Trading Secrets - 267. Charlotte Flair: From personal trainer to WWE Superstar, BTS of what led her to pursue wrestling, building her own success, navigating industry pressures and the true value of authenticity

Episode Date: December 8, 2025

This week, Jason is joined by one of the biggest names in sports entertainment, WWE Superstar, Charlotte Flair! With 14x Championship reigns, and countless main events under her belt, Charlotte redefined what’s possible for women in professional wrestling. As the daughter of WWE legend Ric Flair, she was born into one of the most famous families in wrestling. But Charlotte isn’t just carrying the Flair legacy, she is the legacy and she’s writing her own chapter as one of the greatest superstars of all time. From headlining WrestleMania 35 to becoming one of the highest paid women in the business, Charlotte has turned athletic talent, brand savvy, and sheer determination into a global empire. Charlotte opens up about growing up during the height of her dad’s career and the moment she first recognized his success. She shares how college taught her the fundamentals of budgeting and saving, what life looked like between graduation and joining NXT, and how working as a private personal trainer earning $55k her first year shaped her. She reflects on the pivotal role her brother played in getting her to NXT, how training then compares to training now on the main roster, and the times Triple H reminded her that opportunity didn’t guarantee success. Charlotte explains how she stays true to herself as Ashley while portraying the opposite version of herself as Charlotte, the walls that character allowed her to build, and her experiences combating ageism in professional wrestling. She breaks down tagging with Lexi and how that partnership formed, the intentional construction of the Charlotte Flair character—rooted in dominance, female empowerment, and the Flair legacy—and her continuous battle with perfectionism. Charlotte discusses how winning her first title set her trajectory, how she honors the women who paved the way, and what the WWE Unreal episode revealed about her injury. She also shares the avenues she wants to pursue outside of wrestling, her best financial move, which reality show she wants to try, and answers rapid-fire questions. Charlotte reveals all this and so much more in another episode you can’t afford to miss! Host: Jason Tartick Co-Host: David Arduin Audio: John Gurney Guest: Charlotte Flair Stay connected with the Trading Secrets Podcast!  Instagram: @tradingsecretspodcast  Youtube: Trading Secrets Facebook: Join the Group Trading Secrets Steals & Deals! Bilt: With Bilt, every rent payment earns you points that can be used toward flights, hotels, Lyft rides, Amazon.com purchases, and so much more. It's simple: paying rent is better with Bilt. Earn rewards and finally get something back for being a renter. Join the loyalty program for renters at joinbilt.com/TRADINGSECRETS  Nutrafol: Nutrafol is the #1 dermatologist-recommended hair growth supplement brand, trusted by over one and half million people. See thicker, stronger, faster-growing hair with less shedding in just 3-6 months. Give the gift of confidence this holiday season with Nutrafol. FOr  $10 off your first month's subscription plus free shipping, head to Nutrafol.com and use promo code MADNESS. Indeed: Hiring? Indeed is all you need.  Give your job the best chance to be seen with Indeed's Sponsored Jobs. Spend more time interviewing candidates who check all your boxes - less stress, less time, more results now with Indeed Sponsored Jobs. For a SEVENTY-FIVE DOLLAR SPONSORED JOB CREDIT to to help get your job the premium status it deserves, head to Indeed.com/SECRETS  Function Health: Own your health for $365 a year. That's a dollar a day. Learn more and join by visit www.functionhealth.com/TRADINGSECRETS  or use gift code TRADINGSECRETS25 for a $25 credit towards your membership.

Welcome back to another episode of Trade Secrets. I'm your host, Jason Tartick. Welcome to the pre-market trading segment. We're for less than five minutes. I'm going to tell you a little bit about what you can expect in this episode from our guest. I'm going to give you a personal update, some financial news that you got to know. course, a giveaway. And why not start with the giveaway? It's the holiday season. And every week during the holiday season, I am giving away gift cards to someone who gives us a five-star review

and Apple and gives us some feedback on what they want to hear, either guests, ideas, suggestions, and of course, giving us five stars. So Ray Sillhan, if you hear this, you won, just shoot me an email, Trading Secrets at jason Tarduk.com, and I will send you the gift card. I love this review. Always enjoy the podcast and diverse set of guests. My favorites are hearing from experts in industries I know nothing about. I would love to hear more from unique guests, like untraditional industries of oil and gas, CEOs, luxury travel agents, cattle ranchers, and more.

I loved what you just said in that review because actually next week, we have a luxury travel agent coming on that books the most exclusive vacations of all time. And that might sound a little nauseating, but the stories are unbelievable. She was actually just featured in the New York Times. And let me tell you, someone who's booking these type of trips, that these dollar amounts, she has the ends and outs of trading secrets for all of us.

So get prepared for next week. And most importantly, go give us a five-star review and let us know what type of guess you want on, themes you want us to cover, and things you want us to make sure that we talk about and we are giving a gift card away. So next intro, I will give a gift card away to any of those who give us a review this week. Now, this week's episode is with the one and only Charlotte Flair. Now, I am sure you have heard of her. one of the most decorated athletes and entertainers in WWE history.

