Born and raised in a war-torn Croatia, Kristina and her family left everything to start over in the US. As a young adult, she faced divorce, poverty, single parenting, and her own mental health struggles. But her determination, quick wit, and deep compassion won her the crown for Oprah’s Search for the Next TV Star in 2011.

Since then, Kristina Kuzmic’s story has been sprinkled with the fairy dust of commercial success. She has over a billion video views, a huge social media following, a beautiful family, and a financial trajectory that continues to climb steeply up and to the right.

But Kristina would be the first to admit all that glitters is not gold (or even tin foil). And it’s her honesty about her imperfections that’s been the real magic in her impact. It’s her unfiltered struggles, failures, and invisible wins in motherhood, mental health, and the spotlight that has impacted millions and given her what she would say matters most.

Kristina’s story then begs a question for those of us trying to perfect our speeches, our writing, our branding, our marketing funnels, our websites, and every other thing we’re “supposed” to do in order to launch and grow our businesses: Are we missing the point by trying to get things perfect?

Yes, it’s important to learn and utilize the tools, insights, and playbooks proven to move our missions forward. But as we learn and apply them, how do we simultaneously stay true to our authentic selves? Because the truth is, it's our candor that gives us the power to help others, not our polished image.

In our conversation with comedian, best-selling author, and sweatpants-wearer, Kristina Kuzmic, you’ll be reminded of why you wanted to help others in the first place and how building a business rooted in vulnerable imperfection might be exactly what you and your audience need most.

Check out these magical moments:

• 00:00:00 // Tomfoolery and banter
• 00:06:15 // Introducing Kristina Kuzmic
• 00:10:40 // What Kristina found resonated most with her audiences
• 00:17:13 // Kristina's powerful mission statement
• 00:24:14 // The pros and cons of working with big names and big agencies
• 00:30:10 // Important questions to ask a client when booking your next speaking gig
• 00:47:03 // What pro publishing lessons Kristina learned between her first and second books
• 01:04:02 // A powerful perspective on how to best serve your audience

To your meaningful impact,

Josh

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Thanks to our sponsor, YOUTH SPEAKER UNIVERSITY. At YSU, you can learn how to launch and grow your speaking business, write and publish your book, and launch your online course! Watch the intro video NOW:

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CONNECT WITH KRISTINA

Website: kristinakuzmic.com

Instagram: kristinakuzmic

MUSIC

Flourish by Londau

FREE TRAINING: Learn how to grow your impact and income on stage, page, and screen at https://stagepagescreen.com