Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
If women truly knew our collective power, all the nonsense would have stopped a long time ago!
Robin Hamilton is an Emmy-award-winning TV Host, Producer, Filmmaker, Moderator, and Speaker specializing in creating impactful narratives that inspire transformation. As the founder of ARound Robin Production Company, she produces compelling films for non-profits, enhancing their fundraising and marketing efforts. Robin's documentaries, such as "This Little Light of Mine" and "Odessa’s Reign," highlight social justice and resilience.
It’s time we get real about the struggles women face in media, filmmaking, and business. Robin shares her raw journey—from fighting for an agent’s attention to carving her own path and creating impactful content. But here's the truth... it’s not just about working harder or being "smart enough." It’s about getting that leg up—whether it's an inheritance, a connection, or just finding someone who believes in you. And the system often isn’t built for us to win.
Robin talks openly about the challenges she faced in the media and filmmaking industries, and how women often struggle with a lack of support and access to opportunities. There are systemic issues that create barriers for women, especially women of color, everywhere. Her key is storytelling to boost the business and boost our values.
The power is in our hands to create a different system. Women need to collaborate, share openly, and support each other more. It’s about helping each other rise, not competing. When it comes to business, know your worth and double it. If you don't stand up for your value, the world won’t either!
Let’s not just break the glass ceiling—let’s shatter it. Together.
Show Notes:
😇 Not being good at playing the corporate TV game: a sentence her friend said made Robin start her own business. 03:39
🌟 Be careful who you talk to and what you read: Drawing inspiration from people and content around you. 09:30
🎯 Power of storytelling for women: Generating more business through your story, your value, and becoming a better networker. 13:00
💎 Shiny vs. tragic stories: middle-ground stories are needed, just like honesty. 16:05
🧐 The big secret to success no one tells you about: knowing the right person. 21:49
😍 Robin’s client work, nonprofit, and documentary work: Helpful women are out there, even if you’re considered competition. 24:51
🎥 Working in a very competitive industry: Being optimistic and cautious at the same time can be very hard. 29:44
👩💼 How to leverage storytelling to boost your business: Who you target and why. 33:43
💜 Entrepreneurial failures, dreams, freedom, and bumps: It’s a mess, but it’s your mess. 38:30
🎦 Robin’s films represent underestimated women who have left a remarkable impact on society. 40:50
Links:
Show Notes:
😇 Not being good at playing the corporate TV game: a sentence her friend said made Robin start her own business. 03:39
🌟 Be careful who you talk to and what you read: Drawing inspiration from people and content around you. 09:30
🎯 Power of storytelling for women: Generating more business through your story, your value, and becoming a better networker. 13:00
💎 Shiny vs. tragic stories: middle-ground stories are needed, just like honesty. 16:05
🧐 The big secret to success no one tells you about: knowing the right person. 21:49
😍 Robin’s client work, nonprofit, and documentary work: Helpful women are out there, even if you’re considered competition. 24:51
🎥 Working in a very competitive industry: Being optimistic and cautious at the same time can be very hard. 29:44
👩💼 How to leverage storytelling to boost your business: Who you target and why. 33:43
💜 Entrepreneurial failures, dreams, freedom, and bumps: It’s a mess, but it’s your mess. 38:30
🎦 Robin’s films represent underestimated women who have left a remarkable impact on society. 40:50
Links:
Website: aroundrobin.com/speaking-engagements
-Listen to podcasts for women by women on the She Leads Podcast Network: www.sheleadspodcasts.com
>> "I love ❤️ Adrienne and The She Leads™ Podcast!” If that thought crossed your mind at any time while listening to our special show, can I ask you to please take a moment and give our podcast some love? To do so, simply Rate, Review & Follow Us on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Taking this simple action helps my team and I to spread the word about all the incredible guests of The She Leads Podcast and contributes overall to helping women leaders and entrepreneurs everywhere! 🗺️ Also, if you haven’t done so already, please +follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. Thank you so much!! XO -Adrienne <<
>> "I love ❤️ Adrienne and The She Leads™ Podcast!” If that thought crossed your mind at any time while listening to our special show, can I ask you to please take a moment and give our podcast some love? To do so, simply Rate, Review & Follow Us on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Taking this simple action helps my team and I to spread the word about all the incredible guests of The She Leads Podcast and contributes overall to helping women leaders and entrepreneurs everywhere! 🗺️ Also, if you haven’t done so already, please +follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. Thank you so much!! XO -Adrienne <<
Creators and Guests
What is The She Leads Podcast | Rewriting the Rules of Entrepreneurship?
