#002: My guest today is content creator, host and producer Sydnee Goodman. In this episode, we take a deep dive into her unique path to becoming the host of IGN’s The Daily Fix to full-time creative entrepreneur and the lessons she’s learned along the way.
#002: My guest today is content creator, host and producer Sydnee Goodman. In this episode, we take a deep dive into her unique path to becoming the host of IGN’s The Daily Fix to full-time creative entrepreneur and the lessons she’s learned along the way.
(gentle upbeat music)- I really had to confront like my ideas of like worthiness. What does it mean to be successful? What does it mean to thrive in this industry? What are my ideas of like, you know, to reach my goals, does it have to be hard? And so I think I really came out with the mantra of like good doesn't have to be hard.(calm upbeat music)- Sydnee Goodman is a well-known content creator, host, and producer in the game industry. And I'm so excited to have her as our featured Move Maker for today's podcast. I first met Sydnee about four or five years ago now at an engagement party and I was instantly drawn to her infectious positivity and confidence. She told me how she wanted to pursue hosting full-time and not a year later, she had secured a full-time on-camera position at one of the largest video game news websites, IGN, and quickly became the host of The Daily Fix. Now, Sydnee is taking her skills to the next level as an entrepreneur and juggling all that comes with being a social media influencer, a Twitch streamer, and a freelance host. And those are all conversations that we dive into in today's podcast. So without further ado, let's meet today's Move Maker, Sydnee Goodman.(gentle upbeat music) Welcome Sydnee.- Thank you, I'm so happy to be here.- I know, I'm so happy. It's so good to see you.- I know, I don't think, well, I guess we saw each other at the 100 Thieves Foundation party. That makes me sound like I'm like, oh, that's all the parties I go to. It's literally the only party I've been to.- That party felt like, oh, like a, like a video game high school reunion to me.- It really did. It was, I feel like it was like weird because I obviously hadn't been very social over the last like year or so. And then all of a sudden you're like bombarded with everyone you know in the industry. It was nice. It was so nice.- It was nice and it was like-- You need to throw another party.- I know, I know. I think that was like right at the time too, before things like shifted back too in LA, so it was like it's such a special window, yeah.- Everyone was just blissfully like we're all here. I can't remember who played, but there was like a DJ or whatever.- Oh, I should know this.- But it, I do, I was just talking to somebody about it for some reason about I was drinking this super gross drink. I wasn't drinking that day because I, I don't remember why I wasn't drinking. I might've driven or whatever. So I was like the DD and the people that I was with, they were like, yeah, the cocktails, whatever. And they had like the signature cocktail list, right? Like they usually do whatever. And then when I got up to the bar, I was like, oh, can you like make something without alcohol? Or just like, give me like a ginger ale. And he was like, "No." And I was, excuse me, sir, what do you mean? He was like, "No, I can't." And I was like, okay, well, I don't want something with alcohol in it. And it was like this like back and forth where the guy just like refused to give me a non-alcoholic beverage. And so what he, what he landed on was pina colada mix and club soda. Why wouldn't you just give me the club soda?- Exactly. Well, for our listeners, why don't you start by just introducing us to yourself?- Yeah, so hi, I'm Sydnee Goodman. I am a host, content creator, I have a background in content strategy, lifestyle influencer, I don't like the word influencer, but for this purpose of introducing myself, I feel like that helps with understanding kind of what I do. I'm an entrepreneur, which is fun and been a fun exciting journey for myself. But I think at the heart of it is, oh gosh, so pretentious, I'm a creative. But really, I think that's what I'm learning and I'm sure we'll talk about it more, but the more that I've been on my own, I've. I left IGN in April. And so it's been a little bit of time and just realizing that like, I, there's no boundaries to kind of how I can apply my skillset and follow my interests. And so I do think I just identify with, and maybe it's most accurate to say that I'm just a creative that's working in the gaming space right now.- That's wonderful. And I think too, like you mentioned leaving in April, I left my full-time job in June and since like, with the pandemic and everything, I think now we're in this great resignation I think people are calling it, but I feel like it's more of like a great burnout. I don't know if you maybe feel that way. Like I definitely did. And you know, I say that, that's my personal like takeaway and I just needed a break. But I also was like, I think the last like 18 months to two years now, going on, right, have really kind of pivoted my focus of like what's important to me. Was that, did that had anything to do with kind of your transition?- Yes, so I, whether I realized it or not, and I think maybe there were glimpses where it's like, I think I'm burnt out and then I, you know, take a weekend and think I was magically cured and then kind of keep grinding. I had been kind of in that cycle for the last maybe 2 1/2, three years. And after I left, it was really bizarre because, and I say this completely knowing that I have a lot of work to do and a lot of growing to do. And so even this frame of reference maybe still isn't the most balanced way of thinking about like my work-life balance, but I, my entire life revolved around work. Everything revolved around work. I was working like 12, 15 hour days easy. Like whether that was, you know, doing however much for IGN and then working on my own content afterwards, like I was just never not working. So as soon as I quit IGN, it was really interesting because all of a sudden, that work ethic like went out the window and I didn't want to do anything. Like I wanted to do the bare minimum. And it was just really interesting that something in my brain connected having a full-time job with like, well, I have to do this. And then now that I'm on my own, I definitely wrestled with a lot of guilt because I felt like, well, I'm not really working that hard or felt like I wasn't working that hard. Even though I was making like the amount of money that I needed to make to not have to take a pay cut or anything, even honestly, more than that. And I still just was like, well, but I'm not working super hard and I'm not super tired and I'm not like insert all this. And so when people ask me about leaving IGN, a lot of like my answer always kind of revolves around I thought that it was going to be this really big career step, which it was, but I think it was more personal growth than anything.