In this Brilliance Series episode of the Less Than One Percent Podcast, recorded live at Brilliance 2025 in Chicago, we sit down with Cheldin Rumer, CEO of This Is It Network and a powerhouse in personal branding and storytelling.
From helping women scream their dreams to redefining what leadership looks like, Cheldin breaks down why showing up as yourself is the real competitive edge and why carrying it well doesn’t mean it isn’t heavy.
This is how Cheldin Rumer disrupted the notion of perfection and proved you don’t have to be number one to be great.








1:03
we have another
1:03
nmamazing woman um who was it was we we
1:07
tried we actually would have started
1:08
earlier
1:09
but we tried to yank her out the room
1:11
and everybody was talking to her so it's
1:14
Sheldon Barlet Groomer
1:15
yes
1:16
and you you. I'm not going to give it
1:18
all away cuz I want it to come out
1:20
for sure.
1:20
Um, but you know,
1:22
for us, I think that
1:24
to bring women together
1:25
for sure.
1:26
And I think it's sort of like
1:28
as a as as a dude.
1:30
Yeah. Yep. Yep.
1:31
You know, to be passionate about
1:32
something like this, I think I think I'm
1:34
a little weird.
1:35
Yeah.
1:35
To be honest,
1:37
tell me. But I do feel like there's a
1:39
need there's a need for women to be in
1:42
spaces to talk to each other 100%.
1:44
Because at the end of the day, you know,
1:45
we have so many different unique
1:47
experiences and
1:48
100%.
1:48
Uh it's it it uh you know, it's
1:51
different. But so what I want to ask you
1:53
before I'm going on my rant
1:54
is so how how did you feel? How did you
1:56
enjoy the day?
1:57
Oh, it's so good. It's so good. It's so
1:59
good. I loved the energy. You know, not
2:02
all events are created equal. This one
2:05
is above
2:07
it. The energy was amazing. The quality
2:09
of the attendees was just topnotch. You
2:11
know that people really carved out their
2:13
day to be here and so it was really
2:16
evident in who I was speaking to and the
2:18
level in which seuite executive I mean
2:21
it was the gamut um traveling from all
2:23
over the country and I thought I mean
2:25
especially with all the
2:26
the flight drama and and it looks like
2:28
everybody made it and it was it was safe
2:30
that people were safe and all that
2:31
stuff.
2:32
Of course. Of course. I want to know,
2:34
you know, because again, I think that if
2:36
you look at healthcare in general, but I
2:38
think
2:39
women in general
2:41
have a marketkedly different experience
2:43
and could you comment on
02:43
Sure.
2:45
You know, how does that experience
2:48
how's it could be amazing,
2:51
but it also there are things that could
2:52
weigh on you.
2:53
Yeah, for sure. Um, it was funny earlier
2:55
in my session I said that the the quote
2:58
that I live by is just because I carry
3:00
it well doesn't mean it isn't heavy.
3:03
And so that I think has been my theme I
3:06
think for the past decade um of just how
3:09
to navigate spaces. You know this is
3:12
and how to show up and how to make use
3:14
of the spaces that you're in. I can make
3:16
it's the same energy, right? It's the
3:18
same energy that I can use to be
3:21
disgruntled or angry within a space or
3:23
the same energy I can use to be positive
3:25
and make use of a space. And so, um, I
3:28
encourage women knowing that times are
3:30
difficult, knowing that you're not
3:32
always going to be understood, knowing
3:33
that
3:34
it may be tougher in a lot of different
3:37
ways or are definitely tougher in a lot
3:39
of different ways. It's how you carry
3:41
it, right? And can we be of service to
3:44
women who not only have a lot to carry,
3:47
we're always tempted to say, "Oh, why
3:48
don't you put that down or why don't you
3:50
do less?" Yeah.
3:51
And I always say, "How can I help you
3:53
carry it?" Yes.
3:54
Right. As opposed to, "How can I help
3:55
you put it down?"
3:56
I love the way I love the way you put
3:57
that because it it it
3:59
I think the idea that you have to get
4:02
rid of the feeling is kind of weird,
4:04
right? like it, you know, hey, if I feel
4:06
hurt or sad,
4:07
instead of saying get rid of it, say,
4:09
hey, let you know, let me help you with
4:11
it. You know, the whole one one set of
4:13
footprints thing.
