The Diary of a CEOPatricia Bright: How She Made Her Millions | E91
EVERY SPOKEN WORD
145 min read · 29,395 words- 0:00 – 2:16
Intro
- PBPatricia Bright
This is like a therapy session. (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Patricia Bright, she's a creator, author, entrepreneur with an incredible story.
- PBPatricia Bright
Growing up, my mum, she would take us to offices to clean the offices. And we'll go to school, and she would say, like, "Just don't tell anyone that you're working at five o'clock in the morning." You just go to school in the morning and act like everything was normal. There is pressure for influencers to speak up on every topic all the time, bearing in mind that my forte is makeup and clothing and finance, you know, to an extent. But we are not credible sources who know everything. We just don't. And I think it's really important for us to say, speaking up on stuff that you know nothing about is very, very dangerous. I had a stalker for like three years, and it was someone who would, like, just message me on all my platforms constantly, send emails, message family members. So I did a meet-and-greet, an event, and then they messaged me. It's like, "Ha ha, I was at your meet-and-greet." So I remember feeling so anxious. "You didn't see me. You looked so terrible in person. Next time I'm gonna do something."
- NANarrator
(instrumental music)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Patricia Bright, she's a creator, author, entrepreneur, and a mother. And she has a remarkable, inspiring story. Growing up on a council estate, having her dad deported when she was just five years old, a Nigerian mother that came to this country doing cleaning jobs at night, and which she took Patricia along to with her. And that mother became a property mogul. And Patricia, she became a superstar in her own right. So it's no surprise that when I looked at the comments section on a previous podcast episode, a comment requesting Patricia Bright to sit here with me and to be on this podcast had over 100 upvotes. And now I know why. Her attitude, perspective, ambition, self-belief, resilience is incredible. So without further ado, I'm Steven Bartlett, and this is The Diary of a CEO. I hope nobody's listening, but if you are, then please keep this to yourself.
- NANarrator
(instrumental music)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Patricia.
- 2:16 – 18:53
Your early years
- SBSteven Bartlett
- PBPatricia Bright
Yes.
- SBSteven Bartlett
We share one big similarity with our childhoods e- and the fact that we both had Nigerian mothers.
- PBPatricia Bright
We did?
- SBSteven Bartlett
We did, yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
Okay. I didn't know that.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Really?
- PBPatricia Bright
No, I didn't actually.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Well, I still have a Nigerian mother, so I should
- PBPatricia Bright
Both had. (laughs) Yeah. But yeah, we did.
- SBSteven Bartlett
We both have Niger- Nigerian mothers. And, um, I believe both of our Nigerian mothers moved from Nigeria to the UK.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah, yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Um, so they, they were both born in Nigeria, so their, you know, authentic roots are there. But, you know, tell me about the rest of your childhood. I only had one Nigerian parent.
- PBPatricia Bright
Right, okay.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I hear you had, you had two.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah, I had both my mum and dad, um, growing up. Um, but my dad was actually deported. So he got deported when I was probably like six years old, and I actually remember the experience of his deportation as being something very traumatic. In hindsight as an adult, I recognize that. But growing up, you know, with an African mom, African dad, our culture was just a part of us on an everyday basis. But also I was from South London as well, so I kind of grew up in Battersea, and I came from a very diverse school, but I always went back to, like, a very African home. And, um, yeah, I think it really shaped me to who I, I am today.
- SBSteven Bartlett
In what ways?
- PBPatricia Bright
I think it's that kind of... (laughs) I'm gonna say aggression.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
There's something about Nigerians out of all other, uh, people from, say, the diaspora, um, that I think means that we're quite aggressive and very passionate. Let's not say aggressive, let's say passionate. We're intense, we know what we want, and there's also a huge sense of, like, pride as well that we can do anything and we're good. And I feel very privileged that I had a lot of that, "You're great, you'll do well, you'll be successful, don't worry about what's going on. Don't s- don't see reality as a definition of a limitation for yourself." And I think that that's really made me do a lot of things that supposedly I shouldn't be able to do. But that kind of upbringing made me be like, "No, I can do it. It's fine." It was always fine. I watched my mum do a lot of things that would be considered impossible for her, and she just did it with ease and chaos in my (laughs) opinion now. But somehow she kind of achieved those things, and I would feel very privileged to kind of grow up with that sense of confidence instilled in me, which I think is really cultural as a Nigerian.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And I bet she didn't complain either.
