Kimberly Spencer (00:00:00) - Hello my fellow sovereigns, and welcome back to another episode of the Crown Yourself podcast. I am so excited and honored to be here with you today for another non-profit November highlight. Today I bring to you the extraordinary Tash Brooks, CEO of Walk with Sally Tash Brooks was born and raised in Australia and now lives in Los Angeles with her two children. Surprisingly and ironically, she actually grew up in the Gold Coast, which is where we were during the pandemic. She spent the majority of her youth traveling and working as a professional dancer while attending Bond University, where she specialized in marketing and psychology, using the discipline she developed from her dance career, marketing expertise, and her love of humanity, she began contributing to various non-profits globally. She began telling stories of marginalized cancer communities in remote villages of Kazakhstan, developing a dance program for the Braille Institute of Los Angeles, and building a school in Malawi to build on and develop cutting-edge events, brand partnerships, and programs for the art of Elysium. With a proven history of innovation and achievement, Tash grew as a vision-driven, goal-focused executive in the nonprofit sector, known for her transformational strategies and service style leadership, resulting in high-functioning teams and quantifiable growth.
Kimberly Spencer (00:01:24) - Tash became CEO of Walk with Sally, a nonprofit dedicated to lessening the burden of cancer for children and families. Undeterred by challenge and driven by a deep commitment to forge meaningful and lasting change within the world, Tash and her team are ushering in an exciting and meaningful new era of impact. One of the reasons I chose Walk with Sally is not because I'm just friends with the CEO, but. Walk with Sally supports the people around the person with cancer. So if you've been touched by cancer, and I think pretty much all of us have. It's the people around the person who has cancer because it goes beyond the diagnosis. It goes beyond the battle that that cancer survivor is fighting. It goes into their community and it ripples forth. And for me, kids have just had the most profound tug on my heart. My nephew, who battled leukemia lymphoma as a child and successfully is now a cancer thriver and survivor. Knowing the toll that it took on his family emotionally, mentally, and financially. That is why I love Walk with Sally and the work that they're doing in the world to support the ecosystem around the person who is fighting for their life.
Kimberly Spencer (00:02:53) - Because as you know and as you've heard on this podcast, the environment around you is what contributes to your change. And so if we can uplift the environment around the person who is battling and fighting for their life, then imagine the possibilities when we transform the entire ecosystem of that person's life. And that is the work of Walk with Sally. And with that, I give you Tash Brooks. Welcome to the Crown Yourself podcast, where together we build your empire and transform your subconscious stories about what's possible for your business, body, and life. I'm your host, Kimberly Spencer.
Kimberly Spencer (00:03:37) - Founder of Crown Yourself. Com and I'm a master mindset coach, bestselling author, and TEDx speaker known to my clients as a game changer. Each week you get the conscious leadership strategies you need to help you reign with courage, clarity, and confidence so that you too, can make the income and impact you deserve. Imagine this podcast as your royal invitation to step into your full potential and reign in your divine purpose. Your sovereignty starts here and your reign is now.
Kimberly Spencer (00:04:08) - Hello, Tash. Welcome to the Crown Yourself podcast. This is decades in the making. It really is the whole it's so, so a little bit of backstory. Tosh and I met when I was 18 years old at Playhouse West in North Hollywood, taking acting classes together, and now she's an incredible CEO, mama, just doing all the things. And it's so it's been so beautiful to watch how our lives have kind of blossomed with the foundation, you know, and an emotional understanding that thinks acting kind of prepares people to face these harder challenges of life. Harder. Yeah, yeah. Think specifically, Meisner.
Tash Brooks (00:05:01) - Too. It's such an interesting technique. Yeah. Because it causes you, you know, for those who don't know Meisner, which I mean, who who would.
Kimberly Spencer (00:05:12) - Start an actor and learn.
Tash Brooks (00:05:14) - Yeah. Yeah, exactly. It's a really interesting technique. Where at the, you know, to simplify it as much as possible, you basically repeat whatever it is that you're picking up from the other person.
Tash Brooks (00:05:27) - So, you know, for example, it might start with a knock at a door, which is, which is what we did. And the person would say, well, that was an angry knock, or that was a sad knock, or so immediately you are putting out whatever it is that you are perceiving from the other person. And then when you would repeat, they might say, then they would repeat. That was an angry knock. And that might sound defensive, or it might sound questioning. And so they're not actually necessarily saying what it is that they're picking up, but they're repeating. And you're reading through those emotions. It's very fascinating.
Kimberly Spencer (00:06:10) - Yeah. I think it's also you know, living truthfully under imaginary circumstances, which is the basic basis for all manifestation, but it also provides you with an incredible amount of empathy for other people's circumstances. When you start imagining what life could be like in their shoes, especially in, you know, with what you're doing with Walk With Sally like you are dealing with families who are going through absolute hell.
Kimberly Spencer (00:06:37) - And how would you feel prepared emotionally to take on this task as CEO?
Tash Brooks (00:06:44) - I think that you know, being of service is a really high value of mine. And I think ultimately. It's what we all should be doing. We really are here to be of service to one another. And I think one of the ways in which we can truly serve one another is to not PC shame, or project our own insecurities or our own ideas of what someone else is going through onto anyone else. Because when we do that, we're not really being of service, of another way of being, of service to ourselves. So I think that one of the most amazing things that being engaged in service work can do is it's really a lifestyle, it's a mindset, and it's a continual way to truly be present in the moment. Because what you know, when you've been doing this for a really long time is that the next moment is not guaranteed to anybody, because most of the people in our program the day before they were diagnosed, they had plans.
