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IAM2368 – Award-winning Technical Writer, Voice Talent and Speaker Inspires People Using Her Voice

Special Throwback Episode with Daree Allen

Podcast image featuring Gresham Harkless Jr. and Daree Allen, highlighting an award-winning technical writer's impact. Includes episode 2368, platform logos, and a headphone graphic.

Daree Allen is an award-winning technical writer, authorpreneur, voice talent speaker, life coach, and podcaster.

Daree is the author of three books, including What's Wrong with Me? She shares her stories about self-esteem, media influence, premarital sex, and family and personal relationships, and advises teens about it all.

She highlights the importance of not only mastering the craft but also learning the business side, including marketing.

Daree believes her unique background—combining professional experience in speaking, writing, healthcare, and personal experiences as a single mom and young widow—helps her stand out.

Daree explains the importance of showcasing personal and professional aspects of one's life to build a strong, relatable brand.

Website: Daree Allen Voiceover

LinkedIn: Daree Allen Voiceover LLC

Facebook: Daree Allen

Instagram: dareeallen

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Transcription:

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Daree Allen Teaser 00:00

Did some speaking and mentoring for teenage girls and youth. And then that like kind of birthed the idea for my book and things like that.

And I had some of those self doubts and things that I just mentioned, but I pursued it. I actually am a really good writer and I'm like trained in it. I went to school for it. It's something that's innate and I enhanced it.

Intro 00:24

Are you ready to hear business stories and learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and level up your business from awesome CEOs, entrepreneurs, and founders without listening to a long, long, long interview?

If so, you've come to the right place. Gresh values your time and is ready to share with you the valuable info you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 00:51

Hello, hello, hello. This is Gresh from the I AM CEO Podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Daree Allen of Daree Allen Voiceover LLC. Daree, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Daree Allen 01:02

Thank you. Thank you so much for having me.

Gresham Harkless 01:04

No problem. I'm super excited to have you on. And what I want to do is just read a little bit more about Daree so you can hear about all the awesome things that she's doing.

And as an award-winning technical writer, authorpreneur, voice talent speaker, life coach and podcaster, Daree Allen enjoys inspiring people and using her voice for good.

Daree is the author of three books, including what's Wrong with Me? In which she shares her stories about self esteem, media influence, premarital sex, family and personal relationships, and gives advice to teens about it all.

Her latest book, ending the Blame Game, discusses relationship advice for black couples based on interviews with numerous black men, coaches and therapists.

When Daree is not reading, traveling, jumping into a line dance or on social media, she enjoys spending time with her beautiful daughter, Kaya. Daree, are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

Daree Allen 01:57

For sure.

[restrict paid=”true”]

Gresham Harkless 01:58

Awesome. Let's do it. So the first question I had was to hear a little bit more about what I call your CEO story and what led you to start your business.

Daree Allen 02:06

Yeah, yeah. Gresham, I am a serial entrepreneur and so this is just like the latest and hopefully the last venture because when you're creative the ideas just keep coming and you want to do everything.

I know you were probably reading that first sentence of my bio. Like, dang. Like, okay, she's like 12 things.

Like, when you think of a multi hyphenate, you think of about four things not like that many, but they're all related, so it's okay.

But, literally for years, like over 10 years ago, I remember friends and other people listening to me speak.

And, whether I was speaking at an event or just talking to them and they're like, I really like your speaking voice.

You should be on the radio or something. You should be doing voiceovers, you should be doing this and that.

And at the time, my daughter was very young. She was probably four or five at the time. And so I was a single parent.

I was taking care of her, I was writing books, I was doing different projects, and I just didn't want to add something else to my plate.

I think that a lot of times when we think about starting a business, we get overwhelmed thinking about everything we have to do.

And I just really wanted each thing that I got into to be done very well. I wanted it to be excellent. I didn't want it to be half done.

I didn't, want it to be like, oh, okay, you could tell she made this, or you could tell she did this. Like, I really wanted to be professional and quality and something that I could be proud of myself.

Even if I didn't like make the New York Times bestseller list or show up on Good Morning America, I would know that I did real quality work.

And so, I started my business because I am multi talented, but I wanted, this creative outlet. I wanted that flexibility to do for myself. And it's fun. The things that I do, to me, are fun. I enjoy it. It's not work.

