[00:00:06] Speaker A: Welcome to from caving in to crushing it, the podcast for those who find themselves immersed in adversity and choose to write their story instead of having others write it for them. I'm Drew Duraney, and I'm your host. Today's guest is Jojo Lariccia. Jojo Lariccia, native Bostonian, high energy, creating two minute explainer videos worldwide with english speaking people, with computers.
Jojo has been in the video space for over 20 years and during COVID reinvented her filmmaking career. Get your mojo with Jojo. Enjoy the show. Jojo, it's a pleasure to see you.
[00:00:50] Speaker B: Truth, great to be here. Thank you for having me.
[00:00:54] Speaker A: I'm honored and privileged. And, you know, we all, we each know you, and I know a lot of people in the same circles. And every time your name comes up, people rave about you. And I. And I. And I know why, because I do the same thing about you. And the reason why I asked you to come on, and I know you don't do this often is because I admire your spirit, your integrity, and I love the fact that you got into video way before others thought it was the way to go. I mean, I know you're only in your twenties now, so when I say way back when, you know, it's short time.
So, you know, on this. On this show, I always talk about how when we're growing up, we're taught, and it's not malicious. We're taught that life is linear. You know, we're told that if you do the right things, if you do a plus, b plus, c, d is going to happen. And I know I, for one, believed it, and most of us do. And then at a course in our life, something gets in the way and kind of derails that linear path. And we're faced with a choice, a decision. Do we ignore it? Do we retreat, or do we push through? And if we push through, how do we push through? And I know you've pushed through on a bunch, quite a few things in your life, and I'd love you to think back at that defining moment. And if it's multiple defining moments that connect, that's great, too. One that was either that tap on the shoulder or the two by four upside the head that I needed that said, hey, jojo, there's a better way to live. And you listened. Love to hear. And we'll go from there.
[00:02:36] Speaker B: Sure. Well, I have a really big defining moment, and I am at the age of 16 years old, and I remember being in the kitchen with my dad and I said, daddy, let me ask you a question.
Why do you pay my brothers, Joey and Salvi, $15 to $25 a day to work with you, and you pay me $2 a day? And he said, it's because you're a girl.
I went, what? I'm 16 years old, so I'm 69 now. So we're gonna go back. How many years is that? 40, 44 years, right?
[00:03:17] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:03:18] Speaker B: Is it? No, it's. No, it's 54 years.
[00:03:22] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:03:22] Speaker B: Yeah, 54 years. I'm going to be 70 soon. 54 years ago. And he said, I'm a girl. And I remember.
[00:03:29] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:03:30] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. That. That really, that just. That rocked my world. And I said, what do I need to get paid like a man?
And he said, tomorrow, I want you to go out alone to work in front of the New England aquarium. Now, a little bit of background about my dad and what he did and what he wanted me to do. My dad was a vendor. My great grandfather invented the rubber balloon. He brought the balloon mold over from Italy, not to be confused with the latex balloon that was stolen by one of his friends, Neil Tiddleston. Just saying. Okay. Yeah. But anyway, so my dad would go out to the parades and sell the balloons and the novelties, and he just started working in front of the New England aquarium, selling balloons and trinkets and that sort of thing. So my father said to me, tomorrow, I want you to go out alone to work in front of the aquarium. And my father's name was Victor. My mother's name was Ida. So I hear my mother saying, victor, she's just a little girl.
And my father said, ida, she's the one who wants to get paid like a man. So I thought for a second, if I don't go out to work in front of the aquarium tomorrow, the whole trajectory, course of my life is going to change. I knew that. I don't know how I knew that, but I knew that. So anyway, I go out and I work alone, and this is what I learned in sales.
If you are, if you don't look at people straight in the eye and your shoulders are hunched down, nothing's going to happen. You're not going to get any results. But as soon as I learn something to throw my shoulders back, look people in the eye, boom, boom, boom. I was able to make sales to just about anybody amazing. And I learned that, like, in a day or two. I mean, it was fast. Like, why am I not making money? What do I need to shift here? Okay, well, now I'm going to jump to the age of 21.
[00:05:51] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:05:52] Speaker B: And so I'm working at the aquarium now, consistently, not every day. Cause I'm 16 and I'm in high school, so I'm working on the weekends.
[00:06:01] Speaker A: Right, right.
[00:06:02] Speaker B: So now I'm 21 years old, and I want to go to Berkeley College of Music.
[00:06:08] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:06:09] Speaker B: My dad says to me, he said, I want to pay for your college education. I said, daddy, I'm going to make a deal with you.
