot of dances to cover up and not again use the courage to confront what you're doing and busyness is one of the biggest things people use i can't be prepared for this meeting because oh i'm so busy i've got to do all these things everybody's counting on me i can't read this grant that you wrote because i'm so busy i've got all these things everyone's counting on me i i have had people ask me for five to seven pieces of paper to go into a funder meeting because they're afraid they feel like it's like an armor they'll put it all over themselves and they'll be ready friends you won't you won't you have to be vulnerable nick if you want to really make a dent and frankly you want to get away from that busyness line and busyness label you have to be authentic and vulnerable and that's hard for people yeah i'll say particularly for folks like us who were raised to be professional raised that this is the way you conduct yourself in a business world but it creates a barrier between you and the people, frankly, who want to invest in you.

22:20Marlissa Hudson:Say that again. Wow.

22:26Marlissa Hudson:I'm writing that down. I might need to borrow that line. I'm sure we can borrow a lot of things from each other. Yeah, I'll give you my UNC diploma. I knew you were coming. He's going to make a UNC joke. I walked into that one. It's okay. It's okay. So, Marlissa, let's talk about corporate engagement and gifts that often feel like closed doors to black and brown communities. You, your organization, when I talk about the shoulder that you now are for us to stand on, I know this is one of the things that you pride yourself in. So let's talk to the viewers and listeners about these closed doors and locked doors and what you're doing to help open these up.

23:14Yeah, access is something that's denied historically and categorically. But we are definitely in an era where even more so the money is hidden. Some people call it dark money. Use whatever label you want. But there are a few keys to break open those barriers. um for one the bigger grant dollars now you know from foundations most of the time it's invite only they're like okay but how do i get an invitation um one sometimes you're able to find somebody i've done this friend to go on the website find an email i even know how to look emails up i won't tell you all at this moment and just send an email like this is why you should care some have a form where you can submit a short why.

23:57That is not the most efficient way to do it, but it yields results. Frankly, the most efficient way to do it is to do incredible work and invite those people in to see it before you start asking for things. Invite them in as something beyond a wallet. Invite them in as somebody who can contribute as a thought partner. So I've seen a lot of folks get in with the foundation because they're like, I kept inviting this person to our annual whatever it was. until they came. Also, obviously, whoever's already currently invested in you is your best source of the next folks who'll be invested in you. They all hang out, Mick.

24:36You know, I know you're at X foundation. Would you be willing to recommend me to a couple more foundations? Now you got to stay on folks to do that, but I guarantee you the closest of your relationship with them beyond the dollars is what will dictate if they then champion you to other folks. yeah um there's one more it's a little it's interesting so whoever's on your board can also be very helpful like if you have a board of directors because they have access i mean there's a private foundation and there's corporate foundations particularly for corporate foundations if they have an in see i'm really talking shop now i hope this isn't too boring if they have an it's an easier in for you and if the employees in that corporation are already volunteering pro bono doing whatever and are engaged with your organization that's going to make the corporate folk stand up and take an interest i could do this all day but those are a few to think about

25:31Marlissa Hudson:so let's tell the the viewers and listeners some of the results that you've had right like again i want everybody to understand who marlissa hudson is and what she means to these communities so let's talk about again i know you're humble you don't have to brag but Let's talk about some of the results you get. Yeah, I mean, as a company and as me as a person, we've doubled the budgets of multiple organizations. So you're going in, let's say, at a million in a year. And this doesn't happen. I mean, 100 % growth is difficult, but we've done it more than one time. Event funding is another big one.

26:11Everybody wants to have an event. Typically, Mick, they don't have great ROI because of the energy required to do them. Correct. But we've exceeded the goal amount 90 % of the time. So we know how to raise money. That is not my issue anymore, frankly. What I am prepped, the thing that keeps me up at night is, is the money I'm raising creating change? And am I partnering with the right organization? Come on, friend. Am I partnering with the right organizations to get that work done? my nightmare is that when i leave this mortal coil my tombstone reads here lies marlissa hudson she raised four billion dollars and nothing changed the money is the vehicle it is not the

26:59Marlissa Hudson:purpose correct correct come on now yeah come on now we could talk all day marlissa we could talk all day we we really can because again the work you're doing is so important and so needed and you're right as someone who who throws and hosts events right a lot in the leadership community in the entrepreneur community people don't understand what it takes to to put on a game-changing event not just an event for the sake of events because a lot of people do that But when you're talking about the experience, there's a lot that goes into that. And again, that's why I applaud you because you make it possible for people like me to be able to do the things that we do, to have the reach that we have, to touch, impact, and change the lives that we're supposed to.