Of course, her father, Rick Flair, woo! But I'll tell you what, this episode gets deep. It's really interesting to hear about her lowest of lows or highest of highs, the wild turns she's taken, the empowerment she continues to lead. Really fascinating conversation about, you know, anybody that's in WWE, right? You're on stage, you're entertaining, and you're also active. but the disconnect of what her real personality and authentic self is off and outside of the ring versus in the ring and how actually connecting those two led to incredible job enhancements

and performance. But we talk all things money to what her relationship with money was at at a very young age, how it's changed, what she's doing with her money. And there's one thing that threw me. I couldn't believe that she has to come out of pocket for certain expenses. You'll hear a little bit about that. But this episode, it doesn't matter if you're a fan of WWE or not, you will leave a fan of Charlotte Flair. Now, something you need to know going into this holiday season, we are seeing spending pull back a little bit, which isn't surprising. It's not surprising to me because we're seeing markets at all-time highs, but we're seeing economic indicators that are showing a lot of uncertainty. We haven't seen a disconnect like this in market performance and

economic uncertainty in so long. And with that comes gray area. So here's the want you to do. With your loved ones, set budgets for this holiday season. Say, hey, we're going to buy each other gifts, but like, let's keep it around this dollar amount. And don't forget that sentimental value in a gift can always, always be more appreciated than the actual dollars amounts spent. I said it last week, remember, but connection is not built on consumption. And there was a stat that came out today that are saying 42% of Americans have financial secrets. 47% of people say they would break up with someone or get divorced because of financial problems. nearly one in three people admit to lying about money to their partner. The other thing that's

happening is more than one in 10 Americans agree that financial infidelity is worse for a relationship than emotional or physical infidelity. There's a lot happening in this space of gray area with money and it starts with communication. I do have a book out there called Talk Money to Me. It helps sort through these topics, conversations that you have to have with your loved ones would make a great gift for the holiday season. But most importantly, let's set budgets. it's around holiday spending this year. A little update for my personal life. I head to New York this week.

I have an awesome event with Dell. I have Ryan Sourhan coming on the podcast. Excited about that. Next week, we have that luxury travel agent who's just featured in the Times. And, you know, there's a whole lot of discourse out there. We talk about that review where they wanted us to have certain industry experts on.

A lot of conversation right now about lab grown diamonds and natural diamonds. And I have an expert coming on the podcast to answer all the questions. We need to know as consumers. It's a busy week. It'll be a fun week. Actually, heading to Remy Bader's holiday party.

She's been on the podcast. If you haven't heard that episode, make sure you give it a listen. And for all my people that are big fans, the Curious Canadian, the recap, we are still on dad duty. You know, he just had his second child. So unfortunately, there is no recap this week, but there will be next week. But enough of me. Let's ring in the bell with the one, the only.

Charlotte Flair. Welcome back to another episode of Trading Secrets. Today, we are joined by one of the biggest names in sports entertainment, W.W.E. superstar Charlotte Flair. 14-time championship reigns in countless main events. Charlotte has redefined what's possible for women in professional wrestling. As the daughter of W.W.E. legend, Rick Flair, she was born into one of the most famous families in wrestling,

but Charlotte Flair isn't just carrying the Flair legacy. She is the legacy, and she's writing her own chapter is one of the greatest superstars of all time. From headlining WrestleMania 35 to becoming one of the highest paid women in the business, Charlotte has turned athletic talent, brand savvy, and sheer determination into a global empire. Today we're going to talk about the business

of being a WWE superstar. Ashley, stage name Charlotte. Thank you so much for being on sharing secrets. Thanks for having me. Appreciate. You've had quite a career in what's been 12, 13, 13 years. now, huh? It's gone by so fast. It's pretty wild. Now, on this podcast, I know you've done a lot of podcasts before. Our main focus is career and money. So I think I want to start this interview

by going way back to when you're a kid. And I think about when I was a kid, my dad, I remember when he got his big first promotion. And when he got that promote, we moved into a new house. He wasn't as frugal. I'm like, okay, dad's doing all right. Yeah. Now, you're growing up in the main era of your father. Of course, Rick Flair, 80s and 90s, he's flourishing. You were born in 86, right? So what was it like as a kid to see your dad's fame rise? And then also did your relationship with money or did you see any type of money changes in the home just growing up and seeing dad become bigger and bigger year over year? I think the first time I really noticed oh, he's doing really well was when we moved into a bigger house when I was going into the 6th grade.

So I loved the house we grew up in, or I grew up in from when I was born until sixth grade. But the upgrade to the house, we moved into a neighborhood that had a country club. We lived on the 18th hole. It was a lot more grandiose. You could say my mom made home renovations, added a pool, a gym on the side of the house. So I guess you could say in sixth grade, I was like, okay, like I noticed. that I mentally remember that being a big deal. But I don't know if I associated the home to money.

It was just more like, this is my life. Yeah. Interesting. And what was your, if you had to define your relationship with money growing up, like how would you define that? I don't think I ever really thought about it until I had to. And that was when my parents went through a rough patch.

Well, really, I think it started when I graduated high school. And then when I graduated college or all throughout college. college. It was like you go from having anything you want. Not anything you want, but like I didn't go without. How about that? To, oh, like, how do you budget on $200 a week in college? So it's a big difference. But I think I am who I am today because I went through that. Yeah, for sure. I remember when I spent 20 bucks on a Saturday night in college, that was like a big night out. You know, how things have changed. It's just crazy. Well, it's not even, it's just being able to, to say, oh, I'm going out to dinner and not think about how much you're spending or, okay, I have

this much money this week in school. Because when I left Appalachian State and I quit my scholarship, and then I was really on my own because I wasn't getting per diem. It was like, okay, I can afford this much with groceries for the week. But I almost wonder, or I give props to people who already have that knowledge throughout high school or their parents make them aware of how much things cost or savings. I was just unaware of anything. Yeah. No, I get that. And it's, I always find it fun to like see someone who's had so much success. Yeah. And kind of rewire the derivative of like kind of where it started and kind of go back there. But when you think about when you transferred, you left your scholarship, volleyball player. I think you graduated. It was 2008,

right? 2010. 2010. Okay. NC State. That's when you transferred, right? And C-State. And C-State. Right. And C-State. Yes. And you went to N-XT in 2013, right? So there's like a three-year gap. Yeah. What did your career look like once you graduate from college before? you ended up pursuing professional wrestling. So when I graduated college, completely lost, moved back to Charlotte, moved into the guy I was with at the time, his mom's house. Okay. So we lived there for about six months.

