Creating Confidence with Heather Monahan - #167: Believe In Your POTENTIAL With Cate Luzio CEO Of Luminary

Episode Date: November 23, 2021

In This Episode You Will Learn About:  Advancing women and their development for generations to come  Believing in yourself and your success   Building professional relationships to excel your career   Forming new skills for yourself  Resources: Website: www.luminary-nyc.com  Email: [e-mail]  Call: (646) 876 - 8680  LinkedIn: @Cate Luzio & @Luminary  Instagram: @bealuminary & @cateluzio Facebook & Twitter: @BeALuminary  Overcome Your Villains is Available NOW! Order here: https://overcomeyourvillains.com  If you haven't yet, get my first book Confidence Creator Show Notes:  Running and growing a business can be scary but you have to remember you are NOT alone. Everyday can feel like an emotional rollercoaster, but with some perspective you can remember what you are fighting for! If you can put yourself in the shoes of someone who is more disadvantaged than yourself, you’ll realize how much you have to be thankful for!  About The Guest:   Today’s guest, Cate Luzio is a former banking executive and the founder and CEO of Luminary, a global membership-based career and personal growth platform and collaboration hub, created to uplift and upskill women through all phases of their professional journey. Cate was recognized as one of Forbes’ Next 1000 Entrepreneurs in 2021 and a Top 100 Female Founder by Inc. in 2019 and 2021. A long-time advocate for empowering women and girls, she serves on the National Board for Girls Inc., as a WE.NYC mentor, and sits on the Boards of Pomp & Whimsy and WaterAid. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We are in the midst of the worst pandemic that it's ever hit this world and we continue to argue and fight. Like, let's actually remember that we're fighting for the next generation and the success of this world. And I'm scared every day and I'm running the business, right? There's not a day that goes by that I don't worry or I have a concern or I'm on that emotional roller coaster 15 different times, but it's all perspective. And I think that if you can just put yourselves in the shoes of one other person that's more disadvantaged, It really demonstrates perspective. We should be thankful for everything that we have. I'm on this journey with me.

Each week when you join me, we are going to chase down our goals. We'll overcome adversity and set you up for a better tomorrow. I'm ready for my close-up. Hi, and welcome back. I'm so excited for you to meet my friend, Kate Luzio. She's the founder and CEO of Luminary, a global membership-based career and personal growth platform and Collaboration Hub created to uplift and upscale women through all phases of their professional

journey. Members are comprised of multi-generational and intersectional communities of individuals, entrepreneurs, entrepreneurs, corporations, organizations, including UBS, JPMorgan, Unilever, Verizon, Goldman Sachs, MasterCard, and the list goes on and on. Before starting Luminary, Kate spent 20 years in financial services leading global, multi-billion dollar businesses. Previously, she was global head of multinational corporate banking for HSBC, managing more than 2,000 employees worldwide. And prior to that, she served as head of multinational corporate banking at J.P. Morgan in London. She spent her early years in Latin America with Bank of America across both consumer and wholesale banking.

She started her career working in tech in China, of all places. Kate is a graduate of the University of Maryland. where she was named its entrepreneur of the year in 2020, and in 2021, joined its board of governors. She has a master's degree in international relations from Georgetown. What the F, Kate, you're making me look so bad. A longtime advocate for empowering women and girls, she serves on the national board for Girls Inc.

As a W.E. NYC mentor and sits on the board of pomp and whimsy and water aid. She is a member of Dealmakers, Women's Forum of New York, CAREforce, and Times Up Care Economy Business Council. Kate was recognized as one of Forbes' next 1,000 entrepreneurs in 2021 and a top 100 female founder by Inc. in 2019 and 2021. She's been featured as an expert and top-tier financial business and lifestyle media and is currently a contributing writer to Fast Company, Business Insider, and Worth. K. I can't, I'm blown away. I know you and I'm blown away by this. Congrats on all your success, my friend. Thank you. Thank you. It's kind of weird listening to it being discussed like that. But you know, you forget, Heather, like I'm sure you do all of the things throughout your career that you accomplish or that you, you know, you've been focused on. It seems like even three years into the

