Good afternoon, this is Dan. Dan, your payroll man with Landmark Payroll. And this is our first fourth podcast centered around the LGBTQ community, especially when it comes to diversity, equality, and inclusion.

And today, I have one of my very most favorite allies. As I say, allies. We all have allies, and I absolutely love this young lady.

I have Alexis Egoscue. She is the community relations and marketing coordinator for my favorite law firm in the whole entire world, the law firm of Douglas G. Jackson.

Hi, Alexis. Hi, Dan. Would you tell us a little bit about yourself? Sure.

I have been in my role for. It’ll be a year next month, and being in this role, I have gotten to meet a lot of diverse people, been in a lot of different networking events, and really found myself very surrounded with a very lovely community that we have here in St. Petersburg. And other than that, I have two children, I have three dogs, I have a husband, and no free time.

So that’s me. I know that you have no free time. I see you working constantly.

Constantly. But I know that you have done wonderful things for the firm since you’ve joined, and I know that Douglas absolutely adores you just as much as everybody else does. So thank you for being you.

So tell me what you did before you went into. I’m going to just say law. The law world.

Before, I worked for nine years at a company called Bisque Education, and essentially it was helping adults navigate their way through the online platform to have their. To get their master’s degree at the Florida Institute of Technology. So anywhere from helping them fill out their forms, helping them pick out their classes, and just following up with them to make sure that they’re doing the things that they need to be doing and all the way through graduation.

That’s wonderful. That is wonderful. Well, I’ve had the privilege of meeting your whole family, and I absolutely adore each and every one of them.

So, again, I’ll probably say a million times, thank you for being you, Alexis. Oh, thank you so. Oh, and one thing.

As a disclaimer, please feel free to ask me questions. I don’t want you to feel like you are on an interview, so by all means, do, do ask away as questions come up. So I’m going to start off with my very first favorite question.

And what. So the question that I always like to start off with is, what does diversity mean to you in the context of the workplace? Diversity, to me in the workplace would be seeing people who are not like me. That’s diversity for me.

I am a white woman. I love to see people of different races, colors, different, and it shouldn’t be important, but different sexualities. To me, it’s having everyone have a voice, and that is what it means to me.

I agree. I agree 100%. And I was going to go down a road that I went earlier, and I’m not going to, but legislation has just changed for a portion of my community because I do live in the lgb, to be part of the.

The community. But I’m not going to go there with you. I’m going to keep it.

I’m going to keep it on, on a different road. So, Alexis, how do you, how do you think that the LGBTQ community is represented either in. Well, primarily in the workplace, but more so just in Florida, I wanted to say in society.

But let’s just talk about, about how we’re represented in Florida both in and out of the workplace. It’s a great question. I believe that being in St. Pete, we are in a very inclusive area.

So, you know, you walk down the street, you can see, you know, females holding females hands, men holding men’s hands, vice versa, it doesn’t matter. And it seems to me that the area that we are in is an area where I feel like a lot of people feel very safe. Florida, as you know, since you live here, is very different.

So you have northern Florida, south Florida, and then kind of the central area where, where we are. So I think there is a big difference depending on what part of Florida you are in. I think that I see a lot more people being included and people making sure that they are hiring people that are different than themselves.

A lot of the smaller businesses I see as well are getting started startups, so that I’m excited about. But I think generally, overall, this is still a society where a lot of people do not take that as something that is important. So a lot of voices are not being heard.

A lot of very, very intelligent people are not getting a chance because of something that they have no, they shouldn’t have to change, no control over. They are who they are. And it’s unfortunate that that’s kind of how society is right now.

I still look at it as the punishment of the difference that the different people that quote, unquote, don’t fit a particular mold. You know, it’s. It’s unfortunate, like you said.

So. And I can’t, I can’t disagree with anything that you had just said. What I wanted to share with you is prior to moving to Florida, I lived in Atlanta, and Atlanta was my first city outside of New York where I grew up that I actually felt comfortable only in Atlanta, anywhere else outside of Atlanta, Atlanta proper.