4:14
Yeah. 100%. 100%. And there's this this
4:17
notion nowadays of it's not that deep.
4:19
It's not that deep. And and for me, I
4:21
was like, it is that let it be that
4:23
deep, right?
4:24
Let it be that deep. I have no longing
4:26
to be
4:27
to have the depth of a contact lens.
4:29
Like, I have no longing to be less deep.
4:32
You know what I mean? like to be deep
4:34
and let people feel what they need to
4:35
feel and let them put it where they need
4:37
to put it. And I think that when we hold
4:39
things in, it comes out eventually.
4:42
It might come out in a conversation or
4:44
crying in the middle of a produce
4:45
section. Yeah.
4:46
Um but it's going to come out
4:47
or crying on stage,
4:48
right?
4:49
We loved that though.
4:51
I mean, we love that though. I mean, but
4:54
but I think it was important for the
4:55
room to to see you feel something.
4:58
Yeah. Yeah.
4:58
Right. And we don't. And I think that
5:00
nowadays, especially now, like there's
5:02
not enough of that.
5:03
Yeah.
5:03
Right. Everybody's just trying to be
5:05
strong for the next person. Try to be
5:06
strong for the next person. And no one's
5:08
strong.
5:09
And I think that that was a beautiful
5:10
thing. So please, please, no regrets on
5:12
that. We all We all
5:14
I'm old school. Don't tell my daddy.
5:16
It's all right. No problem.
5:17
Daddy know that.
5:18
I put it on TikTok, so it's fine.
5:19
Every time. What you crying for, boy?
5:22
I already put it on TikTok. It's fine.
05:26
Um what what what was the most profound
5:27
interaction you had with an individual
5:28
here? Like what you know was somebody
5:30
that came up to you or somebody you
5:32
reached out to?
5:33
Sure. Sure. Um I just left speaking with
5:36
a student. So when I had originally um
5:40
gained the information, I was like, "Oh
5:41
yes, all these executives." And then
5:43
when I found that there would be
5:44
students in the space,
5:46
I also equally perked up because I do
5:48
believe, you know, the the motto that I
5:51
am really working with or we my network
5:53
really works with is for you to scream
5:54
your dream. Um we work with a lot of
5:56
collegic young women to find their
5:58
voice. Yes. Right. It's hard to scream
6:00
when you haven't found your voice. And
6:01
so one young lady had talked about, you
6:04
know, how do you communicate when you've
6:07
gone through trauma or you've gone
6:08
through negativity? How do you find your
6:10
voice through that? And it was wonderful
6:12
to kind of workshop that with her in the
6:14
brief time we had together to connect
6:15
with her to force her to connect with me
6:17
on LinkedIn to make sure that she knew
6:19
that there was somebody else that saw
6:21
her and that heard her. And oftentimes
6:23
that's all you really need. You know
6:25
what is she going to she's not going to
6:26
call me every day. She doesn't need
6:29
anything from me. It's not a
6:30
transaction. But to know that there's
6:31
somebody in the space that exists
6:34
100%.
6:34
Um I think it's powerful. So that was
6:36
really powerful for me.
6:37
Yeah. I know. I mean, it's so it's a
6:38
blessing like when you I mean, I've had
6:40
that experience with a a few people on
6:42
this podcast, but also,
6:44
you know, like Magic Johnson wrote my
6:45
forward. Wow.
6:46
And he didn't have to, right? So, when
6:48
somebody advocate I wouldn't say
6:50
advocate, when somebody supports
6:52
Sure.
6:52
your vision.
6:53
Sure.
6:54
It just it's an elevation.
6:55
It's huge. It's huge. And I also think
6:57
that there's a difference between
7:00
a acknowledging your vision and
7:02
supporting it because there are tons of
7:04
people that are like, "Do you, you got
7:07
it,
7:09
I supported you, but is that support or
7:11
is that just letting me do me?" Like, do
7:13
you know what I mean? But when people
7:15
really support you, where they say your
7:16
name in your absence,
7:18
oh, I knew you were going to be that.
7:19
No, no, you didn't.
7:20
You didn't. You actually told me to quit
7:22
to be quite honest, right? Like if we
7:24
recall the conversation, right? Um, so I
7:27
think that, you know, it's one thing to
7:29
give people room to be successful. It's
7:31
another thing to show up for them.
7:32
It's another thing to help to to prop
7:35
them up.