entrepreneurial journey, like I sometimes forget that I was a banker for so long. But thank you. And I'm so excited to be here. Oh, I have to tell you, I know a lot of people in financial services and you don't fit that mold that I have, right? That stereotype in my mind, extremely conservative. You know, everything is strategically thought out before someone speaks. How did you reach the level of success in financial services when you're definitely different than most of those people? Yeah, I am 100% different. I, you know, one of the things that I say to people is I hate numbers. I was never a numbers person. I never expected to go into banking. I was recruited into it. But one of the things that I remember as I was being recruited to my first bank was we like your profile. And I was like, what does that even mean? We like your profile. You know, I'm in my late 20s. And they said, well, you've traveled. You've worked internationally. You seem to be a joiner. You have a great personality. You're kind of that get shit done kind of person. And we like that. We can teach you all the technical things. And I think as someone who was really good at building relationships,

that's what they were looking for, both relationships with clients, as well as internally as I started to manage people. And I think that's where I really, you know, accelerated my career. I wasn't the normal type of banker, not that there's, you know, one version of a banker, but absolutely wasn't that sort of stereotypical. And I think that went to my advantage. I'm also not a shrinking violet. So I raised my hand a lot. My head was always up looking for new opportunities and projects and ways to get involved, whether it was a women's network or just getting involved in different projects where I was going to learn. So I think that's really helped. And I have to say, I had phenomenal male mentors throughout most of my career that continue to tap into that energy

and that work ethic and just, I want to do more. Why, when you reach such a high level of success in the banking business, would you leave? You know, I'm still. in my mid-40s, right? I am not, you know, finished with my career yet. And actually one of those male mentors that I mentioned, he and I had a very pivotal conversation. I was in the midst of making another move within financial services. And he said, you know, I challenge you. Is this what you want to do with the rest of your life? And I sort of laughed or rolled my eyes, actually. And I've said this before. I had never thought about it. I had been in a career for close to 20 years that I loved, to be honest. I love deals. I love clients. But I had never really thought about what I wanted to do

outside of I was leading big businesses and making a significant amount of money. And I was always talking to other women about it, but I had never asked myself that question. And I did a little bit of soul searching for two weeks and then quit. So it was pretty kind of abrupt. And I will say this, never say never. And I love financial services. I love what I did. I just, decided that I wanted to try a different path and something that not only was I passionate about that was actually delivering real impact, not that financial services doesn't do that. But that was that pivotal conversation. And I think many people have that in their careers. I know you have had very pivotal conversations, good or bad. And in 46, that doesn't mean I can't ever go back

into the banking world. And honestly, you know, you listed out our partners, our corporate members on there, you know, half of our corporate members are banks. So I'm still getting that sort of attachment to the financial services world that I was probably missing for the, you know, that first couple of months when I was starting Luminary. So a lot of people listening right now are thinking she chose just to go and leak, right, and just go for it. I had to be pushed out to go for it. You didn't feel scared or what was it that allowed you to make that jump? Oh my God, of course I was scared. I remember feeling for about six, eight weeks, super depressed once I decided to say, I'm done with banking. We'll see what happens. I was interviewing for lots of different roles,

some of those being with my former clients. I was getting approached by other banks. And I was actually really nervous and depressed. And that same mentor, his name is Don, would say to me, what are you doing? You can always go back. Like, focus on the future and creating new skills for yourself and new opportunities. And I had never thought about becoming a business owner. Heather, that wasn't like I'm leaving banking. I'm going to go run a business and start a business. But I think I had saved a lot of money through all those bank bonuses. And I felt comfortable that even if I took off, you know, whatever, a year, not that I would ever do that, that I would be okay and I would find the right next move. And, you know, I'm part of a bunch of boards. And so they were equally excited in saying,

let me make introductions. I mean, this is the power of your network. right? Tap in, tap in, tap in. So yes, I was scared to death. I was depressed. And it wasn't until I wrote the business plan, you know, two and a half, three months later for Luminary that I got energized about something again. And I think that was very telling for me that once I decided to do something, I'm either all out or all in, right? I couldn't just trickle and leave banking. There was no way. I had to just make that decision the same with starting a company. And how did you come up with the business plan for Luminary? Because they're really, was nothing out there like what you built. There are lots of women's organizations and organizations focused on advancing women and their development. But a lot of them are very, very focused on one kind of

