In this episode of "Celebrating the Brand Ambassador,"  I had the pleasure of interviewing two incredible women,  Natasha Sofia Velez then "National Brand Ambassador Director" for Davos Brands, and Earlecia Gibb "National Brand Ambassador for St~Germain." Be prepared to grab a drink, sit down and get comfortable because, within this episode, we cover many important topics, including the importance of understanding brand strategy, Education courses we recommend, Social media best practices, good management practices, balancing motherhood and the industry and much more. Here are the highlights: Courses and books we recommend: - The book "Creative strategy in the business in Design." - Online MBA program called "The Power MBA". - An education platform called Coursera.org on which you can take courses on: - Digital Marketing - Marketing strategy, and much more Natasha shares what she struggled with when transitioning from bartender to Brand Ambassador, such as: The challenge of being 23 and English not being her first language. Learning how to write an email in the proper format, using the appropriate language so that people would read it and respond. How asking for help and criticism from others helped her grow as an individual and within her career. The important lesson of learning is that it is okay not to know everything and that honesty and transparency go much further. How  words like "I am not sure, but I will get back to you about that" helped her feel more confident when presenting to peers Earlecia shares the valuable lesson of: Why it is crucial to understand the bigger picture for your role and what your boss expects of you. Why having two-way communication is essential. -The importance of understanding that no matter the description of your role,   your main job here is to move boxes. If you don't sell the product, there will be no money to pay your salary. They both share: How being a BA is not what it looks like on social media. What happens behind the scenes, managing your budget, reporting, creating spreadsheets, and developing strategy is a significant part of your job and many times more important. We dive into Social Media: -The struggle social media can play in your life when you are trying to balance yourself with your brand. -When it comes to social media, it is essential to work for a brand whose core values are similar to yours. -We discuss how Earlechia reclaimed her social media and harmonized it with the brand's social media needs by: Getting clear about her core values and finding ways to connect to her naturally within her brand. Curating moments to integrate the two Developing a strategy not to make her feed 100% about the brand but finding a way to blend her lifestyle, core values, and the brand's essence. Being transparent with her company on her needs and wants so they could agree on ways of working that worked for both of them Management, Pregnancy, and more Natasha and Earlecia speak about what qualities they believe make an effective manager for BA's. Natasha and I talk about balancing motherhood and our jobs and some best practices that I have learned along the way. Earlechia speaks to the importance of ensuring brand strategy reflects cultural relevance by gaining insights from the bar industry to create programs that matter. Lastly, they share their wise advice with others in this position.