Gresham Harkless 04:04

Absolutely. And I wanted to ask you because I know you touched on this a little bit. I know a lot of people sometimes, I always say, don't let the perfect get in the way of the possible.

So how do you balance between actually taking action? So sometimes there's some that don't actually jump out and do those things and they just always wanted to be perfect, but they never, ever launch.

Daree Allen 04:22

Yeah, I think that you have to get started. What you're talking about is sort of also been referred to as analysis paralysis.

You're reading blogs, you're reading books, you're talking to people, you're absorbing all this information to the point where you're paralyzed, you're not doing anything because you get so consumed with things.

And you start comparing what this guru is doing and what that guru is doing. And when I say the word guru, I'm not just talking about somebody big that you know, has been on Oprah show or something.

I'm talking about anybody that does something really well that you perceive as a guru, that person could just be a few steps ahead of you in reality you don't know.

And so what I say is, a lot of times people will say, I want to start this business and I want to get started, but there's so many people out there doing the same thing.

And I don't know if I could really reach this standard or do something like this over here, what I seen on Facebook or what I see it on Instagram.

And what I have to say to that is, you have to do something. Just start. You will differentiate yourself because you are you.

And even if you and another person are doing the exact same thing, you're gonna do things in the way that you only you can do it because you have your own flavor that you spent on it.

And so every now and then you have that self doubt that comes in and says, I don't even know, like, whether it's starting like you just asked or like midway when you're launching or after you've launched.

And it's like, yeah, keep going, because there's only you. That doesn't matter whether you're doing things that I'm doing.

The podcast, there's a million podcasts, voiceovers, there's a million people doing that, life coaching, there's a million people doing that, but there's only one me and there's only one you.

So there's something in your experience that makes you unique. And I know we're going to talk about that a little bit, but that should not.

Looking at other people should not keep you from doing what you know is in your heart to do. And if it hurts, then stop looking at so much of what everyone else is doing and focus in on what you need to do.

Gresham Harkless 06:23

Exactly, yeah. I absolutely love that. And I know we touched on a little bit how you're. I don't even know the number that I was going to say triple threat, but it's beyond that because you're doing so many different things and I love it.

Could you tell us a little bit more about like what you're doing with your voiceover and everything and how you've been able to build that?

Daree Allen 06:39

Sure, sure. So basically I started off in the beginning with speaking. I did some speaking and mentoring for teenage girls and youth.

And then that like kind of birthed the idea for my book and things like that. And I Had some of those self doubts and things that I just meant.

But I pursued it. I actually am a really good writer and I'm like trained in it. I went to school for it. It's something that's innate and I enhanced it.

So that was helpful. But anybody with knowledge can write a book. It was just a little bit easier for me because I actually like writing and I know everyone doesn't, but my business started because I like writing and I like speaking.

And it just took some time for me to finish the projects that I was doing before I started the Daree Allen voiceover company.

And so I basically went to a really large conference about doing voiceovers. And I learned as much as I possibly could.

I thought about exactly what areas I wanted to be in because there's a lot of areas. There's commercials, there's different kinds of web videos, there's audiobooks, there's e-learning, there's films and documentaries, there's nonprofit and corporate videos.

There's so many things that people need a voiceover for. And so I had to think about where am I best suited? What do people want to hire me for? What do I enjoy doing and learn as much as I could.

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But I didn't just stop with the reading and the going to conferences and networking and the learning.

I had to go ahead and do the training and then hang out my shingle. I think it's very important that you learn and then you train and then you do. You don't just read, read, read, read, read, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, and then not do.

So that's really how I got started was I just went to a conference, I got some personal coaching and training because I knew that there were a lot of things I didn't know and just try to perfect my craft and then learn a lot of the business and marketing side because we're all business owners.

So working for yourself, no matter what it is that you want to do that you are doing, chances are you probably have to do your own marketing or you have to hire someone to do it if you're going to make money.

It's one thing to say you're an entrepreneur, but if you're not making any money, then you are a hobbyist.

So, and there's nothing wrong with being a hobbyist because that's how you figure out what you like and what you enjoy and whether or not it's sustainable.

But don't say you're an entrepreneur. What I call myself as an Authorpreneur. Don't call yourself that if you're not going to do anything that will help you market yourself and make money.