women. So that's senior women, entrepreneurs only, junior women, bankers only. Right. So it was, I saw a huge market or a white space that said, wait a second, or actually alienating women, we're not bringing them together. I saw that in corporate America and my role in banking. I had a network of bankers, right? Where was everyone else? I didn't have a network of founders. I didn't know a single founder when I decided to start Luminary. So I had to rebuild a whole new network. And so in doing market research and analysis, as I was writing my business plan, I saw, you know, there is an opportunity to bring women that are climbing the corporate ladder, that are small business owners, founders, entrepreneurs, and those in transition like I was to bring them

together and upscale and uplift and really create their own definition of success versus what they've known or have been dictated to by their company. So about 50% of our members at Luminary are entrepreneurs, small business owners. And then the rest are, I have a boss. I'm climbing some kind of ladder. It doesn't necessarily mean in corporate America. And then we have now a growing percentage that are in transition, particularly because of the pandemic. So that was it. I wrote a business plan. I created financial projections. Can I do this on my own without taking on investment or going to ask a bank for a loan? And I did. And that allowed me to build a space in New York City. Eight months later, we launched. 14 months later, we're in the midst of a pandemic.

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Now available in Canada, too. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com slash confidence to get free shipping and 365-day returns. Quince.com slash confidence. Oh my gosh. Now you mentioned, I want to just follow up on one thing that you brought up. You mentioned that you had to rebuild your network because it was a new group of people. Now, how were you able to do that? Someone who already had an established network, you had to start over fresh. How were you able to connect with people so quickly?

So number one, the power of LinkedIn, right? You know it, I know it. It is a very powerful tool. And so whether I looked at lists of incredible women founded organizations, companies, other women's spaces, that's where I started. And then I literally just started reaching out and saying, here's who I am. Here's what I'm doing. Here's what I'm building. Would you want to chat with me? Would you want to just connect? I'd love to learn more about you. And that's what you do in sales, right? That's exactly what you're doing in any type of relationship that you're building. And it really started that way. And once I then started doing that to my existing network is saying, hey, I'm starting this company. You know, I'm trying to tap into lots of different audiences of women. Do you know anyone that is a founder, a business owner in transition, kind of figuring out their next role. And the amount of introductions and connections just started rolling in.

And that was really how it started. Look at how you and I were connected to someone who connected me to someone who connected me. The power of your network is incredible. So never stop building it, right? Never get complacent with regards to your network, ever. So, so important. I know you as Luminary business owner, Luminary is already up and running.

I didn't know you when it was just a concept and thought that you were, you know, going to create during that time was in the earlier stages. Was there a tipping point or something where you said, oh my gosh, this thing is really, you know, I've got this. Yes, actually, probably January of 2020. We were just about a year old. And I remember sitting with our chief operating officer and general counsel. And we were like, wow, what a great first year.

Can't believe it. This is awesome. We're going to have a great 2020. And literally, you know, less than two months later, I'm getting the call that New York is shutting down. I have to call our landlord. We had to temporarily shut our space for three and a half months. And we're battling back, right? We had so many incredible members in the New York area that were business owners and

entrepreneurs and building their companies. And we had all of these great corporate members. And that was just starting to pick up because you can't bullshit DE and I efforts, right? You have to really invest in your pipeline. And I think, you know, employees are calling their companies out more now than ever. And then the pandemic. You know, silver linings, though, we were a physical space in New York. We still are. But literally, before we even had to shut our space down, we knew that we had to be there for our community. And our community is who we exist for, right? So we went online with our events, even before the world sort of shut down and said, you know, whether this last two weeks or a few months, we're going to be there online.

And now 18 months later, our community is now in 30 countries. We have members in 30 countries. We have more than 40 or 50 corporate partners. And slowly but surely our in-person space in New York, which is still exist, is starting to come back and have people in. I think as the vaccination numbers have gone up, and people are just tired of being at home five days a week, regardless of their work situation, they want to see other people.