27:55Marlissa Hudson:So again, I applaud you because I know you're doing it too. Well, and frankly, Mick, I don't know if you've ever tried it, but you would be a fabulous fundraiser. Have you ever thought about it? I have not. yeah I mean because if there's one thing I can tell you to exceptionally well it's grow relationships that is the secret of fundraising wow so whenever you're ready like you know we can combine forces like I know we could get some magical things done together done deal done deal believe you that I am so excited no I'm I'm very serious done deal done deal we don't even have to take it offline that's a done deal absolute yes absolutely absolutely yes so before i get you out of here with my top five i want to talk about what neuroscience means to you and why that's so important to to you and the family and what you're doing now oh so my son is at brown university he's a rising senior and he wants to change how we age so he wants to increase both your lifespan and your health span which some would argue is more important.

29:03I think you get the difference. And the way he wants to do that is to be go into either neuroscience or become a neurosurgeon. He wants to unlock the powers of health through the brain. And it's important to me for a number of reasons. I mean, that, that young man, I'm trying not to say child is, is my heartbeat, but he's also an empath and a healer and a truly kind soul and i actually see a lot of that in you and people like him and like you have to be put in positions where they can unlock the full extent of their talents yeah and for him that's neuroscience okay but he also intrinsically sees the good in people and i think as a little kid he wanted the pain to stop every time somebody was hurt that he felt it yeah um and neuroscience is one of many ways that that young man hudson eaton is going to end up changing the world i hope to be the first investor in his company when it launches i want to be number two then we can let mom be number one

30:07Marlissa Hudson:i would love to be number two and i mean that that's on recording so i can tell yeah absolutely thank you for asking absolutely absolutely all right you ready for this quick five let's do it I've been practicing. Oh, you've been practicing. I mean, you know, I listen to yourself. I do my homework mix, so I listen to everything. All right. So I'm going to start with the easy one. I'm going to lob before we get into the hard ones. Your most favorite arena that you've ever performed in, aside from the ding-dong. So this is going to be a strange answer, but it was actually Ledoux Chapel in St. Louis, Missouri.

30:45Ooh. And it's not because it has the best acoustics in the world. Carnegie Hall actually takes that cake. It's because it's the place I performed two weeks after my father passed. And I was raising money to go to grad school.

30:59Marlissa Hudson:And the energy and the love I felt in that room means that no matter where I am in the world, like that's my safe space. That's where I go back to. Okay. I love that. I love that. I love, man, my heart just got touched. Thank you. That's deep. So if Marlissa is going on a mental retreat, are you going to the mountains, the beach, or the lake? Beach all day. All day long. Technically, I should go to the mountains. That's actually where I feel the most. I'm one of those people who should have no shoes on and just be walking through the grass. When I do that, I am truly charged. Although, you know, black folks will snatch my car for that.

31:48but that's okay like we'll let that run but there's something about the sun in the sand a good book in my hand for me okay that does it 10 out of 10 times okay so speaking of book

32:01Marlissa Hudson:what's one of your most favorite books that's changed the way that you the way that i read oh wow lead lead yep actually there's a few i'm an avid reader mick so i probably go through 20 30 books a year but one i recently read called super communicators rocked me um i thought i was a great communicator until i read that book so i highly recommend it if i do i get a 1a answer sure the um i think it's called the friction project the friction i'll google it um but i read that at the beginning last year and it because friction is what keeps a lot of us from getting where we need to go yeah and it teaches you how to get past it again we're back to that chief parkour officer bit so i'm always trying to smooth the way love it i love it i love that a lot too all right so why did you go to duke and not uc because i was smart and i went to a school frankly where they wanted to push all the scholarship kids to go to the best schools they could i didn't even know at Duke was when I applied.