Gresham Harkless 09:14

Absolutely. Yeah. And I know you touched on this a little bit and about kind of like your flavor, what makes you unique, and how we can all find that ourselves.

So I wanted to ask you a little bit more. Could you tell us what I call, like, your secret sauce? What you feel kind of distinguishes you and your organization now?

Daree Allen 09:27

My secret sauce, I would say. Well, it's not going to be secret now, because I'm telling you, but I know that was corny.

So I have a background in it. I just also. Not only did I do my 100th episode, but even bigger. I just had my 20th anniversary at my company a couple of weeks ago.

It's been 20 years that I've been with my company, and I mean, there have been so many corporate America. There's been so many mergers and acquisitions.

I don't know how I survived. There's, like, almost nobody else that I started with that's still around.

And when I started at this company, I had just gotten out of school less than two months before, so this was my first job, and I'm still here after 20 years and also have this company on the side that I have.

So my background in it is one thing. Definitely that's very helpful, especially with my e-learning. I also was a nurse's aide for a while while I was in college.

So I have a lot of background with healthcare, and that is also an asset. I've done a lot of public speaking at conferences and youth and different things.

So, of course, anytime you know how to speak or anytime you know how to write, any industry, that's an asset.

So when you put that together, I feel like that qualifies me for some things. On the business side, on the personal and human side, I'm a single mom, I'm a black woman.

Recently, about less than a year ago, I was widowed, so I'm a young widow. And, those things color my experience as well.

So when you add the personal and the professional, my married name is a Spanish name that a lot of people can't pronounce, so I just go by Daree Allen.

There's a lot of things that make me unique and interesting, and when you find those things that make you unique and interesting and you bring those to the forefront, you can't assume that if someone Googles you, they're going to find out everything they need to know.

You need to toot your own horn. You need to let people know about some of your accomplishments and some things you've done, because if it's relevant, there might be something.

Even if it's not that person that's going to hire you or what have you, they might know somebody that knows somebody that's interested in those things.

So I feel like we should not kind of like hide or dim our light because, we feel like it's impolite to brag.

I mean, there's certain kinds of bragging that really you shouldn't do. But what I'm talking about here is big yourself up.

Be proud of your accomplishments. The things that make you you and things that happen to you in life are relevant in the business world.

Gresham Harkless 11:53

Absolutely, Absolutely. And I'm super sorry to hear about your husband, your late husband. I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack.

And this might be an Apple book or a habit that you have, but it's something that makes you more effective and efficient.

Daree Allen 12:06

Oh, yeah. I think that it's hard to, like, go to just one, but if I did, just the one app I would say that I use every single day is called Evernote. It's free.

You could use it on any device. I personally have one of the paid versions because I have a lot of devices and a lot of storage needs.

And I also like using the Asana app, which also has a free version that is very robust, lots of features in the free version. I use Google Calendar every day.

And I also use an app that is not free, but it's very close to free. It's called TextExpander, and that is something that I use to.

So I don't have to copy and paste tons of text when I'm emailing or responding to people or doing different proposals or pitches. I use a TextExpander to kind of like create a template.

And, I could save all these different things as snippets and use them in my business communications. I use them both for my corporate job and for my voiceover work as well.

Gresham Harkless 13:11

And now I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this is a word of wisdom or piece of advice, or if you can hop into a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

Daree Allen 13:19

Oh, man. I'll say this because I have thrown a lot of different ideas out there. All these different things that I've talked about so far, I didn't do all of these things at once.

Like, it's like that now, but it's built up over time. Taking it back to 2008, that's when I started Toastmasters. That's when I really learned, like, the fine tuning of speaking in public.

That was over 10 years ago. I didn't write my first manuscript until 2011. I created a self publishing course from it, but that was a few years later.

I got my light coaching certification later. Everything is like incremental. It's not like you hear and see all these things out there in social media or in front of you and you're like, wow.

And you get overwhelmed. Like, I can't do that. Yes, you can. You just go one step at a time. These things happen over time.

And so with the hard knocks along the way, that's life and it happens. So take your time. Don't pressure yourself to have to do everything at once that you want to do.

Be patient and don't believe the hype that you're behind in life. There's a very common, pervasive thought with men and women that, I should be farther along by now.

