IAM1592 – Dynamic Speaker, Promoter of the Philosophies and Processes Helps Teams and Executives Find Value and Be Happy

After graduating from Georgia Tech in 1991 with Highest Honors in Electrical Engineering, Angela Fox has often been asked how she moved from such a technical education with early roles in corporate systems and strategy into a life where she is transforming companies and communities, building cultural facilities, and serving as a catalyst for change and role model for impact and meaning in every area she touches. The answer is simple. At engineering school, she learned to solve problems – the more complex the issue, the more elegant the solution. She walked away with a Co-Op student’s awareness that there are many areas where a creative mind is key, that molds are meant to be broken, and that there is no situation that cannot be made better.

As the CEO of the Crystal City Business Improvement District (BID), she was asked to create an organization that would change the way people see, perceive, and experience Crystal City. In a very short time and at a nationally recognized level, she did just that. From a long-standing belief that the area was a “concrete canyon” that no one would visit without an appointment to the shortlist for Amazon’s HQ2, as well as the winner of the International Downtown Association’s Pinnacle “Best of the Best” award because of her strategic implementation of competitive programs, as well as her ability to engage and infuse energy into the community as a whole.

People are the heart of any company, campus, culture, and community, and the only way to bring about real, active, and repeatable transformation is to enlist their energy as stakeholders in the process, the progress, and the ultimate success.

As a 32-year-old, Tesla-driving vegetarian who runs 5Ks, cycles thousands of miles every year, and practices all forms of yoga, all while being committed to her community by serving and chairing local arts boards, she inspires people to embody the changes they seek to achieve. She is a dynamic speaker, dedicated mother, friend, and proud promoter of the philosophies and processes that she learned on the ground throughout her career. She has traveled all over the world (6 continents, 72 countries, and 47 states), worked with a Japanese Security Software firm as a C-level coach and interim Marketing VP, and run her own consulting firm providing business strategy, marketing, and executive coaching services to individuals, corporations, and non-profits. She has re-introduced many people to the personal and business value of building lives that matter, to them, helping them become active contributors, board members, citizens, and participants. Whether launching Verizon.net, introducing new programs at Cultural Tourism DC, or building an award-winning new theater in downtown DC, she is dedicated to her community and is honored to forever be a Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech!

Website: www.northernvirginiamag.com/northern-virginians-of-the-year-angela-fox

Twitter: crystalafoxy 

IG: angeladfox

Episode Link: https://iamceo.co/2019/01/12/iam152-dynamic-speaker-promoter-of-the-philosophies-and-processes-help-teams-and-executives-find-value-and-be-happy/

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00:18 – Intro

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

00:43 – Gresham Harkless

Hello, this is Gresh from the I AM CEO Podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Angela Fox with Foxgloves and the Founding CEO of Crystal City bid. It's Angela. It's awesome to have you on the show.

00:54- Angela Fox

Oh, it's so good to be here.

00:55 – Gresham Harkless

Thank you. No problem. I'm great to have you here and what I wanted to do is just read a little bit more about Angela so you can hear about all the awesome things that she has been able to accomplish and Graduating from Georgia Tech in 1991 with the highest honors in electrical engineering, Angela Fox has been asked how she moved from such a technical education with early roles in corporate systems and strategy into a life where she is transforming companies and communities, building cultural facilities and serving as a catalyst for change and a role model for impact and meaning in every area she touches.

The answer is simple. At engineering school, she learned to solve problems. The more complex the issue, the more elegant the solution. She walked away with a co-op student's awareness that there are many areas where a creative mind is key, that molds are meant to be broken, and that there is no situation that cannot be made better. As the CEO of the Crystal City Business Improvement District, bid, she was asked to create an organization that would change the way people see, perceive, and experience Crystal City in a very short time and at a nationally recognized level.