And while I was like, well, this isn't going to work, but we had no money. Like we couldn't, he was figuring out what he was going to do. And we weren't in any situation to afford an apartment or anything. So we lived there. But in the meantime, for those six. months, maybe not even six months. I was able to get a job at a private personal training studio and was able to pick up clients really quickly because I was from Charlotte. So I knew a lot of people. And then within those six months, was able to move out, rent a house. And then I bought a

house within those two and a half years. And then after I bought that town home, within six months was when I went to Tampa and my childhood home, the home that we moved into in sixth grade foreclosed. So my mom and my little brother moved into that home that I had just, my first town home that I had purchased. So I did really well those two years. But I don't think I would have, I don't know, it was all those like losing the home,

not knowing what I was going to do after college, it was all like great learning experiences for today. Right. I mean, that's what makes you who you are. And those two years things are going well, like you're moving and moving. You're making some good. As a personal trainer back down, like, how much could you make? I think my first year, I think I made like $55,000. Which to me, I know when you say that, but to me, I was like, oh my gosh, I can't believe, like I bought my first car. I went from my

parents buying me. I had a Land Rover in high school to like, I'm buying a Honda fit. This is such a big deal. And I was so proud of my Honda fit. Like, I thought I was driving around, like, what I, like, want now is a G-wagon. Yeah, yeah. That's like, I was so proud of it. I had all my animal stickers. Like, I had two cats, four dogs, my NC State sticker.

I love it. And it's all relative, right? It is. That car meant to you then based on that salary is like the G-wagon to where you are now. But things are rocking and rolling. Which I didn't, I think I made less. I made 500, yeah, I made less when I left personal training and started at NXT. I was going to ask if you were doing so well.

And wrestling wasn't even, because I think I've heard you do interviews before. We were like, even as a kid, like I was never like, I'm going to be a wrestler like my dad. What made you say like, let's go give it a run? Well, I was doing well personal training, but my personal life wasn't doing well. So it was a little bit of that. And then my brother had been living with me on and off for the last two years, but he was also in and out of rehab while trying to wrestle and get a, get a job with WWE, but he couldn't because he couldn't pass a drug test. So I really started at NXT in Tampa, or FCW at Tampa, which turned into NXT due to trying to help my brother get in, thinking he could get on the right path while also kind of escaping my whatever was happening in my personal life to go to four. Florida. Just thinking like there has to be more. Yeah. I think a lot of people use work as a channel,

right? And like that's what a lot, like a lot of people that have achieved an outlying success, too. It's like if you're dealing with a lot, you use it as a channel to then find success elsewhere. You did, right? In one year, you went from debuting at NXT to then being the women's champion in 2014. That timeline to me when I read it was pretty wild. Is that a pretty fast timeline at NXT? Well, first, I want to say I wouldn't, I don't think I would have made the transition had my clients that I was training not been so supportive and like you can do this and obviously be there for Reed. But when I started, I started July 2012. Reed died March 2013. I think I debuted on NXT like a couple months after that. And I think I won my first title that next year.

So I want a title, I think, two years after starting. Okay, got it. There you go. Okay, so two years after. Which is still great. I'm not like, take, yeah. Yeah. For behind the scenes of just this career path, what is like a, I saw and I read a little bit

about you training. What is the training look like? Do you have, are there tryouts because you're acting? You got to do the mic work. You got to do the branding work. Then you actually got to wrestle. Like, how intensive is it? Oh, I was not good at any of them.

I was an athlete when I started. I think everyone's, well, when you first start, obviously, you have to train every day and you're at the performance center and there's a schedule that you have to follow. Now that I am on the main roster, what I do outside of Ross Smackdown, the PLEs or on my free time is up to me. Whether that's putting in the time in the gym, whether that's building your own personal brand or trying to work on your personal brand and add to your character. for me it all blends into one okay and do but when like back then when you were doing like your training yeah is there I'm trying to think of like an actor an anchor or someone in these positions is there like the final tryout or like you have to do the final test we're like all right you're good you got to go to get into the company yeah to get into the company so that's because of who

my dad was all he I mean he didn't really it was like hey Ashley wants to try this they reached out to me but they were very triple h was very how do i say this he was not shy to say hey just because i'm giving you an opportunity doesn't mean i'm going to give your brother an opportunity and i'm like yeah yeah yeah whatever because he's like do you really want to do this because he was so close to my dad and he had never heard that i wanted to be a part of wwe or a wrestler but then when the second step was being connected with the talent recruit at the time. And when he called me and said, hey, we need you to go to Connecticut for testing

and these are the certain things that you'll need to do before you arrive, but just because we are, you know, giving you this opportunity at the school doesn't mean you're going to make it. And I was like, oh, you don't, like, I took that as like, oh, you don't think I'm going to make it? Like, I knew I was an athlete,

but the showmanship, the acting, the branding, the, like, all of that, I mean, I think that's still things that I work on now has taken from when I started into 2012 till now, because they don't give you a handbook. Sure. You have to figure it out, right? No. Yeah. If you follow me on Instagram, you know, I'm on a little detox journey right now.