I should have done this and this and this by now, and maybe there's some truth to that. But beating yourself over the head and saying that you've missed out on something, that's not the right thing to believe.

Just take one step at a time. And like me and Gresh have been saying for the last few minutes, don't get stuck there.

Gresham Harkless 14:45

Do absolutely, absolutely. Action is everything. And I wanted to ask you now my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO.

And we're hoping to have different quote-unquote, CEOs on this show. So, Daree, I wanted to ask you, what does being a CEO means?

Daree Allen 14:58

I'm going to make this brief, and I know you don't believe that, but I am. There's three words I could sum it up. Being a CEO to me means flexibility, freedom, and most of all, purpose. Flexibility, freedom and purpose.

Gresham Harkless 15:13

Awesome. I absolutely love that. And so I appreciate you. I wanted to pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional you want to let our readers and our listeners know and then how best they can get a hold.

Daree Allen 15:22

Oh, yeah, sure. So if you'd like to listen to the podcast, you could find me on iTunes, Stitcher, Radio, Spotify, almost anywhere that you have a podcast player. It's called Kicking it with Daree it's kicking it.

Like what we used to say in the 90s. There's no G. It's just kicking it. So, if you don't know that term is coming back, I'm bringing it back.

If you need some voiceover work, you've been listening to me for a while. If you like my sound, you can find me at dareevoiceover.com and that's spelled D A R E E voiceover.com if you want to connect with me on social media, I use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram regularly and you can find me at Daree Allen @dareeallen everywhere. Just wherever it is, it's my name, Daree Allen.

Gresham Harkless 16:11

Awesome, awesome, awesome. And we'll have those links in the show notes as well. So Daree, again, I truly appreciate you. I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Daree Allen 16:18

Thank you. Thank you so much. Look forward to hearing from you.

Outro 16:20

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by CBNation and Blue16 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 Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and everywhere you listen to podcasts. Podcast. Subscribe and leave us a five star rating. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless Jr. Thank you for listening.

Title: Transcript - Sat, 25 Jan 2025 16:31:28 GMT

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Date: Sat, 25 Jan 2025 16:31:28 GMT, Duration: [00:17:00.48]

[00:00:00.24] - Daree Allen

Did some speaking and mentoring for teenage girls and youth. And then that like kind of birthed the idea for my book and things like that. And I had some of those self doubts and things that I, that I just mentioned, but I pursued it. I actually am a really good writer and I'm like trained in it. I went to school for it. It's something that's innate and I enhanced it.

[00:00:24.00] - Intro

Are you ready to hear business stories and learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales and level up your from awesome CEOs, entrepreneurs and founders without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresh values your time and is ready to share with you the valuable info you're in search of. This is the I Am CEO podcast.

[00:00:51.25] - Gresham Harkless

Hello, hello, hello, this is Gresh from the I Am CEO podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Deree Allen of Doree Allen Voiceover llc. Dori, it's awesome to have you on the show.

[00:01:02.04] - Daree Allen

Thank you. Thank you so much for having me.

[00:01:04.48] - Gresham Harkless

No problem. I'm super excited to have you on. And what I want to do is just read a little bit more about Dori so you can hear about all the awesome things that she's doing. And as an award winning technical writer, authorpreneur, voice voice talent speaker, life coach and podcaster, Dori Allen enjoys inspiring people and using her voice for good. Deriah is the author of three books, including what's Wrong with Me? In which she shares her stories about self esteem, media influence, premarital sex, family and personal relationships, and gives advice to teens about it all. Her latest book, ending the Blame Game, discusses relationship advice for black couples based on interviews with numerous black men, coaches and therapists. When Doria is not reading, traveling, jumping into a line dance or on social media, she enjoys spending time with her beautiful daughter, Kaya. Dori, are you ready to speak to the IMCO community?

[00:01:57.70] - Daree Allen

For sure.

[00:01:58.68] - Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Let's do it. So the first question I had was to hear a little bit more about what I call your CEO story and what led you to start your business.