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh, there was no complaining. She did... She just got on with it. Like, even when my dad was deported, she just got on with it. And there were times that, you know, growing up, my mum used to work on the trains, so she was one of the train cleaners. And my sister's three and I'm five. She'd go out n- at night and leave us because there was no one to, like, look after her kids. She'll go out, she'll clean, she'll clean offices. She would take us to offices to clean the offices when we were younger. And, um, she just did it. And we'll go to school, and she would say, like, "Just don't tell anyone that you're working at five o'clock in the morning." (laughs) She... Obviously you're not gonna go to school and tell people, "Oh, I've just been at Foxton's (laughs) like, cleaning and helping my mum out." You'd just go to school in the morning and act like everything was normal. Um, but no, there wasn't any complaining, and she just kind of got on with it.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And do you think... You know, you referred to that as being, if that gave you kind of confidence that you could do anything. But for me it sounds a lot like because that immigrant story is so connected with, like, survival. And, and that's why I talked about, like, she didn't complain, 'cause it's, like, a lot of complaint comes from privilege almost, doesn't it?... when you-
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... when you- when you feel like you have a choice.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah. But what's really, also really interesting is that some people still feel lucky. The fact that she wasn't deported when my dad was deported, she probably felt, "Oh, my God. I'm so lucky I got to kinda stay here." And, um, why would you complain when you feel like you're in a better position for yourself and your children in the long term? So, yeah. She didn't have the privilege of wanting to complain but I think she was really, like, happy to still be here. Though she had to work hard, I think she knew that she had a lot of opportunity while being here. And she retrained and she, she became a nurse and then sh- she bought properties and then she retired in her 40s. Like, I love England in that it's kind of like the land of opportunity for those who really wanna, like, you know, work out what to do and use it. So, I think she could see that that was possible for her.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And you talked about that, that day when you were six years old when you're, there's a knock on the door at nighttime.
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
At nighttime?
- PBPatricia Bright
It might've been a- at night. It might've been in the middle of the day, to be honest. What I do remember is, like, literally about four burly police officers, officers kind of walking in, um, shouting, like screaming, like and there's m- me as a five-year-old, my sister as a three-year-old, my mum in tears, and then literally dragging my dad out of the house. And it was like, "Your dad's gone," like at that one moment, and it, we didn't see him again for seven years afterwards. So it was like, I, at the time, I didn't, I never processed it. It's only in the last year or two I've processed how kind of maybe traumatic that kind of experience would've been for me as a child. And I think it's also made me really be fearful of loss, which is why I work so hard, so that things like that don't happen, hopefully, to me and my family in the future.
- 18:53 – 26:33
Feeling out of place
- PBPatricia Bright
Because I'd never left, like, London and I, like, I had to make new friends and I didn't know anyone and I wasn't really good at it and I, I couldn't really find my tribe very early on. And I was on a ca- a campus really far away. I was on the Didsbury campus.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Oh, yeah. Out of town, yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
Like, that was... Yeah, out of town, right?
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
And then there was, like, the main campus for Manchester University that everyone was at.
- SBSteven Bartlett
That's where I was.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
I wasn't there, right? Yeah, you were in this spot, yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
There was a party, it was unbelievable.
- PBPatricia Bright
It was great. And I'm in Didsbury, right?
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
I was like, "Come on." Um, and I actually ended up, like, moving out of my halls of residence.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Really?