So we've been really excited about seeing just more and more people in the space. And then last thing, creating partnerships with women's spaces, women's focus spaces physically around the country. We saw about half of them close because of the pandemic, which is so, you know, disappointing. But now we're seeing more and how do we actually collaborate to advance women, again, regardless of professional journey in the city, does it have to always be Luminary? We should work together to create real impact. What was different about Luminary that allowed it to continue on? Was it the partnerships that you have with your sponsors or what do you point to? You know, we lost about 80% of our

revenue in the first three months. And that was for lots of reasons, right? People were scared. People weren't coming into the city, whatever reason. And we understood that. Number one, we had no debt. Right. So from a purely business standpoint, we had no debt. We were very, very prescriptive in the vendors that we worked with and are my landlord who I give a ton of credit for and saying, listen, here's the situation. What can we do to come up with a compromise around payments? And we had liquidity. So from a pure business standpoint and managing a P&L and a balance sheet, we were okay. We also applied for PPP as soon as it was available. The power of having a good accountant and auditing of your financial statements as super important. And then we had great corporate members that doubled down on our mission and said, we're not going anywhere. And the members that were able to stay with us, stayed with us. And then again, we're slowly and surely building that membership backup. We're now over 3,000 individual members and counting. We launched the fellowship program for those small business owners that were really impacted. And that allowed us not only to support women business owners,

particularly diverse women business owners, but also call in companies and saying, hey, you know, invest in us, invest in a bit small business. And also by doing that, you're supporting that literally hundreds and hundreds of other women own small businesses that are suffering right now because of the pandemic. Kate, moving forward, what does your plan or what are you starting to anticipate looking as we move towards more live and in person and virtual and hybrid everything to more of this, you know, this great resignation, the potential of more people that can be a part of Luminary. So I think it's really interesting. I see both sides of the coin on the great resignation. And so I do see and we see the numbers of people leaving. And if their companies aren't providing

new options for benefits and flexibility, they will. They can vote with their feet, right? Just like a consumer can vote with their dollars about where they buy their products from. On the other side, I know that the workforce has to continue to grow and be efficient. and I don't see everyone leaving their jobs. I think there is also financial stability, you know, obviously that comes along with having a full-time job versus starting your own business or becoming an entrepreneur. And we need more money for women entrepreneurs anyhow. So until that grows, you know, I think while we'll see a big rise and we've seen it,

27% increase on women-owned businesses since 2019 from what it was before. So that's not going away. I think companies were focused on how do we deliver the right options and flexibility for those that are in the workforce. You know, for us, we're excited about the fact that we're starting hybrid events. So we're still having virtual because we want to reach the audience that isn't in the New York area, can't come in for whatever reason, but then also bringing people back into the space and doing events.

And you and I were just catching up. But we've started those. That's exciting to see. I think in 2021, you'll see more and more of that. I also think that despite everybody wanting flexibility in the workplace, not everybody wants to work five days a week at home. And so looking at ways where Luminary in New York and potentially Luminary elsewhere can service that audience will be critical for 2022 for us. And then, you know, on the corporate side, we are talking to so many companies that back to what I said earlier, you know, really can afford to lose more women. They've got to attract more women, hire more women, retain the existing women.

So working with those companies on their policies on how they're investing in the pipeline doesn't go away. I think that's only become more important and more critical to the workforce. Did you just allude to possibly buying another location somewhere else in the country? I don't know if I would say buying another location. I do feel like there are lots of different opportunities and business models for us to grow in different ways. And so one of that is, you know, we launched just about a month ago one of our digital memberships with added benefits. It's called Digital Plus. And what we're doing is really building

a network of women's spaces around the country where our Luminary members, if you're sitting in Nashville or Houston, have access to these spaces in addition to all the Luminary program that we're offering. We wanted to be a win-win for our partner, for Luminary, and certainly for the member. So that's one way. you'll see some news we're going to be doing on In This Together tour with some pop-ups in certain cities. And I think we're evaluating what does that look like and certainly just watching what happens, right? The world is not back to whatever normal looks like. And we're still in the midst of this pandemic. So I think we're being cautiously optimistic for 2022. I don't want to shoot myself in the foot like I did in 2020 saying, yes, it's going to be a great year. And then something else happens.

So I'm so with you. I was so, you know, 2020 is a wrap onto the best year of my life. And then I can't do that to myself again. Yeah. Yes. Feel your pain on that. However, like you said, you're already seeing and you're, you're already holding some of these hybrid events, which I'm so excited to, to hear about and can't wait to actually attend later this month. So I'm super excited to actually see Luminary in person. I'm so happy. So Kate, a big part of Luminary and you, right? And you're talking about your journey and the company's journey is around New York and the location. And you sent out an email. First of all, I don't think I've ever gotten a group email from you ever, right?

