 I'm your host Sharon Thomas Yarbrough, welcome and thank you for joining Sister Power. Sister Power's vision is that women everywhere will learn to live as sisters, to respect each other's differences, to heal each other's wounds, to promote each other's progress and to benefit from each other's knowledge. Today, our Sister Power VIP guest is Brandy Keanna Joe. Brandy is a founder of Girlfriends, a holistic coach and experiential event planner. Our topic for Sister Power, Girlfriends, a soulful networking experience empowering women and strengthening sisterhood. Welcome! Keanna! How are you? Oh my God! I'm still with a girlfriend. I'm still with her. We're all girlfriends. Brandy! Brandy! Brandy! How are you? I'm great. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so glad to have you. You know, you and I kicked it off at this event, the American Savings produced, and it was about building some type of women's entrepreneur, and we were speaking with each other and we gave each other high fives, and we've been talking every since. I'm so excited about Girlfriends because it's so important to have a girlfriend. Absolutely. Absolutely. I'm so excited I met you because, I mean, geez, we were together in that circle for like 30 seconds and we just knew we have to stay in touch. We knew that there was so much synergy between us, we're like, oh my gosh, we just, I'm so, I'm so grateful that you do things like this. So thank you for sharing, sharing this positive movement, you know, with everybody that watches and. And thank you for what you do because you bring girlfriends together. It's just like Sisters in Park of IE. We bring girlfriends together and sisters together and women together and we talk story. I have a question for you. What is girlfriends? Okay. Girlfriends is a soulful networking experience that empowers women and strengthens sisterhood. You mentioned it earlier. What does that entail? Well, it's really about women coming together and building meaningful relationships before exchanging services. There's so many different things that we do when we empower women. We look at personal and professional development through guided discussions and fun activities that it just varies every month, but they're all creative and self-reflective and really fun. Yeah, you just had an event March 24th. Tell us about it. Yeah. So that one was titled Empower Women and, you know, the whole girlfriend's event is about empowering women, but this one was specifically on the professional side, upleveling your career, grounding your foundation. So we had a few wonderful empowering leaders who are people who co-lead the event. Tara Long, she's a spiritual life, spiritual and life coach, and she guided us all into a meditation, did a short writing exercise, and then we had Gisella West-Schultz, who's a business growth strategist coach, and she shared a few tips on how we can build the blocks for our business plan. I talked a little bit about courage and confidence and being authentic and using all the tools that we put together, me, Gisella and Tara, and just supported women in their own direction. The three of us actually shared a little bit on our story on how we got to where we are today. So it was very fruitful. It was such an amazing experience. I love it. What is an experiential planner? Okay, experiential, really having to do with the experience. So I love to produce events that is all about the experience, all about the takeaway, not about the sales, not about the products, not selling the services. It's really about what are people going to take away for spending their time, investing their time with us. So it's different. I have a lot of different events that I produce, and girlfriends, it's all about women coming together. I have a few other ones. One is called Empowering Educators Workshop. That is all about inspiring educators to keep teaching, to support them, to allow them to reflect on their strengths and their reasons why to continue teaching. You're also a holistic coach. Tell me about that. Okay. How long have you been doing that? Okay, well, that's an interesting question. As a business, I've been doing it for about two and a half years, but I feel like I've been doing it my whole life. Since I was five years old, I learned so much about how people would behave, how they would voice or not voice their opinion. I started coaching at a very young age. So what is your style of coaching then? Okay. So, well, to answer your first question, holistic coach in general has to do with a coach helping someone achieve synergy between the mind, body, and spirit. For me, my specialty is really about mental conditioning for spiritual alignment. Helping people with stress management and being happier, building a life that resonates with the story they want to leave behind. Like a legacy, you're creating your own legacy within your coaching as well. Listening to the news, what you offer is, I think we all need that happiness in our life. And so, how do you coach someone who has such a busy life and who's a mother, well, you're only 32 years old. 35. You're 35. Oh, 35. You're 35 years old. Okay. And you graduated from Kaiser. Yes. Okay. So getting back to your coaching style, when you're working with some, especially women, we're so busy now, not only we're raising a family, we need to take time for ourselves. How do you include your coaching into