No sugar-coating, no fluff - just real conversations that matter. The She Leads Podcast features raw, unfiltered stories from visionary women who see the future and who've been bold enough to break the mold and re-write the rules. Each episode amplifies diverse voices with powerful missions, giving women the platform they deserve while delivering actionable insights you won't find in business textbooks. Join host Adrienne Garland, MBA, Professor, Entrepreneur for the straight talk about entrepreneurship that other business podcasts are afraid to have.
Adrienne Garland (00:01)
Hello and welcome back to the She Leads podcast. I am so excited to speak to today's guest. Her name is Robin Hamilton. She's an Emmy award winning TV host, producer, filmmaker, moderator and speaker specializing in creating impactful narratives that inspire transformation. As the founder of Around Robin production company, she produces compelling films for nonprofits, enhancing their fundraising and marketing efforts.
Robin N. Hamilton (00:13)
So,
Adrienne Garland (00:31)
Her documentaries such as This Little Light of Mine and Odessa's Reign highlight social justice and resilience. With extensive experience in media and a passion for storytelling,
empowers audiences to harness their personal and professional stories for success. I cannot wait to talk to you, Robin. Welcome to the She Leads Podcast.
Robin N. Hamilton (00:54)
Thank you so much. It is an absolute thrill to be on She Leads. So I'm a very, very big fan. So thank you for having me.
Adrienne Garland (01:02)
I'm so excited to talk to
you about a lot of things. So excited, in fact, that we just spent a great amount of time getting to know each other. And so I'm happy to continue our conversation. So gosh, there's so much to dive into. I almost don't even know where to start. But I think that because so many of the people that listen into this podcast
Robin N. Hamilton (01:07)
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Adrienne Garland (01:30)
are people that have sort of come out of the corporate world and decided to become entrepreneurs. I would love for you to just tell everybody your story of how you moved from corporate into entrepreneurship.
Robin N. Hamilton (01:46)
Thank you for asking. And I really mean it when I say thank you for having me on because we were joking before the recording started about how people don't talk about the bumps and bruises that happen when you're making that transition. And it's a bumpy ride and it's liberating to be able to step out on your own. It's terrific, but it's tough. It's really tough. So I started off as an English major in undergrad and then I really loved reporting. And so I
Adrienne Garland (02:05)
It is tough.
Robin N. Hamilton (02:15)
had done an internship at our campus TV station and I got an internship at various places. I won't go into the nitty gritty, but to long story short, I worked at a couple of commercial corporate TV stations. I worked for a Fox affiliate in Florida. I worked for another affiliate in Washington, DC, another Fox affiliate. worked for the CBS affiliate in Boston, Massachusetts and
I learned a lot. You definitely learned the foundation for how you want to really work on your passions and your strengths. So I loved interviewing people. I learned a lot, but there were certain things that I just was not very good at. I was not good at kissing a lot of ass that goes with the corporate. I just wasn't, I wasn't good at it. And people tell you to network. I'm friendly. I'll do what I'm supposed to do.
but I just was not good at playing the game. And also I didn't like the idea that you ultimately don't have a say over your own career. Someone made a joke about filling out a time sheet. When you fill out a time sheet, you're basically saying, here, I am giving you myself. You own me for X number of hours of the day. And usually they really do own you for the majority of your waking hours. So.
Adrienne Garland (03:29)
Hmm
Robin N. Hamilton (03:39)
To make a long story short, I was pitching ideas. I was trying to promote myself and I just wasn't really getting anywhere. So my contract ended in Boston and I had the option to move back to DC and work for the Tribune TV station, small, much smaller station, but they were doing long form pieces. And I did that, so I was working on a freelance basis.
but I was also pitching ideas to them, show ideas, film ideas that I thought would be really good. Again, getting knocked down, getting rejected, people saying, well, no, that's not anything. And finally, one day I was bitching to a friend of mine and she said, Robin, you're already doing, you already know how to create content. Why don't you just do it for yourself? And I said, but I don't know how to do this and I'm not a business and I don't know how to incorporate and I don't know this. And she said,
Adrienne Garland (04:11)
Hmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (04:35)
You know, you're a reporter, figure it out. You know how to do that stuff. And you have the basis, the foundation for what you want your business to be. And it was funny that that comment just really launched me into really taking ownership of my career and taking ownership of my business. And there have been, it's been a really tough road, but it's been really rewarding. It has been really rewarding because
Adrienne Garland (04:39)
Mm.
Mm.
Mmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (05:05)
from the very first film I did where someone told me, this little light of mine, someone told me nobody's interested in things that won't sell. And that film ended up going on the film festival circuit, it won awards, it's been on PBS nationally. And so to have that type of validation has been very, very nice. So you bet on yourself, you really do. It really is a gamble, but you think you're worth it.
Adrienne Garland (05:09)
Hmm.
Mm.
Robin N. Hamilton (05:33)
You have to remind yourself if you deeply believe in your work and your talents that you're worth it.
Adrienne Garland (05:33)
Mmm.