- PBPatricia Bright
And crashing with a number of girls, um, in that main campus. And I would move from room to room. So once one friend got annoyed with me after two weeks-
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
... another friend would stay with me, I'd stay with them for two weeks and then I'd just go back and forth like a nomad for a bit.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And you, you changed course to accounting.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
In hindsight, how important was it? How, like, pivotal was it for you to have an understanding of finance for everything that would then come in your, in your career? Because I feel like, I feel like finance is such a neglected topic for, for kids. I wish someone had told me about fucking credit scores before I smashed mine.
- PBPatricia Bright
Right, um... (laughs) Okay, so the moving role was pivotal for my life. Like, it set me up on a completely different trajectory that I, I wouldn't have even been aware of because off the back of that role, I worked at, you know, all the top four, four companies in the world in finance. I worked at Merrill Lynch and Deloitte Consulting, banks, all of that stuff. I would have never done that if I'd stayed in fashion. When it came to it from a personal finance perspective, didn't prepare me at all.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Really?
- PBPatricia Bright
Not a clue. I owed the tax man money. I, I, I got my taxes wrong. I had to pay fines. I had no clue what I was actually doing. I had the degree, I had the 2:1. "Great, you've passed. How do you actually apply financial knowledge to running your own business, to your everyday personal taxes?" Like, I didn't have a clue. Spent the money, bought bags, made extra money on the side, spent it all, owed the tax man and I wasn't prepared.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Fucking hell.
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs) Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Well, I mean that's, uh, a great advert for Manchester Metropolitan University.
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs) Maybe it was just me.
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
Maybe I was just, like, young and dumb. But, like, it helped me from a career perspective, but a lot of the financial courses out there don't help people be better themselves with money.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And that psychology point, 'cause money is such an emotional thing, especially as, like, an immigrant.
- 26:33 – 31:24
Turning your hobby into a job
- SBSteven Bartlett
consistency, you point to consistency as being the real-
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... um, factor to your success, but s- consistency must come from, you know, en- enjoying it. 'Cause there, there'll, there'll be a lot of people listening to this thinking, "I wanna be a YouTuber." I mean, everybody seems to wanna be a YouTuber these days.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yes. Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
But the insanity to do it as long as you did without the, um, guarantee-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... of money-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... must've come from somewhere. Uh-
- PBPatricia Bright
There was no guarantee of money.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
It was a hobby. Like if you're a painter, you like painting at the weekend, you're gonna paint anyway. Whether someone pays you for your art or not, you just enjoy doing it. So I just enjoyed making videos that other girls watch and I could talk to the other girls. So I didn't get paid for like four years, but I was always uploading every weekend.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
It was my hobby. Like it wasn't, "This is gonna be my new job," which is why I even struggle with it now in that I really wanna enjoy it in the same way that I always enjoyed it, and do I need to look for a new hobby, and is now YouTube my job? Like, oh. I find it really hard to kind of balance the fact that this thing that was my, my escape is kind of like my job now.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm. There's a, we ... I was talking to one of the guests on the podcast a couple weeks ago about, um, the study where when someone gets paid to do a task they used to love doing, they lose motivation for it.
- PBPatricia Bright
Hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And it's just m- mental. They, they do this study where they give people this game. The people enjoying doing the game, they then say, "We're gonna ask you ch- to do the game again, but this time you're gonna get paid." The other group don't get paid, and the group that got paid to do the thing they just enjoyed doing lose motivation.
- PBPatricia Bright
(gasps)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Doesn't it make a lot of sense?
- PBPatricia Bright
You two stop paying me. (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
No. Yeah. (laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
No, I'm joking. No.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Wait.
- PBPatricia Bright
I like those checks.
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
Um, that is insane.
- SBSteven Bartlett
It's cr- You lose internal motivation-
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh my gosh.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... when it becomes, when, when some of the r- um, reason for doing it becomes extrinsic, monetary.
- PBPatricia Bright
(gasps)
- 31:24 – 35:29
How did you find the confidence to shift careers
- SBSteven Bartlett
(page turns) You know, we've got two guests that have come to watch this podcast today, and Sophia, I said, "Sophia..." You know, she's, she's followed you for some time. I said, "Sophia, if you could ask Patricia any question, what would it be?" She said to me, um, how did she find the confidence to make the leap from that sort of corporate career to going full-time with this thing called YouTube?