- And with that personal growth, like, can you kind of dive a little bit more into that?- Yeah, I think that, you know, I thought that it was IGN and I'm not going to absolve whatever whoever's responsibility it was. I think that it was an environment where like there were high expectations placed on like my work output, but I think I really internalized that. And so once I left IGN, so like my last day was on a Friday and then I started kind of grinding my own stuff on that Monday. And that first week I was working 12 hour days. And I remember talking to my therapist and was like, yeah, it's like, I don't know how this is sustainable. And she was like, "Well, you know,"you are in charge of your own schedule,"so like, let's take a look"at why you feel like you need to work 12 hour days." And it was just really interesting because I, I didn't have an answer for it. It was just like well, I thought that that's what I need to do to be successful. Or like working really hard means that I'm worthy of success. And so I really had to confront like my ideas of like worthiness, what does it mean to be successful? What does it mean to like thrive in this industry? What are my ideas of like, you know, to reach my goals, does it have to be hard? And so I think I really came out with the mantra of like, good doesn't have to be hard. And so that's what I've been focusing on. And it's been hard. (laughs)- It is. I think there are definitely a lot of people, especially women, who can relate to that. I know I can, because to me, it's like you work so hard, you work so hard, and you want people to see that you're working hard. Like, for me, I want the acknowledgement of how hard I'm working. Good I'm working at this hard work, but for me, like the first, like two to three weeks after I left, I did nothing. We were up in the cabin and I read books. Like there was like a day where I read like, I read a book for 12 hours. Like I read like 400 pages in a day kind of thing. And I started going on hikes and just, but then people wanted, it was weird. I don't know if you've experienced this. People kept wanting to talk to me about leaving and wanting to talk to me about like what I'm doing next. And like, I started getting hit up a lot for opportunities that I just wasn't ready for. And I think I'm still very proud of myself because any other time in my life, I would have been like, oh, this is an opportunity I have to jump on. Oh, this is something I need to do because I got to go up the ladder. I got to go on to the next big thing. And this was the first time in my life where I took a step back and I just started saying no. And I started prioritizing like what it is that I want to see from this next chapter, because I really do think that whenever a door closes for us, like it's a great time to really evaluate and say what do I want from my life? I think the last like year or so has really like even made that a bit more precise. So with that in mind, like, you know, I know you talk about your personal growth, but one thing we always ask too is kind of like, what, what was your first kind of move? Like maybe kind of give me like a TLDR of like, up to that point.'Cause I'd love to know how you got started.- Totally, totally. So that's such an interesting question because I was thinking about it in the car.'Cause I assumed you would ask this question and you sent it to me in an email so I knew you were going to ask this question, but I think that my first step towards it was just I started streaming when I was in college. And this was before I saw streaming as like something that you could do full time or as a career path. I went to school and I was pre-med like, I was gonna be a surgeon. And then I was gonna be a dentist. Like it was like very rigid. Like this is your career path. You go to school and you do X, Y, Z. And I was really uncomfortable by that idea of, I remember Alex, who is now my husband, but at the time, like his career path was very kind of windy. And he was just taking these jobs and was climbing this ladder. And I remember being like, oh my gosh. I mean, I don't think I ever even told him this, but thinking, I hope my career path doesn't look like that because that seems so confusing. And like, how do you know where to go and what moves to make? And so with that said, I was streaming and I was a Destiny streamer and Red Bull was hosting a tournament at USC and I entered and we won. And as winners, we got to go to Red Bull headquarters for the like finals, whatever. And I knew that I wanted to work for Red Bull at that point. At that point, the dentist thing was like dead in the ground. Like we weren't doing that. And I went to the tournament and I just like, can I cuss on this podcast? I schmoozed the fuck out of everybody. Like, I didn't even care if we won. I was just talking to anyone who would listen to me. And was just like, oh, what's your job. That's interesting that you do that. I'd love to learn more. Can I take you to coffee? And just like, did that to like the right people, I guess. And I ended up meeting with like somebody in the high performance department, I met with, did you ever work with Lex Parisi? She was in the e-sports department and ultimately introduced me to Alex. And then I met with this guy named Bill who was on the can side. And ultimately that led to me, what's the word, consulting on Activision Destiny partnership. And then that kind of got my foot in the door with Red Bull. When I graduated, I worked in the content department, helping with syndication and content strategy. And then I kind of forced my way into the e-sports department to help with production, some production stuff, strategy. And I remember being at Red Bull and this was about the same time that I started going to therapy because I was like super depressed. I felt like I wasn't really going down any road. I didn't know what I was doing. It was like, okay, I do content, but I literally did that to get a job. I don't know what that means or what I'm actually trying to work towards here. Especially when my whole life I'd worked towards such a clear goal, like be a surgeon, that's very explicit. The path is so clear. And then now I'm just like, well, I'm working in content strategy