0:00

Hi, and here we are at G-Men's office talking to two amazing women.

0:05

We're kicking off Women's History Month with these women, talking about some of the things that you guys have accomplished in life, as well as the work that we do through G-Men, through Tap 2 G-Men.

0:18

So I just want an opportunity, and I'm Thanya Tumor-Base and I am the director of the program for Tap 2 G-Men here in Atlanta, and we are located at the right center in downtown Atlanta.

0:30

So, kailin, tell us a little bit about yourself.

0:34

Well, my name is Kailin Gilstrap and I'm a photographer.

0:37

I am, well, a photographer and owner of Kailin Gilstrap Photography, and I specialize in portraiture and thoughtful storytelling.

0:46

I do this both commercially and for passion projects of my own.

0:51

Wow, wow, I have an opportunity to talk to her.

0:54

Her energy was just so genuine and I said, oh my goodness, what can we do for you?

1:01

And she began to explain some of the things that she had a challenge with, and it happened to be in the legal service area and I was saying this is usually a challenge for our entrepreneurs.

1:12

I got to get her with the right person, you know, and the first one that came to mind, you guys, was Ella Keisha.

1:18

You know, I've seen her work.

1:20

I've seen her really be passionate about the work that she does, but she's good at what she does as well.

1:27

I think your experience, along with the cultivating of how you have handled your customers, second to none.

1:34

I'm just glad to have you on the team and to team you up with her.

1:38

I thought would be ideal. So let the people know a little bit about you.

1:41

Well, thank you for that Again.

1:43

Yes, I'm Ella Keisha O'Kelly. I am an ownership attorney is what I reference myself as meaning that I help small business owners and entertainers, creatives and athletes with their ownership in business deals.

1:57

So that's intellectual property, real property and personal property.

2:00

I call that the other trinity that helps to elevate you and prosper you.

2:05

And for me, I'm happy brought up the word experience, so it's more than just you know, book read or experience on the legal side.

2:12

I experienced this on the actual experiential side right.

2:16

So as a former professional athlete, as a daughter of a mother who's an independent artist and as a serial entrepreneur thrown up, I bring that side of compassion and empathy into what I do in providing legal services as well.

2:30

Yeah, I think that's. I think that's part of what we call the secret solve.

2:34

That's the secret solve that we do as a team.

2:37

We really represent that piece of authentic in what we do for the community.

2:43

It's not just saying I'm good at this, I'm just going to do this for you.

2:48

We're really concerned about you succeeding as a business owner, you know so.

2:53

Have you had any challenges, you know, with being a woman photographer in that, in that industry?

3:02

Oh well, yes, but I have been in this industry for 18 years and when I started it, you know it still is male dominated, but definitely when I began and I'm small I think it's fair to say I'm five one and I'm slight so I was often told that I would not make it just because of how I looked.

3:27

So, yeah, certainly, absolutely, and I mean, people just have conceptions that they don't easily let go of, and I definitely felt like I had to prove myself.

3:42

Did you have support through that process?

3:45

Oh yeah, that's the wonderful thing and it's like it's the same of how I came to G-Men is just people come across your path, and it's definitely how I feel about Alakisha.

3:56

People come across your path right when you need them.

3:59

And I came to G-Men after having some anxious nights worrying about things that I didn't know, and actually we spoke of this as like you don't know what you don't know, and that's what kind of was the fear eating at the back of my head, right, right.

4:22

I felt that that's what you needed, some answers you know some directions on that, so what did you take in your first steps to work?

4:30

with her First steps. What I took with her is I take with any individual is to get to know her and her situation.

4:35

Right, I work with tons of photographers, tons of it but there's one, katelyn, there's one, this, one, that.

4:42

So I have to get in that moment and be present in that moment and hear that particular client.

4:49

So when we had our first Zoom meeting, I had to hear Katelyn, what are your priorities, what are things, what are you thinking?

4:56

And then I had to expound on that because, like she just said, you know what you know.

5:00

So even when she say her priorities, maybe that's her priorities because something she doesn't know.