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It's a near 360 view to better see what's happening in your body. Gift health this holiday season, not stuff. It's not just a gift. It's peace of mind. can own your health for just $365 a year. That's literally a dollar a day. Learn more and join using our link at Trading Secrets by going to FunctionHealth.com backslash trading secrets or just use gift code. Trading Secrets 25 for a $25 credit towards your membership. So you've been to now 14-time championship reigns. You've headlined WrestleMania. I think it was a WrestleMania 35.

knowing what you know now, that girl that was like extremely tenacious, but like, I'll prove you're wrong. Scared of her own shadow. What would you tell her to do the same? What would you tell her to do different in her career? See, I don't know. I would have said try to enjoy the journey more. Like I'm enjoying it now. But again, I don't know if I'd be where I am today.

if I hadn't if I hadn't been as focused as I was like I think I missed out on a lot of family time I missed out on a lot of you know whether it was I don't know like oh going out on a Wednesday night that wasn't me it was like no I got a very regimented go to bed you know get your sleep go to the gyms

but I don't know if I would have changed anything except what I struggled with was being authentic. And now that I'm kind of letting those walls down, the fans are getting to appreciate. Not that you, I play a character, but I think they're having more fun seeing Ashley shine through because they know Charlotte's a champion. Like they know she's always in the title picture,

what I've accomplished. But that's really hard to relate to over the years. Yeah, I mean, I think it's, tell me if you think it's a fair statement, Charlotte Flair typically is a heel, right? Yes. And then I would say Ashley from everything I've seen and read is the opposite. So how do you remain authentic when you actually have to act as something that's the opposite of what you are?

Being the bad guy came so easy because my dad's Rick Flair, I didn't have a tryout. Everyone loves that word nepotism. I'm taller. I'm blonde. I started out on top. So there was nothing to really get behind. Like, I debuted, I win the title, I make history, but then I just continued, which I mean this in a very humble way, like, continued to make history with the girls that I came up with. But over time, like, you never saw that character struggle.

And I think that was maybe the disconnect, which wasn't a bad thing. Like, again, I love the opportunity that I'm having now and the story that I'm telling. So it's kind of like, do I wish I would have changed a few things? Maybe, but then again, the character, Charlotte Flare is synonymous with the title. And I do believe, like, I was one of the best bad guys there was because, like, people really did, like, believe that was me. Right. Yeah. Arrogant, egotistical, yeah, a winner.

I mean, to me, it's just like, oh, well, I'm a winner. But, like, you know, I don't know. I get that, too. He's a player at the game. Exactly. But I can see where that struggle of, like, as you're navigating your career and you're stepping more and more into your character, who's like the winner champ who can't be touched becomes harder to be authentic.

But I think I became more cold and more cold. Like the backlash or whether it was, you know, the fans are brutal. Whether they're, hey, why are you talking about the way I look instead of like the way. I mean, but I don't mean that. And then I just took it to heart instead of being like everyone has an opinion. So I just created this character that just had this wall up that wouldn't let anyone in. I think because it was also like protecting Ashley. Yeah.

But I don't like, there's also like if people aren't talking and you're not doing something right. I just internalized it, I think, because I am or was, I am a perfectionist. Yeah. There is something too. You mentioned that like ageism. that's such a real thing it seems like in wrestling and especially with women like you look at just an observation from far john scene is almost 50 right and no one's really talking about his age you know we're similar ages right and like it seems like there's been so much evolution in women's

sports and especially the wwee but that still has to be a battle you deal with because it's loud how do you deal with that i think doing exactly what i'm doing now showing up showing out looking the part looking great, telling great stories. Like I am with my tag team partner Lexi. I really stressed about it when I came back at Rumble. But now I think I've been so vocal about it, whether it was in my player's Tribune piece or just saying like, hey, I have no prime. So in being okay saying that and like standing in my like I'm 39. I feel like I'm having some of the best character work in my career, great matches. Who's to say? I just think that the women that I came up with, because there has been so much, so much evolution within the women's division, it's kind of

new territory. And I'm honored to be a part of that new territory for women going into their 40s. Yeah, I think it's awesome. So that's more just, it's just new territory. Yeah, new territory. I always have an idea of like the direction I want these interviews to go and then things come up and new things come top of mine so you mentioned your tag team with lexie i'm good friends with nicky and brie so i was in their suite at summer slam and natty and the bella twins were talking about how you just your your tag they were just going nuts for you they're cheering for you and they're talking about how this partnership has like brought in a different storyline for you a different pairing for you and i'm wondering with you and lexie is it brought out something in your career

a new side of you you haven't seen before that's maybe changing what you want to do with your career and like the direction you want to go with your character well i've just been a solo act for so long yeah and i don't like to share the spotlight as my character would say but lexie brings out a softness in me yeah on screen and off camera and i think that's what's been so fun is it doesn't feel like it's effort to do that. It's just natural because I have that bomb with her and we started together and I've known her for so long and I've never really been in a position to do that.

And I don't, no one could have planned this or planned this creative. And I think sometimes the best stories, the best character work, I don't want to use the word best, but things that resonate with the fans are things that are organic. And this just came about just because Lexi was like, hey, what's Charlotte's character doing?

What's more fun as a tag team like this or being like the heel in your individual, right? When you sit there. I think once once I finish whatever I'm doing with Lexi, which I hope continues to go on, we lost last night in Boston. But whatever this looks like for our future, I hope just all of this opportunity with her and wherever that story goes. when I do get to go back to being like the solo evil queen, that it just means that much more because I had the opportunity to do this. That's cool.

I like it. I like it. Don't look at like a blueprint. It sounds like you haven't done that at all. Let's rewind back to the early days. What were some of the financial realities of joining WWE? When you went from NXT to WWE, and did you kind of feel the pressure

that you really had to build your brand in such a large company and an accelerated rate? So financially, I went from like, oh, I'm personal training. I'm doing this on my own. I bought my Honda Fit to having a constant paycheck. Because when your personal training, it's like you have to either have clients or you're not making money. Right. So that was, you know, having a, you know that check was coming every week was great.

