Speaker 1: I have to give our guest Britt Steven, a little
Speaker 1: of my background. I love it when anyone comes to
Speaker 1: me and.
Speaker 2: Says, I have this crazy idea and then you get.
Speaker 1: To help bring it to fruition and it sounds like
Speaker 1: your we'll call it a show, a variety show. Not
Speaker 1: Till Now has a little bit of that let's put
Speaker 1: on a show kind of feel to it. What is
Speaker 1: happening It's happening at the Lakewood Cultural Center in January
Speaker 1: January twenty eighth. And what is not till Now? Let's
Speaker 1: start with what that is. Then we're going to work
Speaker 1: backwards because the story of how we got to not
Speaker 1: Till Well was very interesting. Yeah.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2: So it's basically a live event where first take the
Speaker 2: stage and people do the thing that they've always wanted
Speaker 2: to do.
Speaker 1: And it's just wide open as to what people are doing. Well,
Speaker 1: is it a variety show? Feel a little bit? Okay? Yes?
Speaker 2: So this first debut show will have a mix of
Speaker 2: storytelling and stand up comedy.
Speaker 3: One gal will be singing.
Speaker 2: I was kind of hoping that there would be someone
Speaker 2: you know, doing a clarinet solo, or someone juggling or
Speaker 2: you know, but those those folks didn't come through, but.
Speaker 3: Maybe in the next one they will.
Speaker 1: Well, you need to reach out to music schools that
Speaker 1: cater to adults and see if you could get some
Speaker 1: you know, cellis Sitter coming up there for the first time. Yeah, answers.
Speaker 1: Do you have any tap dnswers?
Speaker 3: No, but I want one.
Speaker 1: I have never tap dance in public before, mostly because
Speaker 1: I don't know how, so maybe that could be my thing.
Speaker 2: Oh my gosh, Yeah, that would be so fun. And
Speaker 2: that's what it is. I want to give the first timers,
Speaker 2: basically the feeling of being the headliner.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, that's cool.
Speaker 2: I mean I've never gone to an auditorium, you know
Speaker 2: where there's a big red curtain in the spotlights, and
Speaker 2: seeing people do something for the very first time, or
Speaker 2: seeing a more experienced speaker maybe talk about something they
Speaker 2: never have Like, for example, my pastor, I asked him
Speaker 2: to come into the show and I was like, will
Speaker 2: you please tell that story about the time that you
Speaker 2: found God on the bathroom floor? And he's like, no,
Speaker 2: that's and not till now story for me. That's not
Speaker 2: a first time thing. He's like, you know what would
Speaker 2: be is telling a story from the soul without mentioning
Speaker 2: God and without mentioning the divide.
Speaker 3: I'm like, okay, let's do that.
Speaker 1: So lets fanned out. Okay, so let's this. This sounds
Speaker 1: like a wacky idea that probably sprung into your head
Speaker 1: at some point. What made you go, wait, this could
Speaker 1: be amazing. And it started with a dinner party for
Speaker 1: a book launch with one hundred women.
Speaker 2: Right, well, it actually goes back a little bit more.
Speaker 2: In twenty fifteen, when I was living in Germany, I
Speaker 2: was attending startup events and watching people pitch business ideas
Speaker 2: and would attend the you know, the final events of that.
Speaker 3: Event, and I would be like, oh, my gosh, you
Speaker 3: know what I want to do some days.
Speaker 2: I want to have a talent show of sorts where
Speaker 2: people do the thing they've always wanted to do, even
Speaker 2: if it is, you know, doing a dance routine with
Speaker 2: everyone in astronauts suit like. And then we moved back
Speaker 2: to the States, and I like, my business kind of
Speaker 2: evolved a little bit.
Speaker 3: And then yeah, so I launched a book in twenty
Speaker 3: twenty three called Mama Be Present.
Speaker 2: And at the book launch, it was a dinner party
Speaker 2: for one hundred women, and I was up there.
Speaker 3: You know, reading from the book and sharing some of
Speaker 3: my story.
Speaker 2: And after that, I was like, you know, I want
Speaker 2: other moms to get up here and do that because
Speaker 2: that was so fun. And so four or five months later,
Speaker 2: I held Moms on the Mic with one hundred.
Speaker 3: Women getting on the mic, and it's what's.