for this brand that I always wanted to work with, which is cool. But also I have no idea what the end goal here is. And I remember realizing, this whole time I was streaming I was like, wow, I've been streaming for so many years. And I really like doing it. Like what if I tried to figure out how to make that part of my job? And so, while I was there, I talked to like the internal newsletter people and they let me like help on set and interview some people and kind of test those waters. And then Buzzfeed reached out to me, super random, on LinkedIn. And I wasn't even going to take the interview because it was for a weekend position. And I was like, I don't want to work on the weekends. Like that doesn't seem interesting to me, but it was for a content strategy role there. And I talked to them and they ended up making a position for me to lead their content strategy on YouTube for kind of, I mean, for lack of better words, I don't, it's not really true, but for category-wise, it was kind of the more male leaning, traditionally male leaning verticals. And so that included video games, sports, fitness, and a few other categories. And so I was in charge of the content strategy there. And then the reason I took the job was because I knew how Buzzfeed cast their videos. And they basically just send out an email to the company and ask who wants to be in this video. And I was like, this is going to be a really good opportunity for me to get in front of the camera more at like a reputable place and where, at Red Bull, and you know this, is when you're working for the company, they won't let you appear on camera for external things. So I knew that that path was kind of dead. And at Buzzfeed, I just learned from whoever would teach me. And ultimately, I ended up doing a lot of producing and editing and shooting myself. And while at Buzzfeed, again, I was still streaming this whole time. And while at Buzzfeed, Geoff Keighley and his team just like cold emailed me. And I thought it was a joke. I didn't really understand because it was so random, but they emailed me. And I remember telling Alex, I was like they want me to be like a backstage host. I don't really understand why they are emailing me.'Cause I've never hosted anything that's like online, like publicly. And I ended up taking it and then I did it, like, you know, did the audition process, I got it. And I remember the Wednesday before the Game Awards, it's always on a Thursday, the Wednesday before, I realized, I didn't know how to read a teleprompter. And I was going to have to read it for the first time live.- That is a skill.- Yes, it is a skill that at that point I wasn't sure whether or not I had. I mean, I think maybe it was Tuesday because Wednesday was the dress rehearsal. But I remember telling Alex, I was like,"Oh my god,"I thought it'd be way easier to find a teleprompter." Like I was probably planning on practicing but they're really expensive, and I can't, like, I don't understand this. I did it and I loved it. And I had to go back to Buzzfeed on Friday. And I remember just being like, oh, my job sucks now. Even though prior, I loved my job and I loved my time at Buzzfeed, but I was just like, I want to be doing that. And then actually that was around the same time that you DM'd me a link. And I can't remember what you said. But it was like, "I think it'd be so great for this." And it was a link to the IGN job, but it's so funny because IGN is owned by Ziff Davis. And so the link is like Ziff Davis something or other. And I remember kind of putting off looking at it because I was like, I don't want to like leave Buzzfeed to go work for some like random company. Like I don't want to do that. And then I clicked on it. I was like, oh, it's IGN, like I should apply.- Yeah, I remember it's funny because someone actually sent that link to me being like, "You should apply for this."- No way!- Yeah, but I looked at it and I was like, no, like I looked at and was like, Sydnee is perfect for this. And so I sent it to you and I just remember thinking like, she will get this if she goes after it.- That's so funny.- It's funny because like, there are some things to me that just seems so obvious, especially whenever it comes to people in my life and like where they tell me where they want to be. And like, I remember you, we, I think we're at like a engagement party, right? And like, you know, I think this is whenever you were starting to like want, like right after Game Awards and wanting to do more hosting. And so as soon as I saw this, I was like her knowledge, her, like, you have natural talent. And the fact that like, you didn't, like, my degree is in broadcast journalism. I was a reporter. Like, that's like what I like trained my life for. But like, for you, like, you were like, I want to do this. And you started doing, and you wanted to be a surgeon. So I think it's really cool. Like, it's something that's worth like knowledge, acknowledging that like, you know, another thing too, that you mentioned that I think is really, really important is that you raised your hand and like you started like making efforts to like, be involved in things outside of your full-time job at Red Bull, which a lot of people don't know, but that's how the gaming program got started at Red Bull back in the day.- Actually, you know what? You have told me that story.- It's funny, like some of our stories like coincide so well, so like just a little history, like the back in like 2010, I was working at Red Bull. And so was someone named Sam who is now my husband. Like spoiler alert. Two Red Bull romances here. And, but he and I had worked for Red Bull in college. I was a reporter and then I went back to the company and he's like,"Hey, have you ever worked with our gamer, Walshy?"I want to do an event with him, but no one at," he was at headquarters here in Los Angeles. I was in Atlanta. He's like, "No one gets gaming." Like no, no one did, it was 2010. Like no one understood it.- I feel like sometimes people still don't.- I know right? But I was like, yeah, I'll do it. You know, I'm hungry. Like I want to do more. And like the very first Red Bull event I ever did in college was support a Major League Gaming event in Orlando that Walshy was at in 2006.- Oh my gosh!- And then four years later did this event, like super grassrooted. Just flew out a couple of Halo teams, Twitch wasn't even a thing. We streamed it on live stream TV and ended up getting more viewership, more traffic, more engagement to this, like in a, in a conference room at headquarters than anything that we'd really done up to that point. So we started getting petitioning for more money. And like, it was a side hustle. We still, like an internal side hustle. We still had our full-time jobs to deliver on. And then it grew into what it is today. So, you know, I look back and like, that's something, I mean, that was a special time, you know. We had Walshy, we had Enable, and Flamesword and I picked Enable up from detention in high school. Yes.