She did just that from a longstanding belief that the area was a concrete canyon that no one would visit without an appointment to the shortlist for Amazon's 8Q2, as well as a winner of the International Downtown Association's pinnacle Best in Business Award because of her strategic implementation of competitive programs as well as her ability to engage and infuse energy into the community as a whole. So whether launching verizon.net introducing new programs at Cultural Tourism DC or building an award-winning new theater in downtown D.C. she is dedicated to her community and is honored to be forever a rambling wreck from Georgia Tech. Angela, I appreciate having you on. Are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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02:38 – Angela Fox

I am absolutely ready to speak to the I AM CEO community.

02:41- Gresham Harkless

Awesome. So what I want to do is just hear a little bit more about what I call your CEO story and what led you to start your business.

02:46 – Angela Fox

Sure. So it's really interesting though, because one of the things in the bio, when we wrote this we were on the shortlist for Amazon and actually now we won.

02:55 – Gresham Harkless

Exactly. Congratulations.

02:56- Angela Fox

So it's been quite a week on that front, and just, watching Arlington's economic development and what they did in that, that was just phenomenal. So that is so exciting. Our area is about to transform all over again. My parents kind of like to say, that I was probably a CEO from about the time I was five. At one point, I was having a birthday party and I had 25 like the whole kindergarten class coming. People were asking my mom, are you worried? Mom's like, no, Angie's little activities are all over the place. I loved transforming systems and having an impact. I got to do some very interesting things at Georgia Tech.

But it was very interesting being a co-op student because I worked in an anechoic chamber, which is basically a box about the size of a Yugo, running tests on high-end equipment. I sat there in this box by myself, like reading books while I was running these tests, I thought, surely there are other things engineers can do. I love the motto of Georgia Tech, which is, we don't make them all, we break it. Whether I was at Verizon and I had some just phenomenal opportunities, amazing mentors that just would, bring me into a system that was broken, that needed to be fixed.

It was always launching something typically very innovative in a company that wasn't ready to do those kinds of innovations or didn't understand what it was. I'd come into it, I would be working with teams that had no idea sort of what the point of what we were trying to do and really no particular interest. Figuring out ways to sort of a Verizon example is figuring out how to launch something called personal communication service, which was a precursor to mobile inside a company where nobody had cell phones and, I had leaders that were asking Questions like, why would you want your calls to follow you around? Now it's like everybody's phone.

04:40 – Gresham Harkless

Is like an appendage, Alicia, and an appendage.

04:44 – Angela Fox

So. But to figure out inside this corporate culture how to motivate and excite people about something and get their buy-in. Because my model for how I think teams work isn't a top-down model. I mean, certainly, there is always a component of what's the North Star that we're heading towards and creating that vision. But how people get engaged, feel taken care of, and also able to contribute is a key aspect.

05:09 – Gresham Harkless

That's awesome. Sounds like you're an innovator, to say the least. being able to, like you said, like sometimes you have a square peg in a round hole and you try to force that square peg in, but it sounds like you would definitely preach on creating that environment where that person that is a square peg, so to speak, can cultivate and flourish. So I guess, could you tell me, I guess a little bit more about Fox Clubs? What are you doing with Fox Clubs? How are you supporting the clients?

05:33 – Angela Fox

So one of my aspects of what I wanted to do next was because I had looked at and joined companies full time and I talked with a bunch of CEOs who were very interested in trying to recruit me. When I sat with them, I started to realize I could do more and add more value. Actually working with these CEOs who were struggling, losing sleep, working constantly, feeling like they were never getting ahead, stressed out, not vacationing, not taking care of themselves, and teams that were spinning in the wrong direction and trying to be successful because the market is successful, but also not feeling that work all cohesive and moving along. that kind of ended up evolving.

Basically, I was walking with one CEO, and suddenly that CEO was a client. I formed companies before. In fact, this is my fourth one. I have a vision for how I want my life to look, but also how I can help other executives and teams feel happy and happy and fulfilled and they're participating and adding value. So that was kind of the impetus that led me to form Fox Gloves And the name, it's actually, if you look it up, it is a beautiful and deadly flower, which is kind of funny, but I love sort of the model of like Fox bugs, like kids bugs, sort of putting a spin on.