teaching women to take some time for you? Okay. So there's two parts to that answer. One is that's what girlfriends is all about. Girlfriends is all about coming together and leaving your roles behind, putting it aside and just being you. What I mean by that is when you come into girlfriends, we don't talk about what you do for a living. You don't have to worry about being a CEO of a company and maintaining that persona. You don't have to worry about being a mother and not saying certain things. You don't have to worry about being a daughter, being a wife, whatever the case is. You just show up just as if you were in grade school and you come into a playground and you're like, I don't know what I'm going to do. I just want to come out and play. And then we guide you through that. To me, girlfriends is like a form of self-care, being able to take that break to connect with like-minded women who support you, who want to get to know you, wants to become friends. And it's very authentic. It's very authentic in the way that we open up. You don't really have a chance to plan ahead on like, what am I going to say, what am I not going to say, because we guide you through those discussions on opening up. So you don't really know until you're there, but it's all very easy and fun. The second part of answering your question is my holistic coaching is very personalized. All the people that I coach are high achievers and take on a lot of responsibility. They are either entrepreneurs or they're high in their company and they are making big decisions that makes a big impact in other people's lives. They may have a family or they may take care of an elder or somebody or someone younger that may not be their first seed, but when it comes to how do we help, how do I help these individuals? It's very personalized and I will look at a lot of different things. I'll look at the sleep, I'll look at their diet and physical well-being, relationships and communication, career and spirituality and pretty much all aspects of their life. It really depends on what they're wanting to share with me really. My approach is very different. I don't corner people into telling me things that they don't feel like it's easy to share. I am simply a listening ear that really focuses on the compassion. My style is very compassionate, patient. I don't yell at my clients, I don't. And some coaches do that. Oh my goodness. Really? I mean, as a holistic coach, there's different football coaches out there and volleyball coaches out there. Different styles. So my style is compassionate, patient. I look at three qualities during the whole process and that's authenticity, compassion and gratitude. Gratitude is just one of my favorite words, appreciation and gratitude. So you mentioned nutrition, so you have any type of educational background in nutrition. Tell me a little bit about that. Have a little bit. I am certified as a holistic coach from IIN, which stands for Institute for Integrative Nutrition and this is in New York. I have a culinary arts background. Gosh, I've done so many different things with that. I used to work at a gym and I was a fitness director, but you know, it's interesting because even though I talk about nutrition, again, it's a different style. I don't give people a meal plan. I don't tell people what they need to eat, how they need to eat, how they need to live. This is the beautiful part in how I coach is that I extract information out of them and I hold it up as a reflection for them to see all the great things that I know that they need to work, they need to continue nourishing. So it's not so much of the lack of, it's really about the things that make them shine, the things that make them happy. So for instance, when we're talking about diet, I will look at foods that they like. I will look at their relationship with food, which is a big one. I will help them in becoming more creative on how they shop for food and recipes they put together, but it's all based on what they like and exploring. They're exploring. So it's more of a question and answering once you, do you come in, first of all, how do people find you when they feel they need a holistic coach? How do they find you? There are so many ways that they can find me. I do have a website, it's called OneExperience.Guru, and people can sign up for consultation for my coaching or they can contact me to plan an event for them, their family or their business. But I'm also on Natural Awakenings Magazine, I mentioned on there a few times, and I produce a lot of events. There's a lot of different non-profits, so you may see me at different events. Oh, that's great, the non-profit events. So tell me, I did, we were speaking earlier about Nimea, you worked with her, your dear friend of mine, and so tell me about that event, it was like the storytellers, she does own a bookstore. Yes. Well, I'm so grateful for Miley and having that new partnership with me, because that was my first partnership ever, and it was a very wonderful experience, because there's so much that I learned, and I had partnered with Miley and a gentleman named Keala. And Keala has a passion for Ava, and I have a passion for bringing people together. So I mentioned to him, hey, why don't we do an Ava and storytellers event, where three storytellers that we choose share a personal story that delivers a positive message with an Ava ceremony. Tell us