(Sydnee laughing) Yes. I remember seeing him do an interview. I was like, he has like, that is, that's our next Red Bull gamer. Like I just remember watching him with an LRG shirt on, some dunks, like just had so much like confidence. Like what 15 year old has this kind of sweat? But yeah, whenever we signed him. So we typically do kind of like a welcome initiative, right? Like a video. And we ended up getting, we had a, Red Bull had a NASCAR team at the time. We brought like the street legal car to like Ian's high school in Delaware. And we wanted to pick him up. And like the parent-- He was on Red Bull?- Yes in Halo. Yeah.- I literally have only recently met him in person, because I've been doing the 100 Thieves stuff. And he's like one of the funniest people I've ever met.- He's one of my favorite. He's like, I consider him my child.- Oh my gosh, he's lived a life.- Yes, I mean, going from like pro Halo and he won like national championships and then going to, I'm so proud of him and he's still so young, you know?- He really is.- He's still in his 20s so it's incredible. But yeah. So you find a company that empowers you to raise your hand and say, "I want to try this." And like, and I want to work in other departments like what you did and that's how you're going to get, like, experience. That's how you're going to learn the most. And I think that's really like a testament for your story.- I think that I was just really, and it wasn't something that I was like, I mean, I guess I was consciously doing it, but you know, I spoke a little bit about how frightened I was about going kind of this non-traditional very amorphous path and it is still something that really stresses me out sometimes. But I think that it was like with Red Bull, the reason I loved Red Bull and wanted to work there so bad out of college was because I saw that. It felt like they just fostered so much, so many ideas, and weren't really afraid of like, okay, well, like let's try that. Or let's, you don't work in this department, go over there and see if you like it. And I remember telling my manager, Paul, and was like,"Hey, I think I want to do more on camera stuff." And he said, he was like,"Well, you can't do that in this department."And I don't know how much I can help you, but like,"if you have, if you find things that you can do,"like we'll move your schedule around"so that you can do it." And so I think it's just really finding people who like you can add, who can advocate for you and making those opportunities and almost like building an internal team of like advocators and then just like making moves, like making things happen.- I mean, it's a good point. Like, that's one thing I wish I had had learned and really like held myself accountable to more like early in my career is to find people who are just as hungry as you are and want to hype you up, you know? Like I know so many people, like going back to like someone sending an opportunity to me that I knew you would be better for, right? It's like there's room for everyone at the table. And the more that we like help each other get where we know we want to be, the more we're going to have people helping us get to where we want to be too. I think that's the biggest thing with networking. It isn't can you help me? It's how can I help you, right? And so I think if that's a mentality that you can take in while still hustling, having your, your goals and your vision in mind, but being like, how can I help people on the way, right? Like, that's, what's going to create a community around you of people who are going to continue to lift you up and help you keep making your next move, you know?- Totally, well and I think in line with networking, that's something that I, this whole podcast I'm like wow Sydnee, good job, because I'm not very good at taking the moment and being like, wow, like that was really cool that I did that. Or I'm really proud of myself for doing that. Like, I'm kind of just like, like speed boating through everything. And something I am really good at is networking. And I think it's because I don't think of it as networking. I think I'm just a generally very curious person and I care a lot about people. And I think that that's how you build those relationships where people can sense if you're just like,"Hey, I want to talk to you," because like you have a lot of followers or like, you have a lot of, you know, you have this high up position and you can help me. I think people can kind of smell that. But if you're genuinely just like,"Wow, you're like so interesting." And like, "Let's go to lunch and just like talk about life." And then one day, 'cause like you said, we literally met at an engagement party and I maybe we talked a little bit about work because it was like a work adjacent engagement party. But really, I think we were just chatting about things. I remember your hair was short then and like super cute. And you were wearing this really cute outfit. And I know that we probably spent more time talking about your outfit than we did about any sort of work thing. But that, even that like quick connection was enough for you to think of me when you got that link.- Yeah and I just, I don't know, that's always been a core value that I hold myself accountable to and some people jump on it and like, "Thanks." And other people like, "Why are you trying to help me?" And that's okay, you know, like what do you want with like sending me this link? But for me, it's just like, I just want to see people who like, it's not like sending you the link means that I'm giving you a job. I'm presenting an opportunity to you that like I would've hated if like a month had gone by and I hadn't sent it and you were like damn I wish I had known about this position, I would have applied for it, you know? And it's something as simple as like a one minute text message, you know, so.- It's funny though.'Cause I remember opening the DM at Buzzfeed and I was like a little frustrated just with some things that were going on there. And I was like, "Oh my gosh, I'm going to apply to this." And I like just sat in the corner and like edited my reel for like probably two weeks on Buzzfeed's time. Sorry, Buzzfeed. And was just like sneakily kind of just like in the corner editing on my laptop and oh my gosh, I grinded so hard to like make a website and do the whole thing. Oh man. Oh, that audition process was rough though.