Wow, so let's say thank you so much to that friend of yours, right? my gosh. Sometimes, yay, Susanna. It's funny how the people that are close to us can see things in us that we don't often see. And I think that's why it's so important to surround ourselves with those that have our back.
Robin N. Hamilton (05:43)
Yes, Susana Gomez, thank you. Susana Gomez-Polaro.
Yes. Yes.
Yes.
Adrienne Garland (06:08)
And
like you said, and it reminds me of the podcast that came out last week that we were just talking about with Linda Duncombe to also have your own back. this is, it's very funny how that is what is needed. And I think that as we were sort of,
Robin N. Hamilton (06:20)
Yes, yes, yes.
Adrienne Garland (06:34)
coming up through school, were taught that someone else had the thing that we wanted, right? They needed to give us permission and validate our ideas. And so we were so outward focused trying to please instead of checking in with ourselves and saying like, but do I think this is?
Robin N. Hamilton (06:43)
Yes. Yes! Yes!
Totally.
Yes.
Yes.
Adrienne Garland (07:02)
a good idea? Like I think it's a good idea, but I need you to tell me that it in fact is a good idea. Ugh.
Robin N. Hamilton (07:02)
That's right. That's right.
Yes, yes.
Yeah, you're spot on.
Adrienne Garland (07:11)
and you know, as an entrepreneur, you do need to be able to tap in and say like, like, do I think this is a good idea? And if so, okay, let me proceed. I do think that just hearing you talk about that story, it makes me think that that is one of the reasons why entrepreneurship is such a struggle, because there's nobody to say like, hey, do you think I should do this? There's nobody.
Robin N. Hamilton (07:35)
Yes.
Yes,
yes, it's really, really true. And that's where you have to be very careful about who you talk to, who you listen to, what you read, because it really gives you fuel for how you make those next steps. So I also have to give a shout out to my friend Whitney Lou.
Adrienne Garland (07:48)
Gosh. my gosh.
Yes.
Robin N. Hamilton (08:03)
who
is, I knew her when we were in graduate school at NYU. That's where she and I met. well, for more than 20, 20 years, we have been friends. And she is one of those people that I bounce ideas off of. I can bounce ideas off my sisters. I curate and listen to, I find podcasts like yours, for example, She Leads, because I thought, you know, I wanna listen to something that, how, how, how,
Adrienne Garland (08:08)
Who
Robin N. Hamilton (08:32)
Do they do that? How do they do that? How did she do that? I like to listen to how it's made. I just find little pieces. It's probably not good because I'm not reading one book. You know how my mom says, don't just read a bunch of it, like focus. But I find inspiration where I can because sometimes that's what you have. When you start off as an entrepreneur, you're working in a silo sometimes. You're working by yourself and you're very lucky if you find
Adrienne Garland (08:38)
Me too.
Yeah. Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (09:02)
groups where people support each other. But depending on the media, the industry that you're in, media, for example, is very cutthroat and people don't share. They are not encouraging, you know. And so if you find people who are supportive, then that's a win.
Adrienne Garland (09:10)
yeah. No. No.
It's so true and it's so funny. This is great advice. You have to be very discerning about who you let in. I've definitely made that mistake. I continue to make that mistake. I don't know why. It's painful.
Robin N. Hamilton (09:29)
Yes.
Exactly. Yes.
And it's painful, right? Well, because you
know what? You're open, you know? And that's the double-edged sword. On one hand, you wanna be open, you wanna be generous with your time, and you think that's reciprocated. Believe me, it's happened to me too, more often than not. I'm thinking, my sisters have a joke. They say, have you not learned yet? Have you not learned yet? So I get it, I get it, yeah.
Adrienne Garland (09:59)
Yeah!
No, right? Because every
single time you're like, well, maybe this is an opportunity. Well, maybe, you know, what I've been doing hasn't exactly been working the way. So maybe someone else does sort of have an idea, let me pursue. And then sometimes it's like, you're like in the smack middle of it and you're like, nope. And then you can't unwind it.
Robin N. Hamilton (10:08)
Right. Correct.
Yeah. Yeah.
Yep. Right.
Right, right, right. I get it.
Adrienne Garland (10:31)
Yeah,
yeah, I've definitely been burned. am learning to take responsibility for my part in that as well. And you would think like by now, I have no shame in saying that I'm 54. At 54, I agree with your sisters. have I not learned my lesson yet? But I also do believe that each one of these lessons is
Robin N. Hamilton (10:37)
Mm-hmm.
Yes. Right.
Adrienne Garland (11:01)
It's another piece of the puzzle on this entrepreneurial journey, whatever this means for all of us. Robin, I would love to talk to you about a couple of things. First, storytelling. it's so, the other day I went to Barnes and Noble with my son where I could spend weeks in Barnes and Noble. Give me a sleeping bag.