I would like you to give me half of everything that I make. I'll pay for my own college education, and I want a piano. And my sister was looking at me like, what am I, nuts? My dad agreed. He bought the piano. And going forward, half of everything that I made, I got to keep.
[00:06:39] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:06:39] Speaker B: I'm 21 years old. I mean, are you kidding me? Is that, like, incredible?
[00:06:45] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:06:46] Speaker B: Okay, so the story goes on. Can I continue?
[00:06:49] Speaker A: Yeah. I love this. Because dad. Dad had one preconceived notion, but he thought enough of your desire to say, yep, go for it. All right.
[00:06:59] Speaker B: This is.
So now I'm 21 years old, and, you know, life is like, I'm doing great. I just started Berkeley College of Music, and I went to a yes concert then at the Boston Gardens in Boston, mass.
[00:07:17] Speaker A: Okay. Yeah.
[00:07:17] Speaker B: Now it's called the North Gardens. But then it was called the Boston Gardens. And I saw the most unusual thing. There was a t shirt with the letters of the band. Yes. On the chest. It was one color. It was a t shirt. So I went home, and I said, daddy, you know, the tall chips were coming to Boston for the bicentennial in 1976.
[00:07:46] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:07:46] Speaker B: And I said, daddy, we have to get t shirts. And my father said to me, I don't want any part of that. That is disgusting. And I said to him, but why? And he's. Well, men. The equivalence of a man wearing a t shirt underneath his dress shirt to absorb perspiration was the equivalent of a bra to a woman.
[00:08:09] Speaker A: There you go, dad.
[00:08:11] Speaker B: So my dad was looking at the t shirt as an undergarment.
[00:08:15] Speaker A: An undergarment as opposed to it.
[00:08:16] Speaker B: Now, keep in mind.
[00:08:18] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:08:18] Speaker B: There were no t shirt distributors. There were no t shirt silk printers. They did not exist.
[00:08:25] Speaker A: Not exist, yet.
[00:08:26] Speaker B: Non exist. However, fruit of the loom came out in 1974.
[00:08:36] Speaker A: Okay?
[00:08:36] Speaker B: 1974. They came out in 1974 with the printable t shirts. Oh, yeah. And they would. They were slowly starting to integrate it with sports in schools. I mean, it was a very slow start.
[00:08:56] Speaker A: Right, right.
[00:08:56] Speaker B: So my dad said to me, I don't want any part of this. And I and he says, and I wouldn't even know where to go.
But my dad also had another side hustle where he would sell the flags, the banners, and the shakers at the football games.
[00:09:09] Speaker A: Okay?
[00:09:10] Speaker B: So I said, daddy, what if we went to the place that prints the flags, the banners, right? Because they put that process on the banner, which is like a felt, which is like a fabric, right. And he said to me, I'll come with you, but if you want to do this, you're investing with your own money. I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna do this. And I went, okay. So I was in the investigative mode. It had to be quite a few months before the tall ships sure came to Boston. So we went up to New Hampshire, because I live in Boston, and the guy, I said, tim, can you put a. Some kind of something with a ship on a shirt? And he says, I've never seen it. It hasn't been done. I don't know if it can be done. So. So this is 19. This is 1976. I'm 21 years old.
[00:10:02] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:10:03] Speaker B: Bicentennial Boston. So I went to the department store, and I got the t shirts that were in cellophane wrap. I had to rip out each one.
[00:10:14] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:10:15] Speaker B: Brought it to the t shirt printer. He was able to print one for me, and we were able to discover that we could do it.
[00:10:22] Speaker A: Could do it. Okay.
[00:10:23] Speaker B: And I paid $2.50 for the shirt, for the printing, and I bought 500 of these shirts.
[00:10:31] Speaker A: Did with your own.
[00:10:32] Speaker B: I'm 21 years old.
[00:10:35] Speaker A: You bought.
[00:10:35] Speaker B: I said, I'm taking a chance, because I think this is going to fly. It was so. It was so spectacular that the Boston Herald.
[00:10:44] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:10:44] Speaker B: Did a big article because no one had ever seen t shirts. I was the first.
[00:10:51] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:10:52] Speaker B: Female in New England. This is a fact. To sell t shirts on the streets of New England. Probably one of the first in the nation.
[00:11:00] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:11:00] Speaker B: And I beg anyone to come forward to tell me if they sold t shirts on the streets before 1976. And I could probably almost say, beyond a doubt, I was probably one of the first in the nation.
[00:11:12] Speaker A: Absolutely. I would agree with you. Look at this.