- Really?- Well, because I think since I was pretty, I was green as a host, like I had done, at that point, like quite a few videos with Buzzfeed, but I feel the Buzzfeed on camera persona is a lot more like a creator or a Twitch streamer. It doesn't really have the skillset that a host would. And so they wanted me to do quite a bit of freelance work for them first in addition to like going in and doing audition stuff. And so I want to say like I applied in December or maybe early January and then they reached out sometime in January and I had been doing freelance stuff for them until April. And then April, I finally was like,"I have like another job offer"so like you got to let me know." I didn't even know if I made it past the first round. Like that was, I had no idea what was going on.- Yeah.- And finally I was just like,"Hey, listen, I really want this job,"but I am about to sign a two year contract with Buzzfeed."So like I don't,"I don't sign contracts with the intention to break them,"but I am going to be unavailable for about two years."So please let me know."- Yeah.- And it worked, they were like, oh wow. We randomly have an answer for you. And it's like, you were sitting on that that whole time?- Yes. I can't tell you how many times. It's such a gamble too, you know? But at the same time, it's like, if you're sincere, like obviously you were sincere. Like I have another opportunity. And then there's always that like, oh shit, now we got to like get her in so.- But it's funny because I did rush the process. So when I first started at IGN, they had no idea what to do with me because apparently the job that I was applying for was for a host position specifically in entertainment, which I like watch things. But I, the film and TV that I am attracted to isn't really the IGN audience. Like I'm a lot more like dramas. And I remember they hired somebody else for that role and they ended up hiring me. They were like, "We're going to need another host"eventually, so like, I guess we'll hire you." And so my first week at IGN, I was literally just sitting around and I was like, I don't know, like nobody knew what to do with me. And then it probably took like six months before I had like consistent things to do. And that was just because we started The Daily Fix on Snapchat. And so it was like, oh, Syd, do this. I was like okay.- And here you are today.- And here am I.(gentle upbeat music)- Move Makers is made possible by Paidia Gaming. Paidia empowers women and allies of all genders to safely connect, learn and play. When you join Paidia, you're unlocking access to an inclusive and kind gaming community, tournaments from your favorite content creators and competitors, along with exclusive content aimed at taking your gaming skills to the next level. Make sure you head over to paidiagaming.com today to sign up and follow along on social media @paidiagaming.(gentle upbeat music) Making the move from full-time to going out on your own. And now it's been what like six months, right?- Six months, yeah.- How, how are you liking it?- It's amazing and terrifying all at the same time. I think I'm still doing a lot of unlearning of that kind of like very corporate environment. I actually, this week was talking to my therapist about kind of I had a lot of boundaries around me at IGN in terms, whether they were like, whether they were like explicitly communicated or it was kind of just implied that I feel like stifled my creativity. But you know, when you work for a company, they have an idea of the role that you're supposed to fill and it's helpful if you fill that role. And so it's been really interesting to break that down, but then at the same time, some days I'm just like, wow, this is so cool. Like I just get to stream all day. Like I've been streaming now for seven years. And sometimes that looked like streaming once a month. Sometimes that looked like streaming, you know, when I was in college, I was streaming like 40 hours a week. And now it's like, oh, I can just do that. And I don't have to give it whatever my leftover energy is. It's really exciting to like bring my full self to every project that comes in front of me. And I guess I'm also learning that no thing. I'm not as good about that. I say yes to everything.- It is just as important to say no as it is to say yes, and that's, it is difficult. Like, so, you know, I couldn't, I was a consultant for about six years and at first I felt like I had to take everything, but then I reached this point where I was like, I like took a, pumped the brakes. I like looked at the amount of time I was spending where, and it was like here's where I bring the most value. Like here's what people seem to need the most from me. And like, I'm one of like three people they can hire for these things. So I like doubled my rate, you know, and I took on less work, but I, it wasn't that I wasn't working less hard. I just was being more strategic.- Yes, I feel like the strategy element of all of it is so interesting because even, and I'm still figuring out the best way to use my time, but like, I've started doing some game development work and that's been amazing. And that's something that I obviously couldn't do when I was at IGN. And even if they did let me, like, I definitely wouldn't have had the time or the creative space to do it, but I'm just kind of saying yes, and I've taken, I gave myself, I'm giving myself until the end of the year to say yes to kind of everything and see what I like. And then I'm going to sit down and kind of evaluate like this I liked, let's say I give five out of 10 and it took like however much hours of my time, and this is how much money I made and kind of just understand where I'm spending my time, where I like spending my time and how much money I'm making with my time and then go from there.- Yeah. I think another thing is maybe to start thinking of is what can you make that becomes like passive income? I think that's a big thing with creators that you could do, whether it's like Lightroom filters or like, you know, stickers or just things that like are kind of, you spend time on, you make once, and then they're in the shops.- You stick it there.- Yeah.- Figuratively or literally, I don't know. I haven't decided yet.