Robin N. Hamilton (11:04)
Yes.
Yes, absolutely.
That's right.
Yeah. Yes.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Yeah, yep, Yes, yes.
Adrienne Garland (11:29)
But I picked
up a book that is all about storytelling. So I love that we're talking now. It is so important for women to tell our stories. They are not told enough. How can we tell our stories more across all mediums and why?
Robin N. Hamilton (11:35)
Mmm.
Yes.
Yes, yes.
Mm-hmm.
Adrienne Garland (11:57)
Do you
believe that it's so important? I mean, maybe it's obvious, but like, let's talk about why is it so important for women to tell our stories and not just tell them, but get them out in front of more people.
Robin N. Hamilton (12:03)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Yes,
for so many reasons, because no matter what you do, it is a way to not only place a stake in who you are, to be very clear about who you are, it gives clarity about where you're coming from and what you want to achieve or what your goal is or how you want to connect with someone. It helps you get from point A to B. So I had to do a presentation where I was explaining
why being a storyteller is integral to not only my business, but also to how I generate more business. And I broke it down in this. When you tell your story, you are letting people know that you have something that is of value to them. You are valuable yourself. And I'm talking about this strictly, for example, in a business sense.
Adrienne Garland (12:49)
Mmm.
Hmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (13:10)
But when you talk to people about where you have come from and how you ended up creating whatever entity it is, you are giving people a very personal insight into why they should connect with you and why they should buy your product or use your service. Because if you tell them from A to B all the way to Z, as far as how I got here,
where I started and how I got here. People understanding that why will make them feel like they can trust you. And I feel like that type of authentic storytelling really enables people to connect with you in a way that will make you a better business person, a better nonprofit leader, a leader in general. I just say nonprofit leader is because that's part of the work that I do.
Adrienne Garland (13:42)
Hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (14:06)
but it
makes you a better connector. And I think when you connect with people on that level, that just makes you better at what you do.
Adrienne Garland (14:15)
Hmm. You know, I find that, and this is no shade to anybody because it's like we all do what we need to do. But I find that when women are telling stories these days, that the stories are so shiny.
Robin N. Hamilton (14:25)
Yeah.
It's
Adrienne Garland (14:38)
And they're either so shiny or they're like super tragic, right? And there's no middle ground. And the tragic stories they draw us in, we root for the person that has come from that. Like those are beautiful stories. They're great.
Robin N. Hamilton (14:44)
Mm-hmm. Yes. Yes.
Yes!
Great, that's great.
Adrienne Garland (14:58)
But then there's the shiny stories of how I became a multimillionaire overnight by being an influencer on Instagram. it makes people think that it is so easy and it is not.
Robin N. Hamilton (15:06)
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, right.
easy.
It is not. It is not. And it's funny because my friend Whitney and my mom, that's, well, sometimes we'll talk about this. I'll say, does it have to be all or nothing? Do I have to have some horribly tragic story or just kind of leap over all adversity and suddenly become a multimillionaire? At the end of the day, I have been very fortunate, very blessed in that I had
Adrienne Garland (15:25)
Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (15:41)
You know, I went to school, I did my internship, I did what I was supposed to do. So fine, I'm sorry if that's not the most exciting story, but you know, I had my parents, my sibling, I'm very grateful. But at the end of the day, I do wish people would give some real honesty about what it looks like. For example, I was watching some show that was on...
Adrienne Garland (15:48)
Right.
Robin N. Hamilton (16:07)
like on a Saturday and it was hosted by, it was hosted by like a credit card company like American Express. And they were talking about the importance of having, you know, the business card for your business. But I was irritated by this woman's story because she said, I wanted to be a designer and I got this credit card and you know, I started in my basement and then, my God, all of a sudden I found myself in Barney's and I just thought, wait, what? I said, wait, how did you go from being in your basement?
to where did you get the capital? How did you incorporate? Where did you get the capital? Where did you get the staff to manage the orders? How did you manage the office? Who managed the invoices? Who was your attorney? Who was your accountant? I mean, I know these are really unsexy, uncreative things to talk about, but at the end of the day, that crap is real.
Adrienne Garland (16:38)
Yeah.
Yup. Yes.
Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (17:01)
So
if you find, if you get an order for Barty's or Macy's or whatever, Bloomingdale's, that's great. But you gotta be honest about how, did you go to a factory? Was it like to shop for a factory? What did you do? Did you get insurance to work at that factory? mean, there are all these nuts and bolts. And I think what makes me really angry, nobody talks about, hey, so-and-so may have had capital from.
Adrienne Garland (17:18)
Yeah.
Mmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (17:30)
their parents or so and so had a relative that worked in the garment industry and told them, you need this stitch to do this to in order for this to be a piece of fabric that works. I mean, I was just at a conference a couple of months ago and this guy was talking about how he was a fashion designer. And yeah, I mean, I just sold these clothes and I was doing, and I'm just thinking you're full crap.