- PBPatricia Bright
So for me, my confidence came from an Excel spreadsheet.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
So I am not a risk-taker. I'm more of a steady and stable person. But I did a bit of maths, I did a bit of a projection. I looked at what my long-term potential, um, earnings and lifestyle would look like if I stayed in the banking industry, and then I looked at what my numbers were looking like, you know, if I stayed as a creator, where could I take it. And even at that time, I had no clue I could get to where I am today. But the numbers looked healthy enough, so I was like, "Okay, I'll, I'll take the leap. Even if I do it for two years, it could be okay." Um, and I didn't just jump out. I kind of, um, took a toe dip in and I quit my job, but then I took another job that was part-time so I could make content and have a job as well.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And you call your mum and you say, "I'm quitting my job."
- PBPatricia Bright
I didn't tell her.
- SBSteven Bartlett
No, that's smart.
- PBPatricia Bright
I didn't tell my mum, I didn't tell anybody. "What? You've quit your big banking job? Oh, hell no. I could never do that." So I, I knew my parents would be worried and scared.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Should we tell them now?
- PBPatricia Bright
No.
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs) They, they know, they know now.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Or they figured?
- PBPatricia Bright
It's like, "Mum, I left my job."
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
They barely know what I do right now.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
They're like... I do this thing on the internet. They're like, "Oh, well done. Well done."
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
It's fine.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah, yeah. Same with my mum.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
But yeah, so you, you made that, you took that leap into YouTube. Um, wa- was there a moment where you thought, "Fucking hell, this is, this is moving, this is..." Or was it just one step at a time?
- PBPatricia Bright
Slow and steady.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
Slow and steady. I was making, I'd been making content for seven years, and then I got to a million subscribers. So I didn't have any of those really viral moments. And I saw lots of people kind of steamroll ahead of me, like go viral. They were part of these groups and these crews, and you know, there was a time that there was a thing called the Brit Pack.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
They were all there, and I was just, like, in the corner (laughs) by myself, like, prodding along. And then inevitably, like, my ti- my time came, and it took, again, that seven years to 1 million, and then one more year to another million and a half. And I then had my own viral moment off the back of myself. And, um, but I never kind of took the step back to be like, "Oh, you've made it," 'cause I never feel like I've made it.
- 35:29 – 37:41
Being an influencer
- PBPatricia Bright
- SBSteven Bartlett
And influencers, being an influencer.
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Talk to me about that. When I say it, you know, what do you think about the lifestyle, the stigmas-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... et cetera, et cetera?
- PBPatricia Bright
So when people say influencer, I think there's a little cringe when they say it.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm.
- PBPatricia Bright
But I think this concept of being influential is, has always been around, but it's al- always been around with the hands of s- the upper echelon of people. Only certain people are picked by certain industries to be influential. But what I love is, like, now, there's this democratization. People can choose who they want to be influenced by. And how I got in my position is because people liked me. They, they decided that, "Actually, I wanna hear what Patricia has to say. I wanna see what she's buying, I wanna see what she likes." So I think it's a really...... a powerful tool. We've all been influenced. The question is, like, we wanna choose who those influencers are, I'd say.
- SBSteven Bartlett
It's, it's a, it's a, it's a big, I guess, responsibility to some, because y- I know for a fact that every time something happens in the world, you get a DM, "Patricia-
- PBPatricia Bright
Hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... I thought you were with us."
- PBPatricia Bright
Hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
"Why aren't you doing 55 Instagram posts about Palestine, or Kenya, or India-
- PBPatricia Bright
Ugh.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... or oxygen in a s- or fires in Australia. I thought you were one of..." It's a lot.
- PBPatricia Bright
It's a lot. It's a lot. Bearing in mind that my forte is makeup and clothing, and, and maybe finance, you know, to an extent, I feel there is pressure for influencers to speak up on every topic all the time. But we are not credible sources who know everything. We just don't. And I think it's really important for us to say, "We're ignorant on the matter and we're, we're learning." But kind of speaking up on stuff that you know nothing about is very, very-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Stupid.