7:35
100%. How wonderful.
7:37
So, something I ask everybody um that we
7:40
didn't we didn't go through I didn't do
7:41
it on stage today because I wanted the
7:43
focus to be
7:44
sure
7:44
on on the speakers that were there, but
7:46
I usually do sort of a thing about
7:48
superpowers. I have this
7:50
in the in the in the studio that we have
7:52
in in Dallas.
07:52
Yeah. We have a bunch of superheroes on
7:56
the wall.
7:56
Oh my goodness. I love it.
7:57
And I I firmly believe that everybody
8:00
has something that's uniquely
8:02
sure
8:03
super to them.
8:04
And when they use it, they can change
8:05
the world.
8:06
100%.
8:07
So what's your superpower?
8:08
I have the ability to change the energy
8:10
in a room.
8:11
What? You Wait a second. You didn't even
8:13
think. No.
8:14
I mean, you just you just threw it out
8:15
there. I know. You've been thinking
8:17
about this.
8:17
I do love a good superhero. You know,
8:18
answer this.
8:19
No, but I do love a good superhero. I
8:21
do. I love a good superhero.
8:22
So So tell me more. I I think that there
8:24
that's a power, right? So, if I'm in a
8:26
bad mood,
8:27
Yeah.
8:28
it's contagious. My team's in a bad
8:30
mood, the room's in a bad mood, but when
8:32
I and I learned it at a very young age,
8:34
if I'm in a good mood,
8:36
you lift everybody up.
8:37
You lift everybody up. So, how do you
8:39
choose to use your power, right? And
8:42
acknowledging it for for my benefit or
8:44
for my detriment is important. And and
8:47
when you know as especially if you're in
8:49
the world of persuasion, if you're in
8:50
the world of of sales, if you're in the
8:52
world of of trying to communicate a
8:54
message or trying to throw a party or
8:56
trying to be able to create content, as
8:58
they say, you know, you could either use
9:00
your voice for good or for bad and and
9:03
what I can use my voice with and how I
9:05
can change the temperature and how I can
9:07
make people feel comfortable like you're
9:09
doing with me right now. Right? This
9:11
isn't hard because you've shared energy
9:13
and time with me. There's interviews
9:15
that are harder. Yeah. Right. Because
9:17
they're right. Because they're like,
9:18
"And the weather, right?" And they're
9:20
like, "Don't really care what you're
9:21
saying, but when you're tuned in, people
9:23
can feel that." And I don't think enough
9:25
people know how to manage their energy.
9:27
Jordan always gets mad at me. Jordan
9:28
doesn't have a mic. I love it. I love
9:30
this podcast, but Jordan doesn't have a
9:32
mic.
9:33
Because he he I'm infamous for,
9:37
you know, when we start vibing like
9:38
this,
9:39
you know, it's an hour later.
9:40
He's like hour. He would love an hour.
9:43
We've recorded for I mean we're doing
9:45
I believe it. I'm I'm guilty of that
9:47
too.
9:47
Three hours.
9:48
I'm guilty of that too, Jordan. I am. I
9:50
mean I am. But once you're in a flow
9:52
like giving
9:54
the right and I think that not too many
9:57
I call it the two touch especially for
9:59
women. Yeah.
10:00
Um I'll run up to a like just in passing
10:02
downstairs. You'll go up to any woman
10:04
especially an ambitious woman. A woman
10:06
who has a lot going on. A woman we do a
10:08
lot with women in what we call the
10:10
sandwich generation, right?
10:12
So, she has
10:11
kids and then she has parents that she's
10:13
taking care of and she's taking care of
10:14
herself and she's ambitious and all
10:16
these things. If we call her this
10:17
remarkable woman, if I too touch the
10:20
remarkable woman, I actually call it
10:21
that. So, if I if she comes up to me and
10:23
she's and I say, "Hi, how are you?" and
10:25
she'll be like, "Oh, I'm fine. Oh my
10:26
gosh, good to see you." Blah, blah,
10:27
blah. If I touch her elbow and ask
10:29
again, "How are you?"
10:31
And I've had three times a tear has
10:33
fallen.
10:34
Oh, man. because that woman has not been
10:36
asked how she was with intent
10:39
probably in months or years.
10:41
Do you think that women carry that
10:43
weight differently?