Tash Brooks (00:08:00) - For the holidays at the end of the year. Well, they had plans to celebrate their 40th birthday next year. They all had plans that did not include cancer or where their children were going to live if they were single parents once they passed. So I think that the more you engage in service, and more work, the more you understand that tomorrow does not necessarily belong to any of us. We're not entitled to it, but what we can do is be present with one another. And that in and of itself, I think, is sacred, fulfilling, and re-energizing work.
Kimberly Spencer (00:08:40) - Mhm. That answer was just absolute gold. And I like I honestly think that I mean if you listen to it and circle back and I'm going to listen to this again when I rehearse the podcast multiple times. Because of that answer. It was still from her and I. And I know you and you just approach things with such a heart-centered approach, and you have like, it's not rehearsed. It's it's absolutely from the heart.
Kimberly Spencer (00:09:11) - And I love, I love, I love how you love people. And you just have such a depth of love for people. And I know that you know, the past few years, like for, for you and both, we had very similar experiences with, with Love and Children and death. And ironically, I was experiencing it in your hometown on the Gold Coast.
Tash Brooks (00:09:36) - Crazy that.
Kimberly Spencer (00:09:37) - Bananas. And so, I don't know, I lost my aunt to cancer. And that experience of just the challenges that really come with all the plans that that she had like her plan was to see my voice. Letting. And. How does A Walk with Sally really cultivate the support for families?
Tash Brooks (00:10:02) - And, you know, staggeringly. And this is not something that, you know is a strength by any stretch of the means. But the reality reality is, is that every 30s someone in the United States is diagnosed with cancer. And the majority of the people in our program are now living below the poverty line because of the costs of cancer that are associated.
Tash Brooks (00:10:30) - So we know that you know, there is a ripple effect that's associated with cancer, and it goes far beyond the physical. It's also emotional. It's also psychological. And what we know, too, is that the impact of an unstable home really changes the trajectory of a child's life. They're underperforming in school. They're unable to commit to any future whatsoever, which in an esoteric sense can be a wonderful thing. But the problem is, is it's creating paralysis. They're unable to show up for themselves. And so now that's that creates at-risk behaviors. It creates a lot of rage and emotional instability, outbursts, and things like that. So cancer itself is obviously a Goliath of an issue. But what's not really talked about because it's so it's almost it's not impossible, but it's extremely challenging to create this data is how it's also affecting the economy, how it's also affecting generations. Because what we know is that cancer does not just impact the diagnosed, it impacts the immediate family members. And so what I would do is Walk with Sally, assess the unique needs of that family, and respond accordingly.
Tash Brooks (00:11:55) - Because yes, it is of course extremely important work to support the person that's diagnosed. But what we need to do is we need to look at the eight-year-old child who's having panic attacks and now can't go to school, or the nine-year-old, whose single mom has just been admitted into hospice and been left at school and now Child Protective Services is called. So what we do is as soon as a child is admitted into our program, we immediately connect them to one of our case managers or a full-time mentor. And then that mind will act as a case manager. And we are continually assessing the needs of that family. So we do everything for those who are living below the poverty line. We provide them with groceries, we provide them with rental support. If the single mom is unable to go to work and now is facing housing insecurity for her children, we provide around-the-clock counseling and mental health support. Grief support. We have launched a six-week Growth Mindset Careers workshop for teens who really want to learn how to invest in a future, and also a growth mindset that culminates in a quick pitch competition where kids are actually able to pitch themselves and their future, and we give them money towards scholarships, which is we launched that this year and that was a phenomenal success.
Tash Brooks (00:13:24) - People in the room were like, you know what, I'm going to give you another $2,000. I'm going to give you another $5,000. So kids were just weeping. Yeah. It was it was so exciting. And that's just that's just to name a few things we have each day. We have ocean therapy where we talk about the waves of grief and how you ride those waves, but you are not the waves. The holidays are one of the most challenging times for our families because the holidays are all about the family unit. There are about loved ones, and that's really confronting for our families because they may have just lost their parent or their loved one or their sibling. And this is the first holiday period. So that's much louder. Or this might be the last holiday period with their family unit as they know it. So really for us, you know, and even some of those families too, who are financially really successful and they need, they need and want, if nothing, you know, financially based, they may have lost their dad and money, can't buy male support, but walk with Sally can provide them that male role model who can really help steer them.
Tash Brooks (00:14:33) - We have one of the CEOs of Chevron. He is a mentor for a family. And he, you know, tied one of our boy's ties for his first prom. And, you know, he's he's been there for him to do it. He went to this next phase of life. So yeah.
Kimberly Spencer (00:14:51) - That's amazing. Like the work you're doing in impacting and cultivating the ripple so it doesn't become a tsunami in society. That's absolutely devastating and guiding it into nurturing it, into helping it flow so that it can have some direction for each one of these families. It's just incredible work. And I know that you recently liked becoming CEO of what Sally was. It was a rather recent endeavor. Was this something that you came from, you know, having some things stay at home, mama? So what what created this shift?
Tash Brooks (00:15:32) - Um, you know, this was the natural next step for me. I've been in the nonprofit sector for a really long time, and to be honest, it's been the through line of my life.
Tash Brooks (00:15:47) - I've definitely had other interests and other hobbies and wanted to also create a lot because I was a dancer, you know, that was my career. And so I explored a lot of creative endeavors, which is why we met at Playhouse. Yep. But philanthropy has always been the through line. And so for me, I was working for a decade prior, really in charge of brand partnerships and really dynamic events for another nonprofit. And. I knew. I just knew that this was the next step for me. And so I was at home. But that was also Covid. You know, I only really left my last position in April of 21.