Speaker 2: Really fun about it is it kind of feels like
Speaker 2: you're at the Golden Globes, but it's you.
Speaker 3: Know, every city at tables.
Speaker 1: Yeah, there's people getting drunk, people throwing salad that, yeah,
Speaker 1: that kind of thing. I mean, that's really the crowd
Speaker 1: you want when you're doing anything, a little bit lubricated.
Speaker 3: Yes, deactly. Yeah.
Speaker 2: So it's uh yeah, but yeah, there's not the pressure.
Speaker 2: And so some of the best moments from these Moms
Speaker 2: on the Mic events, which I've done three of now,
Speaker 2: are when I just draw a name from the bowl
Speaker 2: and have a woman come up and speak for the
Speaker 2: first time or tell a story for the first time,
Speaker 2: or you know, in that moment, not even knowing they
Speaker 2: were going to, and have them completely grip the room
Speaker 2: and do just as well, if not better than the
Speaker 2: polished people, because they were probably the most relatable and
Speaker 2: the most real And I just think there's so much
Speaker 2: magic in that, and I don't think there's enough of
Speaker 2: the like spur of the moment, first time, beginner, vulnerable thing.
Speaker 1: For how many of the people And you could speculate
Speaker 1: if you don't have any real, you know, clarity on this,
Speaker 1: but I'm guessing that at least a few of these
Speaker 1: people decided to do one of these things to get
Speaker 1: over those feelings of anxiety. And I can't do this.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's still true the public speaking is number
Speaker 1: one by far of the things people fear most, which
Speaker 1: is crazy to me. Right for me, it is like
Speaker 1: I can't even remember not being able to speak in
Speaker 1: front of people, even as like a young kid, I
Speaker 1: could get up in front. So for me, it's like
Speaker 1: I don't understand that. But I also been around enough
Speaker 1: people to know this has to be just terrifying for
Speaker 1: some people. Is that part of it for them?
Speaker 3: Well, what's really cool?
Speaker 2: So a lot of the people who've gotten up, well
Speaker 2: the women so far, they come to the event. So
Speaker 2: last year, for example, there are a few women who
Speaker 2: were like, I could never do this, you know, And
Speaker 2: then at the end of the event, at the end
Speaker 2: of the night, after watching everyone else go up and
Speaker 2: seeing them basically give them permission.
Speaker 3: They're like I can do this, yes, And then.
Speaker 2: Of course they're still super nervous going into it because
Speaker 2: that's normal and it means that you care. And I mean,
Speaker 2: I was so nervous coming here, but I'm like, I'm
Speaker 2: just so excited.
Speaker 1: Yeah, no, nobody listens to this show. You're fine. So
Speaker 1: this event, to be clear, is not women only. I'm
Speaker 1: super excited. My favorite realtor, Ed Prather is going to
Speaker 1: speak and tell his story. Yes that I don't even know. Yeah,
Speaker 1: so I am very excited to hear about that. What
Speaker 1: are some of the people going to talk about or
Speaker 1: do are what are we looking at here in our
Speaker 1: list of talent for not till now?
Speaker 2: Well yeah, so speaking of Ed, I was telling his wife,
Speaker 2: because our sons go to school together, about this event,
Speaker 2: and she and how I want to have people do
Speaker 2: stand up for the very first time, like very first,
Speaker 2: like I haven't even done open mic or anything like
Speaker 2: this is the moment. And she was like, oh my gosh,
Speaker 2: Ed has always wanted to do stand ups and he's
Speaker 2: got a whole thing, and I'm like, we got to
Speaker 2: have him, man. So he didn't even volunteer himself.
Speaker 1: He got volunteered, yes, yes.
Speaker 2: Yes, and so he you know, he'll be doing, yeah,
Speaker 2: a whole routine as I don't know if you know,
Speaker 2: but he was born with one I yes, and so
Speaker 2: he'll be doing stand up about his life from that perspective,
Speaker 2: which I'm so excited to hear about.
Speaker 3: Yeah. So I have a mom and a teacher.
Speaker 2: She's starting the show with her very first time stand
Speaker 2: up talking about life with ADHD and how she just
Speaker 2: started taking adderall and how.
Speaker 3: Everything has literally.
Speaker 2: Changed for her and how she has this new life.