No, no. I don't use to send them. And I received an email that you sent out to all of your contacts the day before September 11. And literally I was crying my eyes out, but not from, you know, so sad, more of a, I felt really hopeful. after I read your story, which was so touching, and I was hoping that you could share with everyone listening right now because I just know people need hope. And that story to me, it really got it done. When you want more, start your business with Northwest Registered Agent and get access to thousands of free guides, tools and legal forms to help you launch and protect your business. All in one place. Build your complete business identity with Northwest today. Northwest Registered Agents has been helping small

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there are all these stories. Why is she highlighting hers? Well, it was very impactful for me. And I was flying from the D.C. area to Los Angeles around the same time as the other planes. No idea. I mean, I had a cell phone, but we didn't have smartphones. And I remember we were crossing the pilot said, hey, look, there's the St. Louis arches. And we're all like, oh, great. If you're on this side of the plane, it was beautiful. And then very shortly after, he's like, yeah, we're actually going to be in a holding powder and we have to ground. And long story short, no one knew what was happening. Back then you really couldn't turn on your phones and you'd get any service now that happens. And as soon as we landed, the pilot said, and we were circling

for quite a long time. The pilot said, listen, there's been a national catastrophe. You'll find out when you get in. Please don't turn your cell phones on. And then once we got into the airport in Kansas City, it was mayhem. And all I remember, I don't know, was Dan Rather or Tom Brokaw, some boy, or Peter Jennings, their voice like, like verberating around this attack on the World Trade Center. My father was an FBI agent, worked down there, and I lived in the D.C. area a mile from the Pentagon. So all this is happening, panic. I can't get in touch with anyone. And I remember they start to evacuate the airport. We were the last flight that landed and we were 27 of those that were not intended to land. There were no more rental cars, nothing. I go outside. I sit down on the curb and I just

start crying. And I'm a tough person. I'm from Jersey. I have brothers. I have all that like tough. And I just start crying. And all of a sudden there's like some guy tapping me on the shoulder. And as a cynical sort of grew up in the New York area, I would never talk to some random stranger. And he said, can I help you? And I, again, I sort of like, what, what? And he's like, can I help you. You look very upset. And I said, I don't, I can't get in touch with any of my family. I don't know where to go. I don't know what's happening. And I need a place to stay. And this guy, you're literally all alone and you have no way of getting out of this airport. All alone. All alone. And it wasn't, you know, back then, I don't know. I think about it now. I mean, it's 20 years ago.

Did people get out, that were sitting on that plane together sort of come out. out and say, hey, we're going to get a rental car and drive somewhere. I don't think that happened. I think, I just think people were panicked. It was a terrible situation. We had come from D.C. So, you know, people were trying to figure out their own situation. And so this gentleman picks me up, I'd just get in his car. Like, I don't even ask a question. I'd get in his car. And it happened to be a Buick that was exactly the model that my grandfather, who had passed away a few years prior, drove. And so I remember kind of thinking that like, oh, this is like my grandfather's car. He drove me to multiple hotels across Kansas City.

Again, I didn't question it. And he would go in and say, I have this young woman. She needs a place to say. Her family is on the East Coast. They may have been affected by the World Trade Center and Pentagon. It was like the seventh hotel. It was an extended stay, America. And they were like, oh, we have a cancellation.

So we have a room for you. And as I'm filling everything out, I like turn around to tell this guy like, how do I ever pay you? And he's like, oh, no, no need. You know, the fact that you're okay is payment enough. But I was, you know, arguing again, as a as a bullheaded New Yorker. No, I have to pay you. And I turn around to like get to see if I have any cash, which of course I don't. And he's gone.

And he's gone. And I was so consumed by getting this hotel reservation. and that I didn't even, I ran out too late. His car was gone, nothing. And I ended up staying in Kansas City for several days before I could get home. And it was terrible. But that community, that hotel, bought me pizza every day, took me to the movies, the hotel staff. They rated the vending machine.

They took me to an ATM. And I wrote an op-ed once I got back to D.C. saying, thank you to the Kansas City community. Thank you to Extended Stay, America. thank you to this man. And if you are reading this, I would love to know who you are. And I never found out, but, you know, in my email, as you know, it was my angel, right? And he was an angel. And I think, honestly, whether you're spiritual or not, you're religious or not, we all have to believe in something. And I'm getting upset and emotional. But that day, I needed someone. And this older gentleman saw that. And I think he was likely a driver, Heather, just because he was at the airport at that time.