5:05

So I hear what her priorities are, where you want, where's the end game?

5:09

And then I expound our conversations from there.

5:11

We continue to grow on what you possibly don't know.

5:14

And then it's like I didn't think of that. I didn't think of that.

5:16

But that's what I did is just get to know who Katelyn is and I could even feel not just your needs.

5:21

I pay attention to body language, I pay attention to what you're saying and what you're not saying.

5:24

Face your expression. So I know how you possibly may feel about this particular process.

5:30

So that's where the first thing I started was just to get to know Katelyn.

5:33

Yeah, and I think that's important, when you read the room, you read the person you're working with a part of before I even assigned to my team, because I'm going through that first layer of getting to know you, getting a feel of what the challenge is, not just the deliverable, but you as a business owner, so that alignment and putting you with the right person makes the whole process a little bit more.

5:58

Like you said, get ready. This is going to make you a little uncomfortable, but trust the process, as Alakisha said, and so that was important to put you in that space.

6:08

So, as women, I think that we have a gift to feel the room.

6:16

We have a gift to discern or to pick up on things that normally it's not just the paper status quo.

6:24

I think that's a part of what makes us very effective at what we do.

6:28

Do you find that when you work with your photography?

6:33

Oh, absolutely, and I specialize in people and everybody needs something different, and so you definitely come into spaces and you're trying to get a feel of what that person needs to kind of unwear and feel comfortable in front of a camera, which is not a natural thing, and that's what I tell everyone.

6:55

I'm like, hey, this doesn't, it doesn't have to be something that you're natural at.

7:00

This is something that you and I are gonna work at and like we're gonna figure it out together, which was how I felt with Alakisha immediately.

7:09

Yes, and I'm happy you said that together because, like she just mentioned, coming in anxious but leaving empowered, and I can feel when that transition was happening and when I felt that it was time for me yes, I'm bringing my expertise, I'm bringing my knowledge, but you have a say too and I can help curate what you're saying.

7:26

And then, as we went through the process, it was like, well, what about this?

7:30

Well, what about that? Yes, we can take that and this is how we're gonna make it look.

7:33

So it became more of working together, while making sure that I guided with my expertise and skills.

7:39

So, because I want you to be able to understand any of my clients, to be able to understand when I'm not there, you should be able to stand on your own too.

7:47

Right To at least have that conversation about this thing, never have to be dependent on the one who did it for you.

7:53

So we had a conversation so you can understand every provision, and then even inserted and collaborated on how some provisions look by time.

8:01

Then and you was like, hey, what about this? Absolutely, this looks good, this looks good.

8:07

So, working together, I had to pull that out, highlight what you just said together, and I think that is what makes it powerful is you may, as a small business owner, need help.

8:18

We've got resources to help fill gaps, to make your whole.

8:21

So you're getting closer and closer. Every year you have a new milestone that you might try to work towards, but those foundational pieces we want to make sure are solid so you can do what you do so well.

8:31

And so when you're willing to work with the resource and you guys go and harmony with that, I think that's just the perfect thing.

8:39

That's the ideal model, what I would want people to understand and know about what we do.

8:45

So if you gave me two things that you could do as a takeaway as a TA, what would you think?

8:50

Two things are most important for what we do.

8:53

The two things. Well, first of all, with GMIN, impact right, I mean, that's how we even connected, like you have to go in with intention and your intentions to impact, and when you have your attention, you can go all all the way back to figure out how do you reach this impact.

9:09

And so the two things to take away is, like you said, matching, listening, you already doing Jiman is already doing what I do before even comes to me which is getting to know the person here in the person, see where you need to go.

9:22

So that's the one thing. And then the next thing is just make sure, just staying in touch with it, like what the process?

9:28

To stay engaged. You know, stay engaged, how's everything?

9:31

Oh, is it this? And making sure that we just got our eyes and cross our teeth while we're building that relationship.

9:36

So those two things is being aligned on the reason, the intention, and then staying engaged.