Kimberly Spencer (00:16:37) - Yeah.
Tash Brooks (00:16:38) - So I became CEO with Sally in October of 2022. So I really only wasn't working for, you know, over a little over a year. And then was because that was.
Kimberly Spencer (00:16:52) - Where my mom is.
Tash Brooks (00:16:54) - And job, full-time job. Yeah. So it was just something that I, that I knew I had learned so much, I had experienced a lot, and I wanted to I really wanted to create the next level of impact.
Tash Brooks (00:17:12) - And for me, the program side of it is something that I'd all already experienced. But for me, what I want to do is create the next level of impact by really inspiring a team to step into their dharma and to really empower them to really create and steer the direction of this work. And it's been so fantastic.
Kimberly Spencer (00:17:37) - Know and you, you and I talked about the team and that size does not matter yet the ripple effect of what you're creating. You have a beautiful dynamic team that is just so deeply invested. How do you pour into them so that their dharma really comes through? And for those who aren't familiar with the word dharma, it basically means living your life purpose. Woo!
Tash Brooks (00:18:03) - I love that question so much. So for the first three months, um, for me it was just about listening. It was about collecting data. It was about making sure that these phenomenal human beings had a voice. And, you know, I believe in service-style leadership. I mean, believe in service full stop.
Tash Brooks (00:18:28) - So that's not a surprise. But for me, it was really listening to that. What do you see in the community? What do you think that we could be doing better? Immediately we did a big Swot analysis and we went deep into the weeds. And, you know, some of these members had never been asked to contribute in that sense before. That was more for the sea level stuff. But I took it everywhere, you know, from my executive board really down to my, you know, down to my team. And we just we were just in a huddle for a while. What works, what doesn't work. What are you really frustrated about? What are you seeing in the community that we are not responding to? And I think that by giving them that voice. Because let's be honest, my programming team, in particular, are the ones that are on call 24 seven for these families. And believe me, they're calling them 24 seven. So they're the best people to know. Where are we going? Right.
Tash Brooks (00:19:35) - And where could we be doing much better? And I think that that immediately re-energized the team because, as you know, when there's a new CEO that comes on board from an existing team, there is a transition time. And it can be really challenging. And it requires trust and it requires respect, and those things need to be earned. And so for me, it's not something that you can walk in and demand just because you have a title. I don't believe in that. I don't believe in that style of leadership. And I don't think that it is at all productive or healthy. So. You know, it's so beautiful because we all have different offices and we never work in them. We always have a couch. We are on the couch together. We are sitting together. We are constantly in a huddle. We are always talking about. Ways in which we can improve. And I think long story long, that in and of itself is re-energizing the team to really they're excited about what we're doing and all the new things that we're doing.
Kimberly Spencer (00:20:48) - Yeah. I mean, have you always led this way, led very collaboratively, led very consciously being aware of everybody's input and seeing the value of each person who's a part of the team? How did you learn that skill set?
Tash Brooks (00:21:02) - Oh, I think I've made mistakes. You know, I mean, I do not think I know I've made mistakes. I know that I have always wanted the feeling of collaboration. My dad was also extremely successful and was more like a dictator style. He was kind of more like if you saw succession. I mean, that was my that was my dad. My dad was very much like, you know, a dictator kind of leader and extremely successful. And whilst people did as they were told and people were in awe of his ability to create at such a large scale, people were more frightened of him than respectful of him. And I think that I learned early on, once I started to get leadership, I didn't have my own insecurities at times. Didn't yield me the results that I wanted because I wasn't as collaborative.
Tash Brooks (00:22:05) - I was more trying to prove myself, and that didn't always yield the results that I, that I wanted or the team. Live essentially, that I wanted to create, which ultimately creates self-sustaining productivity. So I think that's I think those two reasons learning what not to do from my dad and learning what not to do from my own mistakes and insecurities.
Kimberly Spencer (00:22:33) - Because it's a journey like understanding leadership and operating as a CEO. And I always say like, whether you go to school or not, the role of a CEO is not necessarily taught, it's mentored. And it's guided. And how is that? How how is it being cultivated? Who were your mentors along the way?
Tash Brooks (00:22:55) - We have such a phenomenal mentor. Truly, he's so fantastic. His name is Skyler Badenoch and he's the CEO of Hope for Haiti. And which is, you know, they have an annual budget of like 30 to $40 million, and they're doing tastic partnerships, incredible impact. And I met him before he was a CEO.
Tash Brooks (00:23:20) - I met him at another nonprofit where we went to Africa and built a school together in Malawi. Like we dug the latrines and we dug them and we kind of created the foundation. And it was he's phenomenal. And when I watched him step into his position of CEO at Hope for Haiti, I just saw him blossom and I saw the team rally around him, and every time I see him at an event, he's not the loudest one speaking. He's also not necessarily the first one to speak. He just is a fantastic example to me of service, style, leadership, and impact. And I talked to him all the time. All the time I'm coming to him with like, okay, here's what's up. Now what? And he's like, okay, all right, here we go. Yeah.
Kimberly Spencer (00:24:19) - Yeah. It's so important to have those mentors around you. And I love that you pointed out something that I've had a lot of my clients struggle with in their own leadership, which is they're not the loudest in the room.
Kimberly Spencer (00:24:32) - They're not the first ones to speak up. And especially for those who are in more in the entertainment industry, but sometimes certain industries may pride on, oh, that you speak up louder. How do you navigate your own success strategy, your own voice being heard when you're not the loudest one in the room, and when you're not the first to speak up?