what Ava means, so the listeners out there may not know. Ava is a wonderful, it's a wonderful drink. It really comes from the Piper Methodist to come bush, that you would uproot. It's something that a lot of the Polynesian cultures use. It's also called a la'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a', which really is a Hawaiian medicinal herb, and it can be used for healing, it can be used for religious or other spiritual ceremonial practices, but the Ava is like, there's, when we look at the scientific part of it, it's a muscle relaxant, muscle relaxant, and it is, it calms the system. It's great for muscle spasm, it's great in allowing you to feel stress-free and just kind of calming down, it will help you sleep. I would never recommend it with any sleeping medications, because if you add the power of Ava with another sleeping medicine, you can go into a coma. This is a powerful step, but what are you obtaining? It's actually something that grows locally in Hawaii and other Polynesian islands, but you can actually get it at a few different convenience stores, like some Micronesian convenience stores. There are some farmers on the island that can share it with you. What they do is they uproot the bush and then they rinse it off and they dry it, then they pound the roots and they pound it into a powder form once it's dried, and then you take that powder and you mix it in a thin mesh cloth with good water. Or you can use coconut oil and you massage it. And when you massage it, because it's such a, it's not just a drink, it's not just a drink, there's so much mana, there's so much spirit that goes, there's so much history that goes with this drink. It goes back into our ancestral time, and so it is something that we are honored to share. It's something that we are honored to use. So when we're massaging this, there is kind of a prayer that goes into it. We may chant or we may just talk, or we may be silent in our prayer, but we massage it. We strain, we set it aside, then we have our cups that we will pass around, and there's like a whole ceremonial practice that we abide by. It's a beautiful thing. We did Ava, it's actually called Aha Avan storytellers. Aha is like an exclamation mark. It's like Avan storytellers, and that addition to the name came a little bit afterwards after we started it, but Aha Avan storytellers is something that we did monthly from, I believe it was March or April, all the way through December, and we did it in many different places. We had so many different storytellers, amazing, amazing people were sharing their story. I shared one of my stories. Keala shared one of his stories, and it was such a beautiful experience for every single person that was not just coming as a guest, but people who were sharing their story. It was taking ourselves to the next level and connecting with others in a deep way. When we shared our stories, we weren't up leveled, we weren't on a stage, we were down on the same floor to signify how we are connected, how we are still one. Well, listening to you talk about the Polynesian herbs just reminds me of when I was watching the movie Black Panther, the Black Panther movie, and our African ancestors had that spiritual juice, and when Wakanda would drink from it, that it would bring you alive. So I think we all have something in common that is so similar, we're so much alike and we just look different, and I'm loving hearing about the spirituality of the health connection there. Absolutely. So, getting back to your events, tell me, how are you invited? Do you send out special invitations? Do you have a special guest list? How much does it cost to get in? How do people find out about it? Okay, so one great way for people to stay in the loop is to sign up for my newsletter. Just go on my website and put your name in your email address. I send these invitations out as soon as I produce them or as soon as I hear about other events that are in the same month. So I send these out monthly, weekly, and the costs can range from free to $75. It really depends on what is entailed in that event. All right, well, tell us more, we're going to take a short break and come back and hear more about girlfriends. Okay. Hey, baby, that's you. I want to know, will you watch my show? I hope you do. It's on Tuesdays at one o'clock and it's out of the comfort zone and I'll be your host, R.E. B. Kelly. See you there. Hey, Aloha, Standard Energy Man here on Think Tech, Hawaii, where community matters. This is the place to come to think about all things energy. We talk about energy for the grid, energy for vehicles, energy and transportation, energy and maritime, energy and aviation. We have all kinds of things on our show, but we always focus on hydrogen here in Hawaii because it's my favorite thing. That's what I like to do. But we talk about things that make a difference here in Hawaii, things that should be a big changer for Hawaii. And we hope that you'll join us every Friday at noon on Standard Energy Man and take a look with us at new technologies and new thoughts on how we can get clean and green in Hawaii. Aloha. Welcome back to Sister Power. Our topic for today is Girlfriends, a social networking experience in powering women and strengthening sisterhood. And I am here with my girlfriend, which I just love what you're doing, Brandy Keana Joe. And you're the founder of Girlfriends, a holistic coach