Adrienne Garland (17:35)
yeah.
Yeah. Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (17:54)
You're just lying. And I don't mean
to throw water on people. I'm not taking anything away from anybody, but I'll just be totally honest. I I had to really scrap, scrap, scrap. I went to a business incubator that was free, that was part of the county, and I learned how to write my business plan. I had to ask somebody, how should I incorporate? Should I be an LLC? Should I be a sole proprietor?
I was told to be in LLC because you're more protected as an entity versus being a sole proprietor. I asked about insurance because I needed insurance when I had to go on shoots. I had to insure my crew. I mean, these are legitimate things you have to think about. when I meet guys at these, you know, I'll go to film festivals with some of my films and I hate to go on a rant. I apologize. But I met this one guy.
Adrienne Garland (18:32)
Yeah.
I love it. Keep going.
Robin N. Hamilton (18:50)
We were sitting on this panel and he did this feature film and he got some big named actress to be in it and he was shooting on a camera that was $150,000 and I'm thinking, and he was joking about, and finally I just said, how did you do that? And he gave me this dirty look and evasive answer, but finally it came out, this is where my reporter hat goes off. He got an inheritance from his grandparents.
and he knew someone in the entertainment industry. And that's how he was able to get this actress on his film. So just stop it people, be honest. Because the thing is the rest of us aren't getting these opportunities and then we think, are we not working hard enough or am I not smart enough? That's not true. It's just not true.
Adrienne Garland (19:23)
Yeah.
Yeah. Yes!
Mm. Mm.
That is such an important piece of information. We're not trying to knock anybody down. You have to use what you have. If I had a relative in the entertainment industry, I would use that relative. But please, like you're saying, please at least be honest, not to diminish how you got there, but to...
Robin N. Hamilton (19:48)
That's right. Of course, of course.
Of course.
Yes!
Adrienne Garland (20:07)
communicate to everybody else that, you know what? I did have a leg up.
Robin N. Hamilton (20:12)
Exactly, exactly. And that's what bothers me when people say, well, I mean, sure, it just got me a foot in the door, but I had to do all the work. Well, that's great. But you know what? What if you don't even know where the door is? What if you can't even reach the handle? What if you do see the door and you can't even get in? Do you know that when I started out, I had an agent and you have to submit your materials and
Adrienne Garland (20:24)
Yep, yep.
Robin N. Hamilton (20:40)
At the end of the day, if you're not, when I was a reporter, if you're not getting enough, know, sizzle or sparkle, they drop you or they either drop you or you have to keep paying them if you, even if you get a job after you find it. So it's tough to get out of. So they're the ones that get to dump you, but then if you're still making money, you have to pay them. So it's messy. Right. So when I was pivoting,
Adrienne Garland (20:59)
You got to pay them.
Robin N. Hamilton (21:05)
and I left my reporting job and I knew I still wanted to create content and I knew I wanted, I knew I had all of these ideas and I could not get, I could not get a meeting with an agent. And finally, someone said, if you don't know somebody, you don't even get a meeting. That's what someone told me. You don't even get a meeting if you don't know somebody. So I just said, you know what? Thank goodness for the internet.
Adrienne Garland (21:28)
my gosh.
Yeah,
Robin N. Hamilton (21:34)
Thank
Adrienne Garland (21:34)
right.
Robin N. Hamilton (21:35)
goodness for my little grant, because you know what? And that's how I've ended up doing it.
Adrienne Garland (21:37)
Yes.
You know, so much of what you're talking about, you're talking about the news industry, the film industry, it also applies to starting and growing businesses and the whole access to capital because that's the fuel that allows a business to, you have to invest and you have to experiment and all of that costs.
Robin N. Hamilton (21:50)
Mm-hmm.
Correct.
Yes.
Yes.
Adrienne Garland (22:12)
money and you don't get it right at the beginning. You definitely don't. But if you don't get it right, you go out of business if you don't have that capital. so many, so, and you know, again, I throwing water throughout, know, throwing shade at anybody. Listen, if I was a white man, I would go for venture capital financing too and use everything in my power to, you know, get my idea out there.
Robin N. Hamilton (22:13)
Yes. Uh-uh, definitely not.
Exactly.
Adrienne Garland (22:41)
But the truth is that it is so much more difficult for women, let alone women of color or anybody that is sort of, you know, other in order to get any fuel to get their businesses going and growing. And I think that what ends up happening is it's this, this cycle that you can't ever like break into because like you're saying, if you're so, if
Robin N. Hamilton (22:48)
I'm sorry.
It's so true.
Adrienne Garland (23:10)
If you don't know someone, how are you supposed to know someone?