Tash Brooks (00:24:58) - I am really confident in my ability to convey the heart of what it is that we're doing, and I feel really confident in my ability to inspire. And that's not that has nothing to do with me. I feel like I am able to tap into something that is larger than all of us and unites all of us, and I can be kind of a conduit for, I think, a message that is really important. I know what I am here to do and I know what I am capable of doing. I'm just not concerned about that. It's also not my business. So I know that for me, I'm clear about what I'm doing.
Tash Brooks (00:25:46) - I'm clear about what my contributions are for myself. But that's not my focus. My focus is to make sure that everybody else is exercising that muscle, whatever that looks like for them, and they have an opportunity to rise. And if they fall, they have an opportunity to step into that and rise again. That's really my job. And with the title already comes some public acknowledgment that you may know something about what it is that you're doing. So I feel less of I feel less of an ego attachment to, like, I have to go out and make my voice be heard. There's plenty of opportunities for that. For me, it comes with the title of the job. But what my job now really is, is to make sure that all of my team members, whether they're in executive advisory or on my staff, are each connecting to something larger and they are each exercising that muscle for greatness.
Kimberly Spencer (00:26:50) - I love that description of leadership. And because you're coming from that. I love that you point out that the title of CEO, does come with perks, does come with opportunities to have the voice be heard.
Kimberly Spencer (00:27:05) - And the same with really, honestly, a lot of titles. And I think that that's when we look at all the titles that we could have every title by means of it being a title, means that there is some opportunity for your voice to be heard, period. So anything that says it is otherwise is just a limiting belief and it's evolution. And so therefore, being able to stand firmly in that purpose and that confidence of wire, of what your job really is, which is motivating and inspiring the team and getting.
Tash Brooks (00:27:41) - Them too.
Kimberly Spencer (00:27:43) - Excel in their own greatness. Absolute gold. Do you find that your communication when you're speaking with your team versus when you're speaking with your board is any different?
Tash Brooks (00:27:55) - I think that with my team there is more vulnerability. My team and I, I think because of the nature of what we do daily, we have the honor of sitting with families in such sacred, sacred moments of transition. And I think that that in and of itself. Makes way and sets the stage for a different kind of intimate working relationship, you know, because the reality of this is, is that we are all being confronted with our own mortality and the mortality of our loved ones every day by the nature of our work, which is actually really beautiful and I think important because it's just the reality.
Tash Brooks (00:28:47) - None of us know how much time we have. But that also does require a different level of psychological support. And it requires a different kind of teamwork. My executive board, you know, we're not talking every day. We are not sitting in, you know, the common area of my office and sharing really vulnerable stories about what we do. This child has no next of kin, and they are from El Salvador. And they might be deported because their single mom is in hospice. What do we do now? And so. Because we are you know, we are creating actionable steps for these families. My executive board and more like, here's the year-to-date annual actual versus budget. And this is where we need to tweak this and that. Yes, of course, we share the impact and those stories but they're not in it in the same way they got involved in the organization because of that. But their job is quite quite different. So yes, the communication style is different because the business is somewhat different.
Tash Brooks (00:30:07) - Mm-hmm.
Kimberly Spencer (00:30:08) - And with the vulnerability that you bring to the team, where and if are there any lines that you just choose not to, not to cross when it comes to vulnerability?
Tash Brooks (00:30:21) - Boundaries are really important. Period. Boundaries are really important. Period. And humanity is something that, again, is very high. High belief system and high value for me. And reaching and finding that humanity and cultivating that humanity in my team at all times is extremely important. However. We are friendly, but. They are not my friends. It's not my job to get stuck in the weeds. Do you like me? Do not like me. Do you like this choice that I have made? Or do you not like this choice that I have made? And that doesn't mean that I'm not considering them. But it does mean that I do need to be able to be impartial enough to make executive decisions and sit in the discomfort of perhaps you won't like that, because my job is to steer the greater good of the organization.
Tash Brooks (00:31:22) - It's not to be a people pleaser. And I say that in a very challenging way for myself because that is one of my faults. I love to please people, I love, I love like I have the ability to change anyone's, you know, emotion that's ultimately up to them. But I love to know that I can make someone's day a little bit better. Or if somebody is upset, I want to be the first one there with, you know, the cookies and the cup of tea or the hug or that, you know, so, so for me. The line is, I really want them to be able to come to me for leadership. And I want to create that environment where that respect is there so that they can do that. Because if those boundaries and those lines get crossed or get too familial in a sense. I think that there can be a feeling of. Who's guiding, who's steering? If that means.
Kimberly Spencer (00:32:30) - It very much does, because I see that with a lot of business owners, non-profit or otherwise, just the challenge that comes when you are navigating a team.
Kimberly Spencer (00:32:40) - And you know, I think both entrepreneurship and parenting are like personal development on steroids. Being a leader, being a leader, being a CEO, it's personal development on steroids because you're always looking at your own stuff. You always have two pathways going at the same time. On the one hand, you're thinking about the task and the jobs that need to be done and the role that you're filling. And on the other hand, you're thinking of. How is it being received? How can I improve? How like there's always a level of elevation that comes with it, with the journey. And especially if you have a child who's throwing a tantrum or having a moment or and just, you know, always thinking of like, how is this reflection? How do I need to adapt and learn? So I know that you value a growth mindset. He created a program for it. How has your mindset grown and evolved since? Since our first meeting nearly 20 years ago.
Tash Brooks (00:33:39) - Oh gosh, so much. I think that mindset is ultimately everything.