And he literally kind of saved me. And I refused over these last 20 years to not let that story go and noticed. It was really impactful in my life, in the life of my family. As soon as I got to that hotel, I was able to use a landline phone. Finally get in touch with my family. And I was the last one that was unaccounted for. And all they knew was I was flying from Washington, D.C. to L.A.X. And they were so scared. You didn't share. We didn't share like we do now. Like, here's my flight. This is what it's landing. And you can track me on Flight Aware. Like, that was not, you know, there was, we didn't do that. So it's really kind of funny. I went on to have, obviously, a very successful career banking and travel the world. And to this day, my mom makes me text her, no matter where. I'm going. I could be literally going on a train, but whatever it is, I have to text her my travel

plans and when I arrive. And if I don't do it within the hour of that plane or that train arriving, I will get a text. Have you arrived? And I think that was just, you know, it made us really care more, not that we didn't care. It made us have hope to your earlier point. And I look at some of these younger kids that weren't around or were young when this happened. We can never let this, you know, pass. We can't forget it. And we also have to remember that there are really good people out there in the world. All we ever hear about is the bad. And so if one time a year I can send a mass email and remind people of the good in this world, that's what I'm going to do for the rest of my life. And you should because I will tell you that email will never get old. And to your point,

it's so easy these days to be consumed by the negative media, by the haters online. Everybody's under there's so much stress and pressure. Yes. People act out in some very negative ways. And again, I'm not judging anyone. I feel it too. I have my bad days. Yes.

To see a person that shows up just to help someone else, not asking for anything in return. It's such a beautiful thing that cannot go unnoticed that needs to be recognized to give everyone hope of we have the potential to show up as that person in any given moment. And there are good people that have the potential to show up for us too. There is, and we have to keep sharing that, right? We have to keep reminding that there are more good humans than there are bad out there. And then we have to start sharing those. It's really interesting. I get so many emails now. If I haven't sent out that email by a certain time on or around September 11th, where's your email? And this year, I was getting some of my friends that are around my age that now have, you know, middle schoolers and teenagers saying they've now shared the email with their children. A lot of them weren't living, right, when September 11th happened. So they want to make sure that they, not only understand the effects of September 11th and what happened, but also the good. I mean,

think about, you know, think about how the world, the world, not just New York and D.C. and and Shanksville, Pennsylvania came together after September 11th. We are in the midst of the worst pandemic that it's ever hit this world. And we continue to argue and fight and all this BS out there. Like, let's actually remember that we're fighting for the next generation and the success of this world. And so that's my one email. If I can set that out and give a little bit of hope, I'm going to keep doing it. It gives me hope, Heather. Yes, it gave me so much hope.

I mean, I get emotional just listening to you talk about it right now. You know what's interesting is that I was living in Michigan for work at the time on 9-11. And it's so bizarre, Kay, but when you're far away physically from something, you're far away from it. Like, it's hard. When I read your email, that took me. into it in a way I've never been in other than watching it on the news coverage. You know what I'm saying? Yes, yes.

You have no idea that not only did you give me a hope, but you gave me an understanding for something. I don't think I ever really was able to have because I was physically just so far removed from it that it almost seemed not real. Right, right. It's surreal, right? Because you're not living it. You're not, I mean, I have to say, my father, we talked about it a few weeks ago

right around the anniversary. Actually, no, it was September 11th. My parents came to dinner with myself and my boyfriend. And we were talking and my father is an FBI judge. My father spent weeks down on Ground Zero, they called it the bucket brigade, which they were sifting through all of that, looking for evidence.

And then they would find a lead and they would, you know, all of this. And I don't think I could ever fully appreciate, too, the toll that it took on him as he was going through that and the people that he lost within law enforcement that were his friends and coworkers, but the hope that he still had, even after all of that and that he still has for the world. So seeing that from my dad, Mr. Macho and like go get them and just kind of keep,

you know, keep everything going and sort of almost robotic sometimes to see that side of him and to know what he went through and what he felt and also the way he felt about, I don't think we'd ever talked in 20 years about how, how scared he was and what I was going through. And yet I'm doing the same because he's literally at ground zero. So all of those things come up. And it's so good that we continue to talk about them, no matter if it's 20 years or 100 years or last year. Emotions are important and being vulnerable. And I know that as a leader, it's important and showing the human side of ourselves. Well, I'm so glad that your father is able to do that.