Robin N. Hamilton (23:13)
Yeah, right, right. That's exactly right. If you don't know somebody, how are you even supposed to know somebody? Yeah, how does it even happen?
Adrienne Garland (23:21)
Yeah, and it's this system that is created.
And I think the opportunity for women is that we can say, okay, that's how it works. No, thank you. I'm going over here. And not only creating something on our own, but we also need to really, really start working together because I, as you know, I'm in this.
Robin N. Hamilton (23:36)
Hmm.
That's right.
Adrienne Garland (23:48)
As much as I love women, want to help women, sometimes they just don't have that same perspective and they want to hold on to their own thing and not let you in. And we cannot be like that.
Robin N. Hamilton (23:48)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah. Yes.
No, I completely agree. And I have to say, I think that was one of the hardest things that where I got my feelings hurt was I had reached out to some women, a couple of them were black women who were very nasty to me. And I was stunned because I would never treat someone coming up the way a couple of these women.
Adrienne Garland (24:13)
Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (24:30)
treated me just dismissive, like I was crap. And I don't know if that was they were threatened. mean, you know, I've told my friends some of the stories and they're like, well, maybe they were threatened or whatever that may be. But it's true. You really do have to help each other. And we have to help each other. And we have to just be open and honest with, okay, so this is what I did. This is what I have to say. I have an editor right now, the editor that I work with.
Adrienne Garland (24:31)
Yeah.
Probably.
Robin N. Hamilton (25:00)
who does the majority of my films. She is terrific. She is really, really terrific. She's smart, really smart, talented, and we connected because, know, funny how we connected. One of the things I was doing in terms of, my business is divided into two parts. I have the production work that I do for nonprofits, for their fundraising videos, and then I have my documentary work.
And my documentary work primarily comes through grants. My client work comes from nonprofits, but I was also trying to go after government contracts. When you go after a government contract, sometimes you have to do a pre-conference bid. And so that's all these production companies went to this one location to not only see what the contract was about, but put your name on a mailing list and then where to submit and how to submit the proposal.
Adrienne Garland (25:34)
Mm.
Mm-hmm.
Yes.
Robin N. Hamilton (25:58)
make a long story short, I struck up a conversation with my editor and her producing partner and we just had a really nice conversation. Both of us lost out on the bid. We didn't get the bid. But we ended up working together and that was over eight years ago. And I've worked with her, with both of them on so many of my projects just because they are so talented and they're about the right thing. It's Can Can Productions by the way. Shout out to Can Can Productions.
Adrienne Garland (26:08)
Yeah.
Mm.
Shout out
Can Can.
Robin N. Hamilton (26:27)
And yes,
yes. So Katherine Miller and Anne Kalamia, I give them a lot of props because they really do epitomize what it is to be smart and talented. And I say women, but just smart and talented period. don't even want to qualify it. That just happens to be an adjective. You know what I mean? Who really believe in helping each other. And they have helped me. I can bounce ideas off them.
Adrienne Garland (26:44)
Right.
Yes.
Hmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (26:54)
I'm so grateful. I tell my mom that was the best rejection I could have ever gotten.
Adrienne Garland (26:58)
You know, and that's what we,
definitely need to be doing more of these things and not looking at other women as competition, even if they're doing the exact same thing that we're doing. It doesn't matter. Yeah, it doesn't.
Robin N. Hamilton (27:02)
Yes.
Right, right, right,
right. And that's funny. What was so funny was we were going after the same contract. We were going after the same contract. And what we did was they said, well, you know what? If we get this contract, I see that you have certain capabilities that we might not have. So maybe we can work together. So it was much more collaborative than competitive. And I get it. I I understand why people would be
Adrienne Garland (27:15)
Yeah.
Amazing.
Robin N. Hamilton (27:37)
competitive, but you would think that after a certain age, you you get to a certain point in your career where you're thinking, you know, the more good you do, the more beneficial it will be for everybody.
Adrienne Garland (27:51)
Yeah, do you see things changing for women in media, in filmmaking, in storytelling? Do you see that as like something that I hope that we see more of?
Robin N. Hamilton (28:05)
I know, I
hate to be so negative. I know.
Adrienne Garland (28:10)
You're not negative. Because you know what? Let's be real because if we
don't see this happening, like what can we do to change that?
Robin N. Hamilton (28:20)
Mm-hmm.
That's a really good point. Frankly, in terms of mainstream media, I don't really see it. I don't really see it changing. don't see... I have not had a lot of women be very helpful. I have not had a lot of people be open and helpful to me, period, in this industry. It's really just a very, very select few. I think that the industry is still really, really...
and people will pull the rug up behind. I I did freelance correspondence work for this one particular show and one of the producers was great and another woman was just, she was just oddly hostile to me. And I'm thinking, I don't understand what your problem is. Yeah, it was a big why. And so I see that type of behavior and maybe it's because people are holding on to their own jobs, you know, but.