[00:11:15] Speaker B: I sold 500 t shirts in less than 24 hours for $5 each. I got to keep all the profits. My dad, he must have missed the. He was blown away. Like, how is this even possible?
Yeah.
[00:11:31] Speaker A: It is unbelievable. So when you ran out of the 500, what did you do?
[00:11:35] Speaker B: There was nothing I could do. I just said, oh, I wish I had a thousand. But I know.
[00:11:40] Speaker A: You wouldn't have known, though. But even to think about buying 500 at that time is amazing.
[00:11:46] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:11:47] Speaker A: And people bought them. All right, so. So you. You started the trend in this country for.
[00:11:52] Speaker B: I did. In Walmart. Walmart did a study on me, according to one of my t shirt vendors. Walmart did a study on me because I continued the $5 t shirt trend from 1976 to 2004. I worked in front of the New England aquarium for 35 years. I started in 1971.
[00:12:18] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:12:19] Speaker B: And I worked in 2004. I was a vendor, and a lot of people would look down at me because I was a vendor, and I went, let them look down at me. Yeah. Who cares? I was making a great living.
[00:12:32] Speaker A: How much were you charging the t shirts in 2004? Did you raise?
[00:12:36] Speaker B: Five?
I had over 200 styles for $5, but I also had t shirts that went up to $18.
[00:12:45] Speaker A: Okay. All right.
[00:12:46] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. I gave people choices. And if a guy came by my push cart and his wife would say, oh, or the woman he was with would say, oh, I'd like one of these t shirts. And the guy would say, it's too much money. And I would look at the woman and I'm saying, are you married to this guy? And she would say, yeah. And I went, we have a dunking chair for people like him. And I would look at the guy and says, you can't spend five, $5 on your wife. Are you kidding me? I would guilt the guy that he would probably end up buying five t shirts.
[00:13:24] Speaker A: No kidding. Well, he deserves it. There you go. Look at you. Wow. And why did you get out of that business?
[00:13:31] Speaker B: Oh, working outdoors in front of the ocean, it took a toll on my body. It was tough. I worked in all kinds of weather. It would be raining, it would be cold, it would be damp. There were beautiful days. But when you're working outdoors, the weather can change, especially by the ocean, in a moment's notice.
[00:13:50] Speaker A: True.
[00:13:51] Speaker B: It was. It was. I was just getting. I was just getting tired. 35 years. How many people do you know hold the same job for 35 years?
[00:14:01] Speaker A: No, no, not a lot. But you had. You carried a lot of pride with that, though. That's very.
So after you finished that journey, what did that catapult you to? Because the video stuff. When did that start? Were you doing video at the same time as.
[00:14:17] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:14:17] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:14:18] Speaker B: I went to MIt at the age of eleven, not as a college student. I found out that there was a photography course at MIT, and so I.
[00:14:28] Speaker A: Was eleven years old.
[00:14:29] Speaker B: I was eleven years old.
[00:14:29] Speaker A: So now we're talking five years before.
[00:14:32] Speaker B: Yeah.
I'm like a kid. And so I found out there was a photography course, and my friend Petey and I, we took our bikes over to. It was only a couple of miles, two and a half miles away from where I live. I live in Somerville in Boston, which is a half a mile away. But anyway, we took our bikes over there, and we knew the guy's name because we were told by the guy in Somerville who ran the teen center. Oh, my. You know, my roommate is teaching the photography course. I'm sure he'll let you kids in. So we knock on the door, and the guy's name is Jeremy. I said, jeremy, I heard there was a photography course, and my friend Petey and I, we want to take it. And he said, you can't take this course.
You're not a college student. You didn't pay for tuition. You're a kid. And I looked at him, and I said, do you think we rode our bikes here for 2 miles to hear you say, no, I don't think so.
[00:15:31] Speaker A: Joe. Joe.
[00:15:32] Speaker B: I love it. So he let us in. Well, he looked at the other college students. It was an extra credit course for mi students. And he said, do you mind if these kids join us? They figured that we'd be there for, like.
[00:15:43] Speaker A: They probably thought it was cute.
[00:15:44] Speaker B: Five minutes. Yeah. And then we'd be going, oh, no, no. Nay, nay. I bought my first Slr camera. It was a yashica. Convinced my parents that I built a darkroom in the basement. Finished the course, got an a, but didn't get a credit, so. And it went from photography. And here's another story.
[00:16:05] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:16:05] Speaker B: I got a cassette recorder, and I decided to tape my parents having a small argument in the kitchen. Anyway, it was a silly argument. After they finished, I went back into the kitchen, and I put it in play.