(Sydnee and Audrey laughing) But yeah, it's been really, it's been cool. It's been a little scary for obvious reasons, but I think it's also been really exciting because as we've mentioned, I'm married and it's been like a fun journey for us because I think I am somebody who has always prided myself as being like fiercely independent. And it's like, you're really successful. And I want to stand on my own and like be able to do my thing and to take advantage of our partnership sort of? I mean, take advantage maybe isn't the most eloquent way of saying it, but it's really special, I think, to recognize that it's like, wow, like I feel so empowered knowing that you're here with me both from an emotional standpoint, but also like a financial standpoint. It's great that we still have health insurance. And that's not to say that it's impossible to do this on your own if you aren't in a partnership. But I think that it's really been like a very special added bonus to really look to your side and be like, well, I'm not really doing this fully alone.- I can completely relate to that. Very similar kind of mindset. Like, I don't know. And I'm glad you say partnership because I know there are times, Sam and I say the same thing, like, yes, we're married, we're husband and wife. We are partners and everything, no decision goes made without like being aligned, even if we don't agree, you know? And it is something that I never, you know, we've been married, it'll be nine years in May. Which is kind of psh to me, like to think, but just think about like the last like nine years and like where we started and where we are. I get so excited thinking about 18 years.- That's a good point, I've never thought about that.- I feel like we're just so solid. And I feel very, very like privileged for my partnership, you know, like, because we really, really support each other in a way that I've never experienced and I don't see very often either.- Totally well, I, so Alex actually had been encouraging me to leave IGN for probably like close to year, like that whole year, maybe even a little bit before that. And it was like, he wasn't pushing me, but it was always just like, you know, you could do this on your own. And like, you could have a lot more time to yourself because remember I was saying like, I was really struggling with burnout those last couple of years at IGN and the day that, it was so weird, one day I just was like, "Hey, Alex,"I think I'm going to quit." Like, I think I'm going to do this. Like, it was just like one day I went to bed, and was totally chill. And then the next morning I woke up and I was like, I think now's the time. And it was just really amazing to have somebody that's like, "Yeah, you should do that!"If you think that you should do that,"then like you should do that." And just, I mean, whether that person is like a friend, whether it's one of your parents or brother or sister or whoever that person is in your life, I just feel like it's really special to surround yourself with, like we were saying earlier, like hype, people who are just there to hype you up. But also you know aren't just like blindly, you know, blow, what is that saying? Blowing smoke up your ass? Where they're just like,"Wow, you're so great," yeah.- No, I feel it was kind of similar. We were on vacation and I remember waking up and being like I have to put in my notice whenever I get back. And I think it's something too. It's like, this is no shade on like either of the companies we were at, this was totally just like, I got to a point where I was like I can't do this anymore. Like, I've got to like take back control and make a change, but Sam's so funny. Cause he's also like my biggest hype. He's like, "Yeah!"Yes!"You do that." He's like, "I'm so glad," because like, for him it was so obvious that it needed to happen. But he didn't want to push it because we're strong. We gotta, we gotta come there on our own, you know?- No, but that's totally, I think important is it's such a personal decision. Like nothing really in my position at IGN changed between the day that I decided that I wanted to leave and a couple years before that, like really there had been minimal change, but it was just, it was, it's a personal growth thing where I think I got a lot of clarity on what was important to me. And for me, I defined success kind of, I think this was to, to kind of wrestle with the fact that I felt so uncomfortable not having that very rigid path line of like successes, being a surgeon and like owning a practice. And so, because I mean, the gaming creator, I mean, creator in general space is so new. We don't know what a successful creator at age 50 looks like who's grown up in the industry. I don't know what that position looks like. And so I really sat down and defined success in terms of like what does success mean to me? And it was having control over my time and having control over like my money and how I make money and feeling very secure in a idea of just like, okay, like I'm going to spend this money because I know I can make more. And I realized that working for a company isn't control of my time and I'm spinning out trying to make time for all of these exciting opportunities and projects. And just one day it became very clear kind of the decisions that I had to make to get closer to my definition of success.- And I'm glad you brought up money because I think it's something that like, to me, like I have no problem talking about money and I want to empower women to feel more comfortable to talk about their finances. Because I think, you know, for us, like, it's always like, well, like don't want to come off boastful or like, it's like, no, no, the bag is the most important thing. And it's for anyone where it's not, you are a privileged person, right? So it's like we can't make it seem like making money isn't the most important thing, because really, it is. Like, yes, you want to be happy. You want to like celebrate your passions. But at the end of the day, you got to-- It's a job. And I feel like, I would imagine the definition of job in there probably has something to do with making money to pay for things that you need to survive.- 100%, so with that, like what's, like now that you are in control of your finances, what is kind of like your money moves that you're making or like things that you're prioritizing for your finances?