Adrienne Garland (29:04)
Why? Right.
Robin N. Hamilton (29:18)
I don't know, I just feel like when you can find a good person to help, help them when you can and just be very cautious and very cautious with who you share your ideas with. I know that doesn't sound very positive, I apologize. You know, I do, I. Yeah.
Adrienne Garland (29:18)
Mm.
Hmm. No, it's interesting. Yeah, it's there's two sides of that coin. And we were talking about
it. It's like, you want to be as open as possible, but you also have to it's the caught, you know, cautiously optimistic, right? We need to be cautiously optimistic. We do want to help other people, especially women that have really great ideas. But then I think when
Robin N. Hamilton (29:46)
Yeah!
Yeah!
Yeah.
Adrienne Garland (30:01)
when maybe someone else is being cautiously optimistic toward us for what we see as no good reason, perhaps they've experienced the same thing as we have maybe even been burned by someone else that for some reason we remind them of. And it's so bad because I don't think that it's our own doing. I think it's that the pressure of the system that
Robin N. Hamilton (30:12)
Yes, that's right.
That's right. That's right.
Yeah.
Adrienne Garland (30:30)
hits us against one another. And we have to call that out. have to, you we almost have to ask ourselves, like, if someone's triggering us, if someone's annoying us, if we feel like someone's, you know, going for the money grab, we almost need to say like, hey, what's happening here? Like, you know, I would love to help, I'd love to be of assistance, but is there something happening below the surface that I'm not?
Robin N. Hamilton (30:32)
Right.
We do.
Mmhmm.
Adrienne Garland (30:58)
aware of, but I don't think that people have the strength and maybe we don't have the skill in order to navigate that yet. But we cannot just push that under the rug and then allow it to happen because women like hating on other women is exactly what the powers that be want.
Robin N. Hamilton (30:59)
Right, right.
Right.
That's exactly right. Correct. And you can't have that. And I think if people knew, as corny as it sounds, their collective power, I think we would be in a whole different situation if women knew their collective power. That nonsense would have stopped long ago. Really? It would have. Yeah.
Adrienne Garland (31:31)
Yes.
Yes.
I love it. It's so true. It's so
true. how can, you know, let's say someone, and maybe I'll put you on the spot. Let's say someone is, you know, they're a business owner, woman business owner. They have been going along for, you know, couple of years. They've had some initial success and they're at a point in their business where they're like, you know what?
Robin N. Hamilton (31:53)
Yeah.
Adrienne Garland (32:09)
This is just not resonating with people, my product, my service. How can someone tap into the power of storytelling to maybe get some different type of attention, attract a new audience? How can they leverage storytelling to help them to boost their business?
Robin N. Hamilton (32:13)
No.
Mm-hmm.
That's a really great question. think one of the things you can do is you can ask, who have I been targeting and why hasn't it really worked? So for example, I used to, when I first started my business, I just needed work. So I was throwing out a target. I was trying to hit any target that I could hit. So I did weddings. I looked at government contracts. I looked at real estate, complete abysmal failure.
But I happened to have a contact who worked in the nonprofit space. She had a colleague who ran a nonprofit, affordable housing nonprofit, and they needed to do a fundraiser for their big gala that they had each year. And so she put me in touch with her. And so that opened the door for me to be recommended to other organizations. So I did work for a soup kitchen. I did work.
Adrienne Garland (33:19)
Hmm
Robin N. Hamilton (33:24)
for a person who provides legal work, an organization that provides legal work for the people who are free. So for example, if a person loses their license, gets a ticket, they can't pay the fine, they lose their license, they can't go to work and it spirals. So this organization provides legal help for them. So my name started to circulate, but what I found was that my background as a journalist allowed me to tell these beautiful human interest stories and people who were making the world a better place.
Adrienne Garland (33:53)
Hmm.
Robin N. Hamilton (33:53)
So all
that is to say is think about what initially connected you to create your business in the first place. What was that? And who kind of inspired you to do that? And then channel that into who you want your audience to be, if that makes sense. And that really does tap into your origin story, literally the why.
Adrienne Garland (34:02)
Mm.
Hmm. Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (34:21)
of what made you start your business and why that is important. Because it really is that why that will provide fuel to keep you going. If you deeply, deeply believe in your mission, that will keep you going.
Adrienne Garland (34:21)
Yeah.
Mm.
Yeah.
Hmm.
I do think that people need to almost revisit their story. I mean, even with my business, you know, I'm at a point that it is feeling like, weighed down, stuck, you know, I'm sort of in the messy middle or the muck. And I'm trying to figure out, you know, how do I connect with women that are almost in the same place as I am in my business and like,
Robin N. Hamilton (34:41)
Yes.