They loved it. I went, wow. People like photographs. They like the sounds of their voice. The next transition was video. You got it. So. So I. So during the winter months when I wasn't working, because it was a seasonal business on the waterfront, I always was learning something, and I nurtured that part of myself, the media part. And then it went from the push cart, and then I had a tv show for kids in 2002 that aired on PBS in Rhode island.
[00:16:51] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:16:51] Speaker B: Called Jojo's dream cart. And it aired for a few years, the smallest PBS station in the country.
[00:16:58] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:16:59] Speaker B: And I didn't get paid. Who cares? I mean, I was on PBS.
It was cool. And.
And then COVID happened, and I had to reinvent myself, and I realized nobody wants to watch videos that are anywhere over two minutes. They just don't.
[00:17:19] Speaker A: Attention spans short for that.
[00:17:21] Speaker B: So that's where that all happened.
[00:17:25] Speaker A: So, you know, we're talking. Well, COVID was what, 2020? So. And I know you're doing amazing things with video now. You're only talking, like, three years. So in that three year span, how did you accumulate all that knowledge and reach? I know you're a good networker, too. How did you put all that together to be where you are now?
[00:17:45] Speaker B: Well, what ended up happening was the tv. I worked at the local. I shouldn't say I worked. I volunteered at the local tv station. It was called SCaT TV, now called Somerville Media center. And I was there from 2003 till last year, which was 2020 years. I was there for 20 years. Okay, 20 years at the local tv station. And I worked with the longest live running tv show in the country, called Dead Air Live. They were four months older than Saturday Night Live.
[00:18:24] Speaker A: No kidding. Wow.
[00:18:26] Speaker B: And I learned every aspect of tv from.
I'm a really good producer. I love putting details together. So the only thing I didn't like was climbing up in the ladder and doing the lights, because it was always hot, touching the lights, and I never wanted to burn my fingers, but I really loved producing. I produced a lot of shows there, interviewed hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people. And I'm not kidding you, so I learned the art of asking questions, interviewing people. And I have put in over 60,000 hours from producing, directing, editing, editing, editing, editing, editing. It was insane, but loved it. And then COVID happened, and the local tv station in Boston, Somerville, and Cambridge, they needed content, and they said to me, come up with something. And I said, but we can't go up with all our camera equipment. And that's when I learned how to use the computer and how to create two minute videos with all the knowledge that I had about interviewing.
[00:19:47] Speaker A: Sure.
[00:19:48] Speaker B: I didn't know any. I didn't really know anything about promoting people. But now I'm able to write your video script. I'm able to film you through the computer in HD or four k. I do a custom designed film edit. I have editors that I work with, and then I help you to distribute your video over 100 ways using social media. Yeah.
[00:20:13] Speaker A: You know, it's interesting, because when I learned what you did, I thought you'd been doing that for 20 years itself, and only in the last three or so years. So you have a way of being able to. To grasp something quickly because you got that determination and that persistence and passion.
[00:20:29] Speaker B: It's called passion.
[00:20:30] Speaker A: Absolutely. I love it. I absolutely love it. And so. So now give me an idea of some of your clients and what you do for them.
[00:20:40] Speaker B: I make them very happy. I create a great video. We put it in the zoom waiting room. We'll put their video on there in the email signature. We'll put it on all the social media platforms. Did you know that there's five different ways you can utilize a video on LinkedIn?
[00:20:56] Speaker A: No.
[00:20:57] Speaker B: Most people only know one of two ways. Yeah, I didn't see, this is what I do.
[00:21:02] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:21:02] Speaker B: When you work with me, you learn how to use all these aspects that people didn't even know you could put a video in the zoom waiting room.
[00:21:12] Speaker A: No, I didn't know that until I saw yours when I was in your waiting room.
[00:21:15] Speaker B: Exactly. There's a reason for that. Well, you have to know what you're doing to get the video in the zoom waiting room.
[00:21:20] Speaker A: Got it. Okay.
[00:21:20] Speaker B: You know, do you have a QR code? Do you have a business profile? Are you on Yelp? Do you use Google reviews? There's 106 different ways to use your video.
[00:21:32] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:21:32] Speaker B: And I. And I know all the ways now. I'm sure next year there's going to be 125 ways because when you have a video, you really get ahead. And I'm working with people in all different industries. I work with the woman who owns a pet cemetery. I'm working with a guy who, he's an accountant for wineries. I love working with coaches.
[00:21:55] Speaker A: From a pet cemetery to a winery.
