You never know until you ask

How I got on CBS and all the things from behind the scenes

Oct 17, 2024

Just a few days ago, Cassie Aversano and I got to go on CBS Colorado and talk about Moms on the Mic. Bahhhh!

From left to right, CBS meteorologist Lauren Whitney, myself, and Cassie.

Not only has Cassie been instrumental in encouraging me to bring this event back AND helping with various details, but she will also be the first speaker of the night AND speaking to an audience for the first time about pieces of a journey she has yet to share publicly.

What Cassie will do on October 24 will be quite revolutionary, because she will be talking about things that most people won’t.

By bringing her story out of her heart and into that room, it is her deepest hope that other women will not feel alone and be given permission to find the healing and wholeness they deserve.

I’m sure you have a lot of questions about that, but her story is not mine to tell.

What I will tell you is how we got onto live TV in the first place and ALL the answers to every burning question that I had before entering the building — because here’s the thing:

Getting that locked in was a lot easier than one might think, and if you ever go on the news, too, I hope my experience helps you!

So, let’s start from the beginning.

Three weeks ago, I got a wild hair to message Valerie Castro on Instagram. Valerie is an old friend from Mullen High School who started her broadcast career in Colorado and is now an NBC News Correspondent in New York.

Here was our convo:

So I could put a face with the name and see if we have any mutual contacts (And that we did!), I looked Karen up on Facebook. Not long after sending her a what-the-heck friend request, she accepted it.

I sent her a quick note with context of who I am, a quick link to the event, and that I’d be formally emailing her. But then, my to-do list got wild. Plus, I think I was subconsciously dreading the idea of putting a “pitch” together. It takes a lot of energy to sell things to people I’ve never met.

Fun fact: Every single attendee of my in-person events in the last few years has been someone I know personally or a friend of a friend.
There’s actually ONE person who signed up for my online Break the Ground workshop who found me through an article that I asked
Guy Kawasaki
to share, and that is a WHOLE other story that’s still being written. Pun intended, actually, because the one and only subscriber I got from that (Looking at you,
Konoha Yoko (TAMAI)
!) is waiting for my edits on the final draft of her first small book!
Other than that, though, all my marketing has been very grassroots. I haven’t spent a dime on social media ads since, oh, 2013, but I have spent copious amounts of time sending direct asks and oh-so-many follow-ups to people I know and adore.
While some people may find my digital shoulder tapping annoying, most tell me they appreciate the reminders. I’m tellin’ ya! There is power in asking, people!

Back to the pitch.

Before I even crafted the perfectly professional email I thought I needed to send, Karen messaged back a week later saying, “This could be really fun!” and asked me to text her directly.

I was simply hoping that someone would write a pre-event article or a post-event review, but when Karen sent me the following, I almost face-planted into the pile of laundry in front of me:

Right when I thought I’d had my fill of vulnerable things (I mean, I had JUST sent my parents an email that morning about a story I’d been holding in my heart for TWENTY YEARS! And yes, I’m getting so close to sharing that story here…), I was presented with this. Of course, I said yes.

After lots of follow-up texts to Karen from Brit “Just-Checking-In” Stueven, she told me she was finally able to connect with Executive Producer Gabrielle Cox. She told me to send her an email with all the deets, then she’d forward it to Gabrielle.

Here’s what I sent to Karen:

Thank you so much for your help in bringing possible coverage of Moms on the Mic to CBS!

First, here’s the main page with the lowdown on speakers, etc.

Moms on the Mic: Speakers, Comedy + More

This all originated after my book launch for Mama Be Present in May 2023, which was a big ‘ol dinner party with 100 women.

After that, I wanted to give other women opportunities to get on the mic in front of a room of amazing, supportive women. I hosted the first one last October and am bringing it back this year!

What’s unique about this event is it offers moms a chance to enjoy a sit-down dinner, meet other moms at their table thru facilitated prompts at the beginning and the end, and most of all, see a mix of speakers. It features one seasoned speaker, one seasoned comedian, two first-time speakers, and two open mic’ers that will be drawn from a bowl at the event.

(Three of us moms are Jeffco moms!)

It’s an event that honors vulnerability, connection, and leaning into who we really are. And while the topics vary, 3 things are for certain:

“You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and leave deeply inspired. Whether it’s the spark to pursue that big dream or the guts to reveal the REAL you, this event will remind you that NOW is your time to shine.”

Women of all ages from various parts of Colorado attended last time (One speaker even flew in from Texas!) and really got a lot out of it — and this one is expected to be the same!

I am expecting to sell out at 96 attendees.

I haven’t even promoted this yet but there will also be a follow-up group call for attendees to ask speakers questions and for more women to share. I have a woman in Canada who asked if she could share something online at the event, but that isn’t possible to fit in with the in-person event, but we’re gonna make a digital one happen. Because everyone has a story and every story matters!!!

Let me know anything else I can provide!

Thanks soooo much for your time and consideration,
Brit

Sent from my iPhone

A few days later, Gabby contacted me to schedule the THANG! She told me we’d be interviewed for two and a half to three minutes at 4pm, that it would air at about 4:15, and that we could show up at 3:55pm. (!!!) She assured me that we could pull right up to the building and that security would know we’re coming.