9:42

Yeah, that's powerful. What would you say from a business owner's perspective receiving a service?

9:47

The top two things that was most important to you from this experience.

9:51

Well, I would say actually the setting, the setting, the tone of To just second what Ella Keisha said of staying engaged, because when for my brain going in and looking at legal ease, my brain put up a boundary immediately and Ella Keisha, it really helped me.

10:14

I never reached the level of athleticism that she did, but I have had coaches in my past and so I recognized that, that that she was coaching me through it, she was pulling me along and she was also giving us Not like set deadlines, but she's like if we're gonna get through this, you have to stay in it.

10:37

Yes, these guideposts, so that way it's not like we go in blind.

10:40

Yes, so we have these guideposts, we have milestones and it's not set in stone.

10:44

We got to move it, but when you have that, it put us on a track of when we need to meet, what we need to talk about, whatever needs to be done.

10:51

So yeah, that was, that was big, and then there was just an openness to questions.

10:58

Nowhere in the process did I feel like Ella Keisha presented something and then she's like and done, we're done, walk away, right.

11:09

She's like just highlight, let me know any.

11:12

She was there to help me understand and and that just that really took a lot of anxiety away, like because that's what, that's what bothers me about contracts.

11:26

Is there these words that yeah, it's massive, and they just like tie me up in knots?

11:33

Yes, it's overwhelming. And she made it a little less overwhelming, wow.

11:39

And can I just say this yes, what I'm happy about and not happy about, but what is good to even say that you were bothered or anxious about, because some people ignore it, is good that you have your finger on the pulse.

11:51

It was something you're recognizing and, like you said, most people are intimidated about legal for different reasons, right, and so they figure I could push this to the side until I really need it and when I really really need it it's usually in pain and not in gain, and so I love that.

12:06

Then people should recognize what you're saying.

12:08

I was even anxious about this or never. That means that you know that that's a heartbeat of something that you really really take serious and as a passion.

12:17

So I even heard that and me hearing that I knew I had to get you to the finish line on that particular portion.

12:23

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

12:25

Well, ladies, it has been amazing.

12:28

Tap to G-Men is on the map.

12:30

This is what we do Close gaps.

12:32

This is what we do so that people like you and you and myself know that we can get to the other side.

12:39

There's someone there willing to help us every step of the way.

12:42

That's what we do. That's the impact.

12:44

You know so. Thank you so much, ellicastia.

12:47

Is there anything that you can tell the audience about legal, so that they could possibly experience the same thing that Caitlin has About?

12:54

legal. Don't be intimidated. No, you're going to be intimidated, but face that fear.

13:00

We was just having this conversation earlier about bravery.

13:03

There's going to be fear, there's going to be the unknown, but be brave in it, because this is something that is your home.

13:09

You want to build a strong foundation. There's no need to decorate it, paint it, make it look pretty, if they can huff and pluff and blow it down.

13:16

And legal is one of those things that we have to get past the taboo and get to talk to someone that provides it and see if there's a fit like Tap2 does.

13:25

Just find that fit. When you find that fit, it is important for you to excel and have that strong foundation.

13:31

Okay, so Tap2, if you want to reach me through Tap2, then you just go ahead and reach out to Sanya.

13:36

Sanya reaches me directly. We're going to go through Tap2.

13:39

So that's pretty much how you reach me.

13:41

You can request hey, sanya, I've seen Alakisha, I want to talk to Alakisha, let's see if we can work that legal help and then Sanya will make sure that she reaches out to me to get to you.

13:51

And you can catch us at gminorg as well as ACL in business, and you can select us at Tap2.

13:59

And reach out and let us know if we can help you and I just want to clarify that you want to work with Gmin and Alakisha.

14:06

You want to, and I'm Kailin Gillstrap and you can find me at KailinGillstrapcom.

14:13

K-a-y-l-i-n-n-g-i-l-s-t-r-a-p.

14:18

I remembered how to say my name and on Instagram at KailinG.

14:23

Yeah, sounds good.