[00:21:58] Speaker B: Yeah. It doesn't matter if you are a face promoting your brand, I can work with you. And people are pleased with what I do for them because I am a workhorse. I will back to you. I will do whatever it takes to help you to be seen, heard and remembered.
[00:22:18] Speaker A: Wow. What's the biggest challenge in video for you on your side?
[00:22:23] Speaker B: There's so many challenges. It's called light. It's called sometimes working with people that don't want to be, that they don't feel good about being filmed, helping them to understand how light works with clothing, your skin tones. I mean, there's so many variables. And to be honest with you, most people don't even consider that. A lot of people are taking shortcuts and they're using their phone and they don't have a clue about audio. They don't have a clue about lighting, graphics. They're using cookie cutter templates. And honestly, it looks lame.
[00:23:04] Speaker A: You are the real deal, Jojo. So I know people capture the essence of Jojo Lariccia is that how you pronounce your last name?
[00:23:12] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah.
[00:23:15] Speaker A: Italian. Okay. Gotcha. How can people reach out to you if they wanted to learn more?
[00:23:21] Speaker B: If they want to learn more, they can email me at jojo ricciamedia.com. That's Jo at laricciamedia.com. Jojo at lariccia media.com.
[00:23:40] Speaker A: Wonderful. Certainly suggest you. You guys do reach out to Jojo. I've seen she's played some of her videos for me that she's done for people, and they're amazing. So, Jojo, before we wrap up, I have two questions for you. All right, first one, you have the opportunity of sitting down with young seven to ten year old Jojo to give her advice about life. What are you going to tell her?
[00:24:02] Speaker B: Be aware of your surroundings.
Be aware. Situational awareness. I know that sounds crazy for a seven year old, but you just want to be aware of what's going on in front of you, behind you, and listen, observe, read, learn. Keep your mind learning consistently. Never stop learning.
[00:24:30] Speaker A: I love that jojo. All right, so another hat. You change hats, and now you're sitting down with young Jojo, the young entrepreneur businesswoman. And in your case, it was eleven years old. Well, anyway, what kind of business advice are you going to give young Jojo, the young businesswoman.
[00:24:47] Speaker B: Oh, what kind of business advice?
Be passionate about what you do. If you're not passionate, don't do it. Don't even waste your time. That's it. Love what you do. Treat others how you want to be treated. Always follow up. Always do what you say you're going to do.
Be accountable. Always. And I'm huge on follow ups.
[00:25:17] Speaker A: Yes, you sure are. I've been on the receiving end of your follow up, so.
And we, we thank you. Yeah, that's usually a shortfall for a lot of people as the follow up. Jojo, I am grateful you're in my life, and I'm so happy you spread joy with whomever you work with. And I know that because before we were hit record, I told you that every time your name comes up, people rave about you, and it does not surprise me.
[00:25:46] Speaker B: Thank you. I am honored, Drew. I think the same about you. You're pretty spectacular.
[00:25:51] Speaker A: Thank you, Jojo. Thank you. Well, keep doing what you're doing, Jojo, you're a wonderful human being, and you offer a lot of value to your clients, and I'm so thrilled you're in my life, and I want you to take good care of yourself, okay?
[00:26:03] Speaker B: Thank you, Drew. It's a pleasure being here. I appreciate you. And keep up the good work.
[00:26:08] Speaker A: Absolutely. Thank you very much.
[00:26:09] Speaker B: Okay, can I just do something? Being the great granddaughter of the person who invented the rubber balloon.
[00:26:15] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:26:15] Speaker B: I mean, how apropos.
[00:26:16] Speaker A: There they go. There are the balloons. So once this is on video, you guys are going to see those balloons.
[00:26:21] Speaker B: Just in case you missed it.
[00:26:23] Speaker A: There we go. Some more. She's amazing. I'm telling you. All right, everybody, take care of yourselves.
[00:26:28] Speaker B: Thank you. Much love to everyone. Bye for now.
[00:26:32] Speaker A: Bye bye.
Thanks so much for listening. If you enjoyed the episode, please subscribe and give us a review to help others find it.
I'd like you to answer this question. Are you living the life you want to live, or are you living the life others want you to live? I'd like you to think about that for a second because I strongly support. I suggest you live the life you want to live. If you want to learn more about what I stand for and my services and how I'm able to help many men get out of their own way, please go to my website at www.prophetcompassion.com.
Feel free to also email
[email protected] dot I'd love to have a conversation with you. Take care of yourself and choose to write your own story instead of letting others write it for.