You could not express yourself moving to Florida, moving to St. Pete in Tampa Bay. I feel almost that everyone accepts you. But.

But I don’t go and travel to North Florida or South Florida, but I have heard that. That it’s. It’s questionable.

So that’s all I’m going to say. That’s all I’m going to say. But I do.

I do agree with you that. That St. Pete and this area that we’re in here in Tampa Bay is incredibly open and. And accepts and embraces diversity, so.

Well, you are one of my absolute favorite allies. Okay. And I got to speak with another ally earlier today, but you have done so much for the LGBTQ community.

Give me a little reason for your passion when it comes to working with all of us out there. Well, I would say, you know, the why behind the why would be my brother. My brother was part of the community, and growing up, it was very difficult for him.

He got made fun of a lot, even though he wasn’t out. And I got in a lot of fights because of him and not because of him, because of other people who just wanted to say hurtful things, not knowing if he was or was not, you know, it didn’t matter. So it made me angry and that anyone would treat my brother that way.

And, you know, I would love to say that as he got older, it got better, but, you know, he went through a lot. He’s, you know, had hate crime against him. He was beat up pretty badly for walking out of a club, and that’s all he did.

And why anyone should have that happen to them for just walking out of a club, just being them. It kind of brought up this, I hate to say rage, but it did. It made a rage inside me, and I was very upset and angry.

And because of him, I met so many amazing people who, you know, I’m still friends with now. And so, for me, I just really wanted to do something to change it, and I don’t want. And I expect people to not be silent.

I think that’s being passive is not acceptable anymore. You need to be out there. You need to be showing support.

And so, as you know, two years ago, my brother passed away, and then I came upon this job. And I have to say that I am so grateful that I have the career that I have now with Doug, because he supports me and he supports my vision of making sure that we support the community as well. So it’s kind of my why behind the why.

And I just want to make sure I’m doing right by him and doing right by the people that I care about and have known for many, many years. Because we need to be a voice for everyone, not just people like us. No, I agree.

Do you think that your. I don’t want to say involvement, but your protection for your. For your brother? I don’t even.

You came to your brother’s side a lot. Okay. Do you think that fueled the passion that you have today? Yes.

I do, too. I do. I know you.

I’ve gotten to know you. I didn’t know you prior to your brother passing, but in. Sometimes, you know, in losing someone brings other people together, and I think that’s what happened in this case.

And I’m grateful. I really am. I’m grateful to.

To be in your presence and be a part of your world. So you’re so kind. Thank you always for everything.

Thank you. So with that, you brought out a couple of soft points, or actually touchy points, especially with myself, about, you know, how. How we get discriminated and.

And you’re, again, younger than me. In fact, most of my. Most of my guests are younger than me.

But in the amount of working years that you’ve been, you know, employed, do you see that things have gotten better? Do you see that they’ve stayed the same? Have they gotten worse? As far as, you know, inclusivity in the workplace and maybe inclusivity within. Within our city here, has it changed at all? Hmm. I. For.

For what I have seen, I feel like bigger companies, they. They talk a lot about it. They talk a lot about making sure that everyone’s equally represented, but I don’t know how much validity there is behind that.

I think that it’s a numbers game. Right. For them.

I find that people will still have a hard time going to HR for any issues that may arise, because they’re scared, and they’re scared of what the repercussions of that looks like for them again. St. Pete, I think, does a much better job than a lot of places, but I think we have a long way to go, and you need to really start making this more of a priority, and then you’ll start seeing the changes. You know, the changes will start coming when you have a louder voice, but if you’re not giving people
an opportunity to have that voice, then things will remain as they are, and you can’t stay stagnant.

That’s not how you make changes. Yeah. If these businesses continue just to sweep that under the carpet.

Okay. I don’t think that we’re going to see the change that we truly are looking for. I’ve been in HR for 20 something years.

Not certified, but know enough about how HR departments are supposed to handle issues of discrimination, how they are supposed to issue or deal with inclusivity. And I see too often this area just ignored, literally ignored, or don’t talk about it. Don’t bring this up, you know, don’t let this become public.