- Yeah, I mean, right off the bat I knew I did not want to take a pay cut leaving IGN. And so the bare minimum for me was like this is how much I need to make per month so that I can still contribute in the same way to like our overall household income. And we don't have to like make any changes. And then after that, I kind of looked at where do I want to grow my business? And like, what do I need to do to get there? And so part of that was like hiring editors and kind of thinking about how much time do I spend editing. I actually really love editing. I'm just a slow editor and it's, there's no shortcuts really in editing I feel. It's just, it's going to take you however much time it takes you. So I think it's really, for me, was thinking about and being okay with spending money. I grew up in a household that was very like save and then spend oriented. I feel like I just was always very, what is that? The abundance mindset and whatever the opposite of abundance mindset is. Like scarcity, I guess? Like a scarcity mindset. Which is interesting because I am so thankful for the childhood that my parents have given me. I mean, we grew up extremely comfortable. Like it was amazing, but I think that there was always this mindset that, at least I picked up from somewhere that it's like, oh, I'm not worthy of spending. Which is really interesting because I felt like I hadn't worked hard enough or I wasn't successful enough. And this is a tangent from the question you initially asked, but I bought a Porsche. I bought a Porsche and I struggled with it so hard because I felt like I hadn't worked hard enough to have, to drive such a nice car. And I don't know, maybe you're listening to this and you're like, you're so young. Like you have, maybe you have your own thoughts about it. Cool, you're welcome to have that. But I think for me, I had so many thoughts around like, I didn't deserve this, I didn't work hard enough for this. Like we don't own a house, why would I drive such a nice car? Like it was just this whole interesting thing, a lot comes out with money. I think that's another reason why people don't talk about it because it just unravels like all of your guts about how you feel about yourself, where's your worth, where are you putting value. And buying that car, I think, to me proved that it was like, it was such a reminder every day that I got in the car drive to work. This was when I was still at IGN. But every day that I got in a car to drive to work, it was such a reminder of like, no, like I'm doing the things that I set out to do. Like it's okay to reward myself. It's okay to spend money. And the reason why I brought that up is because I think leaving IGN and not having the security of a regular paycheck, I was really like, I don't know. Should I like get an, I don't know that I should get another editor. I don't know that I should spend money in having a TikTok editor. But I also know I don't have time to cut down my streams every day into TikToks. And realizing like it's okay to spend money. And it's been helpful to have that mindset that I was telling you about that it's like, when I spend money, I will make more. I know how to make more money.- It's also a good investment. You know, you're probably going to get more ROI whenever it comes time to like trade in that car or-- Especially now I'm, it's time, so I actually leased the car and my lease is up in May and we were, originally, I was like, oh, we'll just give it back and like get a new car, it's fine. But now there's such a car shortage. We're going to buy it and sell it back to them! Who would have thought like a nice car would have actually turned out to be an okay investment.- Yeah, no, absolutely. No, but I think that's the other thing too. It's like making like those and even with like handbags, like I feel I'm like, whenever I'm at a point where I want a new bag, what is the ROI on this bag? You know, like I like, I go in like with an ROI mentality and like anything that I spend money on. And I also like know what the value of my hour is. And so I base a lot of things on that. So it's like, my hourly rate is X and I'm like, it's funny 'cause my dad, I get groceries either delivered or I'll pick them up. Like, we'll have Instacart shop for them because I hate grocery shopping. But also, I feel like it's a waste of time if I can prevent it. And so my dad, I remember the first time he was like,"Oh, that's so lazy." I was like, "No, no, it's strategic."And I'm making the most of my time because I'm going to pay"this much of, you know,"for what like an hour of my time is." So if you start thinking about it that way it helps a lot too.- I definitely, I do the same thing selectively, maybe cause sometimes I don't want to think about it. I am like a designer bag. I love, I have like a collection. I've been collecting them since I was a kid. Like, love it. But so I don't, I don't think about it that way with those. Because it would probably just make me sad, but in terms of Alex and I started getting, sending our laundry out to be done. And I really struggled with that because I was like, this feels so unnecessary. Like this feels so bougie. I should just do the laundry, which I think is so interesting because it's like, I don't think anyone cares about my, how we do our laundry. No one even knows. It's just a thing between Alex and I. Like, it's not, literally, if I didn't tell you that we sent our laundry out, I don't think anyone is thinking about how my clothes got washed, right? But it was this weird thing where I was just like, oh, like, it's so like, that's so lazy. I can't believe we're spending money on this. But then we priced it out and it's like, oh my gosh, like our hour between Alex and I, like our hour is worth so much more money to be spending that resting so that we can be more productive and more present when we're working or when we're with our friends or whatever it is. Like it's worth it. If you are financially in a place where you can invest in certain areas to buy that time back, like it's worth, it's really worth it.- It's absolutely worth it. And I think it's something that like you work up to. Like you get to a point in your career where you're like I need to evaluate the best use of my time. And the things that I can do to make more time for the things that make money. And so if that means sending out your laundry, using Instacart, or like having lunch like delivered a couple of times a week, like do that.- Totally and I think it's also something because I feel like I want to have some self-awareness that I get how ridiculous, like my problems are, that I'm like, wow. I was really sad about buying my nice car and about sending my laundry out. It was really hard for me. Because I just want to like vomit at the fact that I just said that. But I think it's just, it's really important to look at and really break down what was going on for me with those decisions, which is how much of like, just how much bullshit I was telling myself about my value, my worth, my time, my, how I should or shouldn't spend money. And I think that it's so easy, being a woman in society, being a woman in a workplace, to absorb everyone around you, their ideas about how you should act or how you are or how you should be. And I struggle with that, is that it's like, I've worked at these companies that are all, I was normally the only woman in the room. And you pick up on that. And I think it's important to become aware of where that's showing up in your life in work, but also beyond work, right?