06:53 – Gresham Harkless

It makes sense. I usually ask for the secret sauce, but you might have already touched on that. Do you feel like that is what kind of distinguishes you, being able to kind of bring all those different facets together into one?

07:03 – Angela Fox

Yeah, I mean, I think, you know, so when I, when we set out to transform Crystal City we said we want a place that is active, artful, accessible, green, innovative, and creative and to do that, to create that, you have to be that so, and to me, those were the things that I thought made a well-rounded community, but also make a well-rounded person, I'm a runner or do yoga. I'm 32 years vegetarian. So I take, try very hard to take very good care of my body and you know, but also to it's just a good way to be active and explore. I mean, some of these vacations that I go on are cycling or hiking or canyoning vacations and big adventures.

07:45- Gresham Harkless

Yeah.

07:45- Angela Fox

That there's the fitness piece and you don't want to get to I'm 75 and now I'm falling apart because I didn't take care of myself all along. Then on the artful piece, I love theater and I would find that theater and arts, like when you're working really crazy hours, you go to a play at an edgy theater, which was, Wally Mammoth is the one I'm thinking of specifically. At the end of the play, it's like you've rehumanized, you're rehuman,  you're human again. That's the art piece, so make it. That's why we're putting art all over Crystal City, to make it aspirational inspirational colorful, and vibrant. They need to be accessible.

Plus, if you're spending your life on the road, wherever you get, you're stressed out, so to walk to an airport versus sitting in traffic at an airport or to walk, to walk two blocks to your office versus commuting an hour plus each way. Green is the environmental component. I think we all have a responsibility to give back and take care of our world in that way. But to actually do those things, you have to be those things and that's that authentic from the inside.

That's what I try and do with, you know, a lot of my executives, like some of the some of my clients, like, we'll have big meetings and in between we'll hike or we'll bike or we'll do things that are also Fitness oriented. So that we're just kind of bringing other aspects of our brain or we'll go to an art exhibit, and look at that. So that we're taking care of the whole person.

09:18 – Gresham Harkless

That makes perfect sense and it's funny because a lot of times you're quote-unquote, thinking outside the box, but you're just being authentic to who you are. Sometimes that's where those great ideas and perspectives come from. When you're doing something that's other than the norm, I should say.

09:30 – Angela Fox

Absolutely. I mean, it's almost like a version of meditation or mindfulness or taking your mind off. Sometimes I remember we were hosting a big photo event and we were trying to come up with a name. We had a whole crystal, there were a lot of light elements to everything we were doing, but we couldn't come up with a name. I went to bed, I was like I couldn't think about this anymore.

I went to sleep like the middle night, 2 o'clock in the morning, I wake up, I'm like, flash. That was what we called it, which was a perfect name when you think about it. Photography light Flash. But that's kind of sometimes when you take your mind off, focus on other things or sleep, take care of yourself, and suddenly you get a eureka moment.

10:15- Gresham Harkless

Exactly. Because you're too close to it. So that makes perfect sense. So now I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. This might be an app, a book, or a habit that you have, but it's something that you feel makes you more effective and efficient as a business owner.

10:29- Angela Fox

Effective and efficient as a business owner. So I'm very, very much paperless, and not trying to keep track of a bunch of papers and clutter, so having a very decluttered, deep paper. There's an environmental aspect of it, but a lot of the things, my calendar is sort of my to-do list, my organizer, everything that I'm keeping track of, my sun schedule and it's color-coded. It's kind of funny because I used to have a print version and I would color-mark everything. It's much easier to do it electronically and she always changes things because once.

11:06 – Gresham Harkless

You put your highlighter on, you can't change it back.

11:10 – Angela Fox

It's just part of how my life is infused with color in general. So I can look at it and I know want to focus on, okay, so this is my son, right? So it's kind of a little way just to keep things a little simpler.

11:20 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah.