- PBPatricia Bright
... dangerous. It-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah. Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah. And stupid.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
Um, and also what is really scary is that if you don't think the same way that everybody else thinks-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Oh.
- PBPatricia Bright
... you're in trouble.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
What if you have an alternative perspective? You're not allowed to have an alternative perspective. If you
- 37:41 – 47:06
Being a woman on social media
- PBPatricia Bright
ask for peace, whether or not it's, you know, in the Middle East specifically or f- on a certain matter, "Oh, no way," 'cause the world wants to keep everything burning. But, like, personally I'm like, "Can, can this just chill?" Like, not just that situation specifically, but a lot of situations, I'm like, "I just wish it wasn't happening."
- SBSteven Bartlett
Is that your approach to it? You think generally if I don't have a, a proper well-rounded view... 'Cause, uh, h- it's all well people... Like, 'cause I get the same, this is how I know you get the same.
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
People message me and say, "Steve, speak on this issue or Black Lives Matter," whatever, um, while I'm still processing it. And what you're right, what they're actually saying is-
- PBPatricia Bright
Hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... "Share my opinion-
- PBPatricia Bright
Hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... to your followers of- on this issue."
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And they're try- they try and, like, guilt trip me into it, like-
- PBPatricia Bright
Hmm. Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... you know, especially when it's, wh- when it's, uh, a group of people that I can relate to just viscerally, so like my skin color.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I'm expected to be a-
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... you know, the spokesman of all Black people.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Um-
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh, me too as well. (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
It's a lot of, yeah, a lot of, um, nastiness. What, what el- what else do you think is, um, unappreciated about being an influencer? You've obviously got a big platform. The other thing I was gonna say, right, and this is what I was just thinking as we're talking. Um, the other day I thought, and I've been working out for a year and a half now, I always like talking about this-
- PBPatricia Bright
Love it. (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
... on single, um, and Grace, who sat behind that curtain over there, I sent her a, a photo and I was like, "I'm gonna post like a transformation picture-
- PBPatricia Bright
Okay.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... of like the before and after." And me and Grace had a conversation, because if I was a female-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... and I posted that, I would've got fucking ripped to pieces.
- PBPatricia Bright
Right. Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I would've been told I was toxic, irresponsible, body image, dah lah, lah, lah, lah, lah, lah.
- 47:06 – 52:30
Finances - your new project
- SBSteven Bartlett
you started this platform called The Break.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah, that was it.
- SBSteven Bartlett
When I say, when I say that, there's a big smile on your face?
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah. That's like my, like my passion project turned like great potential business opportunity. And I think for me, that's, like, where I decided to start talking about these things. And we're just, we're talking about this now that people don't talk about money, women don't talk about money. On that platform, I am unapologetic and that's why I shared about the making a million in a year or making a million over a lifetime and showing how I budget my salary, uh, and showing you how I bought a house in 10 minutes. I put that all on there 'cause I feel like, you know over there is where I'm gonna talk about this stuff. So if you like it, it's there. If you don't like it, let's go put on makeup on my other channel.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
And, um, it's been just insane to see how it's grown and how much there's a huge demand for this type of content within this demographic.
- SBSteven Bartlett
It was what was missing when you started out, from what you said earlier.
- PBPatricia Bright
Exactly.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
And, and that's why I created it.
- SBSteven Bartlett
'Cause you were buying all those bags and being a bit reckless and no one told you, so you...
- PBPatricia Bright
Exactly. And the tax man came knocking at my door and I got fined and I was like, "Nobody needs to do this. This is how you incorporate. This is how you get your pension sorted out. This is how you can buy a property for your business." And I was just literally doing all the stuff that I kind of learnt from my accountant and from the financial mistakes that I've made. I really wanted to just say, "Here you go. Here's this information. Use this. Make it be valuable to you to help you in your journey."