10:43
Oh, 100%. Because we have because we
10:46
have the capacity to do so, right? We're
10:49
willing participants in our own chaos
10:51
like we are. And I I have two kids. My
10:53
daughter's 14, pray for me. And my and
10:55
my son is eight.
10:56
And so, and I'm married and I have this
10:58
business and I'm producing content. I'm
11:00
traveling in the country and I'm doing
11:01
all these things. Yeah.
11:02
So, as the requests come in, the phone,
11:05
sleepovers, dance recital, you know,
11:07
Lego camp, all these things are I'm just
11:10
managing. I'm just doing the two touch
11:12
forces the stillness and the stillness
11:15
recognizes the chaos.
11:17
And so, if you give people room, so you
11:19
gave somebody room for an hour
11:22
and they took that time to connect with
11:24
you. And that's what people are missing.
11:26
And that's what people are needing so
11:28
much now than ever. As the for you page
11:30
gets more aggressive, as all of this
11:32
content is flowing, they need time for
11:34
this break and the stillness. And
11:36
I feel like I feel like too
11:37
Sorry, Jordan. I need time for this
11:39
stillness. It's going to be three hours.
11:41
But yeah, I think your comment about
11:42
capacity, the difference between men and
11:44
women. Yeah.
11:45
I I I think
11:47
and I don't I don't know enough about
11:48
electrical engineering, but I feel like
11:51
most men were being stereotypical,
11:53
of course. Of course,
11:54
but in most situations, men get to a
11:57
capacity and discharge.
11:58
Sure.
11:58
Right. Whether it's anger or it's, you
12:00
know, whatever.
12:01
Whereas I think the the women their
12:03
their capacitor builds up and up and up.
12:06
100%.
12:07
And they almost try to sort of
12:09
decapacitate if that's a word.
12:11
But sometimes
12:13
as it's filling, you're trying to run it
12:14
down.
12:15
Compress it. We compress it. Compress
12:16
it. Compress it. Compress it. Compress
12:17
it until we can't anymore.
12:20
like you lost when stereotyp
12:29
and and not asked how she was doing and
12:31
not asked and you know we have amongst
12:33
you know the women that we work with too
12:35
we always say check on your strong
12:36
friends. Yeah,
12:38
cuz your strong friends are often the
12:39
ones that need the most help, right? You
12:42
know, just just check in on her. Is she
12:44
okay? Ask her if she's okay. Don't wait
12:46
for her to ask you if she needs
12:47
something. Just show up with something
12:48
nice, you know, and and it's not a big
12:51
bar. It's not really high. We're not
12:52
looking for much. But I think just that
12:54
acknowledgement that you see.
12:56
No, that's great. I mean, I love I love
12:57
that. And I think
12:59
I mean, I I mean, I think it is for
13:00
women, too. But it's also Yeah. As
13:02
you're as you're telling me about it,
13:04
I need to be better at it cuz men Yeah.
13:06
Yeah,
13:06
you know, men's sort of like
13:08
if if you ask me what's wrong, I'm I'm
13:11
going to knock you out. I'm going to
13:12
knock you out. Like, don't don't talk.
13:14
You ask him about some feelings.
13:15
What are you asking me about? You know,
13:16
like do you assume that I can't handle
13:18
myself?
13:18
Yeah. He's kind like, "Happy birthday
13:20
for
13:22
you." Like my boy My boy texts me. He's
13:24
like, "Happy birthday." I'm like, "Bro,
13:25
what
13:25
what
13:26
what are you what are you doing? What's
13:27
wrong, man?
13:28
You what do you mean?
13:29
Someone on Facebook. Stop.
13:30
What do you mean happy birthday?
13:31
He doesn't remember.
13:32
You know, is something going on?
13:34
Something going wrong? You okay? It's
13:36
like when people call like right when
13:38
when my one I'm like you have to text me
13:40
and tell me you're calling me. Don't
13:42
just call. I'm like who do like right?
13:46
Is that crazy? Like just be calling me
13:48
on a Thursday.
13:49
I'm like who's sick? Who fell down?
13:50
She's like I just wanted to say hi. I'm
13:51
like excuse me.
13:52
Yeah. Don't do that.
13:53
That's what a text is for. That's what
13:54
an emoji is for. What are we doing
13:57
now? I'm thinking people are passed
13:58
away. You're of that certain age. The
14:00
parents are You know what I mean?