[00:02:06.40] - Daree Allen

Yeah, yeah. You know, Gresham, I am a serial entrepreneur and so this is just like the latest and hopefully the last venture because, you know, when you're creative, you know, the ideas just keep coming and you want to do everything. I know you were probably reading that first sentence of my bio. Like, dang. Like, okay, she's like 12 things. Like, when you think of a multi hyphenate, you think of about four things not like that many, but they're all related, so it's okay. But you know, literally for years, like over 10 years ago, I remember friends and other people listening to me speak. And, you know, whether I was speaking at an event or just talking to them and they're like, you know, I really like your speaking voice. You should be on the radio or something. You should be doing voiceovers, you should be doing this and that. And at the time, my daughter was very young. She was probably four or five at the time. And so I was a single parent. I was taking care of her, I was writing books, I was doing different projects, and I just didn't want to add something else to my plate. I think that a lot of times when we think about starting a business, we get overwhelmed thinking about everything we have to do. And I just really wanted each thing that I got into to be done very well. I wanted it to be excellent. I didn't want it to be, you know, half done. I didn't, you know, want it to be like, oh, okay, you could tell she made this, or you could tell she did this. Like, I really wanted to be professional and quality and something that I could be proud of myself. Even if, you know, I didn't like make the New York Times bestseller list or, you know, show up on Good Morning America, I would know that I did real quality work. And so, you know, I started my business because I am multi talented, but I wanted, you know, this creative outlet. I wanted that flexibility to do for myself. And it's fun. The things that I do, to me, are fun. I enjoy it. It's not work.

[00:04:04.96] - Gresham Harkless

Absolutely. And I wanted to ask you because I know you touched on this a little bit. I know a lot of people sometimes, you know, I always say, don't let the perfect get in the way of the possible. So how do you balance between actually taking action? So sometimes there's some that don't actually jump out and do those things and they just always wanted to be perfect, but they never, ever launch.

[00:04:22.56] - Daree Allen

Yeah, I think that you have to get started. What you're talking about is sort of also been referred to as analysis paralysis. You know, you're reading blogs, you're reading books, you're talking to people, you're absorbing all this information to the point where you're paralyzed, you're not doing anything because you get so consumed with things. And you start comparing what this guru is doing and what that guru is doing. And when I say the word guru, I'm not just talking about somebody big that you know, has been on Oprah show or something. I'm talking about anybody that does something really well that you perceive as a guru, that person could just be a few steps ahead of you in reality, you know, you don't know. And so what I say is, a lot of times people will say, you know, I want to start this business and I want to get started, but there's so many people out there doing the same thing. And I don't know if I could really reach this standard or do something like this over here, what I seen on Facebook or what I see it on Instagram. And what I have to say to that is, you know, you have to do something. Just start. You know, you will differentiate yourself because you are you. And even if you and another person are doing the exact same thing, you're gonna do things in the way that you only you can do it because you have your own flavor that you spent on it. And so every now and then you have that self doubt that comes in and says, I don't even know, like, whether it's starting like you just asked or like midway when you're launching or after you've launched. And it's like, yeah, keep going, because there's only you. That doesn't matter whether you're doing things that I'm doing. You know, the podcast, there's a million podcasts, voiceovers, there's a million people doing that, life coaching, there's a million people doing that, but there's only one me and there's only one you. So there's something in your experience that makes you unique. And I know we're going to talk about that a little bit, but that should not. Looking at other people should not keep you from doing what you know is in your heart to do. And if it hurts, then stop looking at so much of what everyone else is doing and focus in on what you need to do.

[00:06:23.62] - Gresham Harkless

Exactly, yeah. I absolutely love that. And I know we touched on a little bit how you're. I don't even know the number that I was going to say triple threat, but it's beyond that because you're doing so many different things and I love it. Could you tell us a little bit more about like what you're doing with your voiceover and everything and how you've been able to build that?

[00:06:39.08] - Daree Allen

Sure, sure. So basically I started off in the beginning with speaking. I did some speaking and mentoring for teenage girls and youth. And then that like kind of birthed the idea for my book and things like that. And I Had some of those self doubts and things that I. That I just ment. But I pursued it. I actually am a really good writer and I'm like trained in it. I went to school for it. It's something that's innate and I enhanced it. So that was helpful. But anybody with knowledge can write a book. It was just a little bit easier for me because I actually like writing and I know everyone doesn't, but my business started because I like writing and I like speaking. And it just took some time for me to finish the projects that I was doing before I started the Dori Allen v voiceover company. And so I basically went to a really large conference about doing voiceovers. And I learned as much as I possibly could. I thought about exactly what areas I wanted to be in because there's a lot of areas. There's commercials, there's different kinds of web videos, there's audiobooks, there's elearning, there's films and documentaries, there's nonprofit and corporate videos.

