LifeBeat Follow-Up: Judy Tsuei

We’re in the homestretch of these follow-ups! Let’s spend a little time with the remarkable Judy Tsuei. She was a guest on the last episode which was recorded live on July 15, 2021 (watch the episode). Judy is a wonderful writer, and I love her answers here. She brings some magical whimsy to her favorite animal, is clearly already living in the future with her knowledge of cryptocurrency, and all the while, she’s doing good in the world through her podcast, and much more. This Q&A was conducted over email, and Judy provided her answers on May 27, 2022.

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Lizzie: The episode started with questions for all the guests to answer, and the first one was about your favorite plant or flower. For the follow-up, I’d like to know what animal you love the most and why.

Judy: My daughter and her friends recently asked me this same question — I decided to choose a “narwhalicorn.” Because, why not? I think the world could use more magic, faith, and hope right now, so blending a real-life narwhal with a unicorn seems to be my animal of choice at the moment. 

Next, I asked what instant expertise you would like to have. Your response was cryptocurrency. I know that you have been actively learning about this new field. Please tell us more about how you’ve been educating yourself and others about cryptocurrency.

The U.S. traditional financial markets have been in quite an upheaval with a potential recession and bear market on the horizon (some think we’re already in deep). With the ever-evolving impact of Web3 [editor’s note: Web3 is an idea for a new iteration of the World Wide Web based on blockchain technology according to Wikipedia], I’m excited about how storytelling will shift, as the trend is now moving towards an active co-creation of a meaningful narrative. Ultimately, it’s been incredibly worthwhile for me to become more empowered financially and teach my daughter the same, so that she can always have her personal independence to be the kind of global citizen I hope she’ll become.

You shared that when you were little you wanted to be an actress when you grew up. How do you think the marketing/branding/writing field you work in as well as your successful podcast stand up to those dreams of being the star of the show?

I’ve been on a personal inward journey to reframe my mindset around achievements — my entire life has been rooted in external accomplishment, yet because I’m always moving the goal post, I often experience a sense of dissatisfaction and benchmarking my worthiness based on comparison. None of these are helpful when it comes to real mental health! Now, I’m learning how to be in the present moment and find my sense of grounded contentment from simply being and appreciating the seeds I’m planting along the way. Whether my marketing, branding, and writing will continue to unfold in a way that places me front and center for this, I’m most excited at what creative endeavors will come through when I don’t attach expectations to them!

Speaking of your podcast, F*ck Saving Face, when we spoke in July 2021, you were still in your first season. Please tell us how it’s been going since then.

The podcast is now in Season 3 and expanding to be more inclusive of all voices of color. We’ve had prominent innovators and influential thinkers on the show and we’re growing season by season with the number of episode downloads — I’m grateful for the personal emails I receive from listeners around the world who say that something we talked about truly helped them heal, shift their mindset, or grow. We’re now about to hit 9K downloads, which according to industry standards, puts us in the top 30% of podcasts. Again, these are great metrics, but being able to remove the taboo around mental and emotional health has been my most important goal and it’s led to incredible speaking opportunities about health equity! I’m curious about what’s going to unfold as I’ve applied to two prominent grant programs. If the Universe wants it, then this show will continue to grow and serve.

Next we talked about your successful marketing agency, Wild Hearted Words. I believe that’s gone through some evolution as well. Tell us what’s new.

Wild Hearted Words has grown in terms of clientele and team members. In addition, I’m looking to infuse the idea of “play” more into my company as well, offering office hours and workshops that speak to my heart and my audience. We’re also diving into storytelling for Web3. I discovered I’m a top-rated mentor with the Founder Institute (the world’s largest pre-seed accelerator) in San Diego and seeing how I’m able to apply my gift around branding, strategy, and intuitive guidance for individuals looking to achieve their own personal and professional dreams has been extremely rewarding! Here’s to more adventure!

Congratulations on the publication of your book, The Little Book of Tibetan Rites and Rituals. How has it been received? Have you done any book release events or touring?

It was a great practice working with a small publishing house and learning that it was becoming an Audible book, as well! While I didn’t do traditional press events, it’s enabled me to spark conversations for new opportunities. And, I have always wanted to highlight voices that need to be heard and stories that need to be shared, namely when it comes to marginalized populations, so being able to write about Tibet — especially with my cultural familial upbringing in China — was huge.

Please tell us the latest progress on your memoir.

I’ve made tweaks to the proposal to submit it to publishing houses that are aligned to my core values, so it’s an ongoing journey! I’m excited about some off-shoot ideas I have, namely working with younger populations, so follow @wildheartedwords to see where things go.

Please share absolutely anything else you’d like to talk about or promote!

I’ve been diving more deeply into Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) work. To this end, I’ve been asked to be a speaker for global companies about how to be more conscientious and conscious in amplifying voices that need to be heard, bridging cultural divides, and having challenging conversations with compassion. For any company or brand looking to enhance their DEI efforts, I’d love to connect. 

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You hear that, people? Get connected to Judy for your DEI work, your brand storytelling, your mental health, and to just follow her incredible journey! Thanks so much for all you do, Judy, and for telling us all about it. Best of everything to you!