This is an interview with Abbey Gibb, the founder and CEO of Healing Media Productions, an international media-consulting company where Abbey empowers other entrepreneurs to spread their message and pushes them to become better leaders.
Tell us your story.
Abbey Gibb: I’m an Emmy-winning media mentor, coach, and speaker. A little-known fact about me: I grew up in Taiwan, and yes, I speak fluent Mandarin! My parents were much like myself, in that they traveled all over the world to impart their message. And, suffice it to say, I took what they taught me to heart, and dreamt big.
I entered the TV career in hopes of changing the industry for the better, foolishly thinking that I could do so on my own. Fast forward, and at the height of my career, all I had to show for it was years deflecting sexual advances and the constant debasement of my ideas.
That… left me rather disheartened. But, in the end, I left TV to become a media director for a global digital marketing agency, which I then left to build my own agency. This then brings us to where I am today: wholeheartedly devoted to working with entrepreneurs who want to use their influence to spread their message for positive global progression.
What is your work process like?
Abbey Gibb: Before I start working, I always ask myself, “How can I continue to live up to my potential?” After that, it’s all messy, but, more importantly, inspired action. I’m the type of person that learns as I go. And that’s how I’ve managed to succeed in the past couple of years.
In fact, when I first started my own global digital marketing agency, I had no clients and no leads to speak of. And yet, six months in, I managed to drive our revenue up to six figures. And, three months after that, I was booked for three TEDx Talks.
I wholly believe that it’s this exact work process that has made me successful. I jump in, and I do things. I make my mistakes, learn from them, and get ahead of the curve by being there first.
What project(s) are you most excited about at the moment?
Abbey Gibb: A lot of my focus has been on the Movement Makers Mentorship program that I established just recently. It’s a leadership academy program that focuses on connecting and mentoring entrepreneurs that are high-level and game-changing in their respective industries, on the subject of media, messaging, and business.
I’ve also been very excited about my podcast, which I’ve dubbed “Share Your S.H.I.T. (Story, Humility, Intuition, and Truth).” Which is my method of imparting more of my message to, what I’ve dubbed as, a connection-starved audience that desperately needs to be more honest about their humanity.
What would you say has been your biggest failure?
Abbey Gibb: That goes all the way back to my days on TV. At one point, I had invested all my savings, and I do mean all of them, into developing a TV show idea I called “Bossify.” I loved that idea, was obsessed with it, really. It was a show on female leaders, and I did everything that I could to make it a reality. But then… well, the network dropped it.
And… It was bad all around. My savings were gone, my options non-existent, and I was absolutely terrified. I was fortunate, however. Something I know that not everyone is. Because I was able to use this horrible, petrifying experience to turn my life around. All thanks to a friend of mine, who offered me a loan. $10,000 in order to start my own digital marketing consulting business. And the rest, as they say, was history.
What’s your favorite quote?
Abbey Gibb: My favorite quote is from Ram Dass, a spiritual teacher: “Treat everyone you meet like God in Drag.” I interpret it as an invitation. An invitation to see the humanity in people. An invitation to learn that it doesn’t matter what language we use or what we’ve grown up believing, we all deserve to be loved and to be understood for who we are.
What do you think makes for a good leader?
Abbey Gibb: A good leader understands that they should follow their intuition. It’s not a weakness, it’s a strength. Connecting to people, relating to them, openly sharing with them, that’s how you become a good leader. And at the root of that, is your intuition. So, listen to it. Even if your inner voice is bizarre, idealistic, fantastical, or whatever else! Develop that fearlessness and it will make you as good as you are great.
