You are listening to Scale Your Joy with Kaneisha Grayson, episode 9. Did you miss me? Because I missed you.

Welcome to Scale Your Joy, the only podcast that teaches high achievers with heart how to craft a life and build a business focused on freedom, joy, self-expression, and social impact. I’m your host, Kaneisha Grayson. A Harvard Business School and Harvard Kennedy School grad, author, essayist, and self-made entrepreneur. I did it and you can do it too. Let’s get started.

It is Tuesday night. I just ate a delicious remix dinner. So a remix dinner y’all is when I take my leftovers, either from homemade food or from takeout, and then I add some stuff to it and it becomes a whole other meal. So tonight’s remix dinner was that I had some Thai yellow curry left over. But I had eaten all the meat out of the curry and there was only sauce left. But I was not about to throw out good yellow curry sauce.

So I cut up some carrots and some, was that the only thing I put in there? I thought I had some more. I thought I had broccoli but the broccoli, I looked at it and it had gone bad. It sounds sad when I say it this way. But there was some potatoes. So it was carrots and potatoes and I sauteed the carrots and potatoes and mixed them in with the leftover curry sauce. And then I had some rice and I turned it into basil fried rice.

So I took the rice, unfortunately I didn’t have any fresh basil so I added my dried basil, a lot of it. And fried the rice and then I cracked an egg into it and let the egg cook. Don’t stir the egg up, you got to leave it as like a fried egg in the rice. It was so good.

And then Tyler likes yellow curry but he can only eat it sparingly so I had that and then I made Tyler herb encrusted chicken breast. Very classy sounding, but also very easy. And he’ll have that with a salad and I will have that tomorrow.

So y’all today I am feeling deflated, defeated, discouraged, and depleted. I’m tired y’all. I’m spiritually tired, I’m physically tired. I’m tired. Why am I tired? I’m tired, this is some rich people complaints right here, what this is about to be.

But I tried to buy a house this weekend and it was a very exciting frenzy of activity. It was very exciting to go look at a house and really, really like it. And as I walk around the house, realize that I like it more and more and say, “Oh my goodness, this is the house I want to put an offer on.” And so I called my realtor, I called my financial planner. And was like, “I want to put in an offer on this house.”

So they were asking for $535,000 for the house, which is already a lot of money. And y’all in order to be competitive, I offered $647,250. That is a whole $112,250 more than they were asking. Which I was ready and going to pay in cash money, that overage, and I still did not get the house. Y’all offering $112,000 more than they asked and I did not get the house.

Let me tell y’all how much I did not get this house. I did not get this house so much that the seller’s realtor did not even acknowledge my offer. Like my offer was so heinously unacceptable and uninteresting compared to the other offers they had, that we didn’t even deserve a text message response or any sort of rejection. What? Is this real life? What is happening?

So Austin is the hottest real estate market in the US right now. If you want to read about it, I’m going to link to the New York Times article discussing the Austin real estate market on the show notes page at scaleyourjoy.com/9 and you can read about how crazy it is right now.

But it’s very hard to be an Austin native who was born here, who was raised here, went to public schools here, you know, who spent years paying down $150,000 in student loans, saving up for a down payment. And to now be competing in a very low supply housing market with people coming from very high earning, high net worth states like California and New York. And people from out of state are arriving with budgets over $800,000.

And the market is resulting in house prices that are just out of control. Houses that used to be $300,000, or $400,000, are being sold for 5, 6, 7, $800,000. And obviously, I’m in a position of extreme privilege to even be able to try and buy a house. But it’s still discouraging, and sometimes infuriating to think that I will either end up way overpaying for a house that I know used to be 300k just like five years ago. Or that I’ll need to move out of my own hometown in order to own a home.

And this is one of many reasons why generational wealth matters and how we see some of the effects of centuries, right, of exclusion and oppression. If your recent ancestors were excluded from home ownership, or they were excluded from owning in certain neighborhoods. Or if your more distant ancestors spent a century or more working unpaid labor, that debt has never been repaid.