Tash Brooks (00:33:47) - It's perception, and I think that it's very easy to get stuck and locked into. False realities. And I think that. The more we can examine our thoughts without attaching ourselves to an immediate response or reaction, the more we're able to. This is why meditation obviously is so valuable because it's just. And I don't think that people think this anymore but think that people thought you just sat there and there was not a thought and you were just still. And the exercise of meditation is truly just examining the busyness of your mind without doing anything about it and bringing yourself back to the center. And so I think, you know, I know that really removing yourself, creating space between your thought and a response is really valid for leadership. And it's really valid for parenting, and it's really valuable in any area of your life, because the more you can examine why you feel the way that you feel. Where you are avoiding pain, how you are stepping into that. The more you experience growth, the more you experience alignment in your work, and in your relationships.
Tash Brooks (00:35:16) - And so for me, I think that when we met 20 years ago, I was very much still mourning the loss of my dance career. That was my identity. That was who I was. It was my first language. I started before I was two years old. I think I did my first exam with the London Royal Ballet when I was like just over two years old. Just found the the certificate the other day. It was very much who I was, you know, very much who I was when I felt something when I was having a hard time. Dad's figured it out for me because I realize looking back now, it created that space dance, automatically created that space from feeling to response because I was able to get lost in something else, and it took the charge off it somewhat so that I could actually respond authentically, not react. So when we met 20 years ago, that tool, that dance tool was taken away from me and I felt very. New. Felt like I was in new skin.
Tash Brooks (00:36:25) - It felt new. It felt raw. It felt unstable in a lot of ways because my biggest tool had been taken away and I was looking for other ways. And then now I have created and I'm still creating tools for myself to continually allow and empower me to level up and empower my team and my children as well to do the same.
Kimberly Spencer (00:36:50) - What? What tools are you using now compared to the tools back then? Do you still dance from time to time?
Tash Brooks (00:36:58) - I am always dancing around.
Kimberly Spencer (00:37:04) - Same here.
Tash Brooks (00:37:05) - Like if you find me in Trader Joe's, I'm for sure moving. It's just like part of who I am. But in actual dance class, I find really hard. I find it hard because. I feel I don't like it. A competitive nature. When other people are pitting themselves against other people to make sure that environment is. I find it hard to relax and release in that space. If everyone's, like, very conscious about how they're looking and looking at the person next to them, which is inherently kind of like the dance world, you know, it pulls me out of it.
Tash Brooks (00:37:45) - So there was actually a really great class that I was taking before Covid hit by this and Tastic choreographer called. Are his handlers? So have Vinton Ryan forgotten his block and tastic class? But I haven't done it since, so the tools that I really love right now and that have been really, really creating a lot of benefit for me are the tools by Phil Stats. Have you read the book?
Kimberly Spencer (00:38:19) - I have not read the book. Oh, we'll leave the book in the description and I'm going to put it right up for this.
Tash Brooks (00:38:25) - Now, truly, you will have this alive. We will eat this alive. It's a phenomenal, phenomenal book by a phenomenal psychiatrist, psychologist and and one of the tools right now that I'm loving is called the reversal of desire tool. And he talks about the sacred nature of the forward movement. It's one of the higher forces equals. And he says it's, you know, it's like the force of the refuse that drives the plow. You know, the Dylan Thomas home.
Tash Brooks (00:39:00) - And he talks about how, you know, we are always so stuck. We get stuck, we avoid pain, we avoid discomfort, and it shows up in our lives and our businesses all the time. How much are we avoiding because we just don't like it? Whether that's like, you know, doing your budget or doing admin work or whatever that is for you. And so he talks about how you see that thing, you feel that feeling, and you see that thing outside of you in a cloud. And you look at that cloud and you feel that emotion, and you look at the cloud and you scream silently and you say, bring it on. And then you walk into that cloud and you feel that fear, that discomfort, whatever it is, you feel it. You become one with the pain. You scream inside the cloud and you say I love pain. And then as you move outside of the cloud, it spits you out. And you see a white light. And you move towards that white light and you also say, pain sets me free.
Kimberly Spencer (00:40:16) - Here.
Tash Brooks (00:40:17) - And it's amazing.
Kimberly Spencer (00:40:19) - Oh, that sounds like a metaphor that I heard from Lori Carter of The Little Glass Bowl, who really wanted to be the big glass bowl. And the glass blower says, well, I'm going to have to put you back into the kiln. And it was like, oh, okay. How bad could it be? And then he went into the kiln and it was fiery and it was burning and it was painful. But then he got to grow bigger. And then he looked again at the other glass falls on the shelf, and he saw them and said, I want to get bigger. And the glassblower says I'm going to have to put you back in the kiln. Then in order to stretch Sheila and mold you and grow you. And that choice is ultimately up to us to enter into that cloud, enter into the kiln of love, the pain of the discomfort. And that's the thing that I see so commonly with great leaders. They are just so much more comfortable getting into that realm of discomfort, facing the pain and facing it quicker than most people.
Kimberly Spencer (00:41:25) - And I see that with you stepping in and facing those those challenges daily in the pain.
Tash Brooks (00:41:33) - I think, you know, you and I have had such an interesting parallel. I've led such interesting parallel lives over the past few years, you know, and the death and birth cycle have been so close for both of us. My, you know, my brother passed. My daughter was two months early. Well, first, my daughter was born two months early in the year. That was absolutely traumatic. My brother died. My mom would be with me while she was here. My brother suddenly died. Then within. Within the year my sister died. You know, my sister was struggling with Ms. But still, it was. It was not something that we saw coming. And then my son was born and my dad suddenly died. So. And then my aunt died as well, shortly after my dad died. And I had two children. And I also had a miscarriage at that time as well. So.
