I didn’t have a budget. Or connections. Or even a fully-formed plan.

What I did have was an idea—and a camera in the corner of a one-bedroom apartment.

This episode unpacks a defining moment from my early YouTube days: how I went from filming solo workouts in my NYC apartment to partnering with one of the most iconic luxury landmarks in Manhattan—The Plaza Hotel. No money exchanged. No backdoor connections. Just a different kind of value.

It’s a story that challenges the traditional playbook:

How do you earn trust… before you have credibility?

How do you create opportunity… when no one’s opening doors?

It turns out, the answer had nothing to do with pitching—and everything to do with perspective.

I stopped asking what I needed, and started solving for them.

That shift became the foundation of what would later become a global curriculum on influence.

Key Reflections from the Episode:

💡 Real influence isn’t bought—it’s built through value exchange

💡 “No budget” can be your greatest creative superpower

💡 Influence starts when you stop leading with your ask

💡 The best partnerships often begin with a problem you didn’t know they had

Let’s open the conversation:

Is paying for posts really “influencer marketing”? Or just modern-day ad spend?

Share your thoughts—I’m listening.

📍Next up: Why Creating Community Trumps Selling Products (Hint: Even Wall Street’s Elite Are Changing The Game)

#InfluenceRedefined #BrandStrategy #NoBudgetBigMoves #ThePlaza #AmandaRussell #ContentWithPurpose #MarketingThatMatters

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