14:01
Legit. Legit. Actually, honestly
14:03
crazy. Honestly though, speaking of
14:04
which, you know, my parents when they
14:06
when they call
14:08
Yeah.
14:09
Like I'm like, "Yo, you good?" The first
14:10
thing I say, "You good?" They're like,
14:11
"Yeah, of course I'm good." Okay.
14:13
If you could change my password on my
14:15
Yeah. You So curious, when we do this
14:18
when we do this
14:20
um in a normal podcast in our other
14:22
studio, we have a process where we can
14:25
call people.
14:26
Oh. And well, we we can't we now do it
14:29
now and embarrass you, but we end up
14:31
having you call a family member,
14:31
Oh, Lord.
14:33
When So, we're not gonna do that. Okay.
14:35
But I would ask you
14:36
Yeah.
14:37
If your family, if I were to ask your
14:39
family
14:39
what your superpower was,
14:41
what would they say?
14:42
Oh, I I think to find humor where
14:46
there's not. I come I'm West African.
14:48
So, I was born in Sleó, Freetown, West
14:50
Africa.
14:51
I come from a crazy West African family.
14:53
And so admittedly like no one would tell
14:55
you otherwise. It's not like I'm telling
14:57
tales on them. They just would all
14:58
equally say that. But they're very an
15:00
academic family. So where I am skilled
15:03
as well as I believe that I am
15:06
successful, they have more initials
15:08
behind their names than in front of
15:09
their names. Right? So my older sister
15:12
doctorate, my younger sister doctorate,
15:14
my younger baby brother graduated from
15:17
Cornell Law. Do you I talk to myself on
15:20
YouTube and Facebook and throw parties
15:22
at the Super Bowl. Do you know what I
15:23
mean? So people at Thanksgiving are like
15:25
who pays you? Like how do you make
15:26
money? Like you know and like what's
15:30
happening? Like why are you going there?
15:32
Why are you throwing a part? Like why do
15:33
you need a balloon arch? Anyway, so
15:35
they're asking these questions and um
15:38
when I started adjuncting I I'm an
15:39
adjunct professor. I teach personal
15:41
branding at Temple and and Drexel. And
15:43
my father was like, "Are you are you
15:45
very excited like are you going to be a
15:47
stable human?" Right? Um and and they
15:50
but they know that what their
15:52
capabilities are.
15:54
I would never nor do I want
15:56
but I am the one I am the one that
15:58
ushers in family. I am the one that has
16:01
the occasions. I am the one that gives
16:03
the speeches. I am the one that cuts the
16:05
tension. I am the one you want in the
16:07
emergency room and right before surgery.
16:09
I'm the one that you want, you know, on
16:11
those birthdays. They know what my
16:13
strengths are. Now, did I try to in my
16:15
youth try to be amongst those with the
16:17
initials behind their name and find it
16:20
very hard to keep up? Yeah. You know,
16:22
being the one that kind of is outside of
16:24
the loop as it relates, but that's how I
16:27
know that my
16:29
that my who I am is a superpower.
16:31
Do you feel do you feel like uh so in
16:33
less than 1%? Yeah. You know, I write
16:35
about, you know, people putting people
16:37
in boxes
16:39
and uh how much more greatness would
16:41
there be the be in the world if we
16:42
didn't do that?
16:43
Do you feel like
16:45
you you've been put in a I mean, I know
16:46
that you did with the parents, but I
16:48
mean, in general.
16:48
I mean, I think
16:50
so. And I think that I've also equally
16:53
I think the world would be better if we
16:55
didn't. I also acknowledge the boxes
16:57
that I'm in.
16:58
Yeah. Um, I acknowledge, you know, I
17:02
arrive early and go to bed late. You
17:04
know, regardless of whatever the
17:05
situation is, I show up and and I overd
17:08
deliver. And that might be because I'm
17:10
in so many boxes, right? As as a woman,
17:12
as an immigrant, as a mother. I mean,
17:14
every check mark I could have, I have.
17:17
Um, but that for me has never really
17:20
been excused. But if anything, it's been
17:22
my badge of honor for these these boxes,
17:25
right? because I I can be able to have
17:28
these conversations in any box that I'm
17:30
in. I can find camaraderie amongst a
17:32
number of different people uniquely
17:34
based on the boxes that we share. Um so
17:38
it it it but that's an acknowledgement
17:40
and that takes time. You know, some of
17:42
us fight the box,
17:43
right? And fight who we are naturally as
17:46
opposed to use who we are naturally as
17:48
our strength. And it takes time.