Tash Brooks (00:42:43) - Pain is something that is not absolute. It doesn't define. Who we are. And I think that what I know is when you move towards pain, pain shrinks. If you run away from pain, it will chase you like a monster and it will get larger.
Kimberly Spencer (00:43:08) - Yeah.
Tash Brooks (00:43:09) - And the more we try to avoid that pain the more we do. And then obviously all those other habits and dysfunctions can be born out of just trying to avoid it. But when you are unable to or you choose not to. You get a superpower. You develop, you know, in greatness which is ultimately the goal. It's the goal. So I think that being able to really step into pain on pain, see it for what it is as an opportunity. It has created an ability for me to sit with everybody else while they're going through unimaginable pain.
Kimberly Spencer (00:43:57) - And. How did you process the grief?
Tash Brooks (00:44:01) - I'll let you know.
Kimberly Spencer (00:44:08) - Uh oh.
Tash Brooks (00:44:09) - You know what's so hard about grieving with a newborn is that. A newborn needs you 24/7.
Tash Brooks (00:44:22) - 24 seven around the clock. You know you're feeding. You're being present. Your hormones are also completely recalibrating to this new version, this new body that you now have. Because we know, obviously, every time you have a child, you carry part of their DNA in your body for the rest of your life. So you have a new body every time you have a baby. So the grief. The grief journey is ongoing. And it shows up in beautiful and unexpected ways. And. You know, you just grow around the grief. It doesn't leave you. You just grow around it. You have it. Your body. Like when you have a baby, you have a new body. When you grieve someone deeply close to you too, you are a new version of yourself. Undoubtedly.
Kimberly Spencer (00:45:21) - Yeah, that definitely changes you. And there's something that I found, especially with losing a parent. In a way, the perceptions of who you had to be for them. At least this is for me, gone.
Kimberly Spencer (00:45:34) - So in a way, there's also another form of liberation as far as discovery of who is this new person without the entity that was there before?
Tash Brooks (00:45:47) - Yeah, absolutely. And my relationship with my dad was very complicated. Very, very, very complicated. And I felt like. Our relationship took on a new form and we were able to love one another. In a different way, which is so beautiful and also at the same time heartbreaking because. I'm still in human form and that is my frame of reference. Does this paradigm ultimately mean it will always come back to this and to be able to experience the kind of love that I feel for him now? I would have loved to have been able to have more of that in human form. That didn't happen, but I am so grateful for the ways in which both my dad and my sister have shown up since they passed. I really felt them both.
Kimberly Spencer (00:47:00) - Yeah. And? Yeah, same here with my dad and my aunt and my nana piping in from time to time.
Kimberly Spencer (00:47:09) - It's just it's. It's so interesting how there's an was it? I think it's the Navajo tribe. They have a saying that when someone is grieving, they really hold them in reverence. Now, don't quote me for saying it's not Navajo, but I know it's some Native American tribe. They hold space for that person because they believe that that person has pierced the veil. They're currently in the veil and in the in-between of two realities in this 3D form that we have now and then the spiritual realm beyond. And it's in that it's so fascinating, especially after in the aftermath of the initial shock of grief, to suddenly see these moments. Uh, but I'm showing up. I mean, it's it's magnificent and guided. And when I did, when I did my Reiki Reiki one training and I had my attunement, my, uh, the Reiki master, she lost.
Tash Brooks (00:48:18) - There is like she could start.
Kimberly Spencer (00:48:20) - Any symbolism between like there's like a big like it feels very protective, like a big rock behind you.
Kimberly Spencer (00:48:27) - And I was like. Was my dad's name. She's like, there's some. She said, there's a big crystal behind you, like a big crystal rock. And it was like, gosh. And so that that presence of knowing how guided I am. And thus with death comes this incredible depth of reverence for life and the sacredness that is this life and that is this purpose. And so what is that example that you want to bring forth to your kids and recognize? That reverence and sacredness of life. As you grow and evolve and also grow. Walk with Sally.
Tash Brooks (00:49:11) - You know, being of service is something that is really important, as I mentioned, and teaching them how to be of service is also something that's really of great importance. It can feel really challenging to watch your child in pain. Yeah. It is extremely. It's I mean, and I know that mums everywhere and dads say the same thing too. You know, we'd much rather have ourselves go through that pain than watch our child, you know, go through an ounce of pain, mortality, and discussing, you know, the impermanence of everything.
Tash Brooks (00:49:58) - Can be really challenging with a child because all that comes with that is obviously fear around. Wait, what's happening to you? And so it's challenging to go into to go into debt, into debts with all of those kinds of things. But. It's everywhere. It's in nature. It's reflected constantly. The flowers, the seasons. They bloom, they fall, you know? So I think that's starting and showing. You know, I've shown my kids through the transition of, look, there's a bud, it's blooming, it's springtime. And then we water it and we honor it and it's sunlight, and then it blooms and up blooms for such a short amount of time. There are lessons that impermanence, there are lessons of reference. There are lessons of smell, the sweetness of the rose. And look how beautiful the petals are when they're at their greatest. And then watch as it's time it starts to fade, you know, things like that. We're also a multigenerational home. My mom, who is one of the great loves of my life, lives with us.
Tash Brooks (00:51:07) - And I think that that's also such a beautiful opportunity to show at close the different seasons of life, and I love that. So we really make the most of taking in those very small moments. We also, you know, it's just it's nature. It's looking at flowers. It's understanding that if you pick them, what happens if you pick a flower? You know what happens if you rub that flower off of its natural journey? And what do we think about that? And what do we know about that? Things like that, you know, um, yeah, I think there are some of the biggest ways. It's a gentle it's a gentle conversation, particularly because are only three and five years old. And so it's a very gentle conversation just about being present to what is around us.