But in terms of branding, because I never thought. about it, talked about it. My dad didn't talk about it to me or what it meant to build a brand or like even market yourself. I just started at FCW, like I said, scared of my own shadow being like, how do I become the best wrestler? That's all I ever thought about is I want to be the best wrestler and I want to be as good as the men and I want to main event WrestleMania. So as those goals started happening, that's when I was like, okay, what is Charlotte Flair? What does she stand for? And then just in the last like five years was I like, oh, there's like a branding aspect to this. So Sina clicks because he's branding himself never give up and the t-shirts and the wristbands

and the shorts and oh, that's what branding is there. And then you have Nikki Bella and the fearless and she always wears the jersey top. And, like, I didn't necessarily think about those things or grasp those things even when I first started in 2015. So that didn't really register to, like, the last five years. And I think even now, being authentic to who I am has helped build whatever the cross brand between Ashley and Charlotte is. I mean, the Charlotte brand was just synonymous with,

the title and robes. But past that, like, what is the depth of Charlotte Flair? And that's what I've been working on. That's why I think this year has been so beneficial and great for me, because it's like, oh, wait, I can be people like me. Like, I can be authentic and that's what sells. And working on that brand with that. I talk a lot about how anyone listening to this podcast, whether you work for a big institution, you're a teacher, you're a nurse, you're an entrepreneur, you have your own brand and how to like really dig into your brand. A piece of advice I always give is like, anyone who has achieved outlying success has been like you can define their brand in three words or you can even name more like anyone right so I always tell people quickly put them on the spot I'll be like what's your brand in three words nine out of ten people really stumble with that because they haven't done that exercise they haven't really dug within to understand the root of the foundation that differentiates them now that you're doing it and again and again and continue to evolve like what would you say your brand is in three words so a lot of I think why I'm not saying it's it was one of of probably the reasons, because I was so in my head of, well, there's Rick Flare, there's Charlotte

Flair. My dad's brand is so heavily based on his lifestyle and not wanting to come across, not like, yes, he's the 16-time World Heavyweight Champion, the robes, the money, the limousines, the women, like, how do I, you know, continue that legacy also be the 14-time women's champion? But like, I really, like, do I love Jets? Yes. Do I love limos? Yes. Do I love nice things? And for coats, but, like, I don't think that defines Charlotte Flair. When I think of me, I think, like, a female empowerment dominant within, like, the Charlotte Flair brand, game-changing. Yeah.

Like, history-making, game-changing. It's, like, in that realm for, you don't say those things when you say Rick Flair. Yeah, that's true. But you do, like, when you think of Rick Flair, you think of Charlotte Fla. So I've had to really, like, figure out what that looks like. I think here's what I'm, like, hearing. I'm hearing there's a brand for, well, there's, of course, a brand for Rick Flaher. Well, there's the Flares.

There's the Flares. Like the most decorated family of all time in wrestling. And then there's Charlotte Flair, but then there's also this interesting brand that you Ashley have, women's empowerment, leadership. But that's also, if you think Charlotte, too, because she was the first of everything for women. They're blended, right? Yeah. Like that's kind of my point. It's like two and one. It's two and one. But Charlotte's growing, the more authentic I, like more I'm showing myself. That's interesting. That's what I'm trying. So the more you're tapping into Ashley, the more Charlott's grow. Yes. So anytime if you, like I think you said, what would you offer advice? Authenticity is what works. My dad is who he is today and has resonated with pop culture because he is who he is. Like he does not hold back. He doesn't, you know, oh, can I say this? this can I not like, it's just him.

Yeah. Whereas like for me, I've like tried to be so perfect for so long when Sina told me after this past WrestleMania before I finished the Player's Tribune, he was like, you don't have to be perfect all the time. So when I brought that authenticity of me to my character over the last year, then Charlotte grew. Yeah, that makes sense. Listen up, renters. It's almost 2026.

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Story of my life. It's simple. Paying rent is better with Bill. Earn rewards and finally get something back for being a renter. Join the loyalty program for renters at joinbilt.com backslash trading secrets. That's J-O-I-N-B-I-L-T dot com slash trading secrets. Make sure to use our URL so they know. that we sent you. One thing I wanted to ask you about is that a lot of quarterbacks are defined by

their Super Bowls. And then in a Super Bowl appearance, it changes the trajectory of their whole brand. The commercials they get everything. I mean, I can go on and on about how it changes their brand. You just several years into the WWE are now headlining, wrestlingania 35, headlining the Super Bowl of WWE. What did that do for your brand professionally, financially, just personally? Because it feels to me like headlining. I will go back. I would say my match with Natalia, when I won my first title for the NXT, set the trajectory of where I was going.

Okay. I think headlining WrestleMania was another bullet point. But I think the work that I am doing this year is going to set me apart again and whatever that looks like. I love it. That's really cool. Because I've had, I mean, I've been on. eight or nine

WrestleMania's all title matches like no one's done that but that still doesn't that's great I'm a great wrestler like what this year has been so special and I think this year will pay off in years to come even though like all I've ever wanted to be is like the champion the world title picture

Charlotte Flair the greatest but like having this tag team run with Lexi and what I've done with her and the bond on camera I think will pay off in years to come. Pretty cool. I know you can only talk so much about this, but we've seen the women's revolution and evolution at WWE. If you had like a state of the union on women's wrestling,

it's very easy to see the way the demand has grown and it's just changed so much in the last decade. How would you do like a state of the union of how it's also changed when it comes to just all the moving parts, getting the big PLEs, the pay, just the recognition? We don't even think about it anymore. it's it's we've done it all yeah but that's been a huge change in 10 years right yes but i think it started i mean i never i always want to credit the women way before us and before us it's just

because every year the women just get more and more opportunities and more time and not to say they couldn't have done this 20 years ago they just weren't given the opportunities or the time so it's just taken this long to get where to get where we are makes a lot of sense in wb there's just been a lot of change like we've seen the endeavor acquisition on netflix yes there's more ESPN there's more global viewers how has like the business of wwe changing impacted just your business as a brand when you think about what you're doing opportunity for more exposure okay and having been on USA and fox has been incredible, but when we went to Netflix, that's a game changer. Also, streaming versus live television.