- Then also knowing like, being able to identify it internally and like actually getting to a point, like me in my mid-20s, acknowledging those things and just keeping to myself and now me and my 30s, seeing those things and being very vocal about correcting them. And so I think there's also, there's just that growth, you know, too. But it's also to a point where it's like, shit, like how many more time? Like when am I going to not to say these things or have to remind people of these things?- I would love to hear your perspective on this because I oscillate between wanting to correct people and then sometimes wanting to save my energy. And it's tough because it's like, okay, well, how selfish is it that I don't want to correct this person? And you know, there's a respectful way to correct people. And to let them know that it's like, that's not really okay to say to me or anyone. So I don't know. It's like, I try to protect my energy sometimes, but then other times it's like, if I could say this to somebody so they don't say it to somebody else, then I think that's also very important. How do you distinguish?- Well, I think so much of like, my experience has been in a corporate setting, so I have to be careful. And I also have to make sure that like, my only goal in anything that I do, especially as, you know, with more like my marketing background is that everyone sees themself represented. And so like more often than not, I'm trying to get people to understand that like there's an audience beyond who you look like that we need to like connect with. Now that I'm kind of in this situation, I want to put myself in control to be able to work with groups like Paidia and like groups that really like get it and want to like empower diverse groups of people and bring in different perspectives and share diverse stories. Like I've always, like I get so bored with the same stuff. And like there's so much to learn and like so many stories that are different. And I think the more that those stories are shared and represented, the more I hope organic learning just comes to be. Because if we start seeing more and we start prioritizing representation, we start prioritizing like giving opportunities to people who don't look like me. And like, it's going to continue to change conversations and evolve conversations so people are just more educated. And I think that's like, that's really important, you know? So for me, it's, I think, I need to do some, like, I feel like I always have room to grow in how I communicate because I'm just naturally a little aggressive in that, but that's just my personality. But at the same time, I also know that if I want people to grow and to learn with me, then I need to like stop expecting everyone to know what I know.- Yeah, I feel like that's such a big one.- Yeah.- It's interesting, so this is a tangent that we don't have to go down, but it sounds like for you, it feels like there's such a clear mission statement in terms of that guides like you taking all of your opportunities. Which I think is really, I don't know. I think it's really important. And I just think also it's really helpful. And that was advice that was given to me by actually, I was just like working on a show with her. Janina Gavankar, she's the best. And she was talking to me about my career. I don't know why she was talking to me about my career, but she's just like, "Hey, like let's talk about this." And she was like, "You should find,"like think about a mission statement"and let that guide you." And I really took that to heart. And so for me, it's this idea of every opportunity, every piece of content that I make, I want to kind of all lead back to this and this to be just like the thesis statement of my career. Which is like, I want to share my story and the stories of others in order to empower people to get out of the boxes that they either put themselves into or are put into by other people. And so that is kind of this thing where it's like, yeah, I really love video games. I also love sports. I also love fashion. And I mean, even just stopping, I have a lot of other interests, but even just stopping there, like those three aren't really supposed to go together. And I don't know, I think that that's been very helpful for me in like making decisions, making moves in feeling comfortable with what am I doing.'Cause I think a lot of times I look at my career and I'm kind of like, oh my gosh, I'm a little all over the place. What does this mean? But it's like, well actually, no, it's all joined by that idea.(gentle upbeat music)- Why don't you share what we can expect next from you? And also tell everyone where they can find you.- Yeah. I wish that I could say more about what to expect next for me. I feel like I'm under like NDA for everything. But keep a look out because I'm definitely doing things, but in terms of things that I can speak more about, I work on my own content and I post on YouTube, Twitch, TikTok, like Instagram, all of those. I'm sydsogood across the board. sydsogames on YouTube is my second YouTube channel where I mostly just post game stuff. And then I stream on Twitch Tuesday through Friday, 1:00 PM,
Pacific, 4:00 PM Eastern,
and then Mondays at 3:30 PM Pacific.- Awesome, well thank you so much for your time. I loved our conversation, I think I learned so much.- Could have kept talking for awhile.(gentle upbeat music)- My biggest takeaway from my conversation with Sydnee is that she is fearless. Fearless in raising her hand to pursue new things, fearless in communicating her goals with others, fearless in putting herself out there to help turn those goals into a reality. And I hope that connects with you as a listener. So often, the little voice inside of our head talks us out of the things that we tell ourselves we want to do, talks us out of our dreams before they even really stand a chance. And it makes me think what if we turned that voice from "that'll never happen" to "wouldn't it be great if it did?" So as you go about your day, make a mental note to flip that little voice inside of your head from the pessimist that it's used to being into your biggest fan. Raise your hand to try something new, put yourself out there, and don't be afraid to communicate your goals. And get out there and make your move.(gentle upbeat music)