Kimberly Spencer (00:52:03) - And hey, yeah, with my six-year-old, I was he was a he became acutely aware of death and what death meant. At a very young age, and that death means that in at least in this body, you're not coming back.
Kimberly Spencer (00:52:18) - Yes. And that awareness, I don't know how it's going to shape him for the future, but I do believe in my heart that it's for the better. Like, he literally just saved his brother and, like, grabbed him from running into the parking lot and he said his words, where do you want to be dead? I'll never see you again. And he because he knew because he has this depth of relationship with death. He understands the the impermanence of life and so I do believe that the ancient Egyptians, revered death. They honored it. They taught it from a very young age, able to understand it so that it's not something to fear necessarily, but it's something to understand is a part of life. And it does give beauty to the moment because impermanence makes things beautiful.
Tash Brooks (00:53:16) - Absolutely. It's also, you know, romance is the understanding that all things come to an end. You know, that's what romance really is. I wish we were.
Tash Brooks (00:53:29) - It hasn't really I think it's landed a little bit more with my three-year-old and my five-year-old. But we were at the beach, we were in Malibu, and this giant octopus washed up on the shore, and it had died. And. My five-year-old daughter thinks she may have been. You know, she was five. She was like, mama, we have to say, let's call the hospital. Let's call the doctors. Then we have to save the octopus. Why do not movie? I was like, sweetheart. He's gone. It was his time. He's gone. And we can put him back in the ocean. And he lived. He lived his life. But he's gone now. She was really. It was all she was talking about for a long time, talking about it to everybody. They'd be like, hi. And she'd be like, we saw an octopus. And it was just like it was the biggest thing. And then we were at Whole Foods shopping, and their dad went to go, I think, to the bathroom or to grab pizza or whatever.
Tash Brooks (00:54:41) - And my three-year-old, my son said to my daughter, Where's Harbor? And she goes, he died. It was this time I was like, okay, okay, we gotta we gotta have a conversation around what that's like. Well, we, you know, we right now we're just focusing on the impermanence through nature we haven't really like.
Kimberly Spencer (00:55:16) - Yeah. Amazing.
Tash Brooks (00:55:20) - Not out of the mouth of babes.
Kimberly Spencer (00:55:22) - Oh, they just they're so. They're so wise sometimes. And sometimes. Sometimes so reckless. But. Yeah. Was very wise. Yeah. And just it's, it's so amazing to see their, their evolution. And with what, how they process and how they experience the world, and what they perceive from us in the experience.
Tash Brooks (00:55:49) - Yes, it's also great just seeing them come online in different ways and relate in different ways. And all of a sudden you start to see their little like sense of humor and you start to see, you know, what they find funny or how they connect to people and how it's just.
Tash Brooks (00:56:06) - It is such a blessing to just be here to support that because I don't. It's not my job to instill necessarily things in them as much as it is just to be the solid foundation for them to springboard. So, um, yeah, it's just it's the best job ever.
Kimberly Spencer (00:56:30) - Back and you got two pretty good jobs.
Tash Brooks (00:56:33) - So gosh, I really, I really do. I really, really do.
Kimberly Spencer (00:56:38) - Oh gosh, I love this conversation. Just being able to have a chat with you. And, and I would love to dive into a little bit of rapid fire to shake things up.
Tash Brooks (00:56:50) - But let's go. All right.
Kimberly Spencer (00:56:54) - So who is your favorite female character in a book and or a movie and why?
Tash Brooks (00:57:00) - Belle from beauty and the beast.
Kimberly Spencer (00:57:03) - Yeah. Do I like two?
Tash Brooks (00:57:07) - Hundred percent. Belle. Because she is thoughtful. She's well-read, and she really takes charge. Yeah. Mindful way. In a way that is authentic to her femininity, but yet is really rooted in strength and her own.
Tash Brooks (00:57:27) - Sovereignty. Yeah.
Kimberly Spencer (00:57:30) - What woman would you want to trade places with alive? Or when she was living to, like, live in her body, being her brain? See how she experienced the world just for a day.
Tash Brooks (00:57:43) - I mean, there are so many but don't want to choose a generic one. Um, I mean Oprah, but also to maybe like Sarah Blakely.
Kimberly Spencer (00:57:55) - Yeah, yeah, I saw her speak at Tony Robbins Business Mastery with Jesse, and I was like, this woman is phenomenal. And just how she what she spells. Yes. And cold as well.
Tash Brooks (00:58:09) - Exactly.
Kimberly Spencer (00:58:10) - Yeah.
Tash Brooks (00:58:10) - She's phenomenal. I really, really really enjoy her. Yeah.
Kimberly Spencer (00:58:15) - What is your morning routine that sets you up for success as a mama and a CEO?
Tash Brooks (00:58:22) - if I don't wake up early enough and I'm chasing after my day, the whole day feels scattered and shelled. So I have to every single day have a cup of tea. The tea I bought it from Australia because I love it and I need a good one.
Tash Brooks (00:58:45) - 30 to 45 minutes, just in stillness, sipping tea. And I'm not planning anything. I'm not. I'm just being present. And then I'm good. And then I go for I, you know, go for a run and all that kind of stuff. But really for me. Yes, obviously exercise is phenomenal and that impacts mental health for sure. But for me, the cup of tea is the gateway to the day.
Kimberly Spencer (00:59:15) - And what is this magical tea from Australia?