Speaker 2: We have Debbie Shear, she's a you know, very established
Speaker 2: comedian and auction and MC and that she'll be you know,
Speaker 2: speaking about mental health and surprising us with a certain
Speaker 2: way that she does the stand up that she's.
Speaker 3: Always wanted to do. So we have you have some
Speaker 3: experienced people doing things for.
Speaker 2: The first time, but we also have you know, I
Speaker 2: have a mom who's going to be singing. She's never
Speaker 2: sung in front of people ever. I mean the people
Speaker 2: she's telling about this event, She's They're like, wait, you
Speaker 2: sing She's like, yes, Like I'm gonna do this.
Speaker 3: So I just I can't wait.
Speaker 1: This just sounds super fun, and I have people asking
Speaker 1: do you have to audition? How do you get to
Speaker 1: be a part of this? So I'm guessing this show
Speaker 1: is set. Yeah, but how can they get in the
Speaker 1: loop so they know when Britt Steuven is looking for
Speaker 1: the next group of people? How do they make that happen.
Speaker 2: People are already saying they want to audition, They're like
Speaker 2: writing in They just asks.
Speaker 1: How do you need? Oh do you need to other
Speaker 1: asking if I need to alis, I don't need to
Speaker 1: audition for this show. But I honestly have had so
Speaker 1: many first already that I don't know if there's a
Speaker 1: first left in front of an audience other than stripping
Speaker 1: and not doing that. So you know, I just shot
Speaker 1: me a look like, no, that will not be happening.
Speaker 1: I can assure you, Yeah, so no, I would. I
Speaker 1: would love to do. I love stuff like this though,
Speaker 1: because I love I'm always rooting for people that are
Speaker 1: doing hard things right. I'm always rooting for them to succeed,
Speaker 1: and when you see somebody. I just watched my daughter's
Speaker 1: classmates get ready to go to Festcon, which is a
Speaker 1: big theater convention, and they were practicing and oh my gosh,
Speaker 1: I was rooting so hard for those kids, like and
Speaker 1: you get they get done and you're just like, oh,
Speaker 1: that was so good. I have a feeling there's gonna
Speaker 1: be a lot of that in.
Speaker 2: This Yes, yes, yeah, and so but yeah, if anyone
Speaker 2: is interested in applying for the next one, I actually
Speaker 2: just set up the website, not till now dot com.
Speaker 3: They can go there.
Speaker 1: I will add that to the blog as well as
Speaker 1: when we finish talking, because I have a link to
Speaker 1: the actual it's Wednesday, January twenty eighth, and it's at
Speaker 1: seven pm at the Lakewood Cultural Center in Lakewood, And
Speaker 1: I'll remind you guys, like a week before if you
Speaker 1: if there's tickets left. You guys have had some pretty
Speaker 1: brisk ticket sales. I understand.
Speaker 3: Yep, eighty tickets sold so far.
Speaker 1: Nice, very nice. Somebody just pointed this out and we
Speaker 1: need to have this discussion. Were you on House Hunters International?
Speaker 3: Were you?
Speaker 1: I was to stop it? Okay, No, you don't understand.
Speaker 1: I was HGTV's biggest fan in the whole world that
Speaker 1: they have canceled every show that I love except House
Speaker 1: Hunters International. Okay, So where were you looking? Because now
Speaker 1: I'm going to go back there. What I'm writing it down?
Speaker 1: When you leave here, I'm gonna go back and watch
Speaker 1: your episode. Oh no, so, where where were you looking?
Speaker 3: We were a Duseldorf.
Speaker 1: Oh I love Joseldorf Dwarf.
Speaker 2: Yes, so, And I'm probably gonna get in big trouble
Speaker 2: for this, but I thought that they actually helped you
Speaker 2: find a place to live.
Speaker 3: But they yeah, they work backwards.
Speaker 1: Now you've got to have found your place before. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I knew that that jig was up years ago, So
Speaker 1: now it's now. My husband and I play a game
Speaker 1: like which one are they faking about? It's like when
Speaker 1: you're like I have to have this place, we're like, oh,
Speaker 1: that's not it. Yeah, we just make it a complete
Speaker 1: game on that. How did you even get into that?
Speaker 2: I emailed them and just said, hey, can you guys
Speaker 2: help us find a place to live?