And you’re now competing side by side with people who have centuries, or even just one or two generations worth of inheritances working in their favor. It just really feels like the game is rigged. So it’s just enough to make you want to pack your bags and move to the moon. But I digress.

So I will either find a house I love and that I can afford, being the very economically privileged person that I am. I earned this money, but still I had a lot of privileges. As in, I didn’t have to give my parents money. I don’t have to support my dad. He’s retired and has his own retirement income. I’m not his primary caretaker. Those are huge privileges. I didn’t grow up having to translate for my parents. I didn’t grow up having to work many, many jobs. I did have jobs in high school, but I didn’t have to work in order to support my family while I was in high school.

So I’ve had a lot of economic privileges, even in the disadvantaged ways that I have lived as well. So that’s just how I’m feeling today y’all. I’m feeling “defleted,” defeated. Defleted is not even a word. I’m so tired, y’all got me saying defleted. I’m feeling deflated and defeated, discouraged and depleted. But I will stay encouraged. And if I’m supposed to buy a house in Austin, I will. I don’t want to force it and I don’t want to overextend myself financially. So that’s how I’m feeling on this Tuesday night.

Today, I’m sharing some juicy stuff from my personal journal, doodle, and noodling. I will be sharing my life vision, my business vision, and my business values. Then I’m going to give you some joy work to do so you can start jotting down your life vision, your business vision, and your values.

First, we have our listener spotlight. Today’s listener spotlight is a voice memo from my friend Saraa. She and I met during my sophomore year at Pomona College. And we have shared lots of laughs, some tears, and hours and hours of talking, and texting, and voice memoing about race, class, money, and relationships. Those are just four of our favorite topics.

Tonight, we were texting back and forth furiously about colorism and class and social dynamics as we have witnessed them on the Netflix show Ginny and Georgia. Which I am thoroughly enjoying as well as picking apart with my Black Studies degree. And Saraa is a successful therapist and I am honored that she is a Scale Your Joy listener. Let’s see what Saraa has to say.

“Hey Kaneisha, I just wanted to send you a message to let you know how much I absolutely love and appreciate your podcast. I feel like, for myself, as a first-generation college student and as someone who also grew up like poor, you know, there was this feeling or this belief that I’m going to go get educated. And, for myself, I got a bachelor’s degree, and then I got a master’s degree. And then I started a business.

And then there’s just this gap in knowledge. And in my case, confidence, and very often, like just not seeing it. And seeing someone who’s like you get to the other side, or get to where they want to be, and like following their dreams in particular in entrepreneurship and like seeing it work out so well.

So I’m just inspired, and in love, and I feel so affirmed. So thank you so much for making the podcast. And I feel like we get to hang out again, just like old times. Except, you know, now you’re in this fully flowered state of having realized all of these things, you know, that I’ve watched you grow over the years, and it’s just so awe inspiring. And like, when I listen it’s just such a boost and I, you know, go even harder at my workout.

Or I like, you know, am a lot more confident when I go in and I’m like, “Let me respond to these messages. And let me state my fee confidently.” You know, so I just love it so much. And I listen every week. And please keep making more. Because as listeners, we’re out here and we need this content. So thanks so much.”

All right, it’s time to talk about our visions and our values. Some things to keep in mind, your life vision is not static. It is ever evolving, expanding, shifting, and becoming. Just like I am, just like you are. Also it’s important to write down your life vision. Don’t just let it live in your head and bounce around as random ideas. It should be written down and handwritten.

Also, your life vision should primarily benefit you. Why? Because it’s your life. And no one has to live your life but you. Your life vision is not about what matters to other people. Or what kind of life other people think you could have. Or the type of life people think you should have. I want you to read your life vision out loud and with feeling. Really embody the words you say. And I’m going to demonstrate that on today’s episode.