Yeah.
Adrienne Garland (35:07)
what is it that I am really offering, right? Because I think offering inspiration and advice is great, there needs to be something more tangible than that. And so that's the sort of exploratory stage that I'm in right now. And I don't think that people really even understand what my story is.
Robin N. Hamilton (35:12)
Yes.
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
Adrienne Garland (35:35)
Why am I doing what I'm doing? Right? Like why? Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (35:37)
Yeah, yeah, right, right, right.
Why is, but think about what really gets you excited. What is it that compels you to do that? What really sparks? And before we were talking, before we started recording this conversation, we were talking about the classes that you teach and the guidance and perspective you give to entrepreneurs. And why do you think that entrepreneurial leap is important? Why do you think that fuels people? And so,
Adrienne Garland (36:05)
Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (36:06)
You were saying, you know, being able to share that expertise and that perspective is invaluable, especially from the experience that you have had working in corporate America, working in finance and working in marketing. You understand what it takes to not only build a business, to work in a situation where people are not morally aligned with you, and then to leave and to create something that not only represents who you are, but allows you to create a life and leave a mark.
Adrienne Garland (36:11)
Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (36:37)
in a way that you believe you want to be remembered. So that's what you do. Think about that. I mean, you provide this platform for people to tell the not so shiny stories and the bumps and the bruises that people are really, really need to hear because it reminds people that you did this business for a reason and you're not alone and we all go through the hard stuff. The hard stuff is real.
Adrienne Garland (36:41)
Yeah.
Bye.
Yeah, we need more of
that. It is real. We need more of that. as you're talking, you know, I just can't help but think it's like there's an element of freedom. Like it's almost like art and creativity and freedom.
Robin N. Hamilton (37:06)
Yeah.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes. Yes. Yes. It is freedom. It's freedom. Yes.
Adrienne Garland (37:24)
That's it. And it's what women need. It's what women need.
We literally have not been free. We haven't been. As much as we think that we have been, we really haven't been. And maybe that is sort of what I'm selling, like the dream, you know? And unfortunately, it's not rainbows and sunshine at all.
Robin N. Hamilton (37:32)
Mm-mm. Right.
Yeah!
Yeah,
exactly. Not even close. But it's a dream in that you get the freedom to pursue this and it's a mess, but it's your mess. So, you know, it's your mess. I have had so many failures, you know, when I've had so many ideas and iterations and unless people understand what it feels like to put yourself out there,
Adrienne Garland (38:00)
Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (38:18)
Nobody gets it, but you can say that you did it. You're not going to be shamed in a corporate meeting. You're not going to be belittled and then have to answer to some jerk. You know, that matters. it teaches you other things, how to negotiate for yourself, when you have to stand on your own two feet. And that's a battle that I fight, you know, regularly when you're sitting here setting your rates.
Adrienne Garland (38:28)
Yep. Yep.
Mmm.
Yeah. Yes.
Robin N. Hamilton (38:46)
You have to sit there
and say, am I worth? I was just talking to somebody about that. And how do you fight for that?
Adrienne Garland (38:54)
Yeah. Listen, also that is like we need to like scream this, whatever you think your rates are double them because everything costs so much money and we don't we really don't when we are thinking about what our rates are we're not taking in like, okay, well, how much does it cost to rent this and how much does it cost to pay for it? We got it. That's why we have to double it. And we all have to do it. We cannot teach the market that we're cheap.
Robin N. Hamilton (39:00)
Yes. Yes! Yes.
Exactly.
Exactly.
Yeah, exactly. And the thing is you have to be very careful about people who try to undersell you because that's something that you were kind of forced to believe in corporate America and you have to fight that. Yeah. Thank you.
Adrienne Garland (39:30)
Yes.
Yep, such good stuff. Robin, how
can people get in touch with you?
Robin N. Hamilton (39:43)
yes. You can go to my website, AroundRobin.com, and you can learn more about me. And you can also get a subscription to see my films if you go to AroundRobin.com and can see all of my content for eight bucks per year. Yeah. And just see the women that I profile and why they are so important. Because all the women that I have, the films that I have done, have been about
Adrienne Garland (40:06)
Yeah.
Robin N. Hamilton (40:13)
being underestimated and not really seen as worthy and they have made remarkable impact on society.
Adrienne Garland (40:15)
Mm.
So, so beautiful. Listen, maybe we'll have like a Sheleads viewing party. That would be so much fun. I would love to do that. So we need to talk more, but I want to also thank you so much for your time today, for your wisdom. And I know that so many people are going to be reaching out to you after this podcast.
Robin N. Hamilton (40:26)
you
thank you. That would be fun. Yes.
Thank you so, so much. It's been an absolute joy. And thank you for the service that you do. It really, really matters.
Adrienne Garland (40:53)
Thank you so much.