17:50
I think that's the, you know, that is
17:52
100%. I didn't say that today
17:54
um because a lot of women said it that
17:56
were on stage, but I am a huge
18:00
I I hate imposttor syndrome. I think it
18:03
is just
18:04
I think it's the kind of word that
18:06
automatically sets you up for failure%
18:08
now. I like the idea of like
18:10
I think I think coaching is changing
18:12
this way.
18:12
Yeah.
18:13
Coach around the strengths. Not I think
18:15
old coaching used to be what's your
18:16
weakness? Let's fix that.
18:17
Yeah.
18:19
So you know what? So yeah, if you were
18:21
So we've we had women today that were
18:23
students.
18:24
Yeah.
18:24
Um aspiring again I was corrected by
18:29
by Charlene.
18:30
I she actually corrected me and it was
18:32
an appropriate correction.
18:33
Yeah.
18:34
You said I shouldn't say aspiring
18:35
students
18:37
or aspiring leaders.
18:38
Yeah. Yeah. Everyone's a leader.
18:40
Said everyone's a leader.
18:41
Broke me down. I was like woke me down.
18:42
That's why you up here. That's why
18:44
you're up here. But yeah,
18:45
so we had students all the way up to we
18:47
had um health system executives. I mean
18:50
it was
18:50
Yeah. I mean it was hu folks. Yeah.
18:53
So if you were going to,
18:54
you know, do a PSA for
18:57
everybody who attended and now they're
18:59
listening to this podcast.
19:01
Sure.
19:01
What would what would you tell them, you
19:03
know, like sort of
19:04
after the conference, what what now?
19:06
Yeah. I really love the idea of
19:10
identifying where you are in order to
19:12
get to where you want to be. I think
19:14
that a lot of people are in this notion
19:17
again not to age myself but grew up in
19:19
this notion of this kind of fake it till
19:20
you make it kind of space and regardless
19:23
of what you pretend to be and I always
19:26
use the analogy is if you ever were in a
19:28
play right if you ever if you were the
19:30
lead or if you were tree number three
19:32
right it doesn't really matter right you
19:34
come off the stage still in the play
19:36
right you come you'd come off the stage
19:37
and you'd still be exhausted right the
19:39
tree would be standing there for three
19:41
sets and you'd still be exhausted cuz
19:43
you were pretending to be something
19:44
else.
19:45
How'd you know I was the tree?
19:46
I listen, I was like rock number two or
19:49
something, right? I was like, I got the
19:51
rock. And my mom was like, okay, I have
19:54
to buy a costume for the rock. Anyway,
19:56
what are we doing? Um, but ultimately,
19:58
when you're pretending to be the rock,
20:00
the tree, or the lead, it's exhausting.
20:02
You're still tired.
20:03
You're so tired. But when you come and
20:05
show up as yourself, you might be
20:07
nervous, but not fatigued.
20:10
Yeah.
20:10
And so, allow for the nervous to be the
20:12
strength. allow for you to get
20:13
comfortable with where you are. You do
20:15
not have to be the best to be great.
20:19
You don't You don't have to be number
20:20
one.
20:21
You need to say that again because we
20:22
need to get this sound bites.
20:23
You do not You do not have to be the
20:25
best to be great. You do not have to be
20:27
number one in the race to be worthy of
20:29
running. You don't.
20:31
And I thinking and I think that's the
20:33
play. And I think
20:33
that's what we talked about earlier.
20:35
Yeah. And I think so many people I'll
20:37
only participate if I come in first.
20:40
It's crazy. Look at I'm a huge fan of
20:42
sprinting, the Olympics sports.
20:44
They're the best in their countries,
20:47
but they might be 20th at the Olympics.
20:49
They might never. So what? Not don't
20:51
run.
20:52
Well, you're right now I'm writing my
20:54
next book and I'm talking about
20:56
um it's called almost the other side of
20:59
winning.
21:00
And it's, you know, if you look at the
21:02
difference, especially in the Olympics,
21:04
you're talking about swimming or
21:05
sprinting.
21:06
Yes.
21:06
And the gap between first is
21:09
Yes. milliseconds.
21:10
Millise.