- SBSteven Bartlett
Do you know in black culture, we, um, growing up, you know, I was watching 50 Cent and, uh, all this stuff and, uh, he is a bad financial advisor.
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Because (laughs) and I, I-
- PBPatricia Bright
Who gets their advice from 50 Cent, though? (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
Every fucking, every black, young black man.
- PBPatricia Bright
I know. I know.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Do you know what I mean? And what he told me about bottles and Lamborghinis and stuff, it really hurt me when I was 21-
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... and I finally got money. And I went to the club and I was getting five bottles of Dom Perignon please. And I blew a lot of cash.
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And I just wish those, those role models, like the rappers that I followed when I was younger, I wish they'd told me about credit scores. You know what I mean?
- PBPatricia Bright
I wish. But that's not, it's not sexy.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
Right? It's not glamorous. It's not fun. Like, I have a video on pensions.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
Like, 40, 401Ks and, and whether or not you should be making a contribution to your SIPP, right? That is not, "Oh, this is glamorous." No one wants to hear that. But there are gonna be a few who do take it and use it. I wish we could dress up, like, credit scores. Like, give it lipstick, give it a Lamborghini.
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
Um, but we haven't mastered that yet. Maybe I'll do that later. But th- they don't want people to know the truth. I don't think anybody wants people to really know the truth about finances.
- 52:30 – 57:54
Whats it like working with your husband?
- PBPatricia Bright
- SBSteven Bartlett
Your husband?
- PBPatricia Bright
My husband, Michael.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Michael. Can I call him Mike, I think-
- PBPatricia Bright
You can call him Mike. (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs) I can, I can see him over there in the corner of the room. (laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
Following me around. (laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs) Yeah. What's it like working with Mike?
- PBPatricia Bright
So, oh, that's a really good question. So, working with Mike, you know what, Michael's been like with me for every step of my journey as a creator. And he's always worked a full-time job. And then he inevitably went even to more of a freelance role so that I could use him when I needed him. So, he will work as a contractor and I'm like, "Mike, I need your help. Quit your job, come and help me." And so throughout my entire journey, he's been there to do that. However, working with your significant other can be real difficult. Um-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
... and there are times where we're like, "Mm, let's not do this. Go back to your job."
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
"Make something happen. Go back contracting." And then when we are like, "Oh, we're cool," come back again. So, it's, what's important for us is actually to establish how we communicate with each other, and boundaries. Like, when we're working together, we actually don't work in the same environment. So, he'll work in an o- office and I'll work somewhere else. 'Cause if you work in the same room at the same time, it's not pretty.
- SBSteven Bartlett
We're gonna send a microphone over to Mike in the audience to get his take on it.
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs) It's not pretty.
- PBPatricia Bright
Y- yeah, because I think when you're in like boss mode-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
... like, you can be quite direct. Like, I'm very like, "This doesn't look good."
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
"I don't like this. Uh n- can we change this? How, how do we do this better? This is wrong." Right? And I think there are, when it's with your partner, they're gonna take that personally-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
... over, say, someone else who is, you know, just working with you. And I haven't developed my managerial skills to be great when it comes to, you know, my interpersonal skills just yet. So, and I think when you're working with a loved one as well, you, you feel like you wanna be more direct. Like, they should know. Just, you should know this. Come on. Like, but he doesn't always know and he can't read my mind and he's a man. So there's, there's differences there. Um, so that's when it gets a bit difficult when we're together.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And how do you, how do you balance like leaving work at work and not bringing that home with you? Because one thing I came to learn was that the Steve Bartlett that succeeds in a professional environment that is direct-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... that is, is very clear and uncompromising-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... is not the same Steve Bartlett that is re- is required to compromise and, "Oh, you wanna go for a walk in the park for no reason?"
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs)
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- 57:54 – 1:03:16
Your stalker
- SBSteven Bartlett
I heard you actually had a cyberstalker.
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh. (laughs) Yeah. Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
It's not, it's not Mike. It wasn't Mike.