11:21- Angela Fox

But the other aspect is when I'm with clients, doing something that's creative, so it's not just sitting straight on having a conversation, but maybe we're hiking, maybe we're at some awesome art exhibit, like the Hirschford exhibit right now, which is Scully, which is colorful and beautiful. We're talking as we're also absorbing, so the environment. I think that when you start to engage with your right brain at the same time as your left brain, then it's a really great way to unlock creativity. So both of those are my little tricks.

11:52 – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. We love those and definitely appreciate you for sharing. Now I wanted to ask you for a CEO nugget and this might be a word of wisdom or a piece of advice. I like to say, if you can hop into a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

12:05 – Angela Fox

So it's interesting because my dad was a CEO and I remember asking him at one point, what's the one piece? He said, choose your bosses very carefully. My corollary, if you will, is to choose who you work with carefully. You know, make sure you are aligned. I'm very missionary driven and very internally authentic. I really want to add value to the person. I'm not motivated by externals, money things so align yourself. Obviously, you want to have different views and opinions, but make sure you really are engaged with the people that you're working with and that you're aligned on what your styles are. I'm very careful about picking.

12:50 – Gresham Harkless

That front that makes sense. Yeah. Be careful of your environment and the company you keep. So that makes perfect sense and it's great to hear that you still incorporate that from your father.

12:58- Angela Fox

Yeah.

12:58- Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Well, now I wanted to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of being a CEO. We're hoping to have different, quote-unquote, CEOs on the show, but hopefully spark a conversation around entrepreneurship, business, and what it means to be a CEO. So I wanted to ask you, what does being a CEO mean to you?

13:14 – Angela Fox

So it's very interesting because when I first started, career-wise, I thought of myself as like, I would be a COO. The reality is I'm a horrible COO because that's where you get into. I can do the detail and I will always, like, there have been plenty of times where I will get in there and, like, dig in. I'm like, Doing whatever needs to be done, any port in a storm. But the reality is that creativity piece, that motivation piece that like putting teams together and really sort of thinking at looking at a system and seeing it differently, that's the vision component.

For me, the CEO is certainly the vision component, but it's also figuring out the execution component because you have to be able to get stuff done. It's not enough to just have the ideas, it's not enough to just drive and do stuff without a real good vision for where you're heading. So to me, it's sort of aligning those things, connecting those things with the team. That is what being a CEO to me is all about.

14:15 – Gresham Harkless

Makes perfect sense. Well, Angie, I truly appreciate you for taking some time out of your schedule. What I wanted to do was pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there is anything additional you want to let our readers or listeners know and then also how best people can get a hold of you.

14:28 – Angela Fox

I know a lot of my friends, they're very big, they've got their five-year plan and they know where they're headed. Time has always been more of an unfolding, which is probably a little yogi, a little bit in me. It's like just sort of flow and sometimes there's ebb and there's not as much going on and sort of trusting that kind of period of ambiguity. Then the other times when you're full on, that it's like it's, you get the breaks and life sort of, hand you those when you need them sometimes even if you don't think you need them.

That's a big piece for me and really it's back to what makes you happy there are a lot of unhappy, and lonely, and we never know what's going on with the person next to us and finding ways to truly connect with other people that is just to me what really matters whether it's connecting with my 15-year-old son or connecting with a team or my clients or my friends, that at the end of the day, experiences, moments, memories, but above all it's people and relationships.

15:30 – Gresham Harkless

Makes perfect sense. Yeah, we're always so much more alike than we sometimes give ourselves credit for. So it's important to kind of connect and reach out and find out what, what's going on with anybody else.

15:39 – Angela Fox

Right.

15:39 – Gresham Harkless

Absolutely. Yeah. Well, awesome, and somebody wanted to reach out to you. What would be the best way?

15:43 – Angela Fox

So the best way to reach me would probably be. So there's Twitter which is Rystalafoxy, and Instagram Angela D. Fox. I have not done the whole website thing yet. It will be coming eventually so. And also you can find me on LinkedIn.

16:00 – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. And we'll make sure to have those links in the show notes. But I truly appreciate you for taking some time out. I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

16:06 – Angela Fox

Yeah. Thank you. It's been a pleasure.

16:09 – Outro

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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