21:11
And if one person wins,
21:13
yeah,
21:13
they're revered. And the person that
21:16
lost is a dog,
21:17
right?
21:18
But the difference is this much.
21:20
That much.
21:20
And how much again, you know, that's my
21:22
mom. How much more greatness would be be
21:24
in the world if we acknowledged that
21:26
there is greatness that comes second and
21:28
third.
21:28
It there's greatness that comes 20th.
21:31
And what does that person do when they
21:32
go home to their hometown and tell that
21:34
story? Do they tell the story about them
21:36
losing or do they tell the story about
21:38
them going to the Olympics? That's a
21:39
choice.
21:40
Amazing.
21:41
Right. And and that's where the power
21:42
is, right?
21:43
Although I hate losing.
21:44
I I hate losing to But the only reason
21:46
you got to 20th is because you wanted to
21:48
be number one.
21:48
Yeah. Right. The the drive to be and and
21:50
and I think the I think the challenges
21:54
with the Michael Jordans and those kind
21:55
of people is
21:57
the be the ability to have drive beyond
21:59
when you get to number one is is
22:01
amazing.
22:02
It is amazing. Yeah. Where do they So
22:04
people are people are out there. Yes.
22:06
You're gonna check out
22:07
Sheldon. Yes. Where do they find you?
22:10
Where do they consume you? And what are
22:12
you doing next?
22:13
Yes. Yes. So I'm the CEO and executive
22:15
producer of This Is It Network. You can
22:17
find me everywhere. Uh follow fan and
22:20
like us everywhere you find at this TV.
22:23
You can download us on iOS and Android,
22:25
Apple TV, Roku, anywhere we have
22:27
conversations. I live. Um and I'm so
22:30
excited, you know, about everything that
22:32
we're developing. We're doing we're a
22:33
packed Q1 as we say in corporate world.
22:36
Uh some really exciting events that are
22:38
coming up but we do about 27 events a
22:40
year. So you can find us in all the
22:41
major cities at all the major events and
22:43
log on to thisisitv.com.
22:46
Awesome. Awesome. Well, thank you. I
22:48
appreciate you. Thank you for your time.
22:49
You are amazing. And I'm sure uh you
22:52
know, you know, when you get back home,
22:54
we'll debrief and
22:55
Yes. Well, you're stuck with me now.
22:56
We can make it make it better make it
22:58
even bigger and better next year. Next
23:00
year my goal is a thousand women.
23:02
Oh, that'd be a I'd love to be here to
23:05
see it. Thank you.
23:05
Awesome. Appreciate you.
Cheldin Barlatt Rumer is the CEO and Executive Producer of THIS IS IT NETWORK™, a global female- and minority-owned digital streaming platform dedicated to amplifying the voices of remarkable women through educational entertainment. Each day, the network connects a diverse community of women leaders, executives, and entrepreneurs through dynamic online video programs, lifestyle editorial, and interactive events hosted and created by compelling personalities from around the world. THIS IS IT NETWORK™ is available on iOS and Android, and broadcasts on Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV, and Roku.
With an unwavering commitment to elevating women’s stories, Rumer combines her magnetic personality, unmatched energy, and deep industry expertise to celebrate the accomplishments, ambitions, and authenticity of her international guests. Her layered media strategy intentionally reflects and supports the multifaceted personal and professional lives of her audience, ensuring that every woman feels seen, supported, and inspired.
Through her powerful SCREAM YOUR DREAM™ mission and foundation, Rumer has built a robust suite of educational offerings. From entrepreneurial courses and corporate leadership presentations to new student media camps and a national college tour, this program is designed to equip young women with the tools needed to clarify their personal brands, strengthen their communication skills, and confidently share their stories with purpose and impact.
As an immigrant from Sierra Leone, West Africa, a former Division I athlete, a mother of two, an adjunct professor, a personal branding expert, and an author, Rumer has dedicated her life’s work to encouraging women to stop whispering their wishes and boldly SCREAM THEIR DREAM™.
Looking ahead, she is developing the THIS IS IT NETWORK™ Media + Innovation Center, a state-of-the-art East Coast destination designed to serve as a national hub for content creation, community programming, youth development, entrepreneurial education, and women-focused media innovation. This future flagship facility will expand the network’s impact, offering world-class production spaces, training opportunities, live events, and community resources that empower the next generation of storytellers, leaders, and visionaries.