Rubi Skilton is a podcast expert, limb difference advocate, speaker, and entrepreneur, who helped dozens of individuals achieve their goals in life. Rubi was born with a physical difference, and in a world that places so much emphasis on looks, it was easy for her to fall into the victim mentality and live a life of “I wish I could..” But instead, she has used her difference as fuel to become successful and impact others.
In this interview, Rubi and I talk about her brand and how she positioned herself as the foremost advocate for physical difference on the web.
Your brand’s slogan is “flaunt your flaws.” What advice would you give to someone who may see their own flaws as a setback instead of an asset?
This is super normal especially if you aren’t around people who necessarily look like you. So my first advice is to give yourself grace. Then I would search for people who may look like you – this can give you that sense of “I’m not alone”.
However, my biggest advice would be to take a few minutes and sit with yourself, imagine a world where influencers weren’t a thing, everything you’ve heard about beauty and the “perfect” body doesn’t exist.
Pretend like you’ve never seen a tv show or magazine make fun of women for being overweight or different, then look at yourself in a mirror. Would you change anything if you didn’t have any pre-conditioning about what you “should” look like? I personally practice this anytime I feel myself start being so hard on myself.
You transitioned from the music industry to becoming an entrepreneur. What advice would you give to women who are wanting to make a career change but may be anxious about it?
Honestly, just jump into it. Remember that there is never going to be a perfect time to pivot and it’ll always feel scary so why wait? Just go into it. Feeling anxious over it is normal though, and one thing to keep in mind is that nothing is ever permanent. If the pivot doesn’t work out the way you wanted it to, you can always pivot again or go back. You are never stuck.
How have you scaled your podcast from a start-up to a successful entrepreneurial venture?
For me it happened very naturally, I never went into podcasting as a way to turn it into a business. Unlike a lot of other podcast hosts that get sponsors and build a business that way on their podcast, I dove into the industry through the production and management side of it.
I started working with one of my favorite hosts and a Forbes top 40 podcaster, then the word started spreading and I was getting more inquiries, I then started helping other entrepreneurs launch their podcast and in under a year, I went full time.
How were you able to differentiate yourself and your talents in a world full of set expectations?
I didn’t go into it trying to stand out, in fact to this day I really don’t know who my “competition” is out there. I don’t search for other people in the physical difference space nor other podcast production companies.
I do things that feel right and aligned and it’s worked out. I believe that each one of us is so unique and rare that if and when we try to imitate someone else’s success, it is guaranteed to flop in the long run. Don’t do it, do you.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I see myself creating a lot more content around physical differences, running retreats, and hosting summer camps for children with physical differences.
As for my company, Podcast & Co. In 5 years I see us growing into a team of around 10 people, with different departments offering even more of a full service around podcast and video content but of course, still keeping it high-end and personable with our talents.