Now, some things to keep in mind when it comes to your values. Values are highly personal. They are about what matters most to you. It’s really important to release ideas of what values you think you should have and be willing to reflect upon and embrace the values you actually have. Or the values you want to have and want to cultivate.

And if there are values that you want to cultivate, you can totally intentionally spend your time, money, energy, and attention discovering and growing a commitment to a certain value in yourself. Values are not fixed; you’re not born with a bundle of values that you pull out of a backpack over your life. You can go walking in the forest of values and pick each one that you want to put into your crown.

In a few minutes, I’m going to do my dramatic reading of my life vision, my business vision, and my values. So you might want to brew a cup of tea for this because I’m about to spill it. As I read, I want you to do your best to suspend judgment of me and suspend judgment of yourself. Instead, just listen to my vision and values as if you’re listening to the story of someone’s life. Just like you don’t always agree with the choices a character on television makes but you can still enjoy the show. I want you to listen to my life vision, my business vision.

And don’t worry about judging me or judging yourself, just enjoy the show. And don’t worry about trying to take notes or even trying to think of what your vision would be or what your values are while you’re listening to me talk. You can always listen to the episode again, rewind and fast forward through certain parts. And of course, I’m going to give you some joy work to do so you can get started on crafting your vision and articulating your values.

The joy work and the resources to help you with your joy work will be at scaleyourjoy.com/9 on the episode page.

All right, you ready to hear my life vision, my business vision, and my business values? Here we go.

My life vision. By 2025 and perhaps even sooner I will have brought the following experiences and realities into my life. I am surrounded by and embody love, joy, self-expression, generosity, and abundance. I trust myself and the goodness of life. I have a beautiful life full of laughter and inspiration. I feel supported by God, the universe, myself, my beloved, my loved ones, my team, and my community.

I have embraced and accepted my choices. Where to live, my chosen partner, my chosen family. And I fully enjoy the present without worrying about the future. I may contemplate the paths I might have taken or the life I might have lived, but I love the life I have.

I am in community. Constantly creating, growing, learning, expanding, and becoming my highest self. I have wonderful friends, colleagues, mentors, and guides. And a strong sense of self trust, confidence, and inner peace. I have beautiful quality time with myself, my family, including my beloved, friends, mentees, clients, and new acquaintances.

I feel energized, strong, healthy, clear-minded, and fit. Tyler and I ride bikes, hike, walk our dogs, take long walks, go to the beach. And we even lift weights and build muscle together. We don’t fear aging but nor do we neglect our health and fitness. We are embodied and in touch with our physical bodies.

I have an easeful, joyful, impactful career writing, teaching, leading, mentoring, creating, speaking, innovating, podcasting, and experimenting. I am a well-loved, highly sought after, and extremely well compensated teacher and leader of workshops and retreats in the US and in beautiful inspiring locations around the world.

I have lots of free time to relax, create, dream, travel, and just be. I work about four super productive hours per day, 11am to 4pm, with a one-hour lunch break. And take at least 120 days off each year. I earn at least $300,000 per year in take home income, and maybe even much more than that. I donate generously and consistently to causes related to underprivileged youth. And dedicate at least one full week each year to intensively mentor at risk youth and help them understand the possibilities for their lives.

I travel alone for fun and business, with friends and even sometimes with my dad, sister, and nephews. When I travel my travel companions and I don’t worry about money. We travel in luxurious comfort, whether it’s first-class flights, awe inspiring vacation rentals, five-star hotels, or Michelin starred restaurants. If we rough it, it’s because we intentionally chose to have a rustic glamping experience.

Tyler and I get married on Saturday 4/20/2024. Four years after the day we met on 4/20/2020. We have a healthy, happy, hot and sexy marriage where we are committed to our growth as individuals, as a couple, And committed to enjoying life as much as possible with one another and our loved ones. We are makers, builders, tinkerers, teachers, and creators who love to share our ideas and creations with one another and the world. We are financially abundant, but also have a healthy amount of free time to enjoy alone, together, and with friends.