Speaker 3: And they never responded until we.
Speaker 2: Lived there and then and then I'm like, oh, shoot,
Speaker 2: well now we have a spot. They're like no, no, no,
Speaker 2: but yeah, and then we were like should we even
Speaker 2: do this still?
Speaker 1: But then did you feel like a faker?
Speaker 2: Well yeah yeah, But it was actually just really fun
Speaker 2: to see how they do it.
Speaker 3: There's like three people.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, and then you have to film everything.
Speaker 2: You say something naturally once and then you have to
Speaker 2: say it four more times so that they can get
Speaker 2: all the angles.
Speaker 3: And then that you form like four days of content.
Speaker 2: You film four days and then they only use like
Speaker 2: twenty two minutes.
Speaker 3: So all the good stuff is actually not even all
Speaker 3: the really funny things. We're yet inappropriate.
Speaker 1: You serious because you have to look serious as people
Speaker 1: think you're really considered. No, my brother's a real a
Speaker 1: realtor in Las Vegas, and he's like, no, you have
Speaker 1: to have already sold the house before they even show up.
Speaker 1: So not till Now is a wonderful idea of break.
Speaker 1: What is it that? I mean, you have a website,
Speaker 1: You've got the not till Now website, but you have
Speaker 1: all kinds of irons in the fire. Yes, what is
Speaker 1: you know? What do you do? What is your actual thing?
Speaker 3: I know, I don't really know.
Speaker 2: I have yes, So I've just so this is my
Speaker 2: debut event of the thing that actually is the umbrella
Speaker 2: of everything I've been doing for a while now.
Speaker 3: So yeah, I just love to help people do.
Speaker 2: The things they've always wanted to do, whether it is
Speaker 2: to start writing or to write a book. I have
Speaker 2: a fun writing group which I now changed the name
Speaker 2: to the not Till Now Writing Group. I yea also
Speaker 2: do yes the annual Mom's on the Mike event, which
Speaker 2: I will be changing the name to.
Speaker 1: Not till Now.
Speaker 3: Focus righting and yeah, very.
Speaker 1: Cool, niche, extremely cool, Niche, britt, I like it. Okay,
Speaker 1: So the texter who just said okay, just like when
Speaker 1: the wine Yogi is on the show, just became exclusively
Speaker 1: for chicks only. I'm out. I'm sorry, Please don't take offense.
Speaker 1: But there's just nothing in this segment that's remotely appealing
Speaker 1: or interesting for the blue collar men of your listening audience.
Speaker 1: Oh wow, so with respect, literally ninety nine point five
Speaker 1: percent of this show is designed specifically for you, and
Speaker 1: mind suck it up, Buttercup, you'll live through the point
Speaker 1: five maybe you'll become a more compassionate human in the meantime.
Speaker 3: Good lord, Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2: Well yeah, no, So that's what's so fun about not
Speaker 2: Till Now is that I'm men are welcome to me.
Speaker 3: Well loved that.
Speaker 1: Guy, Yeah that anyway, Sorry about that. It just sometimes
Speaker 1: people sometimes send things without recognizing exactly of the picture. Actually,
Speaker 1: Britt and I were talking about this before the break
Speaker 1: and for the first time in my hosting life. When
Speaker 1: we were having a conversation, I was like, oh, Britt,
Speaker 1: you need to watch this video on Instagram, and I said, honestly,
Speaker 1: never done that before. But the notion that getting out
Speaker 1: of your comfort zone and doing something for the first time.
Speaker 1: I think when you reach a certain age, especially, you
Speaker 1: kind of feel like I mean, I know I have
Speaker 1: because I lead one of those yes lives where I
Speaker 1: say yes to a lot of stuff. I may only
Speaker 1: say yes once, yeah, but I do say yes at
Speaker 1: least once. I think a lot of people think, oh,
Speaker 1: I've accomplished a lot. I've checked a lot of boxes.
Speaker 1: I've done the things right, I've done the things that
Speaker 1: when I was younger, I was certain these were the
Speaker 1: things that I needed to do, And once you achieve them,
Speaker 1: there's almost that okay, what now, right?
Speaker 2: You know what?
Speaker 1: That wasn't as great as I thought it was going
Speaker 1: to be. So is that part of what this is about?