Tash Brooks (00:59:20) - Yeah. Don't I'll send you some. I don't know if it's as magical as much is. It's just like it's routine. I've missed tea since I was a kid. It is just low in tannin. It's just a black tea. I had it with a little bit of milk and just. It feels like honoring myself. It feels like me.
Kimberly Spencer (00:59:43) - That's amazing. I did love living in Australia and having tea time. Oh yeah, it was awesome. Not the Vegemite sandwiches.
Tash Brooks (00:59:53) - Sorry. That's not what I'm thinking. Hey, it's an acquired taste again.
Kimberly Spencer (00:59:59) - What is your nightly routine to set you up for a successful morning bedtime and wake-up time?
Tash Brooks (01:00:04) - Listen, I want to be in bed by 830. Like I am not. My job does require me to be out quite a bit. And even though Zoom and all of those kind of virtual tools have really made meetings somewhat easier. For me, at least so far. It's not the same. It's not the same. Because what happens with Zoom is it removes the element of a meet-cute or spontaneity. You're not just bumping into someone at an event when you're on Zoom. You're not striking up, you know, a conversation with someone and then realizing you have all these people or things in alignment and then create like a really fun branded opportunity. So it's it involves me being out late a lot, but. Ideally 830 an early dinner. I'd love to eat it around like 536. And then I like to have like a whine down, whatever that is. I'd love to read a book, but with kids, that's not really happening a lot right now at that time, but in bed by 830.
Kimberly Spencer (01:01:22) - Amazing. What do you define to be your kingdom or Queendom?
Tash Brooks (01:01:27) - Um, a community for sure. I think the community is everything. Having people around you in close proximity to you who are each living their dharma. I have people that I am doing life with, truly, and I've been doing life with them for decades now, and I love that level of commitment, of showing up for one another, and also to have those uncomfortable conversations sometimes where it's like, hey, I love you. You're not in alignment with your highest self. We need to have a conversation about that. These relationships, these people in my life have truly been my eyes at times when I haven't been able to see straight, and as a new mama and going through grief, having more than one person who can truly be that mirror for you, who can truly be your touchstone, I think, is the key. To at least part of like, my fulfillment in life. Mm.
Kimberly Spencer (01:02:41) - And lastly, how do you crown yourself?
Tash Brooks (01:02:44) - I actually, that's such an interesting question.
Tash Brooks (01:02:48) - I don't know that there is any. There's not any big one-way, at least right now. I think for me. The crown feels like intimacy, like true love with my children. When they see me, when we're together, when they're loving me, when we're really connected. And I. And I feel that that feels like the ultimate crown for me. Those small, small moments. There's not one. There's not one big way. Right now, I would say that I am crowning myself.
Kimberly Spencer (01:03:31) - Beautiful, I think. I think it can be the compound effect of those intimate moments. Is everything.
Tash Brooks (01:03:40) - Yeah. Yeah. I agree.
Kimberly Spencer (01:03:43) - So how do we find you? How do we support Walk with Sally? What do you have coming up in this next season? I know we're entering this, like, massive season of giving. Is there any way that we can be of service to you in what you're creating in this world?
Tash Brooks (01:03:58) - I love that. Yes. Yes. Absolutely. So. Hope for the Holidays is basically our Q4 fundraiser.
Tash Brooks (01:04:09) - It's the biggest season of impact because our families need additional care during this time. So we have opened up a shop in our office where we've had companies like Jessica Simpson. We received over $250,000 worth of brand-new clothing, and beauty products from a company called 13 Lune and families, and they can come in and shop, and our families can come and get everything for free. So whether you can support a family during this time, you are able to buy their Christmas presents for them. You're able to buy a Thanksgiving meal or a holiday meal, whether that's Christmas or a Hanukkah meal or whatever it is they celebrate. Um, that is all available on our website where you can go on and you can actually. Support in those days. Think that goes live on October 1st. So we have also a huge peer-to-peer fundraising campaign called Cancer Doesn't Scare Us for the month of October, where our highest fundraiser will win a trip to one of like 16,000 locations across the world. So we're really we really want to empower our communities to dig in and be a part of this movement, which is really.
Tash Brooks (01:05:35) - Coming together to support one another because cancer unfortunately connects us all.
Kimberly Spencer (01:05:42) - Yeah, yeah. Gosh, it was so beautiful seeing your face, hearing you're just absolute love for service and just being in this in this conversation. I have thoroughly enjoyed this and seeing the evolution and being able to say that I've known you for 20 years feel old when I say that. But we are well, we are, and.
Tash Brooks (01:06:07) - Bring it on and on.
Kimberly Spencer (01:06:10) - But being able to be a part of your journey for so long, it's been such an honor and I am so excited for what you're creating because I know that you're just getting started.
Tash Brooks (01:06:20) - Thank you. And I want to thank you for supporting the way that you have supported me from day one and am so, so grateful for your friendship to be part of your community. And ditto, sister, as are you.
Kimberly Spencer (01:06:35) - As always, my fellow sovereigns on your throne. Mind your business because your reign is now.
Kimberly Spencer (01:06:43) - Thank you so much for tuning in today. If what you heard resonated with you.
Kimberly Spencer (01:06:46) - Be sure to subscribe and start creating a bigger impact now by sharing this with a friend. Just by doing that one simple act of kindness, you are creating a royal ripple to support more people in their sovereignty. And if you're not already following on social media, connect with me everywhere at Crown Yourself Now for more inspiration. I am so excited to connect with you in the next episode, and in the meantime, go out there and create a body, business, and life that rules because today you crown yourself.