We live in a spacious, spectacular, sun-drenched, plant-filled home with a colorful but clean inspiring design aesthetic both inside and out. We love to enjoy our home as a couple with our dogs, as well as with the friends and family in small and large gatherings. We feel inspired and energized when we walk, bike, and drive around our neighborhood, and when we enter and move around our home. Our home is our oasis, we just absolutely love it.

Tyler and I are pet parents to two energetic sweet and delightful dogs, Zadie and Peggy. Which is what we’ll call her name for now because she doesn’t exist yet. Peggy is about 15 pounds fully grown, has white fluffy fur and makes us laugh all the time. She and Zadie are best friends and they keep each other company very well. We have a large, beautiful yard that Zadie and Peggy love to zoom around in, and that Tyler and I love to sit around and lounge in.

Tyler and I travel together to see beautiful views around the world, luxuriate on glorious beaches, and eat all the tasty food. My life is my greatest creative masterpiece and I can’t wait to see the adventure that awaits me. All right, that was my life vision.

Here is my business vision. In five years, by December 31, 2025 KDG Ventures LLC, doing business as The Art of Applying and Scale Your Joy is a multi-million-dollar enterprise that runs with ease, efficiency, and is an engine of inspiration and abundance for me, the team, our clients, and for people all over the world.

A large percentage of the admissions consulting part of the business has been sold for an amount of money that resulted in me receiving a net amount of $5 million or more. Which was prudently invested and produces an estimated $200,000 per year in interest that allows me to be financially independent and live off of each year.

When the admissions consulting business is sold, I make sure that every full-time member receives a fat bongga bonus. Bongga is Filipino slang, look it up B-O-N-G-G-A. So each full-time member receives a fat bongga bonus that makes them thrilled they worked so hard to help the company grow and prosper and motivates them to stick around even as leadership transitions from me to the new CEO.

An experienced, inspiring, and capable CEO has been put in place for The Art of Applying with her very own integrator, a second in command. I remain on as an advisor and chairwoman of the board for The Art of Applying while continuing to work as the chief creator and CEO for Scale Your Joy with Ellie, my executive assistant, by my side.

Our main services for The Art of Applying are in the area of undergraduate and graduate educational admissions consulting and career coaching. Driven by a robust recurring revenue business to business sales strategy. While Scale Your Joy focuses on entrepreneurial and personal development and sells coaching as well as fun, beautiful, inspiring branded merchandise and products, such as workbooks, planners, stickers, tote bags, and mugs.

Both business subsidiaries, The Art of Applying and Scale Your Joy have valuable proprietary technology that serves as a key differentiator and value maximizer. Both business subsidiaries focus on serving diverse high achieving professionals who want to be extraordinarily educated, earn well while doing good in the world, and enjoy location flexibility, time freedom, and financial freedom.

The Art of Applying and Scale Your Joy are run by a well-paid and high performing team of engaged leaders and team members that spans the globe. We have a dedicated team of extraordinary administrative talent in the Philippines led by my executive assistant Ellie. And it includes Verna, Liz, and other amazing team members.

Our outstanding technical and creative talent in eastern Europe, which will be led by Ana and include other people. And we have amazing retreats in the Philippines and other parts of Asia. We also have a lean high-performing team of full-time people in Texas who have annual retreats at places such as Miraval, which is this gorgeous resort center outside of Austin.

I lead the business and set the example of excellent performance without frantic nor frenzy for other leaders in the organization. Our clients happily rave about our services to their friends, family, and colleagues. And our alumni network of clients grows and grows and becomes even more powerful, influential, joyful, and interconnected. The Art of Applying and Scale Your Joy are important parts of my legacy as an entrepreneur, teacher, and creator.