- PBPatricia Bright
I found out it was actually his account-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Yeah. (laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
... stalking me. Um, yeah, no, I did. I had a stalker for like three years.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Oh, wow. What-
- PBPatricia Bright
Um, and it was someone who would like, just message me on all my platforms constantly, send emails, message family members. Really weird. And nowadays, I can't even remember like, what their, what their issue was. Don't think they even had one. They were just obsessive me and obsessive like, my relationship to an extent. 'Cause I used to put vlogs out, and I used to have like, content with me and my husband, and I stopped like, actually, it sounds so bad, but I think it was enough to tell me I'm not gonna put myself out there in that way.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Why?
- PBPatricia Bright
I, I think it takes an emotional toll, toll having a stalker 'cause you're worried, like when you log in, "Am I gonna see their messages? What are they gonna do today? What are they gonna say today? Are they gonna dox me?" So they found out my parents' name and address. They're saying, "Your mum's this name, and she lives here." So like, those things, and obviously it was like psychological warfare, um-
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
... warfare. (laughs) But it was, yeah, it was more psychological. But like, when I was thinking about it, I kept thinking, "It's 'cause I put myself out there too much. This is why they're targeting me." And I think inevitably, it made me wanna retreat in certain aspects.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Do you still think that was the case now?
- PBPatricia Bright
I think that was one of my triggers, but I think inevitably, I was like, putting yourself out there too much from a personal perspective, um, wasn't something I wanted to do. Like, I used to show, like I showed our wedding. I showed me giving birth.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Oh, wow.
- PBPatricia Bright
I showed... I put a lot out there. Okay?
- SBSteven Bartlett
Link in the bio. (laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs) Link in bio of my birth story.
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
(laughs) Um, and like the platforms love it when you put yourself out there a lot, but inevitably, it does take a toll on you-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- PBPatricia Bright
... as a person. And I, I just said, "We're gonna stop this. I don't wanna be that person." I actually care more about my real life than putting a version of my real life online.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I, I tend to think when you're reaching that many people, just probabilistically-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... just by numbers, you're gonna reach at least 10 nutters.
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah. Okay.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Just like, do you know what I mean? Regardless.
- PBPatricia Bright
It just happens. Yeah. Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
And you're blocking this person, I'm guessing every time they pop up, and then they're making a new account and-
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh, they're making hundreds of accounts. They're messaging other people.
- 1:03:16 – 1:07:36
Whats next for you?
- SBSteven Bartlett
So what's ne- what's next for you then in your, in your life as you look forward? You know, I'm not talking about goals, I'm just saying the, the sort of macro, the overall feeling-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... you want from your life and where you wanna be.
- PBPatricia Bright
I think it's s- being open to more challenges that are different to what I'm used to. I've been making content and creating by myself, for myself, for brands for so long, for like 10 years. And I've, I, I... Although I think I'm a brave person, I feel like I've got very comfortable. So I wanna set myself out on challenges that are completely outside of my comfort zone. Maybe do something that, you know, is unexpected for me, unexpected for me as a creator. "Influencers don't do this," or, "Influencers of your size don't do this," or this kind of thing. And I really wanna work on, like, creating more products and really building out a brand and not necessarily being the face of everything.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Why? Why not the face of everything?
- PBPatricia Bright
So I actually realized though I'm in the public eye to an extent, like, I don't really like being famous. I don't really wanna be a personality. I don't want things to be about me, and I don't know why I put myself out there if I didn't want that. But I think fundamentally I'm happy to slink into the background as a person.
- SBSteven Bartlett
But don't you want that?
- PBPatricia Bright
Nah. I think there are other people who want it more. Like, I don't enjoy being (sighs) famous, as in, not that I don't enjoy it, but I think there are people who, like, really wanna be famous, right? And there are people who just wanna do what they do and do it well and, and like-
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
... not... Just have their own normal friends, do their, their own normal things and get on with life. Like, I get on the train every day and I, I go on the underground and some people are like, "You get on the underground?" I'm like, "Yes, it's quicker." But I don't wanna ever be in a place where I can't get on the underground.