[00:07:52.67] - Gresham Harkless

There's.

[00:07:52.99] - Daree Allen

There's so many things that people need a voiceover for. And so I had to think about where am I best suited? What do people want to hire me for? What do I enjoy doing and learn as much as I could. But I didn't just stop with the reading and the going to conferences and networking and the learning. I had to go ahead and do the training and then hang out my shingle. I think it's very important that you learn and then you train and then you do. You don't just read, read, read, read, read, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, and then not do. So that's really how I got started was I just went to a conf coaching and training because I knew that there were a lot of things I didn't know and just try to perfect my craft and then learn a lot of the business and marketing side because we're all business owners. So working for yourself, you know, no matter what it is that you want to do that you are doing, chances are you probably have to do your own marketing or you have to hire someone to do it if you're going to make money. It's one thing to say you're an entrepreneur, but if you're not making any money, then you are a hobbyist. So, you know, and there's nothing wrong with being a hobbyist because that's how you figure out what you like and what you enjoy and whether or not it's sustainable. But don't say you're an entrepreneur. What I call myself as an Authorpreneur. Don't call yourself that if you're not going to do anything that will help you market yourself and make money.

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[00:09:14.53] - Gresham Harkless

Absolutely. Yeah. And I know you touched on this a little bit and about kind of like your flavor, what makes you unique, and how we can all find that ourselves. So I wanted to ask you a little bit more. Could you tell us what I call, like, your secret sauce? What you feel kind of distinguishes you and your organization now?

[00:09:27.62] - Daree Allen

My secret sauce, I would say. Well, it's not going to be secret now, because I'm telling you, but I know that was corny. So I have a background in it. I just also. Not only did I do my 100th episode, but even bigger. I just had my 20th anniversary at my company a couple of weeks ago. It's been 20 years that I've been with my company, and I mean, there have been so many, you know, corporate America. There's been so many mergers and acquisitions. I don't know how I survived. There's, like, almost nobody else that I started with that's still around. And when I started at this company, I had just gotten out of school less than two months before, so this was my first job, and I'm still here after 20 years and also have this company on the side that I have. So my background in it is one thing. Definitely that's very helpful, especially with my E learning. I also was a nurse's aide for a while while I was in college. So I have a lot of background with healthcare, and that is also an asset. I've done a lot of public speaking at conferences and youth and different things. So, of course, anytime you know how to speak or anytime you know how to write, any industry, that's an asset. So when you put that together, I feel like that qualifies me for some things. On the business side, you know, on the personal and human side, I'm a single mom. You know, I'm a black woman. Recently, about less than a year ago, I was widowed, so I'm a young widow. And, you know, those things color my experience as well. So when you add the personal and the professional, my married name is a Spanish name that a lot of people can't pronounce, so I just go by Derree Allen. There's a lot of things that make me unique and interesting, and when you find those things that make you unique and interesting and you bring those to the forefront, you can't assume that if someone Googles you, they're going to find out everything they need to know. You need to toot your own horn. You need to let people know about some of your accomplishments and some things you've done, because if it's relevant, there might be something. Even if it's not that person that's going to hire you or what have you, they might know somebody that knows somebody that's interested in those things. So I feel like we should not kind of like hide or dim our light because, you know, we feel like it's impolite to brag. I mean, there's certain kinds of bragging that really you shouldn't do. But what I'm talking about here is, you know, big yourself up. Be proud of your accomplishments. The things that make you you and things that happen to you in life are relevant in the business world.

[00:11:53.14] - Gresham Harkless

Absolutely, Absolutely. And I'm super sorry to hear about your husband, your late husb. I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. And this might be an Apple book or a habit that you have, but it's something that makes you more effective and efficient.