ESPN, Fox, different sporting networks, but I think any time you move, I mean, the move to Netflix puts you on a whole different global scale. Like, we've always been international, but I don't know what gets bigger than Netflix. Yeah, I don't know. I mean. The eyeballs. It's just the reach. To me it's the opportunity,

but also the opportunity of cross-promotion. Because with that comes, you know, maybe you can be on a Netflix show. There's more opportunity for content within our industry, like WWE Unreal,

which was a huge game changer for my character when the Unreal episode that I was in just came out from my injury and people getting to see behind the curtain and talk about my injury and what that looked like and for a character like I've had for people to see me behind it. I think like a lot of this discussion has been about

branding and growth and talking about Ashley versus Charlotte. And I think unreal now that you brought it up the show, which was trending on Netflix number one for so long, it's doing so well. I feel like that probably breaking that fourth wall down has allowed you to like been able to feel more comfortable in merging the two characters. And what I'm very thankful for is I wasn't necessarily aware, understanding what the project was. I just knew, like, they film everything. So they were filming me, but I didn't, even when they were filming me before my surgery, I think I was under anesthesia, or still a little loopy. I was so open, but I didn't know what it, that it was for this. So I'm glad I didn't know, or I might have like, oh, can I say that? Can I know? Can I know?

not or maybe overthink it when I didn't have an opportunity to overthink it. Yeah. Which was great. Yeah, I thought, I mean, from going from like the press conferences to this situation where like Triple Age is just like, hey, this is how we do it. I thought it was so cool for the sport. I think it's awesome. I think it's awesome and for the entertainment. We're talking about branding and growth. How do sponsorships, media appearances, and then partnerships fit into your overall brand strategy? Well, I think it's how it fits into WWE and how you can understand how you can utilize these characters and brands and sponsors understanding the wrestling business as a whole.

And I think that's what the last couple years, you've seen so many collabs due to people being so excited to see WD, because now with Netflix, you do see more eyeballs and the opportunity to market these characters. Yeah. When you look at, I mean, if we've talked about Netflix a little bit now, when you look at your next career steps outside of WD, do you have, WWD, do you have any, like, big aspiration? that are outside of the wrestling and entertainment game? I have so many.

I still want to pursue acting. Okay. I love sports, even though I don't know whether it's football, basketball, and probably either football or basketball, doing something within the sports world because I feel at home around competition. Yeah. But I don't know what that looks like.

I enjoy hosting. But right now I'm so, I mean, I'm open to all of these, but I'm aware and things. thinking about them while I'm still actively in it because I'm very much in it. I still have goals and dreams within WWE. But now we just have the opportunity, I think, to do both. So see what that looks like. Options are great, right? Options are great. Especially, it's funny that the things that you want to do are all things that within your job you currently do. Of the things in your current job that you do, you said earlier in this interview that like in the beginning,

you're like, I couldn't act, I couldn't wrestle, I couldn't do the mic work. Now look at where you are, which, if you had to put those in order of hardest, the mic work to the acting, to the actual wrestling, and those three, what would you say is hardest, easiest of those three? Oh, for me, the mic work. Is the easiest or hardest? No, the hardest. The easiest wrestling.

Wow. The second is the acting, because I'm very much, like, I know my character in and out. You have to. So when that bell rings, I can take any emotion I want because I feel. like so passionate about what I'm doing in the ring or the character or the story. But it does help when you have a story. And then the mic work, one week good, one week bad. It's not bad, but it could be better.

Especially when you're live. It's a whole different ballgame. Yeah, the whole different ballgame. One stutter, one up. Your mind goes blank and you got to shift to be quick on your toes. One thing I don't, I think you've talked about it. A lot of wrestlers have is just like how, you know, of course there's a element of this that's produced in entertainment.

Yeah. But there's a very real element. You guys talked about it on Unreal. Like, you get the shit kicked out of you. Like, excuse my language. But was there ever an injury that you face during the tenure of your career that you're like, you know what? I might just,

I might go into acting. I'm done with this. I might take a break from this. Like when I heard my knee, the only thing I could think about was my tour my ACL was, oh, how am I going to come back better? Because this is not how I'm going out. Yeah.

Yeah. No, I never thought, no, I'm just going home. Nope. I'm impressed because it's a, I mean, That's a, it's tough. You guys are, it's, it's, I think it feels at least from the show. My poor teeth. Yeah, I was just say.

Like, please. Please. Please. But you're so used to it though. Yeah, for sure. Like I broke my pinky nail. My poor pinky. Yeah.

I broke it. It came off last, just let you know. It'll be back. Let the team know. I don't know. Okay. Another thing I want to ask you about is you guys travel a lot based on where you travel, there's going to be different expectations.

One of the places you guys have been was Saudi. Arabia. So I was just curious from a woman's perspective. Just like, how was that experience? I mean, the entire... I think it's great. Yeah. I mean, what a venue. Yeah. Just, I mean, that alone. The fact that we get to go there, the opportunity and kids seeing female representation there. Amazing. Yeah. It's amazing. And it aligns with everything that you're doing, Ashley. Now, we do talk money on the podcast, so I got to get some money and strategy. What do you think of your entire career has been one of your best financial moves you've made? Oh, easy. My first paycheck, my first paycheck from the main roster was in 2015, I gave it to my financial

planner. No, the first check. The first check. Can you share how much that was or can you not share that? I think it was like $13,000. That's unbelievable. And do you carry a similar mantra since that? Like, do you always in that?