That was my business vision. And now let’s talk about my company values. Y’all know I like alliteration so you’re going to hear some alliteration in these company values. These were last updated very recently, March 17, 2021. And the idea is that I look at them, you know, every year to just update them and keep them updated. So these are the most up to date company values for my entrepreneurial endeavors.

Community, we create a sense of community among our clients. And we participate in online and in person communities that include our ideal clients.

Client focused, we strive to exceed expectations and achieve outstanding results for our clients and the members of our team.

Confidence. We are a team of capable and self-assured people who are willing to take risks, be held accountable, learn from our mistakes, and claim our wins.

Clarity, while understanding we may not have all the information we want, we endeavor to use the information we have to make intelligent decisions based on data combined with intuition.

Contribution, we focus on how we can use our time and talents to best give to the clients, the team, and the business.

Collaboration. We are not a company of lone wolves; we work together to solve problems and create solutions.

Celebration, we focus on what is working and what we have to be grateful for. We look for ways to make work fun.

And lastly, calm. We ascribe to the belief that it doesn’t have to be crazy at work. And we do our work in a calm confident manner.

All right, those are the company values. And what’s really wonderful about writing out your life vision, your entrepreneurial vision, and your company values, no matter how established your company is, or even if it’s just an idea in your mind, is it’s something you can read out loud, get really excited about and pumped up. But you can also share it with your team members.

And so at The Art of Applying, it’s my goal and my responsibility to share these company values with everyone who joins the team. And so now that I’ve recorded this episode, I’ll probably have them listen to this episode as a way to share the business vision and the company values.

But that’s one of the wonderful benefits. It’s a benefit primarily for me, so I have something that I’m working toward, but it also helps my team understand that, you know, I have a vision for the business and that they are part of something bigger than themselves.

All right, that was a lot of reading. I hope you found that inspiring and insightful. I know I’m feeling inspired. It’s time for me to give you some joy work to help you get out of your head, into your heart and taking action. I want you to journal doodle and noodle on the following questions.

What are five essential elements of my life vision? This could be physical, spiritual, mental, emotional, relationships, friendships, money. I want you to be as specific as possible. Just choose five things you want to make sure are included in your life vision.

Also, what are five essential elements of your entrepreneurial vision? How much do you work? Who are you helping? How much money do you make? How do you find clients? What are your clients and customers like? Do you get lots of media attention for the work you do? Or are you the quiet millionaire next door quietly raking in her fortune?

Don’t use this question as a way to start spiraling into, “Oh my goodness, having a business is so much work. I need to figure everything out.” No, this is about having fun. Playing make believe. Do not stress yourself out with this. This is about journal, doodling, and noodling. Noodles are loose and tasty, let it be loose and tasty.

Last question for your joy work is what are five of my values? And we’re going to help you out with that question. If you visit the episode page at scaleyourjoy.com/9 you can download a list of values to help spur your imagination. And then you can use that list as a menu from which to choose. But just understand it’s not an exhaustive list. You can even make up words, right? Like I was, what was I earlier? I was defleted. Don’t let defleted be one of your values. But you know what I mean, you can even make up words that’s totally fine as long as you know what it means.

All right friend, that’s what I have for you. I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did. This was Scale Your Joy with Kaneisha Grayson, episode nine. Y’all send me some good house buying vibes. Until next week.

To celebrate the launch of the show I’m giving away a Scale Your Joy audio book eBook bundle. These are five hand-picked books that I have read and I love. They’re about life, joy, and entrepreneurship and five lucky listeners will be chosen to win.

The way you enter is you subscribe, rate, and review Scale Your Joy on Apple Podcasts. It doesn’t have to be a five-star review, although I sure hope you’re loving the show. I want your honest feedback so I can create an amazing show that provides tons of value. Visit scaleyourjoy.com/welcome to learn more about the contest and how to enter. I’ll be announcing the winners on the show in Episode 11.