and experiential event planner. And before we went on break, you were telling us about this wonderful storytelling event that you had. So your next event is when? Well, actually, I'm helping coordinate a festival that's happening this weekend, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Tomorrow, we have a Kaley. And this is for the Hawaiian Scottish Association. It's a few different nonprofit organizations that really want to perpetuate their Scottish culture and the coalescence coming to Hawaiian and being intertwined with the Hawaiians. So it's a very beautiful festival. We have a Kaley, which means it's a party. It's about storytelling. It's about music and art. And that's going to happen tomorrow evening, 6 to 9. On Saturday, Sunday, we actually have our festival at the McCoy Pavilion, which I'm really excited about. Oh, that's fine. The weather is beautiful, too, now. It's been up and down. I don't know what's going to happen, to be honest. And then after that, I have my next girlfriend's event. I'm so, so excited about that. It's called What Men Want. Oh, that should be a full house. Yeah, it should be, because women need to come to that. We're going to have three male guest panelists. And who are they? And, well, we have a bartender and business developer. Oh, I wasn't supposed to say some of it. Okay, so I'm not going to say their names or their business title because I don't want that to... Yeah. I understand. Yeah. I understand. Well, while you're thinking about that, I want the audience to see the video of your girlfriend's events because they look like they're just having a lot of fun. Thank you. It's about women getting together and having a moment to reflect, to meet like-minded women, to bond, be creative, share enlightening discussions. One night to come as you are. Put your responsibilities to the side and just be you. I hope that you leave with a smile and a feeling of acceptance and a sense of understanding of where you're at and the placement of life. Brandi Kanijo. I'm a coach and experiential event coordinator and I can't wait to meet you. Wow, that was fun looking at the girlfriend's video. Everyone was laughing and smiling. There's a few tears. Very few. Oh, there were a few tears. Well, good tears. I'm sure there were joyful tears. What lessons has your work life taught you? That I have a lot to offer. You know, that's a good thing because I think that women should walk into a room and feel confident about themselves. So you know you have something to offer at the table. And a lot of the things that I offer has to do with the obstacles that I had jumped over and it's been something that is not, it's not about avoiding the things that have held you back. It's actually about looking at the things that have been difficult for you and create more of that character that allows you to shine. And that's, you know, it's interesting because that's really how I help people. Looking at all the things that they thought was a concern and seeing it as actually one of their gifts. Well, in your generation, you know, in the different with my generation, you want things immediately. You're in the millennial groups. And my experience is when you plant those seeds, it takes a while for it to, you know, to root and to grow. And I think what people need to know is that you have to constantly water your gifts and wait for the passion to come and continue to just be kind and wonderful to each other. I love that you're doing, how many visits do you do per year approximately? Well, I've done 35 in the last two years. So I think that I'm going to do a little bit more than what I've been doing. Every year it multiplies. So I'll have more than 12 this year. So how much does it cost to attend girlfriends? Girlfriends range from $45 to $75. Does it come with food? Absolutely. It always comes with healthy food and refreshments. We also have gifts. Last month, our gifts were valued over $500. Wow. Yeah. We have, I mean, it was just amazing. One of our sponsors, Regis from Ota International Salon, gave everyone a discount for a hair service. So there's so many goodies that we give. And then there's also the coaching that we provide. Or if it's not the coaching, it's just the event, the activities that we, I mean, the supplies, everything goes into it. Something like this would normally cost hundreds to thousands of dollars. But it's only $45 to $75. Just because we want this movement to be spread out amongst many, many women out there. It's not something that should be just as a luxury. It really should be something that's easily accessible. All right. Before we close, what would you like to share with the audience that we have not discussed? And, you know, about 30 seconds or less, tell us something that we haven't discussed that you would like to share with the audience. Be kind and gentle to yourself. Know that fear is just information. It's not meant to hold you back. It's not about the world planting seeds against you. It's really an opportunity for you to grow. And if you continue to self-reflect on your, on the value of yourself and your relationship with others, you'll find that you have so much more than you ever thought you could have. And there's an abundance of love and opportunity out there. And within, you just got to focus on it. Thank you, Brandy. And thank you, everyone, for joining Sister Power. And remember, love wins.