Life and Work with Brigitte Ades

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brigitte Ades.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Being a daughter of a Chicago cop, an immigrant, and the oldest of 13 children, helped to lay the foundation for what was to become a full circle experience. My journey as an entrepreneur began at a young age when I opened my own salon in the late ’70s on the North Side area of Chicago. The North Side was filled with diverse groups of individuals and I interacted with them daily. I had to learn how to “bridge the gap” when dealing with people twice my age and the most important lesson I learned from this experience was “appreciation.” By learning to respect diversity, I was able to bridge the gap and create an environment of respect, appreciation, and understanding. I took these lessons and applied them to my journey to finding where I fit in. My road in life led me down many paths, one being Director of Chapter Development in the Denver area for Business Network International (BNI). I loved my time with BNI because I was in a position to educate and coach entrepreneurs of all ages and all walks of life. This gave me the drive to create my company Referral CPR. I wanted a business that would highlight the lessons I learned as a young salon owner. I wanted to teach people about the importance of appreciation marketing. After all this time though, I still had a feeling of emptiness. I felt that there was still some lesson I was missing or some experience that I had missed. My friends, family, and mentors gave me the idea of creating my own podcast. I remembered the struggle I had as a young entrepreneur working with individuals twice my age. Remembering this experience motivated me to find a way to bridge the gap between the diverse age generations in the business world. I created BrigittingTheGap and the feeling of emptiness subsided. I finally felt complete and my journey to happiness and success came full circle.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I have “failed forward” all my life and have struggled with selling myself short. I have struggled with self-image and feeling like I am not good enough. Who would listen to me? What is so good or so important about me? These questions led me down a path of negativity and it is through coaching others that I realized I was being coached in return. My friends and family have always been there to support and encourage me on my journey. There is a saying, “you are the five people you hang around with” and so by surrounding myself with positive, aspiring, and innovative people, I can continue to fail forward.

Please tell us about Happy Ass Coffee & BrigittingTheGap YouTube Channel.
Through Appreciation Marketing, I help people find happiness, focus, productivity, and clarity. My current careers include my podcast BrigittingTheGap and my coffee company, Happy Ass Coffee. I began my journey with coffee through a company called Elevacity. Elevacity is a company built on elevating the health, happiness, and wealth of their clientele. This fit so perfectly with my own values, that I had to get involved. Now, I help “BrigittingTheGap” and help others feel secure, happy, and healthy in their own skin.

There’s a wealth of academic research that suggests that a lack of mentors and networking opportunities for women has materially affected the number of women in leadership roles. Smart organizations and industry leaders are working to change this, but in the meantime, do you have any advice for finding a mentor and building a network?
Networking is my love language. Here are my top five tips for networking:
1. Never network to GET! People can smell a salesperson a mile away. 2. Network to GIVE, people will do business with those they know, like and trust. 3. Visit several different Networking events to find the one that feels right to you. Stick with it and invest time in your networking. Referrals are earned, you don’t just “get referrals” because you are a part of the organization. 4. Invest in your relationships! Take time to get to know others and what they do and what makes them happy. 5. Find out how you can help to connect with others. After all, relationships are your currency.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://happyasscoffee.com/ and https://www.youtube.com/results?reload=9&search_query=brigitting+the+gap
• Phone: 303.518.3844
• Email: brigitteades@gmail.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=happyasscoffee.com&epa=SEARCH_BOX
• Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brigitteades/

Image Credit:
Sweetin Photography

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