- SBSteven Bartlett
People are stopping you saying, "Hi Patricia, can I have"-
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... "pitch?" And you're like, "No, COVID." (laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
No, I always say... (laughs) No, I was like-
- SBSteven Bartlett
(laughs)
- PBPatricia Bright
... "Hey, girl." I'm always friendly.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I guess you can use that fame for things that you do care about though, right? Like...
- PBPatricia Bright
I like that. You're right.
- SBSteven Bartlett
You, you know what I mean? It's like-
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... double-edged, double-edged sword. It costs-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... something, but it gi- creates an opportunity for something in a, in a way.
- PBPatricia Bright
Oh, yeah. Wow. You just, you just, yeah. You just told me off there. (laughs) In a good way.
- SBSteven Bartlett
No! No, no.
- PBPatricia Bright
No, no, I love that.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I don't... You- Yeah. I don't, you know. Yeah.
- PBPatricia Bright
And no, I love what you just said that-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Uh.
- PBPatricia Bright
... you can use a, the fame for value.
- 1:07:36 – 1:12:55
The underlying principles that made you successful
- PBPatricia Bright
- SBSteven Bartlett
And what have you learned over the... in terms... as it relates to... if you were... because I'm thinking now about, you've got an entrepreneur over there in the corner, Sophia. And she's, she's starting a meal prep business. She's also working in the city in finance.
- PBPatricia Bright
Okay.
- SBSteven Bartlett
So it's, it's very-
- PBPatricia Bright
Yeah.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... coincidental that she's, she happens to be here today.
- PBPatricia Bright
Love that.
- SBSteven Bartlett
If you were speaking to someone like Sophia, and you, you were just giving her a bit of advice on how to, um, become succ- as successful in what you do as you have been-
- PBPatricia Bright
Mm-hmm.
- SBSteven Bartlett
... what are those underlying principles where you say, "That really is the thing. There's no quick route, whatever, but that thing there is the thing"?
- PBPatricia Bright
So I think the first thing is leaning into your, like, authentic tone. Like, what is the thing that makes you or your brand yours? And not running away from that and not trying to be something else. It's like learning to not be scared of yourself. This is what we are, this is who I am, this is it, right? And then consistently putting that out all the time so that people connect with that. They either connect or they don't, but you only want those who are gonna connect with that true version of yourself or your brand. And then it's... of course, you know, you're gonna jump on trends or, or things that are viral so you can get traction. That's what I did. I would jump onto viral trends, but do it in my own tone of voice. Um, and, you know, phew, it's the consistency. Continue. That's it.
- SBSteven Bartlett
I've never done this before, but I want to ask Mike a question, if I can.
- PBPatricia Bright
You can ask Michael a question.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mike.
- PBPatricia Bright
He's famous.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mike. I saw you on her Instagram actually, with the, with the Baby Father's Day. Um, I wanted to ask you, from your perspective, why do you think Patricia has been so successful in what she's done?
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
Well, I reckon for a number of reasons. Par- partly, I think it's her personality.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Personality.
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
Which she doesn't acknowledge. So Patricia, it... Patricia doesn't acknowledge a lot of good things about herself.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
She's definitely 100% her biggest critic. She brings a lot of energy and passion and enthusiasm and stuff like that. So when you watch her, you feel good or you feel happy or you feel interested or inspired.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
Which is something that she doesn't really acknowledge, but I think that's a part of it.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
I do think there's certain fundamental, like, I suppose, numerical things like consistency and sticking with it over time and, you know, all those types of fe- factors that you can look at from a numbers perspective that help.
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
So definitely doing that and staying with it and doing, you know-
- SBSteven Bartlett
Mm-hmm.
- MHMike (Patricia Bright's husband)
... your three uploads a week and your regular posts and all those sort of things, that help. But there's a lot of people that do that and don't have the same level of success, right?
- SBSteven Bartlett
Right.
Episode duration: 1:12:44
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