Speaker 2: Kind I mean, it's it's really I just I want
Speaker 2: to give a space to people who can be the
Speaker 2: person that they've maybe always wanted to be. Right, maybe
Speaker 2: they did check certain boxes, but there's a certain part
Speaker 2: of them, a certain piece of them that wants to
Speaker 2: be creative or to share a certain story, and this
Speaker 2: is the arena for them to do.
Speaker 3: It, to share it.
Speaker 2: And I also want people in the audience to know
Speaker 2: that it's not all about performing on a stage, right,
Speaker 2: Like if you don't if you don't have a hidden talent,
Speaker 2: if you don't have something that would be on a
Speaker 2: stage like I Also, I don't want them to feel
Speaker 2: like they don't have anything to offer. I want them
Speaker 2: to feel something in their own lives that could possibly
Speaker 2: change another is something they could share with someone, something
Speaker 2: they could do personally, you know, like start off talking.
Speaker 1: Exactly what I'm talking about. It's about I mean, And
Speaker 1: maybe it's I don't know how old you are, brain,
Speaker 1: I've got to be older than you are. And I
Speaker 1: look at where I am now, very content with my life,
Speaker 1: right I have I mean, people who was saying how
Speaker 1: you do it? I'm like, I have nothing to complain about, Like, yes,
Speaker 1: I could complain about dumb things, but I have nothing
Speaker 1: to complain about. I am living through a season of
Speaker 1: my life that I am enjoying every second of and
Speaker 1: that's not how it is. That's not how it's been
Speaker 1: my whole life. But I got to say love in
Speaker 1: my fifties so far for that reason. But I am
Speaker 1: now also actively thinking about things that I would like
Speaker 1: to do right that are different than what I'm doing now,
Speaker 1: that have different outcomes. And I think it's like once
Speaker 1: you sort of get to where you are. I love
Speaker 1: my job, I love my career. I've been working for
Speaker 1: it for a long time. But now I'm like, Okay,
Speaker 1: this is good. You know what else is there? Right? Yeah?
Speaker 2: And this is this is totally what it's about, is
Speaker 2: to do the thing that you're curious about that you
Speaker 2: don't even have to be a professional, right, you don't
Speaker 2: have to change your whole life to Like you talked
Speaker 2: about doing tap dancing, you know.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's all my list, by the way, it's on
Speaker 1: my life list of things to do before I die.
Speaker 1: That's on there, learn to tap dance, you know. And
Speaker 1: that's the thing.
Speaker 2: And that's what I was thinking about when I was
Speaker 2: driving down listening to you know, with the like crazy everything,
Speaker 2: Like as things get crazier, I get more and more
Speaker 2: motivated to do things like this.
Speaker 1: I love it. I think it's fantastic. And for the record,
Speaker 1: more text messages different blue collar worker here, love the
Speaker 1: show today? Good. Maybe that guy is so wrong. I'm
Speaker 1: picturing how hot you and britt are. Okay, that's weird.
Speaker 1: Why did I read that? Why I was committed? Dang it? Anyway,
Speaker 1: careful not till now dot com. I just added it
Speaker 1: to the blog. I also have tickets there for the
Speaker 1: show coming up on January twentieth. I'm super excited about this,
Speaker 1: like I already put it on my calendar. I'm gonna
Speaker 1: buy my tickets this afternoon and go see this because again,
Speaker 1: there's something and I love this about my personality, and
Speaker 1: I've realized through the years that not everyone shares this trait.
Speaker 1: I love rooting for other people, especially people I don't know.
Speaker 1: I love it. It gives me so much joy to
Speaker 1: see them succeed. And I feel like this is gonna
Speaker 1: be a whole night of that.
Speaker 3: Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2: I and I'm gonna just be emailing everyone being like, Okay.
Speaker 3: Come on, we gotta just cheer everyone on.
Speaker 2: Like I just cannot wait to fill this thing with
Speaker 2: three hundred people and have them watch people do the
Speaker 2: thing that scares them, but like they're doing it bravely,
Speaker 2: and they're doing it and they're being cheered on.
Speaker 1: I love it. Fritz Steven, thank you so much for
Speaker 1: making time all of this. I'll put her website on
Speaker 1: the blog in just a moment. But the ticket, the
Speaker 1: ticket link is already on the blog.