And as much as I embrace what we call the Human Rights Campaign or the HRC Equality Index, in my opinion, and again, audience, this is just my opinion. It is just a lot of numbers and a lot of check marks and, you know, the proof is in the pudding. You know, does that business or organization truly embrace diversity? So thank you.

Thank you for bringing that to. To my attention or to our attention here. So in the role that you play with the law firm, tell us what you enjoy most about it.

It’s the people. It’s the people I, you know, I have made not just surface level friendships with the people that I get to be around. I have made very deep connections.

And it is. I mean, I get chills. It’s an opportunity that I never thought I would have.

I think that sometimes people need to stop for a moment, give themselves grace and be proud of the things that they’ve accomplished. And for me, I’ve accomplished a good amount. And it’s because of the people that are around me, the people who have pushed me to the top, who have accepted me, who want to see me succeed.

And so it’s. It’s the people I. Being part of the chamber as an ambassador, being a part of different groups, you know, with the EDGE district and the lgbt networking with you has been phenomenal as well. I work with PARC for Center for Adults with Disabilities and just became vice chair there for the Next Gen committee.

So I wouldn’t be able to do these things without someone giving me a chance and someone saying, hey, I enjoy your passion, I enjoy being around you and the feelings mutual. So by far and far, it is, it is the community that we have here. And we are very lucky because we have a lot of really great people that we get to surround ourselves with that are positive and going places.

This is true. This is very true. And you have made the LGBT community very comfortable with yourself and more so with the firm.

I remember a couple years ago when I first met the attorneys over at your law firm and Doug Jackson, who I absolutely adore. I think he’s A phenomenal human being and an even, you know, more phenomenal attorney said, how do I. How do I get more LGBT clients? I said, well, network in our community or bring someone in that’s going to network in our community. And that person, that person is you.

And the amount of business that you’ve, you know, brought in, the amount of diverse business that you brought into the firm, I. I’m going to attribute a lot of that to you. So thank you. Thank you.

Hi, this is Josh Naiman, CEO and founder of Naimen Creative. We’re the people who produce the podcast that you’re listening to right now. But on top of podcast production, we take care of website creation from, from design to development, maintenance, management, and hosting.

And today I want to talk to you about compounding efforts. Great websites are about compounding efforts. The same effort that makes your website fast also makes it flexible.

If your website is accessible, it’s easy to use. And the same effort to make your site tell a story that leads to revenue, makes it memorable. Get all of these firing at once, and you’ve got yourself a real digital asset shortcut.

Any. And you have a liability. So if you’re a business looking to reduce your digital liability and increase your compounding efforts via websites, well, let us know Here at Neiman Creative, we can help you with anything to do with websites.

Visit naimencreative.com or email us directly at infoamaycreative.com and we’ll make sure to take care of you from start to finish. I. I don’t think it’s me. I. I don’t think it’s me.

It’s a combination. It’s a combination. Yes.

You know, Doug is, like I said, he’s. He’s. He’s a wonderful person and lawyer.

He won second place for the favorite attorney and the WAVE awards this year, which I was so proud to. To have happen to our firm and to Doug because he deserves it. And he’s very much about making sure that everyone is included and feels safe.

And, you know, it’s sad, but over the last couple of months, I’ve, you know, I’ve heard from several people saying, I won’t recommend this company or this person because I don’t know that the people I will send to them will feel safe. How sad is that? It’s. It’s just a terrible thing to hear.

Right? So I’m very glad that we are very open and he allows that and he wants that. You know, I tell people all the time, it is about who you Know the connections you make and being proud of that. So for us, you know, posting, we’re going to this great event, you know, tagging the different business, tagging the people and saying, look, we are very open to all people of every background, so.

But yeah, again, that’s. That’s Doug. Because without Doug, I wouldn’t have the space to do what I’m able to do, so.

Well, I know for certain you both make a great team in addition with the team. So, yes, again, kudos to. To you and.

And of course, my favorite attorney. So, speaking of, we have now coined your law firm, and I promise we won’t talk about this all day, the community, or how do you. How do you call it? It’s the community law firm.