I had SO many other questions I wanted to ask her:

“What do people typically wear?” (I honestly don’t know the last time I watched anyone be a guest on daytime news, and even if I did watch it regularly, I don’t pay attention to those things. The hubs once had a mustache for a full hour in front of me, and I had no idea.)
“What questions will we be asked?”
“Will we be standing or sitting?”
“Will our shoes be showing?”
“What if I cuss?”
“Has anyone ever peed themselves?”
“Do you give out Xanax?”
“How long can we hang out beforehand?”
“Can I just shadow you someday?”

But for once in my life, I held back.

On the day of, we pulled right up to the building at 3:40 (Because 3:55 was giving me hives!), pulled straight into a visitor parking spot, snapped a celebratory selfie, and walked right into the building.

We had way too much time to listen to the security guy’s flat jokes (Oh, he knew they were bad, too!) and wonder what the heck awaited us. Then, at 4pm on the dot, the time I thought we were supposed to be recording, Gabby came and got us.

As we went up the elevator of a building that smelled and looked like it never left the 70s, she asked if we needed water or to go to the bathroom.

“Do we have time?” I asked, and now laugh at because, well, if we didn’t have time she wouldn’t have asked!

“Yes, you have time,” she said kindly, as she waited outside the loo for us.

As we entered the ladies room, there were two fancy dresses hanging on the wall to our left, and a countertop full of makeup to our right. There was even a CABOODLE.

“This place is like a time warp,” I told Cassie, as we sat in our stalls and did our biz.

“Yeah, and it really smells like hairspray,” she laughed.

After refreshing our lipstick and watching my clean, curled hair struggle to recognize itself in the mirror, we were escorted down a narrow, dark hallway that led right to a brightly lit set with a white, leather couch.

As Gabby pointed to where we should sit and I made full-voice, fill-the-silence commentary about who knows what, I turned my head and saw that LIVE NEWS was being recorded.

Lauren Whitney, who was sitting to the left of the couch, gave us a warm wave and went back to looking at her phone. Then, as we attempted to get settled on the couch and not, you know, puke or pee on it, I held in 100 throat clears from all my nervous laughing in the lobby while a super nice guy started getting us mic’d up.

“Can you string this mic up your shirt and clip it to the top for me?” he whispered.

”Sure!” I said sarcastically, as I held back a joke about the mic needing to take me to dinner first.

Then, for the next 2,000 minutes (Okay, 20!), Cassie and I sat there and watched everyone do their thang.

After one live segment was finished, Lauren came over, introduced herself, asked us how to pronounce our names and what the event is all about, then, walked over to do the weather like it was no big deal.

Next thing we know, she’s sitting next to us telling us not to look at the camera or give long-winded answers while the sound guy is counting down from 15, and then, BAM!

We were live…

And BAM! We were done.

“So, it’ll air in about 15 minutes you think?” I asked Gabby, as she escorted us back out.

“Oh, no, it aired. That was live!” she said.

THANK GOODNESS I DIDN’T CUSS OR PASS OUT! I thought.

“How many people usually tune in?” I asked.

“Ohhh…30….40….thousand,” she said casually.

THANK GOODNESS I LEARNED THAT AFTERWARDS, I thought.

Then, she kindly took us down to the newsroom to meet Karen, because all I wanted to do was hug Karen.

When we approached, it was clear there was a crisis of sorts happening, but she graciously dipped away to say hi. She thanked us for doing the live thing and told us not many people are willing to do that!

Then, after saying our thanks, I snapped a bunch of pics like a kid in a candy store.

Being there brought me back to the days when I helped lead the YourHub.com Boulder County editions at the Rocky Mountain News. It reminded me how much I love and miss journalism.

Most of all, that day reminded me of something BIG:

You never know until you ask.

Some things are much simpler than they seem, you know?

If you have a story or cool thing you want to get the word out about, I strongly encourage you to go tap some shoulders. Even if you don’t know a person who knows a person, send a note to the main contact and ask who the BEST person is!

And if you ever need help in crafting an email, figuring out how to pitch, or even seeing the unique value of that thing you think isn’t worthy of pitching, I'm always here to help — or even just remind you that it doesn’t need to be perfect!

Speaking of not being perfect…

Did that cover photo of my Reel make you laugh? Did it remind you that being perfect is boring and overrated? Did it have you at mashed potatoes? If it’s any of those, then Moms on the Mic is for you!!!

Come join us for a night of deep stories, belly laughs, inspiring takeaways, and JUST the kind of connection you’ve been needing. There is sooo much magic packed into this event that I couldn’t even fit into two minutes.

So, mosey over to britstueven.com/moms for more info and get your ticket. And you’re gonna wanna get it fast because there are ONLY 12 tickets left!

Can’t make the in-person event?

But want to connect with other awesome women? Have something you want to share but your name didn’t get drawn for open mic? Maybe you’ll even want to share what sparked for you at the 10.24 event.

ALL of this is possible on Tuesday, October 29, when we gather for…