[00:12:06.37] - Daree Allen

Oh, yeah. You know, I think that it's hard to, like, go to just one, but if I did, just the one app I would say that I use every single day is called Evernote. It's free. You know, you could use it on any device. I personally have one of the paid versions because I have a lot of devices and a lot of storage needs. And I also like using the Asana app, which also has a free version that is very robust, lots of features in the free version. I use Google Calendar every day. And I also use an app that is not free, but it's very close to free. It's called Text Expander, and that is something that I use to. So I don't have to copy and paste tons of text when I'm emailing or responding to people or doing different proposals or pitches. I use a text expander to kind of like create a template. And, you know, I could save all these different things as snippets and use them in my business communications. I use them both for my corporate job and for my voiceover work as well.

[00:13:11.12] - Gresham Harkless

And now I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this is a word of wisdom or piece of advice, or if you can hop into a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

[00:13:19.92] - Daree Allen

Oh, man. I'll say this because I have thrown a lot of different ideas out there. You know, all these different things that I've talked about so far, I didn't do all of these things at once. Like, it's like that now, but it's built up over time. You know, taking it back to 2008, that's when I started Toastmasters. That's when I really learned, like, the fine tuning of speaking in public. That was over 10 years ago. You know, I didn't write my first manuscript until 2011. You know, I created a self publishing course from it, but that was a few years later. I got my light coaching certification later. Everything is like incremental. It's not like you hear and see all these things out there in social media or in front of you and you're like, wow. And you get overwhelmed. Like, I can't do that. Yes, you can. You just go one step at a time. These things happen over time. And so with the hard knocks along the way, that's life and it happens. So take your time. Don't pressure yourself to have to do everything at once that you want to do. Be patient and don't believe the hype that you're behind in life. There's a very common, pervasive thought with men and women that, you know, I should be farther along by now. I should have done this and this and this by now, and maybe there's some truth to that. But beating yourself over the head and saying that, you know, you've missed out on something, that's not the right thing to believe. Just take one step at a time. And like me and Grushe have been saying for the last few minutes, don't get stuck there.

[00:14:45.34] - Gresham Harkless

Do absolutely, absolutely. Action is everything. And I wanted to ask you now my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. And we're hoping to have different, quote, unquote, CEOs on this show. So, Daria, I wanted to ask you, what does being a CEO means?

[00:14:58.07] - Daree Allen

I'm going to make this brief, and I know you don't believe that, but I am. There's three words I could sum it up. Being a CEO to me means flexibility, freedom, and most of all, purpose. Flexibility, freedom and purpose.

[00:15:13.57] - Gresham Harkless

Awesome. I absolutely love that. And so I appreciate you. I wanted to pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional you want to let our readers and our listeners know and then how best they can get a hold.

[00:15:22.88] - Daree Allen

Oh, yeah, sure. So if you'd like to listen to the podcast, you could find me on itunes, Stitcher, Radio, Spotify, almost anywhere that you have a podcast player. It's called Kicking it with Dori it's kicking it. Like what we used to say in the 90s. There's no G. It's, it's just kicking it. So, you know, if you don't know that term is coming back, I'm bringing it back. If you need some voiceover work, you've been listening to me for a while. You know, if you like my sound, you can find me@durie voiceover.com and that's spelled D A R E E voiceover.com if you want to connect with me on social media, I use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram regularly and you can find me at Deri Allen, at Arialen everywhere. Just wherever it is, it's my name, Deri Allen.

[00:16:11.60] - Gresham Harkless

Awesome, awesome, awesome. And we'll have those links in the show notes as well. So Doree, again, I truly appreciate you. I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

[00:16:18.25] - Daree Allen

Thank you. Thank you so much. Look forward to hearing from you.

[00:16:20.87] - Intro

Thank you for listening to The I Am CEO podcast powered by CB Nation and Blue16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at Imceo 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 Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and everywhere you listen to podcasts. Podcast. Subscribe and leave us a five star rating. This has been the I Am CEO podcast with Gresham Harkless Jr. Thank you for listening.

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Dave Bonachita - CBNation Writer

This is a post from a CBNation team member. CBNation is a Business to Business (B2B) Brand. We are focused on increasing the success rate. We create content and information focusing on increasing the visibility of and providing resources for CEOs, entrepreneurs and business owners. CBNation consists of blogs(CEOBlogNation.com), podcasts, (CEOPodcasts.com) and videos (CBNation.tv). CBNation is proudly powered by Blue16 Media.

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