Yeah, we’re your community law firm. Right. But they no longer just specialize in one area of law.

They are so diverse with what they offer, and that’s because of who they’ve brought in, you know, as staff members, as attorneys. So there’s no. There’s no case that they probably wouldn’t be able to.

To take on. So a little plug for my. My favorite attorney and my favorite community relations and marketing coordinator.

All the titles that you’re so long. Every word that you could think of. I know.

I love it. I love it. All right.

I want to go back on. Back on track, so you know how quickly I can fall off that track. So, Alexis, and maybe not so much right now at the firm, but maybe where you were, have you ever witnessed or experienced any acts of discrimination, any, I guess you would say, microaggressions directed towards certain classes of people, especially the LGBT community? Yeah, not.

Obviously not with where I am now in the past, I think. So, you know, and even if I go back, back to when I was in college and I was, you know, a server, I would. I would see it.

There would be, you know, you can hear customers whisper or customers say things and, you know, use words that are not acceptable. And I think that’s where it’s very challenging, because being passionate as I am, I need to make money. And so I can’t.

I can’t say certain things to customers. I’m trying to be professional, even as a server or bartender, but it’s. It’s difficult and it’s challenging, and I don’t.

I don’t know that we were taught how to properly handle events that happen like that. I don’t know that the owners of. Of.

And I would say, especially bars, restaurants, things like that, know how to. To train their Employees how they should be handling those situations. And so yes, I’ve seen it and I still don’t think that I don’t, I still don’t even know how one would properly handle that.

What do you think? How do you feel like if you were, obviously if this was your job, what would you like to see happen and what would you, what’s realistic? Well, so my Prior, I’ve been 25, 25 years in payroll and then I was a number of years in banking, more so in banking where I worked for some of the larger institutions and I was in the branches a lot. We had, I thought, some absolutely phenomenal training. But it truly, truly, truly is something that comes from the top down.

Like our area presidents were passionate and they were insistent upon diversity training. I worked for a couple of banks, you know, over the course of 20 something years. Gosh, I’ve been working a lot for a long time.

But we had some amazing trainings where I know that there’s other organizations that, you know, they, they have the module per se and they just skip right by it. So I think that if more businesses truly did diversity and equality training, then they would know how to handle certain issues that come up. So thank you for asking that of me because I’ve seen it in the workplace as well.

So. And what I don’t like anymore, and I’m very verbal and vocal about it, is covering things up. I do not like that one bit.

And I think that, you know, collectively we can make some changes. It’s going to take, it’s going to take a lot of us to do it. But you know, we’ll get there, we’ll get there.

So, so in your role, in your role right now. Okay. As well.

We already talked about that very long title. What would you say is the hardest part of this? Well, I am being recorded, so this is a no judgment zone. So I’ve already had all the waivers signed by your other attorneys.

No, I’m kidding, I’m kidding. It’s time. Yeah.

Time management for me is challenging. I started off with this as a part time job working from home and here we are 11 months later. And you know, I can pull in over 40 hours easily if I said yes to everything that I want to say yes to.

And I feel like for a lot of people, and especially women, we have to make this choice of family, a career. How do we juggle it? And I’m sure for, you know, single dads or anyone who has to make that decision, it’s, it’s tough And I miss my family a lot. And luckily I’m able to say my kids have this certain thing, I’m going to that.

And it’s, he’s like, absolutely no problem. So I’m lucky. But I know a lot of people are not.

I know that there’s not that flexibility and I want to say yes to more things, but turns out, you know, it’s 24 hours in a day and at some point I have to sleep as well. So I don’t know how you do it because you’re up at like 4am sending good morning texts. So.

But it’s, it’s hard because. And you need to somewhere have some you time in there, right? You don’t want to lose who you are. And so I’m working on it.

I’m trying to navigate that the best I can to make everybody happy, including myself. So. But again, like you, you’re everywhere.

If, if I’m there, I know I will see you there. So it’s true. And I know I’m gonna get a good morning text at 4:5am I know that you’re up.