Always. Wow. That's amazing. I'm proud to say I am one of the 1.6 million companies that sponsor their jobs with Indeed. So if you are a hiring manager or you are a company, you own a company, and you are looking to hire, I'm telling you the place to go is through Indeed. If you need a new editor, EA, a PA, someone in sales, marketing, operations, whatever it might be, Indeed is the place to go.

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When you think about preparing for your future after wrestling, are there any tips or tricks you do for either investing or putting money elsewhere? So my assistant and I, well, he does my hair, my makeup, he does a lot of things, styles me. He had me listen to this female on her podcast, and I have an FU number that I'd like to go to. So if I just get to that number in a couple years, that if I just wanted to walk away, I could. Can you share the FU number? No. I can't share everything.

I wouldn't do my job if I didn't ask. No, but it's like, what do you feel comfortable with that, okay, if you get to this, you could live off this. Yeah. I mean, I don't like, I, because I'm, he, I was like, oh, maybe I'll just hang out. He's like, no, I'm, I like to work. Yeah. I like to be doing things. But if I needed, yeah, an FU number, like, okay, if I don't want to do anything and just live off this number. That's the number. That's number. We all need an FU number. Stay tuned to the recap. David and I will talk about what our FU numbers are. So more to come. What is one thing that you overspend on? You know you overspend on. But unless you go broke, you're like, Nope. This is something I'm going to continue to spend on. It's my thing. Like, I know it might not be the smartest, but I got to spend on this. What? I was going to say my wrestling gear. Wait, Uber Eats is my answer. That's hilarious. I don't run Uber Eats. No, so much. That, my wrestling gear. My wrestling gear. Really? But then at the same time, that is what has like, I'm not saying I am my gear, but like you, this is another thing with. branding, sometimes you have to put in more than, not more than you have, but you have to invest in yourself. Like for me, I know the fans know that I invest in the character. So I get that investment back. So all these years, I really do spend a lot on my gears and my robes and picking the designers I work with, but I know it's going to come back. Plus I, I've only

sold like three. And because two were asked to be, like to be bought. Oh, you've sold, you've actually sold. Oh, interesting. To be signed for, yeah. So I will get them back. I keep all of them and the gears. And then you make them and you buy them. Yes.

Wow. Yeah. And I so I, like, we're a guy just has to put on a pair of trunks. Yeah. It's an investment in your brand. But it's like. I think it's an investment in your brand. Dad, why did you give me such an expensive?

This is your fault, dad. But I. Jet flying. I don't wear it. But I have, like, obviously, I add peacock feathers or, like, my robes are my own style. When I first started, my very first robe, I think it was like $6,000 or maybe $5,000. Yeah. For WrestleMania 32, it was blue. It was appliquez from his robe that he retired when he wrestled Sean at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando.

So they've obviously developed and changed over time, and I cannot wait for everyone to see what I'm wearing for war games. Okay. It's completely different. Stay tuned. Stay tuned. You know it's going to be a good one. It's going to be a good one. All right.

There's so many people, I feel like within, I just feel like within the wrestling community, the legends stay in the game and they also offer a lot of advice. You look at like Triple H leading the company and even in the Unreal documentary, you see the advice he gives people and it seems so sound and motivational and inspirational. What is some of the best career advice you've got from a legend in the WWE universe that's kind of shaped your career? someone like the podcast is called trading secrets right career and money navigation i'm wondering who's given you a trading secret within the career realm that's like i'm not going to forget that quote i'm

not going to forget that tip in terms of business yeah just in your career there's a couple of guys like a few of the guy wrestlers that have given me a lot of help with like wrestling psychology and things like that but what is wrestling psychology what is i've never heard that term Like, what makes a good baby face? What makes a good bad guy? And, like, sometimes those lines are blurred. Yeah. That makes sense.

So, I don't know. I mean, if anything, my dad's always just said, you have to know who you are or the business will you alive. Or when you walk, you know, out of gorilla and onto the ramp that first, like, five seconds, if you don't believe in yourself, the fans aren't going to believe in you. And at the end of the day, like, if it wasn't for the fans, I wouldn't be where I am today. Yeah. One last question I got for you is there's a lot of people.

We get a lot of people writing it about their careers. And a lot of people deal with like performance anxiety or panic attacks and things like that. So I'm always curious when I get to interview people on really big stages. And your career, is there ever been a moment where you had a panic attack where you fully forgot what you were supposed to do and had to recover from it? Has anxiety ever played into performance? There was one match early on, a big pay-per-view. and I was forgetting in the match

and that never happened and I don't know if the pressure got to me but I do know that ever since that match it never happened again. When you say forgetting. Like I was forgetting spike. You usually have a lot of the match laid out. And during the match I was like blanking

and I don't know. Like I got through it and a lot of people couldn't tell but the match didn't pick up till like I calm down probably halfway through it so had that first half had that not happened but that was like my second year

but I just didn't like that feeling but the other issue is it takes time like now I can go out there and like be in the moment like I can look at the little girl during like someone could be beating me up and I can be down and I can see the little girl's face and wink at her and like be in the moment

or be in the emotions or feel all aspects of the match when I first started it was just like I have to memorize this and I'm not feeling I'm not listening to the crowd and if they're booing

I'm not doing this or cheering like it's very much an experience thing now I'm in the moment if you're dealing with hair issues like thinning or shedding

but feel totally stuck on where to go next and what to try next trust me I get it I've been there there's so many products out there and it's hard to know which ones are actually

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That's NutraFol.com promo code trading secrets. it also seems like I was dancing with the stars is big right now right it feels like in a moment like that you are dancing with another part of my goals right so like oh to be on dancing with stars yeah to be out of here just because it seems so like if I had to do reality TV or anything it'd be dancing with the stars would there be any other show or would that be it for right now

that's like I really want to do it I feel like traders too like are you a dancer by train can you dance they're laughing too what happened at excuse me now you gotta go prove wrong like you proved triple h wrong early on thank you yeah i can dance after like a glass of prosceco that's all you need taking i took a dance when i was little stage yeah no but i i love competition and i love learning yeah i took a salsa class that nicky set up for me then you thought it was great yeah i think you could do it all right if they don't stop laughing I'm going to win the whole thing.

