Jamie Kern Lima says consultants urged ‘flawless’ models against her brand’s values
""These experts told me um you know in order to succeed, here's what you need to do. You need to use this type of model. And it was it was the the perfect flawless skin, the models I'd always seen in TV ads.""
About this episode
Ed Mylett and guests discuss practical and belief-based approaches to building self-confidence, repeatedly framing confidence as an internal “reputation” built by keeping promises to oneself. Mylett describes using behavioural “anchors” (a repeated physical gesture) to re-access a confident state, and argues that people should draw confidence from their intentions to serve rather than purely from outcomes or comparative ability. He also links confidence to faith, saying believers should not compartmentalise religion away from work, relationships or decision-making.
A major portion of the episode is a first-person entrepreneurial account from Jamie Kern Lima, who describes repeated rejection from QVC before It Cosmetics secured a single on-air opportunity. She says the segment carried existential risk under consignment terms, and claims live airtime could be cut short if sales targets were missed. Lima recounts a conflict with consultants who urged her to use conventional “flawless” beauty models, versus her decision to show her own rosacea and demonstrate products on “real women”. She says the segment sold out and became a turning point for the brand’s growth, later adding that the QVC executive who initially rejected her ultimately became a mentor and paid adviser.
Later, Ryan Serhant discusses what he calls “big money energy”, arguing that personal presence and confidence drive commercial outcomes. He recounts how he presented himself as the “greatest” broker in a casting audition and deliberately staged a high-activity filming day to project demand.
Key takeaways
- Ed Mylett argues self-confidence is built by consistently keeping small promises made to oneself.
- Mylett describes using physical ‘anchoring’ (a repeated gesture) to trigger confident states on demand.
- Jamie Kern Lima says her first QVC appearance involved high stakes, including consignment exposure and alleged live cut-offs if sales lagged.
- Lima recalls resisting advice to use conventional ‘flawless’ models, choosing instead to feature ‘real women’ and her own rosacea on-air.
- Ryan Serhant says he deliberately constructed a ‘busy’ filming day to match the image of a top broker during reality-TV casting.
- Serhant frames ‘big money energy’ as an intentional form of confidence and presence rather than simple imitation.