I, I. Where do you find your time? Like, where is, how do you do it? I. Well, as you know, it’s, it’s. I work for a smaller payroll company. Okay.

And we do not have marketing budgets for advertising, et cetera. We just don’t. In fact, most every payroll company does not.

I think what I have to do is I have to network. I have to get out there and talk about landmark. I have to be in front of people.

And we were just talking about that today after episode three three was recorded, that good networkers will always network with each other and then bring on additional partners. Okay. And additional allies, just like what we’re talking about today.

But our support system continues to grow. So the people that I network and all of the functions that I go to, for me, it’s fun, it’s a pleasure. So it makes my job all, all that much more enjoyable.

And I literally say to people, that is my social time. God bless my, my future husband, Douglas. I almost said it again, but this time I knew I wasn’t going to.

For those of you that have listened to podcast number two, or maybe one, you would have heard of snafu, but I’m not doing it again, just so you know. But Douglas, Gladys and I have introduced him to the world of networking, so that helps out as well. Because now he and I do a lot now working together.

We turned it into a social event. So that’s Kind of how I find the time, but I get it. I know what you were saying, because you have a family, and you also have to decide what’s more important.

Is it the family? Is it this? Is it work? And you have the most awesome boss that allows you to make that decision yourself. And I know that you always choose the right one because your firm says family first, and that’s what I love most about it. They do, yes.

And you know what I was just thinking? We were talking about having more people be inclusive, think about, like, the networking things that we go to, because we. We do, obviously, a ton of. Of different networking events together.

But, like, even look at Sun Leaders, right? So Sun Leaders, which we’re both on the board of, I’ve seen such an influx of diverse people coming. It is amazing to see that where we started, you know, just, what, a few months ago to where we are now. So, you know, it just shows that, you know, what Josh is doing is we’re really welcoming everybody and we want it to be known this is a safe space for you, and we can all work together.

So I think. I don’t know if you feel the same, but I start to think that maybe things are starting to go the right way, or maybe it’s just our good groups that we have. I don’t know.

I feel 100% safe in the groups that we are in. I think that we are all of the same mindset. That is why we network so well together.

That is why we work so well together. And I think that is why, you know, especially Sun Leaders is so successful, because we all have that all inclusive mentality. I mean, we really do.

And I love. I love how this group was. This group, Sun Leaders, was created out of a very bad situation that happened between two individuals.

And that’s all I’m going to say. And it worked out to be for the best, for everyone involved, and that’s how Sun Leaders was born. But we will not be talking about that on public radio.

Something very important is coming up in June. Will you be partaking in any of our June Pride activities or events here in St. Petersburg? Yes, of course. Of course you will, as I expect that you would.

Well, I mean, you and I have something very exciting that’s going on. We do. Would you like to talk about that? I would love St. Pete to hear about that, because, you know, it’s not only St. Pete’s going to hear about it, but it’s going to go, I think, across the airwaves everywhere.

Phenomenal. Let’s talk about it. So Dan and I are part of the Edge District with the major.

A major. The amazing Roger Kurland. And so born from that, Dan and I previously worked together for Halloween on Central, which we did a great job, and it was a lot of fun.

We loved it. So, moving forward, we were asked to be co chairs of pridetopia. And what pridetopia is, it happens after Pride.

So everyone goes, go Pride, go parade. Have fun, dance, do all the fun things. And then when you’re done and you’ve come down and you need a little bit of a break, come through to the Edge District, where we’re going to be having our bars, our restaurants, our businesses open for the after party.

And so Dan and I are working with a great group of people who volunteer to figure out how we can make Pride Topia the best place for everyone to come and celebrate afterwards. And so, yeah, that’s. I think we’re doing a lot of fun.

I’m very looking forward to it. It’s going to be great. And there’s a lot of events going on, obviously, because it’s.

It’s, you know, technically the beginning of summer here in Florida, but I always say the beginning of summer is the. The first warm day, you know, but that’s me, a Yankee, coming down here and loving this weather. But there’s a lot of events going on in June.