I'm just saying it. It's 11-11. I'm saying it now. This is it right here today. And when they do, you'll have the mirror ball. They're going to have to owe you something. You have to make a bet here. Something's going to have it.

Brian, I have rhythm. Or, yeah. Thank you. Yeah. Well, I feel like you have to have rhythm to be, like you're kind of dancing in the ring. No, you do not. Have you seen? No.

That's true. Okay. No. Okay. Yes, all right. All right. Anything else behind the scenes? I know my wrestling fans would want to know, is there anything behind the

scenes that maybe we wouldn't know as viewers that would be kind of interesting to know, whether it's either locker room dynamics or maybe rituals before a match or after a match. Is anything interesting? Someone found this so interesting, but we all wear hooter sites. Wait, no way. And there's six or seven dollars a pair and they rip every time because they've just been like a staple. So I literally have to walk into hooters sometimes and give the girls. at the bar, 20, and be like, are the tights in the bathroom? That's unbelievable. That's a good trading secret.

And then I do have a random question. Do you know who the green guy is? Well, there's a guy that shows up at every pay-per-view match. Oh, yeah. Do you know who that guy is? I mean, I don't know him. But I was just curious, like, how much, like, the superstars are aware of some of those fan things.

Oh, we are. We're very aware. So you're aware of that. Especially if they're booing you or cheering you. Yeah, you're like, oh, this guy. Gotcha. I love it. All right.

Last question I got. again, it's just a personal question. You get hit in the face with a chair or you're breaking a table. We break tables at Buffalo Bill's tailgates, but we're idiots and that hurts. We don't do it the right way. Is it pretty painful?

Like, give me a one through 10. When you get hit by a chair, jump through a table, give me a one through 10 pain level. Or if they don't break, that's not. So that's the problem, right? Actually, they all feel different. But Becky did a leg drop

off the top of the ladder onto my ovaries on the commentary for evolution, that had to have been, I couldn't, no, was it, no, I'm sorry, it wasn't evolution. It was TLC, me, Oskah, me versus Oskah versus Becky, I couldn't breathe. It was that, I was like, I couldn't catch my breath. No, it was just like how she lived, she didn't mean to or anything like that, but that's probably been the worst bump I have ever taken. So a leg drop to the ovaries will take over any table, any, any chair to the face, any day.

No, I just meant it was like my lower. Yeah, yeah, yeah, like, oh gosh. That'll knock the wind right out of you. Oh, well, Charlotte, Ashley, thank you so much for being on Trading Secrets. So cool to learn about your career, the ins and outs, the branding from start to beginning and where you're going next. So thank you for being on here, but you got to wrap with the trading secret. So it could be something you live by, a piece of advice you'd give to others, but it can only be specific to you. you. They can't learn from a textbook or a TikTok tutorial or a professor, just your experience

that you've gone through. You get what you give. And anything that you want in life, you really do have to work for it. And it has to be true to you. Like, I don't feel like I'm working. WWE doesn't feel like a job to me. It's passionate. I'm passionate about it. So really love what you do. I think that's the key to success in life is I really love what I do. I don't dread. Like the flying sucks, like you said, the morning, the flight. Like the travel is the hardest part of what I do. But if that's the hardest part of what I do, I'll take it any day. Wow. The WWU superstar saying the travels the hardest part that I didn't expect. Well, I'm not on PJs, but we can pretend. That's true. That's true. I love it. I always like to share what I think

my trading secret was, I think one thing, obviously there's so much discipline with what you do and how you do it, but it seems like you always are continuing to be the best version of yourself and you're not afraid to reinvent yourself at any time, whether it's being a personal trainer, NXT, WWE, even now. It's like you don't look back at all at yesterday. You're so focused on today and tomorrow. And I think that's how you get to where you're at. So that's the trading secret I think I learned from you. So I appreciate you being on trading secrets. And then where can everyone find everything you have going on? Instagram, Charlotte,

WWE, Twitter, Miss Charlotte, WWMS, Charlotte. Yeah. Okay. And TikTok, right? I'm not, that's,

that's my goal for 2026. Okay. Work on my TikTok. Work on my TikTok. I don't even know my TikTok handle. Miss Charlotte Flair. Is that what it is? You got 487,000 followers on that.

I really appreciate that. You got some good momentum when you decided to get it. get it going. All right, Charlotte Flair, Ashley. Thank you for being on this episode of Training Secrets. Thank you so much. Morgan to Anacostia Park. We all want safer neighborhoods. But what does real safety mean? Real safety means preventing crime before it happens. By having police work with communities to disrupt cycles of violence, by supporting families with stable housing, and providing more mental health and drug treatment. We know that adding more police and locking up more people doesn't

make us safer. Real safety means investing in the things that help prevent crime. Learn more at Real Safety, D.C. If you're early in your career and looking for insight, inspiration, and honest advice, listen to the Capital Ideas podcast. Hear from Capital Group professionals about leaning into the differences that make you unique, making decisions that last, and what it means to lead with purpose. The Capital Ideas Podcast, from Capital Group, available wherever you listen. Published by Capital Client Group, Inc.

Thank you.