I know some men against stereotype, but I think, you know, military and police force. And, you know, there's even more difficult for them to because they're supposed, supposed to be seen as tough and supposed to be seen as never show weakness. So I'm glad that he's able to experience that and express himself with you. That's really inspiring. But it's taken a while, right? And I think part of that is taken a while because any tragedy that you go through or trauma, you deal with it your own way.

And that may, for some people being able to talk about it a month later, that may be 20 years later. My father is a Vietnam veteran and has very rarely talked about his experience. So he's 76. I'm 46 being able to just kind of feel that connection with him in a different way. I think is really powerful. It's something that I'll never forget. And it's something him and his duty to this country and lots of different ways is something I'll celebrate, just like we do for those 3,000 people that lost their lives that day and the countless thousands that are

suffering from the impacts of that day, whether it's family, whether it's, you know, obviously there's lots of illness from the ground zero impacts and what those first responders. And we think about first responders now, Heather, from what 20 years ago, right? First has been a buzzword the last 18 months. It's the nurses. It's law enforcement. It's ambulance. It's, I think we forgot about that for the last 20 years and what people sacrifice when they go into, whether it's a firefighter fighting these terrible fires in California to the law enforcement officials. There's just a lot of negative. And I think at the end of the day, we have to remember what they're sacrificing for our safety, our freedom every single day.

You also just reminded me that, you know, of course, I have my moments where I feel bad for myself that I'm stuck in my apartment. I feel bad for myself. I'm isolated. I feel bad for myself. I have anxiety. You know, whatever it is, right? So I'll get in those moments. And when I was just listening to you, describe what your dad has done, Vietnam, ground zero, nine. These are unbelievable things that he's been able to accomplish, do, live through and manage. And that's, just not only does that make me feel grateful for all that he's done for our country and for all of us, but it reminds me also what's possible because in any given moment we think like, oh, I'm barely getting by through this awful situation until you start hearing other things that people have gotten through that are much, much worse. Yeah, it's all perspective, right? You know, to your kind of earlier question, like, was I scared when I started Luminary? I'm scared every day and I'm running the business, right? There's not a day that goes by, literally, that I don't worry or I have a concern or I'm on that emotional roller coaster 15 different times,

ups and downs. But it's all perspective. And I think that a lot of times it's having conversations with people like you where you kind of check yourself and say, okay, I am privileged, right? I recognize that and I'm very thankful for that. I've been able to have an education. I have a roof over my head, all of these things. I was able to start a business. I had, you know, career. But when we start to think about everyone else, it gets overwhelming. But if you can just put your shelves in the shoes of one other person that's more disadvantaged, I think it really demonstrates perspective and that, you know, we should be thankful for everything that we have. I certainly am. And I'm thankful for two amazing parents that instilled that in me.

Well, I'm thankful for you, Kate, and for the unbelievable work that you're doing, for the message that you put out there, for the positivity you bring to the world. And to me personally, I'm very grateful for you. Well, right back at you, right? We got connected by the incredible Scott McGregor and knew we were going to become fast friends. And I love to say this when I get connected to another woman. It's like love at first sight, right? We had that conversation. It was like, boom, boom, boom. You know, women like us and men too. Because we, and just by the way, Luminary is not just for women. We are, our mission is to advance women in the workforce, but also our male allies. So we're welcome men as well. And I think it's so important that we're all supporting each other. And we're, we're all supporting each other. And we're, we're, we're where are each other's sounding words and that we give each other perspective. So right back at you because I'm very grateful to have you in my life and certainly to be a part of this as well. Well, Kate, how can people find you? How can they find out more about Luminary? Sure. So you can find this online at Luminary dash NYC.com. Don't be fooled by the NYC. That's just how we had to

register it when we started the company. But Luminary dash NYC.com and on Instagram at be a luminary. So call to action be a Luminary. And then on it on LinkedIn, just search for Luminary and you will find us. It's a nice sweeping L is our logo. And then you can find me at Kate Luzio, C-A-T-E-L-U-Z-I-O on all of the social platforms, including LinkedIn. Well, Kate, thank you so much for your time today. I know how crazy, busy you are, and I really appreciate you being here. Likewise, and I can't wait to meet you in person soon. In real? All right, guys, definitely check out Luminary. Check out Kate. She's a wonderful person. that you don't want to miss the knowledge that she's dropping. Until next week, keep creating your confidence.

You know I will be.