And, Alexis, I know you. I’m sure you’re going to be involved in quite a few of them. Yes, I will.

And. And we love you for it. I mean, you know that.

We really do. So we appreciate that. And like I said, representing or being represented with you in the community has just been a joy.

So is there anything that you want to add? You know, I. I try to keep it light, I try to keep it fun, but I also want the listeners to know that we are passionate about. About our community. We’re passionate about the LGBT community.

We’re passionate about the ally community. Without you, we would not be where we are. Okay.

You’re our greatest supporters, so anything that comes to mind. Well, one, I think it’s very frustrating that we should even have to have an ally. Right? Because why.

But that’s the world we live in. So here we are. As an ally, I want to let other people know.

Again, you can’t just be silent. You can’t just stand by. You have to say something.

You need to do something. And the best way to do that is to show support. Come to these networking events, come to these different.

Just events that support the community. I am thrilled to come and be a part of your lgbt. I actually am going to be the speaker.

We are coming up. We are excited. When is that? When is that? What date is that? It is the fourth Wednesday month.

Are you going to be speaking March? Yeah. Oh, okay, good. In a couple of weeks.

The fourth Wednesday. I don’t have my calendar in front of me, but y’ all can figure out what the fourth Wednesday is from 4pm to 6pm at the VFW Post 39 on Central. Yes.

Don’t ask me the address, but if you Google it, you will find out where it is. Okay. So we’re really looking forward to that.

Yeah, it’ll be great. And Alexis, for viewers, is going to be our first official speaker. I mean, we haven’t had a speaker yet, so I know we’re excited.

I’m thrilled. And some, I mean, I’m going to invite, obviously, you know, all of my people, but, you know, come, everybody just come and see what it’s about. It’s a great way.

If you aren’t working with the community, you’re missing out on a huge chunk of people who can help. You can, you can help them. It’s mutually beneficial.

So, you know, it’s, it’s a little thing. What is it? Two hours of your. Two hours, that’s of your time.

That’s it. And you get to have fun and meet new people. So I, that’s the best thing I can tell you.

Go support their businesses. Go support, you know, anything that they’re doing. And that’s the thing that you need to do if you want.

You got to be the change in the world that you want to see starts with you. I agree. I love that.

I think not that that has been used once or twice or a million times will be the change that you want to see. Very true. Very true.

So, Alexis, we’re going to be wrapping up, and I’ll tell you, time really does fly when, when you’re behind the, the microphone. But is there anything, you know, that, that I can share with you? I know that since we started, you know, working together and networking together, it’s been very comfortable and very, very easy. And do you have, like, you know, a hundred more of you out there? I mean, seriously? I wish.

Right? I’m sure you feel the same. I don’t know. I, I, I wish there were more people that had the drive that we have.

Yes, because we definitely are passionate about it, and obviously it shows. It chose. So look what you’re doing now.

Look what you’re doing now, we’re doing a lot of it together. So I. I guess I’m going to wrap this up, if that is good with you. I am grateful for our time today.

And look for great things, look for great things out of Alexis’s involvement in the community, our joint efforts in the community. And if you have anything. Oh, I know what.

How can we get a hold of you? That’s a great question. Well, for. For the business people, the best way is to email me.

My last name is Horrendous. So go online. You can go to our website.

It is getyourlegalaction.com. you can follow us on social media and I’m very active with social media, so you can then get all of my contact information there and you’ll see where we are. We have a great events page, so if you see an event on there, I will be there.

And I love meeting people. I love doing one on one. So that’s the best way.

You heard that. Just go on the website for the firm and you can find all of Alexis’s contact information. And again, thank you, thank you.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart and I appreciate you. So as we end this was Alexis Egoscue. I’m not going to give you her title again, but it’s with the law firm of Douglas G.

Jackson. We all know what she does. Okay.

She’s the mistress of marketing there. So we have so many different titles that we give to you. I’m everything that’s not.

Law is me. Exactly, exactly. And again, this is Dan.

Dan, your payroll man with Landmark Payroll. Thank you so much for your time today and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Thank you.

Sa.